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Review: The Met Opera Orchestra Raises a Glorious Noise
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Over two nights at Carnegie Hall, Yannick Nézet-Séguin led the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in an superior show of its would possibly. After an eventful season, by which considerations past music generally pulled consideration from the stage, these back-to-back concert events had been a reminder of the orchestra's pre-eminence in theatrical materials.
Each live performance paired excerpts from an opera with a programmatic piece, an inherently dramatic kind that depicts a story or a character utilizing instrumental forces. The efficiency on Wednesday matched Richard Strauss's "Don Juan" with Act I of Wagner's "Die Walküre," and Thursday's all-Berlioz program positioned arias and an interlude from "Les Troyens" alongside "Symphonie Fantastique," a groundbreaking work that sounds extra like a music drama than a symphony.
Opening with "Don Juan" felt like a assertion of objective. Here had been world-class musicians tackling a bravura symphonic poem that established the modernist bona fides of the 25-year-old Strauss. The orchestra flaunted the depth and breadth of its tone within the opening motif, an upwardly swinging phrase dripping with swagger. The horns coated themselves in glory, and the concertmaster David Chan and the oboist Nathan Hughes contributed shapely solos. At one level, the ensemble's sound grew so frenzied it turned strident. At the tip, the gang roared.
The opera had come to the live performance corridor, and it was going to boost a superb noise.
This was Nézet-Séguin the extrovert, who deploys the orchestra within the opera home like an instrument of destiny, maintaining the baseline quantity at mezzo forte. The orchestra comes throughout as an exterior power that acts on the characters somewhat than one which sympathetically expresses their innermost emotions. The finest opera conductors, although, know when a state of affairs requires one or the opposite.
In that mild, the ending of "Don Juan" revealed a weak spot: Nézet-Séguin is simpler at huge moments than small ones. Strauss offers his swashbuckling Don Juan a poetic, even philosophical, demise, however with Nézet-Séguin, he simply kind of dropped lifeless.
You may hear Nézet-Séguin understanding the dynamic emphases in actual time at Carnegie. Wagner constructed the twilight setting of Act I of "Die Walküre" out of mellow, amber-colored devices — cellos, bassoons, clarinets, horns. Nézet-Séguin, although, targeted much less on temper and extra on intoxicating, surging romance. It definitely sounded as if Siegmund and Sieglinde's fateful union was blessed by their father, Wotan, king of gods: Nézet-Séguin summoned divine — that's, superior — enjoying from the musicians.
Christine Goerke (Sieglinde) and Brandon Jovanovich (Siegmund), each Wagner veterans, will not be singers to be blown off a stage. Goerke, who has sung Brünnhilde, simply navigated Sieglinde's music along with her dramatic soprano, cresting the climaxes as an alternative of getting washed-out by them.
Jovanovich had the extra grueling half. The writing for Siegmund consistently pushes a tenor into a muscle-y sound on the high of the employees, and Jovanovich's backside notes paid the worth, taking over a gravelly gurgle. The center and high of his voice remained virile, good-looking and taut, and his narration cycled by way of a exceptional collection of feelings — susceptible, proud, candy, disdainful, morally upright — earlier than discovering transcendence.
Eric Owens, glued to his rating, couldn't suppress the the Aristocracy of his bass-baritone because the brutish Hunding; as an alternative he channeled the character's villainy with an stubborn, distrustful method.
After "Die Walküre," Nézet-Séguin insisted that the cello part stand for applause — a touching acknowledgment of the main function it performed. He additionally teased viewers members as they moved up the aisles to depart: "We do have an encore planned," he stated, stopping individuals of their tracks — "it's called tomorrow night's concert."
At the beginning of the following night, the strings' quicksilver high quality in Berlioz's "Le Corsaire" Overture indicated a very totally different live performance was in retailer.
Nézet-Séguin took pains to quiet the orchestra for Joyce DiDonato's two arias from Berlioz's "Les Troyens." DiDonato's mezzo-soprano shouldn't be the everyday one for the function of Dido — full, wealthy, expansive — however she defied expectations, sharpening her mild, glittery timbre into a blade for the scena that culminates in "Adieu, fière cité." Rattled and debased after Aeneas abandons her, Dido fantasizes about murdering the Trojans, however finally, she accepts her destiny, recalling sensuous reminiscences of her time with the questing hero. DiDonato forged a spell, ending the aria on a thread of sound, her Dido a shell of her former self — however what an beautiful shell it was.
There was enjoyable, too: Nézet-Séguin bounced joyfully to the rollicking bits of "Le Corsaire" and dug deep into the twisted, macabre finale of "Symphonie Fantastique," with its cackling ghouls and sulfurous air.
After elevating hell, Nézet-Séguin pivoted once more, welcoming DiDonato again to the stage for an encore, Strauss's "Morgen." As he calmed the orchestra to a whisper, DiDonato and the concertmaster Benjamin Bowman intertwined their silvery sounds. This time, Nézet-Séguin acquired the stability good.
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Who are the Asian Brides?
An Asian bride is someone who originated from countries like China, Japan, India, or Korea. These lovely ladies are looking for a husband from overseas. They want to build a family with a well-off and loving man living somewhere in Europe or the United States. Why are these lovely women not looking for husbands in their own countries?
Go to work but retire as soon as her parents' family requires her help with the household.
This applies to the vast majority of women in Asian countries. Another reason why Asian women are looking for husbands from elsewhere is that the economic climate in their countries is worse than in western countries. It is hard for an Asian woman to find a stable job. It is even harder to find a position that pays the same salary as that of a man. Statistically, an Asian man is more likely to get paid significantly more than an Asian woman for the same job. This is a problem that Feminist and Equal Opportunities groups in China and Korea are trying to change. There has been much headway in bringing equality to the Far East, but sadly the day-to-day understanding of the ordinary person hasn't been swayed much. By looking for a western husband, beautiful Asian women are just looking out for their best interests.
The sad truth is: All Asian women want is to be loved and respected. Centuries of male oppression and being pushed to the side have left Asian women starving for affection and understanding. They are looking for a strong man who can take them away from their unfortunate life and provide the love and support they need. That is not to say that young Asian girls cannot take care of themselves. Many Asian beauties are fighting against oppression every day in their countries. They aim at changing the mentality of disregard towards women of the older generation and change the laws that make it impossible for women to take positions of influence. It is a laborious process and a difficult path, but the ladies are determined to win the fight. Before that can happen, however, young Asian girls continue to use dating websites and the so-called mail order brides services to find suitable life partners.
Asian mail order brides are hot Asian girls who register with best Asian dating sites with the explicit goal of finding a husband. These websites are very common in Asia and have been growing in popularity around the globe in recent years. Some of the best Asian dating websites have helped men all over the world find the perfect wife. The whole idea behind an Asian mail order brides website is to gather western men who want to meet Asian women and give them the opportunity to talk to actual Asian singles. These websites are usually paid, but they have hundreds of thousands of potential love interests. If things go well, you meet the ladies and marry them.
Girls who sign up for mail order brides websites are usually young – around 18. They come from good families and are well educated more often than not. Because of the stigma in countries like China, Korea, and Japan, women are still often expected to start working or studying when they are 18 and retire to a life of domesticity when they turn 25. If they don't, they might be at risk of being shunned away by the community and looked down upon for being undesirable. It is one of the primary reasons why Asian brides are looking for love in a foreign country. They want to go to someone who is open-minded and who can let them flourish.
It is a well-known fact that Asian singles are stunningly beautiful. Just watch any Asian drama, Korean or Chinese and be reminded of how elegant, slim, and beautiful they are. Most of this beauty comes from natural reasons. Asian women have good genes that got cultivated for centuries. Until just a few hundred years ago, Asian countries didn't' have much connection with Europe or the United States. These countries were segregating themselves with each community being its own separate being. This kept the gene pool mostly unchanging with the most beautiful women finding husbands far easier than other. As a result, beauty became more commonplace.
Besides beauty, Asian women are very traditional. It is customary in countries such as China and Korea for the male figure to be revered. This tradition dates back to the first dynasty in China. As a result, the male figure is the breadwinner and the female plays the role of the wife and mother. If you choose to get an Asian woman for a bride, you will get treated as the head of the household. Your wife will not argue with you about important decisions the same way many western women would. Asian girls "know their place": they know their strengths, and always value the opinion of the head of the family. Suffice to say – you should not take advantage of their pacification. Asian women are just as emotional and caring as most other women so they can get hurt just as easily. They are not machines or some mystical creatures. They are capable of great things but also can exact great vengeance on those who hurt them. For example, if you consider starting your own business (a restaurant), your wife will support you in this endeavor. She will do her best to do whatever you ask of her, be it to help you with paperwork or even help out in the restaurant. But if you mistreat her and ask of her to work more than she is capable of, you might find yourself in a bad situation.
Asian women dating is not typical in Asian cultures. Once you start talking to Asian singles online, you will see how shy they can be. Sometimes, it even borders on being passive. This is because of the traditional household where they grew up. Daughters aren't encouraged to go out on dates with boys while they are growing up. It is a stigma and frowned upon. If a woman is seen out on a date with a boy without the permission of her father or guardian, she might find herself labeled as a tramp or an easy woman. This will make it hard for her to find a husband later as Asian communities in larger cities or small village are very tightly connected. There are some ways for you to help a hot Asian girl loosen up and be more willing to open up to you.
Use respectable language. Don't use cuss words or vulgar terms. Always remember that an Asian woman comes from a culturally rich background that still honors the old ways. Be a gentleman and stand out from the rest of the crowd by using proper words and mannerisms.
Don't rush things. Don't expect that, just because you are used to taking things fast and in stride, Asian women can keep up with your pace. Most likely, she will not say much and will not share much about her in the beginning. Be patient and let things roll smoothly on their own.
If you are interested in Asian women, you are most likely interested in Asian culture as a whole.It might make communications easier if both of you knew the language. Often, Asian brides don't know English as well as western men know it, – so it might make communication slightly awkward. This doesn't apply to all women, but it is more common than it is not. Learning the language can be difficult, but it shows a real commitment.
Hot Asian women aren't just pretty to observe. In fact, they make excellent mothers. If you are a family man, you can expect your children to be brought up well, fine-mannered and respectful. In a research by the Oxford University in 2015, where scientists looked at ten mixed couples with children and ten regular couples with children, the conclusion was that 8 out of 10 children from mixed marriages had higher grades in school. This comes down to the attention parents pay their kids. You cannot expect your children to excel in life if parents do not give them love and attention.
Asian women are extremely hard working. Hot Asian women know the value of hard work from a young age. Since they have to overcome so many gender-related struggles to reach some success, Asian brides are usually double as productive as their western sisters. You can expect an Asian bride to juggle both her commitment to you and the household like a pro. If she decided to study or work outside the family, you can expect excellent results. She will not only excel in her workplace or university but be home in time to greet you from work.
As you can see yourself, Asian women are precious. They are like the perfect combination of beauty and wit. They know how to act and behave both in the household and outside. They know how to be loving and caring partners, and, as a result, they make outstanding mothers. Any man would be fortunate to have a charming woman like that as a wife. Hot Asian women are insanely popular in countries like Germany and England where the population already consists of some percentage of Asians. But even if you don't have Asian people where you live, you can meet some of those stunning ladies online.
In conclusion, Asian brides make for loving and caring partners. Their traditional background gives them an edge over the competition when we compare family-oriented people. They are good at so many things: cooking, cleaning, education, music, to mention just a few. If you have an Asian bride, you are guaranteed to develop both personally and emotionally. If you want to feel like the 'master of your own household,' an Asian wife can give you that feeling. If you want to have a large family and feel confident that your children get brought up right, an Asian woman will be a perfect match.
If you are not convinced, we suggest you look through our section of articles. We have several that talk at length about the values of Asian brides and why they make perfect life partners. Alternatively, you can sign up for a mail order bride website and start up a conversation with a hot Asian teen. There is no commitment in doing so except maybe some of your time. There is nothing better than hands-on experience after all.
Don't wait! Find your true love now!


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Day 132. Monday 23rd September. Banks to Beverly Beach, Oregon Pacific Coast.
It's right on 4pm and we have our camp established in the Beverly Beach State Park Campsite. The day has been mostly overcast and cool though there have been some sunny spells.
Being in the Landy and on the road again is marvellous. The scenery after leaving Scott and Marsha's place this morning at around 9am was varied and lovely. Driving through a set of ranges to get to the coast through the wooded valleys of the Tillamook State forest, the leaves turning golden and brown, setting the scene.
Our trip back to the UK went nearly perfectly. I say nearly as the only blemish was the communication black hole. Not just at the Country Park we live in when in the UK, but almost wherever we went. The first week was without any wifi and it drives me crazy. Jen went to Brighton with her girlfriend Carolyn on the first Monday and I was so fed up I got the bike out of the shed and cycled around to brother-in-law Dave's garage, to use his wifi. Thanks Dave. 🙂
Fortunately the Park owner has had a fibre optic cable run into the park during the summer and after he retuned from his holiday in Croatia, we had a strong adequate signal for the last few days. Just in time for the Rugby World Cup. With all games broadcast live on ITV I watched the first four including the one between NZ & S.A. A hard earned win to the AB's.
The highlight of the two weeks in the UK and one of the reasons we went back, was Jen's 70th birthday party, held in a local pub. A great night it was and the first chance we have had for family and friends to be together. Jen also got to see her latest family addition, Siena, now four months old. Born after we left the UK in April. What a gorgeous placid child she is.
Baby Siena.
Catching up with Jen's Mum and family was joyous too.
Dave, James, Mum & Caroline
Dave, Tim & James.
We went up to London to stay with son James and Sarah and their expanding family in their newly established house in Chiswick . While there, took the opportunity to visit Stanfords, the map people in London, to stock up on Central and South American maps.
Our flight yesterday from Heathrow went smoothly till we got to immigration in Portland. There was real concern as to us being allowed in. Unlike our last Immigration officer, this one was one unpleasant piece of work who actually said she didn't think she would let us in!! By the time we left the terminal we were the last ones to leave and getting on the light rail train to find it was being replaced by a bus. Arriving at the airport terminal at 3.12pm it was 6.30pm by the time we got to the end of the line at Hillsboro where Kelly and Stacy kindly came and picked us up. Oh, and the immigration …. lady very reluctantly gave us another 90 days on our visas.
Stacy took us straight up to Scott and Marsha's house, where the Landy was parked. Kelly had prepared dinner for us and bought it in the Ute with them. Exhausted, we were in bed in their lovely house by 9pm. Waking at 12midnight and neither of us could sleep again and were up at 7am ready to hit the road after breakfast. Again, thank you Kelly & Stacy, Scott and Marsha for your wonderful hospitality and thoughtfulness.
Today after reaching the Oregon coast we have enjoyed the drive down it. Stopping at Otter Loop Point to watch Grey whales and otters feeding on what must be waters rich in plankton and nutrients. There were more than a dozen whales lazily feeding just below the surface but coming up frequently for air, less than a hundred meters offshore below us. Dozens of Otter heads bobbing in the sea before diving and all surfacing again together. The whales are on their way to Alaska to feed and mate before heading back down to Mexico to calve in the spring. It seems Grey whales travel the furtherest in their annual migration.
While the flight yesterday I read a book called 'This is Not Propaganda – Adventures in The War Against reality' by Peter Pomeranstev. A sobering read.
Day 131. Saturday, 7th September. Portland
Day 133. Tuesday, 24th September. From Beverley State Park, North of Newport to Susan Creek Campsite, West of Steamboat
So glad you are enjoying whales on the coast- our pleasure to have you visit / looking forward to seeing where your adventures take you !! Xx
Hi Kelly, we are loving Oregon. Keep in touch and up to date with Mum's progress.
Love to you both
Us 🙂
About bloody time, I can look forward to my daily fix of my crazy brother and his teenage chic wandering aimlessly around the world
What's this, "aimlessly"? We know where we are going, just not, why…:)
And you my footloose brother? Have you found out why?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Lebanese health minister describes sanctions on as "cruel"
Iran's health minister calls U.S. sanctions crime against humanity
August 5, 2019 - 20:37
TEHRAN – Iran's Health Minister Saeed Namaki said on Monday that the U.S. sanctions are "crime against humanity".
"The U.S. administration's actions in sanctioning medicine that the Iranian patients need, and Washington's pressure in the area of health are crime against humanity," he said in a joint press conference with Lebanese Health Minister Jamil Jabak in Tehran.
Namaki also said the U.S. sanctions in the area of medicine are "illogical" and "inhuman".
Jabak described sanctions against Iran as "cruel".
He also said there is no restriction for Lebanon to cooperate with Iran.
President Hassan Rouhani said in June the U.S. sanctions against Iran constitute examples of "crime against humanity and economic terrorism" because they have targeted ordinary people's "lives and needs".
"It should not be said that the U.S. has imposed sanctions on us, because they are not sanctions. They are crime against humanity. They could be called sanctions if they targeted some of our sensitive industries, but they are crime against humanity and economic terrorism when they target the people's lives and needs," he said in a cabinet meeting.
Kianoush Jahanpour, spokesman for Iran's Food and Drug Administration, told ISNA in an interview published on November 13, 2018 that the claim by Washington that medicine is exempt from sanctions is a "big clear lie".
Sanctions include food and medicine and the only point is that these two items have not been mentioned in the sanctions list announced by the Trump administration, he said.
Farhad Ehteshamzad, the head of the Iran Auto Importers Association, has also told ISNA that foreign banks refrain from interacting with Iran, because they fear to be punished by the U.S. which also impedes importing certain commodities such as food and medicine.
In a tweet on November 12, 2018 U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed that "the U.S. does not, and never did, sanction food and medicine. They are exempt from sanctions."
Scientific Societies for Medical Sciences in Iran wrote a letter to UN Secretary General António Guterres in March 2019 condemning the U.S. sanctions against Iran, urging the international community to resist sanctions targeting "medical needs" and "humanitarian aid".
"Scientific Societies for Medical Sciences in Iran call on int'l community to: condemn U.S. sanctions on Iran; strongly resist the targeting of medical needs [and] humanitarian aid; and thwart targeting of research [and] scientific advancement," Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote on his twitter account in March 2019.
Claim that medicine not sanctioned is a 'big lie': Iran
Iran, Lebanon to prepare five-year plan for health cooperation
That U.S. sanctions are harming Iranians patients is not a mythology: Foreign Policy
U.S. lying that sanctions exempt food, medicine: Iranian minister
Iran calls sanctions 'crime against humanity'
sa'eed namaki
Mohammad Javad Zarif
Hassan Rouhani


Raman spectroscopy can provide for quick measurements of the carbonaceous purity of carbon nanotube samples. Carbonaceous purity is a critical parameter for many applications of carbon nanotubes. Raman spectroscopy has been reported many times in the literature as a technique which can be used to quickly measure carbonaceous purity although there are few instances in which details are provided on how the analysis is conducted. The goal of this poster is to demonstrate the effectiveness and the speed of the technique for this measurement, to provide details on how the measurement is performed, and to provide information on how to optimize parameters for the analysis.


• SOLD SECURE GOLD & ART Rated security.
• The world's first secure bike hanger.
• With a combination of maximum security, effortless practicality and design elegance the wall-mounted AIRLOK is the ultimate secure storage solution for apartment, work place or outside.
• Design & Innovation Award 2018 Winner.
• Uniquely coded laser cut key design with replacement scheme.
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With AIRLOK we've applied the same real world approach to security that we take with all our Hiplok bicycle locks. Our practical, thoughtful and often brutal approach to the testing and design phase results in a product that is not only a pleasure to use but is highly secure and fit for purpose.AIRLOK allows you to store your bike at height should you wish to maximise available space. It also offers secure, neat storage when used at ground level. It's unique triangular shape provides secure storage for multiple styles and sizes of bike frame, whilst the ergonomic rubberised lining prevents scratches.
2018.Secure wall fixings, quality hardened steel framework and a secure lockable bolt, which can be easily accessed due to it's ergonomic position, combine to provide the greatest protection for your bike.
Easy to follow, step by step instructions are included to make installation as simple as possible.Should you have multiple bikes to keep secure, contact us and we can match the locking pins in multiple AIRLOKs, meaning one set of keys can open all matched AIRLOKs offering you convenience and saving time.


LETS SAY YOU have a modern far sub-micron fab, and you need to move a truck sized tool from one side of the clean room to the other. Standard construction equipment doesn't work, it is too dirty, so Carpenter Crane Hoist made a line of hoists that are very clean.
The idea is simple enough to explain, take a normally dirty and greasy implement, and clean it up. The problem is that in a fab, you have problems like finishes on the metal flaking off and contaminating wafers, grease vaporizing, and links of the chain rubbing and chipping off. All of this leads to contamination, dead chips, and expensive cleanups.
If you look at the hoists above, they seem fairly normal, but the one on the left is nickel plated. The reason for this is that the normal anodization process will produce too many particles to put into a fab, so for some uses, the hoists have to be nickel plated. Painting is right out for those uses.
The chain itself is covered with a particle free rubberized cloth bellows so anything that flakes off, and bits will, is trapped. The hooks themselves are also specially coated, and the various straps and tie-downs have wrapper to keep flakes contained. If it is not too obvious, all the parts are specially chosen and coated so as not to leave microscopic bits in their wake.


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Catholic Newman Center unveils plan for permanent facility at University Village
News University Village
KEARNEY – After 70 years of serving local college students in temporary facilities, the Catholic Newman Center at UNK plans to build a permanent home at University Village.
Currently, the Newman Center operates out of seven different houses and garages. A converted garage, with room for only 100 people, serves as the Newman Center's chapel. There isn't a central location where students can gather as one community for fellowship, faith formation, meals and retreats. Staff work from offices in two of the houses.
"The lack of a dedicated Newman Center hinders us from fully exercising our mission," said Fr. Neal Hock, chaplain of the UNK Newman Center. "We want to reach out to students, help them encounter Christ and grow in their faith. But our current facilities limit the number of students we can reach and do not serve as a welcoming environment."
The master plan calls for the construction of a three-story center at University Village, a public-private development just south of UNK's main campus. At approximately 24,000 square feet, the Catholic Newman Center will feature:
An inspiring worship space and Adoration chapel with seating for up to 300.
Offices for staff, campus ministry student leaders and FOCUS missionaries.
A variety of multipurpose spaces.
Space for individual and group study.
Classrooms that encourage intellectual growth and faith formation.
A student lounge and meeting space for fellowship gatherings.
Dedicated library space and state-of-the art technology.
Outdoor gathering space with a fireplace.
A kitchen and storage area.
75-80 parking spaces.
"Our new center will provide the perfect space for us to serve our students," Hock said. "We'll have a proper chapel, meal and meeting spaces, offices and more. The new Catholic Newman Center will support college students in Kearney for years to come."
The Newman Center is currently working with the Steier Group, a Catholic fundraising firm based in Omaha, to conduct a comprehensive campaign planning study. This study will allow the center to gather feedback regarding the proposed plans and determine the level of support for a major fundraising effort. The study will help determine a realistic fundraising goal and identify campaign leaders and potential major donors.
If you would like to participate in the campaign planning study, the online survey is available at steiergroup.com/survey.
The Newman Center has not set specific dates for a fundraising campaign or construction schedule. An initial cost estimate is $11.61 million, according to a flyer outlining the project.
Located along U.S. Highway 30, University Village is a 104-acre, mixed-use development that combines educational, residential, recreational, commercial and community engagement and service opportunities in a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly neighborhood.
Village Flats, an apartment-style housing complex for UNK and UNMC students, staff and faculty, opened there in 2018 and the Plambeck Early Childhood Education Center followed in 2019. Construction is underway on the $48 million Element 30 housing project and retail space, as well as the $8.8 million Ernest Grundy Tennis Center. A $15.6 million Regional Engagement and Alumni Center is planned for construction soon with a targeted opening date of early 2023.
Tags: Catholic Newman Center, Kearney, Neal Hock, University of Nebraska, University Village, UNK
UNK hosting 32nd annual Criminal Justice Conference next week
First One Day for UNK: 24 Hours of Loper Giving is Oct. 6-7


Club Dust does not recommend you taking your own vehicle across the border. If you get in an accident you will be fined regardless if you are at fault or not. Even with buying Mexican insurance the deductibles are high and if you do get into an accident the insurance will pay only the going labor rate in Mexico for any repairs that are necessary. If you still want to take your vehicle into Mexico please realize you are completely responsible and not part of Club Dust's transportation logistics.
Insurance from a Mexican company is required by Mexican law in the event of an accident, even if you are not at fault.
Insurance greatly reduces the chances that you will face jail time if you are involved in an accident while driving in Mexico.
Insurance provides some coverage for damage to your vehicle or it's total loss if you buy the complete coverage as shown on the link below.
For more information for Auto and Health Insurance while in Mexico click on Baja Bound.


There are not so many hotel rooms in Maria Alm, just 151, still everyone can find an offer to suit his choice. The most common offers in this city are 3 и 4 stars, they count 27 out of 151, and their prevalent location is central district. According to our practice, it is the most profitable to book a hotel in the west of Maria Alm, as it is the location of the hotels with optimal cost and quality offers along with the cheap hotels. Taking into account the small size of the city, there is no need to dwell hotel reservation on the location: the road to the city center would take less then half an hour, so one can book a hotel in any district of Maria Alm. The most populated with hotels district of Maria Alm is the center, 49% of cheap hotel rooms are concentrated here. However, even those who want to live in the south can choose from 48 variants of hotel rooms. Maria Alm is an ideal place for couple and family, such travellers rate hotels there 9.0 out of 10 on average. In Maria Alm one can enjoy the beauty of Hermitage of Saint George. Moreover, there is a choice of 30 hotels, located within a walking distance from these attractions, however they might not be the cheap ones. The view to mountain, panoramic and city from the hotel room can serve as a pleasant addition to the journey. Apart from all these, hotels in Maria Alm offer their customers restaurant/cafe, parking, bar and spa. The staff of the most hotels is multilingual: it speaks english, italian, french and spanish. It is even possible to find deutsch speaking people in the hotels of Maria Alm if necessary. The most appreciated amenities in Maria Alm hotels are bar and amenities. According to the visitors reviews, hotels in Maria Alm has great location, very comfortable and delicious food. Take a look at our selection of the cheap hotel rooms in Maria Alm to make a well-informed choice for your reservation!
Currently Hotellook offers cheap hotels with discounts varying from 5 to 60%. The largest discount found by our users in Maria Alm was 38%. We collected all discount hotel deals in Maria Alm together to make it easier for you to find the really cheap one!
The hotel rates in Maria Alm heavily depend on the season and may significantly change according to the selected date range. The graph below describes changes in Maria Alm hotel prices throughout the year divided by months. Thus, the lowest prices can be found in November – $142 on average – while the cost of hotel reservation in Maria Alm goes up and reaches $243 by September. Besides, one can book a hotel in Maria Alm with a discount and save up to 45% of the price, if doing it 20 days beforehand – that is the period between reservation and check in when our users on average find the best prices. So, if you are interested in booking a cheap hotel in Maria Alm, take this information into consideration and take a look at the graph below!
Everyone can find a hotel in Maria Alm which goes in line with his taste: friends hotel, winter sports hotel, romantic hotel or family hotel. The most popular types of accommodations in Maria Alm are apartments, they accounts to 66% of all offers.
There are 151 hotels in Maria Alm, and among them we want to highlight top-10 of the most popular ones with cheap hotel rates starting from $182. Are you interested?
"We are responsible for those who tamed "- said Antoine de Saint-Exupery. The cost of hotel accommodation with animals in Maria Alm starts from $96.
Looking for a comfortable and affordable hotel in Maria Alm? Go through our collection of 3 star hotels: their average rating Maria Alm is 8.8 and cheap hotel rates start from $188.
Do you want to book a hotel with high-quality service not overpaying for a well-known name or unused offers? You should definitely take a look at our collection of 4 star hotels in Maria Alm, carefully selected by our team for you.
If you like healthy lifestyle, it is very important to train every morning. One of the greatest ways to do it is to swim in the pool! The cost of the cheap hotel with swimming pool in Maria Alm starts from $89.
In order to make your trip to Maria Alm with children a memorable one, you need to choose the right hotel. Cheap hotel rates for families with children in Istanbul start from $214.
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sorry i dont have chinese input on this computer.
i am a fellow flyer from flyertea. i have a question for you, liu zong, and hope you can take some time to answer it. you may knew this, a few days back, usairways announced a new game, similar to one from last year. i registered and ready to score some hints. the concern i have is, how can i get the eligible hints? by that, i nean how can i let us airways to know i stayed that hotel or i bought flowers form its partner?


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Robert "Bobby" Brewer is an American pastor, author, and talk radio personality who is based in Phoenix, Arizona. In addition to being the co-host of a Christian radio show and pastor, he is known for being an Evangelical Christian who witnessed the 1997 Phoenix Lights. In 2002, he wrote an article for the Christian Research Journal. In 2022, he wrote a book, UFOs: 12 Things You Should Know (A Christian Perspective) (), in which he gave his assessment of the phenomenon.

Early life
Brewer was born in Japan at a United States Navy base, his father was an enlisted sailor for the United States Navy.  Brewer grew up in San Diego, California; Virginia Beach, Virginia; and Roanoke, Virginia prior to moving to Phoenix, Arizona.

Education
Brewer obtained a Masters in Divinity (M. Div.) at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary, a graduate school for aspiring pastors founded by Rev. Jerry Falwell in Lynchburg, Virginia,  and a Doctorate of Ministry (D.Min.) from Phoenix Seminary in Phoenix, Arizona.

Career
While at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary, Brewer studied church growth under Dr. Elmer Towns, who has authored numerous books on the subject of church growth.  Towns wrote the foreword to Brewer's book Postmodernism: What You Should Know & Do About It.  Upon completion of his doctorate, Brewer regularly spoke at Christian conferences regarding the implications of Postmodernism upon the North American church and how outreach and evangelistic methodologies could and should adjust for the transition of eras (i.e., Modern to Postmodern).  Prior to becoming a "Cowboy Church" pastor for Reigning Grace Ranch, Rio Verde, Arizona, he served on the pastoral staff of two megachurches in Scottsdale, Arizona; Scottsdale Bible Church, and served as the Lead Pastor for North Chapel Bible Church in Fountain Hills, Arizona which became a campus of Scottsdale Bible Church in 2021.  Brewer was a founding team member for an extreme sports ministry founded by actor Stephen Baldwin and D'Ortenzio but restructured as "Death to Life Revolution" ministry. On January 10, 2021 it was announced by Scottsdale Bible Church that North Chapel Bible Church would become their Fountain Hills campus with a new location and with Brewer as the campus pastor. Following this merger and relocation, Brewer then became the Pastor of Reigning Grace Ranch in Rio Verde, Arizona on June 1, 2022.

Radio
From 2004-2008 Brewer was the co-host of Faith in the Real World, a local call-in radio show in Phoenix, Arizona on AM 1360 KPXQ of Salem Broadcasting.  After partnering with Stephen Baldwin in 2006, the show's name and the format were changed to Breakthrough Radio. In 2011, Brewer began co-hosting Freakshow with D'Ortenzio.

Bibliography
Postmodernism: What You Should Know and Do About It ().
UFOs: 12 Things Everyone Should Know ().
Help! I'm Really Single ().
Brewer has co-authored several books with Dr. Darryl DelHousaye, president of Phoenix Seminary, e.g., The Personal Journal of Solomon: A Commentary of Ecclesiastes for the Common Reader ().

References

External links

1965 births
Living people
American clergy
American talk radio hosts
American evangelicals

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Why is Mother Theresa criticised for not doing things that weren't her job?
Mother Theresa has been canonised today; cue for contained rapture on the part of her Missionaries of Charity and supporters in Rome and a rather different kind of satisfaction on the part of her critics, who now have a useful opportunity to air their objections to her work and cult.
It's hard to think of two groups not so much at odds but at cross purposes. The BBC news reports on the canonisation by the excellent Caroline Wyatt rehearse some of the more familiar criticisms: her hospices lack the best medical equipment and good hygiene; moreover, she took money from dictators. And according to representatives of Hindu nationalist groups, she also unhelpfully projected an image of Calcutta (to use the old designation) as being poverty-ridden and somewhere people die on the streets. Oh, and for good measure, she didn't tackle 'the underlying causes of poverty'. And she proselytised among the dying…forced them to convert to Catholicism. Will that do for now?
Alas, Mother T's most celebrated critic, Christopher Hitchens, is no longer with us, lending elegant prose to the attack – Hell's Angel, et al. I recall his famous killer documentary, made with Tariq Ali, on Mother T, chiefly for a clip of her holding a baby. She was patently dandling the little thing, but once the footage was speeded up and accompanied by Psycho style throbbing music, it looked like a prima facie case of Shaken Baby syndrome, enacted before our very eyes.
Look, unlike some people I know, I never met the new saint, though I spoke at some length to an Albanian priest who knew her well, in Kosovo. But even without that, it's possible to see that she's being criticised for not being what she never set out to be, for not doing things which she never saw as her job.
Mother Theresa had a pretty clear idea of what she was about: it was to give the poorest people, not just decent care, like a dignified death in a bed rather than on the streets, or care and food and shelter, but love. That is to say, it wasn't just important to feed people; it was important how and why you did it – as if they were Christ himself. It sounds corny, but there you go: that was how she saw it and what she said in her Nobel prize acceptance speech.
The other aspect of her mission was that she wanted a radical kind of equality between her nuns and the people they served: they should be as poor as they were. That, I may say, is one area where I part company with Mother T… just because the poorest people can't afford fridges, or sanitary towels, I can't quite see why her nuns couldn't have had have them, especially when there were American donors desperate to give her hospitals a nice Smeg. But that too is part of the quite specific idea she had of what constituted service. Her sisters, she said, were not social workers. And it's about as far as you can get from the model of contemporary aid work, characterised by the white four-by-fours in which aid workers drive around the countries they work in, and the uplift they give to the best restaurants in their areas of operation.
Her mission was to treat everyone as if they were Christ. That doesn't mean that her sisters were, are, medical experts; that her hospices were well equipped hospitals. That wasn't their main function, though the one aspect of the criticism I find hard to credit is that they were unhygienic, if by that we mean plain dirty. I have a lifelong experience of nuns, and I would bet the sum of my debts that those hospices were clean. So, if you were dying of age and want, you would, I hazard, prefer dying in the care of her Missionaries of Charity than where they found you. But if you have complex medical needs, including for palliative care, you would obviously be better off in a British hospital or hospice. But I am not sure that this was quite the à la carte choice available to the people her nuns care for, though obviously the options are very different now than they were when she began her work.
What she wasn't was a head of government. She didn't address the fundamental causes of poverty because she was addressing the symptoms and she did that well. I should probably not want Mother Theresa to be a politician; theirs is a different job, one of which is to identify the structural and social reasons why poverty exists, and to deal with them. Though I take her point that you can deal with all the physical manifestations of poverty and still be left with the debilitating kind you get here, of being unloved and lonely. As I say, she dealt with different problems than politicians and she can hardly be blamed for not changing the world in ways they can, and which she was fundamentally unequipped to do. Pope Benedict addressed precisely this distinction between Christian charity and the political/structural ways of dealing with poverty in his encyclical, Deus Caritas Est, and for gluttons for punishment, I'll put a bit of it below.
What Mother Thresa was, was Albanian – her family came from Prizren and moved to Skopje where she was born; later her mother and sister moved to Tirana: the present day demarcations into Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania didn't apply back then. But by dint of being an Albanian there are some things one can say quite categorically about her. One was that she was respectful of other people's religions; she would have grown up with Muslim neighours (their primary identification would have been in terms of nationality rather than religion) because back then and to a decent degree now, Albanians were rather good at religious cohabitation. I simply do not buy the notion that she was out to convert Hindus and Muslims to Catholicism; it's at odds with that culture. The other thing was, she was wholly practical; she just couldn't bear the sight of poor people dying on the streets and not do something about it. And that too is in part because of her background. In Albanian culture – dispersed through three countries in the Balkans – poverty is a given, but it's very unusual to see homeless people on the streets, other than gypsies. They're given a space in outhouses, something to eat in people's homes. And this small, highly determined Albanian woman was simply not prepared to tolerate the spectacle of unrelieved poverty under her nose.
And because of that practicality, her sense that the great priority was to give hungry people something to eat, and homeless people somewhere to sleep, of course she took money from God knows where. One of the funniest quotes attributed to her is: 'Give me your money and I will make it clean'. Of course, purists can say that she should have remonstrated with her dodgy would-be donors, or turned down their money because of how it is made (organised crime in the case of Kosovo right now). She, rather, preferred that it should be spent on the poor than in the usual quarters – in high end London property, for instance. And that seems fair enough to me. She wasn't bloody Interpol.
Certainly, Mother Theresa only addressed a part of the problem of poverty: the immediate symptoms, but that was more than her critics did (how many people have I, or Christopher Hitchens, RIP, rescued from dying on the streets? None.) You can take issue with her views, say on contraception or her insistence that married rather than single couples should adopt orphans. You can deplore the fact that she didn't try to alter the structures of society. You can also take issue with her silence about some of her donors' palpably criminal backgrounds. That's fine. She wasn't trying to do anything except treat people at the margins of society as if they were Christ himself. It's both a small thing, and a very big thing. She was a saint all right, miracles or no miracles.


Not that keen on groups or want the privacy of a day out in the field alone ? Or maybe you would like to arrange a tour with a bunch of friends or your local camera club.
These tours are specifically structured around your location needs and photographic objectives .
Create your own photo tour Itinerary and let us know !!!


The mining industry offers a wide range of rewarding careers that feature top salaries, travel, and the chance to work with advanced technologies. See what mining careers might be best for you!
Select each icon to answer a question that captures information about your personal interests, skills, and goals.
Once all 12 questions have been completed, careers will be recommended based on your selections.
You may enjoy and excel at the following careers based on your responses.
* Career profiles describe an overall industry perspective and may have slight variances from positions at Freeport-McMoRan.


The proposed project will investigate the development of a prototype bridge monitoring system that will permit quantitative assessments of structural condition and safety both remotely and in real-time. The research will also attempt to identify and integrate real-time video surveillance methods and other related sensing technologies with the health monitoring system to enable the system to be used for assessing bridge security. The prototype system will be designed and deployed on a small-scale physical model of a bridge in the laboratory, and the capabilities and performance characteristics of the system will be evaluated for various controlled deterioration and damage scenarios that are consistent with the effects of common hazards affecting bridge condition and safety. The evaluation of the prototype monitoring system under known and controlled conditions will enable recommendations to be made regarding the design of similar systems for full-scale implementations of structural health and security monitoring systems for in-service bridge structures.


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Il posto di movimento Cameri è un posto di movimento ubicato sul tronco comune alle linee Arona-Novara e Luino-Novara. La gestione dell'impianto è affidata a Rete Ferroviaria Italiana.

Storia
Cameri venne attivato successivamente all'attivazione della linea, in luogo della casa cantoniera posta al km 76+870, al fine di creare un nuovo punto di incroco sulla tratta lunga 13 km Vignale-Oleggio, a quel tempo interessata da abbontante traffico diretto ai valichi di Domodossola e di Pino-Tronzano.

Strutture e impianti
L'impianto è dotato, fin dalla sua creazione di due binari passanti, di cui il secondo di corretto tracciato e il primo per incroci o precedenze. Nel 1961, in seguito all'elettrificazione a  in corrente continua avvenuta sull'intera linea, l'impianto fu dotato di un apparato centrale elettrico tipo SASIB, di deviatoi centralizati e fu sede del Posto di Blocco nº 6, che fu attivato contestualmente. Nel 1994, nell'ottica di un risparmio del personale ma soprattutto per la difficoltà data dal raggiungere una sede posta in un punto poco agevole e difficilmente raggiungibile tramite una strada campestre stretta e non asfaltata, nella località, ri-classificato come posto di movimento, fu attivato un apparato ACEI di tipo semplificato e telecomandato a distanza dalla stazione di Vignale. Nel 2016, nell'ottica del generale rifacimento degli apparati centrali dell'intera linea, l'ACEI viene sostituito da un apparato ACC e il telecomando viene spostato dalla stazione di Vignale a quella di Oleggio. Nei mesi successivi, a seguito di un accordo per il potenziamento degli impianti coinvolti nelle relazioni con la Svizzera, con relativo adeguamento degli stessi a modulo 750 (lunghezza del binario di incrocio necessaria ad ospitare un treno) i deviatoi della località di servizio, originariamente percorribili solo a , vengono sostituiti con altri percorribili a .

Movimento
La località di servizio permette gli incroci tra i treni che percorrono la tratta a semplice binario Vignale-Oleggio.

Bibliografia

Cameri
Cameri


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Trends / What's News
Tucson Business Magazine Publisher: We're the Beck-and-Call Girl of Our Advertisers
by John R. Carroll onMay 5, 2014 • 3:10 pm 4 Comments
The hardtracking staff realizes that times are hard for media outlets these days, but this seems a bit much.
From the redoubtable Jim Romenesko:
NEWSPAPER COMPANY: OUR CUSTOMER IS THE ADVERTISER, NOT THE READER
Why Mark Evans refused to work for the new owners of Inside Tucson Business
We're sure plenty of publishers think the exact same thing, but this is the first we know of brazen enough to put it in writing.
Then again, more and more media manipulation is coming out of the shadows these days. Consider this Dan Shaughnessy piece from yesterday's Boston Globe:
Telling nugget in the Los Angeles Times last month when Dodgers public relations director Joe Jareck talked about the team getting news out on the in-house website. While in Australia, Jareck spoke of feeding items to Dodgers.com, saying, "We can spin it any way we want. You can tell the writer, 'Here do this,' and they'll do it.'' This is the trend. Control the message. Grips are overlapping (John Henry, for instance, owns the Globe, in case you had not heard), conflicts abound, lines are blurred, and true independence is hard to find.
We're not sure what Shaughnessy expects from dodgers.com, which is clearly more marketing than news (despite this News section). We'd suggest no expectations would be a good place to start.
Of course, house organs aren't the only outlets being manipulated by their sources. Witness this piece from New York Times Public Editor Margaret Sullivan.
When Sources Set the Ground Rules
SOMETIMES a single sentence can be a window into a world.
Such a sentence appeared in Sabrina Tavernise's front-page article late last month about the federal Food and Drug Administration's new guidelines for e-cigarettes. It read: "F.D.A. officials gave journalists an outline of the new rules on Wednesday, but required that they not talk to industry or public health groups until after Thursday's formal release of the documents."
That's a concept that gives many journalists the creeps: the government telling journalists to whom they can and can't talk.
Ira Stoll, the former New York Sun managing editor who writes the Smarter Times website, was one of the readers who was struck by the unusual sentence. He wrote with some valid questions, and a sense of outrage: "Who gave the F.D.A. the authority to stop journalists from asking questions? Why would any journalist agree to abide by such a requirement? Did The Times agree to it, and if it did agree to it, did it abide by the agreement? What is the F.D.A.'s rationale for such restrictions?"
According to Sullivan, their rationale is this: "Ms. Tavernise told me that the F.D.A. presented this arrangement to journalists in a positive light: It would give them a head start on understanding a dense and elaborate document."
How thoughtful.
Sullivan's conclusion: "Like quote approval, this practice ought to be stomped out. I'd like to see The Times push back — hard — against such restrictions in every instance, and be prepared to walk away from the story if need be."
The hardtracking staff says ditto.
But wethinks the Times – and every other media outlet – will push back soft.
Tags: Boston Globe, Dan Shaughnessy, Dodgers public relations director, dodgers.com, Inside Tucson Business, Ira Stoll, Jim Romenesko, Joe Jareck, John Henry, Los Angeles Dodgers, Margaret Sullivan, Mark Evans, New York Times, Sabrina Tavernise, Smarter Times
Previous postPublishers, Rejoice! New Study Says Native Ads Are Good for You! Next postChrysler Drives Stealth Marketing '24'/7
Tucson Magazine Publisher: We're the Beck-and-Call Girl of Our Advertisers | Campaign Outsider says:
[…] Read the rest at Sneak Adtack. […]
Michael Pardee says:
I think it's creepy.
The administrative state has been growing for years. But the Obama team has really reved up efforts to enlarge the blanket of secrecy. Chilling.
Full disclosure! I checked the box for him twice.
But raise your hand if you think a Romney admin would have been a paragon of virtue when it came to spreading sunshine on government paperwork. I thought so.
Dr. Ads says:
Yeah – the Obama administration is the worst in this area. If it was W doing this, the press would be at DEFCON 4.
Time Says Magazine Editors On Its Side | Sneak Adtack says:
[…] also sounds suspiciously like the manifesto of Inside Tucson Business, as chronicled here last month. Many companies in our industry have wrongly divided their focus among many customer […]


In May, I retired as chairman of SNC-Lavalin Inc. after serving for six years. That was one year longer than my original commitment. The need to stay beyond my original term became clear in early 2012, when I received a phone call during a trip to Hong Kong, where I was attending board meetings of HSBC Holdings PLC.
That call was when I first learned of two large payments made by SNC-Lavalin under so-called "agency agreements" whose documentation was tied to construction projects that did not exist. The following 16 months turned out to be the most disturbing and challenging of my four-decade career in business, and I want to set a few things straight.
The news of the payments seemed surreal. SNC-Lavalin had recently celebrated 100 years of progress to becoming one of the world's most respected engineering and construction firms. I hoped that it was all some sort of accounting mix-up, but after a conference call with the chairman of the audit committee and external auditors, that hope was dashed. There were many unanswered questions, including how the payments came to be made and who received the tens of millions of dollars involved.
The directors were deeply concerned and we took action. Our audit committee hired independent counsel to conduct an extensive internal review, the results of which were made public in March, 2012. That report, along with other information gathered during the review, was turned over to authorities and the company continues to collaborate with their efforts to bring wrongdoers to justice. Several former SNC employees now face charges and recent public comments by investigators indicate the company may have been the victim of embezzlement by two trusted, long-time executives.
With former CEO Pierre Duhaime's termination, the most urgent priority was top-level leadership. Ian Bourne, a respected Canadian businessman and SNC director, agreed to step in as interim CEO. He stabilized the troubled company during the ensuing six months. Under his leadership, we reinforced standards of conduct and implemented better internal controls. Remarkably, the staff managed to retain the confidence of clients and win important new projects. It is said that some are destroyed by adversity, while others rise to overcome it. The people of SNC-Lavalin are clearly in the latter group. History will show they are the ones saved their company.
The next crucial task was recruitment of a new CEO. I'd been involved in other CEO searches before, but none like this. The very survival of the company was at stake. Clients, employees and shareholders were allowing the board some time to get the company stabilized, but that clock was ticking. We knew that the famous Apollo 13 quote – "Failure is not an option" – applied to our task. The global engineering and construction business is highly complex and competitive, so we needed a person with an outstanding operational track record. And given the crisis that had engulfed the company, we needed a person of extraordinary character, determination and resilience. Last but not least, the new CEO had to bring a reputation for the highest ethical values.
It was a daunting set of criteria. Did such a person even exist and, if so, could we attract that leader to our company? Following a global search, we found such a person in Bob Card, one of the engineering and construction industry's most accomplished leaders. He has drawn a zero-tolerance ethical red line and has been able to recruit several world class executives who share his belief that SNC-Lavalin has great future potential.
Still, I know the waves roiled by this storm will continue to pound against the stern. The investigations continue and lengthy trials for those charged have yet to begin. As we saw in recent stories in the Globe and Mail, disclosures by investigating authorities will bring negative headlines about things that happened before Ian Bourne and Bob Card took over leadership of the company.
Containing the damage from that fallout will make rebuilding the SNC-Lavalin brand a challenge – but far from an impossible one. In 2006, when German engineering company Siemens AG was rocked by an international bribery scandal on a breadth and scale beyond the allegations currently facing SNC-Lavalin, many thought that the company could never regain its reputation. Today, Siemens is a global colossus with one of the world's most respected brands. One of Bob Card's first moves was to hire Andreas Pohlmann, the man who was at the centre of rebuilding the Siemens brand, as SNC-Lavalin's chief compliance officer.
This difficult chapter in SNC-Lavalin's history raises some fundamental questions about corporate governance. Why didn't these errant behaviours come to the board's attention earlier? Shouldn't we have known about these payments? Were we, as some have suggested, "asleep at the switch"?
These questions are understandable. And yet, over my career as founding CEO of Encana Corp., and as a director of four other major global firms, I still believe SNC's board is perhaps the most diligent I have ever seen. Major projects were put through the wringer, with thorough analysis of financial, operational and security risks. When a project failed to meet expectations, it was examined in-depth by the audit committee – as were all indications of possible financial irregularities or failure to comply with the company's Code of Conduct. With some 10,000 projects in more than one hundred countries, the workload for the board and the audit committee was large, requiring long and frequent meetings. In 2011, before we found out about the illegal payments, many independent directors had between 16 and 20 meetings. Last year, some directors had 35 or more.
Could the board have done more to detect the wrongdoings that have since come to light? The answer to that question is as troubling to SNC-Lavalin board members as it must be to all corporate directors. Non-executive directors are not involved in day-to-day operations of the company. They must rely on information received from people within the company. When a small number of people deliberately set out to falsify documents, commit bribery and cover up theft, it can be exceedingly difficult to detect, even with good controls in place. This has proven to be true at corporations around the world.
One of the most widely accepted corporate governance principles is the clear separation of the role of board members from that of management. Directors select management, examine strategic plans, review budgets and ensure suitable control and compliance systems are in place. The role of management is to run the company. As a long-time CEO and more recently a chairman, I have experience on both sides. I know that a corporation cannot function without trust between directors and executives. They are in many ways a team, dedicated to the organization's success. But that trust must be kept in careful balance.
What did I learn from SNC that might be useful to other corporate directors? The first lesson would be that, since non-executive directors receive essentially all information from people in the company, boards should do everything possible to strengthen and diversify those communication channels.
For example, internal auditors should report directly – and only – to the chair of the audit committee, not to management. The chief financial officer should have a strong, direct reporting relationship to the audit committee chair – as strong as his relationship to the CEO. Operating division comptrollers should report to the CFO, not to the division leader or the business-unit head. There should be a robust whistleblower system, independent of management, so employees can be confident of passing on information to directors without fear of reprisal.
The second lesson is that while strong financial controls, operational compliance and codes of conduct are very important, they will fail unless all people in leadership roles, from the CEO on down, follow those best practices diligently and consistently.
Finally and most important, corporate culture must be built upon a bedrock of strong ethical values that penetrate every level in the company. It is said that corporate culture is defined by how people act when no one is looking. But it is also defined by how employees react when they see behaviour that is inconsistent with the values of the organization. When their intrinsic cultural reaction is, "We're not going to let this happen in our company," the organization is built upon a solid ethical foundation. One of my great regrets is that, for some reason, SNC employees who saw signs that code of ethics violations may be happening didn't feel comfortable in speaking up.
I have long believed in the importance of Canadian-headquartered companies that rank among the world's best. This belief was a driving passion behind the building of Encana, which was Canada's most valuable company when I stepped down as CEO at the end of 2005. When I announced my retirement, I received offers of board membership from many companies. For me, both as an engineer and a believer in Canadian-headquartered global champions, SNC-Lavalin stood out as my top choice. It has grown from a one-man operation into one of the world's premier engineering and construction companies, and is the most global enterprise Canada has ever produced. My fervent hope is that, like Siemens AG, it will move beyond this difficult period into an even stronger second century as a flagship Canadian enterprise.
Financial reporting structures matterInternal auditors should report directly – and only – to the chair of the audit committee, not to management. The chief financial officer should have a direct reporting relationship to the audit committee chair. Operating division comptrollers should report to the CFO, not to the division leader or the business-unit head.
It's important to have strong financial controls and ethical codes, but they will fail unless all people in leadership roles, from the CEO on down, follow them diligently and consistently.
It is said that corporate culture is defined by how people act when no one is looking. But it is also defined by how employees react when they see behaviour that is inconsistent with the values of the organization. When their reaction is, "We're not going to let this happen in our company," the organization is built upon a solid ethical foundation.


This training video describes the process of using the Contractor Help Center, how to search the FAQ Knowledge Base, how to submit support requests, and how to access existing and organization support requests. It is the second in a series of eleven instructional videos. Narrated by CLEAResult's Cara Sherwood, this training resource guides participating HPwES contractors in how to access and use the Contractor Help Center.


Welcome to our website. We are Showpixel, totally dedicated to Pixels and we offer the most common used digital LEDstrips at this moment. All our strips are carefully checked at quality and endurance. That is the main reason we don't like to sell them "all" but rather sell a few and make a selection of the high quality ones available at this moment.
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AC Electric supports mentoring programs
Atlantic City Electric supports the school-based mentoring programs of Big Brothers Big Sisters.
AC Electric supports mentoring programs Atlantic City Electric supports the school-based mentoring programs of Big Brothers Big Sisters. Check out this story on thedailyjournal.com: http://vineland.dj/1OIYTun
djneighbors@thedailyjournal.com Published 12:30 a.m. ET Jan. 5, 2016 | Updated 9:58 p.m. ET Jan. 5, 2016
Susan Coan, region vice president for Atlantic City Electric, and Bert Lopez, the utility's public affairs manager, holding a donation check, stand with representatives and participants of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cumberland & Salem Counties.(Photo: Atlantic City Electric)
MAYS LANDING - On behalf of the PHI Community Foundation, Atlantic City Electric, through its 10th annual Charity Golf Classic, donated $52,000 to support the school-based mentoring programs of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Burlington, Camden & Gloucester Counties and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cumberland & Salem Counties.
Through the mentoring program, a mentor or "Big" meets with a student or "Little" in a school setting once a week. The goal of the program is that through talking, playing games and sharing interests, a friendship is formed during this one-to-one mentoring and the mentor's guidance, support and encouragement helps the student reach his or her full potential in school and everyday life.
"It's important for every child to have a role model. A BBBS mentor can support a child in a variety of ways including building self-confidence, which can have a tremendous positive impact in a child's life," said Erica McLeod, acting CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Burlington, Camden & Gloucester Counties. "The funding from Atlantic City Electric helps support our program and enables us to expand this service to serve more children."
Vince Maione, region president for Atlantic City Electric, said: "We are very pleased to support Big Brothers Big Sisters in their mission to provide strong and enduring relationships for children facing adversity."
This year, the Big Brothers Big Sisters school-based mentoring program served about 500 youth in Camden, Cumberland, Burlington, Gloucester and Salem counties.
For information about Atlantic City Electric, visit www.atlanticcityelectric.com.
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Annual Prudential Reunion held
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Law firm's donation benefits Haitian children
Edgarton announces science fair winners


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Modern Snacking: Where Health & Indulgence Converge
Innova Markets Highlights Trend of New Ingredients Seeking Mainstream Status
The key to successful new ingredients is a rise in familiarity with potential benefits, the market research firm said.
The company named CBD, ashwagandha, and prebiotics as examples of 'rising star' ingredients.
Time for a Change—The Innovative Combination of Dietary Supplements and RTD Beverages
Mental Wellness and Brain Health Supplements Featured in Global Wellness Institute Market Report
FTC Takes Action on CBD Claims, Issuing Penalties
OptiMSM Shown In Study to Have Benefits in Combination with CBD
Insurance Rates Have Been at an All-Time Low, But a Hard Market is Coming
According to Innova Market Insights, a trend anticipated to continue through 2020 in the food ingredients market is that of new ingredients seeking positive reputations that consumers are familiar with. To put it simply, people want novelty, but not something that is completely unknown.
This has been the case with prebiotics, an ingredient that had been pushed to the background for many years before it became a key ingredient that consumers sought out due to widely held beliefs and studies on the long-held and newly-discovered benefits of high-fiber diets.
Innova reports a 20% global growth for food and beverage launches with prebiotics in 2018 compared to 2017, with another rise of over 13% in 2019. Prebiotics can be found in food and drinks that are newly launched, such as oat cereals in the U.S. and U.K., soft drinks in Australia, and confectionary in China.
CBD has also been shaking things up as a relative newcomer in the few years that it has been made legally available. Consumers are becoming more familiar with the benefits attributed to CBD, giving companies the potential to be the 'hot new thing' in 2020. Its most popular uses include pain relief, reducing anxiety/stress, and promoting relaxation. This has led to new product launches such as mood-lifting chocolate, relaxation tea, sleep aid gummies, and nootropic bars.
Most consumers appear open to accepting cannabis and CBD as an ingredient, and the figure of 59% globally rises to 71% in the U.S. and 85% in India. New product development was slow to start in 2017, before picking up in 2018, and then growing exponentially in 2019. This remains concentrated in North America and Western Europe where 97% of the total products are accounted for.
Ashwagandha is another ingredient that has low awareness, but is beginning to grow exponentially. It is a flagship herb in traditional ayurvedic medicine, and has a wide variety of claimed benefits, though stress and anxiety reduction appear to be the best known. However, it's most often launched with claims promoting energy and alertness. Supplements and sports nutrition products have been making the most headway with Ashwagandha, seeing the most success in the U.S.
Iowa Proposes CBD Legislation in Absence of Federal Regulations
ChickP Launches Non-GMO Chickpea Starch
The Vitamin Shoppe Launches Range of CBD and Hemp Extracts
Recreational Cannabis Set to Grow to New Heights
AHPA Promotes Amber Bennett to VP of Marketing and Engagement
CV Sciences Debuts Line of CBD Pet Products
Creating Effective CBD-Based Products
CBD Beauty: Packaging and Promises
Transparency to Drive Innovation in 2021: Innova's Top 10 Food & Beverage Trends
Keeping Community Together During a Pandemic


On the evening of Tuesday 5th August, we will be working with the public in Queensferry to develop a brief for new public spaces around Queensferry's ancient Priory Church. This interactive event is aimed at providing the opportunity for people directly contribute ideas on how the Church grounds might be best developed and used in the future.
Anyone interested in attending the workshops is welcome to do so, from 7pm at The Priory Church.


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Readers ask: How To Say Hi In Urdu?
1 What are 3 ways to say hello?
2 How do you say hi in Quran?
3 What do Pakistanis call each other?
4 How do you say good morning in Pakistani?
5 What is your name Urdu?
6 What is I Love You in Pakistan language?
7 What does Janu mean in Urdu?
8 What is the reply of hi?
9 How do you say hi in a cute way?
10 Is it haram to say amen?
11 How do Muslims say thank you?
12 What do you say in Islam?
What are 3 ways to say hello?
There are many other options, but here are six of the most common formal ways to say "hello":
"Good afternoon."
"It's a pleasure to meet you." (These last two only work when you are meeting someone for the first time.)
How do you say hi in Quran?
"As-Salam-u-Alaikum" is the most common greeting among Muslims. This is the minimum required when greeting a Muslim. It is permissible to use the minimum greeting when time is short, such as when passing each other on the street. Add "wa-rahmatullahi wa-barakatuh" to complete the greeting.
What do Pakistanis call each other?
The familiar register is only used when talking to friends and young family. The most common greeting among Pakistanis is "As-Salamu-Alaykum" ('Peace be upon you'). Elders are greeted first out of respect. Well-acquainted men may hug each other upon greeting.
How do you say good morning in Pakistani?
How do I say "good morning" in Pakistan? ' Subha Bakher ' is the common translation.
You might be interested: Question: How To Say Thank You In Hindi?
What is your name Urdu?
Aapka naam kia hai? – What is your name?
What is I Love You in Pakistan language?
What is "I Love You" in Pakistan's language? That would be " میں تم سے پیار کرتا ہوں" (pronounced "mein ap say muhabat karta hoon") in Urdu, which is the official language of Pakistan (along with English).
What does Janu mean in Urdu?
A term of endearment in multiple South Asian languages used to mean " my love " or "dear". Derived from the Hindi/Urdu word jaan, which literally means "life".
What is the reply of hi?
Answer a simple "hello" with a question. "How are you?" is a popular way to respond and keep the conversation going. You may want to add a simple "hello" to your response just to acknowledge the person, like "Hi there!
How do you say hi in a cute way?
Here are some cute ways to say hi:
"Hey, cutie! How's it going?"
"Hey there, beautiful! What have you been up to so far today?"
"Hey, lovely! How was your day?"
Is it haram to say amen?
The Use of "Ameen" in Islam Any use of ameen in Islamic prayer is considered optional (sunnah), not required (wajib). The practice is based on the example and teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him.
How do Muslims say thank you?
In Arabic "Thank you" is shukran (شكرا). The word shukran literally means "thanks." This is rather casual and can be used in restaurants, at shops, and just about everywhere else.
You might be interested: Often asked: How To Say Nike?
What do you say in Islam?
List Of Popular Islamic Sayings
Mashallah. Closely translated to mean "as God has willed" or "what Allah wanted has happened."
Da'wah.
La hawla wala quwwata illa billah.
Imaan.
Jannah.
Hadith.
Fatwa.


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Yukonfloden (engelska Yukon River, gwich'in Yukon, yupik Kwiguk, franska fleuve Yukon) är en stor flod i nordvästra Nordamerika. Över hälften av flodens hela längd sträcker sig genom den amerikanska delstaten Alaska, och den största delen av återstoden ligger i det kanadensiska territoriet Yukon, en liten del rinner även genom British Columbia. Floden är 3 700 kilometer lång och rinner ut i Berings hav vid Yukon-Kuskokwim-deltat. Dess genomsnittsflöde är 6 430 m³/s. Det totala avrinningsområdet är på 832 700 km², varav 323 800 km² i Kanada.

Som den längsta floden i Alaska och Yukon var den en av de viktigaste transportlederna under guldruschen i Klondike mellan 1896 och 1903. Floden trafikerades av flodbåtar fram till 1950-talet, då Klondike Highway färdigställdes.Yukon betyder "stor flod" på språket gwich'in. Yupiknamnet Kwiguk betyder "stor ström". Floden har blivit kraftigt förorenad av guldutvinning, militära installationer, dumpning, med mera. Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council, en förening grundad av 64 olika First Nations och andra stammar i Alaska och Kanada, kämpar för att åter göra flodens vatten drickbart.

Sträckning

Floden har enligt den mest erkända teorin sin källa vid Llewellynglaciären vid södra delen av Atlin Lake i British Columbia. Floden rinner genom bosättningarna Whitehorse, Carmacks och Dawson City i Yukon, och genom Circle, Fort Yukon, Stevens Village, Tanana, Ruby, Galena, Nulato, Grayling, Holy Cross, Russian Mission, Marshall, Pilot Station, St. Marys och Mountain Village. Efter Mountain Village delar floden sig i flera fåror som rinner genom deltat ut i Berings hav. Det finns ett antal bosättningar efter denna uppdelning, de är Nunum Iqua, Alakanuk, Emmonak och Kotlik. Av dessa är Emmonak störst med ungefär 760 invånare.

Faror

Vulkaner nära Yukonfloden, såsom Volcano Mountain, kan en gång i tiden ha blockerat eller förändrat flodens väg på grund av lavafloder. Eventuella framtida händelser skulle kraftigt kunna påverka de boende i flodområdet.

Broar
Längs med floden finns fyra broar och en bilfärja avsedda för motorfordon, listade i ordning, uppströms först.
 Lewesbron, norr om Marsh Lake på Alaska Highway
 Robert Campbell-bron som binder ihop Whitehorse förort Riverdale med stadens centrum
 Yukonflodenbron i Carmacks, på Klondike Highway
En bilfärja korsar floden vid Dawson City under sommaren, den ersätts av en isbro över den frusna floden under vintern. Under mars 2004 planerades en permanent bro, men de beräknade kostnaderna var för höga.
 E. L. Patton Yukon River-bron (700 m lång), norr om Fairbanks på Dalton Highway

Det finns dessutom två broar avsedda för fotgängare i Whitehorse, en fördämning och ett vattenkraftverk. Fördämningen skapade Schwatka Lake.

Floden flyter igenom flera skyddsområden, dessa är:
 Innoko National Wildlife Refuge
 Nowitna National Wildlife Refuge
 Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve
 Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge
 Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge

Bifloder

Yukon
 Takhini River
 Big Salmon River
 Little Salmon River
 Nordenskiold River
 Teslin River
 Pelly River
 Macmillan River
 Stewart River
 Nadaleen River
 Lansing River
 Hess River
 McQuesten River
 White River
 Donjek River
 Kluane River
 Nisling River
 Beaver Creek
 Sixtymile River
 Indian River
 Klondike River
 Fortymile River

Alaska
 Tatonduk River
 Seventymile River
 Nation River
 Kandik River
 Charley River
 Porcupine River
(bifloder i Yukon)
 Miner River
 Fishing Branch
 Bell River
 Eagle River
 Rock River
 Driftwood River
 Old Crow River
 Bluefish River
(bifloder i Alaska)
 Coleen River
 Black River
 Wood River
 Bear Mountain Creek
 Mountain Creek
 Chandalar Creek
 Sheenjek River
 Sheenjek River East Fork
 Koness River
 Eskimo Creek
 Christian River
 Chandalar River
 East Fork Chandalar River
 Junjik River
 Wind River
 Middle Fork Chandalar River
 North Fork Chandalar River
 West Fork Chandalar River
 Marten Creek
 Birch Creek
 Hadweenzic River
 Beaver Creek
 Hodzana River
 Dall River
 Ray River
 Big Salt River
 Hess Creek
 Garnet Creek
 Fish Creek
 Texas Creek
 Coal Creek
 Tanana River
 Nabesna River
 Chisana River
 Tetlin River
 Goodpaster River
 Delta River
 Salcha River
 Chena River
 Wood River
 Nenana River
 Tolovana River
 Kantishna River
 NC Creek
 Tozitna River
 Bluebell Creek
 Dagislakhna Creek
 Banddana Creek
 Blind River
 Bering Creek
 Nowitna River
 Sulatna River
 Big Creek
 Beaver Creek
 Glacier Creek
 Melozitna River
 Black Sand Creek
 Little Melozitna River
 Ruby Slough
 Yuki River
 East Fork Yuki River
 Kala Creek
 Kelly Creek
 Galena Creek
 Bishop Creek
 Koyukuk River
 Workyard Creek
 Gisasa River
 Kateel River
 Dulbi River
 Huslia River
 Nulitna River
 Tom Cook Slough
 Billy Hawk Creek
 Cutoff Slough
 Hogatza River
 Clear Creek
 Batza River
 Matthews Slough
 Little Indian River
 Indian River
 Calamity Creek
 Pocahontas Creek
 Kanuti River
 Discovery Creek
 Alatna River
 Siruk Creek
 South Fork Koyokouk River
 Jim River
 Jane Creek
 John River
 North Fork Koyukuk River
 Nulato River
 Khotol River
 Anvik River
 Bonasila River
 Stuyahok River
 Innoko River
 Paimiut Slough
 Reindeer River
 Iditarod River
 Yetna River
 First Chance Creek
 Mud River
 Dishna River
 Coffee Creek
 Tolstoi Creek
 Madison Creek
 Mastodon Creek
 Hurst Creek
 Taft Creek
 Finland Creek
 Scandinavian Creek
 North Fork Innoko River
 Tango Creek
 West Fork North Fork Innoko River
 Colorado Creek
 Kako Creek
 Engineer Creek
 Reindeer River
 Atchuelinguk River
 Andreafsky River
 Kashunuk River

Referenser

Vattendrag i Alaska
Vattendrag i Yukon
Yukonflodens avrinningsområde


text:
From its inception, La Banque Postale has adopted governance principles in line with best practices and with its status as a public company
Administration and control of the Company
The Executive Board defines the strategy and operational policy of the La Banque Postale Group. It ensures that activities are coherent and convergent and ensures compliance with the legal and regulatory provisions. It regularly reports to the Supervisory Board on the Banks' results, development projects and strategy. The Supervisory Board exercises ongoing control over the management of the Bank through the Executive Board. It discusses the Bank's major strategic objectives and ensures that they are implemented.
The Supervisory Board exercises ongoing control over the management of the Bank through the Executive Board. It discusses the Bank's major strategic objectives and ensures that they are implemented.
Composition of administrative and oversight bodies
The Supervisory Board is chaired by Philippe Wahl, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of La Poste. It has 15 members. Six members have management positions within Le Groupe La Poste, three are independent and five others are elected by the employees, representing one third of the Board, in accordance with the provisions of the law on public sector democratisation. Lastly, a member representing the State was appointed by the decree of 2 October 2014. The term of office of the members of the Supervisory Board is five years. The State has also appointed a Government commissioner to La Banque Postale under the general interest remit entrusted to it. The Secretary of the Works council also attends Board Meetings.
The Supervisory Board has set up five special committees to help it in its work:
• the Risk Committee;
• the Accounts Committee;
• the Appoinments Committee;
• the Compensation Committee;
• the Strategy Committee.
The Executive Board is comprised of Rémy Weber, Chairman, Marc Batave, Chief Executive Officer of Commercial Banking and Insurance, and Anne-Laure Bourn, Chief Executive Officer of the La Poste Network, Deputy Head of financial services.
Supervisory Board members
Members with executive positions within the Le Groupe La Poste:
• Philippe Wahl, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of La Banque Postale, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Le Groupe La Poste;
• La Poste S.A., represented by Philippe Bajou, General Secretary of the Le Groupe La Poste and Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of transformation;
• Yves Brassart, Vice-Chairman of the Supervisory Board of La Banque Postale, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Le Groupe La Poste, responsible for finance and development;
• Virgile Bertola, Head of Strategy, Outlook and Innovation at Le Groupe La Poste;
• Sylvie François, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Director of Human Resources of the Le Groupe La Poste;
• Nicolas Routier, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Le Groupe La Poste, responsible for Institutional Strategy and Regulation.
Independent members:
• Élisabeth Ayrault, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer La Compagnie Nationale du Rhône;
• Sophie Lombard, Managing Partner;
• Didier Ribadeau-Dumas, Managing Partner.
Members representing employees:
• Thierry Freslon, Chairman of AVEA, a non-profit association of the Le Groupe La Poste, sponsored by the CFDT union;
• Jean-Robert Larangé, assigned to Adie Sud-Ouest, sponsored by the CFDT union;
• Steeve Maigne, Quality RBR Manager, Greater Paris region, sponsored by the SNB/CFE-CGC union;
• Françoise Paget-Bitch, Mediterranean Banking Operations Controller, sponsored by the FO union;
• Hélène Wolff, Quality Assurance Manager, sponsored by the CFDT union.
Member representing the Government:
• Nathalie Dieryckxvisschers, Manager of Holdings in the Services and Finances Equity Department of the French Government Shareholding Agency
Government Commissioner: Dominique Bocquet
The Executive Committee is the management body of La Banque Postale.
The Management Committee
The members of the Management Committee monitor large structuring projects and address the responsible development policy. Chaired by Rémy Weber, it is made up of members of the Executive Committee, plus:
Philippe Cuvelier, Deputy Head of lnformation Systems
Régis Folbaum, Head of Payments
Alice Holzman, Head of Digital and Communication
Guillaume de Lussac, Head of the Insurance unit, Chief Executive Officer of La Banque Postale Assurances IARD
Stéphane Magnan, Head of Financial Operations
Franck Oniga, Deputy Head of the Retail Banking Department
Jean-Marc Ribes, Chairman of the BPE Executive Board and Head of the Wealth management unit
Dominique Rouquayrol de Boisse, Head of Legal Affairs
Pierre-Manuel Sroczynski, Head of Compliance
Julien Têtu, Chairman of the Executive Board of LBP Financement
Christophe Van de Walle, General Inspector


text:
Axis of Reason Podcast
But, Her Emails!
By Taylor Griffin
Pro-Trump Congressmen are calling for a special counsel to investigate the FBI's handling of Hillary Clinton's emails. Aside from the words "Special Counsel," this lede could have easily been written a year and a half ago during the 2016 election.
In July, Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee wrote to Attorney General Jeff Sessions calling for a Special Counsel to investigate alleged bias in the Russia investigation and a range of the Clinton-related matters, especially the handling of the FBI's investigation into her emails. It's a drumbeat they've kept up steadily, most recently in their grilling of FBI Director Christopher Wray in a hearing Thursday.
Never mind that the Department of Justice's Inspector General already has an investigation into the FBI's Clinton email investigation underway. It is unclear why an additional investigation would be necessary, and less clear still why pro-Trump Republicans feel that a special counsel is required to lead it. But, we might wonder whether it is because "inspector general" doesn't quite have the resonance with Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation they'd like.
There are certainly some marginally unsettling circumstances that merit additional inquiry. That meeting between Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former President Bill Clinton looks suspicious. We don't know what was said, but it's not unreasonable to suppose the meeting could have been an attempt to persuade Lynch to take it easy on Hillary. Lynch's suggestion that FBI Director James Comey refer to his agencies' probe into Clinton's home-brew email server as a "matter" rather than an "investigation" cannot be read any other way than an attempt to spin it in a positive light for Hillary. And, the FBI agent whom Mueller dismissed from his team after discovering anti-Trump tweets worked on the Clinton probe as well.
Democrats have also complained bitterly about Director Comey's election-eve decision to reopen the e-mail probe, which Clinton points to as a significant contributing factor her loss. All this raises legitimate questions. Did Obama Administration higher-ups pressure the FBI to let Clinton off easy? Did Director Comey's public comments breech Department protocols?
Both sides see political bias, which some might say is a sign the FBI plays it straight. But, an investigation to get to the bottom of it all seems warranted nevertheless. Helpfully, there's one already well underway.
The Department of Justice's Inspector General, Michael Horowitz, opened an investigation back in January. Horowitz told a House Oversight Committee Wednesday that the probe has made significant progress.
"We have interviewed dozens of people. We are not at the 100 level yet, but we're in the dozens range," Horowitz said. "We've reviewed about 1.2 million records in the course of the investigation," adding that he anticipated a final report by spring.
Yet, some pro-Trump House Republicans want to do it all over again. With apparently the only difference being that this time the investigation would be led by someone called a "Special Counsel."
There are other issues they want to see investigated by a Special Counsel too: Donations to the Clinton Foundation, Uranium One and whether the infamous dossier provided grounds for a FISA warrant, among others. Some of these may merit some sort of investigation, but in none of the cases are there grounds for naming a Special Counsel.
A Special Counsel is intended for situations in which there is an irreconcilable conflict of interest that would prevent a fair investigation. For example, a Special Counsel was required after President Trump fired James Comey because of the Russia investigation.
Hillary Clinton isn't a currently serving government official. She is a private citizen. Investigating her raises no conflict of interest whatsoever. An independent investigation might have arguably been justified when Clinton's allies in the Obama administration controlled the Department of Justice. But, it strains credulity that the House Republicans calling for a Special Counsel now are doing so because they are particularly concerned that the Trump Justice Department might be biased against her.
We might be suspicious that the real aim here isn't to investigate anything, at least not in the traditional sense of getting to the facts. Rather, it seems intended to bolster what has always been Trump's last and strongest line of defense — Hillary Clinton would have been worse, or at least just as bad. "See, Hillary is under a 'Special Counsel' investigation too," they will say — another whattabout argument to throw cool water on the flames rising from Mueller's investigation, which are increasingly lapping at the feet of the President and his team.
This is not to say these matters should not be investigated, just that political distractions are not the purpose of a Special Counsel investigation. The use of the Special Counsel statute to launch an investigation into a matter already being investigated, with no apparent purpose other than to provide political cover to partisan allies — and perhaps harass political enemies — would be a gross abuse of power. Credit to Attorney General Jeff Sessions who has thus far rebuffed these demands.
But, there's a broader significance in all this. President Trump's most ardent cheerleaders in Congress have long argued that the Russia investigation and intense media scrutiny that have dogged his Presidency are the reaction of a fearful establishment to an exceptional outsider who will drain their swamp and make America great again. Now, there appears to be a budding recognition that this defense is growing untenable. Instead, they're settling for a different defense that tacitly implies: Trump might be corrupt, but he's no more corrupt than the rest of them.
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