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The folly of letting the international investor community make public policy
First, read the Paul Krugman column Patrick sidelighted as "The intellectual phoniness of 'hard-headed' 'fiscal realism.'"
Onward to today's story in the NYTimes: In Ireland, a Picture of the High Cost of Austerity:
DUBLIN — As Europe's major economies focus on belt-tightening, they are following the path of Ireland. But the once thriving nation is struggling, with no sign of a rapid turnaround in sight.
Nearly two years ago, an economic collapse forced Ireland to cut public spending and raise taxes, the type of austerity measures that financial markets are now pressing on most advanced industrial nations.
"When our public finance situation blew wide open, the dominant consideration was ensuring that there was international investor confidence in Ireland so we could continue to borrow," said Alan Barrett, chief economist at the Economic and Social Research Institute of Ireland. "A lot of the argument was, 'Let's get this over with quickly.' "
Rather than being rewarded for its actions, though, Ireland is being penalized. Its downturn has certainly been sharper than if the government had spent more to keep people working. Lacking stimulus money, the Irish economy shrank 7.1 percent last year and remains in recession.
Joblessness in this country of 4.5 million is above 13 percent, and the ranks of the long-term unemployed—those out of work for a year or more—have more than doubled, to 5.3 percent.
Now, the Irish are being warned of more pain to come.
"The facts are that there is no easy way to cut deficits," Prime Minister Brian Cowen said in an interview. "Those who claim there's an easier way or a soft option—that's not the real world."
Malarkey. In the real real world, the one based on facts, deficit-driven austerity budgets are not the only way to deal with economic downturn, and there's solid evidence that they do more damage than good.
Despite its strenuous efforts, Ireland has been thrust into the same ignominious category as Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain. It now pays a hefty three percentage points more than Germany on its benchmark bonds, in part because investors fear that the austerity program, by retarding growth and so far failing to reduce borrowing, will make it harder for Dublin to pay its bills rather than easier.
Other European nations, including Britain and Germany, are following Ireland's lead, arguing that the only way to restore growth is to convince investors and their own people that government borrowing will shrink.
The Group of 20 leaders set that in writing this weekend, vowing to make deficit reduction the top priority despite warnings from President Obama that too much austerity could choke a global recovery and warnings from a few economists about the possibility of a much sharper 1930s style downturn. …
At bottom, this isn't terribly complicated. In a capitalistic system, your neighbor's prosperity becomes your own, and their downturns and recessions likewise become yours, because we all sell goods and services to each other. The point of economic stimulus programs is to get prosperity started again. If you can do that, it'll generate vastly more real wealth than you spent on the stimulus program.
Politicians [in Ireland] have raised taxes and cut salaries for nurses, professors and other public workers by up to 20 percent. About 30 billion euros ($37 billion) is being poured into zombie banks like Anglo Irish, which was nationalized after lavishing loans on developers.
The budget went from surpluses in 2006 and 2007 to a staggering deficit of 14.3 percent of gross domestic product last year—worse than Greece. It continues to deteriorate. Drained of cash after an American-style housing boom went bust, Ireland has had to borrow billions; its once ultralow debt could rise to 77 percent of G.D.P. this year.
There's money enough to bail out horrendously mismanaged banks—in effect paying a huge retroactive subsidy to the cynical and in some cases criminally negligent housing and mortgage industries that were the beneficiaries of the banks' loans—but there's not enough money to get your business's customers working and earning again?
Don't you believe it.
Note: If there's anything I keep wishing the economic bloggers would explain in terms comprehensible to the general public, it's that taxes are not the only way that government policies can cost them money.
F. Gwynplaine MacIntyre (presumed)
It's a sad story. From the NY Daily News:
A Brooklyn man suffering from depression killed himself by setting fire to his apartment Friday, police sources said.
The 59-year-old victim had been telling his Bensonhurst neighbors he no longer wanted to live. On Thursday, he was taken to Coney Island Hospital after police learned he had e-mailed someone close to him a goodbye letter, sources said.
It was not immediately clear why he was released from the hospital. The next morning, fire officials said, the man set two fires inside his cluttered 70th St. apartment and was found dead.
I gather the "presumed" isn't because they're not sure he's dead, but rather because they're still figuring out who he really was. As Andy Porter wrote in File 770:
The body, burned beyond recognition, was discovered in the author's apartment in the Coney Island area of Brooklyn on Friday, June 25th. The Medical Examiner told me that they hoped to find some record of dental or other medical work, and failing that, would likely contact British authorities. If you can provide any useful information, contact the office of the NYC Office of Chief Medical Examiner.
Google searches reveal McIntyre—there are questions whether that is his real name—to be highly secretive about his real identity.
I wouldn't know about his alleged secretiveness, but I can speak to his lack of day-to-day social ties. Right after 9/11, every NYC group and community was constantly, informally checking to see whether anyone was missing. In the New York-area SF community, MacIntyre was the last person I know of who was confirmed to be okay, and the confirmation came a month or two after the attacks.
He was an odd bird but a decent writer, and I'm truly sorry he died as he did.
WRONG WRONG WRONGITY WRONG
Those of our readers who are not living under a rock or in the US* may be aware that the World (Football†) Cup is currently gripping much of the planet. It's certainly a matter of great interest here in the Netherlands, where the country is drenched in orange. Entire rows of houses have clubbed together to present a unified front. Banners flutter above the streets, strung from eaves to lampposts.
After a rather pathetic showing on the day of the first Dutch game, a couple of my colleagues seem to have got into the swing of things in their personal appearance as well. I was chatting to one of them in the kitchen, admiring his well-matched combination of an orange T-shirt and orange button-down shirt. "So where are you going to watch the match?" I asked.
"In an Irish pub in Utrecht," he replied. (Note, in the pictures on the site, that he won't be alone in that.)
I don't even recall doing it, but suddenly I found that my hands were on my head and my eyes were wide. "You're. Wearing. Orange. To. An. Irish. Pub."
"Yeah," he replied, entirely confused by the fact that I was convulsively running my fingers through my hair.
Now, in my conscious mind I knew it was just an Irish theme pub. But my maiden name is Foley, and I was raised among the Irish-Americans‡. It has taken me three years to understand that orange can be a "good" color.
And something inside me is still screaming.
* I'm kidding! I know there are at least three Americans following the US team as it moves into the last sixteen; they were flooding my Twitter stream during the last nail-biting match.
† You can call it soccer if you want.
‡ For clarity: we were West Coast Irish-Americans who never even considered getting involved in the politics of a country our ancestors had left, on any deeper level than choice of color to wear on March 17.
Posted by Abi Sutherland at 04:12 PM *
I see that the law that instituted my alma mater, the University of California at Berkeley, was signed on March 23, 1868. That makes the school 142 years old, and thus tenuously relevant to this thread.
Despite the temptation to burst into one song or another*, I really have very little standing to talk about Berkeley as an institution. For me, it was partly important as the stage on which my adolescent dramas could be played out; I wonder, sometimes, how I managed to learn anything between the storms of emotion and the wasted hours. (And yet I did, and use it even now.)
But that's how the history of these things is made, I guess. I've studied, in one way or another, at four universities with a combined age of 1213 years. I once worked in a company older than the issuer of the passport I held at the time. I'm currently a citizen of two countries with centuries of history between them, and a member of an institution that counts in millennia.
And what strikes me most about all these years I'm looking back on is how much of them was spent doing something else than adding to the vast sweep of history and legacy†. In many ways, the thing that lasts is like a nautilus shell: it's lovely, but it's not what the nautilus thought was really important at the time.
* Note in how few accents this song works, since it requires "carry", "Harry" and "ferry" to rhyme. Note, as well, what a mishmash of lyrical and musical styles it is. I often wonder how many songs died, were buried, then dug up, and sewn together to make it in advance of whatever musical thunderstorm animates college ditties.
† It particularly strikes me how much time seems to have been spent screwing up said legacies.
(breadcrumb trail back to Open thread 141)
"Both unjustified and unjustifiable"
I am not naturally a fan of the current British prime minister. But I admire him today.
You see, Lord Saville's report1 on Bloody Sunday was issued today. I've only read the news stories and skimmed the principal conclusions section of the document itself.
(That, by the way, is detailed and extensive, delving into the geography and history of the area, the events leading up to and following the shootings, and a close scrutiny of the day itself. The individual soldiers—whose names have not been released; they are referred to by code—are each dealt with, and their actions and probabilities of guilt described with due consideration.)
And the conclusions are damning.
The firing by soldiers of 1 PARA on Bloody Sunday caused the deaths of 13 people and injury to a similar number, none of whom was posing a threat of causing death or serious injury. What happened on Bloody Sunday strengthened the Provisional IRA, increased nationalist resentment and hostility towards the Army and exacerbated the violent conflict of the years that followed. Bloody Sunday was a tragedy for the bereaved and the wounded, and a catastrophe for the people of Northern Ireland.
This is in marked contrast to the first report on the day, the Widgery Report. That was issued 11 weeks after the deaths, and has long been held to be a whitewash. It blamed the organizers of the march2, insinuated things about the victims in direct contradiction of the evidence3, and asserted that "There is no reason to suppose that the soldiers would have opened fire if they had not been fired upon first."
Lord Saville's investigation was first mooted in 1998, in response to the provision of additional evidence by the government of the Republic of Ireland. It's widely held that the British government's willingness to reexamine the events of January 30, 1972 was a key ingredient in bringing about the subsequent Good Friday Agreement (pdf). But it didn't turn out to be a cheap thing, or a quick one. It took a decade and cost the thick end of £200 million. Cameron himself was not a fan of it due to the expense.
And yet he stood up in the Commons and gave a statement the like of which I never expect to hear from a US President about, say, Abu Ghraib.
What happened on Bloody Sunday was both unjustified and unjustifiable. It was wrong.
Gosh.
…these are shocking conclusions to read and shocking words to have to say. But Mr Speaker, you do not defend the British Army by defending the indefensible.
We do not honour all those who have served with such distinction in keeping the peace and upholding the rule of law in Northern Ireland by hiding from the truth.
Some members of our armed forces acted wrongly. The government is ultimately responsible for the conduct of the armed forces and for that, on behalf of the government, indeed, on behalf of our country, I am deeply sorry.
The inevitable arguments have already started. What about prosecutions? asks one side. What about the things the British Army did well in Northern Ireland, and the casualties they suffered? asks the other. It's still the messy, bitter, grievous situation it's always been, though with much less lead flying than used to be the case.
Nonetheless, the world has more truthful words in it, and more courageous ones, than it did yesterday. And that's a good thing.
That link there goes to a page that allows you to download or search the full 5,000 page report, or read the principal conclusions online.
Point one of the Widgery Report: "There would have been no deaths in Londonderry on 30 January if those who organised the illegal march had not thereby created a highly dangerous situation in which a clash between demonstrators and the security forces was almost inevitable."
Contrast that with this from Saville: "4.33 In our view the organisers of the civil rights march bear no responsibility for the deaths and injuries on Bloody Sunday. Although those who organised the march must have realised that there was probably going to be trouble from rioters, they had no reason to believe and did not believe that this was likely to result in death or injury from unjustified firing by soldiers."
Widgery point 10: "None of the deceased or wounded is proved to have been shot whilst handling a firearm or bomb. Some are wholly acquitted of complicity in such action; but there is a strong suspicion that some others had been firing weapons or handling bombs in the course of the afternoon and that yet others had been closely supporting them."
Posted by Avram Grumer at 09:41 PM * 39 comments
Everyone's heard about Apple's release of the iPhone G4 on Monday, but less attention was paid to the release of Safari 5. The biggest deal with that is Safari's new extensions architecture. Apple's planning to host a gallery of vetted extensions this summer, but until then, if you want to live dangerously, you can check out what people have cooked up at the Safari Extensions Tumblr blog.
A Waltz Played in 4/4 Time
I've been hoping for some time that FiveThirtyEight.com would have a look at Wednesday's Dutch elections. Although I really enjoy reading Peter Paul Koch's analyses over at Quirksmode, I wondered what the the internet's go-to guys on poll interpretation would do with the numbers. There's so much to discuss, both in terms of content and methodology (particularly since the Netherlands has no electoral districts).
Well, 538 tackled the story today. Unfortunately, it covered almost none of the ground I was hoping for. Indeed, the article by Dan Berman starts to go wrong in the title: Is a Stable Government in the Netherlands Coming? There are several reasons that made me wince.
It makes the Netherlands sound like it's in the same kind of trouble as, say, Thailand. A country with an "unstable government" is one where the people are taking to the streets, where the army is considering taking over, where the Bastille is on the verge of being stormed. It is not the peaceful, stable place I live in, where a long-serving Prime Minster has, probably for the last time in his career, failed to keep his coalition together for the maximum time between elections.
The headline is particularly annoying because it fits into a pervasive narrative that is only ostensibly about the Netherlands (and, indeed, Europe). Our "socialist" system is doomed, notwithstanding the global financial crisis. We're on the verge of either mandating the hijab or crushing the Muslim community (I think it's the latter, this week). Our decision to tolerate and monitor soft drugs and prostitution rather than push them underground makes Amsterdam a "cesspool of corruption and crime". And now our government is unstable, probably because of all of the above factors. Alas that we are not like America, which has no problems with its economy, its treatment of immigrants, drugs, sex, or politics!
I rant. I know this. But I also know that plenty of people will read the headline and connect it to the narrative I've sketched above. None of that farrago reflects the reality of Dutch life; it's all about affirming a particular view of American culture. And the provocative headline fits in very nicely, however much the body of the article is actually relevant to the situation at hand.
The kindest thing I can say about it is that it was written with a tin ear.
It's factually wrong, even in the limited sense that Berman means it. He sees the fall of Balkenende's fourth administration as a bad thing for the Netherlands as well as for the Prime Minister.
In reality, it just means that the country wants to choose a new direction, a new set of solutions to its current challenges. The mechanism for doing so in the Netherlands is different than in the US. One aspect of that difference is that one doesn't have to wait for a year divisible by four to throw the bastards out. That's not in- or unstability. It's the approved process.
The question expects a "yes" answer, but frankly, it's not likely.
The three-party coalitions (scroll down) that are even possible if the polls are correct are not very solid. Apart from the forbidden coalition (for historical reasons, the three central parties may not form a government), the choices require the right wing (VVD) to find common ground with the left (PvdA/Labour, and possibly the Socialists as well), or else to rely on Wilders and the PVV. Even the best of these options includes some deep divisions between participating parties. I wouldn't put money on any of them lasting to full term. And a four-party coalition is even less stable.
The smart money here says that the next government will be slow to form and quick to run into trouble.
The article itself isn't bad in the assembly of facts it lays out, though its few links bias toward non-Dutch and non-expert sources such as the Guardian and Wikipedia. (There are specific factual niggles: it's not clear from the text that Fortuyn was assassinated before an election. Balkenende's portrayed as switching coalition partners "at will", but there was an election between his second and third administrations, which means that it wasn't his will that formed Balkenende III.) But it reminds me of a waltz played in 4/4 time: the notes are right, but they don't mean what they should.
The place this really becomes a problem is in the conclusion and prediction of what will happen next. It very much oversimplifies the mechanics of forming a coalition. There's no acknowledgement that incompatible platforms (or a simple refusal to work with each other) can doom a mathematically possible coalition. Nor is there any mention of the existence of a forbidden coalition, or the requirement that the new government include at least one party that increased its seats in the election. The only divergence from the assumption that the simplest coalition to hit the winning number gets the prize is a mention that Wilders may be too unreliable to sit in government.
That's a pity, because coalition-forming is a fascinating part of Dutch politics. The intricacies and complexities of the process for forming a government here would make a wonderful article on 538.com.
Instead, I refer you once again to PPK, who does have a complex and nuanced prediction of how the Netherlands will deal with forming a coalition if the election goes as the polls says it will.
Pasta with walnut arugula lemon pesto
1/2 C. walnuts
1 pint fresh baby arugula, tightly packed
4 healthy garlic cloves
a lot of olive oil*
salt, black pepper, white pepper
1 large lemon
2 C. finely grated hard sharp cheese
Throw your walnuts dry into a frying pan and toast, stirring constantly, until they smell like toasted walnuts. Immediately remove the pan from the fire and the walnuts from the pan. As soon as they're cool enough to handle, rub the walnuts lightly between your hands to remove as much of the skin as will yield without a fight.
If your food processor is as small as mine, you now reduce the walnuts to particles that look like fine sand, then set them aside until after you've pulverized the arugula. This isn't the fastest way to make pesto, but it does allow you to write recipes that call for an unspecified amount of olive oil.
Set a pot of water on to boil, peel the garlic cloves, grate the zest off the lemon, juice the lemon, and grate the cheese. I used a mixture of cheeses that was about two-thirds fresh Parmesan, and one-third Le Maréchal, which Patrick bought this past weekend because our grocery was giving out yummy free samples.
Stuff the arugula into the food processor along with the lemon zest, the garlic, and enough olive oil to get everything to cooperate. Turn the processor to "smite hem in pecys" and let 'er rip.
Pause. Add the salt, pepper, and pepper. Process a bit to get them mixed in, and add more if needed. Meanwhile, if the water is boiling, add the pasta. As it happens, I used fusilli col buco, but almost any pasta would do.
The arugula has now been radically reduced in volume, so repatriate the walnuts. Add more olive oil. Process, adding yet more olive oil if necessary to keep things moving. When the texture is already right for pesto, add the lemon juice anyway, because the cheese is going to soak up liquid.
If the pasta is cooked, take it off the fire and drain it. Add the cheese to the sauce. It's quite a lot of cheese—more than pesto would normally use. If you aren't cooking for Patrick, you can add less. Process just until mixed, then readjust the seasonings again if necessary. Toss the pasta with the sauce. Eat happily.
[Recipe Index]
Evidence and Exclusions
Posted by Abi Sutherland at 09:14 AM *
Something fundamental has changed in China's legal system. Like most discussions of the law, my explanation starts with a story.
A man named Zhao Zuohai quarreled with his neighbor, who then disappeared. Eighteen months later, a decomposed and headless body was found. After an interrogation that seems to have involved beatings, firecrackers, and being forced to drink water spiced with chili, Zhao confessed to murder. He was convicted and sentenced to death. The sentence was commuted, but while he was in jail, his wife divorced him and several of his children were adopted.
And then, nearly a decade later, the neighbor turned up alive and well.
Mr. Zhao has been awarded compensation, and three policemen have been arrested, according to Xinhua. But this case, along with other recent events, appears to have struck a nerve in China. Five bodies of the Chinese justice system have just issued new rules to address the matter, and they're getting some attention worldwide.
The BBC headline is typical of most Western reporting I've seen: China bans evidence from torture. It's easy to leap from that to the conclusion that China has just banned torture. But, as the BBC article states, "Laws banning torture are already in place, but analysts say they are widely disregarded." A close reading of the details shows that the change is less dramatic, but more revolutionary.
According to the China Daily (which follows Xinhua), two sets of regulations were issued on Sunday, May 30:
One rule is highly theoretical: it sets out an evidentiary standard for capital cases. It states the principle that "the facts must be determined according to evidence", replacing the former requirement that convictions must be "based on facts and judged according to law".
The other is more practical, dealing with what kind of evidence is admissible in criminal trials as a whole. As the China Daily article says, "facts and evidence must be indubitable and sufficient, and evidence in doubt or obtained illegally must be excluded." Evidence obtained through torture (which is illegal) is inadmissible under that clause, as is anonymous evidence, testimony "made under violence or threat", unqualified expert witness testimony, and unsubstantiated conjecture. Defendants can request an investigation into whether the evidence against them was properly obtained.
This second regulation defines what an American would call the exclusionary rule. The main role of the exclusionary rule in Western jurisprudence is to reduce the temptation of authorities to break the law and violate citizens' rights in pursuit of evidence by making said evidence useless in court. I'd rate it as middling effective, on the whole, but even its worst incarnation is better than its absence.
Apparently, and rather astonishingly, there was no such thing in the Chinese legal system before Sunday. According Bian Jianlin, the law professor quoted in the China Daily article, "no previous law or regulation clearly stated that when evidence may have been acquired through forced confession it must be excluded". Even with the NYT article as confirmation, I'm having trouble believing this; I'd almost be relieved to hear that I was wrong.
Mind you, there are plenty of loopholes left. Officials don't always follow the stated laws (or the prohibition on torture would be enough). Also, I don't see anything about fruit of the poisonous tree: evidence obtained using illegally obtained evidence. So one could still use inadmissible techniques to generate leads to admissible evidence. And statistics-driven policing is global, motivating and excusing the breaking and bending of rules.
But coming from societies where we've had the exclusionary rule long enough to take it for granted, where Jack Bauer and DCI Gene Hunt get a kind of sneaking respect for transgressing it, it's refreshing to see one of the foundations of our legal systems reaffirmed, rediscovered, reestablished.
I am not a lawyer. I am not an expert on international relations. I am not an expert on China, Chinese law, or American jurisprudence. I know just enough to be dangerous. Fear me, but don't rely on me.


Government Spending in Switzerland increased to 19877.18 CHF Million in the fourth quarter of 2018 from 19866.81 CHF Million in the third quarter of 2018. Government Spending in Switzerland averaged 15163.04 CHF Million from 1980 until 2018, reaching an all time high of 19887.70 CHF Million in the second quarter of 2018 and a record low of 9778.01 CHF Million in the first quarter of 1980.
Government Spending in Switzerland is expected to be 20365.00 CHF Million by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Government Spending in Switzerland to stand at 20262.00 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the Switzerland Government Spending is projected to trend around 21329.00 CHF Million in 2020, according to our econometric models.
Government Spending refers to public expenditure on goods and services and is a major component of the GDP. Government spending policies like setting up budget targets, adjusting taxation, increasing public expenditure and public works are very effective tools in influencing economic growth. This page provides - Switzerland Government Spending - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. Switzerland Government Spending - actual data, historical chart and calendar of releases - was last updated on April of 2019.


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You Are Here: Home > Latest news > Glitz and glamour comes to Wootton Bridge
Glitz and glamour comes to Wootton Bridge
After nine months of organising and many sleepless nights, a charity ball on the Isle of Wight was a huge success.
Organised by Southern Co-op's Funeralcare in Ryde, it was the first time the team had held a ball and the grand total raised was just under £1,300.
The glamourous event at The Lakeside Hotel saw 50 people attending dressed in their best dresses and suits where they were treated to special three-course meal, dancing, an auction and a raffle.
The event on 22 September was in aid of the Phoenix Project as part of Southern Co-op's community engagement programme 'Love Your Neighbourhood'.
The Phoenix Project is a specialist day service for adults with learning disabilities based in Haylands in a fully accessible building set in large grounds.
Lesley Borton, Southern Co-op's Funeral Co-ordinator at the Ryde funeral home, said: "This is the first time we have held a ball and it took an awful lot of organising.
"We both like to dress up so it seemed a perfect event to hold because most ladies like an excuse now a days to be able to go all out for a special occasion. We did have a lot of sleepless nights over it but got there in the end.
"We are so grateful for everybody's support. To have raised so much money for such a deserving charity is really special."
The charity ball was such a success that they have already booked it in again for 2019 on Saturday 7 September.
The Phoenix Project is the funeral home's chosen cause as part of Southern Co-op's community engagement programme 'Love Your Neighbourhood'. This initiative addresses four key social themes for promoting: 'Greener', 'Healthier', 'Safer', and 'More Inclusive' neighbourhoods.
Click here to find out more about the Love Your Neighbourhood scheme.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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SM Popular
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South Laurel, MD - Located south of Laurel in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, Montpelier is a five-part Georgian country house with a central block and flanking end pavilions connected to the main block by hyphens most likely constructed between 1781 and 1785. It has also been known as the Snowden-Long House, New Birmingham, or simply Montpelier. Built by Major Thomas Snowden and his wife Anne, the house is now a National Historic Landmark operated as a house museum. The home and 70 acres (28 ha) remain of what was once a slave plantation of about 9,000 acres (3,600 ha). The two-story central block has a five-bay elevation, with a projecting three-bay pavilion topped by a pediment. The hipped roof features large projecting chimneys emerging about halfway up the roofline. The front and rear doors are similar in character, with flanking pilasters and an open pediment. The interior features carved woodwork. The paneling in the drawing room conceals a secret doorway leading to a set of stairs. In 1970, the house was set in formal gardens. Three terraces were outlined in boxwood hedges and arranged as an allée. A boxwood maze near the south wing was stated to be more than 200 years old. Most of the boxwood hedges have since been removed. A hexagonal eighteenth century summerhouse is located at the end of the allée. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1970, primarily for its architecture. [Wiki] Link to Photo Without Frame
Adobe LightRoomBuildingsHorizontalMarylandOnOneSoftwareUSA


Swizz Beatz's Five Year Old Son Co-Produced A Song On Kendrick Lamar's Untitled Unmastered.
Kendrick Lamar released his new album untitled unmastered. this evening, and by far the most unexpected credit on the project goes to Swizz Beatz's five year old Egypt. He co-produced the seventh track, according to an Instagram post by papa Swizz which was confirmed by TDE producer Sounwave.
Congratulations to Egypt, who is probably not even awake to read this, for taking some other producer's spot on the album before being old enough to understand what "taking their spot" even means.


Ahold® Almond Crusted Flounder. Almond encrusted flounder with wild rice medley and broccoli. Per 1 Cup. 170 Calories. 1.5g Sat Fat, 8% DV. 400mg Sodium, 17% DV. 1g Sugars.
Contains: egg, fish (flounder), milk, tree nuts (almonds), wheat.
Heating instructions: Puncture film and microwave on high for 2 to 2 1/2 minutes**. Heat until minimum temperature of 165 degrees F. remove and hold 1 to 2 minutes prior to serving. Caution: contents will be hot. Keep refrigerated. Fully cooked. **Microwave ovens vary. Cooking time may need to be adjusted.


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Mustapha Dinguizli (1865-1926) foi um político tunisino. Ele nasceu em Tunes; ele serviu como primeiro-ministro da Tunísia de 1922 até à sua morte.

Dinguizli nasceu em Tunis numa família de origem turca. Estudou no Collège Sadiki e depois na Ecole Normale de Versailles e na École Normale Supérieure de Fontenay-Saint-Cloud.

Tunisinos de ascendência turca
Mortos em 1926
Nascidos em 1865
Primeiros-ministros da Tunísia

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Optimizing Food Waste Composting
White Papers ECS Staff 01/03/2023
Food waste is increasingly being diverted to composting facilities that have traditionally managed green waste. Amongst other challenges, the high biodegradability and low pH inherent in food waste have tended to increase the generation of odors and volatile organic compounds and lengthen the time to achieve a stable product. In a series of peer-reviewed publications the compost researcher Celia Sundberg explained the mechanism by which food waste rich (50%) feedstocks inhibit composting and give rise to these issues (Sundberg, 2004; 2008; 2013). Her research found that when temperatures are kept below 40°C for the first 48 hours of active composting the mesophilic bacteria could degrade the organic acids, which in turn allowed the pH to rise above 6.5 (7.0 is neutral) and eliminate the inhibitory effects of low pH.
Sundberg's work, however, did not look at some of the nuances that come with working with typical source separated organics at full scale. These nuances impact both the design and operation of a facility. Questions that remained to be answered include: What about lower concentration of food waste? How does increasing early phase temperatures over a broader range inhibit biodegradation? What happens if temperatures are allowed to increase to typical high thermophilic conditions after a mesophilic initial period? And perhaps most importantly facility designers, what peak aeration rate is required to provide an initial mesophilic period? The study we report here aims to answer some of these questions.
Laboratory Apparatus
ECS's Compost Process Lab is equipped with three instrumented Aeration Demand Testers (ADTs) that provide controlled compost process conditions and measure the real-time levels of CO2 and O2 (the primary indicators of composting activity). ADTs aerate a 12-liter feedstock sample while controlling temperatures to within +1.0°C and airflow to within 2% of full-scale. By adjusting the rate of air flow the range of oxygen levels can be controlled as well. Standard feedstock and compost product tests (weight, moisture content, volatile solids, pH, density, and stability) are carried out as needed. These data provide insight on how process conditions and mix characteristics impact the rate of biodegradation.
Each ADT is a sealed stainless-steel vessel nested within another steel vessel containing a stirred water bath that is maintained at a selected temperature. Sensors monitor the temperature in the headspace (T1), compost sample (T2), and in the water bath (T3), as illustrated in the diagram below.
ECS's Process Lab: Aeration Demand Testers
Figure 1. ECS's Aeration Demand Tester
A series of cooling and reheating coils reduce the relative humidity in the exhaust air prior to exposure to the CO2 and O2 sensors. All sensor data is logged every ten minutes.
Feedstock Mix and Test Conditions
For this trial we created a mix from common acidic feedstocks, food waste and conifer wood waste, to further examine the interaction between pH and temperature in composting process efficiency. The raw mix was created at a ratio of 1:3 food-waste to sawdust by volume and had the following characteristics:
Table 1 – Feedstocks and Mix Characteristics
The food waste was comprised of blemished produce from a grocery store (tomatoes, strawberries, melons, and citrus) that was slurried in a food processor. It was amended with relatively fresh course fir sawdust. Water was added during mixing until mix bulk density was approximately 900 lb/yd3 by bucket test, and the "squeeze test" was able to produce a few drops of free water.
The mix was split into three 4,770 gram samples and loaded into each ADT vessel and aeration and data acquisition was initiated immediately. The samples were exposed to three different temperature sequences over an 8.5-day period as shown in Table 2 below. All three ADT's were continuously aerated with 22°C room air at a rate of 1.2 L/min. This aeration rate was adequate to keep oxygen levels consistently high; always above 15.3% and averaging 18.8% in even the most active ADT (#1).
ADT 1, 2, and 3 were maintained at 40°C, 55°C, and 65°C respectively for the first 4 days, to examine the difference between mesophilic, moderate thermophilic, and high thermophilic composting temperatures on composting efficiency. At 4 days, the temperatures in ADT 1 and 2 were also adjusted to 65°C to expose the samples to higher thermophilic temperatures that are common in full-scale systems.
Table 2. Temperature regimes & O2 Levels
Figure 2a – Temperature and CO2 generation: ADT1
Figure 2b – Temperature and CO2 generation: ADT2
Figure 2c – Temperature and CO2 generation: ADT3
pH in the feedstock mix was measured by saturating a small sample with deionized water, stirring, allowing the mix to sit for about 1 minute, and then inserting color-indicator pH paper strips from Hydrion. Moisture was assessed by weighing wet and then oven-dryings samples at 100°C for 24 hours. Volatile solids (organic matter) were determined using a 550C oven for two hours to combust the dry samples. Stability was assessed using a Solvita test kit at the end of the trial.
Figure 2 and Table 2 indicate that, for the acidic feedstocks tested, temperature had a strong impact on the rate and the total CO2 evolution during the trial period. ADT 1 (40°C) produced significantly more CO2 both within the first two days, and throughout the test period, than either ADT 2 (55°C) or ADT 3 (65°C). After 40 hours CO2 production from ADT 2 began to increase, but by the end of the trial at 8.5 days it had only produced 40% of the CO2 produced by ADT 1. ADT 3 appeared to be strongly inhibited; by the end of the trial it had only produced 5% of the CO2 produced by ADT 1.
Figure 3. Graph of Cumulative CO2 Generation from ADT 1, 2 and 3
Table 3. Evolution of pH, total CO2 generation, and final Solvita CO2 Index
The pH also appears to be affected by temperature and, as shown by Sundberg, impacts the generation of CO2. The mix started at pH 4. After 4 days the mesophilic ADT 1 had reached a neutral pH of 7, whereas the thermophilic treatments remained at pH 4. By the end of the trial the moderately thermophilic ADT 2 increased to pH 5, while the highly thermophilic ADT 3 was still at pH 4.
Table 3 also shows the expected correlation between CO2 generation, pH, and stability measured on the Solvita Index. The Solvita test of ADT 1, an 8 level scale which is a proxy for compost stability, showed an Index of 6 (curing phase). The other two treatments produced Solvita ratings of 3 and 4, for ADT 2 and ADT 3, respectively (still in an active composting phase).
Figure 4 of the samples at the end of the trial show that ADT 1 appeared darker than ADT 2 and 3, which looked relatively unchanged from the raw mix. The material from ADT1 had a very light earthy odor whereas the other samples emitted a sour odor.
Figure 4. Visual appearance at end of trial
Research Takeaways
An uninhibited active phase composting process produces significantly more CO2, and thus achieves a more stable product much more quickly, than a process that is inhibited by low pH resulting from high initial temperatures. Our qualitative observations, as well as findings in the research, indicate that uninhibited composting generates less odors and volatile organic compounds. When composting acidic waste feedstocks, providing a mesophilic (<40°C) phase at the beginning of the process allows the pH to quickly rise to the neutral range. This pH shift from acidic to neutral appears to not be reversed when temperatures are subsequently allowed to rise significantly higher (65°C). Thus, the benefits of achieving near neutral pH continue through the remainder of the composting process.
These findings should be considered when developing the design and operational plans for food waste composting facilities. The CO2 data generated in the ADT trials provides the basis to calculate unit heat generation (Watts per kg). In Table 4 we use typical ambient air conditions (30°C, 20%RH) and the peak CO2 generation rates during the Mesophilic and Thermophilic phases in ADT 1 to calculate required airflow to match the rate of heat generation.
Table 4. Aeration design considerations to achieve a mesophilic phase
The calculated result is a very high aeration rate for the mesophilic phase. Typical industry aeration rates vary from 0.2 – 5.0 cfm/cy. Fortunately, the pH shift isn't reversible; the temperature can be allowed to rise once near neutral pH has been achieved. Once the pH shift occurs, the aeration rates in the thermophilic phase can be drastically down-sized due to both the much lower rate of CO2 (heat) generation following an uninhibited mesophilic phase, and the much higher energy content of the 65°C exhaust air. In practice more effective cooling can be achieved in a 2 – 4 day mesophilic phase by initially building shorter piles that increase the unit aeration rate and take advantage of increased heat loss through convection and conduction by increasing the surface area/mass ratio of the pile. Material could then be combined into standard depth piles for the remainder of the active composting period. The mix used in this trial had a high food waste content (45%). Mixes with a more common food waste content in the 5 – 20% range tend to produce a lower rates of heat generation, but in our experience, they also require higher aeration rates than industry standards to produce a consistent Mesophilic phase.
The results from these trials have provided insights into more efficient composting of acidic feedstocks, but they have also left us with questions on how to further optimize facility design. These questions include: How short can the mesophilic period be? How does reducing the percentage of food waste from 45% in these tests impact the aeration requirement to maintain a mesophilic period?
Sundberg, Cecilia, Sven Smårs, and Håkan Jönsson. "Low pH as an inhibiting factor in the transition from mesophilic to thermophilic phase in composting." Bioresource technology 95.2 (2004): 145-150.
Sundberg, Cecilia, and Håkan Jönsson. "Higher pH and faster decomposition in biowaste composting by increased aeration." Waste Management 28.3 (2008): 518-526.
Sundberg, Cecilia, et al. "Effects of pH and microbial composition on odour in food waste composting." Waste Management 33.1 (2013): 204-211.


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Tag Archives: The Bye Bye Man
Movie review: Bye Bye Man (2016)
Posted by surgeons of horror in Uncategorized
USUALLY I would try to school up a bit before watching a horror movie, which is hard to do without coming across a few spoilers.
In this instance, I'd managed to steer clear of any online chatter, namely because it didn't receive much fan fare out here.
(Which in of itself is something of a give away).
So, I pretty much went into this cold.
So there's only up from there, right? Right?
Regardless I ploughed straight in and immersed myself into the movie, willing, welcoming the storyline to hit me with the best killer punch it could offer.
Instead, all I got was a lacklustre effort to introduce a new 'monster' to scare the new generation.
And all I could think was, 'What ever happened to the good old days of Freddy, Jason, and Michael?'
Why does Hollywood find it so hard to introduce a new villain to the horror genre?
Is it that we have become so conditioned with the mainstream output that we can no longer be subjected to the true sense of horror villainy ever again?
Did the likes of Craven, Carpenter, and Cunningham / Miner plant such a strong foothold in the arena, that it's proven so hard to shake ourselves free of those shackles?
We've had a few instances of it since with Sadako/Samara in the Rings franchise, but even then, the last outing left us wanting.
More recent successes in the genre have stemmed from the Everyman or the psychological arena to produce the scares, with the Mumblegore movement proving highly successful as a result.
So, where do we go from here?
Can we expect a return to these kind of movies again?
And more importantly will the impending It movie prove to be the movie to change all this?
There's certainly a lot of pressure on Andrés Muschietti to deliver.
Right now though, we are subjected to the Bye Bye Man, where you can't think or say his name or else you'll feel the wrath of his bony finger or a slobbering bloody hound.
The film does try to pepper in the usual ingredients to make a worthy horror, but instead it gets lost in its own ethos.
There's seances, psycho killers, and illusions to mess with your head, which plod along nicely enough, but the threat never feels real enough.
And I was a little thrown by the lead, who never really felt charismatic enough for me to care, and I too became lost in wondering who exactly I should root for and why I should actually bother.
There were a couple of surprises, namely in the appearance of Carrie Ann Moss, where the hell ha she been lately?
And a brief cameo from Faye Dunaway declaring La La Land the winner of Best Picture.
Both these women were not enough though to save this film from a dire plot whilst wanting to be something it wasn't and will never amount to.
It's a shame, because on paper, it had potential, but the writing was slack and the character development was sorely lacking.
A look ahead at horror in 2017
A Cure For Wellness, Alien, Alien Covenant, Amityville Horror, Annabelle 2, Chucky 7, Flatliners, Friday the 13th, Get Out, Horror movies, Insidious 4, The Belko Experiment, The Bye Bye Man, The Dark Tower
2016 PROVED TO BE quite a big year for Horror films with the successes of Don't Breathe, The Conjuring 2, and The Witch to name but a few.
But can this year prove to be as fruitful in delighting our senses and twisting our minds?
Let's take a look at the movies that lie ahead…
Release Date: 18 May
Is it me or is there more hype around this movie than Prometheus?
It might have something to do with the return of our beloved xenonorph and its predatorial instincts that once again see humans in a fight for survival.
Prediction: With Michael Fassbender reprising his role as the 'synthetic' David, along with a strong cast, this looks and feels like the Alien franchise is back on form.
Release Date: 30 Jun tbc
This marks the 18th entry into the Amityville franchise, which by my reckoning makes this the most in a series.
This time the story focuses on Belle and her twin siblings, one of whom is comatose until strange paranormal occurrences awaken him.
Prediction: With the movie changing hands through the selling of Miramax plus poor preview screenings have seen this movie delayed on several occasions.
If this movie does see the light of day, I expect that it will be yet another poor addition to the franchise posing the question why bother returning to it at all.
Release Date: 10 Aug
The sequel to The Conjuring spin-off that sees the possessed doll wreak havoc on an orphanage.
Prediction: Another weak entry. The plot line seems farcical.
Release Date: 17 Mar
Think of this as Battle Royale set in a high-rise building as 80 participants are told by an unknown voice that they must play a game of kill or be killed.
Prediction: Brought to the screens by the visionary mind of Australia's Greg McLean (Wolf Creek, The Darkness) this could be a pleasant surprise albeit using familiar territory. Expect a gruesome battle of survival to occur.
Release Date: 13 Jan tbc
The concept behind this movie sees three college students find themselves stalked by an entity that can take control of your mind simply if you think or say his name.
Prediction: Sounds like a shit version of The Candyman.
Shitty title, shitty premise doesn't bold well in my opinion, but hey, I'm happy to be proven wrong.
Release Date: Dec
Not much is known about this movie yet other than writer of the all six instalments and director of the last two, Don Mancini has resurrected the killer doll for another on-screen outing.
Prediction: If this heralds the right kind of comedy this could be the best version since Bride of Chucky.
When a young executive goes to retrieve his CEO from a wellness centre, he finds himself spiralling into a world of secrets where his own sanity is tested.
Prediction: Director Gore Verbinski can be a bit hit be miss and if we're honest more miss of late.
Judging by the trailer though, this could well be a return to form and perhaps one of the better horror movies of 2017.
Release Date: 27 Jul
The science fantasy western horror book series from the mind of Stephen King gets the movie treatment.
The film in this instance has been described as a 'quasi-sequel' to the books.
Prediction: With a lot of big names producing this movie and the likes of Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey taking the leads there is a lot of high expectations on this being a success.
I for one feel that they won't be disappointed.
A hit that will likely bring more from the universe in further outings.
Release Date: 28 Sep
Again not much has been announced around the details of this movie other than it being a sequel to the 90's classic with Kiefer Sutherland set to reprise his role of Dr Nelson Wright.
Prediction: This movie sits on the precipice of success or failure.
With Ellen Page attached I have a feeling this could be better than your average flick and could take this franchise into bold new territory and reawaken a tinge of nostalgia. "Today's a great day to die."
Release Date: 13 Oct
Another reboot is on the horizon marking this as the 13th instalment.
Not much else has been announced other than it being delayed til later in the year.
Prediction: This needs to be delivered with the right blend of humour and horror in order for Jason to truly terrorise the screens again.
I so want this to be a success but I feel like this might be the final nail in Jason's coffin.
Release Date: 24 Feb
A horror satire from the insatiably brilliant mind if Jordan Peele sees Chris, an African-American man, try to escape from an estate where its black residents go missing.
Prediction: The comedy horror hit of the year.
The latest chapter of supernatural horror franchise continues this time with James Wan's previous partner in horror, Leigh Whannel at the helm.
Prediction: Better than the previous outing but not a par on the original.
Horror Movies in 2017 pt.2


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Window shopping has been a great past-time ever since the first brick and mortar stores devised display windows. People have always loved lingering in front of product they would like to purchase, whether they are physically in front of a display window or perusing products offered by e-commerce stores. Now that e-commerce is the preferred method of purchasing, site owners must consider methods they can use to convert a "window shopper" into an actual customer!
When a consumer decides to consider purchasing an item that is offered online (usually by many sites!), the first step is to "Google" the item and then begin to access sites that pop up. S/he then pulls up several sites, browses through the offerings, checks prices, and moves on to the next site. Your goal, as an e-commerce retailer, is to get the consumer to stop at your site and actually make the purchase. How do you do this? Well, there are many methodologies you need to consider using!
Let's suppose that you have designed a great website and that you have all of the best shopping cart procedures in place. You have tested them, and you know they work well. Now the goal is to bring the traffic and to convert that traffic into actual sales!
You need to know who your customers are and you need to know how and when they arrive on your site; you need to know the pages on which they spend most time; you need to know what percentages simply browse versus those that actually make a purchase. There are both free and pay-for software systems that can provide you with these analyses, including the free Google Analytics and relatively reasonably priced programs such as Adobe Marketing and Salesforce's Marketing Clouds.
Good analyses of visitor use of your site will allow you to improve both your site and your marketing strategies, with the ultimate result of increased sales. Do you need to increase your SEO initiatives? Do you need to offer more flash sales? Do you need to change graphics and design for larger demographic appeal? Careful analysis will drive good decisions!
Traditional Analysis Approaches are Still Good!
The Funnel Approach: It makes sense to know how your potential customers get to your site, and software that tells you this is quite valuable. Do most come from Facebook? Do most come from a Google search? What percentages become actual purchasers from each of the "funnels?" What sub-populations do you need to "court" more, and how can you do this?
The funnel approach can also tell you at what point browsers cease to proceed to actual purchases. Do they put items in a cart and never check out? Do they get to the checkout page and then fail to follow through with payment? When you can isolate these issues, you can take steps to improve procedures. In addition, you can put procedures in place that will allow you to contact browsers via email, to remind them that there are items in their carts, to promote special offers and sales, and, in general to "woo" them back to your site.
Funnel analysis is invaluable, for it provides critical data regarding customer interaction with your site. If, however, you are still experiencing under-performance, you may want to do some A/B testing.
A/B Testing: Sometimes it makes sense to experiment with the site itself – its design, its graphics, its promotions, its appeal to differing demographic groups, etc. This approach involves setting up alternate websites, selling the same products, but changing language, colors, graphics, animation, etc., in order to test their appeal to browsers. If you think, for example, from your "funnel" information, that older browsers are not being converted into paying customers, how can you appeal to that demographic? Many e-commerce professionals, indeed, end up with a few separate sites to which are funneled very specific groups, and increase their sales accordingly! Google Content Experiments can go a long way toward your testing of various changes in your site.
Using both the data from funnel analysis and A/B testing together will provide excellent information and should drive continually evolving improvements in your ability to reach a larger "audience" and to convert window shoppers into purchasers.
Developing a personal relationship with your window shoppers and your existing customers is certainly a challenge when you cannot speak to and see them face-to-face, as was the common method of sales for brick and mortar stores. You have to reach out to your potential customers in new and different ways, and this will involve far more than the funnel and testing approaches. These two activities, while important, will focus more on enhancing your site and the experience visitors have while on your site.
Sending emails to visitors who have abandoned their shopping carts is certainly an important facet of keeping "in touch," and this should be a regular part of your marketing strategy. IN addition to reminding them about awaiting items, you can ask for responses to a question or two about their browsing experience and/or the types of products they are looking for. You will be surprised how many will actually respond. This information you obtain, along with the funnel analyses, will allow you to target specific customers on specific social media venues and to target your marketing to better suit the wants and needs of potential customers.
Online selling is significantly different from that of traditional retail stores. While you do not have the face-to-face interaction with shoppers and browsers, you do have a great deal of technology at your fingertips to analyze how you present your products, who visits and who buys, and how you can expand your customer base and motivate the visitor to actually buy. Use all of this technology wisely, and you will surely see results!


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Home / Cities / Others / Punjab govt to take Rs 10,000-crore loan to write off farmers' loans
Punjab govt to take Rs 10,000-crore loan to write off farmers' loans
Finance minister denies govt statement that CM asked Jaitley to convert Rs 6,000-crore crop loan into term loan; says need Union minister's help to identify debt-ridden farmers, to meet bankers today
Farmers during a protest in Patiala.(HT File Photo)
Updated on Jul 24, 2017 10:35 PM IST
Hindustan Times, Chandigarh | BySukhdeep Kaur, Chandigarh
What the previous Parkash Singh Badal government in Punjab was doing to meet its populist schemes and "sangat darshans", the incumbent Congress government will be doing within a few months of coming to power to meet its lofty poll promises — raise a loan to pay off farm debt.
With no money in the state treasury to fund even the Rs 9,500-crore debt relief announced by the Congress government for farmers, Punjab finance minister Manpreet Badal will meet representatives of banks on Tuesday to negotiate a term loan of Rs 10,000 crore.
The state will stand sovereign guarantee for the loan that will help it write off farm debt of Rs 2 lakh each of the 10.25 lakh marginal (with up to 2.5 acres of land) and small farmers (with up to 5 acres of land).
Denying a government press statement issued last week after meeting of chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh with Union finance minister Arun Jaitley in New Delhi, Manpreet said on Monday that they had not sought the FM's intervention to convert the Rs 6,000 crop loan of small and marginal farmers from national and private banks into a term loan or its one-time settlement.
The minister, who too was part of the delegation, said: "We had requested the Union minister to give directions to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to ask banks to share the profile of farmers with us. The data on crop loans is collated at every state-level bankers' committee (SLBC) meeting. It is in the public domain. But the name and other details of farmers are confidential information, which banks can share with us only if farmers allow banks and the RBI asks banks to share it with the Punjab government."
Other than the name and bank details of the beneficiary, the government needs to know if he holds single or multiple loan accounts, he added.
So far, the expert panel set up by the Amarinder government under T Haque to assess the quantum of agriculture debt in the state and suggest ways and means for its waiver, has only been able to work out the source of loans and the criteria for identifying the beneficiaries.
According to the panel, Rs 3,600 crore loan of 6-lakh small and marginal farmers came from cooperatives and Rs 6,000 crore of the remaining four lakh farmers came from national and private banks, whom the CM has accused of giving "unethical loans and pushing farmers deeper into the debt trap".
Sukhdeep Kaur
Sukhdeep Kaur is an assistant editor with the Punjab bureau. She covers politics, social issues and special projects, including on-the-ground reporting during critical situations. ...view detail


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Q: Log4j programmatically setting SMTP settings is not completely working I'm using Log4j to send email logs on errors, and want to set the SMTP settings in log4j in java, and not in a properties file. Setting the password works, and i can successfully send an email with it
private static final Logger logger = Logger.getLogger("emailer");

(...)

Enumeration<?> enm = logger.getAllAppenders();
while (enm.hasMoreElements()) {
    Object element = enm.nextElement();
    if (element instanceof SMTPAppender) {
        ((SMTPAppender) element).setSMTPPassword(password);
    }
}

However, using the other setters in SMTPAppender does nothing ( setting host, username, etc. ), and log4j will keep using the properties file's settings.
(...)

log4j.logger.emailer=stdout, email
log4j.additivity.emailer=false

log4j.appender.email=org.apache.log4j.net.SMTPAppender
log4j.appender.email.SMTPHost=smtp.gmail.com
log4j.appender.email.SMTPPort=465
log4j.appender.email.SMTPUsername=username@gmail.com
log4j.appender.email.SMTPPassword=-
log4j.appender.email.From=username@gmail.com
log4j.appender.email.to=username@gmail.com
log4j.appender.email.Subject=Error Alert
log4j.appender.email.layout=org.apache.log4j.PatternLayout
log4j.appender.email.layout.ConversionPattern=%d [%t] %-5p %c %x - %m%n
log4j.appender.email.BufferSize=10
log4j.appender.email.Threshold=ERROR

A: It looks like you need to call activateOptions() after you change the name or password.

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