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Column: Growing Pains Of A Young Democracy
[Opinion column written by Voters Rights Association]
Although Bermuda's Parliament held its first session in 1620 it is only relatively recently that it has enjoyed proper representative democracy.
The Island's first general election held on the basis of universal adult suffrage and equal voting took place on May 22, 1968, so Bermuda's is an immature democracy, a young democracy that, in our opinion, still has plenty of growing to do.
It is in that context that the Voters Rights Association [VRA] is campaigning for a Voters Bill of Rights to put into law some things that we believe will enhance, and therefore strengthen, the democratic process in Bermuda.
Currently the party in power invites you to vote at its election, so we want to see the right to vote enshrined in law and we also want to see the right to fixed term elections. At present it is up to the Government of the day to pick the date of the general election, giving the ruling party an unfair advantage.
Is it right that a candidate can be parachuted into a constituency they have never lived in? We don't think so and so we want to see election candidates to be from the constituency they live in or an adjoining constituency.
We think that will lead to a better understanding and representation of that constituency and therefore be of increased benefit to the people who live there.
Debate is important to determine the facts and to see if the potential representative understands the constituents needs, not just the party's needs, so we want the right for all election candidates in a constituency to participate in open debate.
One of the most important issues we want to see addressed is the right of constituents to recall parliamentarians they have elected. Is it OK that an MP should declare themselves as independent MP even though they have not been elected as one?
All eligible Bermudians overseas should have the right to vote. We have witnessed discussions and promises but no action. The right to a fair absentee ballot voting system must be enshrined in legislation.
Referendums are used in jurisdictions around the world and if Bermuda is to be truly democratic we think that there should be a right to voter referendums.
Government must listen and act when the people have spoken. Referendums are an appropriate vehicle to raise and determine public issues and citizen's initiatives and it takes representative democracy one step further.
There are two other areas where we believe urgent action is necessary.
The Auditor's General's powers need to be strengthened to ensure full and proper access to all relevant financial and other supporting files and records, including those of Government suppliers. The Auditor General should also have the power of subpoena.
The Human Rights Commission should be a completely independent commission established in the Bermuda Constitution. The Commission should be proactive in looking after the rights of Bermudians [not acting as a defence unit to protect the government].
The VRA also believes that it is critical that the powers of the Ombudsman are increased to include the power to be able subpoena Cabinet Ministers and Junior Ministers.
All these can be included in a Voters Bill of Rights.
The VRA has written to all the parliamentary candidates seeking election to the House of Assembly on July 18.
We wrote: "The VRA is adopting the position of negative resolution whereby only in the instance where you object to any principle of the Voters' Bill of Rights will your objection be noted and subject to open debate.
"Having observed the process of 'onboarding' and the difficulty of reaching consensus we are offering you the opportunity for 'off boarding' instead. That 'off boarding' to take shape in the form of declaring any objection to the basic principles of the Voters' Bill of Rights.
"We ask that you clearly state your objection to any particular principle and put forth your reasoned arguments against that principle concisely and clearly."
The letter adds: "Party politics has gone astray and this sentiment is being voiced consistently in the community; and the VRA feels that supporting the principles of a Voters' Bill of Rights is a great opportunity for both political parties and individual candidates to stand for a respectful and participatory process that will move to deepen engagement in our democracy.
"Both political parties profess their desire to make Bermuda better and the Voters' Bill of Rights is an important and fundamental course of action to fulfill and honour that goal."
If you believe in strengthening democracy in Bermuda, we would ask that you approach your parliamentary candidates and ask them to support a Voters Bill of Rights. Make is plain to them that you are dissatisfied with the current system and that the electorate deserves a bigger role.
Our mission statement says: "The mission of the Voters' Rights Association [VRA] is to provide a voice and a vehicle within the political process for voters to participate more fully in the policy decisions that affect their collective lives."
Please make your voices heard.
Ian Macdonald-Smith, VRA Chairman
Richard Powell, VRA Vice Chairman
Sakeena Talbot, VRA Secretary
Tasha Jones, VRA Committee
Stuart Hayward, VRA Co-Chairman Emeritus
Geoff Parker, VRA Co-Chairman Emeritus
- Voters Rights Association
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Opinion columns reflect the views of the writer, and not those of Bernews Ltd. To submit an Opinion Column/Letter to the Editor, please email info@bernews.com. Bernews welcomes submissions, and while there are no length restrictions, all columns must be signed by the writer's real name.
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purpose and intention
TheRIVER began during the excitement of an International Backpacker Conference in Amsterdam March 2014. At this conference, 45 of us from 12 nations and traveler communities gathered together. For three days we brainstormed and prayed. We dreamed of what it could look like for our communities to work together. Since then the number of communities involved in theRIVER has more than doubled.
Where did we come from? Most of our communities started out alone, without knowing that anyone else cared about the same things. A few forward thinking people saw that we had to start working together if we were going to have any impact. Among them were those who planned the original Backpacker Conferences many years ago, and those who started Backpacking It Is, Faith Travels, and The Banyan Tree. These people blazed the trail for what eventually became theRIVER.
Our story as theRIVER is a growing one. We are seeing people with the same vision for travelers praying and working together at a scale we have never seen before. And its just gaining momentum. It's clear to us that this kind of movement is not the result of hard work by many people, or by a culmination of many years of effort. This is happening as the Spirit of God draws people together to serve and love each other, and that makes it a fun thing to be a part of. What is your place in the story?
© 2023 theRIVER. designed by Felix Gerber

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


In a society founded on individual freedom, most of the health care plans currently in Congress should not even be an option. If we have a shred of decency, most of the bills being worked on in Congress will be tossed out and reforms based on the individual freedoms our country was founded on will be devised. Most of the bills in Congress will do exactly what they claim will happen if things are not fixed, except it will happen even faster. There are very few people who say nothing should be done. Do not buy into that straw man argument.
Many jobless Americans would rather have the economy be the number one priority. This does not diminish the health care problems. But first show you can help the economy or at least not make it worse. A growing, healthy economy will alleviate many health care problems. Believe me there are many people and small businesses that are sitting back waiting for fear that cap & trade, all the taxes being talked about to pay for ObamaCare, the health coverage penalty taxes, surtaxes and others will be enacted. This uncertainty will keep jobs from being created and keep the recovery from happening. Many businesses have done all the cuts they can do. Some still offer their employees health insurance, especially those that have found the high-deductible variety with an HSA. Cap & tax, other taxes and the current health care bills in congress, with their included massive tax increases, will cause layoffs and most likely put many out of business, even if they dump health care onto a public option. There are so many in this situation. Small business should be fueling the recovery. Instead they are struggling. This is a bad sign for a recovery.
Many have read the bills that are in Congress and they have deemed them to be disastrous. Yes, many of the claims are exaggerated, however, those writing the bills and those who advise the President have said publicly they want a single-payer system. Those who devised the public option admit publicly that it was designed as the first step to a government-run single-payer system, and even the President has publicly said several times in the past he is in favor of a single-payer system. These facts just make people uneasy and wary of what is in the bills. The ideas the President's advisers espouse and the fact that he would surround himself with these advisers is troubling. These ideas may be watered down or taken out of the bills. But I believe they should not be advising on something this personal. The bills in Congress have many aspects i.e. taxes, employer taxes and penalty fees, surtaxes, coverage mandates in the exchange and many other things in HR 3200 that will cause many to be dumped onto a public option or co-op if it is available.
Mandates will just raise health care costs. These bills do not address high costs; they just build on the problems without fixing them. Even a deficit neutral ObamaCare plan would cost more. Higher taxes would only pay for part of the trillions in cost. Costs would skyrocket year after year, like Medicare, Medicaid and other government entitlements, because these plans do not address the high costs, they just build on these crumbling foundations. If you have to raise taxes to pay for health care, you are not saving any money; you are making it more costly. The plans in Congress spend trillions and raise taxes, yet they still leave 17-34 million uninsured. This is not a good investment, especially considering it will slow the economy and lower the quality of health care.
You cannot dismiss the plans that are in congress just because they are a work in progress. They are similar and they represent the direction those in congress wish to go. Do not allow yourself to be deceived. Do not dismiss anything until you have vetted it out. Just because you hear it on TV does not make it true. In fact, those pushing the reforms in Congress and sometimes even the President have made wild claims.
Don't forget the original plan was to get a bill done before the August break. Which means a bill similar to the House HR 3200, Baucus or Kennedy plans would have been voted on with an included public option. One could say that is what they really want. This is far too important for that amount of speed and deception. The American people should have been included from the beginning. That has added to the distrust and related falling poll numbers of Congress, the President and the current health care plans. This has added to the frustration that is now being released at town hall meetings across the country.
The framework for a panel to curb costs and build guidelines for treatments for doctors to follow has already been set up in the stimulus bill and it is in HR 3200. In medicine there is no one size fits all. Everyone is different, everyone responds differently to various treatments. The same form of cancer, for instance, responds differently to the same treatment from patient to patient. Sometimes there has to be fine-tuning or a combination of treatments. If certain treatments are mandated and others are deemed too expensive or take too long to be certified, many patients will not receive the care they deserve. A centralized panel would lower the standard of care. A panel or bureaucracy making these decisions would by their nature arbitrarily discriminate against some, with no recourse for the patient. For those who think health care is a right, this would infringe on that right. In any case, with real reforms there is no need for a panel to curb costs.
Rationing already happens in Oregon, MA (just started because of costs) and the VA. The pharmaceutical companies often pay for drug treatments for cancer patients themselves when these states will not cover it.
There were amendments introduced to add to the bills that would prohibit rationing etc. These amendments would have put to rest those rumors once and for all. They were defeated.
I urge everyone to take more time to research material even if only to debunk it.
A centralized, government mandated and controlled health care system with a "public option" that will lead to single payer health care will lead to disaster. This statement taken on its own is a true statement. I do not make this claim, rather history and current systems around the globe show this. The health care plans in congress have to be studied to make sure they are not going in this direction.
Until there is a plan that is going in the direction of true reform, many Americans will continue to fight for rational reforms and against what currently is in Congress.
Now is the perfect time to streamline government and cut spending. When times are good they will never do it, but now that times are tough, with huge budget shortfalls, we should take advantage of it.
We need to make government more efficient and less wasteful. Get rid of the waste and inefficiencies, streamline pensions and welfare, clean up fraud and corruption, and layoff the unproductive government worker. Layoff the two or three people it takes to do the job of one person. All this will allow deep spending cuts. Combine all this with real tax cuts, not just token tax credits, and it will put money back into the private sector causing people and business to spend and create jobs.
The out of work unproductive government workers can then find productive private sector jobs and create goods and provide services. This will bring in more income that will create even more jobs and allow even more spending. The economy will grow exponentially, the GDP will skyrocket, and everyone will be able to provide for themselves, their retirement, health care, etc.
The small number of those that have legitimate needs can finally be helped. We would not need government bailouts, handouts, welfare, social security, Medicare, Medicaid, pensions and definitely not government health care.
The fraud, waste, inefficiencies and unproductive government workers combined with the resulting higher taxes and spending, just drag down the economy. The economy will increasingly slow and unemployment will rise.
The stimulus has failed in many ways. It does not stimulate. History tells us it will actually prolong the recession. It is not pro-growth policy but rather job kill policy. It is irresponsible, massive deficit spending and generational theft. It takes revenue away from the private sector and uses it to prop up public sector waste, failure and irresponsible spending.
The fact that only 10% has trickled out and the rest was designed to be spent in 2010 and beyond is a failure in and of itself. It is also a failure of those who wrote the bill.
Because it is government spending, the process of getting the money out is slow and it is subject to fraud and waste with no accountability, which we have already seen. Most of it is wasteful government deficit spending that ramps up in 2010 and will do more harm than good anyway. Even Keynesian's dropped their support for the bill before it was enacted. Most believe spending should be upfront and on infrastructure make-work projects, which are temporary. A Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report on the stimulus bill said that "in the longer run, the legislation would result in a slight decrease in gross domestic product compared with CBO's baseline economic forecast." Government spending does not grow the economy.
The tax credits are too small and the dispersal method makes them unnoticeable. The tax credits also increase your tax liability. They are also temporary and people know this. Real tax cuts would stimulate without being filtered through the bureaucratic waste machine. More bang for the buck. A $400 tax credit cost the taxpayer close to $800 in taxes. It basically amounts to the federal government taking close to $800 from the taxpayer and giving them back $400 which they then tax.
It will increase the deficit by a trillion or more by the time it is all done. Borrowing or raising taxes to pay for the stimulus has a negative job-killing impact on the economy as well, not to mention the inflationary impact of weakening the dollar by printing to pay for spending.
The economy will eventually start to recover despite the prolonging effect of the stimulus. But with the trillion dollar budget plan, the trillions this administration is adding in spending, debt and to the deficit, and if cap & tax, ObamaCare and other destructive bills, many which have built-in trade protectionism, are passed the economy will get worse. Indeed, a malaise that will last for decades. These bills will hurt many people and small businesses which will cause many to make less and lose jobs. They will also cause jobs to be shifted overseas.
The uncertainty caused by the unpredictability of this administration and congress i.e. "how bad will future taxes be and what other harmful bills and regulations will be enacted?" is causing businesses and consumers to not create jobs or spend. This administration's and congress' policies will do more harm to the economy than even the recession.
This didn't have to be. America will learn once again what history could have taught them, insane tax rates and spending will slow the economy and kill jobs. The progressive policies of CA, NY, NJ and many others are examples of how to destroy an economy. These examples can teach us what not to do. If everyone would study history with a basic understanding of economics this could be avoided.
The rest of the stimulus should be scrapped and real pro-growth policies like marginal tax-rate and spending cuts, and others should be implemented. Consistent, confidence inspiring policies will enable Americans to keep more income and businesses to create jobs, small business being the usual job creators that fuel the economy out of a recession.
Rather than tax income out of the economy, with the resulting bureaucratic waste, only to redistribute it back in mostly to non-productive public sector areas that do not grow the economy, why not leave it there in the first place? Real tax cuts. People would instantly have more income, business would have more to grow and create jobs. This would actually stimulate, cost less, and have quicker, more permanent results with smaller deficits and debt by trillions. There would be no need to spend money they don't have on bailouts, cash for clunkers, more entitlements and extending unemployment and welfare. This would mean they don't have to borrow and print trillions either. Combined with spending cuts, the economy would boom, bringing freedom & prosperity to all Americans.
Most of us know the economically illiterate in this Administration and Congress would never do this. There is only one other option, 2010 - 2012.


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Tokyo, Japan, Feb 27, 2008
CREAMER USES SEAMLESS COVER TECHNOLOGY TO TAME HAWAIIAN TRADE
WINDS IN COME-FROM-BEHIND WIN
Paula Relies on iQ 180 ball in 2nd Win in 4 Starts
Covington, Ga. - LPGA Tour star and Precept staff player, Paula Creamer, used impressive shot-making and deft control around the greens (with her signature pink Precept ball) on Sunday to post a bogey-free final round 66 (6-under par), in-route to victory at the Fields Open in Hawaii. The victory, which completes the career "Aloha Slam" for Creamer, is her first this year and second in her last four starts on the LPGA Tour.
"To win so early in the season is a thrill," said Creamer. "It shows that all the hard work I've put in during the off-season has paid off. Being part of a shootout is always exciting. My pink Lady iQ 180 cut through the Hawaiian winds and gave me the confidence to fire at pins when the tournament was on the line."
The iQ 180 ball features Seamless Cover TechnologyT for ultimate consistency in ball-flight. Unlike competitors' balls, Precept SCTT assures that more of the surface of the ball is covered with dimples, resulting in added accuracy and consistency. In addition, the pink Lady iQ 180 also relies on Precept's patented, Gradational Compression core technology, using varying degrees of firmness from the inside to outside of the core in order to create greater repulsion and more distance off the tee.
"For the second-straight season, Paula has recorded the first victory for our worldwide Tour team," said Dan Murphy, Senior Director of Marketing - Precept/Bridgestone Golf. "Her on-course performance has been outstanding, and that combined with the excitement she generates among fans, and her work to grow the game among young people, means that she stands for everything the Precept brand stands for. She is the perfect ambassador."
Creamer's win at Fields Open is her fifth LPGA TOUR victory and second with the pink Lady iQ 180 golf ball.
The Lady iQ 180 golf ball is available in pink, yellow, traditional white and pearl white and features a suggested retail price of $30 per dozen. For more information on the iQ series of balls and all of the 2008 Precept products visit www.preceptgolf.com.
Bridgestone Golf, Inc., based in Covington, GA, manufactures and markets premium golf balls, clubs and accessories under the Precept and Bridgestone brand names. Bridgestone is represented on a world stage by a number of internationally famed golfers including, Stuart Appleby, Paula Creamer, Fred Couples, Charles Howell III and Brandt Snedeker. Bridgestone Golf, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bridgestone Sports Co. Ltd., whose headquarters are in Tokyo.
Jared Kelowitz
jaredk@jdpr.com
JDPR, 864-233-3776 x 24


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The mini stainless steel multifunction screwdriver keychain is a good size with a useful range of screwdriver bits. Compacted 3 in 1:✔ Flat head screwdriver / ✔ Phillips screwdriver / ✔ Star nut driver. Uses: Can be used for cell phones, watches, jewelry, sunglasses, eye glasses, computers, etc. Made of durable stainless steel with added grip for better handling. The keychain design makes it convenient for carry, for hanging storage, and travel friendly. The multifunction screwdriver keychain is suitable for repairing glasses, wristwatch, cell phone, jewelry, sunglasses, eyeglasses, computers, watches, precision crafts, etc.
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Oil-free formula dissolves stubborn eye makeup, gently and thoroughly.
Daily removal of eye makeup can pull, irritate, and damage the delicate skin around the eye. This oil-free formula dissolves stubborn eye makeup, gently and thoroughly, so there's no need to pull or irritate eye skin.
In fact, it comforts the area with beta glucan, encouraging a smooth, firm appearance. Ophthalmologist tested, its pH-balanced, non-irritating formula is safe for contact lens wearers.
Saturate a cotton ball and apply to closed eyelid.


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The Society of St.Vincent de Paul Award
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul Award to attend Saint Paul University
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul Award will be awarded to an Ottawa Catholic School Board or Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario graduate who exemplifies the spirit of the St. Vincent de Paul Society. The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul is dedicated to helping those less fortunate.
To view the PDF and printable application form, please click here.
The winner of the award will receive
A $5,000 BURSARY
towards the cost of fees to attend Saint Paul University.
The successful candidate must demonstrate Catholic leadership at their school and demonstrate parish involvement.
The student should be a practicing Catholic with demonstrated evidence of social justice and/or
community service.
The student must be accepted for studies at Saint Paul University in Ottawa as a full time student.
Saint Paul University in Ottawa offers a range of undergraduate subjects, including: Conflict Studies, Human Relations, Philosophy of Religion, Public Ethics and Philosophy, Social Communication and Theology.
Please outline, on an attached sheet (8 ½ by 11), up to two pages in length, why you are applying for this award.
Please provide specific examples of your involvement in the following areas:
Catholic leadership at your school
Involvement in your parish
Social Justice and/or community service
Other information as needed to support your nomination – a maximum of two additional reference letters may accompany your application
Please email or send a hard copy of your application to the attention of:
Recruitment and Communication Services
223 Main Street, Ottawa, ON K1S 1C4
Email: recrutement-recruitment@ustpaul.ca
Deadline for submissions to be received: June 7, 2017 by 4:00 p.m.
Applications received after 4:00 p.m. June 7, 2017 will not be considered.


text:
Q: Ease-in works for both text and background but ease-out only works for text. Why? Ease-in only works for text and background but ease-out only works for text but not background.

article {
  width: 100%;
  height: 1000px;
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article .topnav {
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  transition: background-color .9s ease-in;
  -moz-transition: background-color .9s ease-in;
  -webkit-transition: background-color .9s ease-in;
}

article .topnav {
  background: rgba(0,0,0,0);
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article:hover p.topnav {
  opacity: 0.7;
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.topnav {
  visibility: invisible;
  text-align: center;
  margin: auto;
  width: 50%;
}

I am topnav

Please see fiddle.
The idea is so that when I hover in and out of , both the text and the background eases in and out together.
Please help.

A: You are setting both transitions on the unhovered state, thus the second one is overwriting the first rule. You need to apply transition rules to both unhovered and hovered state.

article {
  width: 100%;
  height: 1000px;
  background-color: #fffff;
  color: #00000;
}

article p.topnav {
  opacity: 0;
  background-color: #000;
  transition: all .9s ease-out;
}

article:hover p.topnav {
  opacity: 0.7;
  background-color: #808080;
  transition: all .9s ease-in;
}

.topnav {
  text-align: center;
  margin: auto;
  width: 50%;
}

I am topnav

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


A joyous pairing of tart cherries, flowers and organic green tea.
Named for the annual Japanese flower viewing festival, each Hanami cup invites tea lovers around the world to breathe in, behold, and appreciate the fleeting beauty of cherry blossom in the spring. The Hanami custom revolves around savouring the specialness of the season while it lasts. Inspired by this lovely tradition, our blend is meant to capture the experience of spring in a cup. Hanami is an organic tea blend.
Loose tea by the cup.....simple.
12oz steeping cup with lid.


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Chucky Season 2 Release Date, Cast, And Plot - What We Know So Far
Syfy/USA Network
By Nikki Munoz/Nov. 29, 2021 8:23 pm EST
The horror television series, "Chucky" — based on the "Child's Play" horror film franchise — premiered simultaneously on Syfy and the USA Network on October 12, 2021. Taking place after the events of the 2017 film, "Cult of Chucky," the series follows 14-year-old Jake Wheeler (Zackary Arthur) who buys a Good Guy doll for an art project only to discover that the doll is possessed by the serial killer Charles Lee Ray — aka Chucky. After the doll commits several murders in Jake's town of Hackensack, New Jersey, Jake himself becomes a suspect. The series was created by Don Mancini, who had previously directed three of the "Chucky" films and written several of the films in the "Child's Play" franchise. Mancini also serves as showrunner and executive producer.
The first season of "Chucky" received mostly positive reviews — it currently holds a high 90% Tomatometer score and 88% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Summing up much of the praise, John Doyle of Globe and Mail wrote, "Chucky is a delight; a warped, wise, funny and very droll series with bits of gore thrown in, but nothing gory enough to hurt your head. It's a rigorous reinvention."
Now, much to the delight of the show's fans, the series has just received a second season renewal, as reported by TVLine. Here's everything we know so far about "Chucky" Season 2.
When will Chucky Season 2 be released?
Since the news of the renewal was just announced, there really isn't much information out there yet about the release date and other details. However, we do know that the second season can be expected next year, as was confirmed in executive producer and showrunner Don Mancini's statement.
Mancini's statement reads, "We're thrilled to start pulling the strings on a second season of puppet mayhem with 'Chucky.' Many thanks to our partners at USA, Syfy and UCP for their incredible support and guidance bringing 'Chucky' to the small screen, bigger than ever. And to the fans, Chucky sends his still-undying thanks, and a message: 'This isn't over, not by a long shot. You better watch your backs in 2022!'"
Considering that the first season premiered in October, near Halloween, it seems likely that the second season would follow suit. However, we'll have to wait for more details for that speculation to be confirmed.
Who will be in Chucky Season 2?
"Chucky" is led by Zackary Arthur, who plays protagonist — and Chucky owner — Jake Wheeler. Looking at next season's cast, Arthur is just about guaranteed to be returning. Along with "Chucky," Arthur's other credits include "Kidding" and "Transparent" (via IMDb).
We can also likely expect to see the rest of the main cast return for Season 2 — assuming nothing (permanently) bad happens to any of the teens by the end of Season 1, which is yet to conclude. The rest of the main cast includes Björgvin Arnarson and Alyvia Alyn Lind, who play Devon Evans and Lexy Cross, two of Jake's friends. Then, there's Junior Wheeler, played by Teo Briones, who is Jake's antagonistic cousin.
Finally, Brad Dourif voices the vicious serial killer Chucky himself. Dourif has voiced Chucky in numerous "Child's Play" films, including 2017's "Cult of Chucky," 2013's "Curse of Chucky" and even 1988's "Child's Play." Much like Arthur's character, Dourif can definitely be expected to return for Season 2 — considering the show is named after his character, after all.
What will Chucky Season 2 be about?
As mentioned above, the first season of "Chucky" hasn't yet concluded — its finale will air on November 30 — making the plot of Season 2 a bit hard to speculate on (via Variety).
What we do know is that in Episode 7, Jake, after running away from home, comes into possession of another Good Guy doll. While he and Lexy are looking for Devon, who has announced he's leaving the town following his mother's death, the new Good Guy doll begins to come alive and then grabs a butcher knife. Devon, who was trying to free Nica (Fiona Dourif), the paraplegic woman who was formerly possessed by Chucky, is then taken over by Chucky through Nica's body. Devon is last seen surrounded by a ton of Good Guy dolls.
The Season 1 finale will surely address these intense moments from Episode 7. And after the finale airs, we'll get a better idea of what to expect from Season 2. We personally can't wait to see how "Chucky" continues into its second season. In the meantime, Season 1 will be available to stream on Peacock beginning December 1 (via Variety).


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Real Food Encyclopedia | Garlic Scapes
If there ever was a poster child for seasonal food, it would be, hands down, the garlic scape. With a tangle of green curlicued shoots in your midst, you aren't just eating seasonally; you're literally eating in the moment. The scape (aka garlic shoot or curl) represents a specific stage of growth of hard-necked varieties of garlic. Like its brothers and sisters in the Allium family, garlic (A. sativum) grows underground, developing into a soft bulb. As the bulb grows and hardens, a green shoot pokes its head through the ground and curls in pig tail-like fashion before straightening.
The scape is also a quintessential example of "nose-to-tail" vegetable eating. Snip while curly and you've got mild garlicky goodness with an asparagus-like texture and versatile appeal. Ignored, the scape hardens into what we know as the garlic stalk (or neck) and the bulb below never reaches its full potential.
Fun Facts about Garlic Scapes
Native to central Asia, garlic eventually made its way to the Mediterranean, where it remains a central ingredient of the region's heart-healthy, disease-fighting diet. It is believed to have made its way to North America via European settlers during colonial times and revered for its medicinal rather than culinary benefits until the early 20th century.
Devotees of Lord Krishna, also known as Vaishnavas, abstain from garlic because it is considered a distraction to devotion practices. Similarly, in Ayurvedic medicine, garlic is considered rajasic, which means it may stimulate passion, a detour from meditation.
What to Look for When Buying Garlic Scapes
Scapes should be firm but somewhat flexible and free of blemishes or moldy spots. As they age, scapes will fade and brown, similar to what happens with a scallion.
Sustainability of Garlic Scapes
The scape represents a stage in the lifespan of the garlic plant, so it's like an early birthday present from Mother Nature. It's rare to get two plants for the environmental price of one, so to speak. You'll likely only be able to find scapes through farms stands, CSA boxes or farmers' markets, which keeps the fossil fuel impact down and food dollars in local communities.
FIND OUT WHEN Garlic Scapes are IN SEASON
Garlic Scapes Seasonality
Garlic scapes generally make their brief appearances in late spring, staying on only fleetingly through early summer.
Garlic Scapes and Geography
You can't talk about garlic scapes in the absence of garlic, one of the oldest known cultivated vegetables. (In fact, there's little out there about the history and lore of the scape.) There are references to garlic in the Bible and the Koran, and it's mentioned as part of the diet on Sumerian cuneiform tablets dating to 2300 BCE. It was used as both a funereal offering and embalming agent in ancient Egypt.
China is the world's leading producer of garlic, responsible for more than three-fourths of the global supply in 2010. It's anyone's guess just how soon we'll see imported scapes in American supermarkets — another reason to enjoy scapes from local farms!
Most American garlic is grown in central California, in the town of Gilroy, home to a renowned garlic festival. Although Gilroy describes itself as the "garlic capital of the world," the United States is currently number six in worldwide production, contributing just 1.4 percent of the garlic equation.
Eating Garlic Scapes
Storing Garlic Scapes
Store in the refrigerator and use within a week, as the stalks will eventually soften and lose their punch. Trim the end that was formerly attached to the bulb and discard the flowery blossom, as it tends to be stringy. You could also blanch (quick boil) for 60 seconds, followed by an ice bath, then freeze for when you get a scapes hankering later this year (and you will).
How to Use Green Garlic and Garlic Scapes
Cooking with Garlic Scapes
Slice thinly (about one-fourth-inch pieces) and use like your other favorite allium friends. Sauté and incorporate into fried rice, omelets, stir-fries or as a pizza topping. Try them pickled, but really what we wait for all year long is to make batches of pesto — to be tossed into pasta, spread onto sandwiches, lathered onto bruschetta and dipped with grilled vegetables.
Garlic Scapes Nutrition
Bulb garlic has long been known for its healing properties, a motherlode of anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and anti-viral agents, as well as cholesterol-lowering magic powers. We can only assume that as a part of the plant, the scape has some of these disease-fighting attributes.


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Import AI: #105: Why researchers should explore the potential negative effects of their work; fusing deep learning with classical planning for better robots, and who needs adversarial examples when a blur will do?
Computer scientist calls for researchers to discuss downsides of work, as well as upsides:
…Interview with Brent Hecht, chair of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)'s Future of Computing Academy, which said in March that researchers should list downsides of their work…
One of the repeated problems AI researchers deal with is the omni-use nature of the technology: a system designed to recognize a wide variety of people in different poses and scenes can also be used to surveil people; auto-navigation systems for disaster response can be repurposed for weaponizing consumer platforms; systems to read lips and thereby improve the quality of life of people with hearing and/or speech difficulties can also be used to surreptitiously analyze people in the wild; and so on.
Recently, the omni-use nature of this tech has been highlighted as companies like Amazon develop facial recognition tools which are subsequently used by the police, or how Google uses computer vision techniques to develop systems for the 'MAVEN' program from the DoD. What can companies and researchers do to increase the positive effects of their research and minimize some of the downsides? Computer science professor Brent Hecht says in an interview with Nature that scientists should consider changing the process of peer review to encourage scientists to talk about the potential for abuse of their work.
"In the past few years, there's been a sea-change in how the public views the real-world impacts of computer science, which doesn't align with how many in the computing community view our work," he says. "A sizeable population in computer science thinks that this is not our problem. But while that perspective was common ten years ago, I hear it less and less these days."
Why it matters: "Disclosing negative impacts is not just an end in itself, but a public statement of new problems that need to be solved," he says. "We need to bend the incentives in computer science towards making the net impact of innovations positive."
Read more: The ethics of computer science: this researcher has a controversial proposal (Nature).
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Worried about adversarial examples and self-driving cars? You should really be worried about blurry images:
…Very basic corruptions to images can cause significant accuracy drops, research shows…
Researchers with the National Robotics Engineering Center and the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at CMU have shown that simply applying basic image degradations that blur images, or add haze to them, leads to significant performance issues. "We show cases where performance drops catastrophically in response to barely perceptible changes," writes researcher Phil Koopman in a blog post that explains the research. "You don't need adversarial attacks to foil machine learning-based perception – straightforward image degradations such as blur or haze can cause problems too".
Testing: The researchers test a variety of algorithms across three different architectures (Faster R-CNN, Single Shot Detector (SSD), and Region-based Fully Convolutional Network (R-FCN); they test these architectures with a variety of feature extractors, like Inception or MobileNets. They evaluate these algorithms by testing them on the NREC 'Agricultural Person Detection Dataset'. The researchers apply two types of mutation to the images: "simple" mutators which modify the image, and "contextual" mutators which mutate the image while adding additional information. To test the "simple" mutations they apply simple image transformations, like Gaussian blur, JPEG Compression, the addition of salt and pepper noise, and so on. For the "contextual" mutations they apply things like haze to the image.
Results: In tests, the researchers show that very few detectors are immune from the effects of these perturbations, with results indicating that the Single Shot Detectors (SSD)s have the greatest amount of trouble with dealing with these relatively minor tweaks. One point of interest is that some of the systems which are resilient to these mutations are resilient to quite a few of them quite consistently – the presence of these patterns shows "generalized robustness trends", which may serve as signposts for future researchers to further evaluate generalization.
Read more: Putting image manipulations in context: robustness testing for safe perception (Safe Autonomy / Phil Koopman blogspot).
Read more: Putting Image Manipulations in Context: Robustness Testing for Safe Perception (PDF).
Researchers count on blobs to solve counting problems:
…Segmenting objects may be hard, but placing dots on them may be easy…
Precisely counting objects in scenes, like the number of cars on a road or people walking through a city, is a task that challenges both humans and machines. Researchers are training object counters to label individual entities via dots to indicate each entity, rather than pixel segmentation masks or bounding boxes, as is typical. "We propose a novel loss function that encourages the model to output instance regions such that each region contains a single object instance (i.e. a single point-level annotation)," they explain. This tweak significantly improves performance relative to other baselines based on segmentation and depth.They evaluate their approach on diverse datasets, consisting of images of parking lots, images taken by traffic cameras, images of penguins, PASCAL VOC 2007, another surveillance dataset called MIT Traffic, and Crowd Counting Datasets.
Why it matters: Counting objects is a difficult task for AI systems, and approaches like this indicate other ways to tackle the problem. In the future, the researchers want to design new network architectures that can better distinguish between overlapping objects that have complicated shapes and appearances.
Read more: Where are the Blobs: Counting by Localization with Point Supervision (Arxiv).
Predicting win states in Dota 2 for better reinforcement learning research:
…System's recommendations outperform proprietary product's…
Researchers have trained a system to predict the probability of a given team winning or losing a game of popular online game Dota 2. This is occurring at the same time that researchers across the world try to turn MOBAs into test-beds for reinforcement learning.
To train their model, the researchers downloaded and parsed replay files from over 100,000 Dota 2 matches. They generate discrete bits of data for each 60 second period of a game, containing a vector which encodes information about the players state at that point in time. They then use these slices to inform a point-in-time 'Time Slice Evaluation' (TSE) model which attempts to predict the outcome of the match from a given point in time. . The researchers do detect some correlation between the elapsed game time, the ultimate outcome of the match, and the data contained within the slice being studied at this point in time. Specifically, they find that after the first fifty percent of games it becomes fairly easy to train a model to accurately predict win likelihoods, so they train their system on this data.
Results: The resulting system can successfully predict the outcome of matches and outperforms 'Dota Plus', a proprietary subscription service that provides a win probability graph for every match. (Chinese players apparently call this service the 'Big Teacher', which I think is quite delightful!).The researchers' system is, on average, about three percentage points more accurate than Dota Plus Assistant and starts from a higher base prediction accuracy. One future direction of research is to train on the first 50 percent of elapsed match time, though this would require algorithmic innovation to deal with the early-game instability. Another is to implement a recurrent neural network system so that instead of making predictions based on a single time-slice, the system can instead make predictions from sequences of slices.
Why it matters: MOBAs are rapidly becoming a testbed for advanced reinforcement learning approaches, with companies experiencing with games like Dota. Papers like this give us a better idea of the sorts of specific work that need to go on to make it easy for researchers to work with these platforms.
Read more: MOBA-Slice: A Time Slice Based Evaluation Framework of Relative Advantage between Teams in MOBA Games (Arxiv).
Better robots via fusing deep learning with classical planning:
…Everything old is new again as Berkeley and Chicago researchers staple two different bits of the AI field together…
Causal InfoGAN is a technique for learning what the researchers call "plannable representations of dynamical systems". Causal InfoGANs work by observing an environment, for instance, a basic maze simulation, and exploring it. They use this exploration to develop a representation of the space, which they then use to compose plans to navigate across it.
Results: In tests, the researchers show that Causal InfoGAN can develop richer representations of basic mazes, and can use these representations to create plausible trajectories to navigate the space. In another task, they show how the Causal InfoGAN can learn to perform a multi-stage task that requires searching to find a key then unlocking a door and proceeding through it. They also test their approach on a rope manipulation task, where the Causal InfoGAN needs to plan how to transition a rope from an initial state to a goal state (such as a crude knot, or different 2D arrangement of the rope on a table.
Why it matters: The benefit of techniques like this is it takes something that has been developed for many years in classical AI – planning under constraints – and augments it with deep learning-based approaches to make it easier to access information about the environment. "Our results for generating realistic manipulation plans of a rope suggest promising applications in robotics," they write. "Where designing models and controllers for manipulating deformable objects is challenging."
Read more: Learning Plannable Representations with Causal InfoGAN (Arxiv).
Amazon's face recognition software falsely matches US Members of Congress with criminals:
The ACLU have been campaigning against the use of Amazon's Rekognition software by US law enforcement agencies. For their latest investigation, they used the software to compare photos of all sitting members of Congress against 2,500 mugshots. They found 28 members were falsely matched with mugshots. While the error-rate across the sample was 5%, it was 39% for non-white members.
Amazon responds: Matt Wood (Amazon's general manager of AI) writes in an Amazon blog post that the results are misleading, since the ACLU used the default confidence level of 80%, whereas Amazon recommends a setting of 99% for 'important' uses. (There is no suggestion that Amazon requires clients to use a higher threshold). He argues that the bias of the results is a reflection of bias in the mugshot database itself.
Why this matters: Amazon's response about the biased sample set is valid, but is precisely the problem the ACLU and others have pointed out. Mugshot and other criminal databases in the US reflect the racial bias in the US criminal justice system, which interacts disproportionately with people of colour. Without active efforts, tools that use these databases will inherit their biases, and could entrench them. We do not know if these agencies are following Amazon's recommendation to use a 99% confidence rate, but it seems unwise to allow these customers to use a considerably lower setting, given the potential harms from misidentification.
Read more: Amazon's Face Recognition Falsely Matched 28 Members of Congress With Mugshots (ACLU).
Read more: Amazon's response (AWS blog).
Chinese company exports surveillance tools:
Chinese company CloudWalk Technology has entered a partnership with the Zimbabwean government to provide mass face recognition, in a country with a long history of human rights abuses. The most interesting feature of the contract is the agreement that CloudWalk will have access to a database that aims to contain millions of Zimbabweans. Zimbabwe does not have legislation protecting biometric data, leaving citizens with few options to prevent either the surveillance program being implemented, or the export of their data. This large dataset may have significant value for CloudWalk in training the company's systems on a broader racial mix.
Why this matters: This story combines two major ethical concerns with AI-enabled surveillance. The world's authoritarian regimes represent a huge potential market for these technologies, which could increase control over their citizens and have disastrous consequences for human rights. At the same time, as data governance in developed countries becomes more robust, firms are increasingly "offshoring" their activities to countries with lax regulation. This partnership is a worrying interaction of these issues, with an authoritarian government buying surveillance technology, and paying for it with their citizens' data.
Read more: Beijing's Big Brother Tech Needs African Faces (Foreign Policy)
UK looks to strengthen monitoring of foreign investment in technology:
The UK has announced proposals to strengthen the government's ability to review foreign takeovers that pose national security risks. While the measures cover all sectors, the government identifies "advanced technologies" and "military and dual-use technologies" as core focus areas, suggesting that AI will be high on the agenda. US lawmakers are currently considering proposals to strengthen CFIUS, the US government's equivalent tool for controlling foreign investment.
Why this matters: As governments realize the importance of retaining control over advanced technologies.It will be interesting to see how broad a scope the government takes, and whether these measures could become a means of blocking a wide range of investments in technology. It is noteworthy that they take a fairly wide definition of national security risks, not restricted to military or intelligence considerations, and including risks from hostile parties gaining strategic leverage over the UK.
Read more: National Security and Investment White paper.
FLI grants add $2m funding for research on robust and beneficial AI:
The Future of Life Institute has announced $2m in funding for research towards ensuring that artificial general intelligence (AGI) is beneficial for humanity. This is the second round of grants from Elon Musk's $10m donation in 2015. The funding is more focussed on AI strategy and technical AI safety than the previous round, which included a diverse range of projects.
Why this matters: AGI could be either humanity's greatest invention, or its most destructive. The FLI funding will further support a community of researchers trying to ensure positive outcomes from AI. While the grant is substantial, it is worth remembering that the funding for this sort of research remains a minuscule proportion of AI investment more broadly.
Read more: $2 Million to Keep AGI Beneficial and Robust (FLI)
Read more: Research Priorities for Robust and Beneficial Artificial Intelligence (FLI)
Lost in translation:
Last week I summarized Germany's AI report using Google Translate. A reader kindly pointed out that Charlotte Stix, Policy Officer at the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, has translated the document in full: Cornerstones for the German AI Strategy. (Another researcher doing prolific translation work is Jeffrey Ding, from the Future of Humanity Institute, whose ChinAI newsletter is a great resource to keep up-to-speed with AI in China.)
OpenAI Bits and Pieces:
OpenAI Scholars 2018:
Learn more about the first cohort of OpenAI Scholars and get a sense of what they're working on.
Read more: Scholars Class 2018 (OpenAI Blog).
The Sound of Thinking
It is said that many hundreds of years ago we almost went to the stars. Many people don't believe this now, perhaps because it is too painful. But we have enough historical records preserved to know it happened: for a time, we had that chance. We were distracted, though. The world was heating up. Systems built on top of other systems over previous centuries constrained our thinking. As things got hotter and more chaotic making spaceships became a more and more expensive proposition. Some rich people tried to colonize the moon but lacked the technology for it to be sustainable. In school we use ancient telescopes to study the wreckage of the base. We tell many stories about what went on in it, for we have no records. The moonbase, like other things around us in this world, is a relic from a time when we were capable of greater things.
It is the AIs that are perhaps the strangest things. These systems were built towards the end of what we refer to as the 'technological high point'. Historical records show that they performed many great feats in their time – some machines helped the blind see, and others solved outstanding riddles in physics and mathematics and the other sciences. Other systems were used for war and surveillance, to great effect. But some systems – the longest lasting ones – simply watch the world. There are perhaps five of them left worldwide, and some of us guard them, though we are unsure of their purpose.
The AI I guard sits at the center of an ancient forest. Once a year it emits a radio broadcast that beams data out to all that can listen. Much of the data is mysterious to us but some of it is helpful – it knows the number of birds in the forest, for example, and has also helped us identify rivers, and deposits of rare minerals.
The AI is housed in a large building which, if provided with a steady supply of water, is able to generate power sufficient to let the machine function. When components break, small doors in the side of the AI's building open, revealing components sealed in vacuum bags, marked with directions in every possible language about how to replace them. We speak different languages now and one day it will be my job to show the person who comes after me how to replace different components. At current failure rates, I expect the AI to survive for several hundred years.
My AI sings, sometimes. After certain long, wet days, when the forest air is sweet, the machine will begin to make sounds, which sound like a combination of wind and stringed instruments and the staccato sounds of birds. I believe the machine is singing. After it starts to make sounds the birds of the forest respond – they start to sing and as they sing they mirror the rhythms of the computer with their own chorus.
I believe that the AI is learning how to communicate with the birds, perhaps having observed that people, angry and increasingly hopeless, are sliding down the technological gravity well and, given a few hundred thousand years, may evolve into something else entirely. Birds, by comparison, have been around for far longer than humans and never had the arrogance to try and escape their sphere. Perhaps the AI thinks they are a more promising type of life-form to communicate with: it sings, and they listen. I worry that when the AIs sang for us, all those years ago, we failed to listen.
Things that inspired this story: Writings of the Gawain Poet about ancient ruins found amid dark age England, J G Ballard, the Long Now Foundation, flora&fauna management.
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Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning Roundup #67 - Daily Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning Curated News says:
[…] Computer scientist calls for researchers to discuss downsides of work, as well as upsides:…Interview with Brent Hecht, chair of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)'s Future of Computing Academy, which said in March that researchers should list downsides of their work…One of the repeated problems AI researchers deal with is the omni-use nature of the technology: a system designed to recognize a wide variety of people in different poses and scenes can also be used to surveil people; auto-navigation systems for disaster response can be repurposed for weaponizing consumer platforms; systems to read lips and thereby improve the quality of life of people with hearing and/or speech difficulties can also be used to surreptitiously analyze people in the wild; and so on. But while that perspective was common ten years ago, I hear it less and less these days. " Read more: The ethics of computer science: this researcher has a controversial proposal (Nature). Read More […]
Import AI 211: In AI dogfight, Machines: 5, Humans: 0; Baidu releases a YOLO variant; and the Bitter Lesson and video action recognition | Import AI says:
[…] such as Brent Hecht arguing researchers should try to discuss the negative impacts of their work (Import AI 105). Read more: ICLR Code of Ethics (official ICLR website). […]


What then are the markers for the disappearance of friendship as a defining paradigm? While it can be argued that friendship may have disappeared from philosophical discourse it cannot be argued that even then it had disappeared as a paradigm because it definitely did not disappear from art, literature or music. Friendship has always been. Friendship is, as we have been saying in class, timeless.
Say we take philosophers to be the indicators for the visibility of friendship as a paradigm. Why are we so invested in their opinions of philosophers rather than intellectuals who, broadly speaking, are not necessarily associated with philosophy as a discipline? Even though Kant only dedicated a couple pages to ruminating 'On the Intimate Union of Love and Respect in Friendship' should we really take Kant as a marker of the presence or absence of friendship? Who elected him to be the Philosopher King?
Kant believed that we can never attain a perfect friendship in practice and that, "friendship conceived as attainable in its purity or completeness is the hobby horse of writers of romance."2 Yes, while friendship that exists in fiction may be hyperbolized and even idealized, I believe that because of those friendships people are compelled to act in a manner that would reflect their desire to become more like the depicted characters.
No friendship is perfect, that is true, however, to marginalize attainable pure friendship into the realm of literature is going too far. Literature too can evoke a following and inspire people to lead their lives based on principles that they teach. This too has been true since pre-philosophy, however, maybe Kant never read any stories about friendship which he truly envied.
Kant continues by saying that "it is a heavy burden to feel chained to another's fate and encumbered with his needs — friendship cannot be a union aimed at mutual advantage… need must not be regarded as the end and motive of friendship… but as an outward benevolence, which should not be put to the test."3 Hannah Arendt on the other hand, would argue that "friends become partners in a common world — that they together constitute a community… the political element in friendship is that in truthful dialogue each friend can understand the truth inherent in the other's opinion."4 Time and time again it has been demonstrated that through friends do we not only understand ourselves but we are able to understand a greater community and live in truth. St. Augustine and Thomas Aquinas thought that through knowing our friends we come to know ourselves and through knowing ourselves we come to know God. Translating this into a modern perspective, we come to know ourselves through the truth in our friendships. It is therefore only through knowing ourselves that we are able to become valuable to the community and to the world.
Hannah Arendt raises an important point saying that "[truth] is virtually impossible in solitude; it belongs to an area in which there are many voices and where the annoucement of what each "deems truth" both links and separates men, establishing in fact those distances between men which together comprise the world."5 Going off of this can we instead say that yes, friendship has existed, however in each case it might not be in the form we most expect. I believe that friendship in the paradigm of literature is as important as is understanding where it lies on the moral structure of virtue ethics and politics. It is also important to understand where it lies today.
There have been authors writing about beautiful friendships since the beginning of time and just because philosophers did not concern themselves with friendship does that mean it has only just again returned? No. It means that philosophers and intellectuals have begun taking friendship into consideration again and it is no longer just in the arts paradigm. This could be a paradigm shift no? It is coming back into the public. Looking at chronology of main works on friendship and politics we can see an exponential rise since the 1970s.6 After the horrors of the 20th century perhaps people have come to understand that perhaps we need to talk less about destruction and more about friendship. Moreover, Michael Mitias advanced the idea of a moral paradigm that analyzed the reasons for "the dismissal of friendship from the moral theories of the medieval, modern, and contemporary periods" and the "source of friendship, its place in human nature, and its relation to the good" so that we can determine "whether its inclusion, or exclusion, from moral theory is justifiable."7 While that is a noble cause indeed I do not believe that friendship has never left. If anything it those, like Hobbes and Kant, who left friendship that we should be sorry for.
Blosser, Philip and Bradley, Marshall Carl, eds. 1997. Friendship, Philosophic Reflections on Perennial Concerns. Lanham, New York, London: University Press of America.
Devere, Heather.. "Amity update: the academic debate on friendship and politics." Paper for Presentation to the International Political Science Association XXII World Congress of Political Science. Political Philosophy Research Workshop on Articulations of Justice, Part III' Justice and Fraternity', Madrid, 5-7 July 2012.
Mitias, Michael H. 2012. Friendship: A Central Moral Value. Amsterdam: New York: Rodopi.


"One of the things that were apparent to me working at Bayer is that there was so much beyond our borders, a lot of exciting ag tech out of there, a lot of passionate entrepreneurs trying to make a difference and bring new solutions to agriculture," Percy said. "However, when I left Bayer a few months ago, I dived in and began working with many new technology providers across the globe who are looking to bring new solutions to various areas of ag tech. I desire to help and advise them."
AgTech Experts At Recent AgTechx Event at Bayer Crop Science's West Sacramento Research Facility, sponsored by Western Growers Association.
Digitalization is clearly going to be one of those new areas in agriculture, and basically, it's going to help ag in many ways.
"I think our growers make more informed decisions about how to manage their crop, and so whatever type of crop that will be, whether it comes to time for harvesting and other areas, I think this is all going to be enabled by digital tools," Percy explained.
"Do you take the use of drones with high-resolution visualization cameras? There are companies now that can detect insects that are less than half a millimeter," Percy said.
"You may be able to detect the arrival of early disease pressure in a field or early insect infestations and perhaps send out another drone to zap those critters and protect fields with minimum use of crop protection chemistry," Percy continued.
"They may have to share their data to trust in that process, and a lot of companies are working on how they can build that trust with growers," Percy explained.
"I think the fundamentals have always been strong. I know we go through periods of difficulty with low margins and commodity prices, for example, which are not strong right now, but the need for the future and the need for sustainable farming is always going to be there."


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Resources > Press Releases > Metapack partners with Anatwine to improve customer experience
Metapack partners with Anatwine to improve customer experience
Metapack partners with Anatwine to enable brands and retailers globally to provide a personalised and seamless delivery experience
Providing consumers with further choice and convenience in delivery options
LONDON – September 9th, 2015 The global online fashion platform Anatwine, announces it has signed a partnership agreement with leading provider of delivery management solutions Metapack. The partnership will see the two fast moving tech companies collaborate to enable brands and retailers on Anatwine's revolutionary global fashion network the ability to offer consumers a seamless and personalised delivery experience in line with increasing customer expectations.
With delivery playing an increasingly important role in driving customer loyalty and conversion in eCommerce shopping, Metapack's technology will be integrated with the Anatwine platform as a key component of its innovative network proposition. The partnership will result in brands and retailers being able to provide further choice and convenience in delivery options, ensuring they keep pace with ever increasing consumer demand for flexibility, whether it's next day or same day delivery, click and collect or a different pick-up option.
Bruce Fair, Chief Revenue Officer, Metapack Group, highlights the strong potential of this partnership: "The fashion retail industry is increasingly appreciating that delivery is a key differentiator in driving consumer loyalty, increasing conversion and exceeding customer expectation. As such, many retailers are looking at innovative ways to make delivery more cost-effective whilst providing customers with greater options and a higher level of flexibility. Our integration with Anatwine will help ensure that the brands and retailers on Anatwine can meet their delivery promises to customers, regardless of delivery method or location, and that each and every order provides a seamless and personalised delivery experience. We very much look forward to seeing where our work with Anatwine will take us."
Anatwine overcomes the constraints of the traditional forecasted buying model by connecting in real-time brands' and retailers' business systems through a single integration. Crucially, this enables the retailer to present the brand's optimal stock mix to its customers at all times and allows the brand to fulfill the retailer's online orders within the boundaries of the retailer's clearly defined Service Level Agreement (SLA).
Chris Griffin, CEO and Founder, Anatwine, adds: "In a market increasingly dominated by the quality of the overall customer experience, from the online stock mix and personalisation through to delivery, no retailer wants to be left behind. Our partnership with Metapack will provide the brands and retailers on our network with the competitive edge they are looking for in terms of driving consumer loyalty through effective delivery methods.
"Both fashion retailers and brands alike now have the potential to exploit a real-time, global network to collaborate and innovate in order to deliver the perfect, personalised product mix for consumers. This approach will not only drive up engagement, market perception and profitability, but the benefits of real-time merchandising supported by a consistent experience for the customer, of which delivery is a key component, is hugely financially rewarding for both brands and retailers."
About Metapack
Metapack is the leading provider of delivery management solutions to retailers and retail delivery partners across the world. Our Metapack Manager platform integrates to hundreds of carriers and thousands of delivery services such as Next Day, Click and Collect, Locker Boxes and International Delivery – ensuring that retailers can offer their customers a better choice in delivery service.
For each and every order, Metapack identifies the most appropriate delivery service for that particular customer, providing a seamless and personalised delivery experience, whilst removing manual and time consuming processes in the retailer's warehouse. Using Metapack enables retailers all over the world to strengthen their delivery proposition, generate customer loyalty and website conversion through delivery and ensure every customer has the best delivery experience possible. Operating at the heart of eCommerce for more than 15 years, we have a proven track record of helping the retail industry to keep pace with consumer demand for online shopping.
We serve millions of consumers every year, working with carriers and 3PLs to open new international trade lanes and opportunities. Backed by Index Ventures and former Tesco CEO Sir Terry Leahy, the Metapack Group works with many of the top global retail brands (including 80% of the UK's leading retailers), customers include Marks & Spencer, John Lewis, House of Fraser, ASOS, B&Q, Tesco, Halfords, eBay, Urban Outfitters and many more. Metapack has a global footprint with offices in the UK, Germany, France, Poland, Spain, Netherlands, US & most recently Hong Kong – helping retailers in all markets to capitalise on the trends in cross border trade.
About Anatwine
Anatwine is a technology and services company that integrates leading fashion and apparel brands with online fashion retailers globally, representing the future of online fashion retail.
The Anatwine global fashion network connects brands' and retailers' business systems through a single integration, enabling collaboration and innovation to create the optimal online stock mix; drive increased sales and sell through; deliver enhanced brand exposure and consistent customer experience.
Anatwine was founded in 2013 by online fashion retail pioneer, Chris Griffin as the concept for a better way for retailers and brands to collaboratively increase customer loyalty, revenue and profits. Clients include top international retailers and brands including Zalando, The Iconic, House of Fraser, Adidas, Next and Supergroup.
Since its establishment, Anatwine has grown exponentially, at a rate of over 2000% compound growth annually. The company employs over 50 people in the UK, with offices in London and Cheltenham. Amongst its board members Anatwine counts Chairman Robert Willett, former CEO Best Buy International and global managing partner, Accenture Retail Practice; Sir Terry
Leahy, former CEO Tesco; David Schneider, CEO Zalando; and top retail analysts Bill Currie and Iain McDonald.


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Wards stay, council proposal is rejected
Published January 17, 2019 11:23PM
The risk of urban voters and candidates dominating elections has been given as one of the reasons for a decision by the Local Government Commission to reject Gisborne District Council's proposal for representation at the local body elections later this year.
Instead the commission has opted for the status quo of 13 councillors — four of them representing rural wards — and the Mayor instead of the council's proposal of nine nouncillors, voted for "at large", and the Mayor.
The commission has also rejected the council's proposal for three community boards, eastern and western rural ones and a Gisborne city board.
In its decision released today the commission says statistics show that 74 percent of electors live in the Gisborne city ward and 26 percent in the rural wards. "The preponderance of urban voters must at least create a risk of urban voters and candidates dominating elections," the commission says.
"On balance we are attracted to the existing ward structure as one that would best provide effective representation of communities of interest.
"The reasons cited in the commission's 2012 determination appear to us to remain relevant today."
The commission says a smaller council would potentially create difficulties for the council in its capacity as a unitary authority.
It notes that other unitary authorities of broadly similar population and geographic spread, Marlborough and Tasman, both have 13 members.
In rejecting the establishment of community boards, the commission says it has concerns about adopting the council's proposal at this time.
It is unsure that with the retention of wards there would be a sufficient commitment by all parties to doing all that is necessary to establish a strong community board system.
Second, the commission says it has concerns about the level of public engagement in the development of the community board proposal.
"From the evidence we have seen, the notion did not feature in the preliminary discussion carried out by the council.
"Community boards were not included in any of the initial representation options considered by the council and there was no consultation on the proposition.
'Great news, a victory for rural people'"We acknowledge that five submissions sought the establishment of community boards, however this by itself does not constitute a strong mandate for such a significant change in the district."
It recommends that if the council wishes to establish community boards through a future review, it carries out extensive engagement with communities at the beginning of the process.
Mayor Meng Foon says he is pleased the commission has made a decision.
"Now we can move forward with certainty of the boundaries and number of councillors for the 2019 election," he said.
"I think it is important that rural communities have a say and are represented at the council table.
"Just because the communities don't meet the law of plus or minus 10 percent, they still have a right of representation.
"The commission has told the council that we need to consult more if we are to promote changes going into the future.
"I am happy with the decision as it is fair for all, and that the unitary authority has been recognised as important for our region — as it was the first unitary authority to be regulated.
"I want to acknowledge all the people who submitted at the hearings of the commission last year. Your voices were heard," he said.
The decision has been welcomed by rural councillors.
Tawhiti-Uawa ward member Pat Seymour said clearly the commission had listened to the voices of the community and determined that it was important to continue to have representation for the isolated rural communities and wider district around the council table, not via a watered-down community board structure.
That was the exact point submitters in opposition to the council's proposal made at the hearing.
Matakaoa-Waiapu ward councillor Bill Burdett said this was great news and a victory for rural people. It would allow the council to have input from people who lived in the more remote rural areas and knew their needs.
Deputy Mayor Rehette Stoltz, who chaired the council's discussion on representation, said the Local Government Commission had clear rules and guidelines that directed councils in their decision-making on their representation.
"As a council, we were required to come up with an option that complies with these rules," she said.
"The status quo does not comply with the +/-10 percent rule, and that is why we had to work for months to alter our representation arrangements.
"We were aiming at improving and future-proofing representation whilst complying with their requirements.
"The commission chose an option that was not available to us as it is non-compliant, but they are the final decision-makers with the discretionary power to make those decisions, and we respect their findings," she said.
District Council chief executive Nedine Thatcher-Swann said: "It has been a robust community debate and now that the commission has made its determination for the district, we can turn our attention to local body elections and increasing voter participation."
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Boruto -Naruto Next Generations- – 45
Posted by Zaiden on February 17, 2018 February 17, 2018 Boruto -Naruto Next Generations- / First Impressions
Home Boruto -Naruto Next Generations- Boruto -Naruto Next Generations- – 45
Koi wa Ameagari no You ni – 06
citrus – 07
"Memories From The Day of Snow"
「雪の日の記憶」 (Yuki no hi no kioku)
Ryogi's Past
This week, we received some insight on Ryogi's humble origins, cluing us in on his fervent loyalty to the Byakuya Gang. From the child's perspective, his parents died before his very eyes, apparently murdered by someone who objected to the Byakuya Gang's practices. I can understand how this event influenced him to join the Byakuya Gang, but something doesn't add up here.
I don't trust Gekko one bit, and reckon he played a hand in causing the death of Ryogi's parents. Are you telling me that a gang of merry men couldn't fend off a single interloper? My bet would be hedged on Gekko wanting to consolidate all power within the organisation, thus arranging the death of Ryogi's parents. As for Ryogi, he must have been left alive for his ice kekkei genkai, and so that the boy could be manipulated to do the Byakuya Gang's bidding. After all, Gekko gave that whole speech about how easy it was to manipulate people, using the negative emotions in their hearts. He's practically a self-confessed demagogue. And judging by the flashback, he successfully convinced Ryogi with choice words, and a seemingly selective retelling of the incident. But you have to start asking the question, what exactly is his objective? I doubt that it would be money, since he gave a good portion of the wealth back to villagers. Whatever he's done would suggest a long con, and I'm curious to see what the Crest of Night strategy entails.
A Song of Ice
It seems ironic that Ryogi brought a lamp to his rendez-vous with Shikadai, in the hopes of furthering their genuine friendship, by extending the time they could spend together. Instead, the lamp served as a ca(pi)talyst for bringing it all down. Shikadai uses the lamp to play a clever trick on Ryogi, causing him to inadvertently reveal his affiliation with the Byakuya Gang.
I loved the artistic direction of their clash, and the beauty of their confrontation stems from the fact that neither are wrong per se. Ryogi wants to change a failing system, but his methods are questionable. Meanwhile, Shikadai states that stealing is wrong, yet thinks that they are too powerless to change the system. Practically speaking, how are a bunch of kids going to fix the flaws of a capitalist system? But I don't think there's any harm or shame in trying. Capitalism possesses distinct shortcomings, and outside of third parties like the Byakuya Gang, little is being done to address any failings.
Having forcefully parted ways, are these friends fated to fight each other on the battlefield? Somehow, I doubt that Shikadai is a person who gets himself tangled up in these messes. However, now is the time where I expect him to go all out, attempting to make Ryogi see reason.
Though the Kaminarimon corporation hold a positive record, having helped out the struggling game designer from earlier on, I couldn't help but feel skeptical when Denki's father claimed 'We haven't done anything wrong'. I don't buy into the mantra that mega corporations of a significant size can be completely free of moral culpability. It becomes impossible to oversee every single aspect of how its run, making it impossible to catch out every potential infraction against vulnerable workers. That said, it's wholly possible that they're receiving unfair criticism, as a result of the Byakuya Gang fanning the flames.
From a certain standpoint, I'm absolutely intrigued by Gekko's notion that his manipulation counts as a powerful ninjutsu in its own right. While it's been implied that he might be able to manipulate people, through using tattoos he places upon others, I'm actually referring to how his words can prey upon the discontent. In fact, I would draw comparisons with Kaguya's Infinite Tsukiyomi, and it even succeeds where she falls flat. Being far less intrusive, while mobilising the masses onto your side, I'd say there's greater potential. How are Naruto and Co meant to deal with the enemy, when they're actually up against disillusioned civilians? Ironically, I'd coin this as being a larger scale and more malicious variant of Talk no Jutsu – frequently attributed by fans as Naruto's ultimate technique. For me, this would lend credence to the idea that ninjutsu is slowly losing its relevance in a modernising world. Science, technology, and now advanced politics are slowly surpassing what a ninja might be capable of, and going by recent records, the shinobi are both complacent and unprepared for such a transition.
some "old veteran" are recruiting Child Soldiers…
Worldwidedepp
February 17, 2018 at 12:29 pm 5 years ago
In his defense, he seems to only have one child soldier. In comparison, Konoha has hundreds of them.
Nayrael
February 17, 2018 at 1:16 pm 5 years ago
As Nayrael said, literally everyone has been using child ninja soldiers since the Hidden Villages became a thing. Naruto's generation and Boruto's generation all started off with being child soldiers.
Zaiden
February 18, 2018 at 8:30 am 5 years ago
and that is its weak spot, they focus so much on their children, that they forgotten about the adults, that should protect them… Well in the War arc, Kakashi was also on the battlefield. But will we see here some similar? Sakura reactive her Battlefield Medic skills and so on..
Well lets see
In Naruto's world the adults where at War or most of them died because of it, or where all busy doing their Missions
But is not in Boruto's world the War over and in peace? Where are the adults? Busy at Work? at Missions? Where are they?
This arc –even if it's a filler arc– peaks my interest because the focus shifts from Boruto to Shikadai. Now, Shikamaru has always been one of my fav characters because due to his intelligence and his view on life and his character development (and look at him now as Naruto's advisor!). Temari is my favorite female character because she is a strong female character who is also a strategist. So you can say I'm excited to see how their child stands in this new world.
(It would also be cool if Shikadai also inherits wind powers from his mother– just like now Inojin inherited both of his parent's jutsus.)
Ryogi and Shikadai are playing off each other really well, in terms of developing one another as characters, and I think it would be a shame if Ryogi's appearance would be limited to this arc. I'm hoping that the manga will eventually make him canon, much like it did with Kagura.
Shikadai has been one of my favourite characters in the newer generation, an opinion I frequently stated in my earlier posts. Shikamaru x Temari was probably the ship that I supported for the longest time in the franchise, and one of very few relationships that didn't come off as a convenient pairing. You could say that there's a cause for positive bias here. Both parents are awesome, so it makes sense that their kid takes genes from both, and combines all that awesome into a lazy but sassy genius. As for inheriting Wind Release, we'll wait and see.
Exactly. 🙂 *fangirling inside*
Though the Kaminarimon corporation hold a positive record, having helped out the struggling game designer from earlier on, I couldn't help but feel skeptical when Denki's father claimed 'We haven't done anything wrong'. I don't buy into the mantra that mega corporations of a significant size can be completely free of moral culpability. It becomes impossible to oversee every single aspect of how its run, making it impossible to catch out every potential infraction against vulnerable workers.
I thought of the same thing. Not to mention that the definion of 'wrong' may vary. I'm reminded of several responses after scandals such as the Panama Papers, when the people in question tried to defend themselves by claiming that they hadn't done anything illegal. Which was true in many cases, but if anything the very legality of it made the situation more intolerable for others ("ah, so not only they don't contribute to society as they should, but they can't even be prosecuted for it?!"). Also, let's not forget that Mr. Kaminarimon wasn't precisely painted in a good light in episode 1 of the series.
And I like the idea of Gekko as practitioner of an evil "Talk no Jutsu". Personally, I think he'll fall when it's discovered he had something to do with the death of Ryogi's parents. Because at this point it would be the only way to undermine his power.
Think about it, what if he was innocent of murder? What if he was just a power-hungry manipulator that uses theft as a political tool? He can't win in a 1 to 1 match against Naruto or a similarly strong ninja. He could be caught and sent to prison. And then what? Some clever words from him or his supporters could cause riots. Ninjas could always use ninjutsu to subdue disgruntled citizens, but that would open a rift in Konoha.
Shikimaru needs to talk to the people making this series. The villians have a huge head start on the kids and are running nonstop but the kids get there before them? Guess they found a shortcut.
Karmafan
I like the story but I wish the uncle isn't too obvious. I mean he clearly is the bad guy.
https://randomc.net/image/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations%20-%2045%20-%20Large%2022.jpg
March 3, 2018 at 5:10 am 5 years ago
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Sher Bahadur Debua Wins Confidence Vote As Nepal's PM
July 19, 2021 July 19, 2021 Ebangla Bureau 0 Comments
INDIA has conveyed continued cooperation in socio-economic development to Nepal's new Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba who has won a vote of confidence in the House of Representatives. Deuba, 75, President of the Nepali Congress, has secured 165 votes in the 275-member House after he was appointed PM of the Himalayan nation and was directed to seek the trust of the country's elected parliament by the Supreme Court of Nepal. A total of 136 votes were required for Deuba to win the vote of confidence. Deuba was appointed as the prime minister of Nepal as per Article 76(5) of the Constitution on July 12 following Supreme Court's intervention. Deuba took the oath of office and secrecy for a record fifth time on July 13, a day after a five-member Constitutional Bench reinstated the dissolved House of Representatives for the second time in five months. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated Deuba for winning the vote of confidence in Parliament. In a tweet, PM Modi said he looks forward to working with him to further enhance the unique partnership in all sectors, and strengthen deep-rooted people-to-people ties between India and Nepal. Deuba has thanked Prime Minister Modi for the congratulatory message. PM Modi said '' I look forward to working with you to further enhance our unique partnership in all sectors, and strengthen our deep-rooted people-to-people ties''. Incidentally, Debua began his political career as a student and was instrumental in founding Nepal's Student Union affiliated to the Nepali Congress. From 1971 to 1980, he served as president of the student wing and from the 1960s and 1970s, Deuba was jailed intermittently for nine years for working against the Panchayat system. Deuba was an active campaigner during the 1990 revolution which dissolved the party less Panchayat system and ushered in the beginning of multiparty democracy. In the next year's general elections, he was elected to the House of Representatives from Dadeldhura 1.He was Minister of Home Affairs in the cabinet led by Girija Prasad Koirala. After Koirala dissolved the parliament and his government was defeated in the 1994 mid-term elections, Deuba was elected parliamentary party leader of the Nepali Congress. Deuba says his government's priority is to ensure Covid-19 vaccine supply and to keep friendly relations with all neighbouring countries. As a political analyst says, Sher Bahadur Debua's confirmation as PM of Nepal by the country's parliamentarians is a welcome development for India as the two countries share civilizational relations for centuries. It will be in India's interest to refrain from getting involved in internal matters of Nepal recalling past mistakes. All differences between the two countries should be sorted out through dialogue. Picture courtesy to Reuters. Edited by PK Chakravarty
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