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A Jewish doctor realized the toll COVID-19 is taking on frontline workers after treating a patient marked with Nazi tattoos
Haven Orecchio-Egresitz
Healthcare professionals tend to a COVID-19 patient at St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton, California, on July 10, 2020.
Jae C. Hong/AP Photo
A California doctor questioned why his compassion for patients was waning after hesitating when faced with a seriously ill man covered in Nazi tattoos.
The experience stuck with him, and he realized that the pandemic, hoax rhetoric, and insensitivity is taking its toll on healthcare workers.
Dr. Taylor Nichols talked to Insider about what those on the front lines can do to check in on their own mental health and continue to provide the best care they can.
Dr. Taylor Nichols joined the emergency department staff at Mercy San Juan Medical Center in March, at the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in the US.
Nine months into the tiresome pandemic, the weight of all — the lost lives, the conspiracy theories, the lack of compassion for each other — is taking its toll on healthcare workers in more ways than one, he told Insider.
When Nichols was faced with another seriously ill COVID-19 patient at the Sacramento, California, hospital last month, staff helped change the man into a hospital gown, preparing him to be intubated.
The team noticed several Nazi tattoos on the man's body, and they caused Nichols to pause in his tracks.
The patient begged the team — comprised of Jewish, Black, and Asian healthcare workers — not to let him die.
"I see the SS tattoo and think about what he might think about having Jewish physician taking care of him now, or how much he would have cared about my life if the roles were reversed," Nichols wrote in a Twitter thread about his experience.
—Taylor Nichols, MD (@tnicholsmd) November 30, 2020
This wasn't the first time that Nichols had had to treat a patient with Nazi tattoos, nor was it the first time he was faced with someone so seriously ill, but it was the first time he hesitated, the doctor told Insider this week.
In the past, when faced with a patient who might have been hateful, he was able to hold himself together.
"They came here needing a doctor, and dammit Taylor, you're a doctor," he said he'd tell himself in similar situations.
But this experience was different. It was harder to look past the messages of hate permanently seared on the body of a patient he was trying to keep alive.
Dr. Taylor Nichols talked to Insider about working in an emergency room during a pandemic.
Provided by Taylor Nichols
'You felt like people just didn't care as much about us'
The encounter stuck with him for weeks. He thought about the man, and questioned whether his own empathy toward his patients was wearing thin.
"I sort of laid awake in the morning unable to sleep, and I was thinking a bit about what had happened," Taylor told Insider. "I had this thought, that this pandemic has really worn on me. This moment with this patient struck me so deeply because it was a real representation of sort of what it felt like to be on the front lines at that moment, where you felt like people just didn't care as much about us."
It's not just dealing with a wave of patients that's making life difficult for healthcare workers, as their job is always hard and in the emergency department it's always busy.
This pandemic, though, has changed the demeanor of how people are interacting with each other, Taylor said.
Some patients think COVID-19 is a hoax. Some aren't treating others with the same compassion that healthcare workers fight each day to show those in their care.
When Nichols realized that it was the culmination of all those feelings that made it difficult to carry on that day last month, he took to Twitter to share his thoughts.
He didn't know the thread would go viral, but hoped that sharing his story might prompt people to take a pause and be more considerate to those around them.
"To reach into their compassion and consider their fellow neighbors and the frontline workers who are working hard to save lives," he said.
Healthcare workers have to carry on fighting a deadly virus that some don't believe is real
Nichols said he feels lucky to live and work in a diverse community where, for the most part, people are taking the virus seriously, wearing masks, and being conscious not to spread COVID-19.
There are, though, conversations "in the public sphere" in which people deny that that the coronavirus is a threat and refuse to abide by safety measures.
That kind of disinformation is dangerous, and it's weighing on the mental health of those on the front lines, he said.
At least 19,447 people in California have died from the coronavirus, according to Johns Hopkins University.
"Having people, you know, really not listening, not taking precautions, not caring beyond wherever their own sort of disinformation has guided them: It's really hard to hear, knowing that we're doing our best," Nichols said. "We're really seeing the effect of this. To have people denying it is really disheartening and makes it just a little bit harder to do what we do, makes us all just a little bit more stressed or broken."
A healthcare worker gives another a shoulder rub before they go back into the the Covid-19 Unit at United Memorial Medical Center in Houston, Texas, July 2, 2020.
MARK FELIX/AFP via Getty Images
Nichols said healthcare workers are left trying to dig deep to continue to provide that same compassionate care all the time.
During normal times, hospital workers have outlets outside of work that they lean on to stay healthy. During the pandemic, though, they have been mostly limited to work and home, he said.
Nichols said people on the front lines need to make sure they monitor the signs of when they might need a break or help, no matter how that manifests.
Being able to share his experiences with people at work and online has been helpful to Nichols. So has being able to ask for time away.
"I think it's really important for folks who are on the front lines, who are stressed by this, and are feeling that maybe their well of compassion is running a little bit low, to lean on their colleagues and work family," he said. "That has been so important to me, to be able to ask to take some time off, or ask people to cover for you."
Now, it's even more important to lean on loved ones and their "work family" when times get tough, he said.
"As physicians, as healthcare workers, we don't like to talk about what we see, or how we feel, or how we feel about what we see. And in more normal times, it's easier to go through your day to day without the stress, without feeling the need to put that out there," Nichols said. "In other times, when we're not affected by a pandemic, we don't need people to sort of hear us and consider us the way we do now."
Do you have a personal experience with the coronavirus you'd like to share? Or a tip on how your town or community is handling the pandemic? Please email covidtips@businessinsider.com and tell us your story.
More: coronavirus Doctor Healthcare frontlines
original reporting
As Told To


Since the election, there's been no shortage of actions to take part in and you may even be a little exhausted from all the protests.
At Progressive Maryland, we've been exploring ways to not only resist, but to break through the partisan silos that often divide everyday working people. We've spent the summer talking to residents across the state and are finding people are concerned about many of the same things.
That's why we're holding a weekend of action with a goal of having 100 volunteer canvassers talking to residents in every region of the state.
We're organizing a mass Weekend of Action starting Friday, August 4 through Sunday, August 6th to connect residents across the states with fellow community members through deep canvassing. This is a unique approach that is about listening to residents about their concerns and values that is proven to improve voter turnout and change political opinion.
By building relationships through real conversations with people we may not think we agree with, we can transform the resistance to something even bigger and bolder than before. The powers that be want us to remain divided over petty differences. To build real grassroots power that advances progressive values, we must overcome these divides.
Click the link above to RSVP and one of our regional organizers will follow-up with additional information about canvasses in your area. And see below in individual chapter entries for your local opportunities in this statewide push.
Thank you to everyone who was able to come to the Rally for Healthcare in Annapolis on Saturday! The rain didn't dare mess with us! Members of the Lower Shore Progressive Caucus grabbed some great photos, and we posted a few on Twitter, as well! We also had a ton of people sign Medicare's 52nd birthday card! Special thanks to Eve and Randi with March on Maryland, and Claire with Take Action AAC and many, many more volunteers, activists and speakers who made Saturday possible! The entire video of speakers is available to view on the Arundel Patriot's Facebook page!
Our speakers included Senator Ben Cardin, Prince George's County Exec Rushern Baker, Jackie Black, Vinny DeMarco, Eve Hurwitz, Delegate Joseline Peña-Melnyk, Dr. Danna Tauber, Mike Taylor, RN, Thereasa Black, Chrissy Holt, Ben Jealous, Beth Landry, RN, Alec Ross, Senator Rich Madaleno, and Michele Gregory! If you know them, let them know how amazing they all are and how wonderful it was for them to share their stories and expertise.
Please RSVP for this call - the dial-in information can be obtained through the RSVP page.
Listening Tour - JOIN US! In towns and neighborhoods across the county, we hold conversations with voters about the issues of the day and the world we're fighting to build. We train volunteers to knock on the doors of neighbors and transform their communities into a force at the polls. We ask candidates tough questions and secure policy commitments. If you are interested in being a part of this movement of transformational listening tour, please reach out to Amanya Paige our amazing student intern@amanyapaige@gmail.com.
*Friday, August 4 - District, time & location - COMING SOON!
*Sunday - District, time & location - COMING SOON!
*Be on the lookout for an email from Progressive Maryland. If you do not receive emails from Progressive Maryland, please send an email to smith.charlesajr@gmail.com to be added to our listserv.
Opposition to a Bladensburg Concrete Batching Plant – Special Exception- 4792 – support the Port Towns and Progressive Cheverly in their opposition to this potential danger to public health and the environment.
Please attend the Zoning Hearing Examiner's hearing to hear the case and support the Port Towns on Wednesday, August 2, 9 a.m. in the County Administration Building, 2nd floor.
You may have heard that a bill to raise the Montgomery County minimum wage to $15/hr was reintroduced yesterday. This is good news following the County Executive's veto earlier this year.
Concerned -- and organized -- residents in Prince George's County towns on or near the Anacostia River are questioning the value of a proposed concrete batching plant, citing likely danger to air, water and public health in the revitalizing Port Towns area. Attend the Zoning Examiner's Hearing Aug. 2 at 9 a.m. in the CAB, Upper Marlboro.
Official statement: MOTION TO PROCEED ON HEALTHCARE DEBATE NARROWLY PASSES IN SENATE .. Statement of Beth Landry, Healthcare Organizer for Progressive Maryland, on this afternoon's Senate vote passing a motion to proceed on healthcare debate.


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Who Was Asperger?
Dr. Hans Asperger was a striver who defined "autistic psychopathy" in terms the Nazis found useful, according to an April 1 op-ed in the NY Times by Edith Sheffer.
The official diagnosis of Asperger disorder has recently been dropped from the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders because clinicians largely agreed it wasn't a separate condition from autism. But Asperger syndrome is still included in the World Health Organization's International Classification of Diseases, which is used around the globe.
Moreover, the name remains in common usage. It is an archetype in popular culture, a term we apply to loved ones and identity many people with autism adopt for themselves. Most of us never think about the man behind the name. But we should.
Asperger was long seen as a resister of the Third Reich, yet his work was, in fact, inextricably linked with the rise of Nazism and its deadly programs.
He first encountered Nazi child psychiatry when he traveled from Vienna to Germany in 1934, at age 28. His senior colleagues there were developing diagnoses of social shortcomings for children who they said lacked connection to the community, uneager to join in collective Reich activities such as the Hitler Youth.
Asperger at first warned against classifying children, writing in 1937 that "it is impossible to establish a rigid set of criteria for a diagnosis." But right after the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938 — and the purge of his Jewish and liberal associates from the University of Vienna — Asperger introduced his own diagnosis of social detachment: "autistic psychopathy."
As Asperger sought promotion to associate professor, his writings about the diagnosis grew harsher. He stressed the "cruelty" and "sadistic traits" of the children he studied, itemizing their "autistic acts of malice." He also called autistic psychopaths "intelligent automata."
Some laud Asperger's language about the "special abilities" of children on the "most favorable" end of his autistic "range," speculating that he applied his diagnosis to protect them from Nazi eugenics — a kind of psychiatric Schindler's list. But this was in keeping with the selective benevolence of Nazi psychiatry; Asperger also warned that "less favorable cases" would "roam the streets" as adults, "grotesque and dilapidated."
Words such as these could be a death sentence in the Third Reich. And in fact, dozens of children whom Asperger evaluated were killed.
Child "euthanasia" was the Reich's first program of mass extermination, begun by Hitler in July 1939 to get rid of children regarded as a drain on the state and a danger to its gene pool. Most of the victims were physically healthy, neither suffering nor terminally ill. They were simply deemed to have physical, mental or behavioral defects.
At least 5,000 children perished in around 37 "special wards." Am Spiegelgrund, in Vienna, was one of the deadliest. Killings were done in the youths' own beds, as nurses issued overdoses of sedatives until the children grew ill and died, usually of pneumonia.
Asperger worked closely with the top figures in Vienna's euthanasia program, including Erwin Jekelius, the director of Am Spiegelgrund, who was engaged to Hitler's sister. My archival research, along with that of other scholars of euthanasia like Herwig Czech, the author of a forthcoming paper on this subject in the journal Molecular Autism, show that Asperger recommended the transfer of children to Spiegelgrund. Dozens of them were killed there.
One of his patients, 5-year-old Elisabeth Schreiber, could speak only one word, "mama." A nurse reported that she was "very affectionate" and, "if treated strictly, cries and hugs the nurse." Elisabeth was killed, and her brain kept in a collection of over 400 children's brains for research in Spiegelgrund's cellar.
In the postwar period, Asperger distanced himself from his Nazi-era work on autistic psychopathy. He turned to religious themes and social commentary about child rearing. He would probably have been a footnote in the history of autism research had it not been for Lorna Wing, a British psychiatrist who tracked down Asperger's 1944 article on autistic psychopathy.
She thought it lent important context to the narrower definition of autism then in use, and by the early '80s, "Asperger syndrome," and the idea of a broader autism "spectrum," had entered the medical lexicon.
In 1994, Asperger disorder was added to the American manual of mental disorders, where it remained until it was reclassified in 2013 as autism spectrum disorder. Yet Asperger syndrome is still an official diagnosis in most countries. And it is ubiquitous in popular culture, where "Aspergery" is too often invoked to describe general social awkwardness, a stereotype for classmates and co-workers that overshadows their individuality.
Does the man behind the name matter? To medical ethics, it does. Naming a disorder after someone is meant to credit and commend, and Asperger merited neither. His definition of "autistic psychopaths" is antithetical to understandings of autism today, and he sent dozens of children to their deaths.
Other conditions named after Nazi-era doctors who were involved in programs of extermination (like Reiter syndrome) now go by alternative labels (reactive arthritis). And medicine in general is moving toward more descriptive labels. Besides, the American Psychiatric Association has ruled that Asperger isn't even a useful descriptor.
We should stop saying "Asperger." It's one way to honor the children killed in his name as well as those still labeled with it.
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A crisis can broadly be characterized as an incident that consists elements of surprise, danger, and uncertainty which can affect communities, corporations, and even nations. McLean (Clock is ticking on Malaysia Airlines in crisis management) states three 'crisis realities' that organizations may crumble under if unprepared – the lack of information, time and the right resources. The dearth of these three realities can create a 'crisis smog' – blinding organizations with the pressure to deliver an informative response.
When a crisis occurs, people are hungry for information and need someone to communicate accurate information to them (Carmichael, Putting the Right Information on Twitter in a Crisis). Marra (cited in Pang, Dealing with external stakeholders during the crisis: Managing the information vacuum) emphasizes on media's demand for 'immediate information and answers during a crisis'. Coombs acknowledges this hunger for information and media's continuous search for crisis details, while the stakeholders, people directly and indirectly affected by the crisis, start to consider media as a primary source of information. This, ultimately, turns into a vicious cycle.
Although credible information timely communicated by an authoritative source can reduce public outrage and help people come to terms with the crisis, a gap between the occurrence of the crisis and the response can create an 'information vacuum'.
To avoid inaccurate and rudimentary information in the 'vacuum', scholars have called for attention to fill the space with useful information. Citing a practitioner who states that misinformation becomes news in the absence of information, Marra explicitly expresses the necessity to fill the vacuum.
Crisis Management on Social Media
To fill the information vacuum and communicate with key stakeholders at a time of crisis, new media presents itself as alternative route to manage crisis damage. In this day and age, social media plays an undeniably significant role in crisis management.
First, due to the high speed at which news travels on social media as compared to other channels, organizations, regardless of their size, need to constantly monitor and track their online presence (Pownall, How social media impacts crisis communications). Because social media creates a kind of 'urgency', it is wise for organizations to respond as quick as possible to a crisis. Additionally, social media is a convenient channel for people from anywhere in the world to share their perspective on. Keeping this in mind, Kauffman how mainstream media finds it easier to pick up information from this source even if it may not be as 'well-informed'.
Second, transparency is paramount in the digital age which is a reason enough for organizations to be open and responsive, especially during a crisis (Klein, Transparency: Social Media Is Forcing You to Tell the Truth). In other words, when a crisis first breaks out and the facts are unclear, social media plays an intrinsic role in a crisis management strategy.
Social media channels' immediacy creates both opportunities and challenges for communication professionals.
As described by Pownall, a reputation & communications adviser, social media has several advantages including but not limited to: a source of insight for organizations to identify how various stakeholder groups think and feel, thus, making it easier to maintain a direct relationship with them; a platform where crisis strategy can be tested real-time; a platform where various media formats can be used to communicate facts and express emotions. Directly or indirectly, these plus points present themselves as opportunities to professionals who are a part of the crisis management team in organizations. While immediacy created by social media channels provides numerous opportunities, it presents challenges as well. Pownall mentions how organizations are expected to respond almost immediately to a crisis while at the same time they are expected to be thoroughly consistent with their messages across channels; it is a necessity to monitor incoming comments and feedback with an innate understanding of how to respond (or not respond) to them; communication professionals who do not understand the dynamics of social media could turn out to be a risky hire as they can easily make poor decisions at a time of crisis.
According to a recent Nielsen report, there is an overall increase in the time spent on social media among consumers. Adding to this, today anyone with a device connected to the internet can publish – anytime, anywhere (Alejandro, Journalism in the age of social media). Therefore, when the information vacuum is not timely filled with credible information it often leads to huge pitfalls as social media is notorious for giving birth to hearsays and hoaxes. For instance, in March 2016, a fake website copied the design of the New York Times and published an article stating that Elizabeth Warren endorsed Bernie Sanders for president. This hoax was shared by a staggering 700,000 people to the point where The Times had to clarify that they had nothing to do with the fraudulent article (Garcia & Lear, 5 stunning fake news stories that reached millions). An instance that highlights the influential nature of social media channels is when Facebook and Twitter users broke the news of Michael Jackson's death before any major news network did. This news was consumed so widely over social media that some websites even crashed due to the heavy traffic flow. This further proves Alejandro's point that 'in the social media sphere, news is word of mouth on steroids.' In another instance, Twitter co-founder, Evan Williams apologized for social media site's role in getting Donald Trump elected as the President of the United States (Schladebeck, Twitter co-founder apologizes for site's role in Trump presidency).
Evidently, social media plays a vital role across industries and because of its prominent nature, organizations need to identify best practices in their own industry and master the art of crisis management. Eventually, this will help them maintain authoritativeness and long-term meaningful relationship with their stakeholders.
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The Northville Art House presents PATTERNS + SYMBOLS
October 5, 2018 @ 8:00 am - October 27, 2018 @ 5:00 pm
« Matt Maddock, candidate for Michigan State House from District 44, will host Dog the Bounty Hunter
Oktoberfest – Bethlehem United Church of Christ »
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Northville Art House Presents PATTERNS + SYMBOLS: The Art of Hiroko Lancour
The Northville Art House presents PATTERNS + SYMBOLS featuring hand-dyed fabrics, ink drawings, acrylic paintings and paper weavings by Japanese native Hiroko Lancour. Often methodical and process-oriented, Lancour shares a body of mixed media work with repetitive motifs and underlying symbolism. Visitors have the opportunity to learn more about the artist and her work through a unique interactive drawing where chance dictates the outcome.
Born and raised in Japan, Hiroko Lancour received her MFA from Wayne State University. She is a mixed-media artist with cross-cultural aesthetics between East and West. Her early education and career in information technology has added to her artistic expressions. She frequently employs the use of pattern, repetition, geometry and structural organization. Discovering underlying meanings in repetitive patterns and procedures has become one of her focal points.
Lancour expounds on her artistic process, "Repetition captivates me…I use it to get into the zone, a so-called flow, which is conducive to focusing on the task at hand. I often find myself in a flow while working on labor-intensive, manual repetitive procedures."
PATTERNS + SYMBOLS opens with a free public reception on Friday, October 5 from 6 – 9 p.m. The exhibition runs through October 27 during Art House hours, Tuesday-Friday 12-5 p.m. and Saturday 12-4 p.m. The Northville Art House is located at 215 W. Cady in Northville, MI and online at www.northvillearthouse.org.
This entry was posted on September 18, 2018 by 19445731.


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Recent Releases Tuesday: Albums by Meng Su, Raphaella Smits, Michaela Hrabankova & Gabriel Bianco, and Mark Westling
Meng Su
Here's our bi-weekly listing of some of the CDs that have come into the Classical Guitar office recently.
If you have a CD you'd like to submit to us, here's our address:
501 Canal Blvd. suite J
Richmond, CA 94804-3505
Some of these will be reviewed in the magazine, some not. But we want to at least mention them here. You can listen to some of these on various of streaming services, but we always encourage you to support the artists by actually buying anything you like!
To see our previous listings, scroll to the bottom of the page.
Tonar Music
This outstanding solo outing from one-half of the renowned Beijing Guitar Duo covers a broad spectrum, with a pair of moody pieces by film composer John Williams (Avner's Theme, from 'Munich' opens the CD; closing it is a work Williams wrote for the Parkening Guitar Competition); Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco's splendid, five-part Sonata "Omaggio a Boccherini"; a sparkling and evocative rendering of Bach's popular Lute Suite No. 4; a pair of short Tárrega pieces; and in a more modern vein, William Walton's intriguing Five Bagatelles. The playing by this still-rising star is faultless throughout.
Avner's Theme, from 'Munich' (Williams); Sonata 'Omaggio a Boccherini," Op. 77 (Castelnuovo-Tedesco); Gran Vals (Tárrega); Rosita (Tárrega); Lute Suite No. 4 in E Major, BWV 1006a (Bach); Five Bagatelles (Walton); Rounds (Williams)
Listen to samples and/or purchase CDs or MP3s through Tonar Music, CDBaby, or Amazon.
Guitar Recital
When I finally saw Raphaella Smits perform at GFA last summer, her skill and passion were very much on display throughout her program, so I should not be surprised that this latest recorded offering is also a rich and deeply felt "recital." Just three composers are represented: Manuel Maria Ponce (four of the five movements of his gorgeous homage to Weiss, written for Segovia, with its deep, affecting "Sarabande" and spry, memorable "Gigue"); Barrios (two preludes and the beautifully wistful Leyenda Guarani); and Mompou (his tonally variegated 1962 Suite Compostelana, which seems to be quite popular among players these days). Everything about this project is completely top-notch; the recording of the late luthier John Gilbert's 1980 8-string guitar is spectacular!
Suite en la meno: Homage to S.L. Weiss (Ponce); Preludio en la menor, Preludio en do menor, Leyenda Guarani (all by Barrios); Suite Compostelana (Mompou)
Purchase through Soundset; U.S distribution coming soon. All tracks can be heard on YouTube.
Here's a recent video of Smits playing Barrios' Leyenda Guarani:
Gabriel Bianco (guitar), Michaela Hrabankova (oboe)
French guitarist Bianco and Czech oboist Hrabankova make a wonderful match on this enthralling disc culled from the admittedly small repertoire written for their two instruments. (Actually one piece here, Napoléon Coste's Le Depart, is just solo guitar, deftly handled.) Coste (1805–1883) is the only 19th century composer among the four of the disc, but the other three, whose pieces all date from the 1940s, appear to owe more to Romantic, Classical, and even Baroque antecedents—not to mention some folk sources—than to composers of the modern era. Still, there are nods to modernity (particularly in Barna Kováts' Sonatine pour hautbois et guitare), but nothing jarring; clearly the goal of this was to delight and enchant, and it succeeds at both.
Sonatine pour hautbois et guitar (Pilss); Le Départ (Coste); Deuxième Sonate pour hautbois et guitar (Rebay); Le Montagnard (Coste); Sonatine pour hautbois et guitar (Kováts)
This April 2017 release can be pre-ordered through Ad Vitam; and should be be available for download from a few different sources once it is formally released, so check back at the Ad Vitam site. Here's a YouTube audio version of the first movement of Karl Pilss' Sonatine pour hautbois et guitar, recorded a year before the CD.
Below, the duo performs the "Rondeau" from Coste's Le Montagnard at Festival Oboe 2017 at Paris' Eglise Sainte Elisabeth de Hongrie on February 25, 2017:
Mark Westling
markwestlingphotography.com
Here's an inspiring story: Mark Westling was what he calls "a devoted amateur guitarist" for 30 years beginning in 1972, inspired by recordings of Segovia, Williams, Bream, Ghiglia, and Parkening, among others. In 2002, his car was rammed from behind by a speeding car, it rolled over four or five times, and he suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and 38 fractures from the waist up, including five neck vertebrae. "Some 28 years of classical guitar technique were wiped out by those five seconds on the freeway," he says, and he's been on permanent disability ever since. "I couldn't touch an instrument for a couple of years, much less play anything." This CD "is the result of 14 years of hard work, rehabilitation, and therapy." The album consists of nine short pieces from different periods; as he puts it, "though these are 'small works' in comparison to many virtuoso pieces in the guitar's beautiful repertoire, I gave them all the care, love, and attention I could muster." Playing a 1973 José Ramirez Brazilian rosewood guitar, Westling keeps it simple and straightforward on this mostly balladic program. My own favorites are the two Tárrega studies and the two concluding contemporary pieces by David Brandon and Gregory Coleman, which fit neatly with the better-known pieces that precede them.
Italian Renaissance: Preludio, Canzone (both anonymous); Two English Ballads: Scarborough Fair (anonymous), Yesterday (McCartney); Spanish Romantic: Estudio in C Major, Estudio No. 2 in E minor (both by Tárrega), Romanza (anonymous); 20th Century Works: French Lullaby (Brandon), Marie's Dance (Coleman)
To preview and purchase go to CDBaby, iTunes, or Amazon.
Previous New CD Listings:
October 4: Jacob Cordover, Oleg Timofeyev and John Schneiderman, Arkaïtz Chambonnet, Matthew Fish, Gidi Ifergan
October 18: Norbert Kraft and Jeffrey McFadden, Steve Cowan, Katrin Endrikat, Jason Vieaux and Julien Labro, Yenne Lee, Emanuele Segre
November 1: Virginia Luque and Bojidara Kouzmanova, Jon Gjylaci, Fabiano Borges, Alfonso Baschiera, Miscelanea Guitar Quartet, J.P. McShane
November 15: Antigoni Goni, Adam Levin, Radoŝ Malidžan, Black Cedar, Lou Marinoff, Antonio Malinconico
November 22: Marcelo de la Puebla, ChromaDuo, Carsten Pedersen, Thibaut Garcia, Yiannis Giagourtas
December 13: Zsófia Boros, Andrea Bissoli, Philippe Sly & John Charles Britton, Carlos Dorado, Steven Joseph
December 27: João Carlos Victor, Frank Wallace, Simon Thacker & Justyna Jablonska
January 10: Alberto La Rocca, Jeffrey McFadden & Michael Kolk, Stefan Koim
January 24: Fabio Zanon, Marcelo Kayath, David Norton & Cindy Spell, Jeff Gosselin
February 7: Canadian Guitar Quartet, Mats Bergström, John Sargent, Dimitris Kotronakis
February 21: James Akers & Gary Branch, Karol Samuelčík, Josef Mazan, John Lehman-Haupt


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21.9.2005: Meldung: Steelcase Inc.: Sales and Earnings Growth in Second Quarter
Steelcase Delivers Sales and Earnings Growth in Second Quarter
Monday September 19, 7:39 am ET
- Net Income Increases More Than 80 Percent Over Prior Year -
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Sept. 19 -- Steelcase Inc. today reported revenue totaling $702.9 million for its second quarter of fiscal 2006. Revenue increased 8.0 percent compared to $651.0 million in the prior year quarter. Second quarter revenue was lower than expected because a higher than expected percentage of incoming orders for North America are scheduled for shipment in the third quarter.
As compared to the prior year, second quarter revenue includes $11.0 million of service revenue and $3.8 million of revenue from acquisitions, partially offset by a $(6.0) million reserve for contract-related contingencies. These items had the net effect of increasing revenue by 1.4 percent compared to the prior year.
Steelcase reported net income of $13.8 million, or $0.09 per share for the second quarter of fiscal 2006, consistent with company estimates of $0.08 to $0.13 per share. This compares to net income of $7.3 million, or $0.05 per share in the same quarter of the prior year.
Included in second quarter results were net restructuring charges totaling $(6.1) million after-tax primarily related to facility rationalization in the company"s North America and International segments. Net restructuring charges were $(1.4) million after-tax in the prior year quarter.
"Steelcase"s second quarter results capped a solid start to 2006 with significantly improved first half revenue and profits," said James P. Hackett, president and CEO. "Steelcase employees everywhere have contributed to these improvements by focusing on our mission to provide customers with a better work experience and by their continued commitment to world-class process excellence."
Cost of sales improved 1.3 percentage points to 68.5 percent in the second quarter. The results include favorable inventory and property tax adjustments, partially offset by higher workers compensation costs and accelerated depreciation on certain assets, which had the net effect of improving cost of sales by 0.5 percentage points. Compared to the prior year quarter, North America had better yield from earlier list price adjustments. The improvement in pricing was partially offset by the reserve for contract-related contingencies. Some of the benefits from prior restructuring actions were offset by disruption costs associated with ongoing facility consolidations.
Despite higher restructuring costs in the current quarter, gross profit of 30.4 percent in the second quarter improved from 30.0 percent in the same quarter last year. Excluding these charges, gross profit improved by 1.3 percentage points.
Reported operating income was $25.3 million, or 3.6 percent of revenue, and includes restructuring charges of $9.7 million pre-tax. Operating income without restructuring charges was $35.0 million, or 5.0 percent of revenue in the current quarter compared to 2.9 percent of revenue in the prior year.
Total cash and cash equivalents increased by $49.1 million to $287.1 million at the end of the second quarter. The company"s debt balance of $273.8 million remains largely unchanged as compared to the first quarter.
"Solid sales growth and continued operational improvements helped us increase both net income and earnings per share by more than 80 percent," said James P. Keane, chief financial officer. "Operating income excluding restructuring charges was 5 percent of sales. We are pleased with the progress we are making toward our longer-term operating income target of 10 percent."
Steelcase expects third quarter sales to be 8 to 12 percent higher than the prior year driven by a strong backlog going into the third quarter. Order rates strengthened in August and remained strong in early September.
The company expects to report earnings between $0.10 and $0.15 per share in the third quarter, including restructuring charges of $2 to $5 million after-tax. These estimates reflect increased discounts because of a higher mix of large project business in current backlog, and increased costs of disruption as the company begins to relocate certain production lines as part of the previously announced North America restructuring project. These estimates also consider higher fuel prices, which are expected to reduce operating income by more than $2 million in the third quarter. The company does not anticipate any material direct financial impact from Hurricane Katrina in the third quarter.
The company has reduced its estimate of full year restructuring charges to $16 to $21 million after-tax, including the amounts incurred in the first half of fiscal 2006 and those estimated above for the third quarter.
Last week, the company announced an annual product list price adjustment in the U.S. and Canada. This adjustment considered inflationary pressures and sustained higher commodity costs for steel and other raw materials. Because the adjustment took into account steel inflation, the company also announced it will discontinue the temporary steel surcharge instituted in April 2004. Both of these actions will be effective January 16, 2006.
Mr. Hackett concluded, "Our international business is building momentum as we enter the second half of the year and will help drive improved profits in the third quarter."
This earnings release contains certain non-GAAP financial measures. A "non-GAAP financial measure" is defined as a numerical measure of a company"s financial performance that excludes or includes amounts so as to be different than the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP in the statement of income, balance sheet or statement of cash flows of the company. Pursuant to the requirements of Regulation G, the company has provided a reconciliation above of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure.
The non-GAAP financial measures used within the company"s earnings release are: second quarter and six months year-to-date gross profit, excluding restructuring costs for the current and prior year in dollars and as a percentage of net sales; and, second quarter and six months year-to-date operating income, excluding restructuring costs for the current and prior year in dollars and as a percentage of sales. These measures are presented because management uses this information to monitor and evaluate financial results and trends. Therefore, management believes this information is also useful for investors.
About Steelcase Inc.
Steelcase, the global leader in the office furniture industry, helps people have a better work experience by providing products, services and insights into the ways people work. The company designs and manufactures architecture, furniture and technology products. Founded in 1912 and headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Steelcase (NYSE: SCS - News) serves customers through a network of more than 800 independent dealers and approximately 14,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2005 revenue was $2.6 billion. Learn more at http://www.steelcase.com.
Source: Steelcase Inc.
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text:
Accidents And Tragic Situations
Fort Worth insurance lawyers will see some pretty tragic situations where a person is ill treated by an insurance carrier. The Texas Tribune ran a story talking about tragic situations in July 2014. The title of the story is, "After Catastrophic Fall, The Fight Of One Worker's Life." Here is what it tells us.
Along a street lined with warehouses on the east side of Houston, nine Mexican laborers working about 20 feet off the ground are tearing up a concrete roof with hand-made pick axes.
They are chiseling it out, one mattress-sized panel at a time, then shoving the debris onto the floor below. There's a giant pile of rubble down there, a jumble of dirty insulation, tar-covered roof decking and fire-suppression water pipes ripped from the building's interior.
To call the work hazardous would be an understatement. The workers are standing on the very roof they are demolishing, and none of them is wearing so much as a hard hat, let alone fall protection equipment like harnesses and lanyards. Technically, federal authorities require that, but the chances of a surprise inspection — or any interference from a state government that brags about its light regulations — are about as likely as a cool breeze on this warm October day.
Santiago Arias is acutely aware of the risks. He knows accidents can happen. Just 11 months earlier he lost his left eye while working for the same contractor who is running this demolition site. And as temperatures soar toward 90 degrees, he is struggling to see through the sweat stinging his one good eye.
But the day's work is almost done, and with any luck Arias will be back in Mexico in a few months, hopefully with enough money to finish the convenience store he's building for his family.
Up on the roof, as each section is removed, the workers retreat from its receding edge, constantly moving backward toward the remaining panels.
Arias' nephew, Jorge Luis Torres, grabs the handle of the ax and swings it down a few feet in front of them. A section of roof breaks. Another panel is dislodged and lifted.
Like he's done countless times before, Arias reaches out with his hands to snatch the concrete decking. He starts to push it off the roof. But this time, he loses his balance. He tries to regain his footing, but the treads on his boots are worn, and he slips.
Torres grabs for his uncle's arm, but it all happens so quickly. Just like with the concrete, gravity pulls Arias, and he careens into the void.
With his one good eye, Arias glimpses a piece of metal rebar jutting out across the gaping hole. He frantically grabs the thin steel rod.
And for a horrifying moment, Torres sees his uncle, 20 feet off the ground, swinging like a pendulum from the rebar until he is horizontal — face to the sky, back to the rubble below.
Then he falls.
The story of Arias' plunge from an industrial warehouse roof on Oct. 18, 2006 is based on interviews with eyewitnesses and lawyers, court documents and Arias' own recollections.
An expert hired by Arias' lawyers in his negligence suit against the contractor described the work conditions on the job site where he fell as perhaps "the most hazardous" he'd seen in 40 years of engineering practice, according to trial testimony.
The contractor who hired Arias has denied any responsibility for accidents that happened on his job sites and said that workers on his sites were responsible for their personal safety equipment.
But safety experts and advocates for injured workers say the scenario Arias' case presents is hardly unique: An unskilled laborer, often without valid work papers, gets injured doing a dangerous and dirty job. The contractor may have a history of workplace accidents and working under various company names. There is no state-provided workers' compensation insurance or private equivalent because, unlike every other state, Texas doesn't require it. Taxpayers and charities end up paying for most of the worker's medical care. The worker and his or her family see their income and quality of life decimated.
But for the contractor, business continues as usual, and another eager laborer, often an undocumented immigrant, is standing in line to take the injured worker's place.
"You've just got an incredibly unhealthy subculture that nobody wants to talk about, that everybody wants to, you know, kind of pretend isn't happening. But it is happening," said Houston workplace safety consultant Tara Amavi, who was speaking broadly and not specifically about the Arias case. Amavi opined that "those kinds of employers are able to continue to operate, take advantage of undocumented workers, kill them, maim them, blind them and dump them, and then go down and pick up a few more on the next corner."
The precarious plight of workers who get injured or killed on the job goes unmentioned in the slick brochures and boosterish TV ads beckoning businesses to relocate and take part in the vaunted "Texas miracle."
While Texas has created more jobs than any other state over the last decade, it also leads the nation in the number of worker deaths, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. The problem is particularly acute in the Texas construction industry, where 60 percent of the workforce has never received basic safety training and one in five workers reports sustaining an injury that required medical attention, according to the report "Build A Better Texas," compiled last year by the Worker's Defense Project and researchers from the University of Texas at Austin. About 40 percent of employers in the construction business offer workers' compensation insurance, the report found.
Lawmakers have proposed making workers' compensation insurance mandatory in the construction industry, but in pro-business Texas that idea has been a nonstarter.
"We have always been concerned about singling out the construction industry," said Ned Muñoz, head of regulatory affairs for the Texas Association of Builders. After all, he said, construction is not the only hazardous business in Texas.
The federal government's Occupational Health and Safety Administration, OSHA, is the first line of defense for Texas construction workers, Muñoz added.
"They require that you have a safe workplace," he said. "It's not like we don't have anything."
In 2012, however, there was just one OSHA inspector for every 104,000 Texas workers, one of the lowest ratios in the nation.
And while OSHA does attempt to make workplaces safe on the front end, helping injured workers who don't have money or workplace insurance is not part of the agency's mission.
The absence of a social and financial safety net would become clear to Arias and his family soon enough. But for the first week after his accident, he lay unconscious in a bed at Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston. He wasn't aware yet that he had slipped through the cracks of the Texas miracle.
He didn't know how badly his body had been mangled. Or that he was about to run up an $841,000 medical bill. He didn't know that he was wearing a diaper and a catheter, or that he would never walk again.
Arias has no memory of the fall itself. One minute he was on a hot roof on Clinton Drive, getting ready to go home for the day. The next thing he remembers is waking up in a hospital bed with tubes sticking out of his body. He thought somebody was violently shaking him, but realized later that he was experiencing involuntary nerve spasms.
For weeks he couldn't talk. All he could do was lie there, listen and think. "I heard, 'Listen, you're a tetraplégico,'" he said — the Spanish word for paralysis of all four limbs. "You're not going to be able to move anything."
Panic and dread washed over him. "In that moment, when I realized the situation I was in, I thought about God," he said in Spanish. "I said, 'Well, God, look at me. You know what? Just take me. I don't want to be in this situation.'"
Arias grew up in southern Mexico, in the coastal state of Tabasco near the Guatemalan border. He helped his father sell fish, mangos and wild game in the streets of Frontera.
After his family moved to Mexico City, he met Remedios Ramirez, a neighbor, whom he married at age 21. They bought a house in 1987 in Iztapalapa, a large slum in Mexico City known for its theft rings, dangerous prisons and grinding poverty.
In 1999, at age 36, Arias was lured north by the prospect of better-paid work in the United States. He paid a smuggler $1,500 to ferry him across the Rio Grande from Matamoros to Brownsville. He made his way to Houston, where he bought a fake Social Security card and went to work with his brothers-in-law, Martin and Mario Ramirez, who had crossed into the U.S. before him. They helped find him a job making about $6 an hour constructing metal buildings.
Arias returned to Mexico City in 2004 after he lost a finger in a work-related auto accident and had trouble finding reliable work in the U.S.
He had saved up a little money, and began building a convenience store adjacent to his house in Iztapalapa. Arias hoped the project eventually would support his family and allow him to stay in Mexico.
But he ran out of money and decided to go back to Houston to work and save for the project.
In July of 2005, Arias again joined his wife's brothers in Houston. They were working for a contractor named Gary White, an Oregon native who quit school in the 10th grade to follow his father and grandfather into the construction business.
A review of court documents, interviews with workers and government records suggest that Arias and his brothers-in-law had stumbled into the kind of devil's bargain that unskilled laborers in low-wage jobs often encounter: They needed steady work and money. White needed cheap labor. Safety took a back seat.
When Arias began working for White, his first construction contracting company had already gone belly up. White was paying his workers as independent subcontractors through Degar Fuel Systems, Inc., which had built gas stations, according to records and interviews.
Arias and Torres, his nephew, describe their former jefe as a coffee-drinking chain-smoker with a temper, a man who liked his jobs done quickly.
"He wanted everything done quick, quick, quick," Torres said. "What he wanted was to get paid."
From his depositions, White comes off as a hard-charging businessman who has little use for lawyers and bureaucrats — the kind of job-creating entrepreneur politicians hail in stump speeches about the Texas miracle.
White, 55, was questioned about his background and business history in two depositions stemming from lawsuits involving serious workplace accidents that happened on his watch, including Arias' catastrophic fall.
In the sworn depositions, White repeatedly denied any responsibility for accidents that happened on his contracting jobs. He said he expected his workers — whom he paid as nonemployee subcontractors — to wear personal safety equipment, though he didn't consider it his responsibility to provide it.
In a brief telephone conversation with The Texas Tribune in April — the only interview he permitted — he said he bought thousands of dollars worth of safety equipment for his workers and had the canceled checks to prove it.
The statements White gave about the safety at his worksites in his depositions were very different from the recollections of several of his workers.
Regarding a job three years after Arias fell, White told lawyers in a deposition that workers "were not allowed to be up on the building" without fall protection. White's foreman said in a deposition that none of White's subcontractors had or ever wore such equipment.
What is beyond dispute is that at least two workers were catastrophically injured on job sites where White was the contractor. For Arias, the first serious injury came in November 2005 when he says he was helping White install a large garage door on a metal building in the Houston area. A metal joint broke while they were moving a section of the door, and a piece of the iron frame came loose. It shot outward violently, striking Arias in the left eye.
Doctors at Memorial Hermann Hospital tried to save his eye, but the damage was too severe. Now, it sits shriveled and lifeless behind droopy eyelids. Arias couldn't afford the $2,500 glass eye doctors recommended.
The injury put Arias in a coma for two weeks, and sidelined him from work for several months. His $100,000 hospital bill, which included charges for a life-flight helicopter ride, went unpaid, he said.
Arias said White continued to pay him about $400 a month while he recovered.
As he convalesced, Arias remembers thinking that he was damaged goods, and that he wouldn't have many options for work to support his wife and their three children, who at the time were 7, 13 and 18.
"I said to myself, 'At some other place they will see that I only have one eye, that I can't see, and they are not going to give me a job,'" he recalled.
Regret doesn't begin to describe the way he views his fateful choice to return to work on White's job site.
"For me to go back and return to the mouth of the wolf — that was a mistake," he said.
White's specialty in the construction business was raising roofs on industrial buildings. Workers would tear off an existing roof. Then they extended metal columns upward and put on a new one. The expanded space made the buildings attractive to lease out for the company that had hired him, GSL Investments, Inc. of Houston.
In 2006, when Arias returned to work, White was doing a roof-raising job for GSL at 5800 Clinton Drive, near the ship channel, court records indicate.
The demolition part of the job was nearing completion, and debris littered the 133,000-square-foot floor, according to interviews and court records.
All through the rubble lay dozens of red water pipes from the building's fire suppression system. When Arias fell off the roof, the back of his neck struck one of those metal pipes, fracturing his vertebrae in three places.
After Torres scrambled off the roof, he saw his uncle convulsing atop the construction debris. His broken glasses lay next to his face.
"I felt a pain in my heart. I felt like I couldn't breathe," Torres recalled. "He had already lost an eye. I wondered what he was going to do because he wouldn't be able to live like he lived before."
The next day, he said the workers were back on the roof, with no hard hats or fall protection, pulling up concrete panels just like the day before — as if nothing had happened.
OSHA has no record of any investigations into Arias' fall, but that's not unusual. It takes more than a single catastrophic accident, or even two, to prompt a mandatory OSHA probe, according to agency rules. Businesses are required to report to the federal agency only fatalities or accidents that leave three or more workers hospitalized. OSHA officials say complaints from workers usually prompt inspections — though the inspections are not required.
The blow to his neck fractured Arias' C-3 vertebra, the third one down from the skull. He underwent multiple surgeries, but the damage left him paralyzed from the chest down.
At first, he wanted to die. Despite his paralysis, Arias can still feel intense pain. He experiences burning sensations all over his body that, he says, feel like someone is pouring lime juice into an open wound. His joints ache and his muscles spasm violently. He constantly battles urinary tract infections, skin ulcers and insomnia. At one point, he took 26 pills a day to treat his ailments.
The financial toll on Arias' family was debilitating. For a while, White continued to pay him $500 weekly, but when Arias started talking to lawyers, that stopped, he said. Family members, including the ones still working for White, stepped in, buying everything from medicine and groceries to catheters and adult diapers.
Arias knew that family generosity wasn't a permanent solution.
He was referred to charities that serve injured immigrants like him — people who aren't eligible for major federal disability and health care programs and have nowhere else to turn. Living Hope Wheelchair Association, which has been providing medical supplies to undocumented immigrants since 2005, got him a wheelchair.
Casa Juan Diego, a Catholic charity in Houston, helped with rent and disposable medical supplies.
Most importantly, his health providers helped arrange for a humanitarian visa for Arias' wife, Remedios. She went to her husband's side and found the strength — from God, she said — to embrace her challenging new reality.
"I'm the nurse. I change him, bathe him, feed him. Well, everything. I brush his teeth. It's like he's a baby," she said.
Arias can breathe on his own, although sometimes with difficulty. He has enough sensation in his right arm to wedge the joystick of his motorized wheelchair between his thumb and forefinger and stiffly move it in the direction he wants to go.
For several years after his accident, Arias took charity handouts and hawked bracelets, necklaces, belts, hats, hairbrushes and perfume at Houston's La Michoacana and Teloloapan Meat Markets.
It was demoralizing. Arias got slapped and nearly knocked out of his chair by a deranged drunkard. A gang of young men at the Teloloapan market robbed him. Then about a year ago, he decided to return to Mexico City.
In September 2013, he bought a used, wheelchair-accessible taxi. His relatives stuffed it with as many donated adult diapers and catheters as they could and drove back home.
When a reporter and photographer visited Arias at his home in January, packages of the donated diapers were stacked near crates of inventory — sodas, snacks and other items — waiting to be sold next door in their convenience store. It's finished now, though it hasn't been as successful as the family had hoped.
Arias' paralyzed legs were secured to his wheelchair with little strips of fabric, to keep him strapped in when the spasms hit. His wrists are twisted from a neurological condition that has frozen them in a permanent downward curve, his palms facing outward as if he's bracing for a fall that never comes.
In spite of the hardships, Arias was smiling and positive, and even managed to laugh at himself. At one point, he joked that his disabilities would make him a natural fit at a Halloween party. After spending several years in the U.S., he said he's happy to be back in his home country with his family. He has two daughters, Nallely and Miriam, and a son, Santiago Jr., the latter of whom graduated from Northbrook High School in Houston in 2012.
Arias' smile belies the expense and the immeasurable toll of the catastrophe that has befallen him. His unpaid health care bills from the two accidents that occurred while he worked for White reached nearly $1 million, he said.
Then there's the multimillion-dollar jury verdict he'll never collect.
A new attorney eager for courtroom experience, Brant Stogner of the plaintiff's firm Abraham Watkins, took White's company to court in 2008. He thought he'd at least get a splashy verdict, through probably not a big payday. He was right.
White was a no-show during the trial, and jurors awarded Arias $21 million, the largest workplace negligence verdict in Texas in 2009, according to Verdict Search, which tracks lawsuit awards. White had few resources, and his insurance policy specifically excluded subcontractors like Arias, according to Stogner and court testimony.
"Unfortunately it is common and it goes with a state that does not regulate as heavily as the other states," Stogner said.
In the end, Arias' lawyer sued White's insurance agency. They settled for a fraction of the jury award — roughly one-half of 1 percent of the verdict amount when legal fees and court costs were subtracted.
Arias received less out of that settlement than the $125,000 that doctors estimated his care would cost in the U.S. each year for the rest of his life. A nondisclosure agreement keeps the exact amount confidential.
GSL Investments settled with Arias for $50,000 in May of 2008, records show.
Stogner said he had hoped the big verdict would "send a message" and possibly discourage unsafe working conditions in the construction business in Texas.
As a result of the lawsuit, White began working under another company name in 2007, switching from Degar Fuel Systems to White's Building Service, Inc. It was at least the third construction company White had created since 1994, according to business and court records.
Less than three years after Arias fell, another Mexican immigrant working for White on top of a GSL-owned building suffered a workplace calamity. The worker, Juan Meza, fell to his death, according to federal investigative files and court records.
A beam at the job site toppled over and struck Meza, knocking him off of a wall.
In a deposition, White said he was responsible in "no way, shape or form," and blamed the fall on Meza's allegedly shoddy welding.
Following protocol when a worker is killed, OSHA launched an investigation. Laborers at the site were not wearing fall protection equipment, the federal investigation showed. Officials concluded there were "serious" violations of federal safety laws, including White's failure to provide fall-protection equipment. The agency fined White $5,100.
In his deposition in the Meza case, White called OSHA "idiots" and promised he would never pay the fine. He claimed the welders were responsible for the safety violations.
Meza's family sued White and settled for approximately $450,000, court records show. After the accident, GSL Investments cut ties to White. Company president David Ebro said GSL now requires its contractors to carry workers' compensation insurance. He wouldn't comment about the Arias or Meza cases specifically, but Ebro called them "heart-wrenching" and said he's praying for the families of the two workers.
As for White, his last company, White's Building Services, forfeited its corporate charter and is no longer in good standing with the Texas secretary of state's office, records show.
In a few passages in his depositions, White expressed sympathy for the accident victims even though he repeatedly said he was not at fault.
Looking back on the Meza incident, White said he felt bad for the welder's family, including a young son who had been left without a father.
"I feel bad when any human loses a finger," White said. "I'm very sensitive in that aspect."
In another deposition, he called Arias a "very, very good guy," though in his brief telephone interview he said Arias only had himself to blame for "throwin' some concrete the wrong way."
Arias said he never saw White again after he was paralyzed. After all these years, he wishes he could tell his former boss to "be a little more humane with people."
His wife thinks the whole construction ecosystem, a key driver of the Texas miracle that politicians tout, could use a little more humanity.
"After all of the work he did, what they did to him was very cruel," she said. "In construction, it's the Mexicans who are doing all the work. And when they can't work anymore, nobody helps them. They don't pay them. They just discard them.
Posted in: Claims Denial
Updated: August 3, 2014 10:43 am


text:
Hermeetikko-lehti Nro.7: Nikola Tesla
Submitted by esaruoho on May 23, 2014 - 23:19
Admiral Peary
Jukka Nieminen
Ruder Boskovic
Itsestään palavat lamput, autot jotka luovat energiaa tyhjästä. Sellaisia ei vain pohdiskellut vaan myös oikeasti rakensi Nikola Tesla (1856-1943). Jättämättä vihjettäkään jälkipolville miten hän ne teki. Tesla oli eräs viisaimmista joita seassamme on koskaan elänyt. Mikäli olisimme ottaneet hänen oppinsa onkeemme, tuskin länsimaissa edes olisi niitä ongelmia joiden parissa poliitikkomme painivat päivittäin. Tutustukaamme siis Teslan maailmaan.
Tesla ja Edison
Excerpt from Wizard: Nikola Tesla - The Life and Times of a Genius: Mach's experiments in Wave Mechanics
Submitted by esaruoho on March 24, 2011 - 23:16
Herbert Spencer
Jan Purkyne
Ludwig von Helmholtz
...in retrospect, it appears obvious that Stumpf's opposition did not stop Tesla from studying Mach's experiments in wave mechanics. Born in Moravia (now the Czech Republic) in 1838, Mach graduated from the University of Vienna in 1860. By 1864 he was a full professor at Graz, and by 1867 he was head of the department of experimental physics at Prague, with four books and sixty-two articles to his credit.
Alternative Energy Institute: Nikola Tesla (missing page found on web.archive.org)
Submitted by esaruoho on July 17, 2007 - 03:58
Wardenclyffe
B. A. Behrend
George Westinghouse
J. P. Morgan
Margaret Cheney
polyphase
teslacoil
Toby Grotz
"Nature and Nature's laws lay hid in night: God said, 'Let Tesla be,' and all was light." These words, spoken by B.A. Behrend in 1917, illuminate the respect society held for Nikola Tesla early in this century. Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor and researcher who discovered the rotating magnetic field, which forms the basis of most alternating-current machinery in use today. Born in Croatia (Austria-Hungary) in 1856, Tesla's father was a Serbian Orthodox priest. His mother was unschooled but highly intelligent. It wasn't long before Tesla's parents realized that their son was gifted with unusual insight. In her book, "Tesla: Man Out of Time, " Margaret Cheney, a California science writer, offers an interesting anecdote from Tesla's childhood. "The child began when only a few years of age to make original inventions. When he was five, he built a small waterwheel quite unlike those he had seen in the countryside. It was smooth, without paddles, yet it spun evenly in the current. Years later he was to recall this fact when designing his unique bladeless turbine."
Alternative Energy Institute: Stefan Marinov (missing page found on web.archive.org)
Methernitha
Dr. Robert Bass
Jurgen Sievers
Richard von Weizsacker
Stefan Marinov
testatika
Life had never been easy for Stefan Marinov. It's no surprise that his death was also tragic. Marinov, a native of Bulgaria, was the former Assistant Professor of Physics from 1960 to 1974 at Sofia University. Several times in the sixties and seventies he was jailed for political dissent. But by far his biggest battle was with the professors who taught laws of science that he felt he had proven wrong.
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The ONLY reason why free energy has been suppressed and forced out by economics, politics and bankers, is because they are operating through fraudulent man-made laws which are at odds (out of balance) with nature. There is no reason that Paul Pantone spent months upon months in a mental hospital by court order for attempting to reduce the footprint we place directly on the face of mother nature and spaceship earth. Wilhelm Reich was unlawfully harassed by FDA/court officials - this again having nothing whatsoever to do with natural law - Wilhelm Reich worked for the benefit and health of all humanity. That John Bedini, Joe Booker, Viktor Schauberger, Thomas Henry Moray and others have been attacked, vilified, threatened, purposefully forgotten and ripped off means that the society and systems that allow this to happen "legally", are frightfully wrong. Thus we need to tear this current system apart from the root and plant a new seed which is in harmony with nature and God's Law. Only by all of us working as aware crewmembers of spaceship Earth - for the benefit of every crewmember, instead of selfishly for ourselves can we ever hope to escape the slavery that we are in right now. Here is Staffan's message:
The ONLY solution is to enforce The Plan against the traitorous Free-Energy supressing N. W. O. Zion-Nazi mass-murder, inside-job perpetrators of OKC, 911, Bali, 7/7/2005 and the phoney War on Terror and Freedom, and reinstate God's Perfect Laws of Liberty and bring the perpetrators to Justice:- http://jahtruth.net/plan.htm
Time is running out:- http://jahtruth.net/signs.htm
MERLib supports
MERLib supports the Wilhelm Reich Museum / Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust through using GoodSearch / GoodShop to gather money for this non-profit-organization. In addition to running the physical museum, they are in charge of producing two full-length documentaries on Wilhelm Reich, are working on a book which will have the 1947-1957 letters, diaries and scientific studies of Wilhelm Reich, so we will better be able to comprehend the latter decade of Wilhelm Reich's life. A Biopic and a full-length documentary would be beneficial at clearing the name of Wilhelm Reich after the travesties of "W.R. - Mysteries of The Organism", and the scant footage available on Wilhelm Reich or his devices. If you know there is something to Wilhelm Reich's orgone discoveries, his orgone accumulator, orgone shooter, orgone blanket, and orgone cloud-busting devices, if you find that there should be more information on the atmospheric orgone motor, and the human orgone-energy running motor, conditioned vacuum-tubes which respond to orgone.. if you believe orgone plays a part in the nuclear energy and preservation of nature question, then please start using GoodSearch from now on and point all of your search-"income" to the "Wilhelm Reich Infant Trust Foundation". As of September 2008, 17$ has accumulated by a few persons using it. That is 0.01$ per search and use. If you use eBay via GoodSearch (GoodShop), a larger percentage will be donated to the trust. The Wilhelm Reich Museum are attempting to collect over 200,000$ for the singular production of two of these films, they also require time and funds for the research, translation and compilation purposes of the 1947-1957 followup to "American Odyssey", a previous Wilhelm Reich study compilation which featured his encounters at explaining Orgone energy to Albert Einstein. And also, they now require funding for a new roof.
Solar Ovens


text:
NSString* const WMFNetworkingErrorDomain = @"WMFNetworkingErrorDomain";

NSString* WMFJoinedPropertyParameters(NSArray* props){
    return [props ? : @[] componentsJoinedByString:@"|"];
}

NSError* WMFErrorForApiErrorObject(NSDictionary* apiError){
    if (!apiError) {
        return nil;
    }
    // build the dictionary this way to avoid early nil termination caused by missing keys in the error obj
    NSMutableDictionary* userInfoBuilder = [NSMutableDictionary dictionaryWithCapacity:3];
    void (^ maybeMapApiToUserInfo)(NSString*, NSString*) = ^(NSString* userInfoKey, NSString* apiErrorKey) {
        [userInfoBuilder wmf_maybeSetObject:apiError[apiErrorKey] forKey:userInfoKey];
    };
    maybeMapApiToUserInfo(NSLocalizedFailureReasonErrorKey, @"code");
    maybeMapApiToUserInfo(NSLocalizedDescriptionKey, @"info");
    maybeMapApiToUserInfo(NSLocalizedRecoverySuggestionErrorKey, @"*");
    return [NSError errorWithDomain:WMFNetworkingErrorDomain code:WMFNetworkingError_APIError userInfo:userInfoBuilder];
}

NSString* WMFWikimediaRestAPIURLStringWithVersion(NSUInteger restAPIVersion) {
    return [NSString stringWithFormat:@"https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v%lu", (unsigned long)restAPIVersion];
}

@implementation NSError (WMFFetchFinalStatus)

- (FetchFinalStatus)wmf_fetchStatus {
    return ([self.domain isEqual:NSURLErrorDomain] && self.code == NSURLErrorCancelled) ?
           FETCH_FINAL_STATUS_CANCELLED : FETCH_FINAL_STATUS_FAILED;
}

@end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


The BCHL club has picked up last year's top goaltender in the league as part of a three player deal with the Powell River Kings for 17-year-old forward Evan Richardson.
The Victoria Grizzlies made an off-season move to shore up the team between the pipes.
The Grizzlies traded away 17-year-old Evan Richardson for the rights to 20-year-old goalie Jamie Tucker, a Victoria product who played for the junior-B Saanich Braves before joining the Western Hockey League, in a three-team trade between the Penticton Vees and Powell River Kings.
Tucker broke in as Vancouver Giant before moving to the Prince Albert Raiders where he played 40 games last year.
Victoria also got 18-year-old defenceman Braden Pears and 18-year-old forward Scott Renner.
Victoria originally secured the rights to B.C. Hockey League goaltender of the year Michael Garteig, before sending him to Penticton.
Pears is from Victoria and has played two years in the BCHL with the Kings. Renner is a tough-to-play-against character expected to be a leader in the dressing room.


text:
ctx = ZMQ::Context.new
sub = ctx.socket(:SUB)
sub.subscribe("")
sub.connect($runner.endpoint)

messages, start_time = 0, nil
while (case $runner.encoding
  when :string
    sub.recv
  when :frame
    sub.recv_frame
  when :message
    sub.recv_message
  end) do
  start_time ||= Time.now
  messages += 1
  break if messages == $runner.msg_count
end

$runner.stats(start_time)


If you offer enterprise networking solutions to your customers, you know how important depth of knowledge and maintaining certifications are to the success, as well as growth and extension, of those offerings. Comstor's new Surge offering is designed to help define deliverables, create benefits and customized content, and complete or renew certifications in your Cisco enterprise networking practice.
At each level, there will be the opportunity for VARs to take advantage of free training and certification in Networking Express, Meraki 360, Master Networking and Advanced Core and WAN, as well as Advanced Unified Access specializations.
At the Ripple Level, the focus is on account discovery, creating a road map, and Cisco best practices. At the Swell Level, the focus is on obtaining Networking Express Certification and Meraki 360 training. As the VAR moves up to a Master of Networking Specialization at the Peak Level, the focus is on Viptela and Seed units, as well as gaining training in subscription services and renewals. And, lastly, when the VAR has made it to the Surging Level, they will focus on Advanced Specializations in Enterprise Networks Architecture, Core and WAN networks, and Unified Access.
Scrimgeour emphasized that Comstor is the only Cisco partner offering Viptela, and also have Meraki trainings, and the company is offering an incentive for VARs who sign up for the Surge program.
"We have designed Surge to enable our partners to learn, expand and sell more," he explained. "Another benefit is that Surge will include a certification and training portal, which will be updated every 24 hours, so it will be easy to track company-specific certifications and their expiration dates.


text:
Category Archives: BookSHElf
On borders, encounters, and #WiTWisdom
Borders are on my mind right now. I live on an island, and so the borders of my homeland are physical; more importantly, they are also in the hearts and, recently, on the ballot papers of many of my compatriots. Everything about my identity, my work, and my beliefs rejects borders, crosses them, perhaps even aims to transcend them, and so in a time of great uncertainty, I find comfort in encounters that break down borders: I had two particularly uplifting "Translating Women" encounters recently that I want to share with you today, but I also want to reflect further on connections, crossing borders, and the wise, witty and downright wonderful things we can find in translated women's writing.
Clockwise from top left: publicity shot for BookSHElf podcast; Fish Soup in Caravansérail; in conversation with Margarita García Robayo
I was thrilled when Carolina Orloff, director and editor at Charco Press, invited me to host an evening in conversation with Margarita García Robayo at the Caravansérail bookshop in London on 31 October. It was part of Margarita's European book tour to promote Fish Soup, and it was a great honour to meet her in person; re-reading Fish Soup on the train to London, I was struck once again by the profundity of its caustic reflections (as well as finding it mildly surreal to be reading one of my favourite books while en route to meet its author). After spectacularly losing track of time in the excitement of meeting Margarita and Carolina at a tea salon in Brick Lane, we trooped to Caravansérail just in time for the event. It was my first time there, and I fell entirely under its spell: it's a small premises, with the back area packed floor to ceiling with French books on one side and works in English and translation on the other. In the front area there is an intimate interview and audience space, where we gathered for our conversation.
Interviewing Margarita was a dream. She was so open and generous in her responses, both to me and to the audience. We covered topics ranging from the autobiographical nature of her writing and the need to leave Colombia in order to write about it fully, to Charlotte Coombe's magnificent translation and the cover art of Fish Soup (beautifully described by one of my Twitter friends, author Rónán Hession, as "like Jaws but with fuzzy felt"). The thing I most want to focus on here came about when discussing the novella 'Sexual Education', which was published for the first time as part of Fish Soup, and is based on Margarita's own experience of Opus Dei sex education classes in 1990s Colombia (the "Teen Aid" course was one she was forced to attend at school). There was in her class, as in the novella, a girl who claimed to be in communication with the Blessed Virgin, and we discovered in conversation with Margarita that the teachers lapped this up, pressing the girl to find out what Mary had communicated to her, so that they could use this to further convince the female students of the merits of abstention. Margarita talked about the deep effect that such indoctrination can have (in particular, the notion that "virginity" means "preserving the hymen" which, as her narrator observes wryly, results in a generation of girls with "hymen intact […] ass in tatters"), and described life thereafter as a process of "unlearning", a sentiment which seemed to resonate with everyone present.
So can we "unlearn" how we think about borders? I'm currently reading Go Went Gone by the wonderful Jenny Erpenbeck, translated by Susan Bernofsky and published by Portobello Books. Erpenbeck seems to me to be a truly important writer of our times: in Go Went Gone she tackles the subject of migration, and I was struck by the wisdom of this reflection: "Have people forgotten in Berlin of all places that a border isn't just measured by an opponent's stature but in fact creates him?" How terrifying that a book reflecting on one of the great socio-political scissions of the last century is so resonant with how I feel in my country today. Borders close us off, keep people out, and create enemies: by opening a book we open ourselves, allow others in, and create connections. Charco Press are certainly creating such connections: Margarita described their endeavours as "revolutionary", since in Latin America literary success is often limited to each individual country, with books not crossing borders in their original language, and so translation into English is an important part of literary success and wider distribution of work. At a time when "the inhabitants of this territory […] are defending their borders with articles of law" (Erpenbeck, Go Went Gone), it seems to me that promoting and celebrating work that breaks through these borders and barriers is a revolutionary act in itself. In his essay "Reflections on Exile", Edward Said wrote that "Borders and barriers, which enclose us within the safety of familiar territory, can also become prisons, and are often defended beyond reason or necessity." Familiar territory is exactly what we leave behind when we read literature in translation, as we refuse to remain imprisoned in how our particular political or cultural "time" is telling us to define ourselves. Said goes on to claim that "Exiles cross borders, break barriers of thought and experience", and perhaps here we could substitute "exiles" with "writers in translation": their books not only cross borders but help to break them down, reminding us that we are more connected than we can sometimes realise.
If you read Spanish, you can read Margarita's full account of her book tour here.
The morning after interviewing Margarita I went to Oxford Circus to meet Sophie Baggott, who earlier this year made a pledge to read a book by a woman writer from every country in the world by 2020. Sophie also hosts BookSHElf, a monthly podcast for Wales Arts Review, in which each month she interviews a guest about a topic related to women in translation: as the November guest, I followed in the illustrious footsteps of Theodora Danek, writers in translation programme manager at English PEN, Jennifer Croft, translator of the Man Booker International prize-winning Flights by Olga Tokarczuk, and the author-translator duo Michelle Steinbeck and Jen Calleja. It was an honour to find myself the guest on a podcast I look forward to each month, and half an hour has rarely passed so quickly: it was a joy to talk about women in translation with someone who shares my passion for it. Aside from talking about the Translating Women project, we talked about books we've loved (I shared my four women in translation Books of the Year for 2018 – tune in to see which I chose and why!) and issues such as the difficulties facing women in translation, the importance of the Year of Publishing Women and its legacy, and what we might look forward to in terms of women in translation (as December approaches, my excitement for the soon-to-be-released Translating Feminisms chapbooks from Tilted Axis Press grows).
Sophie and I also discussed the "labels" we use to talk about literature: I don't want to try to define what books from a given geographical region might be "like", and I wonder whether, if we want to transcend borders, it's helpful to categorise books by country or literary tradition (particularly if a writer might break with this, challenge it, defy it, or simply reject the notion of a national "literary tradition"). Or, like Margarita, they might be from one country, live in another, and be published in another – and it is precisely this porosity, this mobility (dare I utter the words "this freedom of movement"?) which make literature in translation so important to the English-speaking world. What do a gathering in a multicultural bookshop and a podcast that can be listened to on the world wide web represent, if not a breaking down of borders? Sophie asked me to identify the best opportunities to have come out of the Translating Women project, and it was easy to answer: the connections. What a privilege it is to form relationships (real or virtual) with authors, translators, publishers, and fellow readers.
English PEN uses the strapline "Literature knows no frontiers", and if there is anything that the books I'm reading have in common, it is their ability to reach out beyond national stereotypes and physical borders, and create connections. I hope that a day will come when we don't have to talk about "women's writing", because we shall simply be talking about "literature" – but the days of such equality are, I think, still some way off. Until then, I shall be celebrating the inspiring, enriching, sometimes hilarious, sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes quiet, sometimes exuberant, always fascinating body of work that women in translation represents.
And on that note, I'm bringing together two things I love at the end of 2018: I always find the end of the year to be a time of reflection and resolution, and I also like to share some of my favourite quotations from the books I'm reading. So each weekday from 1 December until Christmas, I shall post on Twitter a meditative or inspiring quotation from a book by a woman writer in translation, using the hashtag #WiTWisdom. Please feel free to share and follow the hashtag, and to join in if you feel moved to do so!
The books I couldn't resist purchasing at Caravansérail
This entry was posted in BookSHElf, Charco Press, Opinion post, Translating Women and tagged borders, Caravansérail, Carolina Orloff, Fish Soup, Margarita García Robayo, Sophie Baggott, Wales Arts Review, women in translation on 28th Nov, 2018 by Helen Vassallo.


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Our Sample Palette is the perfect way to try all of our scents, before committing to a full-sized bottle. Plus, with your sample purchase, you will receive a $20 credit toward your next order of your full-sized product (score!).


text:
Captain's Welcome
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Our Learner
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Thursday, December 22, 2022 CathEd Parra
One of the most exciting young stars in Australian athletics, St John XXIII Catholic College student Sebastian Sultana continues to show why he's regarded as a future Olympic star with his double gold win at the recent Australian All Schools Track and Field Championships in Adelaide.
Despite difficult conditions in Adelaide, Sebastian comfortably won the 100m final and then backed up a day later to scorch the field in the 200m final, setting a new meet record of 20.71. That was more than two tenths of a second faster than the previous record (20.94) set in 2006.
There was a silver lining for a host of our other students competing at the event.
Despite only being 15, Emmaus Catholic College student Layla Sharp recorded a blistering personal best in the 800 Metres PA Under 20 final to take second place.
"We are over the moon with her PB," said Layla's mother Sam Sharp.
Xavier Perry from St Agnes Catholic High School Rooty Hill also claimed silver in the Under 15 Men's 400 Metres final, only missing out on gold when the winner broke the meet record. Xavier also claimed a silver as part of the NSW team in the Mixed 4 x 400m U16 Relay.
Caroline Chisholm student Raphaila Idris missed out on gold by the smallest of margins in the Under 17 Women's Triple Jump. Her rival jumped 12.45 with her penultimate jump to better Raphaila's opening jump of 12.44 by just one centimetre.
Raphaila still had one final jump to snatch the gold back and mustered another brilliant 12.43 to claim the silver medal.
Patrician Brothers' College Blacktown classmates Kalisi Aualiitia and Filtomas Finekifolau spurred each other on to a great result in the Men's Under 14 Hammer Throw with Kalisi claiming silver and Filtomas finishing fifth. Kalisi was in gold-medal position after a throw of 49.36 only to see a rival snatch top spot with his final throw of 49.96m.
St Andrews College Marayong twin brothers Julio and Dominic Tatupu will be taking home brilliant silver and bronze medals from the Under 15 Men's Hammer Throw final. Julio threw a superb 48.32m for silver with Dominic claiming bronze (41.87m).
St Luke's Catholic College student Salote Wolfgramm claimed double bronze in the Under 15 Women's Hammer Throw and Under 15 Women's Discus and also finished fourth in the Under 15 Women's Shot Put.
Fellow St Luke's student Liam Hayes won bronze in the Men's Under 15 Long Jump and just missed bronze in the Triple Jump by a mere four centimetres.
Gilroy Catholic College's Xavier Hennessey secured bronze in the Under 16 Men's Pole Vault final.
Sebastian Sultana's St John XXIII schoolmate Luke Vrataric went incredibly close to a medal in the Under 16 Men's Long Jump. Despite a best jump of 6.63m, two other jumpers also reached 6.63m with Luke finishing fourth on countback. He also claimed fourth place in the Under 16 Men's Triple Jump.
Bede Polding's Olivia Dimech just missed out on a bronze medal in the Under 18 Women's Triple Jump final when one of her rivals beat her mark with her final attempt.
Caroline Chisholm College's Jemma Camilleri finished seventh in the Under 14 Women's Javelin. Brendan Pospischil from Parramatta Marist High School finished seventh in the Under 18 Men's 5000 Metres Race Walk. Caitlyn Martin from Gilroy Catholic College also claimed seventh in the Under 14 Women's High Jump. Travis Hargrave from Bede Polding College finished fifth in the Under 18 Men's 400m Hurdles and Ryan Cloey finished 10th in the Under 14 Men's Javelin. Alexander Crimmins from Xavier College Llandilo finished fifth in the Under 17 Men's Triple Jump.
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ClassM8


Looks like we may be experiencing some wintry weather in Upstate South Carolina. I laugh sometimes at how people freak out in this area when we have snow or ice. And don't get me started on the way some people can't drive in the snow.
I am sure most of you didn't come to get the latest weather update so let's dive into recapping the big news for real estate!
The U.S. Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce reported that construction spending during December 2013 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $930.5 billion, 0.1 percent above the revised November estimate of $929.9 billion. The December figure is 5.3 percent above the December 2012 estimate of $883.6 billion.
Spending for private sector projects rose by 1%; of this amount, residential construction spending increased by 2.60% and private sector spending for non-residential construction fell by -0.70%.
First was ADP reporting that only 175,000 new private sector jobs were added in January 2014. This is the lowest reading in five months. Month-to-month job reports can be unpredictable but ADP's quarterly results did give us some positive news.
For the three month period ending in January 2014, they reported average monthly job growth of 230,000 jobs which is slightly better than the same time period a year ago.
New Jobless Claims came in lower than the prior week and below expectations. Analysts said that these readings supported gradual improvement in the economy.
The next reports was from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). They released their Non-Farm Payrolls report for January 2014 and it showed 113,000 new jobs were added during the first month of 2014. This was better than the December 2013 numbers.
With lower job growth, a higher unemployment rate would seem likely, but the national unemployment rate dropped to 6.60% from last week's reading of 6.70%. This is due to how the government fudges the unemployment numbers.
Gallup also released a report saying job creation was flat in January.
In case you missed the news, the Fed announced another cut to the current Quantitative Easing program. This is the 2nd time the Fed has cut QE. The Federal Reserve's FOMC Committee has said they want unemployment to drop to a 6.5% before they completely stop the easy money from flowing.
The economy and housing depend on each other and affect each other greatly. This is one of the reasons I talk about all the various economic news or national housing reports. They are important parts of the BIG picture.
Plus some of these reports will help to shape consumer attitudes or affect their confidence levels. If people are worried about losing their job then they are NOT likely to buy a home any time soon.
As usual I posted the average mortgage rates for last week on Friday. Rates once again dipped due to the still weak economy. Mortgage rates are much higher than this time last year but are still VERY attractive.
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text:
#ifndef CONDOR_SYS_LINUX_H
#define CONDOR_SYS_LINUX_H

#ifndef _BSD_SOURCE
#define _BSD_SOURCE
#define _DEFAULT_SOURCE
#endif

#if defined(GLIBC)
# ifndef _GNU_SOURCE
#  define _GNU_SOURCE
# endif
#endif

#if defined(GLIBC23)
/* the glibc in redhat 9, and the fortran compiler in particular use
	the 64 bit interfaces that we have to worry about */
/*#define _LARGEFILE64_SOURCE*/
/*#define _FILE_OFFSET_BITS 64*/
/*#define HAS_64BIT_SYSCALLS      1*/
/*#define HAS_64BIT_STRUCTS      1*/
#endif

#include <sys/types.h>

#include "condor_fix_sys_stat.h"
#include "condor_fix_unistd.h"

/* Allows use of setgroups() */
/* It turns out we can't allow this inclusion to fix some other warnings
	in the source code concerning setgroups() since it messes up some
	hand specified prototypes in the standard universe codebase. Once that
	is investigated and fixed, this can be included properly. */
/*#include <grp.h>*/

/* Want stdarg.h before stdio.h so we get GNU's va_list defined */
#include <stdarg.h>

/* <stdio.h> on glibc Linux defines a "dprintf()" function, which
   we've got hide since we've got our own. */
#if defined(GLIBC)
#	define dprintf _hide_dprintf
#	define getline _hide_getline
#endif
#include <stdio.h>
#if defined(GLIBC)
#	undef dprintf
#	undef getline
#endif

#define SignalHandler _hide_SignalHandler
#include <signal.h>
#undef SignalHandler

/* Since param.h defines NBBY  w/o check, we want to include it here
   before we check for and define it ourselves */
#include <sys/param.h>

/* There is no <sys/select.h> on Linux, select() and friends are
   defined in <sys/time.h> */
#include "condor_fix_sys_time.h"

/* Need these to get statfs and friends defined */
#include <sys/stat.h>
#include <sys/vfs.h>

/* This headerfile must be included before sys/wait.h because on glibc22
	machines sys/wait.h brings in sys/resource.h and we need to modify
	a few prototypes in sys/resource.h to be POSIX compliant.
	-psilord 4/25/2001 */
#include "condor_fix_sys_resource.h"
#include <sys/wait.h>
/* Some versions of Linux don't define WCOREFLG, but we need it */
#if !defined( WCOREFLG )
#	define WCOREFLG 0200
#endif

#if !defined(GLIBC20) && !defined(GLIBC21)
#include <search.h>
#endif

/* swapon and swapoff prototypes */
#if !defined(IA64) && !defined(CONDOR_PPC) && !defined(LINUX)
/* there is a bug in this header file for ia64 linux, figure out what I need
	out of here and prototype it manually. */
#include <linux/swap.h>
#endif

/* include stuff for malloc control */
#include <malloc.h>

/* to get the sysinfo() function call */
#include <sys/sysinfo.h>

#include <sys/mman.h>

#include <sys/syscall.h>

#if defined( I386 ) || defined( X86_64 )
/* For the i386 execution domains for standard
	universe executables. Under redhat 9 and later there is a
	sys/personality.h we could include here as well so we can use
	the personality() function to change execution domains to get
	good memory map layout behavior. However, before redhat 9 that
	header file and function call don't exist. The system call
	itself does exist, however, so we'll just be calling syscall()
	with the right system call symbol to get the job done on all of the
	distributions. */

/* Here is where we find the PER_* constants for the personality system call. */
#if HAVE_LINUX_PERSONALITY_H
/* Warning: this defines a lexical replacement for 'personality()'
	which is not a function call */
#include <linux/personality.h>
#elif HAVE_SYS_PERSONALITY_H
/* this defines a true function called 'personality()' which changes the
	execution domain of the process */
#include <sys/personality.h>
#endif

#endif

/****************************************
** Condor-specific system definitions
***************************************/

#define HAS_U_TYPES	1
#define SIGSET_CONST	/* nothing */

#if !defined(GLIBC20) && !defined(GLIBC21)
	#define SYNC_RETURNS_VOID 1
#endif

/* typedef long long off64_t; */

typedef void* MMAP_T;

#endif /* CONDOR_SYS_LINUX_H */


In this talk, we'll review the current state of the art in tooling for working with modules, with a particular emphasis on Geppetto, an open source IDE that simplifies the process of creating and editing Puppet manifests and modules. We'll demonstrate Geppetto's key features and also show how Geppetto supports module development, publication, and consumption in an integrated workflow.
Principle Engineering Project Manager, Puppet Labs, Inc.