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Magic vs Hearthstone
Card Kingdom May 10, 2019 Strategy
Magic: The Gathering, the tabletop game about powerful plane-hopping wizards, has seen a spike in popularity with the release of its new digital analogue, MTG Arena. For years, people have been discovering Magic at their local game stores and through their D&D groups. Now more than ever before, players are coming to Magic from other digital games, including other collectible card games such as Hearthstone.
If you've come to Magic from Hearthstone, you'll notice many similarities between the two games. In both games, you'll pay mana to cast spells, and you can only use as much mana as you have access to for the turn. You'll summon creature (or minion) cards and attack with them to reduce your opponent's life total and win the game.
But there are also some key differences between Magic and Hearthstone. Unlike Magic, Hearthstone was designed to be digital, and there are several game mechanics and effects in the latter game that take advantage of the digital platform. Consequently, you're likely to see more "random" effects in Hearthstone, such as generating a random minion or dealing damage to a random creature – these effects are much harder to replicate with paper cards, so they're less common in Magic in general. Magic also has 26 years of history behind it – there are more cards and more rules, so the learning curve is steeper.
But not to worry – we're here to provide an on-ramp from Hearthstone to Magic. In this article, we'll break down the major differences between the two games and provide tips for Hearthstone players looking to make the transition from Legendary Hero to Mythic Champion.
In Magic, mana is never a given. You only have as much mana as you have mana-generating cards in play, and if you want access to those cards, you'll have to draw them.
The first major difference between Magic and Hearthstone is that the latter has a guaranteed system of mana. In a game of Hearthstone, your mana pool will increase by one each turn until you have a total of ten mana. The only way to generate additional mana is to use The Coin or another mana-producing spell.
The most common mana-generating cards in Magic are land cards. You may play one land card on each of your turns, if you have one to play, and each land card (typically) generates one mana. Additionally, there are some creatures, artifacts, and other spells that also generate mana, and they're good to have if you have expensive spells to cast.
As much as Magic players try to reduce variance, the number of lands a player draws will often decide a game. Draw too few lands and you won't be able to cast critical spells; draw too many and you won't have much to do on your turn. This leads to more "dead draws" in Magic and you're used to seeing in Hearthstone, so you'll want to construct your deck carefully to ensure you have the right balance of lands and spells.
On average, a 60-card Magic deck will have about 24 lands. If you're playing an aggressive deck where your spells cost three or four mana at most, you can get away with playing fewer lands. If you're playing a control deck that aims to play multiple spells per turn later in the game, you'll need 26 or 27 lands.
Magic's mana system also presents an additional challenge: there are five different colors of mana, and most spells require mana of a certain color or colors. It isn't always enough to have the right number of lands – you'll need the right type of land to cast your spells, too.
As you play MTG Arena, you'll see players using non-basic lands that generate different colors of mana. These lands provide added flexibility, especially in decks with heavier colored mana requirements. Many of these lands are printed at higher rarities, so save those wildcards if you're looking to add them to your collection.
Classes and Hero Powers
The five colors of Magic each have their own identities:
White builds armies and protects creatures
Blue draws cards and seeks to control the board
Black destroys creatures and raises the dead
Red gets aggressive and deals direct damage
Green's creatures are the biggest of all
However, unlike Hearthstone cards, Magic cards aren't divided into classes, so any card is fair game for the intrepid deck-builder. If you want to put one red card in your blue and black deck, that's fine – if you have the mana to cast it, of course.
MTG Arena also doesn't have anything like Hearthstone's hero power system. Many Magic cards allow you to pay mana for repeatable effects, but you won't consistently have access to those cards in every game. Hero powers are reliable enough that you can build your deck around them, and they help give your deck more consistency.[ You can always use your hero power on your turn if you have nothing better to do, or if you want to execute a combo; Magic has no equivalent, so be prepared for less consistent gameplay.
Creature Combat
Inevitably, when people learn how to play Magic, they think that attacking with creatures works like it does in Hearthstone. "I'm going to attack your 2/2 with my 3/3," they'll say with confidence.
However, creature combat works a bit differently in Magic, and it can be hard for players to understand at first. Here's the best way we can describe it: Creatures attack the defending player, and that player chooses whether to block with their own creatures or take damage. So, any time you attack, you should think about how your opponent could potentially block.
There are plenty of effects in Magic that destroy or damage creatures, but you need to make room for them in your deck, and you need to draw them at the right time. As a result, relatively small creatures with valuable abilities will typically stay on the battlefield longer in a game of Magic than they would in a game of Hearthstone. We hope this opens up new possibilities to you and allows you to reconsider creatures you wouldn't play otherwise.
Actions on Opponents' Turns
Finally, we've come to one of the most challenging aspects of Magic to master: taking actions on your opponents' turns. In Hearthstone, players can only cast spells on their own turns, so player interaction is rather limited. Players can use Secrets to set traps for each other, but these spells won't achieve their desired effect if a wary player maneuvers around them.
In Magic, players can take a handful of actions on opponents' turns, such as:
Casting Instant spells
Casting creatures that have the ability Flash
Activating abilities of creatures, lands, and other permanents
Magic players have an opportunity to respond whenever an opponent casts a spell, so if you're looking to combo off, do so with the awareness that your opponent can respond with a counterspell or creature removal. Many combo decks in Magic will even run counterspells of their own in order to respond to their opponent's responses. You may also want to consider spells that let you look at your opponent's hand and choose a card for them to discard, just to make sure the coast is clear.
Fending off instant-speed interaction can be challenging, but things aren't always easy from your opponent's perspective, either. Learning when it's most ideal to cast an Instant is one of the hardest skills to master in Magic, and it's often situational. Should you cast a removal spell on your opponent's turn so you can use your mana for other things on your own turn? Or should you cast your removal on your turn, while your opponent has limited mana available to potentially foil your plan? Players debate these situations all the time, and they enjoy the challenge of finding the right "line" in a game.
There's plenty of luck involved in winning a game of Magic, but the game also requires skill and dedication to learning its systems. We hope this article has given you a better understanding of those systems, and that we've made the game even more enjoyable for you.
If you're looking to learn more about Magic, there are plenty of resources here on the Card Kingdom Blog. And if you'd like to watch some live MTG Arena gameplay, be sure to join us on Twitch on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons!
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Congresswoman Frederica S. Wilson Urges Colleagues to Pass the Payroll Fraud Protection Act of 2015 to Protect America's Workers' Labor Rights and Workplace Protections
Today, Congresswoman Frederica S. Wilson (FL-24), ranking member on the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, introduced as an amendment H.R. 3427, the Payroll Fraud Prevention Act of 2015, during an Education and Workforce Committee markup hearing.
Rep. Wilson introduced the legislation to counter an attempt by House Republicans to pass a bill that would narrow the definition of "joint employer" and make it harder for employees to collectively bargain. The underlying bill, H.R. 3459, is part of the alarming workplace trend of employers using unscrupulous practices to shirk their responsibilities to deny workers a slew of federally guaranteed rights and benefits.
The Payroll Fraud Prevention Act would require employers to accurately classify their workers and provide employees with notice of that classification. Misclassification allows employers to deny workers the pay, benefits, and labor rights they deserve, including minimum wage, overtime pay, and family and medical leave.
"Employers who misclassify their workers use one of these unscrupulous practices by ignoring any current or prosed definition of employee, thereby stripping workers of their rights," Rep. Wilson said. "I represent one of the most economically depressed districts in the country, so believe me when I tell you that it is disgraceful to attempt to strip millions of hard-working Americans of their existing labor rights, many of which are in dire need of an update."
During the Working Families Day of Action hosted by Democratic lawmakers on October 27, former bricklayer, Marvin Monge, shared how an employer forced him to accept cash payments and was lax about safety precautions. When Marvin expressed concerns about workplace safety, the employer said that he and his co-workers were "subcontractors" and then fired him.
"Independent contractors are not covered under NLRA, making misclassification another tool used to stifle workers' voices," said Rep. Wilson, who urged the committee to work to pass the Payroll Fraud Prevention Act. "Even if we win the battles to raise the minimum wage, strengthen unions and secure more family friendly policies, it means nothing if employers can simply strip workers of these rights with a simple 1099 tax form."

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Coevos Filmes
Founded in 1981, Coevos is a production company in constant activity. It operates in the cinema, TV and VOD segments. In 2020, the company will release Soldado Estrangeiro in theaters. Currently, the company is producing two other feature-length documentaries: Os Livres, in partnership with the channel Curta!, and Sinfonia de Um Homem Comum, in partnership with Globo Filmes/ Globo News.
Isabel Joffily
isabel@coevos.com.br
Isabel Joffily was born in 1984. In 2006 she got her bachelor degree in Social Sciences by UFRJ and in 2015 she graduated as Master of Visual Arts by UERJ. As a director she has worked on "Rio Fabril" (with Thais Blank and Paulo Fontes, 2018), "Vidigal Olimpo" (with José Joffily, 2016), "Retrato de Carmen D." and "Uma Festa para Jorge" (with Rita Toledo, 2009). She produced the feature documentaries "Soldado Estrangeiro" (2019), "Caminho de Volta" (2015), both by José Joffily and Pedro Rossi, and "Prova de Artista" (2011), by José Joffily. She produced and curated the showings "Amós Gitai e Abbas Kiarostami: O Cinema Além Muros" (Caixa Cultural do Rio de Janeiro e São Paulo, 2009) and "Carl Th. Dreyer e Lars von Trier: Os Cineastas da Vida Interior" (Caixa Cultural do Rio de Janeiro e Palácio das Artes de Belo Horizonte, 2008). She produced the showing "Robert Frank: Entre Imagens" (with Julieta Roitman, 2012). Currently she's in post-production of her first feature documentary "Depois da Primavera", winner of the Itaú Cultural. The film is predicted for the first semester of 2021.
José Joffily
joffily@coevos.com.br
Born in João Pessoa, José Joffily is a filmmaker and Master in Communications by UFRJ. Parallel to his work as a director and producer, he taught during 20 years in the Cinema Department of UFF. In 2000, he was president of the Brazilian Association of Filmmakers. His work as director includes the films: "Soldado Estrangeiro" (with Pedro Rossi, 2019), "Vidigal Olimpo" (with Isabel Joffily, 2016), "Caminho de Volta" (with Pedro Rossi, 2015), "Mão na Luva" (with Roberto Bomtempo, 2014), "Acerto de Contas" (series, 2013), "Prova de Artista" (2011), "Olhos Azuis" (2010), "A Paixão Segundo Callado" (2009), "Achados e Perdidos" (2007), "Vocação do Poder" (with Eduardo Escorel, 2005), "Dois Perdidos Numa Noite Suja" (2002), "O Chamado de Deus" (2000), "Quem Matou Pixote?" (1996), and other titles. Currently he's directing the feature documentary "Sinfonia de Um Homem Comum", with its predicted to be released in the second semester of 2020. Joffily's films have been regularly watched in festivals, in commercial theatres and several online platforms.
pedro@coevos.com.br
Pedro Rossi was born in 1981 in Rio de Janeiro. He has B.A. in Visual Communication by the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro. He was the producer of the features "Romance Policial" (80', 2015), "Noites de Reis" (85', 2012), "Não Se Pode Viver Sem Amor" (90', 2010) and of the documentary "Ippon" (30', 2013) for ESPN. Directed with José Joffily the documentary "Caminho de Volta" (75', 2015), which stayed for one year in theaters in Brazil before going to the TV. The film was released in the It's All True Festival in 2015. He was the director of the documentary TV series "O Som e O Silêncio" (13 episodes, 2018) for the Arte1 channel and the documentary feature "Soldado Estrangeiro" (Foreign Soldier), another partnership with José Joffily. The film participated in the main selection of the festivals It's All True and DocsMX in 2019. His next projects include directing with Isabel Joffily the feature documentary "Os Livres" (The Free Ones) and directing the series "Rubens Gerchman - Atemporal", with Bernardo Pinheiro for the channel Arte1.
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c1994. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, xi, 127 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.
1999. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 122 p. : col. plates ; 24 cm.
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1990. 1st. Tor ed. Tor , 114 p. ; 18 cm.
2002. Kingfisher, 201 p. : ill. ; 22 cm.
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c1995. University of Oklahoma Press, xxxiv, 284 p. : ill., maps ; 27 cm.
2010. Puffin, vi, 133 p. : ill. ; 19 cm.
2002. ABDO Pub., 238 p. : ill. ; 21 cm.
1989. Baronet, 239 p. : ill. ; 21 cm.
1996. Viking, 126 p. ; 23 cm.
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c1993, 1983. Watermill Press, 137 p.
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c2002. Modern Publishing, 184 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.
2000. Nextext, 126 p. : ill. ; 22 cm.
 Macmillan ; xi, 127 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.
1979. Perfection Form, 122 p. : port. ; 18 cm.
p2010. Unabridged. Random House/Listening Library, 3 sound discs (3 hr., 10 min.) : digital ; 4 3/4 in.
p2010. Library ed. Random House/Listening Library, 3 sound discs (ca. 64 in. each) : digital, stereo ; 4 3/4 in.
2011, p1980. RBdigital eAudiobooks Unabridged. Recorded Books ; 1 sound file (4 hr., 30 min.) : digital.
 MackinVIA Xist Publishing, 1 online resource (100 pages).
2008. RBdigital eAudiobooks Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, 1 online resource : multiple file formats.
Arneson, D. J., Bransom, Paul, 1885-, Bullard, Nick., Burgess, Melvin., Clift, Eva,, Daniels, Jeff, 1955-, Davidson, Andrew, 1958-, Dyer, Daniel 1944-, Gascoigne, Martin., Kramer, Michael (Narrator)., London, Jack, 1876-1916., Moser, Barry,, Muller, Frank, 1951-, Yamamoto, Mitsu.
Arneson, D. J., Bransom, Paul,1885-illustrator., Bullard, Nick., Burgess, Melvin., Clift, Eva,illustrator., Daniels, Jeff,1955-, Davidson, Andrew,1958-, Dyer, Daniel1944-, Findaway World, LLC., Gascoigne, Martin., Kramer, Michael(Narrator)., London, Jack,1876-1916.Call of the wild, Moser, Barry,ill., Muller, Frank,1951-|Narrator, Oxford University Press., Pablo Marcos Studio,ill., Pablo Marcos Studio., Playaway Digital Audio., Project Gutenberg., Recorded Books, LLC., Yamamoto, Mitsu.


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Christopher LeGrand
Former chair of the Board of Directors, IntraHealth International
Christoper LeGrand is the former president of DAI Global Health. He joined DAI in the fall of 2015 with a mandate to advance DAI's global health portfolio, focusing on emerging health markets and the next generation of health solutions.
LeGrand, who describes himself as a "business savvy health technology professional," has 28 years of experience in the professional services industry, including 23 years in the health sector.
From 2008 to 2014, as the CEO of Futures Group, LeGrand repositioned Futures as one of the leading names in global health and led the successful merger of Futures with GRM International. Previously, LeGrand was president of Constella Group's public sector business, a provider of integrated health solutions to governments and the private sector. Earlier in his career, he spent 12 years with BDM International, a successful government services company.
LeGrand is current board chairman of the Triangle Global Health Consortium and is active in various charitable endeavors, both locally and globally. He is the recipient of multiple business leadership awards, including being named one of Business Leader Magazine's top 100 Business Impact Leaders in the Research Triangle area. He holds an MS in information management from George Washington University and a BS in mathematical sciences from Clemson University.


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Another 1.2 Million Workers to be Eligible for Overtime Pay Under New Dept. of Labor Rules
After five years of debate and litigation, the United States Department of Labor has finally announced its new overtime rules, and an estimated 1.2-million workers are expected to become eligible for overtime pay who do not qualify under present rules.
The new overtime exemption rule published on September 24 sets a new annual salary threshold that workers need to exceed in order to qualify for the Fair Labor Standards Act's "white collar" overtime exemptions, at just over $35,000.00.
"For the first time in over 15 years, America's workers will have an update to overtime regulations that will put overtime pay into the pockets of more than a million working Americans," Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Patrick Pizzella said. "This rule brings a commonsense approach that offers consistency and certainty for employers as well as clarity and prosperity for American workers."
In the new rule, the Department of Labor is:
raising the "standard salary level" from the currently enforced level of $455.00 to $684.00 per week (equivalent to $35,568.00 per year for a full-year worker);
raising the total annual compensation level for "highly compensated employees (HCE)" from the currently-enforced level of $100,000.00 to $107,432.00 per year;
allowing employers to use nondiscretionary bonuses and incentive payments (including commissions) that are paid at least annually to satisfy up to 10 percent of the standard salary level, in recognition of evolving pay practices; and
revising the special salary levels for workers in U.S. territories and in the motion picture industry.
Under current federal law, set in 2004, most hourly-paid, non-salaried workers have been entitled to overtime pay. Starting on Jan. 1, 2020, the minimum salary threshold will be raised to $35,568.00, so that workers making less than that will be entitled to overtime pay regardless of their job duties.
Current federal law requires workers to receive time-and-a-half pay for hours worked over 40 in any week – unless they receive a salary of more than $455.00 a week and have executive, administrative, professional, or outside sales duties.
Doctors, lawyers, and top executives are overtime-exempt. But so too are shift managers at hotels and restaurants, nonprofit staff, teachers, and a host of other lower-paid workers on a salary. For example, a fast-food worker earning minimum wage would receive overtime pay at 1.5-times his regular hourly rate for all hours worked in excess of 40 in a week. But his or her shift manager, making a salary of $30,000.00 a year, could be required to work 50, 60, or 70 hours a week, or more, with no additional compensation.
Under a previous proposal by President Barack Obama, the threshold would have been raised it to about $47,476.00 a year, which would have benefited an estimated 3-million more workers by entitling them to either a shorter workweek or more pay. However, the Trump Administration kept those changes from taking effect.
The new income threshold does not change the substantive job requirements to qualify for the "white collar" overtime exemptions. To be exempt from receiving overtime pay the employee's job duties must still primarily involve executive, administrative, or professional duties as defined by federal regulations.
The Department of Labor estimates that in 2020, 1.2 million currently exempt employees who earn at least $455.000 per week, but less than the new standard salary level of $684.00 per week, will, without some intervening action by their employers, gain overtime eligibility. The Department also estimates that an additional 2.2 million white collar workers who are currently nonexempt because they do not satisfy the duties tests and currently earn at least $455.00 per week, but less than $684.00 per week, will have their overtime-eligible status strengthened in 2020 because these employees will now fail both the salary level and duties tests.
The Depression-era Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 ("FLSA"), which established a federal minimum wage – now $7.25 per hour — and overtime benefits for the first time, was meant to end sweatshop-style conditions in U.S. factories and lift millions of Americans out of poverty. The overtime benefit, in particular, was supposed to discourage employers from overworking their employees, by making it cheaper to hire an extra worker than to require one employee to work 80 hours in a week. But the problem with the FLSA is that benefits aren't indexed to the changes in cost of living.
The Labor Department says the new rule will transfer about $400-million from private U.S. employers as compensation to their workers each year for the next 10 years. That should have a minimal impact on businesses, as the $1.5 trillion tax cut that Congress gave them in 2017 is expected to cover it.
New York and California have already adopted new overtime rules that set the state salary thresholds around $50,000.00. Several more states are considering similar proposals, including Colorado, Washington, and Pennsylvania.
The text of the new rule and an explanatory memorandum totaling 245 pages is available online at: https://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime2019/overtime_FR.pdf
Angel Castillo, Jr.
Angel Castillo, Jr. has significant experience during more than 30 years of practice in employment and other civil litigation and in domestic and international arbitrations. Mr. Castillo is AV® Preeminent Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell. He has been recognized by both the South Florida Legal Guide and Florida Super Lawyers as one of the top…
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Army of Ukraine lobbyists behind unprecedented Washington blitz
Source Responsible Statecraft
WASHINGTON, U.S.--As tensions with Russia reach a boiling point, lobbyists from Ukraine are working feverishly to shape the U.S. response.
Firms working for Ukrainian interests have inundated congressional offices, think tanks, and journalists with more than 10,000 messages and meetings in 2021, according to an analysis of Foreign Agents Registration Act, or FARA, filings for a forthcoming report from the Quincy Institute.
To put this extraordinary campaign into perspective, the Saudi lobby, known for being one of the largest foreign lobbies in D.C., reported 2,834 contacts, barely a quarter of what Ukraine's agents have done.
Russia has positioned more than 100,000 troops on Ukraine's border and, just yesterday, it began conducting military drills with Belarus on Ukraine's border in what some fear could be the lead-up to an invasion.
As the number of Russian troops on Ukraine's border has grown, so too have the efforts of Ukraine's agents in the United States to secure U.S. and NATO military support.
More specifically, the far-reaching campaign has been focused on stopping the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which Ukrainian officials argue is as much of a threat to their security as Russian troops.
If completed, the pipeline would allow Russia to export natural gas directly to Germany and the rest of Europe, jeopardizing the billions Ukraine currently earns from transiting Russian gas to Europe.
Congress has been the primary target of Ukraine's agents, with over 300 House and Senate staff and members of Congress on the receiving end of more than 8,000 emails, phone calls, and meetings with Ukraine's lobbyists.
Agents representing the Ukrainian Federation of Employers of the Oil and Gas Industry, or UFEOGI, the largest association of energy companies in Ukraine, have flooded Capitol Hill with headlines like "Ukrainians call on U.S. Senate to sanction Putin's pipeline weapon," and others claiming "Moscow regards concessions as a sign of weakness."
The lobbyists seem to have found a friendly ear in Senate Republicans, in particular Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). In January, they distributed a tweet from the prime minister of Ukraine that said Nord Stream 2 is "no less an existential threat to our security & democracy than Russian troops on our border."
The sentiment was echoed, nearly verbatim, two days later by Cruz, who said he was hoping to "lift the existential threat posed by Nord Stream 2."
In 2021, UFEOGI's lobbyists also focused intently on senators who co-sponsored 2020 legislation to block completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, including Cruz; John Barrasso (R-Wyo.); Tom Cotton, (R-Ark.); Ron Johnson, (R-Wis.); and Jeanne Shaheen, (D-N.H.).
These senators, all members of the Foreign Relations Committee who had previously taken tough stances toward Russia, were contacted at least 100 times in 2021 and, on multiple occasions, staffers met directly with lobbyists.
In early 2022, after Cruz introduced a bill to impose further sanctions on the building of the pipeline, lobbyists worked feverishly in support.
When the bill came under fire from the Biden administration, which argued it was "Designed to undermine the unity of our allies, not punish Russia," Ukraine's agents quickly responded with a "facts on the ground" brief sent to nearly every Senate Democratic office and half of Senate Republican offices debunking the administration's talking points.
The brief was distributed on behalf of UEFOGI by Daniel Vajdich, the former senior national security adviser on Cruz's 2016 presidential campaign and current president of Yorktown Solutions, the lobbying group that represents UFEOGI.
Ukraine's agents at KARV Communications also sent a brief to journalists explaining, "The only message Russia understands is firmness and pressure." (Disclosure: KARV Communications senior adviser Amir Handjani is a supporter of the Quincy Institute.)
Cruz's bill received a floor vote but, despite the efforts of Vajdich and other lobbyists, it did not pass. A rival piece of legislation, introduced by Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), and supported by the Biden administration has a better shot; it also seeks to block completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and has been called the "mother of all sanctions."
Ukraine's lobbying push on Capitol Hill has been aided by former Menendez staffer, Brittany Beaulieu of Yorktown Solutions, who now represents UFEOGI and the Civil Movement for a Just Ukraine, a nonprofit whose primary goal is "the de-oligarchization of Ukraine."
In her new role lobbying on behalf of Ukraine, Beaulieu has distributed tweets from her old boss on the need for "enhanced security assistance to Ukraine and new sanctions on the Kremlin."
Yorktown Solutions also distributed a Wall Street Journal editorial board article warning, "a failed sanctions vote would be one more reason for Mr. Putin not to take U.S. sanctions threats seriously," in reference to the Menendez legislation that would impose sanctions on Russia regardless of whether it invades Ukraine.
Reporters with the Wall Street Journal's newsroom, which operates independently of the editorial board, were contacted on at least 147 occasions throughout 2021, including arranging a meeting with UFEOGI leadership, according to the Quincy Institute's analysis of FARA filings.
Finally, think tanks were contacted more than 1,100 times by Ukraine's agents, and more than half of these were directed at one in particular: the Atlantic Council.
This extraordinary outreach included multiple meetings with Atlantic Council scholars, like ex-U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine John Herbst, who has advocated for a more militarized approach to Russia amid the Ukraine crisis. Herbst recently told NPR that President Joe Biden should "send more weapons to Ukraine now.
By all means, get additional U.S. and NATO forces up along Russia's border." Herbst was also at the center of an Atlantic Council kerfuffle last March, when he and 21 other Atlantic Council staff signed a letter opposing the work of two Atlantic Council colleagues who suggested a restraint-based approach to dealing with Russia.
The Atlantic Council has also launched "UkraineAlert" which publishes daily pieces on deterring Russia. A recent article, "Survey: Western public backs stronger support for Ukraine against Russia," notes the survey in question was commissioned by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation and Yalta European Strategy, which Pinchuk founded.
However, the article does not mention that the foundation is a large contributor to the Atlantic Council, donating $250,000-499,000 a year, or that Pinchuk himself, the second wealthiest man in Ukraine, sits on the international advisory board of the Atlantic Council.
After the Atlantic Council, the hawkish Heritage Foundation was the second most contacted think tank by Ukraine's agents. Heritage has consistently pushed for militarized solutions to the Russia-Ukraine crisis and was contacted 180 times throughout 2021 by Ukraine's agents.
This outreach was targeted at high-level Heritage experts, like Heritage Vice President James Carafano, who has repeatedly belittled U.S. diplomatic efforts related to Ukraine.
The Ukraine lobby amplifies the voices of those pushing for more aggressive U.S. responses to the current crisis, but Ukrainian interests are far from the only players in this behind-the-scenes lobbying battle.
The U.S. defense sector, for example, spent more than $117 million on lobbying in 2021. With U.S. weapons manufacturers making billions in arms sales to Ukraine, their CEOs see the turmoil there as a good business opportunity.
And, of course, Russian interests are spending exorbitantly on influence operations and lobbying in the U.S., approximately $182 million since 2016, according to OpenSecrets.
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In the 2007 U.S. Census of Agriculture, the total number of women operating farms increased 19 percent, far surpassing the overall 7 percent increase in farmers.
Clearly, women don't lack recognition due to a lack of contribution, either in the field, in political organizing, or in the written word. It can only be subtle, ingrained sexism -- the failure of people in media to highlight women's contributions.
This statement made me proud to be at Grid, where we can't cover amazing women fast enough. Check out our recent cover story on Greensgrow's Mary Seton Corboy, or these profiles of women-led farms, this run-down of Vandana Shiva's illustrious career, or this local business story on Green Heron Tools.


With the demands of the construction sector growing year after year, the industry has been looking for new and unique avenues to satisfy project requirements. Many issues have been growing in the past couple of years. There are a number of companies that are demanding shorter lead times on their construction projects so they can open the facility sooner and have a quicker return on investment. With an increased growth in construction spending, this has put a great strain on companies to keep up with project times, not to mention the labor shortage construction companies are seeing.
Many companies have decided to turn to an alternative to "stick-built" construction: offsite construction. Offsite construction, commonly known as prefabricated construction soothes a number of the problems that plague the construction sector at this time. With the majority of the building being constructed or manufactured in a controlled, factory-like environment, offsite construction offers an interesting channel for many groups looking for new ways to expand.
However, offsite construction is definitely not a new phenomenon. In fact, the process itself has existed for around 150 years, but it also has had a few stigmas surrounding it from the past. Many view offsite construction as a "cookie cutter" solution to their space needs or view it as being of lower quality. Most of these sentiments can probably be traced back to earlier days of modular construction practices and an overall unfamiliarity with the process. Nevertheless, today's offsite construction industry has been vastly transformed, and in this post, we will go through the offsite construction process to see how it all fits together.
The offsite construction process begins where all construction processes begin, in the design phase.
And here also starts one of the biggest and most common myths you will see pertaining to offsite construction, a lack of design options and flexibility. The fact that the building is constructed offsite has no influence over the design phase of the project. Architects and engineers are still able to craft a building as they see fit.
Designing a modular construction project is very similar to a traditional construction project, with a few nuances to consider. The architect must make all the same considerations considering code compliance, especially in projects consisting of large, multi-story buildings. However, when designing the building, you obviously need to take into account that these buildings and structures are indeed built in modules and transported to the site in that form.
This is where the idea of offsite construction as a "cookie cutter" solution comes in. Many in the industry understand that these structures are designed in modules, but they do not consider that these modules can be organized in any arrangement needed, and each module can be designed to fit any shape or form needed.
In this sense, these modules are like toy building blocks for an architect or project manager. They can fit together in a wide range of ways, offering limitless variety in their design phase.
After the structure's design is agreed upon and inspected by a third party, the manufacturing process can begin. Obviously, this phase of the project is where offsite construction is the most unique and really has an opportunity to shine.
The manufacturing environment that modular construction offers provides a medley of benefits to the modular construction company and naturally the customer as well. Offsite construction takes place in a factory. Just like any factory environment, there are standardized work processes that aim for the most efficient production process possible. The factory will be sectioned off into individual work zones, each providing added value to the structure. The structure will move through these zones in an assembly line-like style. Workers assembling the building specialize in a specific task pertaining to the building. Due to this specialization and highly controlled work environment, offsite construction results in far fewer errors in quality, and thus, much less waste.
For Panel Built, the assembly line style of production, coupled with a customizable binder-post system, allows us to purchase our building supplies in great quantities because each panel produced can be used in another fashion on a different project. This provides an economy of scale for our panel production, allowing for an increase in cost saving to go along with the increased level of panel production. This benefit of the modular construction process directly benefits the customer in this situation. The economy of scale is passed directly to them, lowering the material cost needed to complete the structure, and ultimately, the price of the project.
As noted in our previous post, "Sustainable Construction Trends for 2017," modular/offsite construction provides a potential solution to the construction industry's labor shortage as well.
One point that cannot be glossed over in understanding offsite construction is the added control that is gained over the construction and quality of the structure. This control is gained by eliminating as many variables as possible from the process.
Looking at a traditional construction project, all work is done at the construction site. These sites can have hundreds of workers moving around at all times, materials being transported from one area to another, and the use of heavy machinery throughout the site. The project also takes place outside, so the construction of the structure will be influenced greatly by the weather on any given day. All of these things can cause disruption in a traditional construction project. These disruptions can lead to a few different outcomes: damaging of materials or equipment, delaying the construction schedule, or workplace accidents (which the construction industry has the most incidences in comparison to other sectors).
Unfortunately, the manufacturing phase of modular construction is where we find another myth associated with the business: the structures are of poor quality. Often, people were skeptical of the structure integrity of the buildings because they were unable to see the framework being made. However, offsite construction makes use of the same materials as traditional construction. For Panel Built and the modular construction sector as a whole, we pride ourselves on perfectly solving our customers' space needs with a superior product to any other alternative. The buildings manufactured through offsite construction are not a temporary fix, but rather a permanent alternative to stick-built. Plus, once the module is finished in the factory phase of the construction process, it must be shipped to the job site. This means the finished structure must travel piece by piece sometimes 1000's of miles and endure the rigors of transportation, while still holding its structural integrity.
After the structure has been delivered to the job site, the structure can be installed into its proper location, either permanently or temporarily. For our modular structures, the buildings can be constructed on a forkliftable steel base, making the transportation of the structure at the job site far easier. Next, the structure is anchored to a concrete slab. Finally, hook up any necessary utilities, and the building is ready to go!
As you can imagine, a modular construction job site will have far less commotion and traffic in comparison to stick-built. When installing our pre-assembled buildings, all members of the install team have one big modular structure to keep their attention on, rather than a ton of moving parts. This allows the workers to stay much more focused on the task at hand, reducing the chance of errors and accidents.
Also, with the building be manufactured in a facility away from the job site. The job site can be prepped for install while the building is being put together. With these two processes happening concurrently, the project time is reduced overall. Plus, the quick installation period and the lack of heavy machinery and materials creates minimal site disturbance. For areas like a school or manufacturing facility, that means your facility can stay up and running. For rural areas, offsite construction provides a quality product that may not be available in their area otherwise.
Panel Built delivers a turnkey product to solve your space needs with no hassle.
Overall, offsite construction can help you in a variety of unique ways and solve problems that have plagued the construction industry. With the amount of spending in the construction sector increasing and the number of available construction workers dwindling, offsite construction's short lead times could prove vital to keep up with demand. Structures from full-blown hotels to classrooms to observation towers to bullet proof guard shacks, offsite construction take care of them all. Recently, the world's largest hotel company, Marriott, has dedicated itself to offsite construction with a 50-hotel deal utilizing the construction concept. With more and more major companies taking advantage of the benefits of offsite construction, the previous stigma against offsite construction is quickly going away. Panel Built, Inc. has over 20 years of experience in the industry. We have built everything from "air attack training towers" to maintenance platforms for commercial airplanes.
Ultimately, with all the different uses for offsite construction makes it possible to utilize it in nearly any construction project, big or small. If think offsite construction can help you with your next project, just give us a call at 800.636.3873 or email us at info@panelbuilt.com. We would be more than happy to work with you on your project.


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Reid pleased with Tarrant's PEP readiness
Published:Wednesday | September 5, 2018 | 12:00 AMJason Cross/Gleaner Writer
Gladstone Taylor
Minister of Education Ruel Reid watches as Samore Fearon (right) and Malik Thompson (centre) complete a performance task exercise from a Primary Exit Profile (PEP) paper, during a visit to Tarrant Primary School in St Andrew yesterday. The minister was touring schools for the second day to determine their readiness for the new academic year.
Tarrant Primary School in St Andrew has convinced Education Minister Ruel Reid that it is set and ready to attack the Primary Exit Profile (PEP) this school year, following a visit to the institution yesterday.
"Tarrant was one of the schools that indicated that they were ready for the start of the school term and for PEP. It was important to visit to reassure them of our support and to engage students and teachers, as well as to congratulate them for their readiness," the minister said.
Reid quizzed students on their knowledge of certain subject areas and how much they knew about PEP.
"I journeyed with the students about the importance of the Primary Exit Profile as a high-order exam that requires them to not only recall, but to apply the knowledge and concepts they are learning to solve problems. I explored with them various career interests and how the education system will prepare them for life. The subjects they are pursuing will be the foundation for them to be successful at the primary and higher-education levels," the minister told The Gleaner.
Reid promised that the school will be receiving much-needed attention throughout this academic year and in the future.
"I met with the board chairman and the senior teachers, and we spoke about the school improvement plan, development of the library, the resources required to provide ICT (information and communication technology) capabilities within the school. The paving of the schoolyard is a project we would like to undertake. It's about $3 million I have committed this side of the year to help with improvement to their grounds. We are very pleased about the level of leadership by the board, principal and staff, plus the enthusiasm of the students. That highlights our readiness for back-to-school," he noted.
Chairman of the school board, Annalise Harewood, said Tarrant Primary is in the same position as other primary schools where PEP is concerned.
"We received the curriculum yesterday (Tuesday) and we have put in the same preparatory steps as all the other schools," she said.
jason.cross@gleanerjm.com
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Q: What is the best way to return primitive types/wrappers in Spring Controller? When I return Integer or other wrapper from my Spring Controller like that:
@GetMapping(path = "test1")
public Integer test1() {
    return 1;
}

The response to the user has the following body:
1

It's not a valid JSON. Are there any practices on how such values should be returned? The concern is that I want my all API to return a valid JSON. I created a wrapper that returns:
{
    "value": 1
}

But, maybe there is a better way to tackle these cases?

A: If the return value is returned as plain text, e.g. a String is returned without double-quotes, then the following would be true:

*

*You use @RestController or @ResponseBody

*Your code doesn't specify a response content type

*The client prefers text response over JSON response
To force the response to JSON, you need to tell Spring by specifying:
@GetMapping(path = "test1", produces = "application/json")

or
@GetMapping(path = "test1", produces = MediaType.APPLICATION_JSON_VALUE)

Since your response is just a number, you could decide that it is just that, and not JSON, by specifying e.g. text/plain as the response content type. As with any other response, it is up to the client to correctly interpret the response value.
However, the plain 1-byte response 1 is valid JSON, so you can keep that, or you can do the { "value": 1 } JSON response if you want. It is your API, so you get to decide what the response format is.
Just remember to document it, so whoever writes client code will know what to expect.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Entering the text is the first step in the process and the compressed air-driven keyboard punched holes in a paper tape. While the output was on a par with modern computer typesetting, the keyboard relied on mechanical help to help with spacing, justification and line length.
A single, standard keyboard to produce the punched paper tape.


Who's for a picnic? The AWIA basket is brand new for 2019 and ethically produced in Northern Ghana. Flashes of neon pink, blue and turmeric orange riot against a natural grass base on this ethically-produced work of art, handmade by weavers working within a flourishing Ghanaian cooperative. We search far and wide to discover the very best weaving cooperatives across Africa, and we're delighted to be offering more work to these talented weavers as our collection expands to include these fabulous picnic baskets.
AWIA features a woven lid and carry handles – all produced using a robust local grass called veta vera which yields baskets of wonderful structural balance and durability. Grasses grow locally and are picked from the tip, allowing the root to continue to grow.
Most of the artisans who make these baskets are primarily farmers, but drought makes it increasingly difficult for families to make ends meet. Basket weaving empowers these people with the opportunity to earn a flexible second income. Each basket comes with a thank you card from the weaving co-operative. Want to know more about the Ghanaian weavers? Click here.


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Europe in transition
Financing the transition
Global transition
CAN Europe's reaction to the State of the European Union speech
In reaction to the State of the European Union speech delivered by the President of the European Commission before the Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) today, Wendel Trio Director of Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe said:
"When it comes to climate change, Mr. Juncker sounds like a broken record. He restates the EU's commitment to the Paris Agreement, but then fails to give any substance to these words. Our biggest disappointment from this morning is that he failed to acknowledge that standing up for the Paris Agreement means stepping up and committing the EU to higher climate targets."
Ania Drazkiewicz, CAN Europe Communications Coordinator, ania@caneurope.org, +32 494 525 738
Climate Action Network (CAN) Europe is Europe's largest coalition working on climate and energy issues. With over 130 member organisations in more than 30 European countries – representing over 44 million citizens – CAN Europe works to prevent dangerous climate change and promote sustainable climate and energy policy in Europe.
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Brussels, 30 November 2022 – Today's European Commission proposal to create a carbon removals certification framework leaves too many important questions unanswered, such as by whom and how the certificates
CAN Europe Headquarters
Mundo B
Rue d'Edimbourg 26
Tel: +32 (0) 28944670
CAN Europe empowers civil society organisations to influence the design and development of effective climate change policy in Europe, both in the European Union as well as in its Member States and in European countries outside the EU.
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Home Journalism Articles The Truth About the Brunson Case
The Truth About the Brunson Case
Adam Carter / Tracy Beanz
UncoverDC · Exclusive: Unvaccinated at SRNS Considered 'Insider Threat' by DOE
This column isn't going to earn anyone money—to the contrary—many of you will likely hate us for writing it. But the truth is the truth. The purpose is not to "create division" or call out other conservative "influencers" simply because we have differing opinions. We have all spent years watching blatant government corruption, constitutional rights being trampled, and elections stolen—all with no one being held accountable.
"This is over. We want every damn bit of evidence that every intelligence agency has. Or it's maybe time to shut those agencies down. Because, at the end of the day, our liberties are more important than anything else we have in this country. And they have been stampeded over by these dirty cops and the Democratic party and the media who fails to report on it."
~ Congressman Devin Nunes on Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo in October 2020
Understandably, there are many who are frightened, confused, and feeling desperate after witnessing all of this. They are hoping for a "hail mary" to come flying in that will restore the country to the constitutional republic—with equal justice under the law—that she was meant to be. And in their desperation, they are prone to cling to whatever appears promising that'll make it happen.
Sadly, there are people out there who will exploit, profit from, or simply "grift" off that desperation by filling the need with false hope—or "hopium." It appears, unfortunately, that Brunson v. Alma S. Adams; et al. (No. 22-380)—also known as "The Brunson Case"—pending before the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS), is just such an example.
Where the Case Really Stands
First, we need to dispel some misunderstandings about the status of the case. It is not "scheduled for a hearing" before SCOTUS. So far, it is simply a petition for a writ of certiorari that's been scheduled for conference. All that requires is filling out an online application and paying a filing fee.
Constitutional attorney Robert Barnes—a member of the Supreme Court Bar who has filed countless petitions for cert and made oral arguments in front of SCOTUS a number of times—explained the process for filing a petition for a writ of certiorari and how the petition is considered by the SCOTUS justices and their clerks on a recent Livestream with Viva Frei.
A "conference" is where the SCOTUS justices meet and vote on cases they will "grant cert"—with four needing to vote "Yes" to accept the case and schedule for oral arguments. Here's the Order List that came out of a recent conference. The justices considered 158 petitions for cert. They denied 157 and took 1. And for a couple of the denials, they told the Clerk of the Court (effectively), "Tell this idiot to stop bothering us with this nonsense. Don't accept any more petitions from this guy."
As Barnes noted above, every justice claims they read every single petition for cert filed with the court, but that claim is very much in doubt. SCOTUS justices employ clerks who read and vet all the petitions ahead of time. The clerks are very familiar with the judicial philosophy of the justice they work for and what legal arguments they would be interested in discussing. It is believed—based on what court insiders have described about the inner workings of the court—only the ones with merit are ever passed along and briefed by the clerks to the justices themselves. Justices simply don't have time to read each and every one of the thousands of petitions that get filed with the SCOTUS every year.
Further, as independent journalist and podcaster Just Human noted on Truth Social, "only 20-25% of the petitions distributed for a given conference are actually discussed".
The other 75-80% of petitions are denied and discarded—likely without the justices ever reading them or even being aware they exist.
Screenshot from 'Counsel Press' article cited by Just Human from his research.
A lot has been made out of the Brunson brothers' interaction with the Clerk of the SCOTUS after they initially filed their petition for cert. As detailed on the Brunson's website:
"The Clerk of the SCOTUS calls Raland again. She asks, "how are you doing on your revision of the Writ with the additional information that we need?" Raland said, "We're working on it as we speak!" She said, "how soon can we get it?" Raland said, "Right away!"
Some have interpreted this to mean the justices are eager to hear this case and proactively reaching out through the clerk to get it in front of them as quickly as possible. In our opinion—given how we know how the court operates—that interpretation makes little sense.
First, as anyone who has watched a senate confirmation—since the Robert Bork nomination hearings—understands, justices and SCOTUS nominees go out of their way not to appear to "prejudge" cases. Justices do not—at least publicly—proactively reach out to potential litigants seeking cases be brought they wish to consider. And they certainly aren't going to make a public record of it by reaching out through the Clerk of the Court.
Robert Bork, seen at his 1987 SCOTUS nomination hearing before the U.S. Senate, where his confirmation was later denied
In the event justices do wish to have a matter brought before them they believe needs to be addressed, they do so by publicly signaling it in their written opinions (majority, concurrence, and/or dissenting)—as Justice Clarence Thomas recently did in a concurring statement related to Section 230; ironically as part of a denial for a petition for writ of certiorari.
Second, as Barnes talked about in the same recent Livestream (and coincidentally cites our own Tracy Beanz), the people behind the Brunson petition have misinterpreted the actions of the clerk. Barnes explains SCOTUS is "the best court in America" when it comes to assisting pro se litigants—i.e., individuals who represent themselves in court rather than through an attorney, translated from Latin as "advocating on one's own behalf"—in filing petitions. So the proactive actions by the clerk, in this case, are simply in keeping with the court's usual interactions with nearly all pro se litigants. SCOTUS has not done anything out of the norm with this case. It's just being marketed better.
"The Supreme Court, to its credit, is very generous with its time about helping people file a petition in the right way. File it at the right time. File it in the right format. Particularly pro se litigants like this. They are the best court in America, by a long mile, at helping the little guy properly get his petition before the U.S. Supreme Court. Great credit to the Supreme Court and its personnel on that side of the aisle."
~ Constitutional attorney Robert Barnes
Barnes dispels another myth about the Brunson petition in the same clip above. As noted on both the SCOTUS docket and Brunson website, the Dept. of Justice (DOJ) waived its right to respond to the petition at all.
Somehow, this is being spun by proponents as a good sign for the petition. The lawsuit is so solid that DOJ is simply unable to mount any kind of defense against it. Does that actually make sense to anyone? The highly-politicized Merrick Garland DOJ is just going to throw up its hands and allow SCOTUS to unilaterally remove the entire Democratic party power base from elected federal office without so much as making an argument? And do so in a case that has been dismissed with ease at every level below SCOTUS? Does that really make sense to anyone?!? It's absurd, almost beyond the point of comprehension. It's nonsense.
As also noted by Barnes, the only reason that would happen is because the DOJ does not even feel the need to respond because the lawsuit has no merit whatsoever. If the court thought there was any chance—any chance at all—that the justices would vote to hear the case, they would reach out and request a response from the DOJ. The fact that neither the DOJ nor the court thought a response was necessary is the clearest sign that this case is going nowhere.
Merits Of The Case
We have read the lawsuit filed by the Brunson brothers. In our honest opinion, it does not seem to have any basis in constitutional law. Frankly speaking—as found by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in their dismissal—it's "frivolous."
The truth is, the only reason this case got to the stage of a petition for a writ of cert with SCOTUS this quickly is because it completely lacks merit. You only need to think back to your 4th-grade civics class to understand why it lacks merit.
Now we will be the first to admit our constitutional processes are not functioning as our founders intended. We are only speaking to how the system was designed to function.
Under our system of separation of powers and "checks and balances," the Legislative Branch (Congress) is the only one with the power to remove sitting members of the other two branches—or sitting members of Congress itself. The Founders entrusted this power solely to Congress because it is the political branch and most accountable to the people. In theory, if Congress were to abuse its authority—and remove a member of the other two branches against the will of the people—those members could be voted out of office in short order. Hence, the people would have the remedy to correct the imbalance and hold the ultimate check on power.
For that reason alone, this case is dead on arrival at SCOTUS. Even if the case had merit on all the other issues presented in the lawsuit, SCOTUS does not have the power to grant the remedy being sought. Therefore there is nothing for the justices to rule on; they can't do anything about it. And if you really think it through, there's a very good reason for that.
Tracy Beanz explained—in a recent voice memo thread on Telegram—what the ramifications would be if SCOTUS actually did have this power. In a hypothetical scenario she gives (at the 7:30 min mark)—if President Trump were to be re-elected in 2024—what would there be to stop the Left from filing a sternly worded brief with SCOTUS and having him removed from office soon after the 2025 inauguration? After witnessing how Article III and state courts have ruled—nearly across the board in election cases involving President Trump or America First Republicans—would you really trust them not to do so? What would be the constitutional remedy to stop it?
"You don't want the SCOTUS to have the power to remove sitting elected officials."
~ Tracy Beanz on Telegram
Congress Always has the Final Say
One thing that needs to be understood, under our constitutional system, Congress always has the final say in who is or is not the President. Whether that means certification of the presidential election, removal by impeachment, or removal via the 25th Amendment—Congress always has the last word; by design.
The case often cited to refute this point is the landmark SCOTUS decision Bush v. Gore that resolved the disputed 2000 presidential election. While it is true the decision cleared the way for Governor George W. Bush (R-TX) to be declared the eventual winner, Congress still had to effectively sign off on the SCOTUS decision by its certification of the presidential electoral count. Had they chosen to do so—as the Democrats attempted—Congress still had the constitutional authority to set aside the electors from the state of Florida and vote to certify the 2000 election for Vice President Al Gore (D-TN) instead, putting him in the White House. And SCOTUS couldn't have done anything to overrule them.
In the aftermath of the 2020 election—despite "losing" 60+ election contest cases brought by President Trump or on his behalf—Congress again had the constitutional authority to ignore court rulings and certify Trump as the winner.
The reason the Jan 6th, 2021 Fedsurrection was necessary is simple. The American public was never presented with the actual evidence of the 2020 Election "Fortification." The "cabal" could not risk members of Congress changing their minds at the last minute—due to political pressure from constituents outraged after hearing all the evidence—and refusing to certify electors from at least three of the contested states. Had that happened, the election would have been declared contested, and the House of Representatives voted by state delegation (50 votes total) to determine the winner. Republicans—holding the majority of state delegations—presumably would have declared President Trump the winner.
It was a risk they couldn't take. Thanks to the Jan 6th Capitol Hill Riot, all presentations of the evidence ceased, and the leadership was able to rush the congressional certification through. The person most harmed politically by the events of Jan 6th was President Trump himself, and it's the clearest indication that he had nothing to do with it.
(Left) The Reichstag Fire event that allowed the Nazi Party to seize total control of Germany in 1933, and (Right) the Capitol Hill Riot event of Jan 6th, 2021
The Constitutional Convention of 1787 & Electors Clause
This, however, further undermines the merits of the Brunson petition. The notion the Founders never anticipated malfeasance or foreign interference to occur in a presidential election is simply not true. In fact, they expected it. Article I Section IV—known as the "Elections or Electors Clause"—of the U.S. Constitution was the most hotly contested debate during the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
Portrait of the Constitutional Convention of 1787
The Emoluments Clause was added out of fear that European monarchies would simply bribe U.S. government officials with titles of nobility and seize control of the newly founded country that way.
The requirement that the President be a U.S. natural-born citizen was included, in part, to prevent a European royal from sending over a prince—or the like—to get elected and then have the chief executive beholden to a foreign ruler.
For various reasons, fewer than forty-four thousand popular votes were to be cast—in total—during the first-ever Presidential Election of 1788-89. So the eligible voting population was not very large at all, and relatively few fraudulent votes could easily tip the scales one way or another.
All of these scenarios were considered possible and likely at the time of the constitutional ratification.
So to believe the Founders did not anticipate these types of events—and address them within the text of the Constitution—is simply wrong. Anyone arguing we are in "unprecedented times" or "extra-constitutional remedies are required" doesn't understand the design of the system; or our history.
Here you had thirteen staunchly independent, former colonies who had just found a war of independence to free themselves from a tyrannical foreign ruler. Out of that fear, the original Articles of Confederation did not even provide for a true chief executive to administer the federal government.
They were now coming together to agree on a process to elect one chief executive with authority over all of them. With the divides already forming between North & South, free states & slave states, industrial & agricultural—they knew electing a unanimous candidate to fill the position was next to impossible.
For those reasons, they had to develop a process with robust opportunities to contest. The outcome had to provide as much assurance—to as many as possible—that the will of the people had been carried out. But it also needed to provide for finality.
The Founders realized these elections would be fiercely contested, and the elected chief executive could not be subject to removal at any moment for the entire four-year term. The co-equal executive branch would be unable to function effectively with election contest issues hanging over it. The constitutional system wouldn't survive. Hence, the reasons for the complexity of the Electors Clause.
Past Examples & Cases
Both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson—in their capacities as Vice presidents—presided over highly controversial congressional certifications that resulted in themselves being named President. The legality of their actions is still being debated to this day by constitutional scholars. Yet despite this, there was never any possibility the Supreme Courts of the time had the power to retroactively review their actions and remove them from the presidency once sworn into office. SCOTUS simply does not have the power to do it.
(Left) Thomas Jefferson – the 3rd President of the United States, and (Right) John Adams – the 2nd President of the United States
But let's imagine for a second that SCOTUS did. Do you see the problem that would create? The SCOTUS would have had extraordinary leverage over Adams & Jefferson, knowing they could simply take up the case and remove them at any point. Both Founding Fathers would have been completely neutered and unable to challenge SCOTUS on any hot-button issue of the day—an untenable circumstance between two co-equal branches of government meant to be in conflict by design.
Trump election attorney Jenna Ellis concisely explained the process during an interview with Sebastian Gorka (starting at about 4:05 min). The interview took place during the last uproar over a supposed upcoming "hail mary" case. This was back when the likes of—disgraced Pulitzer Prize-winning Pee Tape Truther—Maggie Haberman pushed the fake news story that Trump believed SCOTUS intended to reinstate him as President in August 2021.
One of the popular theories batted around is that SCOTUS "took the case" (which, again, is false … SCOTUS has not "taken" the case) to hold over the heads of members of Congress during the current lame-duck session. That is precisely why SCOTUS does not have the power to remove members of Congress or any other sitting elected official. It would mean they were beholden to SCOTUS on any decision they make or risk losing their elected office by stepping out of line.
If SCOTUS did have that power, then we don't live in a constitutional, representative republic. We are governed by an all-powerful ruling counsel of five unelected government officials—with lifetime appointments—who are accountable to no one.
2018 North Carolina 9th Congressional District Election
One case often held up as an example of when courts removed a member of Congress is the 2018 North Carolina 9th congressional district election. There are several myths about this election contest that needs to be dispelled. First, the election was never overturned by any court. The decision was made by the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE)—a creation of the North Carolina state legislature and administered by the state's executive branch. So the judiciary is not involved in any manner. Second, Mark Harris (R)—initially declared the winner but whose victory was later overturned—never had his election certified and was never seated in Congress. Had Harris been certified or seated, any effort to overturn the election result and remove him would have fallen to the U.S. House of Representatives. The courts did not have the final say in the outcome.
"Fraud Vitiates Everything"
Another phrase that gets thrown around a lot—and cited explicitly in the Brunson petition—is "fraud vitiates [makes void] everything into which it enters." This is a legal doctrine established in U.S. contract law. It was first established in the case of United States v. Throckmorton and later expounded on in cases like Veterans Service Club v. Sweeney and Radioshack Corp. v. ComSmart. These cases set legal precedents that any contract entered into by fraudulent means invalidates the entire arrangement, and everything goes back to the beginning.
Screenshot from the Brunson v. Alma S. Adams; et al. petition for writ of certiorari pending before SCOTUS
While this type of legalese might sound pretty convincing to an untrained ear, legal precedents in contract law do not trump constitutional powers. Suppose someone is telling you the legal opinions in U.S. v. Throckmorton. In that case, VSC v. Sweeney or Radioshack v. ComSmart supersede a plain reading of processes spelled out in the first three articles of the U.S. Constitution; they're kidding themselves … or they've got something to sell you.
Texas v. Pennsylvania
This is not to say The Founders intended the judicial branch to have no role in the election contest process. It is spelled out right in the Constitution—Article III Section 2 Clause 2. If SCOTUS intended to intervene in the 2020 election ahead of the Electoral College Count and Congressional Certification, they had their chance.
Anytime a state sues another state, SCOTUS has Original Jurisdiction over the case. This means they are literally the only court in the land than can hear the case. The overall theory behind the doctrine is any case brought in a district or circuit containing one of the litigants would give that state a "home field advantage" and likely result in an unjust outcome.
This was also explicitly done with presidential elections in mind. As mentioned, thirteen independent states—with little trust in one another—entered into an arrangement to select a single chief executive with authority over all of them. Should one of those states choose electors in a manner that violated the terms of the Constitution, The Founders put in a mechanism whereby it could be challenged straight to the SCOTUS level ahead of the Electoral College Count. Thereby including the judicial branch and adding another layer for robust challenges.
Just such an election case was brought in 2020—Texas v. Pennsylvania. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton originally filed the lawsuit with the help of drafting by current Kari Lake lead election counsel Kurt Oslen. The suit was initially filed against four other states—Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, & Wisconsin—alleging election officials in those states had bypassed laws established by their respective state legislatures as required by the Electors Clause and certified electors unconstitutionally.
Nearly 20 states and state attorney generals joined with Texas in the lawsuit by filing amici briefs along with President Trump, over 100 members of Congress, and countless other federal & state officials—with 20 other states filing amici briefs on the side of the four defendant states (over 40 states total in the suit). Given that no other court could hear the case—and there was nowhere else to appeal—SCOTUS had the authority and the constitutional obligation to give the lawsuit an evidentiary hearing as intended by the framers.
Despite this, SCOTUS denied the petition for a writ of certiorari by a 6-3 vote for "lack of standing." A legal doctrine that didn't even exist in the first 150 years of American case law and was never contemplated by The Founders in the Constitution, Constitutional Convention, Federalist Papers, or anywhere else. In our opinion, it represents one of the worst acts (or inactions) in the history of the Supreme Court.
"In my view, we do not have discretion to deny the filing of a bill of complaint in a case that falls within our original jurisdiction."
~ Dissenting Statement by Justice Samuel Alito with Justice Clarence Thomas joining
If anything, the court has since shifted left with Biden's appointment of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to replace Justice Stephen Breyer. So to believe SCOTUS is going to step in with no constitutional authority—when they refused then—where they had the absolute obligation to do so to provide a remedy for the 2020 election makes no sense. It's a pipe dream.
There is No Magic Bullet
As we stated in the beginning, our purpose for writing this column isn't to dampen your spirits, rob you of hope, or "black pill" you. And it's certainly not to enrich ourselves or to add to a following. As Beanz commented in her Telegram voice memo thread:
"I know there's a lot of people going bonkers crazy over this thing. And they get very mad at you when you point out these deficiencies, but they exist… Don't kill the messenger just because I'm pointing this stuff out. I'm blown away about how angry people get. It's going to be disappointing. And I don't know whether people are willfully misinforming you, or misinforming you because they're just as hopeful as everyone else and don't understand the background."
If that were our goal, trust us, we would run with this story as many other—normally reliable—news sources have. The volume of emails, texts, messages, and posts asking us to cover this case in detail has been unreal. And the reaction to everything that isn't utter praise for the lawsuit has been nothing less than vicious. But UncoverDC's motto is "Actual Journalism," and the truth is the truth.
This story is "clickbait" gold and has caught fire on social media and among the America First base like few other stories we've seen, but it seems to be falling into a pattern we've kept seeing over the last few years. There's always a "plan" or a "miracle case" for which we all keep waiting. Some magic bullet or savior that will come in and save us all without us having to do much ourselves.
There is no magic bullet. Nobody is coming to save us. We got into the position as a country we're in today, frankly, out of complacency—and it happened over a long period of time. We were given warnings from history, and we ignored them or assumed "somebody else is keeping an eye on that."
We've talked a lot about the Constitution in this column. The Founders warned us what would happen if we allowed the government to get too powerful and our liberties to erode. If the separation of powers began to fade, or control to be concentrated in the hands of just a few—tyranny.
There's only one road back, and that's for each America First patriot to work as hard and relentlessly to build back the Republic as those who have worked to try to tear it down. They didn't do it overnight. It's going to take time—a long time—with setbacks along the way. And once we're back—and make no mistake, we will get back—we will have to struggle relentlessly to ensure it never happens again. Because the forces who hate this country and want to see her destroyed aren't going anywhere.
And always remember, we are still that Shining City Upon A Hill. The greatest nation on Earth and the hope of all mankind.
It's time to go fight for her… peacefully and patriotically.
Adam Carter
Attorney General Ken Paxton
Brunson v. Alma S. Adams
Bush v. Gore
Devin Nunes
Electoral College Count
Emoluments Clause
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson
Justice Samuel Alito
Justice Stephen Breyer
Kurt Olsen
Maggie Haberman
North Carolina State Board of Elections
Radioshack v. ComSmart
Robert Barnes
Robert Bork
The Founding Fathers
U.S. v. Throckmorton
Veterans Service Club v. Sweeney
VSC v. Sweeney


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It's not quite Woodstock, but it will definitely have better liquor. Irvin~House Vineyards presents the Winestock Music Festival on Saturday, May 11th from 12 pm until 6 pm.
There will be live music, wine and Firefly tastings, food, a "Best Hippie" costume contest and more. Admission is $5 per adult, children are free.


Visit the spectacular Uyuni salt flats!
Visit the Red Lagoon – an otherworldly blood-red lake!
Discover the enchanting Uyuni Salt Flats on this magical 5-day group adventure. Starting and ending in La Paz, this trip shows you the very best of Bolivia's otherworldly landscapes, from the blinding white salt pans of Uyuni, to the twisting rock formations of Siloli desert and the blood red waters of Red Lagoon. Prepare for some serious exploration as you venture into these beautifully desolate areas, and round off your adventure with a relaxing dip in some natural hot springs!
Meet at your accommodation in La Paz. Tonight, you'll be picked up and taken to the bus station, where you'll take an overnight bus to Uyuni. Sit back and enjoy the ride! Please note that you will not be accompanied by a guide on the overnight bus, you will be provided with all of the information and tickets you need to make the journey.
Arrive in Uyuni and meet the rest of your group at the meeting point. We'll then head to Uyuni's 'train graveyard', home to the first locomotives that ever ran in Bolivia. Next up, a visit to a local salt factory in the village of Colchani, which processes the salt that is mined from Uyuni. This afternoon, we make our way to the salt flats themselves. Marvel at these incredible white flats, and visit a hotel made completely out of salt! We'll then hike to the top of Incahuasi island to see giant cacti and interesting rock formations, before spending the night in a salt hotel in Candeleria. What a day! Please note during the monsoon/rainy season, locations and activities may be subject to change.
Visit the Dali pampas (desert boulders that inspired Salvador Dali) and the Green Lagoon before arriving back in Uyuni. Head back to the bus station and board an overnight bus to La Paz. Please note that you will not be accompanied by a guide on the overnight back to La Paz.
Arrive in La Paz at 8am. Your incredible Uyuni adventure has come to an end!
Please note: In the rainy season between January and April the Salt Flats fill up with water. During this time, you may follow a slightly different route.
4 nights of accommodation are included on this trip. 2 nights will be spent on overnight buses between La Paz and Uyuni. One night will be spent in a salt hotel in the village of Atulcha. One night will be spent in basic dorm-style accommodation in Polques.
2 breakfasts, 3 lunches and 2 dinners are included. You will need to purchase the rest of your meals yourself. This is a great opportunity to immerse yourself in Bolivian culture by meeting local people and sampling local food.
Make your own way to your starting accommodation in La Paz on day 1 of the trip, we recommend arriving in the morning or early afternoon to give you time to explore La Paz and pick up some drinks and snacks for your evening journey. You will be picked up from here and taken to the bus station where you will catch an overnight bus to Uyuni. This bus journey is unguided.
Your trip ends on arrival in La Paz on day 5. The bus aims to arrive at around 8am, however this can be subject to delay. A return transfer from the bus station is not included but is easy to arrange.
Please note that this trip takes place at very high altitudes, the Salt Flats are at 5000 metres above sea level. We therefore recommend that you acclimatise yourself to over 3000 metres above sea level to minimise any effects of altitude sickness that you may feel during the trip. This trip goes above 2800 metres / 9200 feet where it is common for travellers to experience some adverse effects in their health due to the altitude. Please see further information on Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS), High Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE) and High Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE).
It is your responsibility to obtain the necessary visas for your time away. Please check the relevant embassies for up to date visa information and advice.
The salt flats are around 5,000 metres above sea level and it is likely you will feel the effects of this altitude. We recommend spending a few days in La Paz before the tour begins to acclimatise to a higher altitude (La Paz is about 3000m above sea level). Bring some tablets to deal with any headaches you may get and remember to drink plenty of water!
Sun glasses (to protect your eyes from the glare of the salt flats), sun cream, warm clothes for the evenings, swimming trunks and a towel for the hot springs, bottles of water.
A sleeping bag is not included. You can either bring your own, or hire one once you're out there for approx. USD10.