Discussion in 'iPod' started by MattyMac, Apr 28, 2006.
Yes, and sell me your 4G.
Go take a cold shower, save your money for another week, use your existing iPod during that week and then see what else you want.
Someone with common sense; finally.
I think the 1GB is overpriced, as well as the 4GB.. the only one I can justify is the 2GB.. and considering the price, and what you can get a 30GB Video for.. hmmmmm.
But if you really, really want one... Get white.. you will regret the day you EVER got black.
Yeah but I can only justify the purchase because I sold a broken Ipod mini and I have enough money to buy a 1gb nano. I will only put my top songs on it.
Also Im eligible for the student discount!
Why would I regret getting black???????
And we don't mean scratches like, hmmm, have you ever seen iBook casing? Under EXTREMELY bright light, you could see very faint surface scratches.. but with the black iPod.. its worse.
They basically show up as thick, grey lines - everywhere, all over the whole damn thing, the screens don't suffer that scratch thing anymore, but the whole front of your iPod will look as if you've rubbed it with sandpaper after a few weeks.
It winds me up when a hairline scratch is viewable under intense light on the chrome.. can't imagine what would happen if I had a black iPod.
HAHAHA thanks...I will get white!
I try to use the 1 week rule.
Wait 1 week. If you still want it, then seriously consider a purchase.
My personal opinion is, if your iPod is still working, why not wait to get a new one until it breaks? Clean it up a bit, update the software, get a nice case for it. Treat 'er nice.
While other users are offering you restraint, I would like to tell you that I think my Nano is the best purchase I've made in a long time. I have a 3G iPod that I didn't use much anymore. I now use it for an external harddrive, and use my Nano almost daily. The Nano is an awesome mp3 player, and it gets looks from people around you.
Thanks for all of these amazing responses. I have actually thought about it for abouat a week now and am rally considering a white 1gb. Worst case scenerio is that I buy it, use it for about a month, KEEP IT IN PRESTINE CONDITION, and then its in the same position as my 4g and not being used that often. In this case I could just sell it in the marketplace or on ebay. Apple products do have good security that way, in that they have an amazing resale value. But, I DOUBT this will happen, its just in case! If anything I would probably end up selling my 4g.
Thanks again, and keep the opinions coming!
You should think about buying it before you do.
As said before, wait a week.
Well, if you didn't use your old 4G one much, it's very possible you might not use the new one much either. Unless the smaller size is your main motivation in thinking you'll use it more. In that case, if you have the money for it already, go for it. You only live once and all that.


A computer is an digital machine that manipulates information, or knowledge. It has the flexibility to store, retrieve, and course of knowledge. You may already know that you can use a computer to kind paperwork, ship e-mail, play games, and browse the Internet. You can also use it to edit or create spreadsheets, presentations, and even videos. Perceptual tasks (e.g. seeing and listening to) have been discovered to involve much more computation than is apparent from introspection. This computation is unconscious in people, which has made it exhausting to simulate. AI has had comparatively more success at mental tasks (e.g. sport taking part in and theorem proving) than perceptual tasks. Generally these computer packages are supposed to simulate human behavior to assist psychologists and neuroscientists (see cognitive modeling ). Sometimes they are built to unravel problems for technological utility (see skilled methods , robotics ).
In fact Marx deserved most of his disciples. They are the value he paid for his misplaced confidence in our capability to maintain up along with his hovering and typically erratic flights of thought. At a time when individuals good and evil have been equally horrified by the conversion of all human relations into money alternate, calling for the service provider to be restrained and lamenting the lack of conventional communal values, Marx refused to be blinded by the evident injustice, deceit, cruelty and vulgarity of the new era. As a substitute he celebrated the new fangled sources of wealth and was thrilled by the shock of the brand new.
Slim dense rings of comets are coming collectively to type planets on the outskirts of a minimum of three distant solar methods, astronomers have present in knowledge from a pair of NASA telescopes. SYNTHETIC INTELLIGENCE, a department of computer science that seeks to create a computer system capable of sensing the world around it, understanding conversations, learning, reasoning, and reaching choices, simply as would a human. In 1950 the pioneering British mathematician Alan Turing proposed a take a look at for synthetic intelligence by which a human topic tries to talk with an unseen conversant. The tester sends questions to the machine by way of teletype and reads its solutions; if the topic can't discern whether or not the conversation is being held with one other person or a machine, then the machine is deemed to have artificial intelligence. No machine has come near passing this take a look at, and it is unlikely that one will within the near future. Researchers, nonetheless, have made progress on particular items of the substitute intelligence puzzle, and a few of their work has had tangible advantages.
Despite the seemingly giant variety of scams you see for home-based mostly work, there are certainly many conventional jobs that permit folks to earn a living from home, and plenty of dwelling-based mostly careers you possibly can create for yourself. I'm with you, Janshares! I am positive there were many lengthy-term advantages to writing and researching with out electronics, however I will keep my computer and smartphone, thanks! I'm a blogger however I guess I by no means took it critically though I really like what I blog about. Time to go more constant! Thanks for this great article! Digital telephony, nevertheless, gives cheaper name rates, better name transmission quality and improved scalability.
It lists particulars of the air interface together with frequency, the usage of frequency hopping, modulation scheme and transmit energy. An increasingly 'empowered' inhabitants might lead to perpetual civil struggle or ruthless totalitarian dictatorship being the one two viable choices for human civilisation in the future. Often, the process in creating CAD models begin with setting up primary shapes in what is called wire-frames, and then made full by including colors and gradients in what is called texture mapping. Polygons, spheres, prisms, cylinders, curves and ovals are also solely used in most 3D designs.


text:
Angostura Global Cocktail Challenge entries open June 1
by Our Sponsors
On June 1 island2island opens entries to the Australian heats of the Angostura Global Cocktail Challenge, now held every other year. Calling on the very best bartenders from across the country, this comp tests both the knowledge and the skill of its competitors as they battle it out to become the next Australian Angostura Brand Ambassador.
A preliminary final in Melbourne on 28 August will see 10 finalists battle it out for a spot in the national final, which will be held during Bar Week on Sunday 17 September.
In addition to becoming the Australian ambassador for Angostura for a year, the national winner will win AU$10,000 and will go on to represent Australia at the Global Finals in Trinidad during Carnivale in February 2018.
The global winner not only takes out the title of Angostura Global Cocktail Champion but also receives another US$10,000 and will become the Global Ambassdor for Angostura for two years.
Often thought of as one of the toughest comps on the circuit, entrants need to submit two cocktails, as well as a video and a written entry at angosturaglobalcocktailchallenge.com.
Entries are open from 1 June at 12:01am and entries close on at 12.01am on the 15th July.
James Irvine, previous national winner and Australian Angostura Brand Ambassador said, "It has been an amazing two years and a knockout experience. In the role, I was fortunate enough to travel Australia and the world, explore, discover and learn from many talented bartenders and fellow ambassadors.
"The great thing about the Angostura Global Cocktail Challenge is that is based on a combination of knowledge and raw talent; that's represented through your drinks as you're limited to a certain amount of ingredients in your cocktail. It really comes down to the bartender's understanding of flavour profiles, balance and texture."
Allan Shearer, CEO of island2island, distributor of Angostura aromatic bitters, Amaro di Angostura and Angostura Rum in Australia comments, "We are lucky to have some of the most talented bartenders in the world here in Australia. Having previously held the title three times, we are definitely the country to look out for at the global final in Trinidad."
In past years, the challenge has seen some of the most influential bartenders in the industry compete for the title. Previous Australian winners include well-known bartenders such as Marco Nunes from Canvas in Brisbane, Joe Sinagra from Bobeche in Perth, Andy Griffiths from Melbourne, Mike Tomasic from Rhonda's in Terrigal and James Irvine from Swillhouse in Sydney. Marco, Andy and Mike have all won the global title too.
Tags: Angostura, angostura aromatic bitters, Island2Island
Our Sponsors May 31, 2017
Rohan Massie takes out second place at Angostura Global Cocktail Challenge in Trinidad
Our Sponsors February 27, 2020
The House of Angostura's Rohan Massie shares three ferment recipes
A DIY Strawberry wine recipe is at the heart of this drink from Rohan Massie
Australian Bartender February 25, 2020
This tiki recipe uses a lacto-passionfruit honey
Rohan Massie's winning drink, Hidden Perfection
Here's how you can attend the final of the Angostura Global Cocktail Challenge at Bar Week

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The Comegys Bight Fellowship awards a grant to a sophomore or junior for summer research in the area of American history, politics, art, literature or culture. The grant money can be used to fund travel, cover living expenses, or replace wages from summer jobs. Students work with faculty mentors and often, their research becomes the basis for their senior thesis.
Frederick Douglass Fellowships support work in areas related to African-American studies. The fellowship funds an annual grant of $1500 - a stipend for books, research trips, or in lieu of a part-time job - to a sophomore or junior to work on a research project related to African-American studies.
This fellowship provides $500-750 toward the costs of research and/or experiential learning opportunities such as defraying the costs of travel, purchase of research materials and photocopies, microfilm for a History major working on her/his senior thesis. The award funds can also be used to supplement the income for an otherwise unpaid internship at a historical national park, library, or museum.
The Guy Goodfellow Scholars Program complements the ongoing the Guy Goodfellow lecture series through which History Department of Washington College continues to bring nationally-renowned scholars in American history to campus. The Guy Goodfellow Scholars may pursue projects in the full range of historical studies, however, and are not limited to American History topics.
About this gallery: Participants in the Comegys Bight Fellowship Program who received stipends to support summer internships in high-level historical research gave presentations about their experiences.
Information about programs and opportunities offered through the C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience was available.


AUTISTIC schoolboy Charlie Bashford has proudly been named this year's Braw Lad in the Scottish Borders town in Tweedbank.
AN autistic schoolboy who was terrified of large crowds has starred in a village carnival in front of hundreds of people.
Charlie Bashford, 12, who has learning difficulties and a speech problem, was named Tweedbank Lad and led the festivities in his home village, near Galashiels.
And mum Caroline said being chosen for the role has made a massive difference to him.
She said: "It's been amazing to watch him. We're so proud.
Caroline, 36, worried how he would respond to having such a high-profile role.
She admitted he had been prone to violent meltdowns and in the past, the family had shied away from noisy public gatherings.
The mum of four said: "Charlie needs a lot of help with everything and he struggles if we go out. He finds it hard to cope with people around him.
"It's made us feel more confident because we shouldn't have to hide him away because he's got autism.
Charlie was selected as Tweedbank Lad with his classmate Carmen Paterson-Benton as Tweedbank Lass.
Their duties included leading the parade through Tweedbank on a horse and cart and exchanging ribbons with the Galashiels Braw Lad Cameron Pate and Braw Lass Abbie Frankland.
They also took part in judging the fancy dress competition.
Caroline admitted he did struggle with some parts and wasn't keen on getting a kiss from the Braw Lass.
But she says he enjoyed the experience.
She added: "Charlie's so proud of himself. He is wearing his special tie every day and loves having bunting up at the house.


Since falling pregnant (why does that phrase exist? falling has very little to do with getting pregnant) I have spent more time than I could have imagined in the med centre and hospital, not only that, I have spent more time than I could have imagined using their facilities/toilet/loo - take your pick, it's all about the peeing in a pot.
It seems that this task causes me serious issues (don't worry I'm not about to launch into waaaaay too much information).
I'm not very comfortable in any medical setting, I know that this is a feeling shared by many but it seems to cause me to totally embarrass myself in my ridiculously nervous state.
Somehow my sense of personal space and direction evaporates... I've found myself surrounded by four or five doors having no clue which direction to head in but knowing that the store cupboard isn't right and nor is the xray room. Usually my sense of direction is spot on so this completely confuses me.
The first of my mishaps occurred the second time I went to visit the midwife, I hadn't worked out the pee pot procedure that worked best for me at this point or that my nerves would render me quite so clumsy.
I thought I was doing really well until I turned round to get a paper towel and somehow managed to knock the full pot flying (thankfully all down the inside of the sink not over me) and ended up having to go to the midwife with the smallest sample ever.
And that's the only occasion so far that my pot has had to be sent away for further testing because it's shown up with a water infection... typical!!
I pulled on the cord that seemed to be the obvious well positioned flush if you happened to be less able than me. Nothing happened, so I pulled again, harder. On this second pull I noticed that it lit up a big red light in the ceiling. Maybe not the flush afterall so I looked for an alternative flush kind of button and found it in the usual place on the top of the cistern.
While I was washing my hands it occurred to me that, that RED cord that I had pulled to begin with, the one that lit up the ceiling, just might be the panic alarm. I left the loo in a hurry, hoping that nobody would come banging on the door, or let themselves in.
I was greeted exiting the loo by a nurse informing me that I had indeed set off their alarm and she had come to check that I was ok... Mortified doesn't even begin to describe my feeling it was like ringing 999 and then realising that the police/ambulance had already arrived.
Since getting pregnant I have had a few other mishaps that seem to be entirely due to my change in size... I seem to be very conscious that I have changed size BUT I seem to think I have got smaller, I now find myself boxing both my ears as I get in and out of a car... Don't ask me how I manage that, I just do.
The other ridiculously embarrassing mishap I have had in the past few weeks is testing out the smells of some shower gel in the main aisle in Sainsburys and finding myself having squirted a load of blue gel up and around my nose! Luckily, I found this so funny that I wouldn't have been in the least bit bothered if the whole shop had erupted laughing at me but.... really?!
I seem to be going through a massive moment in my life of embarrassing myself (and Tom) in public places... Is this going around everyone or is it a side effect of pregnancy??!!


text:
judy.legal
ISRAEL ARUM AND ORS v. OKECHUKWU NWOBODO
(2013) JELR 91388 (SC)
Supreme Court • SC.172/2004 • 19 Apr 2013 • Nigeria
ALOMA MARIAM MUKHTAR JSC; BODE RHODES-VIVOUR JSC; MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI JSC; OLUKAYODE ARIWOOLA JSC; KUMAI BAYANG AKA'AHS JSC;
KUMAI BAYANG AKA'AHS, J.S.C. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): This appeal is a very rare bird to fly at this altitude. The suit which gave rise to the appeal was instituted by the plaintiff now respondent against the defendants/appellants in the Customary Court at Awkunanaw in Suit No.AWK/3/97. His claim was for:
(a) Declaration of title to a customary right of occupancy to a piece or parcel of land known as and called 'ALA AGU AKPASHA' which is situate at Akpasha Atugbuoma in Akegbe Ugwu Nkanu West Local Government Area of Enugu State.
(b) Court injunction restraining the defendants, their agents, servants and relations from further trespass into the said land until the matter is disposed of.
The defendants denied the claim. Each of the parties presented their case and called three witnesses a piece. The Customary Court in reviewing the evidence found the witnesses called by the plaintiff to be more credible than those who testified for the defendants and entered judgment in favour of…
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judy.legal is the comprehensive database of case law and legislation from Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria. Gain seamless access to over 20,000 cases, recent judgments, statutes, and rules of court.


Home School Online: What do the Jonas Brothers and Thomas Edison have in common?
I am not surprised when I hear that kids like Dakota Fanning have been home-educated. Their ability to seek their personal interest is obvious in their work. I credit parents for recognizing these abilities and nurturing their children to grow in their true skill. I see that my own child is able to grow and work in her skills because she has the TIME to do so. What I see in her is JOY and that JOY is obvious to all who know her.


1. Who will be supervising the kids? PTO Parents, Staff, and Parent Chaperones. All of our chaperones have completed background checks. We will also have an off-duty officer, as well as a uniformed Parker Police officer on site.
2. Can my kids leave on their own? All kids will be checked in and given a registration number. You will be given the same number and must present that in order to check your child out. All doors will be secured so no student may leave.
3. What's included with registration? Your $15 includes admission to the event and all of the activities. You can add on a $5.00 pizza dinner and a drink option.
4. What about speciality foods and prizes? If your kids would like to purchase speciality foods, drinks or shop our store you may purchase additional tickets. All items will be 1-5 tickets, each ticket is $1.00. Students may purchase additional tickets at the event.
5. I didn't pre-register can I still come? ALL participants must pre-register NO WALK-INS. We will sell out so we highly recommend registering early.
6. What if there is an emergency? Please make sure that when you check in that you leave a current number should we need to contact you.
7. Can I pick up my child early? You may pick up your child any time before the end of the event however you will not be allowed to go back and find them we will page them to the front.
8. What if I am late? All kids must be picked up no later than 9:00 PM. Any kids left after 9:00 PM will be given puppies and a double shot of espresso!
9. My kids attend BASE can they just come over? No, we need all kids to be checked in by an adult.
10. My student has a medical device at the school can you use that? No, if your child needs an inhaler, EpiPen etc., please make sure they have it with them as we won't have access to medications used for school.
12. Will you monitor what my student eats? We can not guarantee your child won't eat 5 giant pixie sticks please discuss any limitations with them ahead of time.
13. Can I bring my own food and drink? With the exception of allergies please either purchase the meal option or feed your student before they come.
When will the link to register be live?


To call Pissgrave anything but death metal would be a mistake. While their genre-dictated peers often have one foot in other sounds — be it through clean singing, 'core inspirations or other undeathly discrepancies — these Philadelphia tyrants have both feet firmly planted in the grave. Their newly released debut full-length, Suicide Euphoria, doesn't flirt with death; it worships it through its uncensored cover "art," its perverse musical pugilisms and its menacing lyrics.
You'd have to take guitarist/vocalist Tim Mellon's word for it though — the lyrics that he calls "whirlwinds of aimless destruction" are damn near incomprehensible, though they do have a definite purpose. "The lyrics are a tool to inflict pain and have a hateful, careless perspective about life," he tells Exclaim!
Although he won't go into specifics about his personal life, Mellon suggests the record is a reflection of the "pretty constant mental and physical suffering" that inspired it. "The music is a tool to further explore the infinite terror [of life]," he explains.
If the music on Suicide Euphoria accomplishes one thing, it's terrifying. The grunts and growls are downright animalistic, while the music is crude and punishing.
Mellon has an explanation for their primitive death metal being rawer than most of the genre's output: "I think it has a lot to do with most non-harsh dudes attempting to play harsh music. Most new bands playing 'extreme' metal just steal from other bands and end up sounding stale and very forgettable."
Pissgrave, on the other hand, are very straightforward, both in terms of music and image. "The overall aesthetic is reality-based death. Pissgrave are rooted in reality rather than fantasy. Images of violent, offensive death [are] what is necessary to portray us musically and visually."
No matter what sense they're appealing to, Pissgrave are death incarnate. Fans of morbid music would be wise to get caught in their whirlwind.
Suicide Euphoria is out now on Profound Lore.


text:
Newsletter	19th June, 2020
In collaboration with partners- Created an action plan to address domestic violence during & post the lockdown.
Our focus:-
NCW data have informed that during lockdown domestic violence cases have increased and services were difficult to provide during the lockdown periods.
While domestic violence has emerged as a focal area, Breakthrough is also sharing content and information around how the pandemic is impacting women in general (such as an increase in unpaid carework without any sharing of the load) as well as looking at the impact on professions which are dominated by women: – frontline workers, domestic workers, healthcare workers, etc. At the same time, our focus is also on the impact of lockdown on mental health and the rise in domestic violence.
Discussions related to problems and issues especially related to health and domestic violence arising during lockdown were held with the state level government machineries to assess the current COVID 19 and other health issues in Breakthrough's intervention areas. In U.P. discussions were held with administrative officers of Asha Jyoti Kendras (Asha Jyoti Kendras are a government programme started in 17 districts of Uttar Pradesh to deal with emergency response to women in distress) on current situation and risk related to DV.
We partnered with members of the Aman Network and Gender@Work to put together information on over 170 helplines which we are sharing zone wise currently on our social media platforms.
On April 10th, Breakthrough organised its first web-based townhall with 318 participants from across the country logging in to discuss how they and their organisations are getting affected by the lockdown and the increased cases of domestic violence. It was also attended by Rekha Sharma, chairperson of the National Commission of Women.
On April 24th, we also co-hosted "#TribeTalk: Tackling Domestic Violence during The Lockdown" along with Malini Agarwal and her "Girl Tribe". MissMalini is one of India's first digital media houses, and is the go-to destination for all things Bollywood and fashion, reaching over 40 million people each month across its multiple properties. Over 2/3rds of its readers are women. Girl Tribe is a Facebook Community, an inclusive space for women everywhere which has 25,000 members.
Sharing blogs from Breakthrough's own blog on the impact of Covid19 on women (Read below).
Participating and organising conversations on platforms like Twitter (through TweetChats) to talk about domestic violence.
Sharing pieces on how, even in the middle of a lockdown, individuals can call out domestic violence and ensure the safety of survivors.
Sharing suggestions for policy makers and implementers.
Quotes and articles from Breakthough on the lockdown and domestic violence have been published in mainstream media, in newspapers like New Indian Express, Reader's Digest, Indian Express and more. (Detailed PR activities shared below).
Translating the helpline numbers into regional languages, which will then be shared
Uploading a recorded and edited video of the Townhall on our channels for dissemination.
https://inbreakthrough.org/breakthrough-indias-covid-19-emergency-response/
https://inbreakthrough.org/physical-social-distancing/
https://inbreakthrough.org/surviving-the-pandemic-same-for-everyone/
Tweetchats:
https://twitter.com/SayftyCom/status/1247179757319487488
https://twitter.com/INBreakthrough/status/1247182070729691137
Social Media Content:
The COVID-19 pandemic is not just a health issue, but it has a huge social, economic and psychological impact on people…
Posted by Breakthrough India on Thursday, 2 April 2020
Townhall:
https://twitter.com/SohiniBee/status/1248550608920956928
Our Collaborations:-
TikTok:
We are partnering with TikTok to share Covid19-related awareness videos in regional languages, like Tamil, Bengali, Odia, etc. The videos range from do's and don'ts during Covid 19, fake news, how to wash hands etc. The combined views for these videos is almost 10 million views.
https://www.tiktok.com/@inbreakthrough/video/6812655048900889858
Social Media Matters:
We did an Instagram live with Social Media Matters to discuss about the rise in online violence during lockdown and understand if there are cyber/online helpline numbers for internet users to reach out to.
Arjun Khare


text:
Q: Cannot get text value of a clicked link I'm trying to get the text value of a clicked link, but all that keeps being displayed is the ID value.
I searched the web and believe I am using the correct method. I even tried one with "target.text".
Can someone please inform me what I have wrong with the following jsFiddle?
HTML
<form name="form" id="form" action="" method="post">
    <input type="text" id="startdate">
    <input type="text" id="enddate">
    <input type="hidden" id="id" value="0">
    <input type="hidden" id="idText" value="">
    <button type="submit" value "change" name="change">Change</button>

 PALPRD

 PALTST

 EYEBAL

    <button type="submit" value "back" name="back">Back</button>
</form>

JS
$('a').click(function (event) {
    event.preventDefault();

    var url = $(this).attr('href');
    $("#id").val(url);

    var text = $(this).text();
    $("#idText").text();

    //var hv = $('#id').val();
    var hv2 = $('#idText').val();

    //alert(hv);
    alert(hv2);

    $('#form').submit();
    return false;
});

Please feel free to edit the jsFiddle...
Js Fiddle

A: you forgot to load jquery in fiddle and needed to change
$("#idText").val(text);

 $('a').click(function(event) {
   event.preventDefault();

   var url = $(this).attr('href');
   $("#id").val(url);

   var text = $(this).text();
   $("#idText").val(text);

   $('#form').submit();
   return false;
 });

<form name="form" id="form" action="" method="post">
  <input type="text" id="startdate">
  <input type="text" id="enddate">
  <input type="hidden" id="id" value="0">
  <input type="hidden" id="idText" value="">
  <button type="submit" value "change" name="change">Change</button>

 PALPRD

 PALTST

 EYEBAL

  <button type="submit" value "back" name="back">Back</button>
</form>

and here is your clean fiddle

A: It is very easy:
http://jsfiddle.net/nn09jast/
You have to choose jQuery and remove the script tags
Like this:
$('a').click(function (event) {
    event.preventDefault();
    alert($(this).html());
    return false;
});

A: You need to make few changes in this line:
var text = $(this).text();
$("#idText").val(text); // set text value to hidden field with val() instead of text()

As hidden input fields are form level elements and their values can be determined with .val()
see element reference for more detail
Demo

A: One small change and it works: you wanted, but did not, put the text variable as an argument of text() function of the hidden input #idText, which in addition should be val(text):
$('a').click(function (event) {
    event.preventDefault();
    var url = $(this).attr('href');
    $("#id").val(url);
    var text = $(this).text();
    $("#idText").val(text);// only this line is changed
    //var hv = $('#id').val();
    var hv2 = $('#idText').val();
    //alert(hv);
    alert(hv2);
    //$('#form').submit();
    return false;
});

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Report: Biden to pick Merrick Garland for AG
President-elect Joe Biden will nominate Judge Merrick Garland to serve as United States attorney general, two people familiar with knowledge of the decision told Politico in a report published Wednesday afternoon.
Garland, a political moderate, is most well known for being President Barack Obama's pick in 2016 to replace Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia after he passed away. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), however, blocked confirmation hearings on Garland's nomination, holding out until President Donald Trump was elected later that year in November.
Ultimately, Trump successfully appointed Neil Gorsuch, an originalist, to the Supreme Court, followed by two other originalist justices: Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett. These appointments will most certainly leave conservatives with a strong grip on the court for the decades after Trump soon leaves office.
Depending on if Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff beats Sen. David Perdue (R) in his Senate runoff election in Georgia, which Ossoff is overwhelmingly favored to win, Democrats will gain a majority in the upper chamber, with control over 50 of the 100 seats in the upper chamber and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris serving as the tie-breaking vote. If Republicans unexpectedly maintain their Senate majority, Garland, a source of ire for conservatives, would likely have a brutal confirmation process.
Garland, who has been serving as the chief judge on the crucial United States Court of Appeals in D.C., will head the U.S. Department of Justice if successfully confirmed by the U.S. Senate, beating out Alabama Sen. Doug Jones (D) and former deputy attorney general Sally Yates for Biden's nomination. No replacement for Garland on the appellate court has been announced.
Politico reports that, in a GOP-controlled Senate, Jones was seen as the easiest person to get confirmed because of his strong relationships with Republicans. Meanwhile, the report says that Garland was accordingly viewed as a risk because of a foreseen challenge of confirming a replacement for him on the D.C. appellate court.
Related Topics:Attorney GeneralcabinetJoe BidenMerrick GarlandSenate
Cuomo says he'll 'fully cooperate' with NY AG's review of sexual harassment claims
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said Wednesday that he will "fully cooperate" with the state attorney general's independent review into sexual harassment allegations made against the currently scandal-ridden governor, saying, "I fully support a woman's right to come forward."
Last Wednesday, Lindsey Boylan, who served in his administration for over three years, accused Cuomo of suggesting to her on a 2017 flight that they play strip poker, inappropriate touching, and kissing her on the lips without her consent.
RELATED: 'Let's play strip poker': Fmr. Cuomo aide accuses NY governor of sexual harassment
Following Boylan's accusations, 25-year-old Charlotte Bennett alleged the governor indicated interest in having an affair with her while she was serving in his administration as a health policy adviser. In a Saturday New York Times report, Bennett told the newspaper that Cuomo asked her if she had "ever been with an older man," adding that "age doesn't matter" in relationships.
At Wednesday's press briefing, the Empire State governor addressed the accusations leveled against him over the past seven days by three women and New York Attorney General Letitia James' (D) independent review into those claims, which she announced on Monday was formally proceeding.
RELATED: De Blasio 'sickened' by Cuomo sexual harassment claims
"As you probably know, the attorney general is doing an independent review, and I will fully cooperate with that review," Cuomo said at the beginning of his statement. "Now, the lawyers say I shouldn't say anything when you have a pending review until that review is over. I understand that, I'm a lawyer, too. But, I want New Yorkers to hear from me directly on this."
"First, I fully support a woman's right to come forward," the governor began. "And I think it should be encouraged in every way. I now understand that I acted in a way that made people feel uncomfortable. It was unintentional and I truly and deeply apologize for it. I feel awful about it, and frankly I am embarrassed by it, and that's not easy to say. But that's the truth."
This echoes what Cuomo said in a Sunday statement about the allegations, in which he stated he "may have been insensitive" during his tenure but charged his accusers of misinterpreting his actions, saying, "I acknowledge some of the things I have said have been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation… I am truly sorry about that."
RELATED: Cuomo responds to sexual harassment claims, saying he 'may have been insensitive'
During his Wednesday remarks, Cuomo iterated "I never touched anyone inappropriately," repeated that sentence, then said "I never knew at the time that I was making anyone feel uncomfortable" and repeated that one too.
"And I certainly never, ever meant to offend anyone or hurt anyone or cause anyone any pain. That is the last thing I would ever want to do," he continued. "I ask the people of this state to wait for the facts from the attorney general's report before forming an opinion. Get the facts, please, before forming an opinion."
"I also want you to know that I have learned from what has been an incredibly difficult situation for me as well as other people, and I've learned an important lesson," the governor said at the end of his statement. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for whatever pain I caused anyone, I never intended it, and I will be the better for this experience."
Amid Boylan and Bennett's allegations, another report of Cuomo sexually harassing a woman has cropped up. On Monday, a woman named Anna Ruch accused the governor of placing his hands on her cheeks—without her consent—at a 2019 wedding reception and asking if he could kiss her. A photograph of the two together at the event has also been circulating on social media.
The photo of Cuomo holding Anna Ruch's face was taken at Rhodes' wedding reception.
Rhodes' wife, @AlexaMKissinger, tweeted earlier this week that she was "proud of Anna for sharing her story," saying that "This pattern of behavior is completely unacceptable. https://t.co/fA92OwzX5g pic.twitter.com/5SlnBdiep6
— Josefa Velásquez (@J__Velasquez) March 3, 2021
RELATED: 'Eat the whole sausage: Gov. Cuomo in hot water for resurfaced video
Asked at Wednesday's briefing about the pictures that have resurfaced of him being touchy with people, particularly that of him and Ruch, the governor claimed that it is his way of greeting people.
"I understand the opinion of—and feelings of—Ms. Ruch," Cuomo said. "You can find hundreds of pictures of me making the same gesture with hundreds of people—women, children, men, etc. You can go find hundreds of pictures of me kissing people. […] It is my usual and customary way of greeting."
Moreover, the governor said that his father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, would do the same thing.
"By the way, it was my father's way of greeting people," Cuomo said, explaining, "You're the governor of the state, you want people to feel comfortable, you want to reach out to them."
He also mentioned that he kisses and hugs legislators and noted that at an event in Queens the other day he hugged pastors and state assembly members.
Furthermore, the governor said that his intent "doesn't matter," saying, "What it matters is if anybody was offended by it."
"But if they were offended by it, then it was wrong," he added, going on to say that if they were offended or hurt by it, he apologizes.
MORE ON CUOMO: NY dem says state legislature is 'inching toward' Cuomo impeachment probe
Pelosi's son connected to 'convicted criminals' working at five companies probed by federal agencies
'40 Small Bags' Containing Fentanyl Found in CT School After Seventh Grader Dies of Overdose in Gymnasium
Biden Admin Finally Reinstates Trump's 'Remain in Mexico' Policy, But Poorly Implements it


text:
Q: Laravel 8.0.9 Heroku Deployment Failed to install system packages enter image description here
try to push my app to heroku but keep showing this problem
im sure my composer is 2.2.3, tried composer self-update -1 to rollback to composer 1 then update to composer 2, but still wont work.
tired with  composer require composer-plugin-api still the same
here is my composer.json
{
"name": "laravel/laravel",
"type": "project",
"description": "The Laravel Framework.",
"keywords": ["framework", "laravel"],
"license": "MIT",
"require": {
    "php": "^7.3|^8.0",
    "composer-plugin-api": "^2.2",
    "fruitcake/laravel-cors": "^2.0",
    "guzzlehttp/guzzle": "^7.0.1",
    "laravel/framework": "^8.65",
    "laravel/sanctum": "^2.11",
    "laravel/tinker": "^2.5",
    "overtrue/laravel-lang": "~4.0"
},
"require-dev": {
    "facade/ignition": "^2.5",
    "fakerphp/faker": "^1.9.1",
    "laravel/sail": "^1.0.1",
    "laravel/ui": "^3.0",
    "mockery/mockery": "^1.4.4",
    "nunomaduro/collision": "^5.10",
    "phpunit/phpunit": "^9.5.10"
},

thanks!


text:
CAP criticised for 'driving,not reflecting the market'
Auction4Cars has accused CAP of having a detrimental effect on used car prices by driving the market instead of reflecting it.
A division of Motorpoint, Auction4Cars sells the company's part-exchange vehicles exclusively to the trade.
However, it claims it is experiencing a shortfall between what it pays for its part-exchange vehicles and what it is then able to sell them on for because of CAP's valuations.
Figures for April from the car auction website reveal values have fallen to an average of £2,977, equivalent to a 4% drop.
But it said valuations set by CAP remain too high, making it difficult for auctions to achieve book values on many models.
"Although it is seasonal for prices to slow at this time of year, the prices being set by CAP certainly aren't helping," said Neil Prescott, group disposals manager at Motorpoint.
"We would call on them to review their valuations at the earliest opportunity to bring them in line with market trends."
But Barry Watts, group operations director at Aston Barclay, said: "It is always easy to blame someone else. Everybody forgets that these publications are only a guide – they are not a bible.
"They are also not a futures publication; they simply take a view on the information and data they have acquired from various areas of the motor industry over the previous month."
CAP says it constantly reviews prices to ensure market trends are consistently reflected. "Our responsibility to reflect rather than influence or drive the market is a principle at the heart of our pricing processes," explained Mike Hind, communications manager at CAP.
"We therefore refute any suggestion that CAP has a detrimental – or indeed positive – impact on market values. Our job is to mirror rather than drive used car pricing movements."
Hind added: "We are always interested in reviewing additional evidence from the marketplace and strongly encourage anyone who believes they can assist our research to speak with CAP directly."
The country's two biggest auction companies, BCA and Manheim, both declined to comment.
CAP comment:
"Mr Prescott does make valid comments insofar as the market tends to focus only on the 'CAP Clean' value, even in relation to cars which do not meet the CAP Clean criteria.
There is a major issue in the current market around condition, with a mass of evidence indicating that a large proportion of the cars available do not meet that criteria at present.
There has also been a shift among buyers who until relatively recently were prepared to pay clean prices for cars which in truth needed investment in reconditioning, thanks to the shortage of supply.
Now they are more rigorously taking into account such costs because supply is more plentiful.
Therefore, by definition, average market values are inevitably failing to reach CAP Clean.
As Mr Prescott also acknowledges, there does tend to be an element of 'lag' in a monthly guide when the market is moving quickly, so that the book can be overtaken by events.
Indeed our analysis of the first week in June indicates that prices have continued to fall steadily since publication of the latest edition of Black Book.
However, it should be understood that if Black Book was to publish even lower anticipated values, based on expectations rather than current information, then CAP would be rightly held to account for damaging confidence or leading the market.
CAP is always adjusting values based on hard evidence from the market along with expert feedback from many operators. Indeed, we are having useful discussions with Auction4Cars also, whose feedback is proving invaluable during a time of market instability."
Mike Hind, communications manager, CAP


Two-week free trial! OmniFocus Standard and Pro are in-app purchases, with discounts for people who bought earlier versions of OmniFocus for iOS. Or you can get OmniFocus for iOS, Mac, and web for just one price with the OmniFocus Subscription. Download the app for details.
Use OmniFocus to accomplish more every day. Create projects and tasks, organize them with tags, focus on what you can do right now — and get stuff done.
OmniFocus — now celebrating 10 years as the trusted, gold-standard to-do list app — brings unrivaled power and flexibility to your iPhone and iPad, making it easy to work the way you want to work.
OmniFocus manages everything in your busy life. Use projects to organize tasks naturally, and then add tags to organize across projects. Easily enter tasks when you're on the go, and process them when you have time. Tap the Forecast view — which shows both tasks and calendar events — to get a handle on your day. Use the Review perspective to keep your projects and tasks on track.
Then let our free syncing system make sure your data is the same on all your iOS devices. (And on OmniFocus for Mac and Web, available separately.) Because your data is encrypted, it's safe in the cloud.
• NEW: Tags add a powerful additional organizing tool. Create tags for person, energy level, priority, location, and more.
• Custom perspectives help you create new ways to see your data by filtering and grouping projects and tags. NEW: The filtering rules are simpler to use while being more powerful than ever, letting you combine rules with "all," "any," and "none." You can also choose any image to use as your custom perspective's icon, and a custom tint color to go with it.
Pro features in this edition of OmniFocus can be purchased via the OmniFocus Subscription, which gives you access to OmniFocus on iOS, Mac, and the Web on a monthly or yearly basis.
Subscriptions include a 2-week free trial for first time subscribers. If you are re-subscribing, payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase.
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OmniFocus 3.2.2 is a minor update focused on bug fixes--please see the release notes in the app. OmniFocus 3.2 added support for the optional OmniFocus Subscription.
• OmniFocus Subscription — We've launched OmniFocus for the Web, and with it the optional OmniFocus Subscription, which lets you pay one price for OmniFocus on Mac, iOS and the Web. You can purchase a subscription for all three during the first-run experience, or via In-App Purchases in OmniFocus Settings.
• Settings — Added an Omni Account section to Settings, where you can update your account info and easily access the subscription management page.
• Shared Web Credentials (Requires iOS 12) — OmniFocus now supports shared web credentials on iOS 12, enabling better integration with iCloud Keychain and apps like 1Password.
• Notifications — Fixed a problem where the Notifications inspector did not update immediately in response to changes in Settings.
• Forecast — Forecast now hides declined calendar events, and events in the past. Clean Up removes events that are still the Forecast outline but are now in the past due to passage of time.
• Smaller Fixes and Improvements — Thanks for sending in bug and crash reports!
If you have any feedback or questions, we'd love to hear from you! The Omni Group offers free tech support; you can email omnifocus@omnigroup.com, call 1–800–315–6664 or 1–206–523–4152, or tweet @OmniFocus.
If OmniFocus empowers you, we would appreciate an App Store review. Your review will help other people find OmniFocus and make them more productive too.
A Must Have For Productivity!
I recently upgraded from OmniFocus 2 to OmniFocus 3. At first I was a bit disappointed. Stylistically the app doesn't look much different than the previous version until after a few days later when I realized that there is so much under the hood. In fact it is a brand new an incredibly powerful productivity tool that has maintained the same familiarity that its users have grown accustomed to, while adding tremendous amount of power and flexibility, so much so that I would say whether you follow GTD or any other system, or you want to make your own OmniFocus can support that. The note field is absolutely incredible. You can add an email and it would display as if you are viewing it in your email client. Tags are incredibly powerful and easy. Custom perspectives can organize your data however you like to view it . While you can customize the app to such degree that it no longer looks like when you first got it, it is incredibly powerful and useful right out of the box. Another feature that I absolutely love is the Review Perspective which is so unique to OmniFocus and not offered by any other productivity app on the market. I can keep writing but all of this is a testament to the OmniGroup for their ability and understanding of how to make us more productive while enjoying the process. Many, many Thanks!!!
One of the key tenets of GTD is being able to trust your system. Once a task has been captured, you can relax in the knowledge that it won't be lost; won't be forgotten. OmniFocus on my iPad, iPhone and Mac give me that confidence.
The GTD system is centered around the concepts of Projects and Contexts, which previous versions of OmniFocus supported elegantly. Contexts in particular were a powerful tool, but sometimes frustrating to organize. It was hard to fit every task into a single, meaningful context. The "big idea" with OmniFocus 3 is the change away from context to tag. Tags work exactly like contexts did previously, but you can have many of them on a task instead of one. This is a major game changer. All my tasks were migrated to the new version with no problem, with my former contexts converted to tags. Now I'm rethinking everything about how to use tags in more flexible ways, especially using geofencing tags (like a "Home Depot" tag and a "Lowe's" Tag on tasks to pick up potting soil).
OmniFocus 3 oozes quality and craftsmanship which I've come to expect from the Omni Group. As a loyal customer, I did get it for a discount, but it was an insta-buy anyway. Can't say enough about this great company.
So I'm still VERY new to all this therefore I spent A LOT of time researching! To find the BEST and why... Who has what features, and the most flaws! Dead give away in the reviews what is true by the "repeat complaints" and/or "compliments"... This way I know I'm gonna waste wayyyyy more time trying it out or possibly spending my hard earned money on it... Then I end up hating it! Bc I AM the that person that will fight for the refund!! I've worked in Customer Service for 12 years so I don't lose lol!) Anywho..... I'm intrigued to say the least. The reviews alone make it perfectly clear OM has revived themselves with version 3..... As far as features go that is!!! The simple fact that hundreds of people have been either RE-CHARGED to use an app they already paid for, just because it finally Upgraded (Which is beyond absurd!!) Or go without those new features... Forced my hand to refuse giving your company more money! Can you imagine all these app developers friggin charging paid customers, LOYAL PEOPLE THAT ALREADY MADE YOU WHO YOU ARE IN YOUR BUSINESS WORLD... AGAIN!!! Every time they keep up with the competition and do what they're supposed to do. YEAH FRIGGIN RIGHT!! I'm actually surprised at Apple as well for allowing such BS!


text:
Q: Shared SSL - Better or worse than resorting to OpenID? I am working on a project that requires user login/registration.  I'd like to avoid setting up private SSL since I am using a shared hosting provider and would like to host multiple domains off of the same plan (but since a private SSL certificate requires a dedicated ip, I can only have 1 certificate per plan...but would still like to secure all of my sites).
I am debating between

*

*resorting to OpenID (although for a non-technical audience all the complaints I found on SO would be further multiplied)

*using my host's shared SSL (which will pop up those annoying certificate warnings in the browser saying that the sites don't match).

What seems like a better option? Or would you suggest run away from both and just suggest sucking it up and purchasing additional/better hosting plans?

A: Why not roll your own from the ground up?  If your database is accessible from each domain, you could keep one user store that every domain could access.
Is there a particular reason you do not want to create your own user model?  It's easy to do but you may have other factors that are leaning you towards something like OpenId that I am not aware of.

A: From my experience in dealing with SO and a fairly simple site using Google App Engine (and their authentication system), I'd give the following advice:

*

*Do NOT use OpenID for identification.  It can work for authentication with your own identity management, but there are issues as soon as you try to identify a specific user.

*Its amazing how many open ids people will have, so be prepared to support multiple OpenID auth URLs (definitely more than 1, probably more than 2)

*If high security is a requirement, be very wary of OpenID.  Many people will use providers that they normally only use for low-security tasks (and therefore have weak passwords).  This particular issue struck Jeff Atwood directly (his account was stolen due to exactly this mistake)!

*Keep things simple for your users.  If you do go with OpenID, emphasize one or two providers that they likely already have (eg, Google), and then provide a deemphasized selection for generic providers.  Don't make the more simple-minded users think about OpenID.

*Along with that thinking, a simple "Login with your Google Account" button works surprisingly well.  I thought people would find it confusing to login to a third party site with their google account, but in practice this has not been a problem with our .appspot.com domain.

The bottom line is that you shouldn't expect your users to prefer openid, but it can be an acceptable compromise.  I don't think that showing an invalid certificate is a reasonable option for many end-users.
Of course, the separate certs option is the cleanest, but you have to decide if thats really worth it for the value gained.  I'm a cheapskate and would tend to avoid it myself. :)

A: If you use the shared SSL's URL, you shouldn't get the popups. That's the whole point of shared SSL. What you is the identity of your site's URL when the user jumps to the secure connection.
I would talk to your hosting provider about your options when it comes to private SSL. They're really not that expensive (even free if you're ok with poor IE support). I've been with shared providers in the past that would allocate you a dedicated IP for use with SSL for a tiny extra fee (like $2/mo).
To me, the extra $54 per year ($30 for the cert + $24 for the IP) was well worth the peace of mind for me and my users.


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Trial / Dominic Ongwen
March 7, 2017 by Tom Maliti
Witness Says LRA Leadership Ordered a Stop to Abductions in 2002 or 2003
Dominic Ongwen, Summary
Radio, Sinia Brigade, Pubudu Sachithanandan, Ocan Laboingo, Witness P-205, Ocan George, abductions, Oka, Siba, Terwanga
A former commander of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) told the International Criminal Court (ICC) that Dominic Ongwen reported to his leader attacks on two camps for displaced people months after the attacks took place.
Witness P-205, who began testifying yesterday, told the court on Tuesday that Ongwen reported to the LRA leader, Joseph Kony, about the attacks on Odek and Lukodi three months after the events took place. The witness said Ongwen reported on the attacks using the radio of another commander, Ocan Laboingo. Ongwen and Laboingo were commanders in the same brigade, Sinia.
During previous testimony of former LRA radio operators and Ugandan government interceptors, Ongwen's defense team raised questions about whether it was Ongwen who carried out the attack on Odek or whether it was Laboingo. Ongwen's defense team also asked those witnesses whether it was Ongwen or Laboingo who reported through radio to the higher ups in the LRA about the Odek attack.
Ongwen is charged for his alleged role in the attacks on Odek and Lukodi. He is also charged for attacks on Abok and Pajule camps for people displaced by the conflict in northern Uganda. Other charges against Ongwen include forcibly marrying women, who were girls at the time, and committing sexual crimes against them. In total Ongwen faces 70 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
On Tuesday, Witness P-205 said he was present when Ongwen called Kony to tell him about the attacks on Odek and Lukodi.
"He [Ongwen] sent his report using Ocan George's radio call," said the witness, using a term members of the LRA use when referring to a radio. He also used Laboingo's other names to refer to him.
Later, trial lawyer Pubudu Sachithanandan asked Witness P-205 about orders in the LRA on abductions. The witness said the group's leadership ordered a stop to the abductions of girls and boys in 2002 or 2003, but some commanders did not obey that order.
Witness P-205 told the court that before the order was revoked, abductions served two purposes in the LRA.
"If I use the example of 2002, prior to an operation [LRA leader Joseph] Kony convened everybody together. He then told us whoever didn't have a wife was going to get a wife," said the witness.
He said Kony told them that "each brigade should ensure they increase or they boost their number of soldiers," by abducting boys.
Sachithanandan asked him why then abductions continued even after that order was revoked.
"I am trying to think of a way to explain so that you can understand. When you are assigned to a particular task there are times when you may go over and above what you are supposed to do as an individual. So you may do what you have not been authorized to do and actually the opposite of what you are supposed to do," Witness P-205 said.
He said some commanders ordered their unit to carry out abductions, and those commanders would hide the abducted boys and girls from other units but then eventually they would report to their superiors what they had done.
Sachithanandan then asked him what happened next after boys had been abducted.
Witness P-205 said the boys are warned against trying to leave the LRA. He said they are told, "That this place where you have been brought to is for you to stay. Don't try to escape or otherwise you will lose your life."
He said they are further told, "In the same way that you came is also the same way that everybody that you see was brought here."
Witness P-205 said after this warning the boys are then distributed to different members of the unit that captured them. He said this decision is made by the commanding officer of a battalion or the brigade commander.
Sachithanandan then asked Witness P-205 about boys under 15 years of age he had seen in the three battalions of Sinia brigade, namely Oka, Siba, and Terwanga. The witness told the court about the boys he remembered, who they were assigned to, and what their duties were.
The trial lawyer asked him about a boy called Kidega. Witness P-205 said he was 13 years when he was assigned to Ongwen.
"Kidega was the person who would carry Dominic Ongwen's chair. He would carry the chair and follow Ongwen wherever he goes. If Ongwen would like to sit down, he gets the chair from Kidega," the witness said. He said the boy later died during attacks government troops directed at Ongwen's unit.
Sachithanandan also asked Witness P-205 about who in 2004 in the three battalions of Sinia brigade, namely Oka, Siba, and Terwanga, was assigned girls. The witness told the court about the commanders and other men he could remember.
"It looks like not everyone had wives, so at what age or level of maturity would one get a wife?" asked Sachithanandan.
"In terms of having a wife, once you are mature in your age, from 20 upwards, you are given a wife, if it is agreed that you be given a wife," replied Witness P-205.
He said a battalion commander made a recommendation to the brigade commander who should be assigned a girl as a wife. He said the brigade commander would then pass on those recommendations to his superiors.
On Wednesday, Witness P-205 will be cross-examined by Ongwen's defense lawyer.
← Previous Post Witness Says Ongwen Told LRA Fighters to "Destroy Odek Completely"
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Eyes on Europe
Gender/equality
Partners/external
Eyes on Europe Alumni
"Game of Thrones" in Brussels: who will be the next Commission President?
Robin Vanholme
The 2019 EU elections came and left a dynamic fragmented political environment behind it. Traditional parties in the European Parliament (EP) have lost many seats, while both Eurosceptics and pro-EU forces have gained seats. The citizens asked for greener, more progressive policies, but also for more nationalist and anti-EU policies. What can we learn from the EU elections? More importantly, what are the consequences for the next EP legislative period? Who will be the next President of the Commission and the European Council?
Outcome of the EU elections
Without even starting to look at who won and who lost, it is striking to see that the turnout for the European elections has finally increased to 51%. This is the highest turnout since 1994 (56.7% that year). Indeed, the turnout has decreased each year since 1994 and hit rock bottom with 42.6% in 2014. This low turnout was partially questioning the legitimacy of the mandate of the Members of the European Parliament (MEP).
With regards to the preliminary results (therefore subject to possible small changes compared to when the final results will be known), we could see that the largest European group, the European People's Party (EPP), suffered a lost of 37 seats in the EP, but remains the largest political group. The socialist group S&D is also one of the biggest "losers" of the elections, with 33 seats less than in 2014. Taken together, the EPP and S&D do not have a majority in the EP anymore.
The "winners" are the ecologist Greens/EFA (with 22 more MEPs) and especially the liberal group ALDE/Renaissance (with 40 more MEPs, thanks to Macron joining the group). But the winners, in some ways, are also the Eurosceptic groups of the EFDD (thanks to the Brexit Party and the 5 STar Movement) and mostly of the ex- ENF with a dramatic increase of 37 seats (thanks to Salvini's alliance of Eurosceptic parties across Europe, such as the Rassemblement national in France). Final seats results may change.
Some people were bracing themselves for a Eurosceptic wave, but we clearly have a pro-EU majority in the EP. However, building a majority coalition will be more difficult than in 2014. Indeed, this time we will need at least three groups, instead of two, to reach the 376 seats of absolute majority. All the Eurosceptic groups taken together, even after their new gains in seats, cannot reach 367 seats and will remain a minority during the next legislature. If the three Eurosceptic groups join together and have an absolute cohesion among their MEPs (which is not likely), they would certainly make the EU decision making more difficult, but could not block the EP as they will never have an absolute majority.
We must not forget that after Brexit, the distribution of seats in the EP will change. As a matter of fact, we will move from a total of 751 seats to 705 seats, and some groups will lose MEPs while others will gain a few. The most impacted group will be the EFDD, where the UK Brexit Party is. The EFDD would indeed lose 25 of its 54 seats after Brexit (if it ever happens). The EPP, in its case, would gain 4 seats after Brexit.
What the results mean for the top EU posts
Let us now focus on the executive side of the EU elections. According to the EU Treaty, the European Council, composed by the Heads of State and Delegations (HoSD), will have to choose by qualified majority the candidates for the top EU posts for the next legislative period, taking into consideration the results of the EU elections. The candidates will then need to be approved by a simple majority of the EP. The four top EU positions that need a replacement are the Presidents of the European Commission, European Parliament, European Council, and the High Representative of the EU (HR/VP).
In 2014, the Spitzenkandidaten system was introduced. Simply speaking, the Spitzenkandidaten process was meant to have the lead candidate of the first European group (i.e. the one that gets the most seats) to become the next President of the Commission. Hence, if the EPP has the most votes and if it can gather a majority, the EP would normally support the EPP's candidate (Juncker in 2014) to become the next President. However, this has become more unlikely this time. Indeed, some HoSD such as Macron and some MEPs such as Verhofstadt are against this process, because of the lack of transnational electoral lists. Moreover, the EPP has always won the most seats and would therefore always designate the President of the Commission. Furthermore, the EPP candidate, Manfred Weber, has no relevant experience in executive positions, and is German: German people already occupy a lot of EU top posts, which annoys some politicians.
In addition to this, the EPP, while remaining the largest group, is also the group that has lost the most MEPs. Moreover, the CDU/CSU, the main party of the EPP, lost the EU elections in Germany, and the Austrian MP, a strong supporter of Weber, will have to resign because of a scandal in his government. Finally, the HoSG members of the EPP are now clearly in minority in the European Council, and cannot count on making a coalition with the S&D HoSD as in 2014, because the socialists (in smaller minority too than in 2014) are now fighting to have Frans Timmermans as the next Commission President. However, European Council President Donald Tusk noted that the designation of the next Commission President is not 100% restricted to the Spitzenkandidaten system.
The Spitzenkandidaten system states that the election results have to be taken into consideration when designating the Commission's president, which can be understood in different ways. According to the EPP, it means that we have to look at the strongest party. Other so-called "progressive" forces, claim that we need to consider the bigger picture, which is citizens striving for significant change with more EU competence and more action on climate change issues, instead of maintaining the status quo.
Many names for the top EU posts are rumoured: in addition to those already mentioned, we also have Michel Barnier (the Brexit negotiator for the EU), Christine Lagarde (current IMF chief), Ska Keller (the co-President of the EU Greens) and Margrethe Vestager (current Commissioner for Competition). Speaking about these three women, they seem to have more chances today than in 2014. This is due to Jean-Claude Juncker's and Donald Tusk's stated aim to achieve, in addition to political, ideological and geographical equality, gender equality for the future top EU posts, with at least two women. Currently, only the HR/VP is a woman: Federica Mogherini.
The Eurosceptic parties gained seats, but did less well than expected, while the pro-EU groups of the ALDE and Greens gained many more MEPs, at the expense of the main conservative EPP. While the EP is less anti-EU than projected by some polls, finding a majority to vote in favour of the legislations will be more tricky because of the bigger political fragmentation than in 2014. As for the top EU posts (Commission, EP, European Council, HR/VP), it will be even trickier than in 2014 as the Spitzenkandidaten process is ambiguous, and no majority among HoSD can be found so far on a name. The European Council is set to meet on 11 and 12 June to directly discuss names, but because of the big number of candidates, the ideological and political differences, the unpopularity of Weber and the wish of France to have a candidate with a clear progressive pro-EU agenda, it is a real Game of Thrones battle that is set to happen in Brussels, which could last for months.
EUROPEAN COMMISSION, "European Elections 2019", Political report, 28 May 2019.
EUROPE ELECT, 2019 Spitzenkandidaten, europeelects.eu/2019spitzenkandidaten.
QUATREMER, J., "Commission : la candidature Weber rejetée, la perle rare reste à trouver", Libération, 29 mai 2019, https://www.liberation.fr/planete/2019/05/29/commission-la-candidature-weber-rejetee-la-perle-rare-reste-a-trouver_1730332.
RETTMAN, A., "Women should fill two EU top jobs, Tusk says", EUObserver, 29 mai 2019, https://euobserver.com/eu-election/145047.
ZALAN, E., "Merkel and Macron split over Weber presidency", EUObserver, 28 mai 2019, https://euobserver.com/eu-election/145038.
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Germany is the third biggest consumer of beer in the world – falling behind only Ireland and the Czech Republic. With over 5000 varieties and more than 1300 breweries, it is a hugely important part of German culture. Almost half the breweries in Germany are in Bavaria, but Berlin still offers a wealth of opportunities to whet your appetite for beer.
The most famous Berlin-based beer is the Berliner Kindl. In the 19th Century there were 700 breweries in Germany brewing this particular Berlin favourite; by the early 20th Century this had been cut down to just two in Berlin and a handful around the rest of Germany. The Berliner Kindl is now the only beer to be produced in Berlin. It comes in a range of flavours and colours. The fluorescent green, red and purple Berliner Kindl Weisse (pre-mixed with grenadine or mixed at the bar) make for a novel drinking experience with very sweet fruit flavours verging on a beery alcopop. Within the Berliner Kindl group, there are also two basic Pilsner beers – the standard Berliner Pilsner and the Berliner Kindl Jubilӓums Pilsner. The Berliner Pilsner is very effervescent and tart, which works well with cordial mixes and beer based cocktails. The Jubilӓums Pilsner is a much sweeter and slightly stronger beer.
There is also a huge selection of various German and international beers you can try while visiting Berlin. The main six varieties are the Weiβbier or Weizenbier (wheat beer), Blonde, Schwartzbier (dark or black beer), Pilsner, Dunkle (strong) and Hell (light). There are also red beers on offer in many places that – in both colour and taste reside somewhere between the Schwartz and the Blonde. A great red beer is the Duck Stein which immediately hits you with the strong taste of hops. There are a huge range of other varieties, which if you can find them can be worth the trouble.
If you are into your wheat beers, the Weihenstephan Hefeweizen Hell is a good place to start. With hints of fresh tropical fruits and a light creaminess, this is great for a hot summer's day. Similarly, the Alpirsbacher Klosterbrӓu Blonde is a light yet bitter beer with warm notes of citrus. The Bitterfelder Blonde is also a good choice, for a much smoother drink and doesn't have the bitterness of the former.
A great Schwartzbier to try is the König Ludwig Dunkel which contains hints of oranges and is unusually fruity for such a dark beer. It is also worth heading to Hops & Barley which has a one-off Schwartzbier brewed on the premises that is fantastically creamy and has strong flavours of coffee and caramel. The Hümmel Brӓu smoked dark beer is also a very interesting choice – with an aftertaste almost resembling smoked cheese, and would be fantastic with a hearty meal. For a lighter meal try the Leschenbacher Bier which has very strong hints of lemon and offers a great sharpness to the palate.
In terms of your standard lager-beers, a good one is the Bavarian Augustinerbrӓu München, which has been made in Munich since 1328 making it one of the oldest German beers. This is available in most places, including the Beer Gardens at the Mauer Park Market every Sunday. Another is the Löwenbrӓu which is a very sweet and light standard lager.
There's also the option to try one of the many fruit beers on offer. The Bitterfelder Kirsch is bursting with cherry flavours without being too sweet and overpowering. If you really want to taste the fruit, try a Dju Dju Beer which comes in a variety of exotic fruit flavours including mango. However, with these the taste of beer is almost completely lost to fruit juice. For something in between go for the Schöfferhofer in grapefruit, fig, pear and ginger or cactus flavours which retains its status as a beer but is also very juicy and light.
You can try many of these beers at Die Haus Der 100 Biere and an even greater variety at the Annual Berlin Beer Festival if you are planning an August trip. However, most bars and pubs will have a good selection in bottles if not on tap. Of course, the Germans take their beer very seriously, and it is advisable to make sure you drink responsibly during your stay.


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Chapter 6 - Permanent
When she came home after work, he could tell that she was still hot and bothered, though there was also a shadow of gloomy seriousness on her face. She approached him with uncertain, almost fearful steps.
"Listen Jake, about what happened today-"
He hushed her with a finger on her lips. They were soft and warm. The same lips that had just sucked two cocks earlier today. Did that really bother him? Not in the slightest.
"You're a little slut, Mollie. You've always been one." His thumb gently parted her lips, brushing the wet tip of her tongue.
Jake saw the wave of heat that went through his girlfriend's body, her face going red, her nipples hardening, her butt cheeks clenching around the wide toy shoved up her ass. Then she gave in and relaxed, sucking on his thumb. He smiled at her and grabbed her by the hair, pulling her towards the bedroom.
He was sitting on the top of the bed, leaning against the frame. His chubby girlfriend was in front of him on all fours, her big, rounds tits hanging freely underneath her. Mollie looked like an ancient fertility goddess, plump and ripe, made to be fucked. She lowered her head towards his erect cock. Things were coming naturally to her now, like instincts awakening from the depths of her mind. She took it in her hands, kissed it, licked the shaft. Her head went down and her ass went up. Her mouth opened and took him in, gently sucking the head, taking more and more with every bobbing motion.
Jake groaned and dug his fingers in her hair. His hand took control of her motions, guiding her fast and slow, deep and shallow. She was open and receptive to every command, doing her best to please him in every way. As he took over the directions of her mouth, one of her hands slipped down between her thighs.
"Don't," he intercepted her firmly.
She moaned in frustration, wiggling her round ass, but reluctantly retracted her hand anyway.
"Your transformation isn't done yet. The more you want it, the more your true desires come to light. That toy in your butt is a constant reminder that you need a dick in that pussy. Isn't that right?"
He pulled her in, shoving his shaft all the way down her throat. She gagged a little, but relaxed her muscles, allowing him to facefuck her. When he felt he was right on the edge he pushed her away, allowing her to gasp for air.
"Do you see this cock?" he mused, slapping his rock-hard erection against her drooling mouth.
"Mhm," she moaned.
"It's not going inside your pussy. You will learn exactly how much you love cock, exactly how much you need it inside any of your holes, how much you crave cock. Your pussy desires to be stuffed like a little slut, and you will leave it that way. Only then you can truly know your place. Do you understand?"
There was a strange light that flickered in her eyes. Mollie slowly nodded.
"Now you're going to finish what you started, like a good slut. You will take my cum in your mouth, and when you swallow it you will think about how much you wish it was in your pussy."
She did as she was told. Jake could see drops of juice dripping down from her sex. It was so tempting to touch and tease her, but he decided it might be too much. She was barely containing herself as it was. And she was such a wonderful sight to behold. He grabbed her breasts instead, their weight resting comfortably in his palms. He touched her round belly - astonishingly enough, the pressure from the giant toy inside her could be felt even there. He imagined all those balls going deep inside her, each larger than the previous, stuffing her all the way up. It made her movements awkward and her walk telling. When she was moving around the office, anyone with an attentive eye could tell. Anyone could know that his girlfriend was a slut that spent the day with a giant toy shoved up her butt.
Jake came vigorously, filling Mollie's mouth with his warm seed. She swallowed it all dutifully, then licked his shaft up and down to make sure it was clean.
He could still feel the tension in her as she rolled next to him, with a tired body and a mind clouded with lust. The long day had taken its toll, but it still took her awhile to drift off to sleep. Even half-conscious, Mollie twisted and turned, grinding her ass against him. Even when she calmed down, Jake could still feel her shiver every so often, her cheeks repeatedly clenching and relaxing around the plug.
It was the fourth day she was wearing the plug. He woke up with her, but pretended he was still sleeping, and waited for her to get ready and leave before leaping onto the computer. He logged in the office surveillance network and waited for her to arrive at work.
When Mollie walked in Jake's heart started pounding. This time she was wearing heels, a schoolgirl-like mini skirt and a white shirt that was left unbuttoned, revealing most of her cleavage. She had dolled-up herself with make-up and wore a black choker and two leather bracelets around her wrists. But most importantly, she wasn't trying to hide it. When walking on those heels the arch of her back was more than a little suggestive, pushing her large butt up. And by the little movements she made with her hips, by the way her ass muscles tensed and relaxed along with her facial expression, one could certainly guess that something was going on.
On the way to her desk, Jake saw Mollie brush past Mark, and stop for a moment to exchange a few words. He couldn't make out what they were saying, but he saw his hand briefly dart under her skirt, which made Mollie bite her lip and tilt forwards on her heels. Than Mark slapped her ass and send her on her way.
The hours of work went painfully slow, and it was clear that Mollie was struggling to get anything done. She spent more time shifting around and exchanging jabs with her co-workers, than she did focusing on the PC screen. Before noon, the call finally came.
She walked towards her boss' office in a way that did not go unnoticed. Jake could see heads turning here and there, and people whispering to one another. Rumours would spread, and Mollie was not doing anything to mitigate them, but lewdly swaying her hips towards the onlookers.
Mr. Jakob was already waiting for her in a heavy armchair. Mollie closed the door behind her and sank to her knees in front of him. He undid his belt and allowed her to pull his cock out and take him in her mouth.
Jake unbuttoned his own pants, stroking his vigorous erection as he watched his chubby girlfriend suck off her boss. He was as large and thick as ever, giving Mollie a run for her time as she struggled to service him properly.
When he was hard to full length, Mr. Jakob pushed her back and calmly pointed towards his desk, where Mollie bent over and assumed the already familiar position. He took down her panties and lifted her skirt up, showing her naked ass in plain view of the camera. Jake got a perfect look of the large plug that was stretching his girlfriend's O-ring. Her clean-shaven pussy was already wet and quivering with anticipation. It made him stroke harder.
"Are you ready to earn that promotion, girl?" mused Mr. Jakob.
"Yes, sir," replied Mollie in a voice shaking with excitement.
He grabbed the base of the plug and carefully tugged at it, twisting and turning millimeter by millimeter. Mollie's face tensed as the sphere started coming out, stretching her more and more, until it passed its widest point, stealing a shrewd moan from her, and the second half of it slipped out effortlessly. The older man grinned and continued the exercise, each smaller sphere coming out easier than the previous one, until finally the entire toy was out of her.
"Time to teach your ass what real fucking is, slut!"
Squirting a generous amount of lube from a bottle on his desk, the older gentlemen pressed his tip against the girl's well-stretched back entrance. The days of wearing the huge toy had certainly paid off, and he was able to wiggle all the way in, pushing back and forth to gain ground one inch at a time.
Mollie's face was the face of a slut in heat. The time of frustration and denial had made her not just willing, but eager to wrap her cheeks around her boss' thick cock. She moaned when it sunk all the way in for the first time, then gasped as it pulled back and thrust again. When he picked up the pace she bit her lips and dug her fingers into the desk. She may have been technically an anal virgin, but the extended training made sure she could take a pounding.
Her boss pressed tightly against her back, reaching around to squeeze her big breasts. His hands slipped under her shirt and inside her bra, pulling them out to hang and bounce while he fucked her.
At one point he slowed down, shoving it all the way in and keeping it there. Right on cue, Mollie started shaking her hips back and forth, fucking herself against the older business man. Satisfied with that response, he gripped her neck and pushed her head down, picking up speed again. He went harder and harder and culminated with a few final deep trusts, filling her obedient butt with his cum.
It was enough for Jake as well. Seeing his once shy girlfriend turned into into an obedient anal slut pushed him over the edge. Her ass pressed firmly against her boss, waiting for his final squirts to fill her. Jake knew they would be the first of many to fill that newly trained hole.
When the man finally let go of her, Mollie was still light headed, her hazy eyes filled with desire.
"You've done an excellent job, Mollie. I'm a man of my word - the promotion is yours. You've earned it."
She nodded, smiling awkwardly, then made a hesitant step towards the door.
"Before you go," he continued, "I'd like to extend another offer to you."
She turned around, her face still red and sweaty from the pounding. Mr Jakob went to his desk and pulled an object out of a drawer. It was a sort of transparent plug, but shorter and wider than any Jake had seen. He immediately sensed that something was up. Was the boss going to offer her more money? An even better position?
"This is a tunnel plug," the businessman explained. "As you can see, it is wide and has an opening in the middle."
She looked at the toy and swallowed hard.
"And if I p-put it in… what do I get?" Her eyes were darting between the plug and her boss' face.
"Why, you get to have your slutty asshole permanently stretched as a reminder of what an anal whore you are," he replied calmly, keeping his eyes on hers. "And of course there's the added advantage that anyone could fuck you without taking it out," he smirked.
Mollie managed to hold his gaze for a few seconds, before turning around and bending down. The man in the suit approached her, held her steady with one hand and pushed the plug in with the other. She gave a little squeal and the toy set in, fixing her asshole back to its stretched position.
"There, all set. You can go now, Mollie," he said, slapping her but on her way out.
The chubby girl walked through the company floors, all dolled up with an ass sticking out. Heads were turning again and people were talking. Jake was hard again, but he had to step off screen for a while. He knew that whatever happened next would be only the beginning.
Dear readers, thank you for all the support and reading thus far! This is the end of the originally planned content, which is why the story is now marked as complete.
If you want to see more content added to this story, please leave your ideas and suggestions down in the comments and I will consider them for future bonus chapters =)
If you'd like to see this story illustrated, consider supporting me on Patreon! Not only will you help fund the art commissions, but you will be able to vote to choose which artist to do it and which scenes to be illustrated!
© 2019 Vincent Valensky. All rights reserved.
Hentai Foundry


Street Execs Management is an Atlanta-based hip-hop firm that is on the rise. They have taken the success of their marquee artist 2 Chainz and used it to build a company heavy on ATL up-and-coming rappers and groups like Travis Porter and Cap 1. Recently, they introduced a unique billboard campaign in their native city that has gotten a ton of attention. Each of their artists is on a billboard advertising not an album, but rather their Atlanta neighborhood.
Forbes: I was curious about the billboard campaign you guys are doing.
Charlie Jabaley: We've had such amazing feedback from it. We had no idea our phones would be ringing this much about billboards. But it's about the hip-hop culture in Atlanta. So So Def [the long-running Atlanta-based hip-hop label, run by Jermaine Dupri] has done the billboard [in the past].
BMF [Black Mafia Family, an Atlanta-based drug trafficking organization that entered the hip-hop business in 2000 under the name BMF Entertainment] are the ones who had the lasting legacy of having billboards, but they always had two of them.
With them being notorious drug dealers, it was a pretty big deal. But it's never really been done since.
F: Do people in Atlanta get that you're consciously trying to continue that history of Atlanta billboards – of BMF and So So Def?
CJ: Mainly people in the music business. They've said BMF stuff to us without us saying it. They come to us saying, y'all are like the new BMF. People connect the dots on it.
It's kind of weird. We opened up a new studio here in Atlanta that BMF built. So I sit in Big Meech's [Black Mafia Family co-founder Demetrius "Big Meech" Flenory] office every day. It just makes me think every day that we've got to take this hip-hop stuff to the next level.
We're all new [at Street Execs]. Hip-hop is always a revolving door of new people. So you've got to learn from what the people before you have done. But I wanted to take it way beyond. We put up eight billboards. BMF had two, we put up eight. And how we did it was, each of our artists is from a different side of town. So when we get up billboards, we didn't want to advertise anything.
F: It's not tied to a new project for any of the artists.
CJ: Because this was my concept behind it: Say for instance for 2 Chainz, we advertise his new mixtape. That really only affects the people associated with the mixtape, like the producers or us. But when you shout out his side of town, the billboard is about his side of town, and it makes everybody who sees it feel like it's their billboard. It kind of becomes a monument more than an advertisement, and it just means more.
I'm all about meaning when it comes to marketing. If you're from the Southside of Atlanta, you're going to want to take a picture with the billboard. If it's a billboard about a mixtape or album, it's just saying, hey, I'm 2 Chainz, care about me. But instead with the billboard, it's saying, hey, I'm 2 Chainz, I care about y'all, the Southside.
Travis Porter's from Decatur, "Decatur where it's greater." That's the east side of Atlanta.
F: All of the billboards are in the appropriate neighborhoods?
CJ: Yeah. The neighborhoods all of the artists grew up in. The thing is, we have more billboards coming. We have 24 more billboards coming with 2 Chainz and the Atlanta Hawks [2 Chainz works closely with the Hawks and was recently named their honorary CEO for a day], and I just teamed up with Live Mixtapes. They're going to do billboards for a couple of our mixtapes. So we're going to have 34 total billboards in Atlanta.
F: That really is a takeover. Were you in Atlanta when the first run of billboards were going on?
CJ: I was very young. I'm 26 years old. So the BMF stuff – we watch the documentaries, we hear about it, but it wasn't my time. It was right before my time. It wasn't tangible for me. I wasn't able to see it, I wasn't able to be around it.
But when you're young and you're a fan, you always want to say, I would love to do something like that one day that people talk about ten or fifteen years later. I would hope that what Street Execs are doing right now in Atlanta leaves that same legacy. We want to keep pushing the envelope to where it sets the bar so high for anybody in hip-hop to want to compete on the same level. We want to push the envelope.
F: Have you heard from Bleu DaVinci [BMF Entertainment's sole artist] or anybody associated with BMF about your campaign?
CJ: Not about the campaign, exactly. Bleu DaVinci is always around. He's good friends with Cap 1, who is 2 Chainz' artist. So we see Bleu all the time.
F: You said you just opened up a new recording studio. How's that going?
CJ: The studio has made a major impact on the city. We did our studio different than how other studios have done theirs. We're Atlanta's first and only lifestyle studio. Everything is about that hip-hop experience.
If you're 2 Chainz, you go to a studio, you might get your hair cut there, you might have your private chef there. You want it to be a really amazing experience. I wanted to provide that same experience to anybody who wants to record. So we have a private chef, we have a barbershop, we have a full court basketball court. Sometimes we even bring masseuses in and give massages to everybody in the studio. We have a store, so you don't have to go to a vending machine. We keep over 70 candies, cookies, chips, all that stuff in stock, so you don't have to run to the corner store every time you want something. We have room service menus. It's a completely different experience, and it's taking the city by storm.
F: How do you make something so full-service like that affordable to up-and-coming artists?
CJ: At Street Execs, we're really about the street. Everything we do is about hands-on, street-level. So our following are the street rappers. They have the money. And if somebody doesn't have the money, the experience is so special, they're going to save up for this experience. Our prices are really competitive. We don't overprice, we make it affordable. But we believe in volume. We want to take market share. Sometimes we're booked up for a whole week, and you can't get in our studio unless you pre-book a week out. And that's never been done before with studios.
F: What's your business history? I know you did some video stuff for Soulja Boy when you were starting out.
CJ: That's right. I started out as a cameraman. I dropped out of college. I got a call from Interscope. Soulja Boy, when he blew up, was a big fan of the work I was doing in Atlanta. So he said, I need Charlie to be my cameraman.
I had just signed up for my second semester of college courses. I had lost my scholarship because my grades were so bad, and I was having to pay for school. I wrote the check for the tuition and the books and everything. But later on that day, Interscope called me. I went home and I told my mom, I want to drop out of school and I want to go on tour with a rapper. She was confused by the whole situation. She didn't know what was going on. But she gave me her wishes and I went on tour with Soulja Boy and learned the game, was around Collipark [Michael "Mr. Collipark" Crooms, the producer who discovered Soulja Boy], soaked it all up.
And when I was ready to grow from that situation, I moved on to management. I started with Travis Porter, then 2 Chainz, then built the whole Street Execs brand. One of the things we really take pride in about what we're doing is, we have six artists on our brand, and every single one of them is moving. I always tell people, I don't believe in having artists signed who are sitting. Every single one of our artists has a song on the radio, is getting show money, is touring the nation. All these other labels and management companies, they might have one or two superstars, and everybody else is dormant. But we want our whole team moving at the same time – doing tours, doing projects, all simultaneously.
F: You guys have other businesses as well. I saw you're getting into managing producers as well, and not just rappers and rap groups.
CJ: That's right. We have several very hot producers that are up and coming in Atlanta. They haven't blown nationally, but here in Atlanta they're creating that sound that's really taking over. We also have one of the biggest DJ websites for the urban DJs.
F: DJ Service Pack. What is that, exactly?
But on these two records, my phone was ringing way more than normal. So I was checking the DJ websites to see, why are these DJs not being able to find this record on the Internet? So I went to DigiWaxx, and I know those guys. I'd call them up and say, 'Put these songs on your website. You're a DJ website. Make sure you put it up.' And they're asking for favors in return. I'm like, you're a DJ website. Put the song up! That's what you do!
So I said, you know what, forget it. Because I have a background in websites, I'm going to start my own DJ website, and I'm going to make it very very simple for the DJs. I'm not going to make them sign up, I'm not going to make them have to wait for downloads, I'm not going to make them answer all these questions in order to download a track. I'm going to make it the simplest, easiest to use DJ website ever. And it took off. It's the industry standard if you're an urban DJ now. We update the site 20 times a day, and we make sure DJs have everything they need.
F: So what's next for you guys?
CJ: What's next is our artists. We've got Atlanta really hot. So now it's taking that national. Six artists moving at the same time – tours, projects together. Of course, a new 2 Chainz album on the way. It's everything firing on all cylinders.
F: Atlanta has a bunch of very hot artists – some you're affiliated with, and some other hot young artists like Young Thug and Migos and Rich Homie Quan. What is it about Atlanta that has it in the spotlight right now?
CJ: It's been this way for a while. Atlanta has built a machine for itself. Everything ties together. The club culture ties together with the artist culture. There's so much revenue moving around that when there's money in play, people are going to get it. So when you've got all these clubs and you've got all these DJs, everything here becomes about the music and turning it into a business.
We're able to crank out artists because there's such a market for it here. There might be 80 clubs in Atlanta, if you add up all the different sides of the town, the strip clubs, the 18 and up clubs, the 21 and up clubs. It is a very big market for music. The DJs are really influential.
DJs here, they can be DJ'ing in a club and not play but maybe two or three records that aren't from Atlanta. It's like all Atlanta music. Atlanta's always constantly looking for the next artist they're going to blow up. It's just the culture here, breaking artists, what's new, what's next. The whole country looks to Atlanta for what it's playing on the radio and who's the next artist it's breaking. So there's always a market for new artists.
F: So who is next in Atlanta right now?
CJ: You got a couple artists right now that are really on the forefront. Skooly is one. Bankroll Fresh is another. Both of those are my artists, so that might sound like a shameless plug. But Lucci is an artist that's not one of our that's really on the forefront as well.
F: One last thing I have to ask. Who gave you the nickname "CEO Charlie"?
CJ: It came from all the way back in middle school. I always had businesses. I was always selling something, always doing something. So all my friends just thought of me as a CEO.
Note: This headline has been changed.


Recently our own Stephen Bardol was selected as a winner in the overall Up & Coming class by Missouri Lawyers Weekly. A total of 54 Missouri attorneys will be honored among the 2014 class for Missouri Lawyers Weekly's annual Up & Coming event.
Missouri Lawyers Weekly editors selected the winners based on their demonstration of excellence and their potential to make a difference in the legal profession and their communities. The awards recognize lawyers who are 40 or younger, or within the first 10 years of practice.


In his first solo disc, Catalonian countertenor Xavier Sabata joins forces with the excellent Il Pomo d'Oro in a portrayal of some of the nastiest characters to be found in six of Handel's operas. Sabata has a warm, mellifluous voice, which tends to underplay the villainous tendencies of his 'bad guys'. That impression is emphasised by the absence of context: there is nothing innately menacing in Adalberto's two love arias from Ottone, for example; it is only when they take their place in the body of the opera that the dramatic subtleties of the libretto and Handel's tonal juxtapositions illuminate the devious nature of these out-and-out rotters.
From a purely musical standpoint Sabata's recital is rewarding. His technique and intonation are flawless. His ornaments are tastefully discreet and he seems to effortlessly surmount Handel's exacting coloratura. If this sensitive, softly coloured voice never sufficiently projects the odious nature of characters such as Polinesso (Ariodante), it may encourage readers to acquaint (or reacquaint) themselves with Handel's complete operas, where the villains reveal their true colours.