The Giants' 2018 season obituary appeared on NJ.com as soon as the clock hit all zeros.
And you don't have to wait until 3 p.m. Friday to hear WFAN afternoon host Mike Francesa bury the Giants, either.
Francesa hopped on his new Mikes On app after the Giants' lost 34-13 to the Philadelphia Eagles and blasted the team's effort, leadership and talent.
"Maybe (Saquon) Barkley will break one to set a record or something, but that's all you have to look forward to after what was an embarrassing, disgraceful performance by the football Giants. Nothing short. This was it."
"Don't even discuss who the best Giant is anymore. The best Giant is in the backfield. And his name is not Manning. His name is Barkley. He is the guy. You want to build around someone? Build around him. He is the guy around here now. That might be a little tough for Beckham to take."
"Here is the bottom line. Here is where it goes with this franchise: I'm no longer directing this toward Eli Manning. I'm no longer directing this to Beckham. I'm not directing this to any coach. I'm not even directing this to Shurmur. ... This goes at the feet of the owners. That's who this is about. They have now let this once-proud franchise cascade to the bottom of the NFL."
"They are 4-19 in their last 23 ballgames. 4-19. That's Cleveland Browns-like. That's Detroit Lions-like. These are the Giants. They have become chronic losers. They have gone from being champions and guys who knew how to win, from the day Bill Parcells walked in the door until the day Tom Coughlin walked out the door, even including his last three years. End it wherever you want. That run produced five Super Bowls. It produced four Super Bowl wins. It produced three upsets, two of them among the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history. This team was draped in glory for a long time. This has become a rotten franchise."


About five years ago, in Tony Borton's woods in Conway, lightning struck a tall hemlock. The tree "just exploded" Borton says. A splintered trunk like petrified flames remains, and shards lie scattered all around. "Later that summer," he says, pointing to another tree nearby, "I looked at that hemlock and its bark was splitting." Others followed, all of them affected by the strike that had traveled underground. Now, in the opening, the sun has encouraged new growth, tree starts and asters.
People walk dogs and ride horses in Borton's woods, sometimes entering from trails in abutting land. The Franklin Land Trust checks the property annually and will continue its stewardship, ensuring that whoever owns the land isn't violating the details of the CR. Likewise, the Conway Conservation Commission, which owns the CR, walks the perimeters, looking for things such as new dumps and other pollution.
Borton's land rises from about 650 feet to almost 1000 feet above sea level. "There are two important streams with nothing above them, coming out of undeveloped woodland," he explains. "Both go down to the South River. It's important to protect our water sources. Water is so important to the future of our civilization." He mentions an old cellar hole on Johnny Bean Creek. Johnny Bean built his cabin high, where the water was pure.
Once an orchard, the land became a dairy farm in the 1930s when "apples weren't worth anything. A lot of people don't realize butter was such a commodity," he says. The Bortons moved here from Michigan, bringing Arabian horses, and have raised them ever since. They ran beef cattle for 20 years, mowing and baling their own hay. Now, three horses graze in a pasture that contains a shed open to the south, providing shelter but not enclosure, a more natural environment for the horses, Borton explains.
In winter, "We get a lot of otter slides," he says. "They look like they have so much fun. They come down the hillside and go back up again, just like kids." And one summer he and his wife could sit on chairs by his pond and watch fox kits playing.


text:
Since
According to the United States Census Bureau, the minority population will represent nearly 40% of the United States population by 2020. Our nation's largest companies are expected to spend $70 billion--four percent of their combined procurement budgets -- with companies owned by women and people of color. That being said, this leaves a significant opportunity for corporations to become more strategic with their highest levels of management and engage with as many minority suppliers as possible.
Our country continues to face challenging economic times, and now more than ever, supplier diversity requires creativity, boldness, and leadership. Here at Mammoth Office Products, we will continue to strive to provide innovative, reliable, and top-quality furniture products. Wherever possible, our assortment will include eco-friendly, sustainable items. Our commitment to our brand through both our assortment and service will remain steadfast.
By purchasing Mammoth brand products, you are helping to support a small, women-owned small business, which is vital to the health and growth of our country and our economy.
A diversity business is owned by members of a diversity group. This means, it's owned and controlled by minorites or women, and they must own at least 51% of the business.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


After narrowly escaping arrest in South Sudan, many might decide not to go back. But a return mission trip to Uganda and South Sudan is currently in the works for ITMI's Steve Evers and Kent Reisenauer. Why risk entering a corrupt third world country where you can get arrested for recording a video interview with a friend at her house? Simply stated, the benefits are far-reaching and numerous.
Dear Team: Beneath the Runaround, God is in Control.
The call took almost an hour. Fifty-six minutes to be exact. Taru had headed to the bank for the fairly normal task of withdrawing the funds graciously given to help them live and care for women and children of the local Muslim slum. But she was met with something unexpected when she arrived.
When believers connect, it makes a difference. When we look back over 2018, we're jazzed at what the Lord did through the connection between you and our partners. That last part is important. What the LORD did. It's His mission, but graciously, He lets us be part of it. This month, we're hoping you'll be encouraged by some of the highlights from 2018 that He let us collectively be part of.
During this season of giving, we asked ITMI partners to share their heartfelt answers to several questions. May their answers bless and encourage you!
Several of our partners' kids are grown and choosing to become involved in ministries of their own. Others are choosing to minister alongside their parents! It's exciting to see a new generation of national workers equipped and ready for ministry!


Uncle Irvin was recently discharged from Chester County Hospital after a week of recovering from various illnesses, and is not ready to resume the rigors of a weekly column. There will be weeks that no column will appear, and at most they will be sporadic until I get up to speed.
It is interesting to point out that some London Grove Township citizens are clamoring for more police protection. Even though the Avondale State Police Barracks are in the township, the response time is too long to be relevant.
Uncle Irvin warned of the need for local police protection for London Grove, and advocated for a regional force, which London Grove supervisors dropped. Those supervisors are one of the worst boards in southern Chester County, and are more enamored of losing money on the public-owned golf course than they are in public safety.
David Connors, although he is not chairman, is one of the worst supervisors ever, and has been a real detriment to progress in London Grove for years.


text:
Home Music Music Features
October 23, 2021 10:00AM ET
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis Teach You How to Grammy
For Rolling Stone's new Grammy Preview, the hitmaking producers offer an insider guide to every aspect of the big night
David Browne
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"Keep it short and concise and make sure you have your thank-you's together, because you will forget someone you know," says Terry Lewis (right, pictured with his longtime production partner Jimmy Jam) of his approach to a great Grammy acceptance speech.
Philip Cheung/"Guardian"/Eyevine/Redux
This piece is part of Rolling Stone's second annual Grammy Preview special issue, released ahead of the start of first-round voting. We spoke to some of the year's biggest artists about the albums and singles that could earn them a nomination — or even a statue come January — and delved into the challenges facing the Recording Academy, providing a 360-degree view of what to watch for in the lead-up to the 2022 awards.
If anybody knows their way around Grammy night, it's producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Since the mid-Eighties and their initial work with Janet Jackson, the team, who had their first taste of fame and success as co-founders of the Time, have been nominated more than 20 times. Along the way, they've taken home five Grammys, including Producer of the Year (Non-Classical) in 1987, in large part for Jackson's Control, and most recently, Best R&B Album in 2008, for Chaka Khan's Funk This. They've attended innumerable ceremonies — and hope to again next year, if their first album on their own, Jam & Lewis Volume One, is nominated. (That album, released this summer, includes vocals by Mariah Carey, Boyz II Men, Mary J. Blige, Morris Day, and Usher.) Here, they offer a tutorial on navigating an extremely long, hectic, and sometimes snack-challenged day.
Janet Jackson Documentary Sets Premiere Date, Shares New Trailer
Kendrick Lamar Celebrates 'Section.80' During Casually Dazzling Day N Vegas Set
The Beatles in India: 16 Things You Didn't Know
Prepping on the day of show
Jimmy Jam: It's a long day. The premiere telecast is at 1 or 2 o'clock; then the actual show starts at 5 o'clock. And it's a three-and-a-half-hour show. So you have to get an early start. Make sure you've picked out whatever you want to wear. You'll be walking around and seeing and meeting people. You're literally on your feet for such a long time. I love shoes that have soft soles. I used to wear Pradas — they were so comfortable, almost like wearing slippers. Don't wear shoes that are bothering you.
Terry Lewis: You might start getting dressed around 11 a.m., and if you have a wife or partner, she's going to start getting dressed and doing hair and makeup, too. I wear a suit or a tux. I would suggest you eat a nice clean snack before you leave — something that doesn't give you bubble gut.… But make sure you do consume something so you're not starving through the process.
Jam: I'm not really a snacks guy, but a couple of times I put a little health bar in my pocket. You could literally go six, seven, eight hours with nothing to eat. One year, I think it was 2002 when we won for Janet's All for You, I didn't eat before I left. Luckily, there was a McDonald's in the Staples Center that had opened up early. And I swear to God, I scarfed down a Big Mac. Thank goodness that was there.
Working the red carpet
Jam: We try to get there early, talk to the people we know. The way the red carpet is set up is cool. Although they try to move you along the carpet, there are a lot of great spots to take photos with your family or whoever. There are giant gramophones everywhere. When we look back over our scrapbook, or our iPhone nowadays, those pictures are always the ones that document the moment.
Lewis: If you don't have a publicist, I suggest you [get one], so that people in the media know who you are as you come down the red carpet. No one wants to blow their own horn like, "Yeah, I'm Terry Lewis!" That would be a little strange. And if you're going to be in people's faces, bring some mints.
Jam: You'll meet a lot of people and may have a chance to say to them, "I really like your project. I really like your song." I enjoy when people come up to me and say, "I love that record you did with so-and-so," I appreciate it. So I would tell people not to be shy about that. It's one of the only nights of the year where all of those [music] people from all around the world come together in one place, and I don't like to leave things left unsaid. We just lost the Rolling Stones' drummer, and five years ago we lost Prince. So I never want to be in a room with somebody and not acknowledge them in some way, shake their hand and say, "I love what you do."
The year we won for "All for You" for Best Dance Recording, that song was based on a sample of "The Glow of Love," by Change. When I was getting my McDonald's that night, a gentleman walked up to me and said, "Are you Jimmy Jam? You bought me my house." It was Wayne Garfield, who wrote "The Glow of Love."
Maximizing commercial breaks
Jam: You should definitely go to the bathroom before the evening starts.
Lewis: There are five-to-seven–minute taped commercial breaks, and that's a great time to use the restroom. So try to find out where the restrooms and lounges are. Try to get a map of the show that tells you who and what is coming on when, because you don't want to be in the bathroom when your award is given out.
Jam: If I spot someone who I want to make sure to say hello to, it's always during the commercial breaks. My wife has a great radar, and she'll say, "Oh, there's so-and-so over there. You should say hi to them." There are certain people you want to make sure you scope them out. One year, I wanted to say hello to Kendrick Lamar. We had met before, but I made sure I said hi.
Writing an acceptance speech
Lewis: Keep it short and concise and make sure you have your thank-you's together, because you will forget someone you know. You have to walk up there and hug everybody and do your 40 paces.… I've been a victim of that. People standing right in front of me I forget sometimes, because in the moment there's so many people to thank.
Jam: I remember when we went to our very first Grammys [1987], we went up onstage. I gave my speech, Terry gave his speech. And as Terry is walking offstage, he literally says to me, "I forgot to thank my wife." I was like, "Uh-oh." I didn't have that problem because I wasn't married. The whole night, every interview we did, he said, "I forgot to thank my wife." So my advice would be: Don't worry about saving the best for last. Make sure you acknowledge the people you need to acknowledge; just get them out the way so you don't forget.
What happens if you win
Lewis: If it's early in the show, you get to go back to your seat. But if it's late in the show [and you win], there needs to be a contingency plan for your family, because they will not get to come with you [backstage]. They whisk you off and you have to do the red carpet, but for winners.… It's like the black hole; you can't get out. The ushers will be telling [your family] they have to leave! Make a place to meet at the Grammy party, which is usually in an adjacent building, or have your publicist bring your family to the green room or something like that.
Jam: Try to get the envelope with your name on it. I've had the honor of presenting on the premiere telecast for the last eight or nine years. And one of the things I always do is hand the envelope to the people who win and say, "Frame this." With us a few times, people just took the envelopes and left with them.
The afterparties
Jam: The Recording Academy throws a pretty great party literally right next door to the Staples Center. That's a great place to start. It's a chance to eat, because there's great food, and usually great performances. Also, not everybody is going to go to the party, so hang out there for an hour, and by the time you come out, the traffic will get cleared up. And then you go to whatever party you'd like to go to.
Where to put the trophies
Lewis: Up until two years ago, I never had Grammys in my house. I never wanted my house to feel like a Terry Lewis shrine. I wanted my kids to feel their stuff — their artwork or paintings — were more important than my Grammys. Then my wife said, "Bring them home for a while." Now I have Grammys at my house; I'm looking at three right now and the other two are somewhere else in the house.
Jam: Our Grammys have moved around from place to place. I used to have them in our studio, because I just like seeing them; they're very motivational. But now I keep a couple at the house, which was actually ordered by my wife. A couple of years ago, we moved to a new house and she said, "I want a couple of those Grammys here."
And what if you don't win
Jam: Even when we've lost, it's still a great memory because it's just great to be in the room with all these other great music makers. I'm happy for whoever wins.
Lewis: The Grammy Award is for who was chosen that particular night for that particular award. And it's never a given. So I say always be gracious and be happy for someone else. You should always want the same thing for someone else that you want for yourself. You have to understand this is all part of the process, but win, lose or draw, you can never allow it to define you. We all got in this to be creative. We've accomplished that, so we've all won at that point. Anything on top of that is just ice cream on top of the cake.
In This Article: Grammy Preview 2022,	Janet Jackson,	Jimmy Jam,	Terry Lewis


The Ford Fiesta is one of the most popular subcompact cars on the market because it offers so many great attributes in one vehicle. At Fremont Ford, we know that the Fiesta is an exceptional value, whether you choose the entry-level S, the impressive SE or the sporty ST and ST-Line. Whichever trim line is right for you, you can show off your personal style behind the wheel of a Fiesta.
This Ford offers 10 different exterior colors so that you can choose the personalized finish that meets your needs. With eye-catching options like Lightning Blue and Bohai Mint, you'll make a statement driving down the street. The premium paint options also offer metallic clearcoat beauty.
The options don't just end on the exterior of the Fiesta. Choose your personal style with seven different interior color options. You can relax in soft materials and enjoy ambient interior lighting.


text:
Experience as member of company band leads Jonathan Spangler to launch a unique guitar manufacturing company
By Tom Ballard, Chief Alliance Officer, PYA
Little did Jonathan Spangler know that being selected by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of his employer to be a member of the company band would result in launching a very unique guitar manufacturing company.
"I was tapped to be the Paul Shaffer of the band," Spangler says with a laugh in referencing the longtime musical director, band leader, and sidekick of David Letterman. "I look more like him than I play like him."
The company was NuVasive Inc., a San Diego-based spine surgery company, and Spangler was Vice President and Chief Patent Attorney. He explained that the CEO, a fan of the late night television format, adopted it for NuVasive's quarterly meetings.
Because Spangler played the guitar for fun and frequently took his within him on trips, he personally experienced the proverbial pain point that travelling guitarists face. Their cases are too large to fit under a seat, and many times they have to be checked as regular luggage, resulting in damage. Those musicians might be going daily from one city to another, lugging their luggage, the large case that contains their guitar, and who knows what other related items.
What about a folding guitar that would be carried in a backpack and fit under an airplane seat?
With his background in patenting, Spangler looked for others who had developed something similar before filing a patent application for his unique folding guitar. He's secured protection for the core components that allow the guitar to fold – "identifying the friction and then solving it," he explains.
Spangler founded Ciari Guitars in March of 2016, produced his first prototype in 2017, and had his first truly playable version at the end of that year. In early 2018 while participating in the Nashville Entrepreneur Center's "Project Music" accelerator, he met Joe Glaser, a well-known Nashvillian who has operated Glaser Instruments for decades and is described as an icon in the guitar repair business.
"He's become a key member of our advisory board," Spangler says. Glaser is also one of the reasons that the guitars are custom-made in Nashville just South of the downtown.
What is very important is the fact that the foldable guitars are not just for hobbyists or occasional pickers, but also for professionals.
"Per Guitar Player Magazine, our Ascender is the first guitar that can be used professionally as a backup guitar or even as a main instrument," Spangler says. The website further describes the unique guitar this way: "With the Ascender, it is quality first, convenience second. A concealed lever 'detensions' the strings and unlocks a hinge at the neck, which allows the guitar to bend completely backwards as the strings follow the fold under light tension. The Ascender can fit in a backpack and takes up less space than any travel guitar on the market."
Ciari launched pre-sales in mid-July 2019 with plans to start delivery in early 2020. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and Ciari was able to deliver only 50. Spangler is optimistic that 2021 will be a much brighter year, in part because of the increase in guitar playing during the pandemic as people stayed at home more.
He's launched an equity-based crowdfunding campaign on the Wefunder platform (see our recent article on Wefunder here) which runs through April 30 and has raised nearly $725,000. Funds will allow Spangler to scale the company and expand the product offering to include mid-tier, less expensive models including mid-tier electric and a carbon fiber acoustic model.
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Resume Sieve using AI to help smaller businesses with hiring


text:
Consob, record 2021 for compensation to savers
A record 2021 for the compensation paid to savers by theArbitrator for financial disputes (Acf), the body established at the Consob for the out-of-court settlement of disputes between intermediaries and their customers. With 35.88 million euros returned to the pockets of savers last year a new high was reached compared to the 28.9 and 15.77 million euros paid respectively in 2020 and 2019. Thus, the total amount of reimbursements decided by the 'Acf in its first five years of operation.
The rate of acceptance of appeals also increased in 2021 (69.4%, compared to 30.4% rejected), with an average in the five-year period of 67.3% of appeals accepted and 32.7% rejected.
Business volumes are growing
In addition, the volumes of the activity are growing strongly, with a reduction in instructor and decision-making times by almost 40% in 2021 compared to previous years. Therefore, the goal of eliminating the backlog accumulated in the first three years of activity by the end of 2022 has been confirmed, following some cases of betrayed savings that have seen the ACF heavily engaged since the start of its activity in January 2017.
These are some of the most salient data that emerge from an initial summary of the work carried out by the Arbitrator in 2021. The overall value of the compensation requested remains significant, reaching just over 81 million euros in 2021, with an average appeal of over 51 thousand euros. The minimum request was € 10.92; the maximum amount of 500,000 euros, corresponding to the maximum value pertaining to the ACF. Overall, in the five-year period 2017/2021, 8,695 appeals were received, with requests for compensation for over 480 million euros (approximately 56 thousand euros, on average, per appeal).
Decision-making activity is constantly growing
In 2021, the Board held 71 meetings (53 in 2020, 46 in 2019, 45 in 2018, 27 in 2017), taking over 1,600 decisions (about 1,100 in 2020), to which must be added the inadmissibility / inadmissibility decisions, taken directly by the President (219 in 2021, down compared to previous years) and those of extinction due to an agreement between the parties (242 in 2021, positively up compared to 212 cases in 2020 and 194 in 2019).
In all, 2,107 proceedings were concluded in 2021, compared to 1,582 incoming appeals, thus bringing the number of appeals defined in the 2017/2021 five-year period to 7,373. As of December 31 last, the number of decisions published and freely available at www.acf.consob.it rose to 4,868 (they were 3,302 as of December 31, 2020).
The rate of fulfillment of the decisions of the arbitrator – remember, not binding – remains high. The percentage of spontaneous execution of ACF decisions is close to 97% of cases and is in trend and constant growth. The figure is net of the decisions referring to banks placed in liquidation or resolved in the 2015/2017 two-year period, which – as is known – were implemented through forms of public intervention by law as well as by some popular banks issuing equity securities characterized by situations of marked illiquidity .
Confirmed in quantitative terms the prevalence of applicants resident in the north of the country (42.6%), closely followed by residents in the southern regions (38%), while savers in central Italy (18.6%) and marginal ones remain far apart the presence of applicants residing abroad (0.8%). These data are consistent with those recorded over the entire five-year period.
Assistance from an attorney
The percentage of savers who opt for the assistance of a proxy is still high: 72% of applicants in 2021 compared to a five-year average of 66%. The data takes on a signaling value of the difficulties that many retail investors still encounter in becoming promoters and, above all, first-person guardians of their rights; more generally, it represents a litmus test of the still unsatisfactory level of financial literacy of large sections of the population. To remove these criticalities, the ACF intends to make its own contribution in the light of the application experience gained by now, through the implementation, already in 2022, of targeted initiatives that go in the direction of increasing the level of awareness of small savers, overcoming their distrust and promoting better participation in the economic life and development of the country.
The intermediaries agreed before the Arbitrator were 87 in 2021; 201 in all those involved in the entire five-year period, compared to 1,204 intermediaries adhering to the Acf system.
The decision fulfillment rate is an aspect to which the Arbitrator has given special importance since 2017, since it is the first parameter for assessing the degree of effectiveness of the service provided. This is why it will continue to be carefully monitored also in the future, above all through the argumentative and motivational quality of the decisions. At the same time, it remains important that intermediaries, but also savers themselves, continue to identify in the ACF the suitable instrument for the definitive solution of any dispute. This is also consistent with the enhancement process of the Adr instruments, which represents one of the cornerstones of the recent civil justice reform intervention.
Relational dynamics
Relational dynamics continue to be at the center of the reasons for the conflict between savers and intermediaries. Critical turns out to be, before any other, the preliminary disclosure phase for the investment choice. What savers often complain about is the inadequacy of the information flow received to generate truly conscious investment choices. On this front, numerous decisions have now been taken by the ACF College, in which guidelines have been elaborated which, starting from the practical cases examined, have led to the elaboration of general principles which, correctly understood and applied, can prove particularly useful for removing ex ante most of the reasons for the dispute. These principles will also find special emphasis in the 2021 annual report, which will be published by 31 March next and in which a special summary section of the most important guidelines developed in the entire first five-year period will be included, not only in terms of information, but also for what it relates to the behavior of both professional operators and savers themselves.
It is also the intention of the Arbitrator, in 2022, to carry out dialogue initiatives with stakeholders and representative associations, in order to receive feedback on the activity carried out so far and on the perceived quality of the services provided, with the aim of constantly adjusting the level to the needs of users.
Finally, the collaboration relationship, now structured, with the Financial Banking Arbitrator (Abf) and, as soon as possible, also with the newly established Insurance Arbitrator (Aas) will continue and find further forms of consolidation.
Source: RSS DiariodelWeb.it Economia by www.diariodelweb.it.
*The article has been translated based on the content of RSS DiariodelWeb.it Economia by www.diariodelweb.it. If there is any problem regarding the content, copyright, please leave a report below the article. We will try to process as quickly as possible to protect the rights of the author. Thank you very much!


Less than a week ago, I posted a script (here) to get the Total Disk Utilization Percent from a 7-Mode controller using Get-NaPerfInstance and Get-NaPerfData counters. Then, in the course of the week, I was made aware of a much easier way by which this data could be obtained using Invoke-NaSysstat. And it was so simple that I've posted two functions below, one that gets disk utilization percent for a 7-Mode controller and the other for a C-Mode Cluster.


text:
from wazimap.data.utils import get_session, merge_dicts, group_remainder
from wazimap.geo import geo_data

from wazimap_np import (
    agriculture,
    business,
    demographics,
    development,
    disasters,
    education,
    elections,
    forests,
    health,
    households
)

# ensure tables are loaded

PROFILE_SECTIONS = (
    'agriculture',
    'business',
    'demographics',
    'development',
    'disasters',
    'education',
    'elections',
    'forests',
    'health',
    'households'
)

def get_census_profile(geo_code, geo_level, profile_name=None):
    session = get_session()

    try:
        geo_summary_levels = geo_data.get_summary_geo_info(geo_code, geo_level)
        data = {}

        for section in PROFILE_SECTIONS:
            function_name = 'get_%s_profile' % section
            if function_name in globals():
                func = globals()[function_name]
                data[section] = func(geo_code, geo_level, session)

                # get profiles for province and/or country
                for level, code in geo_summary_levels:
                    # merge summary profile into current geo profile
                    merge_dicts(data[section], func(code, level, session),
                                level)

    finally:
        session.close()

    if geo_level != 'vdc':
        group_remainder(data['demographics']['language_distribution'], 10)
        group_remainder(data['demographics']['ethnic_distribution'], 10)

    return data

def get_agriculture_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return agriculture.get_agriculture_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_business_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return business.get_business_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_demographics_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return demographics.get_demographics_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_development_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return development.get_development_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_disasters_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return disasters.get_disasters_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_education_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return education.get_education_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_elections_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return elections.get_elections_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_forests_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return forests.get_forests_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_health_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return health.get_health_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

def get_households_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session):
    return households.get_households_profile(geo_code, geo_level, session)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


GlenWyvis Original Scottisg Gin from the Highlands. Made with 9 different botanicals which includes locally picked hawthorn.
Crisp full bodied taste with distinct hints of citrus coming through, along with spices at the back of the palate. Recommended serve over ice, with orange peel and a sprig of bruised coriander.


Housing Strategy 2018 - 2023: 'Cherwell - A Place to Prosper' New!
Use of CDC Land for Residential Development at Hook Norton New!
'Making' (Adoption) of the Mid-Cherwell Neighbourhood Plan New!
Monthly Performance, Finance and Risk Monitoring Report New!


Regarding the Richard O'Shields letter (Reporter-News, March 16): Richard has not been in the swamp long enough to know that all politicians are crooked. If the Reporter-News would let him, he could fill a whole page about all of crooked Hilliary Clinton's actions.
Thank goodness Trump is not a politician but is a builder, problem-solver and a swamp drainer. Richard's party is getting farther and farther into that swamp. Guess we don't have to worry too much as AOC (U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York) says the world will end in 12 years.


Product Information|YOSHIKAWA SEIMITSU Co., Ltd.
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Is The Valley a mystery, or a war novel, or what?
Neither and both. It's meant to be able to stand alone entirely as a mystery driven by Black's growing obsession with uncovering the truth of the outpost and the Valley, but to be open to a closer read. If you scratch the surface you may find a theme running through the major American characters, who are all damaged in the same way even though they choose to act in very different ways. If you scratch a bit harder and squint just right, you might convince yourself that you can make out an allegory in the structure of Black's investigation. But I prefer to let people find what they find in there. What I hope above all is that I've told a compelling human story that takes readers someplace they didn't expect to go.
So it's not mainly for "war book" people?
No. Honestly the person I had in mind writing The Valley was someone who never, or hardly ever, reads war books, who doesn't necessarily get excited about the prospect of cracking open a "gritty war story" full of acronyms and shooting, and who might need a bit of convincing to open up my book; and I'm happy to say these have been some my most enthusiastic readers. (Actually the reader I had in mind was my wife, who was the only person to read the manuscript before I sent it to my agent.) I hadn't read a war novel since college (she hadn't either), and I worked to make the book read simply as a story set among American military people and Afghan civilians in the midst of a war , instead of as a war story, if that makes sense. When my wife would get to the end of a chapter and send me to the basement to write another one, I knew I was on the right track. It's not a gear book or a firefights book or a military jargon book; it's just a story about people and the burdens they carry.
Sooooo . . . it's just a thriller.
It can really be what you want it to be. I miss old fiction that could do that.
Is all the Chuck Norris graffiti a real thing?
It's in every American Porta-Potty overseas. Soldiers love Chuck.
Why doesn't Black have a first name?
His name's Will. I only mention it a couple of times in the book though.
I had been reading detective and spy fiction for the first time after our oldest child was born, and it made me think back on some of the Army investigations I'd had to conduct as a platoon leader in Iraq, which could be very mundane and bureaucratic. You have to question nervous, suspicious soldiers who don't know you and don't trust your intentions, about things that usually turn out to be nothing. I got the idea to set a young, disgruntled lieutenant off on just one of these seemingly routine investigations, at a remote outpost very much like some of our actual outposts in Afghanistan, and I realized that this basic framework could be really fruitful for working with the themes that interested me while telling a story that was compelling in its own right.
Without saying more, the idea of blameworthiness, the weight of shame that leaders in the military carry after things go wrong, which some don't know how to set down and which can leave them broken as people. Every major character, even the unsympathetic ones, believes that everything that happens is his own fault. Also, the idea of unintended consequences writ large and small.
Some of the turns in the story seem preposterous.
They are. Have fun with it.
Is there an explanation for all the unusual events in the book, or are some things just "fog of war" and not meant to be understood?
Nothing in there is "fog of war." Things get complicated and almost surreal at points but there is a backstory and explanation for everything that happens, and except for a few things I've left conspicuously unresolved it's all explained in the text. You do have to pay close attention . . .
Why are some plot threads left unresolved at the end?
I'm not done with Black. I'm writing a different story now, but I'll be back to him after that.
Was there ever anything in real life like what Black finds at the end of the Valley?
Not that I've heard about. You?
So, is he having a conversation with himself or is he hearing voices in his head?
You'd like to know that, wouldn't you?
Why are the sections with the child Tajumal so . . .
Overbaked? Hardboiled? It's okay, I don't mind. We're living in the head of a child in those scenes, a highly intelligent and self-serious and naive child set on revenge; the tone was meant to emphasize all that childish portentousness and delusional grandiosity.
Is the Valley a real place? Is it the Korangal Valley?
No. It's a fictional place in the province of Nuristan. (The Korangal is in Kunar Province.) It is definitely like some places in Nuristan, and COP Vega is very much like some combat outposts there (though I went to town with the scale and complexity of the place), but neither the valley nor the outpost are meant to be a stand-in for any particular place, nor is my book intended as a re-telling or reimagining of any actual events. It's Platform 9 3/4 from the Harry Potter books -- there but not there.
Is "Blockhouse Signal Mountain" a real place?
Yes, but it sits on a mountaintop in Oklahoma in the middle of an active impact area littered with shrapnel and unexploded ordnance (and the "steel corpses" of target vehicles), so you can't visit it.
What did you do in the Army?
I was a field artillery officer. I had been a lawyer in New York City for a few years before I went to the Army's Officer Candidate School, at Fort Benning, Georgia. I deployed with the 3d Infantry Division from Fort Stewart (just outside of Savannah), and spent most of my time in Ramadi, Iraq in 2007-08. I left active duty in 2009 and I'm a lawyer again and strictly a family man now.
Were you as disgruntled as Black?
Everyone is disgruntled with the Army sometimes, but no, Black is a special case. I made true friends and got to have my turn taking care of soldiers, which is the reason you do the Army. When my turn was finished it was time to come home from the circus and move on to the next thing.
Is Black an idealized version of yourself? Is he "the lieutenant we all wish we could be"?
I've been surprised when folks think this. Black's arrogant, as are all young officers, and overestimates his own competence, as we all did, and can't always judge the right time to stand up to a sergeant and the right time to shut up and listen. He acts recklessly and in his own self-interest in meddling in things he doesn't fully understand, with unintended consequences cascading all around him. In a word, he's a lieutenant. He's a deeply flawed hero at best and a badly dented human being. Yet we root for him because he's compassionate and he's the underdog in the situation, and he's stubborn, and frankly because he's a mess. This much I lifted from myself: he knows how to talk to soldiers because he doesn't think he's any better than them, yet he also understands that he's not their friend. Ironically enough it's easier to relate to soldiers as equals, when you're an "old" junior officer (I was 32 when I was commissioned) than when you're 22 and think the Army revolves around you and your amazing lieutenantness.
Why'd you set the book in Afghanistan if you went to Iraq?
Iraq has remote parts, but not the same flavor of remoteness as Afghanistan. The Valley needed to be a mountain story.
Is The Valley your statement on the Afghanistan war?
No. It's just a story.
I'm not. I have a pretty healthy suspicion of most political art; it's hard to do well, and in most cases the political content ends up being a lazy stand-in for quality. I'm telling a story about characters in an extreme, historically relevant situation, and how they react to it. They all have their own views on that situation, but I would never want to corrupt their story by letting my opinions into the mix.
Is the setting/plot an homage to Conrad's Heart of Darkness or the film Apocalypse Now?
Call me a liar but I had never read Conrad when I wrote The Valley, and neither it nor Apocalypse Now ever crossed my mind. I've read it now and I guess I get what people see, but no, the setting is from the Afghan war, the plot is from crime fiction, and the themes are from my Army experiences. There's nothing particularly original about The Valley's basic premise (an amateur forced to play detective in an unfamiliar setting where things aren't what they seem), and I will gladly cop to my source material: Rudyard Kipling's The Man Who Would Be King (about Westerners meddling in Nuristan); Tim O'Brien's Going After Cacciato (particularly his use of surreal elements in a war setting); loads of detective and spy fiction (Lehane, Connelly, Le Carre); the Western travel and ethnographic literature on Nuristan (e.g., Newby's A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush, Barrington et al.'s Passage to Nuristan, Robertson's Kafirs of the Hindu Kush ); and, believe it or not, some of the classic children's literature I read as a boy. Most of this is left laying right out in the open to be found.
But seriously, it's Conrad, right?
The Afghanistan war has never held the place in the American public consciousness that the Iraq war has, even in the years after conclusion of the troop surge in Iraq, when Afghanistan became the primary locus of fighting and casualties. An Army friend who was with me in Iraq went to Afghanistan in 2010, where he dispatched emergency medical evacuation helicopters, and he would marvel: "People just have no idea what kind of fighting is happening over here." The Valley's setting is derived not from a distant literary river but from nothing more or less than the real-life mountains and valleys of Nuristan (as best I could glean through research), and the truly remote and vulnerable outposts where real young Americans fought desperately, only a few years ago. It's been a source of frustration for me that this simple and direct connection to recent American history hasn't always seemed evident.
Where can I read about what was happening in that part of Afghanistan?
Clinton Romesha's Red Platoon is a firsthand account by a Medal of Honor recipient of the October 2009 assault on Combat Outpost Keating (also referred to as the Battle of Kamdesh). COP Keating is one example of the kind of place The Valley's COP Vega was inspired by. Also, Jake Tapper's The Outpost is a first-rate source of public information on events in Nuristan over a period of years leading up to the events at Keating.
What's it like to write a mystery novel as an unknown author?
Don't tell people you're writing a mystery novel until you've sold it. Don't let your spouse tell either, unless he/she enjoys receiving mildly concerned/pitying looks from people who care about him/her/you.
I'm working on a book that's set in the same universe as The Valley but with a (mostly) different cast of characters. It's a different story entirely but will help me bring things back around to Black. It takes place in Iraq and I'm calling it The Run.


text:
Michael B. Lehner, CPA/ABV, CFE, ASA
MLehner@zbtcpa.com
VIEWPOINT ON VALUE
Valuing distressed companies
What can a rebuttal report do for you?
Follow the money: How lifestyle analysis reveals the truth
Published by Michael Lehner at July 19, 2019
Matrimonial & Divorce
Forensic accounting techniques can reveal hidden assets and sources of income. They can be invaluable in a variety of litigation contexts. For example, forensic accountants can help support a fair division of property in divorce cases, trace and recover funds in fraud cases, gather data relevant to business valuations, and facilitate damages award collection. One of the most effective weapons in an expert's arsenal is lifestyle analysis.
What is lifestyle analysis?
Simply put, lifestyle analysis involves determining and analyzing a person's income, expenses, assets and liabilities. By scrutinizing gaps or mismatches, a forensic accountant can uncover evidence that a party's income or net worth isn't what it appears to be. For example, if a party's known income sources and liquid assets are insufficient to support his or her standard of living, it's likely that he or she is hiding something.
The first step is to develop a comprehensive financial profile of the person in question. The accountant scrutinizes banking transactions, known income sources and expenditures, and changes in net worth for signs of unreported income or hidden assets.
What techniques do forensic accountants use?
To avoid detection, many individuals with unreported income typically receive it in cash. Forensic accountants use a number of techniques to show that cash is missing and to estimate the amount, including:
The bank deposits method. This technique is based on the assumption that all funds are either deposited or spent. To reconstruct a party's income, the financial expert 1) analyzes bank deposits, canceled checks and currency transactions, and 2) accounts for cash payments from undeposited currency receipts and nonincome cash sources (such as gifts, loans, insurance proceeds and inheritances). Next, the expert deducts funds from known sources from total receipts to arrive at the total funds from unknown sources.
Expenditures method. Also known as the "source and application of funds method," this technique involves analyzing a person's personal sources and uses of cash during a given time period. Sources of funds may include salaries, inheritances, loans, gifts and cash on hand at the beginning of the period. If the person is spending more than he or she is taking in, the excess likely represents unreported income.
Asset method. Also known as the "net worth method," this technique operates under the assumption that any unsubstantiated increase in a party's net worth reflects unreported income. The financial expert begins by estimating the party's net worth using bank and brokerage statements, real estate records, loan and credit card applications, and other documents. Next, he or she determines the increase in the person's net worth during the relevant time period and deducts reported income and known expenditures. The excess represents income from unknown sources.
How do experts trace hidden assets and funds?
Proving that a person has unreported income is one thing. Tracing that income to assets or accounts that can be used to support a claim or enforce a judgment is another story, particularly when the person is actively concealing those assets.
To uncover hidden assets, forensic accountants examine a variety of documents, including tax returns, bank records, real estate records, insurance policies and court filings. Loan applications, employment applications and credit reports also may yield valuable clues about the value and location of a person's wealth. Another potential strategy is to interview people with knowledge about that person's finances, such as accountants, real estate agents or business partners.
Tax returns are particularly useful. Why? Because people have strong incentives to prepare accurate returns, including the availability of deductions for certain expenditures and the fear of being charged with tax evasion. As a result, tax return entries may reveal clues about assets or income that someone is otherwise attempting to conceal. (See "Use tax returns as an investigative tool.")
How do you read the signs?
Proving, quantifying and tracing unreported income and assets can be a challenge, especially when someone is actively attempting to conceal them. Forensic accountants have the skills and experience to read the signs that lead to hidden wealth, improving the odds of a satisfactory litigation result.
Sidebar: Use tax returns as an investigative tool
Tax returns can be a rich source of information about a taxpayer's financial condition and income sources. Typically, financial experts examine returns from several years to identify significant trends. For instance, an expert may note a large increase in interest or dividend income from one year to the next, which may indicate that the taxpayer sold stocks or other investments. What happened to the proceeds? Here are a few examples of tax return entries that can lead an expert to hidden income or assets:
Income from wages may lead to undisclosed business interests.
W-2 entries may reveal unknown retirement plans.
An examination of real or personal property taxes may reveal undisclosed assets.
Entries for state and local income taxes may indicate income or assets in other states.
In addition, Schedule E — "Supplemental Income and Loss" — reports income from partnerships, S corporations, rental properties and trusts. An expert can examine income and expenses for signs that these entities are being used to hide assets. This schedule also reports royalty income, which can reveal undisclosed, income-producing assets.
Achieving a fair settlement in divorce
Know the differences between fair market value and fair value
Searching for hidden assets and unreported income in divorce
www.linkedin.com/in/michaellehnercpa
@MLehnerCPA
BusinessValuationNJ
www.zbtcpa.com
This publication is distributed with the understanding that the author, publisher and distributor are not rendering legal, accounting or other professional advice or opinions on specific facts or matters, and, accordingly, assume no liability whatsoever in connection with its use. In addition, any discounts are used for illustrative purposes and do not purport to be specific recommendations.
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text:
'Anchorman 2' turns downtown Atlanta into 1970s NYC
Jennifer Brett, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Will Ferrell comedy "Anchorman 2" is like a party with a never-ending guest list, where everyone brings a plus-one.
The movie also starring Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, Dave Koechner, Christina Applegate, Harrison Ford, James Marsden and Kristen Wiig has been filming in Atlanta for months now, and has been steadily adding to its roster. (Hey, Will Smith. We see you, Nicole Kidman. Welcome to Atlanta, Liam Neeson. Is that you, Kanye West?)
After filming at Marietta Middle School a couple of weeks ago, the movie spent a week down on the coast, where Ferrell shared a scene with a fake shark off the St. Simons Island Pier. This week, the movie set up shop at Woodruff Park, turning Atlanta into 1970s-era New York City complete with yellow taxis the size of tanks, a poster featuring the late Mayor Ed Koch and a telephone booth. Remember those?
Our favorite prop, of course, is the newsstand chock full of thick, glossy magazines and newspapers with margins as wide as Ron Burgundy's lapels. The sight of all that retro reading material made us nostalgic for those throwback wireless devices. Ah, well.
Security's been pretty robust at previous filming locations, including the Silver Skillet and Olympic Flame restaurants, Peachtree Center and private homes in Inman Park and Buckhead. But it's hard to keep too tight a lid on things when you're filming right smack in the middle of downtown Atlanta. Still, the movie's security people told us to beat it not long after I locked eyes on Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, two more recent additions. (Pffftt. It's like they don't know who we are or something.)
We're told they'll be filming all week. Stay classy, Atlanta!


Every year, hundreds of campers from all over New England come to Middlesex County Camp to meet new friends, participate in our quality core programs and, above all, embark upon a summer they will never forget.
We need your help to ensure campers for many years to come can learn and grow in Middlesex County Camp's safe, supportive environment under the guidance of a superior staff from all over the world.
Middlesex County Camp is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. As such, all donations are tax-deductible.


For more than 15 years I was lucky to find a sludge in a roman beaker with unknown content. I am a human tempted by history and because I had the equipment I separated a few months of my free time to reach the formula of a natural product probably used by a roman doctor. When you read ancient history makes deep impression that even in the fiercest battles the number of the dead because of their wounds frequently lesser was than in latest times until anti-biotic and powerful synthesized medicine in 20th century were found. Even today there are too many skin problems which are problem for the doctors and pharmacists. We are healing us with synthesized medicine and very often we become other heavier problems.
Lately increasingly more people are turning their sight towards natural medicine, food and cosmetics. As people who had very long time worked in the system for food and water control and everything related with the life quality, we decided that we have the knowledge and experience to answer the market. It proved to be that we are able to produce a product by a original ancient recipe with proved good effect on many various skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis, fungal diseases, burn and cut wounds, postoperative and decubitus wounds and other. We hope that our Bell Cream will help many people and we intend to keep on towards new products in the name of better life quality. It is wonderful to return to the forgotten ancient recipes because there are very little things which we invented and often is that what we invent not better.


text:
Baan's Busy Year
Announces strong sales, new customers in North and Latin America
Herndon, VA August 26, 2002 Despite weak IT spending, Baan an enterprise application provider for industrial companies and part of Invensys plc said it has secured 105 new business agreements in North America and 50 in Latin America for its iBaan suite of Internet-enabled solutions for the first half of 2002.
Fueled by recent announcements including iBaan for Product Lifecycle Management, iBaan for Supply Chain Management and iBaan for Customer Relationship Management, Baan said its enterprise software business in North and Latin Americas continues to grow under the Invensys banner. Among new and existing North American customers signing agreements during the period are Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. Inc. (A&P), Flexible Steel Lacing Co. and Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc.
Out of the results for the first half of the year, more than 25 agreements were in the supply chain management area. Gregg Monastiero, vice president of sales, strategic solutions, Baan Americas, said supply chain solutions alone hit a five-year record for sales for the company. He said he believes the success is due to Baan's expansion of product offerings.
In February of this year, Invensys announced its new corporate direction, and Baan was positioned in the newly formed Production Management Division. Since then, Invensys has integrated its three principle software companies Baan, Wonderware and Avantis under the leadership of Laurens van der Tang, the president of Baan, and Joe Cowan, who is chief operating officer of the combined organization. The company said the closer integration is going to accelerate the development of real-time supply chain solutions and provide manufacturers with what they need for decision-making and execution.
In Latin/Central America, companies that chose Baan were Servicios en Tuertos y Terminales, S.A. de C.D in Mexico, J. Macdeo in Brazil and LaEuropea in Mexico. La Europea a wine, liquor and ultramarines distribution with a network of 20 stores and an aggressive plan for expansion selected the iBaan Enterprise solution to help it manage strategic financial and logistics needs within its group companies and stores.
"We are pleased by market response across North and Latin America to Baan's new strategy and to our family of products and solutions," said Susan Heystee, president of Baan Americas. "Customers are turning to Baan for competitive tools that enable them to capture high performance results, improve operations and move with agility through today's complex business environment."


text:
Q: Does Camrivox Flexor work in Cloud Console? I'm working with a Flexor CTI Adapter for Salesforce, it is working in the home screen, but when it is opened in cloud Console I'm not able to receive calls or log the activities, anyone has an idea or if this software is not working with cloud console?
This is the link to the software page:
http://camrivox.com/flexor/docs/knowledge_base/en/index.html#Flexor_Manager

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


This course will explore the historical development, principal beliefs, and basic practices of eight of the world's major religious traditions, namely Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Daoism, Confucianism, Shinto, Hinduism, and Buddhism. Some of the fundamental issues that will frame our investigation are: how different traditions understand and respond to "ultimate reality"; the relationship between "faith" in a source of power beyond oneself and "discipline/self-cultivation" as a means of tapping into a source of power that lies within; the relationship between "other-worldly" goals (such as the soul's fate after death) and "this-worldly" goals (such as the attainment of advanced spiritual states in this life); and finally the significance of "modernity" and "pluralism" — two of the most powerful forces that are likely to affect the evolution of religion in the 21st century.
The Class Participation mark (worth 10% of the final grade) will be based on your ability to demonstrate that you have made a sincere attempt to read and understand the assigned material; although the quality of your comments will obviously be taken into consideration, all attempts to seriously engage the readings — from sharing your perspective on the material to simply asking a relevant question — will enhance your grade. You can also enhance your grade by posting reflections on the readings and/or class discussions to an online discussion forum that I call BodhiBlog ("Enlightenment" Blog), which can be accessed through Blackboard. Although your mark will ultimately depend on my subjective evaluation of the quantity and quality of your comments, you may reasonably expect to receive at least a "B" if you attend class regularly, actively participate in class discussions, and contribute a minimum of 5 substantial postings to the BodhiBlog.
Use the following link, which is unique to this course: https://console.pearson.com/enrollment/oe4ppy.
Click "I have not joined this course" and then "Create a Pearson Account".
After you sign in, choose this course under "My Courses"; you will then be able to purchase access online.
Bookmark https://console.pearson.com to easily access your materials. Pearson recommends using the latest version of Chrome, Firefox, or Safari with this digital product.
If you have any trouble purchasing access to the text, please let me know as soon as possible so that I can work with my Pearson representative to resolve the problem. Please note that you will need to read the assignment for 9/12 and complete a few short quizzes before our first meeting.
As you read through the online text, there will be short quizzes at the end of each section and a longer quiz at the end of each chapter. The questions for the short reading quizzes are worth 5 points if you get it right on the first try, 4 points for the second try, and 3 points for the third; for the longer quizzes at the end of the chapter each question is worth 10 on the first try, 7 on the second, and 4 on the third. There are a total of 2500 possible points (actually 2495, but I'll give you the last 5 points for free) with 100 points worth 1% for a total of 25%. You can complete these quizzes after the due date, but your mark will be reduced by 50%.
As noted above, one of the learning outcomes for this course is for you to develop the ability to reflect on the significance of religious beliefs, experiences, and practices. Towards this end, you will write a 3-4 page paper on each of these three themes as detailed below. Essay 1 is due on September 19; Essays 2 and 3 can be done in either order, but one paper must be turned in by October 17 and the other by November 18. All papers should be submitted online at Blackboard/Assignments; late submissions will be penalized one degree (e.g. from B+ to B) for each day that the paper is late.
The purpose of this assignment is for you to reflect on your own religious beliefs by comparing them with those of various other religious (and non-religious) traditions. You will begin by completing an online survey at www.selectsmart.com/RELIGION. After you finish the survey, you will receive a list of twenty-seven religious traditions ranked according to how closely their beliefs match the answers you gave. Was the tradition with which you identity at or near the top of the list … or was it closer to the bottom? Were there any other traditions at or near the top of the list that surprised you? If you are unfamiliar with a particular tradition, read the summary provided in the box on the right and/or do further research to find out about the tradition in question. Once you have contemplated the results, write a paper that explains how they reflect — or fail to reflect — your actual religious beliefs. Your paper should include an account of how you arrived at your current religious beliefs as well as discussions of at least three of the traditions on the list. For more details on the essay requirements, see the Belief-O-Matic Rubric below. Please include a copy of the survey results with your paper.
Every term, the Department of Religious Studies hosts a number of "contemplative" events, each of which features a brief talk by an experienced practitioner of a particular tradition (religious or secular), followed by a meditative exercise and open discussion. During the term, you will attend at least one of these events and then write a reflection on the experience. In addition to describing the event, your reflection should explore the religious significance of the exercise in question. For example, you might explain the relevance of the exercise with regard to the tradition with which it is associated and/or how it relates to the beliefs and practices of another religious tradition. Finally, you should conclude the paper with a reflection on how the exercise helped to enrich your understanding of religious experience. For more details on the essay requirements, see the Contemplative Event Rubric below. Click the following link for more information about the Contemplative Series. Dates for this term's Contemplative Events are provided on the syllabus.
In order to develop a deeper understanding of religious practice, you will attend a religious service in a tradition other than one with which you are closely associated and write a reflection on the experience. You will be expected to include references to a conversation with at least one member of the congregation, so you may want to contact the institution in advance to arrange for a congregant to meet you at the service. Your paper should include a general summary of the service as well as a detailed description of at least one ritual. You should discuss the significance of this ritual for the tradition in question and also how it is both similar to and different from a ritual from another religion. Finally, you should explain how attending the service and comparing rituals from different traditions enhanced your understanding of religious practice. For more details on the essay requirements, see the Religious Service Rubric below. For religious establishments in the area, see the list of Local Places of Worship.
There will be a Midterm and a Final Exam, each of which will include a combination of quiz-style questions (multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, true/false, etc.), key terms/definitions, "identify and state the significance" questions (at least one paragraph), and several longer essay questions (three or more paragraphs). For more details, click the links above.
Excessive stylistic errors (spelling, grammar, sentence construction, etc.).
Ideas are adequately expressed, but there are more than 4 stylistic errors.
Ideas are clearly expressed with no more than 4 stylistic errors.
Ideas are eloquently expressed with no more than 3 stylistic errors.
None of the religions on the list are discussed in sufficient depth.
At least 2 of the religions on the list are discussed in sufficient depth.
At least 3 of the religions on the list are discussed in sufficient depth.
There is a substantial discussion of at least 3 of the religions on the list.
There is a fundamental misunderstanding of the survey results.
The discussion of the survey results lacks clarity and/or depth.
The survey results are thoughtfully explored and appropriately interpreted.
The survey results are explored in depth and insightfully interpreted.
Your religious beliefs are not explored in sufficient depth.
The paper exhibits minimal reflection on your religious beliefs.
The paper manifests thoughtful reflection on your religious beliefs.
The paper demonstrates deep reflection on your religious beliefs.
The event is not described in sufficient detail.
The event is described in minimal detail.
The event is described in appropriate detail.
The description of the event significantly enhances the paper.
The religious significance of the contemplative exercise is not explored.
The religious significance of the contemplative exercise is briefly explored.
The religious significance of the contemplative exercise is well explored.
The religious significance of the contemplative exercise is deeply explored.
There is no reflection on the nature of religious experience.
There is minimal reflection on the nature of religious experience.
There is appropriate reflection on the nature of religious experience.
There is substantial reflection on the nature of religious experience.
There is no evidence of contact with a member of the congregation.
There is minimal evidence of contact with a congregant.
There is evidence of a significant discussion with a congregant.
The discussion with a congregant significantly enhances the paper.
The religious service is not described in sufficient detail.
The religious service is described in minimal detail.
The religious service is described in appropriate detail.
The description of the religious service significantly enhances the paper.
There is no reflection on the nature of religious practice.
There is minimal reflection on the nature of religious practice.
There is appropriate reflection on the nature of religious practice.
There is substantial reflection on the nature of religious practice.


The Rolling Stones are one of the most enduring bands in rock 'n' roll, having released upwards of 20 studio albums alone, and have embarked on some of the largest and most epic world tours known to the industry. Before they became globally ubiquitous, the Rolling Stones were a pioneering act of the first order, a gritty, blues-based rock 'n' roll band that played in stark contrast to the hum-able Beatles fare and gave face to a new legion of bold and bawdy rock stars. Melding influences far and wide, including hard rock, psychedelic, pop, blues, and country, the Stones were founded in London in 1962 by multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and blues piano player Ian Stewart, and were eventually rounded out by the rest of the troop, comprised of singer Mick Jagger, guitarist Keith Richards, bassist Bill Wyman, and drummer Charlie Watts.
Their manager, Andrew Loog Oldham, got the band a contract with Decca Records in 1965, kicking off their popular music career. As a more dangerous pop/rock counterpart to the Beatles' brand of pop, the band released increasingly ambitious original work, including 1966's Aftermath and 1967's Between the Buttons. They would record two records before Jones left the band and tragically died in 1969: the psychedelic Their Satanic Majesties Request and thoroughly rocking Beggar's Banquet, both of which brought about considerable expansions in the band's sonic palette. The Stones brought in Mick Taylor to replace Jones, and Taylor stayed on board until 1974, around the time longstanding player Ronnie Wood jumped on board.
A notorious free gig at Altamont Speedway in California—an event documented in the grim rock documentary Gimme Shelter—would go down disastrously, erupting in violence and the death of a young black man in the crowd. In the years following this tragic event, the band would release two more classic records: 1971's Sticky Fingers and 1972's Exile on Main St. Their mid-'70s records would sell well but were not as well-received critically, until the release of the self-reinventing Some Girls in 1978, which masterfully incorporated the emerging disco, new wave, and punk trends into a strong, immediate set of songs. In the '80s, Tattoo You was quite successful commercially and critically, but their records in the years to come wouldn't be quite as strong/musically coherent due to Jagger and Richards' disagreement about what style of music to adopt. Each primary songwriter would release a solo album in the 1980s, and Richards' Talk Is Cheap turned out to be a great success—one of the best Stones-related albums ever.
The band would stage a number of highly profitable tours through the '80s and '90s, including those behind Steel Wheels, Voodoo Lounge, and Bridges to Babylon. Wyman would leave the group following the release of live record Flashpoint in 1991, replaced by bass player Darryl Jones. The Rolling Stones continue to record and tour to the present day, traveling further on what is already one of the longest ever careers in rock 'n' roll. Their most recent record is A Bigger Bang, released in 2005.


The FDIC processed a total of 24 orders in July. These included five removal-and-prohibition orders, 11 civil money penalty orders, three cease-and-desist orders, and five terminations of cease-and-desist orders.
http://www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/enforcement/neworders.html. A list of orders made public today follows.


Is there really no more confirm exit?
Because if so that is absolutely silly.
I'm not seeing anything in Power User settings or in the flags to warn me when closing multiple tabs though.
I really want to like Opera, but every time I come back I just run into stumbling block after stumbling block just to get basic browser functionalities that would be common in any other browser.
Opera is based on Chrome. Chrome doesn't have confirm on exit either AFAIK. At least it stays open when you close your last tab. If you do that in Chrome is exits completely. Just don't hit the X in the corner and you will be fine.
I don't mean I worry about closing tabs when exiting the browser, I mean closing multiple tabs while still in the browser.
I often work with a lot of open tabs and close groups of them at a time. A system like Opera's, where I could so easily see myself accidentally closing all other tabs and not just, say, tabs to the right and losing all of my places would be immensely annoying and there just doesn't seem to be a way to mitigate that.
Looking at Opera right now it just kind of seems devoted to being a mobile browser--as simplistic as possible and with little apparent functionality or care for ability beyond short browsing sessions.
Well, it is still very much in development. They don't have a large dev team and it takes time to get everything up to speed.
+1 for an optional warn dialog when exiting the browser and more than one tab is opened.


Unwind with an indulgent spa experience and enjoy the chance to relax in style. Choose from a wide range of luxury UK venues, from quaint country houses to stylish health clubs. There are hundreds of luxury spa experiences to pick from. Enjoy a day of soothing treatments or retreat for a charming overnight spa escape for two. This voucher is the ideal gift for those who love to be pampered.


DVB-T/T2/C/S2 IP is a highly optimized multi standard DVB-T/T2/C/S/S2 Decoder solution designed for next generation satellite, cable and terrestrial digital television reception.
DVB-T/T2/C/SS2 IP converts demodulated I/Q signals into a bit stream for use by the video decoder. This includes all de-interleaving, FEC decoding and output processing.


text:
Tag: Ariana and the Rose
THE LEGENDARY ISSUE 7 TRAILER
Check out a Preview of Behind The Scenes videos from The Legendary Issue 7 of The Untitled Magazine - Featuring Boy George, Brooke Shields, Tiesto, Oh Land, Brooke Candy, Riff Raff, Chanel Iman and more! About The Legendary Issue 7: The special collector's edition of The Untitled Magazine presents a cross-over of the most inspirational…
ARIANA AND THE ROSE- NEW VIDEO RELEASE "HEARTBEAT" + TOUR DATES
After a successful fashion week tour, Ariana and the Rose is getting quite the buzz. Their electro-pop sound has been likened to a brilliant combo of Lana Del Ray and Regina Specktor. Lead Singer Ariadna DiLorenzo appears Paul McCartney's new "Queenie Eye" video alongside Kate Moss, Johnny Depp, Chris Pine, Jeremy Irons, and Jude Law. After being raised on…
THE UNTITLED MAGAZINE PARIS FASHION WEEK PARTY
On Friday. September 27th, The Untitled Magazine threw a blow-out bash celebrating Paris Fashion Week off the Champs Elysee in Paris, France. The event was hosted by Editor in Chief Indira Cesarine, Courtney Blackman, Jana Ririnui and Lady Victoria Hervey. Champagne and cocktails were served, while guests were treated to make-overs by the runway beauty…


A new song from Sean Kingston, a US-based singer with JA roots. The video was filmed in Kingston and Portmore's Gaza (where Kartel is from). No word on how the vocals from Kartel materialized, as he is in prison right now.


Story of Seasons creator Yasuhiro Wada's latest project Little Dragon Cafe is now available for pre-order on Amazon. With the pre-order availability we got quite a few new screenshots of the game!
While no trailer is currently available for the game, we can get quite a bit of information based off these screenshots! This game seriously looks like a return to Wada-san's Bokujo roots, and I am honestly excited to see what else this game has to offer.
Little Dragon Cafe is currently available to pre-order on Amazon with a Limited Edition on the way!
Posted on March 19, 2018, in Reviews. Bookmark the permalink.	Leave a comment.


text:
The economy enjoyed a strong revival in the spring although growing troubles in housing and credit markets have darkened prospects considerably since then.
The gross domestic product, the broadest measure of economic health, expanded at an annual rate of 4 percent in the April-June quarter, the Commerce Department reported yesterday. That was the strongest showing in more than a year and considerably higher than the 3.4 estimate for growth made a month ago.
The improved performance reflected higher activity in such areas as international trade and business investment, which offset a continued plunge in housing construction.
Stocks finished a back-and-forth session mixed yesterday as investors grappled with economic data and weighed the chances of the Federal Reserve lowering interest rates.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is expected to speak today at the central bank's annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyo., and said in a letter Wednesday to Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., that Fed policymakers are "prepared to act as needed" if the market's turmoil damages the economy. The Fed's next meeting is Sept. 18, but some on Wall Street expect the central bank could act sooner.
Sears Holdings Corp. posted its lowest profit in nearly two years yesterday after another round of weak sales at Kmart and Sears stores sent the retailer's net income tumbling 40 percent.
Led by hedge fund wizard Ed Lampert, Sears has seen much of its recent financial success boosted by investment income. But after months of curtailing expenses, the company continues to be vexed by falling sales and profit margins.
Net income for the period ended Aug. 4 fell to $176 million, or $1.17 per share, from $294 million, or $1.88 per share, a year earlier, when the company was helped by a one-time gain. Revenue dipped 4 percent to $12.24 billion.
H&R Block Inc. yesterday cast new doubt on the pending sale of its troubled mortgage lending arm, saying it's trying to renegotiate sales terms as credit markets continue to deteriorate.
The Kansas City-based company said if negotiations are successful, it would stop selling new loans through Option One Mortgage Corp., have several closing requirements waived and try to get the buyer, a subsidiary of Cerberus Capital Management, to close before the current deadline of Dec. 31.
H&R Block will exit the mortgage business regardless of negotiations with Cerberus, Chief Executive Mark Ernst said, but added "when and how exactly that would happen is fairly fluid at the moment."
— The Associated Press


Today's post is a long one but a fun one! I'm rounding up a bunch of my day & night outfits from Barbados plus sharing some details about our trip, including where we stayed, what we did & what we ate! To start, let's check out my clothes & accessories!!
How cute is this sweatshirt? I wore it on our flights to & from Barbados and plan to wear it with denim shorts out East all summer long!
White is my favorite color when it comes to swimwear. It instantly brightens you up & makes your skin look more tan! You can't tell in this photo, but this suit is lace!
You saw these sets in Thursday's post but I couldn't resist including them again. Clearly I'm obsessed but can you blame me??
Loving one piece styles right now. These two have a high cut on the legs making your legs look miles long! Plus, they are under $50!
Have you noticed a trend in our looks yet? I told you we loved to match/coordinate!
These sandals are going to become my new favorites this summer. Classic color & style & SO comfy!
Star prints are everywhere lately! I love this unique print, especially in a subtle way like on these denim shorts! They were so cute for the beach!
Now onto our travel details...My family likes to take one trip a year to a tropical place to relax and spend time together without any distractions. Last year, we headed to the Hilton in Barbados & we loved it so much that we headed back to the same location this year! This is something we had NEVER done in all our years of traveling! I like the excitement of visiting somewhere brand new, but it was cool to visit a place a second time since we were familiar with the ins & outs of the hotel & area this time around!
As I mentioned, for the second year in a row, we stayed at the Hilton in Barbados. The hotel is really nice & is the perfect place to stay for a relaxing vacation. The resort has multiple pools plus beach access! Even on the first day that we arrived, we were able to find chairs & huts on the beach. (Some beaches/resorts we have visited in the past require you to arrive at the beach super early or even reserve a space the night before to guarantee a space for yourself, but this beach was spacious enough & had plenty of chairs!) The views on both sides of the hotel are awesome but there is nothing like waking up to see the ocean! I loved the view from our balcony. Lastly & perhaps my favorite aspect of this hotel: the executive lounge. For an extra cost, you can stay on an executive lounge floor which gives you access to the lounge on the top floor of the hotel. The lounge served breakfast each morning & hosted a happy hour each evening, along with having drinks & snacks available all day. It was so nice to wake up & go upstairs for breakfast & we LOVED the happy hour to grab a drink & snack before dinner. My parents made the reservations for this trip, so I'm not sure of the exact cost, but I highly recommend getting lounge access!
To be honest, we didn't do much! This trip was a little shorter than our typical family trips so we really took advantage of the time we had to relax. The hotel offers non motorized sports equipment for rent (called Barbados Blue). My dad & sister rented boogie boards and enjoyed riding the waves. On our last full day, my dad and I ventured out in a kayak on the bay side of the hotel. The water on that side is much calmer and is perfect for kayaking, paddle boarding, jet skiing, etc. Last year when we kayaked, we were able to spot sea turtles swimming around but this year sadly, we didn't see any!
If its your first time in Barbados, I would recommend visiting St Lawrence Gap. We ate in that area for dinner last year & it was really nice to walk around. I also wanted to visit Harrison's Cave - it sounded really amazing - but again, this trip was short so we chose sun & relaxation over adventure this time.
Since we had visited Barbados already, we had a few favorite restaurants in mind that we wanted to visit. We ate at 'Tapas,' 'Buzo' & 'The Grill' for dinner during our trip.
Tapas: Tapas is a gorgeous location right on the water - we had a great view of the sunset during dinner. We LOVED this restaurant last year & liked it again this year. My whole family agreed, the staff at hotels/restaurants makes a huge difference. When the wait staff goes above & beyond to make you feel welcome, it really betters the experience overall & our waiter this time around wasn't as animated as we remember the previous waiter. If you do decide to eat at Tapas, I would recommend trying something out of the box! Their menu includes foods like shark fritters & barracuda - when else can you eat that?!
Buzo: I had remember Buzo being one of my favorite restaurants last year & it remains one of my favorites this year as well. Buzo is an Italian restaurant with gorgeous decor & the best bruschetta trio we've ever had! For dessert, we ordered a couple of flavors of sorbet and they arrive in the shell of their fruit! It was the coolest presentation! The pineapple sorbet was actually in a pineapple!
The Grill: On our last night, we decided to try the hotel's restaurant, The Grill - a place we didn't eat the year prior. The service was a bit slow & bread cost extra but other than that, this restaurant was great & again, the decor & wait staff were lovely. Sometimes the hotel restaurants can be extra pricey but I thought this one was able equal in price to the other restaurants we ate at.
- Everything that had a price next to it seemed SO expensive and I had to remind myself it was Barbadian dollars. A US dollar equals about 50% of 1 Barbados dollar.
Have you vacationed in Barbados? What was your favorite part of your trip?
Thank you for breaking it all down so well Michelle. Great suggestions will keep it in mind for my vacay to Barbados. All your outfits were all on point. That sweatshirt is super cute. Have a great weekend.
So glad you found this post to be helpful!
I'd love to go to Barbados! I'll keep your suggestions in mind in case I end up booking a trip there.
It's an amazing location! Definitely worth considering for your next trip!
You have amazing style. I absolutely love the beach dress.
Beautiful pictures and that coverup with tassels in tow is to dye for!!!


text:
Infectious disease expert, human rights activist differ on new COVID-19 guidelines
By Our Reporters
A mural on COVID-19 awareness, painted on a wall along the roadside in New Delhi on Thursday. Photo: AFP
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Our Correspondents
Chairman, Committee on Infectious Disease for the Nigerian Medical Association, Lagos State branch, Dr. Japheth Olugbogi, has said that the new guidelines released by the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19 to further curtail the spread of COVID-19 in the country shows that the Federal Government is being proactive.
Olugbogi spoke during a live programme on Television Continental, Your View.
The Federal Government, through the Presidential Steering Committee, had, on Monday, reviewed the country's COVID -19 guidelines by restricting gatherings at places of worship and banning nightclubs as parts of measures aimed at preventing the spread of devastating strains of COVID-19 in the country.
In the interview, Olugbogi said the new guidelines were essential.
He described them as proactive steps by the government to combat the spread of the virus across the country.
"It is due to what is happening all over the world, actually. I think the government is just trying to be proactive instead of being reactive. So, that is what is going on.
"We are having variants in some countries. We have increased social meetings everywhere now, relaxation of the public health and social preventive measures all over the world now, and a lot of people have not received the vaccine.
"So, some countries have what we call a third wave or a fourth wave, and because of that, a lot of people are getting the infection afresh because they have relaxed public health preventive measures.
"So, I think the Federal Government is just trying to prevent that from happening here," he said.
He lamented that people have continued to neglect the observance of non pharmaceutical protocols of keeping the virus at bay, saying, "If you look around, a lot of people have stopped wearing face masks and using hand sanitisers. We can't even say that health workers are left out.
"We have all let our guard down, and I think government is just trying to prevent what is happening in places like India from happening here. That is why the new measures are out."
Olugbogi said until COVID-19 is defeated in every part of the world, Nigerians must keep putting up preventive measures to curtail the pandemic.
"We cannot defeat COVID-19 until it has been defeated all over the world because the way it works in public health is that if we still have this pandemic even in one country, it can spread to other countries of the world," he added.
But the National President of the Centre for Human Rights and Anti-Corruption Crusade, Cleric Alaowei, on Tuesday, faulted the new guidelines released by the PSC on COVID-19, describing as "most insensitive and unreasonable."
He made his position known in a statement titled 'COVID-19: The new restriction order is unnecessary.'
It read, "The new restriction order given by the Presidential Steering Committee to partially lock down the economy is uncalled for.
"The order is most insensitive and unreasonable. We do not see any reason for the new restriction which will only further heighten the hardship in the country.
"Even as of today, the daily figure being released by the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control is barely 49 or thereabouts."
Alaowei said while his organisation was not opposed to the measures and safety protocols being undertaken to curtail the spread of the disease, it is concerned about the continued lockdown of the economy.
The statement added, "No doubt that the continued closing down of bars, recreational centres, nightclubs and restaurants breeds unemployment which is a dangerous omen to the society.
"Already, millions of Nigerians have been displaced by the lockdown of the economy last year due to the outbreak of the coronavirus. Many of those unemployed minds are becoming a burden to the society.
"There is no spike in the spread of the disease. What Nigeria needs now is national emergency to tackle our intractable conundrum, which is insecurity. The only lockdown the country needs now is partial state of emergency.
"The Federal Government should declare state of emergency in parts of the North, especially in the North-East, North-West and parts of the North-Central. The partial emergency should also be extended to the South-East, South-West and part of the South-South."
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