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Big Ideas Articles & More
The Greatest Test
Forgiveness improves health and strengthens relationships. But can it help heal the scars of civil war?
By Emilie Raguso | September 1, 2008
Last summer, a professor and two students from a small Iowa college jammed 200 teddy bears into a duffle bag and flew to Sierra Leone. Armed only with books, laptops, cameras, and the bears—which were gifts for Sierra Leonean children—they were on an ambitious mission: to try to teach forgiveness skills in one of the most war-torn places on Earth.
It was an unlikely project for the group's leader, Loren Toussaint. He had never left North America before.
"I'm kind of your classic Iowa farm boy," says Toussaint, a psychology professor at Luther College, a liberal arts school in northeastern Iowa. "I am not what you would think of as an Indiana Jones academic."
While he may not be an expert traveler, Toussaint is an expert on the psychology of forgiveness, which was the reason for the trip. For years, he has studied the relationship between forgiveness and health, finding that forgiveness generally promotes psychological well-being. His work has added to a growing body of research linking forgiveness to improved mental and physical health and stronger social relationships.
With his trip to Sierra Leone, Toussaint wanted to apply forgiveness research in ways rarely attempted. Accompanied by two Luther students—one American and one Sierra Leonean—he planned to spend two weeks at a school in Freetown, the country's capital, teaching forgiveness skills to two dozen teachers and their students.
Sierra Leone's civil war ended in 2002, leaving tens of thousands dead and displacing two million more, one-third of its population. During the war, rebel raids destroyed families and towns. Civilians became victims of abduction, amputation, and slaughter. Homes were burned with their inhabitants inside.
Poverty, unemployment, and corruption continue to plague Sierra Leone. The United Nations ranks it the world's least developed nation.
Toussaint found the idea of working in Sierra Leone compelling, he says, because much of the country's population has struggled to overcome severe psychological trauma. Other African nations torn by violence, such as South Africa and Rwanda, have initiated nationwide efforts to reconcile their divided populations and facilitate some degree of forgiveness for past crimes. Though starting on a smaller scale, Toussaint's program also aimed to promote forgiveness as a way to improve psychological health and help people let go of some of the anger and resentment that had festered in their country for years.
Scientific programs like Toussaint's have proven effective in dozens of studies, helping people forgive parents who neglected them, lovers who betrayed them, and even strangers who murdered their children. But it was unclear whether such a program could work in a country just a few years removed from civil war. Toussaint says he felt that if he could find positive results in Sierra Leone, he could find them anywhere.
"If you can take these ideas to the very extreme and show that they work with individuals in the worst state of hurt, you would expect them to be even more effective as you get back into the normal realm of hurt and transgression," he says. "This trip would put these forgiveness techniques to what I considered to be their greatest test."
Training the trainers
Toussaint's project got its start in 2006 when he heard, via a colleague, from Nancy Peddle, an American who runs the LemonAid Fund, a nonprofit organization in Freetown that sponsors schools and orphanages. Peddle had read an article Toussaint co-authored about the relationship between forgiveness, gratitude, and well-being. As they began exchanging emails, she suggested that Toussaint's work might play a role in Sierra Leone's healing.
"So many people are still struggling with the aftermath of the war and the effects of trauma," says Peddle. "I thought that this work was a way forward."
Peddle suggested that Toussaint try to teach forgiveness skills at a LemonAid-sponsored school in Freetown. By testing the program on a small scale, she thought Toussaint might create a model that could be applied throughout the country, contributing to efforts to make the next generation of Sierra Leoneans less likely to turn to violence.
Toussaint approached Fred Luskin, a psychologist who led several successful forgiveness studies as the director of the Stanford Forgiveness Projects at Stanford University. Luskin helped the team adapt his teaching model, a nine-step process of forgiveness that he has taught for many years. Luskin's wife, a second-grade teacher, helped develop a children's curriculum based on the program, which the team would share with students at the school.
Toussaint and the Luther students, Alyssa Cheadle and Anthony Sellu, read Luskin's book and took his online training course to prepare to teach forgiveness skills in Freetown.
Based on his research, Luskin was confident his training could benefit people in Sierra Leone. In two studies, Luskin had worked with Catholics and Protestants from Northern Ireland who lost family members to that region's political violence. After completing Luskin's program, participants reported feeling healthier, more optimistic, less depressed, and less hurt by their loss.
Though these results were encouraging, Luskin was aware of the challenges Toussaint's group would face.
"Civil war is horrifying and people suffer for a very long time," he says. "It's hard to work with, because both sides have convinced themselves that the other side is their enemy. That makes it really difficult for people to change."
The politics of forgiveness
Many African leaders have promoted forgiveness and reconciliation in post-conflict situations. In addition to the famed example of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which is widely credited with unearthing human rights abuses and helping the country heal after the end of apartheid, Rwanda struggled to embrace forgiveness after the 1994 genocide that killed roughly 800,000 of the minority Tutsi group. The Rwandan government emphasized justice and reconciliation through "Gacaca" community courts, where killers confessed and apologized to their victims' families.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize recipient and chairman of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, has argued that forgiveness is the path to "true enduring peace." "True reconciliation is based on forgiveness," he writes in his 2004 book, God Has a Dream. "Only forgiveness enables us to restore trust and compassion to our relationships. If peace is our goal, there can be no future without forgiveness."
Advocates like Tutu have seen forgiveness as a spiritual and political necessity. But before Toussaint started his project, only a handful of studies, including Luskin's, had tried to scientifically measure the effects of forgiveness training in post-conflict situations.
In one instance, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, psychologist Ervin Staub evaluated a forgiveness training project he first helped bring to Rwanda in the late 1990s. According to a 2005 article Staub published in the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, his program was associated with reduced trauma and more positive attitudes between Hutus and Tutsis.
Toussaint's project faced some special challenges. Sierra Leone is plagued not only by lingering resentments and hostilities but with severely underdeveloped infrastructure, making it hard to run any program, let alone one with such ambitious goals.
When the group landed at the Freetown airport, no one was there to meet them. Peddle had left the country due to concerns about violence in Sierra Leone's upcoming elections. Their local contact thought they were arriving the next day. The group eventually took a ferry into Freetown, sharing a semi-private area with several Texas oil men, the only other Westerners around.
"We were just thrown into it from the beginning," says Cheadle, 22, a recent Luther graduate who studied psychology and religion, and worked with Toussaint, Luskin, and Sellu on the grant that funded the bulk of the trip. The team arrived during the region's rainy season. Torrential rains and traffic often turned a mile-and-a-half bus trip into a two-hour journey. To complicate matters further, the team learned they'd have no Internet access, no plumbing, and intermittent electricity with which to power their laptops. Toussaint says the humidity, 90-degree weather, and construction to complete the school made it hard to focus on training.
Despite these obstacles, Cheadle remembers the participants' enthusiasm from the very beginning. "I kind of expected them to be skeptical," she says. "But what struck me was how willing they were to learn and how interested they were in what we had to say."
The trio planned to work with one group of teachers the first week; a second group wouldn't get trained until the next week. The researchers planned to measure the training's effectiveness by comparing the two groups. As they went through the training, the teachers would share what they learned with their students, most of whom were between seven and 13 years old. Sellu, who lived in Sierra Leone until he was 20, served as a translator.
Before starting the training, Toussaint explained to the teachers that forgiveness, according to Luskin's program, does not mean condoning or justifying horrific acts; it's not antithetical to justice. It involves coming to peace with wrongs one has suffered, moving on, and learning to enjoy life.
Each day of the training, teachers read sections of Luskin's book and worked through his methods. They filled out workbooks to practice the skills Luskin describes. They would imagine ways they'd been hurt and create statements about how their future response to that hurt could be different. Or they would imagine a time they had been offended, then work on deep breathing or other stress reduction techniques to let go of the frustration.
Many participants tried to confront traumatic memories.
"Let's say during the war I was a couple years younger, and my parents were killed in front of me, probably by a kid who lives next door or down the road," says Sellu, 22, a physics and math major at Luther. "That's the kind of thing some of the youth grew up with."
In their forgiveness exercises, some children wrote about wanting God to punish rebels who burned down their home. Others were angry about relatives killed in the war. One girl wrote about forgiving a boy who had thrown a stone at her.
Toussaint's team encouraged teachers and students to start by practicing forgiveness toward lesser offenses. Rather than trying to forgive a neighbor for turning in your father as a rebel collaborator, it might be easier, the researchers suggested, to try to forgive the cousin who stole and sold your camera.
"I think it was overwhelming for them to think about forgiving people who had wronged them during the civil war," says Cheadle. "We encouraged them to start small. To go in there and say, 'You need to forgive that a friend of yours was killed or your house was burned'—that's too much."
Some teachers cited anger at relatives for mistreating them, frustration at co-workers for accusing them of misbehavior, or pain over a former spouse who had left them. One woman said she was angry at a family member who got distracted while babysitting the woman's child and let the boy tumble from a window three stories high.
To work with the youngest students, Toussaint's group used activities that translated Luskin's program into language children could understand. For instance, Luskin says one way to let go of a grudge is to "change the channel" and focus on positive aspects of one's life. To explain this, the team had children take Polaroid photographs of things they liked, then practice imagining that picture in their head.
"Both the teachers and the students were the most serious and engaged students I've ever taught," says Toussaint. "There was an incredible fit between their needs and the topic we were bringing."
Getting results
Less than a week into the training, thieves used bolt cutters to break open the steel door of the school's office. They stole one laptop computer, school supplies, and gifts the researchers had brought. They also stole the teachers' salaries for two semesters.
"They took everything they had," says Sellu. "The teachers were supposed to be paid the next day."
In the next day's training, the researchers discussed the theft with the teachers.
"They wanted to know, 'Do we forgive these robbers? What do we do?'" says Cheadle. "Loren told them, 'You have to forgive at the right time.' They couldn't be expected to forgive what had just happened the night before."
The Luther group believes their presence attracted thieves to the school. They left for the United States the next day, concerned for their safety and for the safety of those at the school. They left behind journals in which the teachers could record their reflections about the training, along with surveys to measure the teachers' mental health. The surveys were completed days after Toussaint's group left, about one week after the study began. Peddle carried the surveys back to the U.S. several months later to avoid losing the data in Sierra Leone's notoriously unreliable postal system. Toussaint compared the results against identical surveys the teachers had completed before the training.
Despite the training's challenging conditions and their early departure, the group discovered their work had indeed made a strong impression. Compared to teachers who didn't receive the training and to the initial survey results from before the training, those who learned forgiveness skills reported feeling less depressed, more grateful, more satisfied with life, and less stressed. (Because of language barriers and the fact that many of them were so young, the children in the study could not complete surveys as detailed as the adults'. Still, the team collected baseline information about the children's mental and physical health, and about their feelings toward forgiveness, with an eye toward future work.)
Thirteen teachers completed the training and eleven, the comparison group, did not, but Toussaint says the differences between the two groups were so great that the results were statistically significant. In others words, despite the small number of people, the results were strong enough for Toussaint to conclude that the training worked. And he learned an important lesson: that it's possible to teach forgiveness with Luskin's curriculum even in such distressed conditions, and even if Luskin himself wasn't teaching it.
Questionnaires the Sierra Leonean teachers filled out after the training offer insight into what they may have gained from the experience. Before the training, many described events from years earlier that continued to haunt and disturb them, often expressing violent feelings. After the training, though some remained unable to forgive, others revealed that they were starting to think differently.
"It was seven years ago during the civil war where my older sister was killed," one teacher writes. "One good thing is that, after the forgiveness, healing, happiness, and health survey training, I have now developed a way to be at peace with myself whenever I think of her death."
Another teacher describes being angry because his younger brother stole his salary, then lied about it.
"That made me so hurt that I nearly break [sic] his head," he writes. "Presently I am no longer disturb [sic] over the issue because I have decided to forgive him for what he did to me."
Sellu says he initially had his doubts about the project's goals. While he was in Freetown, many teachers expressed frustration to him about the training. They wondered how Luskin's ideas could help them, especially with elections on the horizon.
"Some kept saying, 'We'll be doing this training, but we don't even know the future of the country,'" he says. "Other people said, 'How is this going to help at this point when we've just come out of war and people don't have jobs?'"
Over the course of the trip, he says he came to believe the curriculum could help Sierra Leoneans. But more time and money must be invested, he says.
Luskin and Toussaint say that's their plan. They want to raise money to bring a group of Sierra Leonean teachers to Stanford to participate in forgiveness trainings in a more controlled environment. Those teachers would return to their country to share what they learned. (This is how Luskin ran his Northern Ireland studies.) Over time, Toussaint imagines the curriculum spreading across many countries that are struggling to overcome violent pasts.
Toussaint has no immediate plans to return to Sierra Leone. But Peddle has started to offer the forgiveness training to former war combatants in the country; she has also offered a one-year "refresher course" to teachers and others at the school in Freetown.
Toussaint says he's grateful to have met the teachers and students there, and has no regrets about going. Neither do Sellu or Cheadle.
"It's easier to do this kind of thing in the U.S. or in a country that is maybe safer, and there's obviously a need in those countries," says Cheadle. "But the needs in a place like Sierra Leone get met less often. Maybe it wasn't the best country to choose, strategically or practically. But it was a good country to visit to be reminded of the importance of forgiveness."
Emilie Raguso
Making Peace Through Apology By Aaron Lazare
Book Review: Beyond Revenge By Azim Shariff
Nine Steps to Forgiveness By Fred Luskin
Forgiveness in Action By Jeremy Adam Smith
Truth and Reconciliation By Desmond Tutu
What Does It Mean to Be an Engaged Citizen?
Eric Liu discusses how to have a shared civic identity in today's polarized America.
How Americans Can Find What They Have in Common
Can we bridge differences without suppressing what makes us different in the first place? Yes, say social scientists and civic organizations.
Take the Connection to Humanity Quiz
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SINGAPORE, Aug. 31, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Huobi Chain (https://www.huobichain.com/) announced today the eight members of the Huobi Chain Expert Advisory Committee. These esteemed experts in the blockchain and technology space include Steve Hoffman, Laura Xiaolei Liu, OOI Beng Chin, Don Tapscott, Jeffrey Wernick, Lon Wong, Jihan Wu, and, Randi Zuckerberg.
The Huobi Chain expert advisory board will act as a think tank with each advisor having experience in academics, investment, and industry and will offer professional advice and support during the election phase of the Huobi Chain Superhero Championship Program.
Steve Hoffman: An angel investor, serial entrepreneur, and author of the best-selling book "Make Elephants Fly: The Process of Radical Innovation" as well as the founder & CEO of "Founders Space".
Laura Xiaolei Liu: A Professor of Finance and Accounting at Guanghua School of Management, Peking University and director of Guanghua Blockchain Lab.
OOI Beng Chin: A distinguished professor of computer science, director of Smart Systems Institute at the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Chang Jiang Professor at Zhejiang University.
Don Tapscott: CEO of The Tapscott Group, "Father of the Digital" and one of the world's leading authorities on the impact of technology on business and society.
Jihan Wu: Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Bitmain, early evangelist of Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash (BCH) supporter and enabler.
"We're thrilled to bring on such a knowledgeable group of leaders from the blockchain industry to help optimize experience and growth of the Huobi Chain Superhero Championship Program, Hubbery Yuan said, director of Huobi chain department. We expect their expertise will add value to each project presented, and help guide the next generation of industry leaders.
Huobi is one of the world's leading digital assets and services providers, offering crypto investors a wide range of digital assets and financial services. In 2013, Huobi's founding team saw the tremendous potential of blockchain technology, digital assets, and global financial reform, all of which led to the creation of Huobi. Huobi now empowers millions of users, across 130+ countries to participate in digital assets markets. Currently, Huobi has offices in Singapore, United States, Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong (China) with more countries and regions coming soon in the near future.


We found Naveed when my daughter failed her mock GCSE and we realised our daughter was completely out of her depth. With only 10 weeks to go and pretty much the complete Chemistry syllabus to get through, Naveed really did achieve the impossible – our daughter passed her GCSE this summer. We are all delighted and thrilled with Naveed's patience and amazing teaching skills.


A job (aka action job or active job) is a top-level work item (computation) submitted to DAGScheduler to compute the result of an action (or for Adaptive Query Planning / Adaptive Scheduling).
A stage is a physical unit of execution. It is a step in a physical execution plan.
Spark actions are executed through a set of stages, separated by distributed "shuffle" operations.
A stage is a set of parallel tasks — one task per partition (of an RDD that computes partial results of a function executed as part of a Spark job).
Task (aka command) is the smallest individual unit of execution that is launched to compute a RDD partition.


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Colton Haynes Announced To Star In New Comedy As "Famous InstaGay"
Gay Congressman Jean Wyllys Fled From Brazil Over Several Death Threats
March 17, 2019 January 25, 2019 by Devin Randall
Jean Wyllys / Screenshot via Facebook @Konbini
Brazil's only openly gay Congressman has just fled the country in fear of his life.
The Associated Press reports that Congressman Jean Wyllys has left his job and has no plans to return. Even further, Wyllys shared this news earlier today and says his leave is due to death threats set against him and the rise of violence against LGBTQ people.
Wyllys later posted to Instagram the following statement:
"Preserving the threatened life is also a strategy of fighting for better days.We have done a lot for the common good.And we will do much more when the new time comes, no matter what we do by other means.Thank you and all of you with all your heart. Axé! "
A post shared by Jean Wyllys (@jeanwyllys_real) on Jan 24, 2019 at 9:59am PST
Wyllys was re-elected in October and set to begin his third term in February.
Perhaps one event that increased Wyllys's fears was the death of friend and political ally Marielle Franco. Franco was a councilwoman for Rio de Janeiro who was shot and killed with her driver last year.
In addition, Wyllys had ongoing conflict with the new Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro has repeatedly expressed that he is a "proud homophobe." He even once stated that he'd prefer to have "a dead son rather than a gay son."
Then just hours after his inauguration, Bolsonaro removed all LGBTQ issues from the agenda of the Human Rights Ministry.
Jair Bolsonaro / Image via Wikimedia Commons
As the Associated Press writes:
"In arguably their most public clash, Wyllys spit on Bolsonaro on the floor of the lower House of Deputies during the 2016 impeachment process of then-President Dilma Rousseff. Bolsonaro, a former army captain, voted for Rousseff's impeachment while giving tribute to a former colonel who tortured Rousseff when she was jailed as a guerrilla fighter during the dictatorship."
"In the hours after Folha published its story, Bolsonaro, set to return from the economic forum in Davos, put out a series of tweets that many interpreted as cheering Wyllys' departure. They included icons of a hand giving a thumb's up, a Brazilian flag and an icon of a plane."
"'Fake News!"'Bolsonaro wrote, posting a tweet of O Globo daily that framed his messages as celebratory. 'I was referring to mission completed, productive meetings with heads of state and return to the country I love.'"
"In the interview, Wyllys said his decision to leave wasn't because of Bolsonaro's rise, but rather the climate of heated rhetoric and intensifying violence toward members of the LGBT community in the wake of last year's campaigns."
Wyllys's aide says that the now former Congressman is safe and sound in an undisclosed location.
h/t: The Associated Press
Tags #AntiGayGovernment, #GayPolitician, #JairBolsonaro, #JeanWyllys, Brazil
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1 thought on "Gay Congressman Jean Wyllys Fled From Brazil Over Several Death Threats"
Aldo Freitas
I'm LGBT activist in Brazil
I'm LGBT activist in Brazil and, please, don't say lies! Bolsonaro didn't remove LGBT issue from the agenda! The first document were equal all the documents by then. The LGBT issue is treated in others documents and nothing has changed. Do a good journalism, please!

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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LFF 2015: The Assassin
Janz Anton-Iago
For those expecting for the new heir to Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Zhang Yimou's Hero in Hou Hsiao-Hsien's The Assassin, look elsewhere. This isn't the crowd-pleasing, epic-making brand of Chinese martial arts movie made to win awards and please everyone. Sure, Hou was crowned Best Director at Cannes earlier this year, but a triumph in the world's most artistically refined film festival should be a signifier that The Assassin was made for Art, not for Commerce. Hence, all semblance of spectacular fight sequences and narrative thrills have been muted down in Hou's take on the wuxia genre, giving us a delicately slow, exquisitely controlled and photographed mood piece that would make an aesthete's heart melt in wonder. Cinema as a visual art is Hou's primary concern here, that whether he's staging a balletic swordfight from afar or billowing a curtain in his richly textured interior shots or merely capturing the rhythm of nature and the way swirling mist seem to dance across the mountains and marshes, 9th century Imperial China rarely looked as gorgeous as this on screen.
[divider]+[/divider]
All semblance of spectacular fight sequences and narrative thrills have been muted down in Hou's take on the wuxia genre, giving us a delicately slow, exquisitely controlled and photographed mood piece that would make an aesthete's heart melt in wonder.
Narratively, this is as slow-burning as watching flames licking embers. While this palpably isn't for the attention-deficit audience, Hou demonstrates a patient and rewarding kind of storytelling that does not cheaply employ any flashback device when characters tell their long tales of fury and regret. When Lord Tian J'ian (Chang Chen, handsome and commanding) confesses his association with Shu Qi's Nie Yinniang, the raven-haired, black-clad markswoman who's sent to execute the Weibo region's political usurpers, Hou refuses to take his camera any closer than a medium shot, allowing his story to sink in directly from the mouths of his tellers, giving such scenes such intimacy and even empathy.
What's more, The Assassin neither turns Yinniang's character into an avenging angel figure nor a feminist icon. In other martial arts films, this assassin would have become a blood-lusty, man-slaying female warrior played by Zhang Ziyi. But Shu Qi, in an enigmatic, emotionally contained performance, sublimates the essence of a scorned woman, taught with the fine art of merciless killing and ridden with an inner conflict between morality and duty – who ultimately learns that organised murder isn't a solution, but rather a creation of the cyclical patterns of revenge and carnage. It's this sense of pacifist wisdom that shores up The Assassin above the films of its ilk, along with its unparalleled visual beauty.
[divider]VERDICT[/divider]
Hou Hsiao-Hsien
LFF
Founder & Editor of The Moviejerk - a UK film blog dedicated to the cinematic experience, featuring no-holds-barred film reviews, movie chatter, occasional rants and passionate film lovin'.
LFF 2015: When Marnie Was There
LFF 2015: Queen of Earth
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
Allied (2016)
Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them (2016)
Me Before You (2016)
The Neon Demon (2016)
The Moviejerk
Get in touch. I won't bite.
The Moviejerk | Passionate. No bullshit. Just mad about film.
Passionate. No bullshit. Just mad about film.


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Category Archives: Art / Posters
The Covers Collection – Thinner (UK Paperback Cover) Print By Gerry Grace Now Available for Pre-Order
Suntup Editions anounces their fifth print by artist Gerry Grace in The Covers Collection. Over the past four years, Gerry's art from the U.K. covers of IT, The Long Walk, Pet Sematary, and Christine have been released. This month, Suntup brings you their final Gerry Grace print, the cover art from the 1st U.K. paperback edition of Thinner.
While the 1st U.S. edition of Thinner was released on November 19, 1984, Constant Readers across the pond would not get to read Stephen King's dark tale of gypsies, curses and bitter grudges until early 1985, and it wouldn't be until 1986 that the novel was released there in paperback.
The 1st U.K. paperback edition features Gerry's breathtaking artwork of the gypsy tribe working their magic while holding hands around a fire. Reminiscent of his previous work on the cover of Pet Sematary, Grace here again uses the power of the circle and an imagined shape rising into the sky. Previously relegated to a small section taking up less than 50% of the paperback's cover, this incredible work of art is now available for the first time in its full-sized glory and without cover text as a beautiful giclée print.
Pre-order the prints HERE.
Tagged Gerry Grace, Stephen King, The Covers Collection, Thinner, Thinner (UK Paperback Cover)
Art / Posters, Books / Authors, Comic Books
Mike Mignola: The Quarantine Sketchbook Hardcover
During the coronavirus quarantine, legendary Hellboy creator Mike Mignola posted original pencil sketches online and auctioned off the art to raise money for Jose Andres' World Central Kitchen. The sketches went viral and were the talk of the comics internet.
Now those sketches are published in print for the first time, with all profits going to the World Central Kitchen.
This new, oversized hardcover collection is a must have for Mignola readers and art fans alike. The book features an introduction by Mignola, alongside sketches of Hellboy, beloved and unexpected pop culture characters, macabre chess pieces, gothic vegetable creatures, strange vampires, and more.
Due to be released in March you can pre-order HERE.
Tagged Art, Books, Comic Books, Mike Mignola: The Quarantine Sketchbook
Art / Posters, Comic Books
Black Panther Linocut Print By Peter Santa-Maria
Sideshow presents the Black Panther Linocut on Lokta Paper, a handcrafted Marvel art collectible created by artist Peter Santa-Maria.
Leaping from the brush, the Black Panther strikes! This stylish depiction of the King of Wakanda uses detailed hatching and bold swathes of black ink to capture the dynamic motion and intricate designs in T'Challa's vibranium-woven suit in action. Flanked by two prowling panthers, the hero is framed by a halo of spears while the futuristic skyline of Wakanda itself rises behind him, tall and proud.
Each Black Panther Linocut on Lokta Paper is handcrafted and one of a kind, created using certified archival printmaking ink on handmade Nepalese Lokta paper. Each unique print in the Sideshow exclusive edition of 120 pieces is hand-signed and numbered by Peter Santa-Maria, making this a must-have collector item for Marvel fans.
Bring home the beauty of Wakanda for your wall and add the Black Panther Linocut on Lokta Paper by Peter Santa-Maria to your collection today.
– Officially licensed by Marvel
– Limited edition of 120
– Approx. 20 x 30" linocut block print, 25 x 31" with frame
– Handmade Nepalese Lokta paper
– Oil-based Certified Archival Printmaking Ink
– Hand signed and numbered by the artist, Peter Santa-Maria
– Please Note: Each print in this edition is handmade by the artist, and one-of-a-kind. Ink, marks and paper may vary slightly.
– Estimated Arrival: Feb 2021 – Mar 2021
Order HERE for $100.
Tagged Art, Attack Peter, Black Panther, Comic Books, Peter Santa-Maria, Sideshow
Art / Posters, Books / Authors
Total Geek-Art Book By Thomas Olivri
Characters from comics, movies, TV shows, and video games are a part of the collective imagination forever, so it's only natural that artists would begin integrating them into their work, giving birth to a new artistic movement: Geek-Art.
In Total Geek Art, the work of 80 painters, illustrators, and sculptors is collected to offer an international panorama of the geek-art genre of artistic expression. It presents profiles of geek-art's greatest founders as well as insights on the latest trends, such as the return of enamel pins, the development of toy photography, and the recognition of video game art.
Featuring stunning artwork and exclusive interviews and essays, this deluxe collection is a must-have for every pop culture enthusiast. The 416 page paperback book is scheduled to be released on October 6, 2020 and it will retail for $40.
Tagged Books, Thomas Olivri, Total Geek-Art
Art / Posters, Disney, Television & Streaming
The Mandalorian Season 2 Retro Star Wars Posters By Butcher Billy
The Mandalorian Season 2 Retro Star Wars Posters from Brazilian designer Butcher Billy transforms quotes from second season episodes of The Mandalorian into classic illustrated movie posters.
These illustrations and others are available for purchase through Butcher Billy's Red Bubble store.
Tagged Art, Butcher Billy, Disney, Posters, The Mandalorian
Art / Posters, Books / Authors, Stephen King, Television & Streaming
Titan Books To Publish The Art And The Making of The Stand
Titan Books has announced the upcoming publication of the definitive companion title to the new CBS All Access limited event series, The Stand, based on Stephen King's novel of the same name.
In an apocalyptic vision of a world decimated by plague and embroiled in an elemental struggle between good and evil, the fate of mankind rests on the frail shoulders of the 108-year-old Mother Abagail and a handful of survivors. Their worst nightmares are embodied in a man with a lethal smile and unspeakable powers: Randall Flagg, the Dark Man.
In 1979 Stephen King published The Stand, a massive apocalyptic tale that set the standard for all those stories that followed. The book was another King bestseller, leading to the release of The Complete and Uncut version in 1990, a 1994 ABC four-part mini-series and a 31-issue Marvel Comics adaptation in 2009. Now, King's opus is being revisited for modern-day, with a 9-episode limited event series for the subscription streaming service, CBS All Access, with a star-studded cast, including Oscar™-winner Whoopi Goldberg, Alexander Skarsgård, James Marsden, Odessa Young, Jovan Adepo, Amber Heard, Owen Teague, Henry Zaga, Brad William Henke, Greg Kinnear, Irene Bedard and Nat Wolff all bringing the story into the 21st Century.
The Art And The Making of The Stand takes readers behind the scenes of this much-anticipated series to discover how a remarkable group of producers and actors brought Stephen King's genre-defining opus to screen. The book is full to the brim with on-set photography, concept art and more, accompanied by interviews with the crew and all-star cast alongside the shooting script for the never-before-published coda written for the new series by King himself.
Written by The Stand expert Andy Burns, The Art And The Making of The Stand is set to publish in hardback on May 4, 2021, priced at $45.
The Stand premiered December 17th exclusively on CBS All Access. New episodes of the nine-episode limited event series will drop weekly on Thursdays.
Tagged Books, CBS All Access, Stephen King, The Art And The Making of The Stand, Titan Books
Letters From Hell Broadside By Stephen King
Stephen King books and manuscripts have become quite collectable often times fetching hundreds of dollars, however there is a unique item that many fans of the horror author have never seen before.
In 1988, Northridge, California based publisher, Lord John Press (sadly defunct) created a broadside (oversized poster) that contained the full text of an article by Stephen King originally published in the New York Times entitled "Ever Eat Raw Meat?"
The essay written in 1987 outlined some of the strange questions King had been asked by inquisitive fans. You can read the piece in its entirety HERE.
The Letters From Hell print was limited to only 500 signed and numbered copies and 26 signed and lettered copies. The issue price at the time was $125. Long sold out, the print sells for 4 times that now when a rare copy can be located.
The single sheet contained 4 columns of text by Stephen King and it measured 18 x 24 inches.
Letterpress printed in three colors (red, purple, & black) on BFK Rives France, a heavyweight art paper with deckled edges, the piece was designed and printed by Vance Gerry and Patrick Reagh.
Tagged Art, Books, Broadside, Ever Eat Raw Meat?, Letters From Hell, Lord John Press, print, Stephen King
Art / Posters, Movies
Planes, Trains And Automobiles Artist Proof Prints By JJ Harrison And Bill Galvan Available On December 22
Artists JJ Harrison and Bill Galvan created these amazing prints of Planes, Trains And Automobiles as a special limited commission. Watching the hilarious film is a Thanksgiving tradition in our home and these prints really capture the comedic hijinks of the beloved Steve Martin and John Candy movie!
This Tueday, December 22nd at 10AM (PT), the few remaining personal copies of the sold out poster will go on sale HERE. Please note, these are extremely limited and will sell out instantly so be quick on your keyboards.
Planes, Trains And Automobiles Print
By JJ Harrison and Bill Galvan
Regular Edition of 20
Signed by JJ Harrison
24 x 36" screenprint.
Wrong Way Edition of 18
24 x 36" screenprint
There will also be a couple sets of both versions available.
Tagged Art, Bill Galvan, JJ Harrison, Movies, Planes, Posters, Trains And Automobiles
Art / Posters, Convention, Movies
Star Wars Artist Series Alphabet 26 Print Collection By Shag
The Star Wars Celebration Artist Series Alphabet returns for 2020, with a stylish take on your favorite heroes and villains by renowned artist, Shag! The collection features 26 designs, one representing each letter of the alphabet, with characters selected by Shag and rendered in his unique and distinctive style!
The Star Wars Celebration Artist Series Alphabet 26 Print Collection features 26 individual 8 x 10 pieces of artwork, printed on #130 matte covers stock, collated in an exclusive collectors window box that features excusive Shag Artwork. These prints will not be sold individually, and can only be purchased as a set.
The set is limited to 500 units and can be ordered HERE for $150.
Tagged Movies, SHAG, Star Wars, Star Wars Celebration
Art / Posters
Jason Edmiston Announces His First Eyes Without A Face Mystery Box
Jason Edmiston has announced his first Eyes Without A Face Box featuring a surprise collection of Eyes prints and more.
So, what's in the box?
– A mystery selection of 5 gicleé prints from my Eyes Without a Face series archives
-One EWAF pin
-One EWAF pencil
-One additional NEW limited edition EWAF gicleé, signed, numbered, and exclusive to this release.
100 boxes will be available, at $100 USD each. Each box will contain one of
Also, one lucky winner will randomly receive in their box, a one-of-a-kind, original Eyes Without a Face painted sketch, on a paint Swatch ("Sand Motif").
The sale goes live on December 18, at 12 Noon (EST) HERE.
Tagged Art, Eyes Without A Face, Jason Edmiston, Mystery Box


The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services Office of Legal Services (OLS) provides legal counsel to the agency and offers a wide range of services to law enforcement agencies and prosecutor offices across the state.
Attorneys who staff the office ensure that the agency complies with state and federal laws and regulations. From the development of a request for proposal through execution of a contract, from creation to implementation of rules and regulations governing agency responsibilities, to drafting legislation, the Office of Legal Services guides the agency through numerous state and federal statutory and regulatory requirements.
The New York Prosecutors Training Institute, Inc. (NYPTI) provides education and assistance to New York State prosecutors.
The New York State Association of Chiefs of Police provides education and assistance to New York State law enforcement agencies.
The New York State Sheriffs' Association, Inc. provides education and assistance to sheriffs and their staffs.
Access links to the New York State Courts, including Appellate Courts, in addition to federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and United States District Courts.
The state Office of Court Administration's Search Warrant Manual, published in 2005. The manual is a comprehensive guide to obtaining search warrants, the proper courts to issue warrants, affidavits, necessary information that should be included in a warrant and appropriate circumstances in which warrants are necessary, as well as other extremely useful information regarding their utilization.
Includes links to various law libraries making it possible to perform research from a variety of resources.
Access links to legal and advisory opinions by the New York State Attorney General's Office, Department of State Committee on Open Government, and Office of the State Comptroller.
Access to the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations are provided for informational purposes only by WestlawNext via the New York State Department of State.
This information is provided for informational purposes and convenient access to data and resources. The Office of Legal Services provides counsel to the Commissioner and agency staff, and also is the legal advisor to various councils and boards to which the agency provides staff support. The agency cannot provide legal services or advice to the general public.
Individuals in need of legal advice should contact an attorney, who would be in the best position to advise what options are available. Individuals who do not have an attorney but wish to consult one, may contact the New York State Bar Association Lawyer Referral and Information Service at 1-800-342-3661 or lr@nysba.org, or the Legal Aid Society in your area.


text:
Chapter 1549: Feel the pain, endure the pain, get used to the pain
"???" The golden core loose cultivator.
The reinforcements that they were heading toward consisted of a person that both himself and the dog fellow daoist knew?
I've only just met this dog fellow daoist, right? Does that mean that the one we're meeting up with is someone well-known in the world of cultivation?
However… Why would I be afraid of the other party and end up calling them daddy?
I don't have the hobby of calling others daddy.
Even if a senior were to come to their aid, and that senior was very strong, he would absolutely not be shameless enough to call them daddy.
The golden core loose cultivator was thinking this in his mind.
"Aaaah, I got hit again… It hurts~ These guys really have good accuracy. Had it not been for this dog's high defense, I would have long been put on a skewer." Doudou's figure jumped up and down in the air. His tail was clamped, defending his butt, but he didn't expect that his butt would still get shot. Fortunately, the defensive effect that appeared after the collar was activated was still present, and the tip of the arrow got stopped by the fur. In the end, his body didn't receive any injuries at all, but it did hurt a bit.
"…" The golden core loose cultivator.
Was it just him seeing things?
He and this dog fellow daoist were being chased and hunted down by Celestials, and they were in danger the entire time, possibly about to get shot down and killed at any moment. However, this dog fellow daoist looked very happy… even a bit too happy?
Doudou seemed to understand the expression of the loose cultivator. He really had become 'understanding' recently, increasingly better at guessing what the other party was thinking just based on things like their expression, micromovements, heartbeat, and breathing.
However, even though he had become 'understanding', that did not mean that he would act according to the other party's wishes.
"Haha, you guessed it. I'm very happy right now… I like the excitement of being chased down. A world where your life is in danger is the greatest." Doudou's figure was like a small plane flying around while dodging bullets in old games as it dodged the rain of arrows.
Sure enough, man and dog had completely different thought processes.
Doudou suddenly called out, "Be careful, the other party has brought out other magical treasures."
The Celestials who had been chasing them had brought out a brand-new weapon. The three Fourth Stage Celestials, who were flying relatively slower, brought out a large drum-like thing, and began beating it.
"Boom~"
With hearing the beating of the drum, Doudou and the loose cultivator felt a violent shock reverberate across their bodies. The sound waves filled their brains, making their bodies numb as if they had gotten electrocuted.
Doudou gritted his teeth as he said, "A sound-type magical treasure, they actually still had such a thing."
His hearing was much stronger than that of human cultivators of the same realm. Therefore, the effect of sound-type magical treasures were amplified on him.
This information… I must relay it to Stupid Yellow Mountain when the time comes.
"Boom, boom, boom~" The drum continued to beat.
This resulted in Doudou and the loose cultivator being disturbed, causing their flying speeds to slow down.
As soon as their speed slowed down, the two were immediately bombarded by arrows and spears.
Doudou activated the flaming wheels, flames surging out from within them and surrounding Doudou's body. The flames seemed to have their own mind, and they continuously compressed and erupted with a kind of 'volcanic force', pushing away the arrows and spears.
The Fifth Stage loose cultivator brought out a robe, and waved it about to block the rain of arrows.
For most loose cultivators, it didn't matter which system the magical treasure they got belonged to.
As long as they could use it, regardless of whether it was from the buddhist system, daoist system, scholarly system, or demonic system, they would keep it for times when they could come in handy.
"We can't go on like this." Doudou quickly took out his phone, hung it around his neck, and then called Song Shuhang once again.
On the other side, Song Shuhang quickly connected. "I'm rushing towards your location."
Doudou said, "Shuhang, hurry up. The firepower of these Celestials is stronger than I expected. I feel like I won't be able to hold on for much longer."
Song Shuhang replied, "Grit your teeth and endure, I'll be there soon."
Doudou responded, "Hurry. Don't turn off the phone, let's keep talking."
Song Shuhang replied, "Okay."
Meanwhile.
Song Shuhang changed his posture for flying.
He leaped slightly, and the Tyrant Cuttlefish's Twin Blades flew into his hands.
He placed a hand on each of the twin blades, and he then performed the fastest flying secret technique he currently knew—the Bride Dragging Technique.
No, it's the ❮Blade Dragging Technique❯, Blade Dragging!
Song Shuhang had never used two blades together for the ❮Blade Dragging Technique❯, but now that he got to try it out, the speed really astounded him.
With a whoosh, the two blades dragged Song Shuhang wildly through the air.
Moreover, holding the twin blades with his hands had an advantage… they wouldn't split apart like how they had back when he'd used his feet to stand on the two blades.
With the continuous acceleration of the Blade Dragging Technique, a sonic boom echoed behind Song Shuhang after 15 breaths as he rushed into a supersonic state.
Scarlet Heaven Sword remarked, "Oh, it's rare to see you take the initiative to enter supersonic flight. Fellow Daoist Tyrannical Song, what are your thoughts on the matter?"
Scarlet Heaven Sword was lying on Song Shuhang's back, feeling like it was riding Song Shuhang.
Song Shuhang said, "There's one thing I can say for sure: the next time I use the Blade Dragging Technique, I have to change my posture. I should lie on my back so that I don't see the ground."
When the Blade Dragging Technique was deployed, the blade light would take on the shape of a 'pointed shuttle', enveloping the treasured saber, on which there were active five formation effects to protect against wind, water, fire, earth, and lightning.
"…" Scarlet Heaven Sword didn't reply right away. "A Fifth Stage Spiritual Emperor who is still afraid of heights. You really are a rare one in the world of cultivation."
"Actually, ever since I gained the ability to tread on air, my fear of heights has almost completely disappeared. The only thing is that there are times when I'm flying really high in the sky and at great speeds, which causes me to be affected by both my fear of heights and fear of high speeds at the same time." Song Shuhang sighed, and said, "In the future, as long as I have the time, I will try to fly around on my saber for some time every day. I feel that my fear of heights and high speeds should be dealt with in at most one month."
"I almost forgot that you're afraid of high speeds. Now I feel like I might have called upon the wrong reinforcements." At this time, Doudou's voice came from the phone. "I keep on getting the feeling that when you, a guy who's afraid of heights and high speeds, gets here, I will have already gone cold."
Similar to Doudou, Song Shuhang also hung his mobile phone around his neck as he used the 'Blade Dragging Technique'.
Song Shuhang said, "That makes sense, so I'll head back now. Even if I rush over, your body would have gone cold by then, right?"
Doudou responded, "Brother~ Do you really want me to die? Oh my Yellow Mountain, an arrow struck my butt again. I'm not joking, Shuhang, hurry. If you're too late, you'll end up seeing nothing but a cold Doudou, would you be able to bear that?"
Song Shuhang said, "Grit your teeth and endure, and when you get used to this kind of pain, you will find… that in actuality, the pain is just like a drizzle."
Doudou said, "It's me who's getting shot here, so of course you can say things like that."
"No, I'm talking from experience. Feel the pain, endure the pain, and get used to it. In the end, you will feel that the pain is nothing more than that, habit is a terrifying thing," Song Shuhang calmly said—one should not forget that Song Shuhang had an unbelievably high pain tolerance after everything he had gone through.
Now, even when he ended up spewing out blood because of the secret appraisal technique, he wouldn't find it that painful. In addition, when it came to the heavenly tribulation's lightning strikes, as long as it was not of an extremely high level, it was just some slight numbness to him.
All of these were the result of the power of habit.
Doudou fell into thought—after feeling the pain, enduring it, and getting used to it, was there still the realm of 'enjoying the pain'?
When Song Shuhang finally got to the battlefield using the 'Blade Dragging Technique', he saw Doudou, who was in a horrible state, as well as a Fifth Stage loose cultivator.
Doudou and the Fifth Stage loose cultivator could no longer fly, and they had been forced to land on a cliff, holding up their defenses as they resisted the attacks.
The Fifth Stage loose cultivator looked like he was already exhausted…
Doudou could break through and escape at any time with the magical treasures given to him by Yellow Mountain. However, he did not leave, and instead assisted the Fifth Stage loose cultivator in defending.
Doudou asked, "Shuhang, have you arrived?"
If Shuhang hadn't arrived yet, he would have had to escape first. At that point, he could only bring over some people later to avenge the kind-hearted Fifth Stage loose cultivator.
"I'm here. I see you guys." Song Shuhang's voice came from the phone.
His words were like raindrops after a long drought.
Doudou and the Fifth Stage loose cultivator raised their heads at the same time, and looked into the air.
"Boom, boom, boom~"
There was a deafening noise—it was the noise from Song Shuhang descending using the Blade Dragging Technique.
Song Shuhang held the twin blades with both hands, and directly slammed into the three Fourth Stage Celestials who were beating the large drum.
At the time of the impact, a layer of pitch-black metal emerged on Song Shuhang's body. In addition, 21 Holy Apes Projections appeared behind him, and in each of their hands was a Scholarly Scripture.
His three body-tempering techniques were now in full use.
The Celestials that were attacking Doudou and the Fifth Stage loose cultivator frantically turned their heads back, looking behind them when they heard the loud booms.
However, when they turned their heads, Song Shuhang had already gotten to the large drum.
The three Fourth Stage Celestials carrying the large drum were knocked out, their limbs twisted as if they had been crushed by a tank. They fell from the air, and it was unknown whether they were still alive or not.
Song Shuhang stretched out his hand to fish out and put away the large drum—even if he had no use for it, he could still use it as a gift for his disciples in the future.
"!!!" The seven Fifth Stage Celestials stared at Song Shuhang and let out all kinds of strange noises.
There was surprise in their calls, and the surprise could not be concealed.
It was that guy, the mutant human cultivator with four golden cores hidden in his stomach.
If they were to hunt him, they would gain supreme glory.
Song Shuhang stopped, holding the Tyrant Cuttlefish's Twin Blades in his hand while standing in mid-air.
Two black lotus flowers bloomed under his feet, supporting his figure.
The eyes of the Celestials lit up as if they had seen a rare treasure. The seven Fifth Stage Celestials carefully surrounded him.
Song Shuhang softly said, "Living Celestials are worth more than dead ones."
As his thoughts reached this point, he brought out his 'Sage Seal' and 'Demonic Seal'.
Profound Sage Tyrannical Song, Demonic Sage Tyrannical Scholar.
The two seals came out together and floated behind Song Shuhang, placing heavy pressure on the Celestials in an instant.
On the cliff.
The Fifth Stage loose cultivator exclaimed, "T-Tyrannical (Daddy)[1] Song!"
Doudou glanced at him disdainfully.
[1] Tyrannical sounds like 'Daddy' in Chinese if you're stuttering.


text:
package scl

class ChannelSocketUDP extends Channel {
    var socket:java.net.DatagramSocket = null

    def open(name:String) = {
        try {
            val ns = name.split(":")
            socket = new java.net.DatagramSocket(if (ns.length == 2) ns(1).toInt else 8080, java.net.InetAddress.getByName(ns(0)))
            _name = name
        } catch { case _:Exception => socket = null }
        opened
    }
    def opened = socket != null
    def close = { if (opened) { socket.close; socket = null } }

    def avail = if (opened) 0 else 0
    def read = {
        if (opened){
            Nil
        } else Nil
    }

    def write(bytes:Array[Byte]) = if (opened) {}
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
City of Albany Launches Goodsnitch to Engage with Residents and Encourage Excellence
Goodsnitch especially encourages users to recognize "everyday heroes" – city employees, community residents, and volunteers who provide great service. City staff can view and respond to feedback in real time, acknowledge those who are recognized, and improve as needed.
"Goodsnitch is a simple tool that people can use to provide valuable, constructive comments on services provided by local government," said City Manager Wes Hare.
Albany, OR (PRWEB) April 14, 2014
The City of Albany, Oregon today announced its partnership with Goodsnitch, an innovative mobile technology that allows residents to provide real-time feedback about the city services they receive. Albany is the first U.S. city to implement Goodsnitch.
"Goodsnitch is a simple tool that people can use to provide valuable, constructive comments on services provided by local government," said City Manager Wes Hare. "We like the whole concept and are proud to be a partner."
Goodsnitch aims to establish real-time positive and constructive feedback into the consumer and company relationship. It focuses on publicly highlighting the good work of others and privately communicating the constructive criticism to be addressed. Albany residents and staff can provide feedback through the free Goodsnitch app or during events such as River Rhythms or the Northwest Art & Air Festival through on-site tablets. Residents can comment on city functions including Parks and Recreation events, the City Manager's office, Library services, the Fire Department, Community Development, Utility Billing, Information Technology, and Human Resources.
Residents can also use Goodsnitch at local businesses and organizations and some are already using it.
"There is a virtuous cycle initiated when a citizen feels empowered and heard," commented Rob Pace, Goodsnitch's founder. "When that customer engagement highlights the impact of a particular person's service such as a great volunteer, the significance increases exponentially. It's impressive to see a city like Albany so focused on customer engagement."
About Albany
Albany, population 50,720, is the 11th largest city in Oregon with residents in Linn and Benton counties. City government has been frequently recognized for transparency efforts, including the 2010 Good Governance Award from the League of Oregon Cities for two innovative Web applications designed to increase government transparency and provide easy access to tax, financial, and performance information. It has also been recognized by the Sunshine Review, an independent national organization devoted to governmental transparency, with a perfect A+ score.
For more information, go to http://www.cityofalbany.net.
About Goodsnitch
Goodsnitch provides customized mobile, web and tablet customer engagement and employee recognition "fast data" solutions for businesses of all sizes. Based in San Diego, its clients include the Dallas Cowboys, Life Technologies, Robert Half International and Rock Church. It is available through the App Store and Google Play. Goodsnitch was founded by former Salvation Army National Chairman and Goldman Sachs partner Rob Pace and provides its custom products to many non-profits at no cost.
For more information, go to http://www.goodsnitch.com.
Mike Siciliano
Goodsnitch
Katie Nooshazar
@GoodsnitchApp
since: 08/2013
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text:
John Nolan Cape Canaveral
John Nolan Bio
John Nolan News
John Paul Nolans Blog
John Nolan Pictures
John Nolan Cape Canaveral Brevard Fl
Written by John Nolan
Namesakes include fashion designer Nolan Miller and young Nolan Gould, who plays Luke on Modern Family. Nolan Ross is a character on Revenge; comic actress Molly Shannon named her son Nolan.
In the early 16th century Cape Canaveral was noted on maps, although without being named. It was named by Spanish explorers in the first half of the 16th century asCabo Cañareal. The name "Canaveral" (Cañaveral in Spanish, meaning "reed bed" or "sugarcane plantation") is the third oldest surviving European place name in the US.
O'NOLAN: Of this name Mr. D'Alton remarks: "The O'Nolans were a sept of the highest antiquity, especially in co. Carlow, where they gave name to the district of Fothart O'Nolan.
John Nolan guitars
More about the John Nolan men
Cape Canaveral Seashore
Rockets from Cape Canaveral
John Nolan Art
John Nolan Space Coast Daily News
John Nolan from Cape Canaveral
© 2021 John Nolan Cape Canaveral


Clean, uncomplicated, and straight forward — that is the message I wanted to communicate through this re-brand. The logo needed to be easy to read and bold, the colors needed to be updated as well as inviting, and the over all message behind the business needed to be clear. This is a family owned and operated business, so it was important to me to design something that conveyed being approachable, but didn't compromise the level of professionalism and experience that the business does operate in.
My favorite part about the re-brand is the water drop. I wanted to give them a strong element in their visual branding that maybe one day in the future could stand on its own.


of success is being able to do something you love.
I couldn't be more successful"
Private aircraft travel delivers comfort and convenience which you won't find with commercial air flights. In view of the consolidation, smaller cabin areas, route and stop cutbacks, and new security restrictions, flying commercial is stressful.
However, flying by private plane has its own set of challenges. In addition to regulatory compliance, maintenance, training and staffing, the cost of idle planes adds to private ownership challenges. Privaira knows what you need to help alleviate some of the hurdles of private jet ownership. For this reason, our management solutions offer you a safe, professional, and efficient customer experience.
When you need instant access to charter guests or as your schedule permits, Privaira has the management solution you need.
When using Privaira, rest assured that we make the preservation of your aviation asset our most important management focus. It's for this reason we choose the most cost effective and efficient manner of asset optimization when managing your aircraft. As a result, Privaira plans your aircraft maintenance, hires experienced crews, and ensures regulatory compliance.
With our attention to generating charter cash flow, you can enjoy the benefits that come with private aircraft ownership. Transparency is key to navigate the complex aviation ownership environment. Privaira aligns with aircraft owners and charter customers sharing the same overall principles as we do: honesty, integrity, and respect.
Aviation Research Group (ARG/US) Platinum rated "Best in Class Operator" status. This includes the highest standards of internal SMS, pilot training, aircraft insurance, and maintenance practices.
International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS-BAO) Stage II certification. Proven compliance in all areas, including SMS, training programs, flight operations, aircraft maintenance, emergency response, and security.
Wyvern Registered Operator. Wyvern approved air charter operator, meeting or exceeding their audit standards for global flight departments.
All our managed aircraft operate under Sky One Holdings LLC, FAA part 135 Air Carrier Certificate (Air Carrier Certificate: 1KSA590N).
Understanding the mission and what you want to accomplish with your future aircraft is important for the selection process. Privaira helps you find and purchase the right private plane.
In order to help you find the perfect jet Privaira guides you through the entire selection process. Additionally, buying a private aircraft is a significant investment. Because of the costs associated with private aircraft, you need an expert helping you make the right decision.
With this in mind Privaira helps you find the private jet that meets all your requirements. We help you with all the ins and outs of the purchasing process so that you find the jet that's right for you.


text:
At 84 Years Old, He Just Wanted to Talk — That's All He Asked
At 84 Years Old, He Just Wanted to Talk
Here's one more example of how time can be the greatest gift to others, during this holiday season and always
By Alanna Nash | December 21, 2016
I had just gotten home, my arms full of packages, when the phone rang. The caller ID spelled out a man's name I didn't quite recognize — yet it seemed familiar somehow, too.
The voice on the other end identified himself as someone who had corresponded with me some 10 or more years ago — and before he said any more, I remembered this man, Charles.
"About the MG, right?" I said.
"Yes," came the enthusiastic answer.
Charles (no last name) had first written to me after he read a story of mine about my car, a replica of a 1952 MG-TD, the preposterously British charmer with running boards and glassine curtains, and how that little red roadster was one of the joys of my life.
Related: Why I Love the Holidays
He'd owned three MGs through the years — a TC, a TD, and an MGA — and felt a kinship. We'd had a number of emails — he'd attached pictures of his cars, and I remembered one of his family happily piled into the MGA, Charles beaming behind the wheel. But that was a long time ago.
"I tried to send you a Christmas card," Charles said now, "but my email bounced back."
"Charles," I asked, "do you get lonely?"
I explained I no longer had that account and wondered why, all of a sudden, this man wanted to be in touch again.
We talked cars for a bit, and tossed around the pros and cons of right-hand drive. Then he asked me for my current email address. I gave it to him, and wished him a Merry Christmas and tried to ease him into hanging up.
But Charles didn't want to hang up. After I tried a second time, I realized he just needed to talk with someone.
He was 84 years old now, he said, a resident of a small town in Nevada. His wife died 12 years ago, and his daughter lives in California, where he would be going for Christmas.
"Oh, gosh, yes," he answered. "I'm lonely almost all the time."
He tried to have a girlfriend after his wife died, he explained, but Alzheimer's took her in her early 70s. I encouraged him to try again. He sighed. "It's hard," he said.
Related: The Gift That Matters Most
Loneliness is a killer, so I quit what I was doing to be completely present in our conversation. I'm glad I did. I had been through some tough stuff lately myself, with more ahead, and my friends had gathered around me like angels to lift me up.
Charles needed a lift on this day, too — and all it took was for someone to listen.
One day, I'll be that lonely caller to someone I corresponded with 10 years ago, and I'll hope that person doesn't hang up on me.
As one of my Facebook friends has reminded me, the greatest gift is time spent with someone who needs it.
As we look ahead to Christmas this year, let's try to remember the folks who have no one else close by. It doesn't take much to make a difference. God bless.
This article was originally published in LifeZette last year, and has been updated. Alanna Nash, an award-winning journalist based in Louisville, Kentucky, is the author of seven books, including four on Elvis Presley.


I will once again be participating in the annual Peach Tree Holiday Show in Mar Vista, Calif. on Saturday, December 8 and Sunday, December 9 from noon to 5 p.m.
I absolutely love being a part of this two-day event that brings together so many talented artists and artisans. Every year, I get all of my holiday AND birthday gifts here. From functional art to fine art and across all price ranges, you will find something for everyone ~ pottery, jewelry, photography, paintings, woven scarves and blankets, and more.
I will be there both days so drop by and say hi. I will have marbled note cards, gift boxes, framed pieces (I am REALLY excited about these!), matted pieces, journals, and individual papers for sale.
Be sure to visit Peach Tree's Facebook page over the next few weeks to check out other artists'/artisans' work.


For musicians, it's the best of times and it's the worst of times. Streaming services like Apple Music and Spotify are booming, helping the long-suffering music industry grow for the first time in decades.
But these new services make very little money for artists, with ephemeral streams paying out only a fraction of the revenue of actual album sales and downloads. Beyoncé, the highest-paid artist of last year, made the bulk of her money from a world tour. So did Guns N' Roses, the second name on that list, and that band hasn't even released a new album in a decade.


text:
Cargill: Tried to resolve issues before firing…
Cargill: Tried to resolve issues before firing Colorado Muslim workers
Workers including Somalis trim beef in manufacturing at Cargill Meat Solutions in Fort Morgan. Joe Amon, The Denver Post
Somali immigrant Halimo Ahmed places her cut on the fastpaced belt during her shift in manufacturing at Cargill Meat Solutions in Fort Morgan. Joe Amon, The Denver Post
By Emilie Rusch | erusch@denverpost.com and Jesse Paul | jpaul@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: December 31, 2015 at 3:32 am | UPDATED: February 2, 2017 at 1:03 pm
Cargill Meat Solutions said Thursday it tried to resolve a workplace prayer dispute with Somali workers at its Fort Morgan meatpacking plant that led to the firing of about 190 employees.
The workers who lost their jobs were mostly immigrants from Somalia, and their termination came after they failed to report to work for three consecutive days last week to protest what they say were changes in times allowed for Muslim prayer.
Cargill says, however, it makes every "reasonable attempt" to provide religious accommodation for all of its employees at the Fort Morgan plant without interrupting operations.
"At no time did Cargill prevent people from prayer at Fort Morgan," said Michael Martin, a spokesman for the Wichita-based company, which is part of the agribusiness giant Cargill Inc. " Nor have we changed policies related to religious accommodation and attendance. This has been mischaracterized."
Cargill also said while reasonable efforts are made to accommodate employees, accommodation is not guaranteed every day and depends on changing factors in the plant.
"This has been clearly communicated to all employees," Martin said.
But the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which is representing more than 100 of the fired employees, said Thursday that messaging from plant supervisors has not always been so clear.
On Dec. 18, the Friday before employee protests began Dec. 21, "the workers were told: 'If you want to pray, go home,' " CAIR spokesman Jaylani Hussein said.
"To these employees, that is what it is. Maybe Cargill never changed its policy, but to these employees, they feel whatever the policy is, or how it is implemented, there was a change put in place," Hussein said.
Cargill provides a "reflection room" at the plant where observant Muslim workers are allowed to pray, something that has been available since 2009.
Hussein said depending on the season, the workers pray at different times of the day, typically taking five to 10 minutes away from their work.
The time was carved out of a 15-minute break period or from the workers' unpaid 30-minute lunch breaks.
Many of the workers banded together and decided to walk off the job in an attempt to sway plant managers to reinstate the prayer policy.
"They feel missing their prayer is worse than losing their job," Hussein said. "It's like losing a blessing from God."
On Dec. 23, Cargill fired the holdouts who had not returned to work, citing a company policy that employees who do not show up for work or call in for three consecutive days will be let go.
"It's an unfortunate situation that may be based somewhere in a misunderstanding," Martin said. "But the policies have been in place, and we go over the policies for all people who are newly hired to the company when they are hired."
All of the terminated employees worked the second shift on the plant's fabrication floor, where chilled beef carcasses are broken down into smaller cuts and packaged, Martin said.
Of those involved, "fewer than 20" employees walked out in the middle of a shift, he said. About 160 failed to report to work, and 10 resigned.
Before the walkout, Cargill employed roughly 600 Somali workers at the Fort Morgan plant. More than 400 still work there, Martin said, and accommodations are still being made to allow Muslims to leave the floor in small groups to pray.
"There has been a desire among some employees to go in larger groups of people to pray. We just can't accommodate that," Martin said. "It backs up the flow of all the production. We're a federally inspected, USDA inspected plant. We have to ensure food safety. We have to ensure the products we produce meet consumer expectations."
The workers earn $14 per hour and up and are represented by a union, Teamsters Local 455. More than 2,000 people are employed at the plant.
Cargill has a policy stating that any workers who are terminated cannot reapply for a position for six months. CAIR continues to talk with Cargill, and Hussein said he hopes the six-month freeze is waived and that the workers will be allowed back.
"I'm confident in our upcoming negotiations that we can come to a resolution," Hussein said.
Emilie Rusch: 303-954-2457, erusch@denverpost.com or @emilierusch
Cargill Inc.
Emilie Rusch
Emilie Rusch covers commercial real estate and retail for The Post. Reach her at 303-954-2457.
Follow Emilie Rusch	@emilierusch
Jesse Paul
Politics reporter. He has worked at The Denver Post since the summer of 2014, covering cops, courts, politics, environment, skiing and everything in between. He loves telling stories about Colorado's mountain towns and the Eastern Plains and wants to make sure our newspaper's great work extends into their communities.
Follow Jesse Paul	@jesseapaul
Denver ties record for high temperature on July 18 at 99 degrees
Denver tied a record -- 99 degrees -- Thursday for the high temperature on July 18, according to the National Weather Service.


The standalone IronJacamar container implements Chapter 3 Section 5 of the JCA 1.6 specification which defines a standalone JCA environment.
contains the run scripts and the SJC kernel.
contains the configuration of the container.
contains all the libraries used by the container.
This standalone configuration is for development purposes only.
The IronJacamar/SJC uses the Fungal kernel for its run-time environment.
SJC is short for "Simple JCA Container".


We conclude there is no compelling case for governments going spare over global excess capacity in manufacturing. From the perspective of the global trading system, a nation's excess production capacity is not the issue per se but the harm such excess capacity does to trading partners is. We build our case first by critically evaluating the implementation of the only G20 initiative to tackle sectoral excess capacity, namely in the steel sector. The dissatisfaction of key steel sector stakeholders with this initiative's execution is merited. That the steel sector is plagued by trade distortions is not in question, how the G20 has gone about tackling it is. Then we muster empirical evidence that sheds light on how little global trade is in sectors where China has excess capacity. Moreover, exports from these sectors account for only a small share of China's total exports. Critically we show how systemically unimportant are the trade-related knock-on effects of excess capacity such as import surges and how infrequently G20 governments have bothered to respond to import surges in excess capacity sectors during the past 10 years.


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EnTrust represented The Climate Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Monsanto Company in the leasing of 21,118 SF at 1330 West Fulton, a new Sterling Bay office development in Chicago's West Fulton submarket. The new facility will function as Climate's Chicago corporate headquarters.
In addition to selecting locations and negotiating the leases, EnTrust assisted Climate in identifying and evaluating architects to create a workplace design that will help Climate attract and retain the best talent available for its business.
Additionally, EnTrust negotiated a 10,414 SF lease at 370 North Carpenter Street, also in the West Fulton submarket, to accommodate Climate's immediate growth needs.
The West Fulton Chicago submarket, initially selected by Google for its new Chicago headquarters, has also been selected by McDonalds Corporation and Dyson Ltd., and continues to attract entrepreneurial and tech firms that appreciate West Fulton's rich history, gritty personality, and ultimately want to be a part of the evolution that is making this area one of the most unique work/play/live neighborhoods in Chicago.
Here is a link to a clip on the space we leased for Climate Corp for your viewing pleasure. Click here to see video.


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A compelling example of common sense and rational living
The 16th century was a period of extraordinary conflict and violence. Disputes about religious and territorial matters divided the population in factions engaged in continuous wars, persecutions, and torture. Luckily, not everybody fell prey to the dominant ideas of the time and a few men taught us lessons that we should strive to keep always present in our mind.
The French writer Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) is one of the most interesting personalities of that time. We would probably never have heard of him if he had been more successful in his profession and businesses, or one should rather say, if he had attempted to become more successful.
An aversion to flattery
After learning Latin, the most widespread language at that time in Europe, and receiving some basic training in jurisprudence, Montaigne spent more than a decade as secretary of different legislative councils and courts of justice in the south of France.
Later on, he resided for a while in Paris, but he was clever enough to realize that his natural aversion to lies, flattery, and pretence made him unsuitable for a lifelong career as civil servant. When he turned 38 years of age, in the middle of one of the worst periods of religious conflict in France, he decided to abandon his career and retire to a farm in the south of France.
Living in accordance with nature
What followed during the next 15 years was a memorable attempt at living life according to nature and common sense. Everyday, Montaigne would devote the necessary effort to his farming activities, but not with the purpose of expanding his wealth, but simply to ensure his subsistence and that of his family.
For the rest, Montaigne set himself the goal of reflecting about the good life and writing down his thoughts as he went along. Surrounded by the books that he had accumulated in the previous decades of his life, he wrote continuously during his forties and early fifties.
While his neighbours in the south of France took sides passionately in favour of some ideological faction or other, Montaigne always called for moderation, pleaded for peace, and recommended tolerance as the best policy to ensure prosperity and maintain human dignity.
Sound principles
Montaigne's essays were published in successive compilations, which he corrected and edited further, until he was happy with the result. The principles of common sense, prudence, tolerance, moderation, and learning from experience, permeate his whole writings from beginning to end.
Since the 16th century, other thinkers have tried to establish the principles of the good life, but few have equalled Montaigne's erudition and literary skills. For those who, in our age, seek to learn how to live in accordance with Nature, Montaigne's essays are, more than four centuries after his death, still a delight to read.
Image: Photograph of medieval painting. Photo taken by John Vespasian, 2015.
For more information about rational living, I refer you to my books.
Labels: Entrepreneurship, Happiness, Personal Development, Personal Growth, Rationality, Self-confidence No comments:
There were no roses in the times of Moses
Anxiety and apprehension
Joshua woke up in the dark with his heart beating wildly. The nightmare had returned to haunt him, as it had done every night for as long as he could remember. It was always the same anxiety and apprehension. Why did he dream night after night of being stoned by his own people?
He took a deep breath and tried to slow down his heart, when he heard a noise outside the tent. Was a desert lion roaming the camp? He listened attentively and perceived the sound of steps. The first light of dawn was visible through the seams of the tent. Who was walking outside so early? Joshua rolled out of his camp bed, put on his sandals, and walked silently out of the tent.
There was nobody to be seen, but the silent fields around the camp confirmed Joshua's suspicion. He sharpened his ears, but heard no cry of owls and no sound of crickets. He knew that nature retreats into total quietness only out of the fear caused by human presence.
When Joshua saw a man's silhouette moving up the slope of Mount Sinai, he could not believe his eyes. It was Moses, one of the tribe's elders. Joshua was baffled. Why on earth was Moses climbing the mountain?
He is just an old fool, reflected Joshua. He hesitated for a moment whether to shout at Moses that he should come back, but that would have woken up everybody in the camp. Irritated by Moses' folly, Joshua began to climb the mountain himself, in pursuit of the old man.
The slope was steep and Joshua was soon out of breath. No matter how fast he climbed, Moses seemed to move even faster. Three hours later, when the sun was high in the sky, Joshua stood still and inspected the bushes around him. He was fed up. Where was the old man?
Joshua had lost trace of Moses, but now he was perceiving an intermittent noise, as though someone was trying to light a fire using a flint. That had to be Moses, but what on earth was he doing? Joshua advanced towards the noise and found the old man sitting on the ground, holding a chisel and a hammer in his hands, with a stone tablet between his legs.
We have to go back
"We have to go back," said Joshua irritated. He was so exhausted by the climb that he had forgotten all politeness. Moses shook his head. "I have not finished yet," he replied. He set the chisel blade on the stone tablet and hit the chisel head softly with the hammer.
Joshua looked over Moses' shoulder and saw that the old man was carving words on the tablet. "What are you writing?" he inquired. "The laws," answered Moses calmly without stopping his work. "The laws of our people."
Moses' answer did not make any sense to Joshua, who grew even more impatient. "Which laws?" he retorted. Moses shrugged his shoulders as he continued carving letters. "God's laws," he explained. "I have already told you about them, but you never listen to me." Despite the reproachful words, Moses' voice was devoid of bitterness.
A cold wind coming from the bushes made Joshua shiver. The situation was making him uncomfortable. The truth was that Joshua had no right to criticize Moses, no authority to tell him what to do or where to go. Joshua felt embarrassed and sat down on the ground next to Moses.
"You have worked a lot," he commented with admiration, looking at the five sentences carved on the stone. "Five laws won't be enough," countered Moses. "I still have to write another six on a second tablet." Then he took in a deep breath. "I am tired, Joshua, will you help me? This is why God has sent you here."
The quicker we get it done, reasoned Joshua, the sooner we can return to the camp. "What do you want me to do?" he asked. Moses finished the last word on the first tablet, handed over the chisel and the hammer to Joshua, and produced a papyrus from his tunic.
"This is the text of the laws that God has dictated to me," instructed Moses, giving the papyrus to Joshua. "You will find a second tablet behind those bushes. Carve the six remaining laws on that tablet and make sure that you don't forget anything."
Joshua walked to the nearby bushes, looked behind, and saw that a stone tablet was indeed lying on the ground. He sat down, put his legs around the tablet, and read attentively the text on the papyrus. Was Moses telling the truth? Were those God's eleven commandments?
An unexpected problem
When Joshua lifted the chisel and the hammer to start carving, he realized that something was wrong with the stone tablet. Surprised, he stood still, set his tools aside, and inspected the problem. A red flower had grown through an interstice in the stone and was opening its petals over the tablet.
It was a long time ago since Joshua had seen flowers, but he was certain that he had never seen one so beautiful. "It has the colour of fire," he remarked. Should he tell Moses about the flower? After a brief reflection, Joshua concluded that telling Moses would be of little use and would just delay their descent from the mountain.
The whole day, Joshua worked under the sun, carving word by word, until he had copied on the tablet the last six commandments from the papyrus. Finally, he set his tools on the ground, contemplated his work satisfied, and bent over to smell the flower's perfume. It was a pity that lifting the stone tablet was going to cut off the flower from the ground.
"There are no other flowers in the mountain," observed Joshua. "This one is unique. If I destroy it, such flowers might never grow again." At that moment, Moses' voice came through the bushes and brought Joshua back to reality. "I have almost finished!" he shouted back to Moses. The sun had begun to descend on the horizon and Joshua had a decision to make.
He retook the chisel and the hammer and, with extreme care, he enlarged the interstice around the flower's stem. When the opening became wide enough, he lifted the stone tablet and smiled. He had managed to save the red flower. "The effort has been worth it," Joshua told himself as he stood up.
Suddenly, the stone tablet broke in two and the smaller piece fell down. It had not withstood the hole that Joshua had made to liberate the flower. At that moment, Moses called again, urging Joshua to go back. The sun was already low and, very soon, there would be no light.
"What have I done?" lamented Joshua staring at the piece of tablet on the ground. He bent over and saw that the fragment contained only the eleventh commandment: "You shall be tolerant and seek to understand other people."
He hesitated until he heard Moses call him once more. It was time to go. "I'll leave the broken piece here and throw away the papyrus," Joshua decided. "One law more or less won't make any difference for Moses. Nobody is going to pay attention to the other ten commandments anyway."
The two men descended Mount Sinai in silence, walking side by side. When they arrived at the camp, darkness was complete. Before retiring to his tent with the tablets under his arm, Moses embraced Joshua. "What you have done today lays out the path for our future," said Moses. "Our people will remember it forever."
That night, for the first time in his life, Joshua enjoyed a quiet sleep. Instead of having a nightmare, he dreamed of a beautiful red flower. The next days, he felt remorse about the broken piece of tablet that he had left behind, but he told himself that it was not worth it to climb the mountain again to pick it up. "Since Moses himself has not realized that the eleventh commandment is missing," concluded Joshua, "it cannot be that important."
[Image by masterplaan under Creative Commons Attribution License. See the license terms under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/us]
For more information about rational living, I refer you to my books
Labels: Happiness, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Rationality, Self-confidence, Short stories No comments:
A formula for changing your opportunities from limited to unlimited
In the 12th century, philosophy was simple and inflexible. A man was born into a certain family and inherited his father's trade. A peasant raised his children to follow into his footsteps. Perspectives were narrow and improvement unthinkable.
A small minority
The fate of each person was to accomplish certain prescribed tasks and preserve tradition. A good part of a person's earnings was spent to maintain his position: to keep housing, attire, and diet according to his condition. Those who succeeded in improving their social status represented a small minority.
The medieval mentality encompassed a mixture of short-term frenzy and long-term resignation. On feast days, banquets were held and wine consumed, but during the rest of the year, passive acceptance was the rule. Silent suffering was viewed as a sign of wisdom.
People in the Middle Ages focused on immediate advantages and lacked long-term plans. A peasant in the 12th century would not have viewed a good harvest as an opportunity to save money, move to the city, and start his own business. In his mind, a good year was just a temporary escape from misery, not a step towards a better situation.
A sound philosophy
Our age offers almost unlimited opportunities to those who possess ambition and initiative, but it demands a radically different philosophy. Unless you acquire sound financial habits, chances are that you won't be able to seize those opportunities.
Unfortunately, not everybody makes the effort to pursue improvement. If you doubt my words, ask yourself the following questions: How many people save regularly in order to achieve financial independence? How many make to-do lists regularly? Material growth is linked to psychological development. Wealth is the consequence of vision and persistence.
Our world offers numerous opportunities to individuals who want to exercise their creativity and entrepreneurship. Businesses can be started with little capital, digital technology can be used to enhance productivity, and the internet allows everyone to sell his products around the globe. If you want to improve your situation, there are no limits to what you can achieve.
The psychological barrier
No excuse can justify renouncing this immense array of possibilities. The barriers to change are mostly psychological. Irrespective of your current situation, you can embrace transformation. If you take action, you can improve your life.
The transition from the Middle Ages to modern thinking began in the 13th century, when Thomas of Aquinas wrote down his observations on the nature of individual initiative. His views about risk represented a major advancement vis-à-vis medieval beliefs. His understanding of the existence of different prices in various markets put an end to the medieval mentality and introduced the world we know, where each man determines his own destiny.
Nowadays, if you ask people about what is blocking their progress, you might hear the same answers that were given in the 13th century: insufficient resources, excessive competition, and lack of contacts. Even though the world has drastically changed, not everybody is conscious of the unlimited opportunities.
Unlike peasants living in the Middle Ages, we no longer inhabit an immobile world that limits our ambitions. Is it your goal to further your education and accelerate your career? Do you dream of starting your own business?
Usually, saving some money is going to be the first step for making improvements in your life. You are going to have to let go of your impulse to spend money today and focus instead on the opportunities down the road. Time will reward your efforts if you define your objectives and carry out a plan to attain them.
Image: Photograph of a medieval painting. Photograph taken by John Vespasian in 2015.
Labels: Entrepreneurship, Personal Development, Personal Growth, Rationality, Self-confidence No comments:
The crucial role played by initiative in personal happiness
Aristotle was a great philosopher, but entrepreneurship was one thing that he never managed to understand. In the Nicomachean Ethics, his essay on justice and morality, he views society as a market where human desires are stable, where the demand for each product is constant, and each purchase has a predictable price.
Say no to unrealistic views
One does not need to look at the world for long to rate Aristotle's view as highly unrealistic. The truth is that, in the field of work and commerce, prices vary incessantly. New products appear daily on the market. Growing ventures create jobs, while old-fashioned industries are reducing the number of their employees. Trading conditions change, markets move, and money circulates.
Businessmen are conscious of the fact that initiative leads to success. Entrepreneurship is the lifeblood of innovation. Economic growth begins with one person making the first move and showing the way. In order to surpass average results, a man has to step out of the routine.
In the world of business, clients and profits are the result of entrepreneurship. A company that has profitable sales can always borrow money. Bankers seldom refuse a loan to businesses that generate positive cash-flow. Personal initiative fuels innovation and drives companies to higher levels of performance.
An irreplaceable element
The situation is not much different in the area of relationships. Friendship and love grow stale without personal initiative. Developing a happy social life requires a certain type of entrepreneurship. This is a factor that cannot be replaced by any amount of wishful thinking.
Unfortunately, the entrepreneurial factor in love and happiness is frequently underrated or denied. Television repeatedly shows stories where success happens by chance. Films love to portray heroes who attain happiness by coincidence without any effort from their side. Those tales are mostly made-up and a wise man should never take them as a fair representation of reality.
Entrepreneurial activity involves shifting resources through time and space. A businessman might, for instance, borrow money at 6% interest in order to invest it for a 10% return. If he does that several times with growing sums of money, chances are that he will become very wealthy.
The example can be applied to the field of relationships. If you wish to enjoy a great social life in the future, you should make the effort to establish new contacts regularly. Even if you just meet one new person per week, sooner or later, you will get to know a few individuals who share your values.
Friendships and love relations can begin in the most unusual circumstances. The key requirement is that individuals should be open to an initial contact. Brief introductions may lead to further interactions that develop into long-term relationships. This is why entrepreneurs are always alert to unexpected opportunities and love to meet new people. You will observe the same attitude in those who enjoy happy social lives.
Fresh opportunities
Entrepreneurial minds can be spotted by their extreme impatience at school or during their apprenticeship. They dislike slow motion and are driven towards activities that produce tangible results. They want to lead a life of growing improvement and continuous progress. They view speed as a synonym of efficiency.
Let me encourage you to adopt an entrepreneurial attitude in the area of personal relationships. Everybody has constrains in terms of time and resources, but those limitations should not prevent you from seeking out opportunities to meet new people whom you might find interesting.
Conferences that revolve around your favourite subjects constitute great places for meeting like-minded individuals. In the majority of cases, those initial contacts will not lead to friendship or love and that is precisely the way it should be.
Entrepreneurs are only interested in opportunities that are right for them. They know that, before they can embrace one successful idea, they will have to discard many others that lead nowhere. Possibilities are infinite, but resources are always limited.
Image: Photograph of ancient sculpture. Photo taken by John Vespasian in 2014.
Labels: Inspiration, Personal Development, Rationality, Self-confidence No comments:
How rational living helps you increase your personal effectiveness
You can win big in life by adopting an entrepreneurial mentality. It will allow you to overcome problems that other people find insurmountable, enabling you to detect hidden solutions and opportunities in difficult situations.
Improvement takes practice
How can you train yourself to become more entrepreneurial? Taking risks, staying alert, and being quick at exploiting chance encounters are things that do not come naturally to most of us. Nevertheless, like any other skill, entrepreneurship becomes sharper through practice.
The best approach is simply to make a list of those traits that you wish to acquire and work constantly at improving the quality of your thinking. What characteristics of the entrepreneurial mind can you make yours in order to accelerate your personal development? My list contains five suggestions:
What does a moral virtue have to do with entrepreneurship? Everything. Intolerance and inflexibility are deadly poisons when it comes to detecting opportunities and taking initiative. Unless you push yourself to tolerate uncertainty and risk beyond normal levels, your mind will never operate on a high entrepreneurial gear.
Why should you follow traditions that make no sense? Can things be improved? Why do we have to wait in line to purchase certain products or services? Is there a better way? When everything is expensive, try cheap. When everything is cheap, try borrowing. The best opportunities lie always below the surface.
Make clear choices
There is moral ambition and there is the search of wealth, but other people are embarked in a quest for honour, or simply desire to make the world a better place. Pick your choice and keep it present in your mind. What really counts here is consistency. Random changes in your goals will block your entrepreneurial vision. Confusion generates chaos.
Consistency of purpose sharpens the mind. Ambition is worthless unless it is accompanied by an iron determination to persist, to try again, to stand up and push repeatedly until the wagon moves. Why do different people possess unequal levels of determination? Personal philosophy plays a major role in this. Those who have a stable, rational, and integrated view of the world tend to advance faster on the entrepreneurial road.
Feed your motivation
Contented souls seldom have the drive that is necessary to challenge the way things are. On many occasions, entrepreneurship is linked to personal dissatisfaction with a product, service, or environment. Annoyance and irritation can fuel the motor of change. A strong wish to turn the present into a better future is the thread line of many entrepreneurial careers.
Make your own list of the traits that you want to develop and place it on a visible place in your kitchen or bathroom. The world of tomorrow is shaped by those who reflect on their life's purpose while cooking and brushing their teeth.
Image by nblumhardt under Creative Commons Attribution License. See the license terms under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/us
A compelling example of common sense and rational ...
A formula for changing your opportunities from lim...
The crucial role played by initiative in personal ...
How rational living helps you increase your person...