text:
The order of precedence, in ascending order is as follows:

 Regional court
 Higher court
 Supreme court

Public law

 Administrative court
 State court

Appointment of judges
The Prince has the overall power to appoint the nation's judges.

Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Liechtenstein is the highest judicial body in Liechtenstein. Under the Constitution of Liechtenstein., all courts were brought under Liechtenstein control. Previously, the court of Appeal was based in Vienna, Austria.

The Supreme court is one of three courts and is the third and final Court. It exercises power over both civil and criminal matters. In 2020 it handled over 128 cases

The court is made up of 3 Judges and a President who both regulate each other.

Constitutional Court
The Constitutional court was established in 1921, the first of its kind in Europe. The court consists of a president and 4 judges.

Under article 96 of the Liechtenstein Constitution, the Prince appoints half of the Judges and Parliament the other half.

The court rules on Constitutional rights, European Court of Human Rights issues and EEA rights. Both corporations and humans are able to appeal to the court. The court is also able to assess parliamentary legislation and nullify unconstitutional laws. Citizens are able to petition the court to review the law, as long as 100 citizens support the motion. The Constitutional Court also decides upon conflicts of jurisdiction between administrative and judicial authorities, as well as upon impeachment proceedings against ministers and electoral disputes.

State Court
The State Court rules on the conformity of laws with the constitution and has five members elected by parliament.

References

Law of Liechtenstein
Supreme courts


text:
Disruptive Competition Project
655 15th St., NW
About Disco
Digital Trade
Paving the Way for Future Innovations: The Music Industry as a Case Study
David Balto & Matthew Lane · April 15, 2015
antitrustcompetitionMusicStartups
David Balto and Matthew Lane, antitrust attorneys, have authored a guest paper for DisCo on innovation in the music delivery sector. David previously served as Policy Director at the Federal Trade Commission's Office of Policy and Evaluation, and attorney advisor to the FTC chairman.
There is no doubt that we live in exciting times. New technologies are constantly emerging that promise to change our lives for the better. These disruptive technologies give us an increase in choice, make technologies more accessible, make things more affordable, or give us a voice. However, disruptive innovations do not hit all areas of our lives equally. There are some industries that are controlled by companies that don't want to be shaken up and have the power to prevent it. These consolidated industries are an anathema to disruptive innovation. So how do we enable disruptive competition in these industries?
One answer is found in our competition enforcement agencies and the oversight they can achieve through antitrust enforcement and consent decrees secured when cases are brought. The important role of consent decrees is often overlooked. A properly constructed consent decree between the government and a company accused of anticompetitive behavior can restore competition and foster new competitive entry. Permitting entry is vital to disruptive innovation because much of this innovation comes from start-ups and new entrants.
The music industry provides an excellent example of the vital role of government enforcement actions and consent decrees. Over a half century ago the Justice Department brought enforcement actions against Performing Rights Organizations ("PROs") for anticompetitive behavior in the licensing of performance rights for musical works. Because of these cases, the licensing of performance rights by the two biggest PROs – ASCAP and BMI – are now governed by consent decrees. These decrees ensure that new entrants can obtain licenses, that those licenses will be set at fair rates, and that there won't be discrimination between similarly situated music users. Now the DOJ is looking to revise those consent decrees in a proceeding that began late last year.
The DOJ should proceed with due caution. The music industry is extremely consolidated. A handful of music publishers own and administer most musical works, and the performance rights to those musical works are currently licensed through only three organizations: ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC. If not properly regulated through consent decrees these organizations could exercise market power, increase costs and stifle new forms of competition. These threats are real and ongoing. Just last year the courts responsible for administrating parts of the decrees prevented actions that would have harmed music users.
Our new paper examines the impact of these decrees on disruptive innovation. The paper discusses how the consent decrees were recently used to prevent anticompetitive behavior and coordination between music publishers and the PROs. This examination is beneficial because the consent decrees are currently being reviewed by the Department of Justice. Any modification they make should continue to foster disruptive innovation and competition. Therefore, the paper also examines how the consent decree may be modified and improved. The paper suggests that any modifications include complete transparency and an examination of what similarly situated music users means regarding digital music users. The paper also states that any change to music publishers' ability to negotiate better rates outside of the PROs with respect to digital music users should be counterbalanced by an equal opportunity for these music users to also negotiate better rates outside of the PROs.
Some, if not all of society's most useful innovations are the byproduct of competition. In fact, although it may sound counterintuitive, innovation often flourishes when an incumbent is threatened by a new entrant because the threat of losing users to the competition drives product improvement. The Internet and the products and companies it has enabled are no exception; companies need to constantly stay on their toes, as the next startup is ready to knock them down with a better product.
The Internet enables the free exchange of ideas and content that, in turn, promote creativity, commerce, and innovation. However, a balanced approach to copyright, trademarks, and patents is critical to this creative and entrepreneurial spirit the Internet has fostered. Consequently, it is our belief that the intellectual property system should encourage innovation, while not impeding new business models and open-source developments.
What categories are you interested in?
Fortnite and The New Age of Competition in Consumer Entertainment
New Breakthroughs in Online Security - Securing The Internet's Address Book
What is Social Commerce: Details and Data
Senate Bill Would Redesign Video Sharing Services
Amicus Briefs Filed in Support of Google's Petition in Oracle Case
The Future of Wi-Fi Is Coming
Broad Support for Google in the First Round of Supreme Court Briefing
The Coming Evolution of the Video Game Industry
When You Play the Game of Competition, You Either Adapt or Die
Facebook Debuts Long Anticipated "Off-Facebook Activity" Feature
# of Articles
The Disruptive Competition Project (DisCo) is a project to promote disruptive innovation and competition to policymakers. DisCo brings together experts to explain how disruptive change in the modern economy promotes growth and advances our society.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
//------------------------------------------------------------------------------
// <auto-generated>
//     This code was generated by a tool.
//     Runtime Version:4.0.30319.17626
//
//     Changes to this file may cause incorrect behavior and will be lost if
//     the code is regenerated.
// </auto-generated>
//------------------------------------------------------------------------------

namespace SignalR.Hosting.Self {
    using System;

    /// <summary>
    ///   A strongly-typed resource class, for looking up localized strings, etc.
    /// </summary>
    // This class was auto-generated by the StronglyTypedResourceBuilder
    // class via a tool like ResGen or Visual Studio.
    // To add or remove a member, edit your .ResX file then rerun ResGen
    // with the /str option, or rebuild your VS project.
    [global::System.CodeDom.Compiler.GeneratedCodeAttribute("System.Resources.Tools.StronglyTypedResourceBuilder", "4.0.0.0")]
    [global::System.Diagnostics.DebuggerNonUserCodeAttribute()]
    [global::System.Runtime.CompilerServices.CompilerGeneratedAttribute()]
    internal class Resources {

        private static global::System.Resources.ResourceManager resourceMan;

        private static global::System.Globalization.CultureInfo resourceCulture;

        [global::System.Diagnostics.CodeAnalysis.SuppressMessageAttribute("Microsoft.Performance", "CA1811:AvoidUncalledPrivateCode")]
        internal Resources() {
        }

        /// <summary>
        ///   Returns the cached ResourceManager instance used by this class.
        /// </summary>
        [global::System.ComponentModel.EditorBrowsableAttribute(global::System.ComponentModel.EditorBrowsableState.Advanced)]
        internal static global::System.Resources.ResourceManager ResourceManager {
            get {
                if (object.ReferenceEquals(resourceMan, null)) {
                    global::System.Resources.ResourceManager temp = new global::System.Resources.ResourceManager("SignalR.Hosting.Self.Resources", typeof(Resources).Assembly);
                    resourceMan = temp;
                }
                return resourceMan;
            }
        }

        /// <summary>
        ///   Overrides the current thread's CurrentUICulture property for all
        ///   resource lookups using this strongly typed resource class.
        /// </summary>
        [global::System.ComponentModel.EditorBrowsableAttribute(global::System.ComponentModel.EditorBrowsableState.Advanced)]
        internal static global::System.Globalization.CultureInfo Culture {
            get {
                return resourceCulture;
            }
            set {
                resourceCulture = value;
            }
        }

        /// <summary>
        ///   Looks up a localized string similar to <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
        ///<access-policy>
        ///  <cross-domain-access>
        ///    <policy>
        ///      <allow-from http-request-headers="SOAPAction">
        ///        <domain uri="*"/>
        ///      </allow-from>
        ///      <grant-to>
        ///        <resource path="/" include-subpaths="true"/>
        ///      </grant-to>
        ///    </policy>
        ///  </cross-domain-access>
        ///</access-policy>.
        /// </summary>
        internal static string ClientAccessPolicyXml {
            get {
                return ResourceManager.GetString("ClientAccessPolicyXml", resourceCulture);
            }
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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text:
HFVBT Presents A.B. Michaels' Golden City Series Book Blast, August 13-24
Posted By amy @ 9:09 am | No Comments
The Art of Love (Golden City, Book 1)
by A.B. Michaels
Genre: Historical Fiction/Romance
READ AN EXCERPT.
A Notable Indie Book of 2014
Silver Ippy Award
New Apple Medalist
Editor's Choice – Idaho Book Awards
At the end of the Gilded Age, the "Golden City" of San Francisco offers everything a man could want—except the answers August Wolff desperately needs to find.
After digging a fortune in gold from the frozen fields of the Klondike, Gus heads south, hoping to start over and put the baffling disappearance of his wife and daughter behind him. The turn of the century brings him even more success, but the distractions of a city some call the new Sodom and Gomorrah can't fill the gaping hole in his life.
Amelia Starling is a wildly talented artist caught in the straightjacket of Old New York society. Making a heart-breaking decision, she moves to San Francisco to further her career, all the while living with the pain of a sacrifice no woman should ever have to make.
Brought together by the city's flourishing art scene, Gus and Lia forge a rare connection. But the past, shrouded in mystery, prevents the two of them from moving forward as one. Unwilling to face society's scorn, Lia leaves the city and vows to begin again in Europe.
Gus can't bear to let her go, but unless he can set his ghosts to rest, he and Lia have no chance at all.
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo
The Depth of Beauty (Golden City, Book 2)
2017 RITA Finalist – "Mainstream Fiction with a Central Romance"
Bookstores without Borders Lyra Award for Historical Fiction
Chanticleer Book Reviews Goethe Award – First in Category: North American Turn of the Century
In 1903 San Francisco's Chinatown, slavery, polygamy, and rampant prostitution are thriving— just blocks away from the city's elite, progressive society.
Wealthy and well-connected, Will Firestone enters the mysterious enclave with an eye toward expanding his shipping business. What he finds there will astonish him. With the help of an exotic young widow and a gifted teenage orphan, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery, where lust, love and tragedy will change his life forever.
A stand-alone novel, The Depth of Beauty is the latest addition to the dual genre series, "Sinner's Grove," which chronicles the family and friends of a world-famous artists' retreat on the northern California coast. The stories follow both historical and contemporary tracks and can be read separately or together for greater depth. Other titles in the series include the award-winning The Art of Love, Sinner's Grove and The Lair.
The Promise (Golden City, Book 3)
Publication Date: June 24, 2016
April 18, 1906. A massive earthquake has decimated much of the Golden City, leaving thousands without food, water or shelter. Patrolling the streets to help those in need, Army corporal Ben Tilson meets a young woman named Charlotte who touches his heart, making him think of a future with her in it. In the heat of the moment he makes a promise to her little sister that even he realizes will be almost impossible to keep.
Because on the heels of the earthquake, a much worse disaster looms: a fire that threatens to consume everything and everyone in its path. It will take everything Ben's got to make it back to Charlotte and her family—and even that may not be enough.
The Promise, a stand-alone novella, is the third offering in A.B. Michaels' award-winning historical saga, "The Golden City," which takes place in and around San Francisco at the turn of the twentieth century. Other books in the series include The Art of Love and The Depth of Beauty.
The Price of Compassion (Golden City, Book 4)
Genre: Historical Fiction/Mystery
April 18, 1906. San Francisco has just been shattered by a massive earthquake and is in the throes of an even more deadly fire.
During the chaos, gifted surgeon Tom Justice makes a life-changing decision that wreaks havoc on his body, mind, and spirit.
Leaving the woman he loves, he embarks on a quest to regain his sanity and self-worth. Yet just when he finds some answers, he's arrested for murder—a crime he may very well be guilty of. The facts of the case are troubling; they'll have you asking the question: "Is he guilty?" Or even worse…"What would I have done?"
A native of northern California, A.B. Michaels earned masters' degrees in history and broadcasting, and worked for many years in public relations and marketing. Now that she's an empty nester, she has time to write the kinds of stories she loves to read. Her historical series, "The Golden City," follows characters who make their way in turn of the twentieth century San Francisco. "I love creating flawed characters I can relate to, who have to make difficult choices, and who long for happiness like the rest of us. So much was happening in the early 1900's that help shape my novels. Once I tear myself away from the underlying research, they are fascinating stories to write."
Currently Ms. Michaels lives in Boise, Idaho with her husband and two furry creatures who are unclear on the concept that they are just dogs. In addition to writing, she loves to read and travel. A dabbler in fabric art, she also plays bocce in a summer league. Her latest stand-alone novel, "The Price of Compassion," is Book Four of the "Golden City" series. It's scheduled for release this summer and will be followed by Book Five, "Josephine's Daughter."
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Goodreads
Book Blast Schedule
Naomi Finley's Blog
What Is That Book About
To Read, Or Not to Read
CelticLady's Reviews
Broken Teepee
Maiden of the Pages
Pursuing Stacie
A Book Geek
Creating Herstory
The Book Junkie Reads
Katie's Book Cave
The Book Review
Donna's Book Blog
Labels: A.B. Michaels, August 2018, Book Blast, Historical Fiction, Historical Romance, Mystery, Virtual Book Tour
J. B. Rivard on Blog Tour for Illusions of Magic, January 9-27
Illusions of Magic: Love and Intrigue in 1933 Chicago
by J.B. Rivard
eBook; 233 Pages
ASIN: B01EGSC8N8
The withering of vaudeville was bad enough in 1933. Because of the Great Depression, bookings for stage magician Nick Zetner disappeared. With his marriage cracking under the strain, Nick reluctantly accepts a devious banker's deal: He earns a generous reward if he retrieves photos stolen during a break-in at the bank. Along the way, a love he thought he'd forever lost reappears. Despite his skill in the arts of magic, penetrating the realm of the thieves grows increasingly perilous, especially when it endangers his newfound romance.
Illusions of Magic seamlessly merges this tale with the true-life assassination attempt on President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt resulting in Chicago's mayor, Anton Cermak, being shot. His lingering death and a lack of legal means for his replacement causes great civic and social upheaval in the city.
In modern style, this novel propels the reader through emotional highs and subterranean lows with knife-edged dialogue, easy humor, page-turning action and authentic history.
"Illusions of Magic, set in Chicago in early 1933, does a masterful job of telling the highly entertaining love story between an out-of-work magician and his old flame . . . Rivard creates a historically accurate background for his cast of fascinating characters, creating a moving novel . . ." —Dr. Willard Oliver, Professor at Sam Houston State University and co-author of Killing the President.
"Illusions of Magic, a story of political intrigue in 1930s Chicago, is written in an informative, yet entertaining style. Rivard weaves into his narrative the true story of Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak's murder and he does it with accuracy and complete authenticity . . . Each chapter powers along, insisting you read 'just one more' part. The taut writing has a 'made for the movies' tension . . ." —Mel Ayton, author of The Forgotten Terrorist and Hunting the President.
"[The] attempted assassination of Franklin D. Roosevelt in…1933…is part of the dramatic backdrop of Rivard's fast-paced and punchy novel….Nick Zetner's adventures, part screwball comedy and part Dashiell Hammett, combine with the richly authentic atmosphere of the setting to create a quick and very enjoyable read that smoothly intermingles Nick's love life with a challenging case he takes on for a corrupt banker. The book reads like a breath of fresh air – recommended." -Joanna Urquhart, Historical Novel Society
Almost everyone is familiar with the illustrations in "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland". However, the number of illustrated novels published–for adult readers–declined steadily from the beginning to the middle of the 20th century, although not for lack of popularity. "Illusions of Magic" dares a return to the edgy, swirling arts of the illustrated story, with pen and ink illustrations by the novel's author, Joseph B. "J. B." Rivard, supplementing this exciting story.
As a young child, Rivard began drawing by copying newspaper comics. In his teens, he drew illustrations for his high school's award-winning yearbook. He attended the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and his artworks have appeared in more than fifty juried exhibitions, earning many prizes and awards. He's an artist-member of the Salmagundi Club of New York City.
Rivard's writing draws on wide experience–he served in the U.S. Navy, graduated from the University of Florida, worked as a newspaper reporter, a magazine writer, and on the engineering staff of a U.S. National Laboratory where he wrote and co-authored many technical papers listed on Google Scholar. His broad background supports a wide array of significant publications, from short stories to song lyrics, from essays to novels. He calls Spokane, Washington home.
For more information, please visit the Illusions of Magic website.
Blog Tour Kick Off at Passages to the Past
Review at 100 Pages a Day
Spotlight at Let Them Read Books
Review at Jorie Loves a Story
Interview at The Maiden's Court
Spotlight at A Literary Vacation
Review at Creating Herstory
Review at Laura's Interests
Review at Broken Teepee
Review at Beth's Book Nook Blog
Spotlight at Susan Heim on Writing
Review at Svetlana's Reads and Views
Spotlight at What Is That Book About
Review & Interview at Quitterstrip
To win a paperback copy of Illusions of Magic by J.B. Rivard, please enter via the Gleam form below. Three copies are up for grabs!
– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on January 27th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Giveaway is open to residents in the US only.
Illusions of Magic
Labels: Historical Fiction, J.B. Rivard, January 2017, Mystery, Virtual Book Tour
Seth Margolis on Blog Tour for The Semper Sonnet, December 1-30
The Semper Sonnet
by Seth Margolis
Diverson Publishing
eBook & Paperback; 374 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction/Mystery/Thriller
In this stunning thrill ride, perfect for fans of Dan Brown and Steve Berry, a long-lost manuscript, written for Elizabeth I, holds the key to unlocking the past—and to eliminating the future.
Lee Nicholson is ready to take the academic world by storm, having discovered a sonnet she believes was written by William Shakespeare. When she reads the poem on the air, the words put her life in peril and trigger a violent chase, with stakes that reach far beyond the cloistered walls of academia.
Buried in the language of the sonnet, in its allusions and wordplay, are secrets that have been hidden since Elizabethan times, secrets known only to the queen and her trusted doctor, but guessed at by men who seek the crown and others who seek the world. If the riddles are solved, it could explode what the world knows of the great Elizabeth I. And it could release a pandemic more deadly than the world has ever imagined.
Lee's quest for the answers buried in the sonnet keeps her one step ahead of an international hunt—from the police who want her for murder, to a group of men who will stop at nothing to end her quest, to a madman who pursues the answers for destructive reasons of his own.
As this intelligent thriller moves back and forth between Tudor England and the present day, Lee begins to piece together the meaning behind Shakespeare's words, carrying the story to its gasp-out-loud conclusion.
"Imaginative plotting and depth of character distinguish this centuries-spanning thriller…"—Publishers Weekly
"The Semper Sonnet is a wildly imaginative thriller that fans of Dan Brown and Steve Berry will love."—Phillip Margolin, New York Times bestselling author
"This provocative and knuckle-biting thriller will have you on the edge of your seat as it careens through the hallowed halls of academia into the turbulent past. Hold tight to your farthingales: this is a roller-coaster ride of a book!"—C.W. Gortner, international bestselling author of The Last Queen
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million | IndieBound
Seth Margolis is a writer whose most recent novel, THE SEMPER SONNET, was published on April 19. He is the author of six earlier novels, including LOSING ISAIAH, which was made into a film starring Halle Berry and Jessica Lange.
Seth lives with his wife, Carole, in New York City. They have two grown children, Maggie and Jack. Seth received a BA in English from the University of Rochester and an MBA in marketing from New York University's Stern School of Business Administration. When not writing fiction, he is a branding consultant for a wide range of companies, primarily in the financial services, technology and pharmaceutical industries. He has written articles for the New York Times and other publications on travel and entertainment.
For more information, please visit Seth Margolis' website. You can also find him on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.
Spotlight at The Never-Ending Book
Review at Ageless Pages Reviews
Review at A Bookaholic Swede
Spotlight at The Lit Bitch
Review at Kinx's Book Nook
Interview at Author Dianne Ascroft's Blog
Review at Trisha Jenn Reads
Review at JulzReads
Guest Post at JulzReads
Spotlight at Books, Dreams, Life
Review at History From a Woman's Perspective
Review at CelticLady's Reviews
Labels: December 2016, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Virtual Book Tour
HF Virtual Book Tours Presents Richard Foreman's Band of Brothers Blog Tour, November 7-28
Please join Richard Foreman as he travels the blogosphere for his Band of Brothers series, The Game's Afoot and Harfleur, from November 7-28.
Band of Brothers: The Game's Afoot
by Richard Foreman
Endeavour Press
Series: Band of Brothers, Book One
Genre: Fiction/Historical/Mystery/Thriller
England stands on the brink of war with France.
Henry V receives intelligence, through his agent Thomas Chaucer that the French intend to re-forge their old alliance with Scotland.
The king orders Chaucer and veteran archer Robert Cooper to travel across the border and intercept a French agent, Reynard of Troyes, before he can deliver the gold which will fund Scotland's war with England.
Chaucer also learns of a plot to murder the man that England cannot afford to go to war without. He orders the man-at-arms, Edward Fordham, to remain in the capital, solve the mystery and stop the assassin.
But all is not what it seems.
Some wars are fought in the shadows as well as on the battlefield…
Band of Brothers: The Game's Afoot is a story of action, intrigue and historical insight. It is perfect for fans of Bernard Cornwell, Conn Iggulden and George Macdonald Fraser.
"A rattling good yarn, requiring only the minimum of suspension of belief, and leaves one eagerly anticipating the next installment of the adventures of the team as they accompany the King to Harfleur." – Major Gordon Corrigan
Band of Brothers: Harfleur
Series: Band of Brothers, Book Two
Harfleur.
The town stands defiant.
Henry V and his army have been repulsed. If the English fail to break the siege then their campaign will be over. Men will die, from disease or starvation.
The King instructs one of his agents, Thomas Chaucer, to negotiate a deal with a local French merchant to re-supply the army. But, instead of meeting an ally, Chaucer is about to come face to face with an old enemy.
Henry, in a last throw of the dice, charges the archer Robert Cooper with ending the siege. The bowman forms a plan. The night attack will either save the English army – or damn it.
Once more into the breach…
Band of Brothers: Harfleur is a page-turning novella full of action, intrigue and historical insight. For fans of Bernard Cornwell, Conn Iggulden and George Macdonald Fraser.
Richard Foreman is the author of numerous best-selling Kindle books, including Augustus: Son of Rome and the Sword of Rome series of novellas which follow Julius Caesar and his centurion Lucius Oppius during their campaigns in Britain, Gaul and the Civil War. The stories are a blend of action, intrigue and Ancient History.
He is also the author of Warsaw, a literary novel set during the end of the Second World War, and the historical novel A Hero of Our Time, as well as the Raffles series of historical crime novellas.
His latest novel, Band of Brothers: The Game's Afoot, is a story is action, intrigue and historical insight set in medieval times.
He has worked as a literary consultant and publicist to a number of bestselling authors, including Tom Holland, Conn Iggulden and Simon Scarrow. He is now a publishing director at Endeavour Press, the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books, with his business partner Matthew Lynn.
He lives in London.
For more information, please visit Richard Foreman's website. You can also find him on Twitter and Goodreads.
Interview at Yelena Casale's Blog
Review at The Book Junkie Reads (Book One)
Spotlight at The Reading Queen
Review at Book Nerd (Book One)
Review at Svetlana's Reads and Views (Book One)
Review at Beth's Book Nook Blog (Book One)
Review at The Book Junkie Reads (Book Two)
Review at Svetlana's Reads and Views (Book Two)
Interview at The Book Junkie Reads
Review at Book Nerd (Book Two)
Interview at Passages to the Past
Labels: Historical Fiction, Mystery, November 2016, Richard Foreman, Thriller, Virtual Book Tour
Hargus Montgomery on Blog Tour for The Last Relicuin,
August 15-September 1
The Last Relicuin
by Hargus Montgomery
Kerious Pye Series LLC
Genre: Historical/Mystery
In the 22nd century, part of the world returns to history. Safe inside the guarded borders of live-in museums, museum dwellers live authentic lifestyles from prehistory to the twentieth century. Separate from all modern influences, some dwellers forget that a modern world exists outside the borders.
When the son of a prominent anti-museum Senator marries a museum dweller, the young couple becomes the target of a worldwide struggle between the past and the future.
Crossing borders into the 12th, 18th and 20th centuries, The Last Relicuin unravels a mystery that pursues one family through three different periods of history.
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million | Google Play | iTunes
Hargus Montgomery is the author of The Last Relicuin, and The Seventeenth Pocket, part of the Kerious Pye series. For more information, please visit Hargus Montgomery's website at http://www.hargusmontgomery.com.
Review at Diana's Book Reviews
Review at Reading Is My SuperPower
Review at One Book Shy of a Full Shelf
Review at Impressions in Ink
Review at The Silver Dagger Scriptorium
To enter the giveaway for a paperback copy of The Last Relicuin, please see the GLEAM form below.
– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on September 1st. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Giveaway is open to US, UK, and Canada addresses only.
– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion
Labels: August 2016, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Uncategorized, Virtual Book Tour
Gwendolyn Womack on Blog Tour for The Memory Painter, July 6-12
Posted By amy @ 10:45 am | No Comments
The Memory Painter: A Novel of Love and Reincarnation
by Gwendolyn Womack
Picador USA
Paperback; 336 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction/Time Travel/Mystery/Romance
Finalist for the 2016 RWA Prism Awards for Best First Book & Best Time Travel/ Steampunk category.
Two lovers who have travelled across time.
A team of scientists at the cutting edge of memory research.
A miracle drug that unlocks an ancient mystery.
At once a sweeping love story and a time-travelling adventure, Gwendolyn Womack's luminous debut novel, The Memory Painter, is perfect for readers of The Time Traveler's Wife, Life After Life and Winter's Tale.
Bryan Pierce is an internationally famous artist, whose paintings have dazzled the world. But there's a secret to Bryan's success: Every canvas is inspired by an unusually vivid dream. Bryan believes these dreams are really recollections―possibly even flashback from another life―and he has always hoped that his art will lead him to an answer. And when he meets Linz Jacobs, a neurogenticist who recognizes a recurring childhood nightmare in one Bryan's paintings, he is convinced she holds the key.
Their meeting triggers Bryan's most powerful dream yet―visions of a team of scientists who, on the verge of discovering a cure for Alzheimer's, died in a lab explosion decades ago. As his visions intensify, Bryan and Linz start to discern a pattern. But a deadly enemy watches their every move, and he will stop at nothing to ensure that the past stays buried.
The Memory Painter is at once a taut thriller and a deeply original love story that transcends time and space, spanning six continents and 10,000 years of history.
"Gwendolyn Womack's tale dazzles." ―US Weekly (Standout Spring Novels)
"…hang on for a wild and entertaining ride around the world and through the centuries back to ancient Egypt." ~ Library Journal, starred review
"A sweeping, mesmerizing feat of absolute magic. . . . " ~ M.J. Rose, New York Times Bestselling Author of The Witch of Painted Sorrows
"Layers of past and present form a rich pastry of a narrative, poignant and thoughtful, rich and suspenseful, filled with intrigue and dripping with meaning… " ~ Charlie Lovett, New York Times Bestselling Author of The Bookman's Tale and First Impressions
Originally from Houston, Texas, Gwendolyn Womack began writing theater plays in college at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. She went on to receive an MFA from California Institute of the Arts in Directing Theatre, Video & Cinema. Currently she resides in Los Angeles with her husband and son where she can be found at the keyboard working on her next novel. The Memory Painter is her first novel.
For more information visit Gwendolyn's website. You can also connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.
Review & Excerpt at The Book Junkie Reads
Excerpt at Diana's Book Reviews
Friday, July 8
Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!
Review at Library Educated
Review at Just One More Chapter
Excerpt at What Is That Book About
Review at Layered Pages
Interview at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!
Interview at History From a Woman's Perspective
To win a $25 Barnes & Noble Gift Card & Vegvisir decal and Eye of Horus Necklace, please enter via the GLEAM form below.
– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on July 12th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
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Labels: Gwendolyn Womack, Historical Fiction, July 2016, Mystery, Romance, Time Travel, Virtual Book Tour
HFVBT Presents Gwendolyn Womack's The Memory Painter Release Day Blitz
The Memory Painter, like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Inception, is at once a taut thriller and a deeply original love story that transcends time and space, spanning six continents and 10,000 years of history.
Tuesday, July 5 – Release Day Blitz Hosts
100 Pages a Day
A Literary Vacation
Diana's Book Reviews
Eclectic Ramblings of Author Heather Osborne
It's a Mad Mad World
Let Them Read Books
Life of a Female Bibliophile
Nerd in New York
New Horizon Reviews
Oh, for the Hook of a Book!
One Book Shy of a Full Shelf
Please Pass The Books
Room With Books
Susan Heim on Writing
Teatime and Books
The Bookish Teapot
The Never-Ending Book
Doris Dumrauf on Blog Tour for Oktober Heat,
September 28-October 2
Posted By amy @ 8:30 am | 1 Comment
Oktober Heat
by Doris Dumrauf
Genre: Historical/Mystery/Romance
In a 1958 West German village, twenty-one-year-old German police officer Walter Hofmann wants nothing more than to dance to the latest rock 'n' roll tunes at the nearby American air base. But the girls flock to the easy-going GIs, their dollars, and their fancy cars. Worse yet, the entire country—including his younger sister—is ecstatic about the recent arrival of Private Elvis Presley.
Old World values and New World pop culture clash, even before a young woman gets killed near the base and the military arrests Walter's GI friend Jeff for murder. Walter believes in Jeff's innocence, even after he learns that Jeff has won the heart of the girl he secretly adores. While Walter and his partner are on the trail of an elusive killer, his sister disappears in an attempt to see the famous singer and Walter races to her rescue before she becomes the next victim.
AMAZON (KINDLE) | AMAZON (PB) | B&N NOOK | KOBO
Walter was late again. His friend had already left by the time he arrived at Fritz's house. And all because two neighbors could not decide who owned the apples from the tree that bordered their properties. It took Walter and his police partner Schlosser two hours to settle the dispute by extending the property line vertically, which put them well into overtime.
The concert was supposed to begin at eight o'clock. Walter rode his secondhand bicycle into the parking lot of the Enlisted Club, where his dynamo-powered light reflected off the chrome bumpers of the Chevrolets and Fords of the Americans. After backpedaling to brake and locking the front to the bike rack at the far end of the club, Walter bent and removed the cycle clips from his trousers. He brushed his pant legs until he was satisfied that they were not dusty anymore. Walter wanted to look his best just in case he met a girl tonight.
He whistled "All Shook Up" as he strolled toward the brightly lit entrance of the club. He walked by a group of GIs lingering under the red canopy, smoking and laughing with their friends, and opened the double door. Inside, he drew in the chatter of the boisterous crowd as if it was fresh air.
Ah, Saturday night! The long work week was over and he could finally enjoy himself like every other youth in the village. He made his way to the bar, where he paused to scan the crowd. As he had feared, he did not detect one empty chair.
The German emcee stepped to the microphone and spread his right arm to take in the stage. "Meine Damen und Herren! Ladies and gentlemen! Let's welcome The Trotters, fresh from America, for their first concert at Lauterbach Air Base."
Whistles pierced the smoke-filled club, causing Walter to erupt in appreciative laughter. He lifted his hands into the air and clapped until it hurt. The master of ceremonies stepped back while the maroon velvet curtain slowly revealed the band. Walter craned his neck to view the musicians. The four male singers wore matching white jackets that glittered silvery in the dimmed light, accentuating their ebony skin.
The oldest of the three bartenders, dressed in a white shirt and a thin tie, placed a cardboard coaster in front of Walter. "Good evening, Herr Hofmann," he said. "What can I bring you?"
"I'll have a Parkbräu." Walter began to sway his upper body to the tune of "She's All Yours." After the applause faded away, he gazed across the room again, searching for acquaintances. Where might his friends be? Perhaps he would have better luck waiting for them to step up to the bar instead of trying to find them in the crowd. He put his bottle on the counter and rested his shoulders against the bar. A young German woman sat on the barstool closest to him. Her curly brown hair framed an oval face with lively, amber-colored eyes. Walter cleared his throat and stood up erect. It was now or never.
He leaned toward the young woman and said, "Good evening. It's a nice crowd tonight, isn't it?"
She gave him an indifferent look and sat flatly, "Yes, it is."
Her mouth formed a wide smile as she waved at someone behind him. He glanced over his shoulder to see a GI in civilian clothes approach her.
"Hello," the American said, taking her hands in his. She rose to dance with him and Walter plunked down on the vacant barstool. He smacked his fist on the counter. Was he never going to find a girl? Just what did this lanky fellow, with his crew cut and clean-shaven face, have that he did not? Other than dollars, a car, and all the latest rock 'n' roll records, of course.
Doris Dumrauf grew up in the West German state of Rheinland-Pfalz, a region with a huge concentration of U.S. military bases. She worked as an administrative clerk on a U.S. air base for many years.
After moving to the United States, Doris published numerous articles in magazines and newspapers while working on her novel.
Doris Dumrauf is also an award-winning nature photographer and public speaker.
WEBSITE | AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS
Spotlight at I'm Shelf-ish
Review at Singing Librarian Books
Guest Post at I'm Shelf-ish
Spotlight at Please Pass the Books
Interview at Singing Librarian Books
Guest Post at Raven Haired Girl
Spotlight at Broken Teepee
Spotlight at With Her Nose Stuck in a Book
Spotlight at View From the Birdhouse
Review at A Fold in the Spine
Spotlight at Book Nerd
Labels: Doris Dumrauf, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance, September 2015, Virtual Book Tour
HFVBT Presents M.K. McClintock's British Agent Series Blog Tour, May 18-28
Please join M.K. McClintock as she tours the blogosphere for her British Agent Series, from May 18-28, and enter to win a $50 Amazon Gift Card or a Blarney Lambswool Throw!
Book One: Alaina Claiborne
Publication Date: January 8th, 2013
Trappers Peak Publishing
Series: British Agent Novels, Book One
Genre: Historical Romantic Mystery
How far would you go to avenge your family and save the one you love?
In nineteenth-century England, Alaina Claiborne had a loving family, a cherished friend, and devoted servants. She spent her days riding across the grassy hills of the English countryside, joyful and at peace.
Then tragedy strikes and her world is forever changed. Searching for those responsible is her only focus . . . until she meets Tristan.
Tristan Sheffield, a man of many talents, searches out those who don't want to be found. His past is filled with secrets and deeds he would rather leave deeply buried. However, when his life unexpectedly entwines with Alaina's, he soon discovers they share more than a mutual desire to catch a murderer.
On their hunt for a man driven by greed, Tristan and Alaina find that love is the greatest weapon against evil, and they'll stop at nothing to survive.
Praise for Alaina Claiborne
"This one is a winner. It broke my heart several times, the poignant moments she describes are so real." -Deborah from The Bookish Dame Reviews
"Ms. McClintock succeeds in masterfully weaving both genres meticulously together until mystery lovers are sold on romance and romance lovers love the mystery!" -InD'Tale Magazine
"With a strong female lead and a nice mix of both action and romance, this novel tops my list." -Judge, Writer's Digest 21st Annual Self-Published Book Awards
Official Book Trailer
Alaina Claborne Available At
Amazon US | Amazon UK | Nook | Kobo
Book Two: Blackwood Crossing
Series: British Agent Novels, Book Two
If you had to make a choice, would it be loyalty or love?
Torn between loyalty to her family and refusal to marry a laird she despises, Rhona Davidson accepts a dangerous proposal from a man she knows only as Blackwood.
Leaving behind a life of leisure, Charles Blackwood bravely serves his country with honor and the skill of a trained British agent. When his newest case returns him to the wild Highlands of Scotland, he is faced with a choice between killing a man and saving the only woman he has ever loved.
Charles and Rhona join their lives, only to discover that their choices will result in bloodshed, unless they can uncover a truth long buried, deep in the Highland soil.
Praise for Blackwood Crossing
"Historical Romance readers will be delighted with the author's style and veritable plot line in this clean romance. "Blackwood Crossing" is a wonderful book for the reader to begin their lifelong Historical Romance adventure or continue their HR journey! Bravo Ms. McClintock!" -InD'Tale Magazine, 4 1/2 stars and a Crowned Heart
"MK McClintock has spun an enchanting tale deeply entrenched in the lands of Scotland and England that will leave you riveted to your chair until you turn the last page." -Donna McBroom-Theriot, mylifeonstoryatatime.com
"This is a wonderful book with suspense to keep me on the edge of my seat and surprises to keep me guessing . . . a feisty heroine and a strong, gentle hero . . . My poetic soul is fed by the beautiful descriptions of nature." -Verna Mitchell, poet and author of Somewhere Beyond the Blue
Blackwood Crossing Available At
Book Three: Clayton's Honor
Series: British Agent Novels, Book Three
How far would you go to avenge your family and save the one you love?
Tristan Sheffield, a man of many talents, searches out those who don't want to be found. His past is filled with secrets and deeds he would rather leave deeply buried. However, when his life unexpectedly entwines with Alaina's, he soon discovers they share more than a mutual desire to catch a murderer.
Clayton's Honor Available At
Amazon (US) Kindle | Amazon (UK) Kindle
MK McClintock spins tales of romance, mystery, and adventure inspired by the heather-covered hills of Scotland and the majestic mountains of home. With her heart deeply rooted in the past and her mind always on adventure, she lives and writes in Montana.
-2014 RONE Award-Nominee for "Alaina Claiborne"
-2014 Crowned Heart for Excellence from InD'Tale Magazine for "Blackwood Crossing" and "The Montana Gallagher Collection"
-2015 Crowned Heart Heart for Excellent from InD'Tale Magazine for "A Home for Christmas"
Learn more about MK by visiting her website or blog at Books and Benches. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Goodreads.
Sign up for M.K. McClintock's Newsletter.
British Agent Series Blog Tour Schedule
Review at Flashlight Commentary (Alaina Claiborne)
Review at Flashlight Commentary (Blackwood Crossing)
Review at Book Nerd (Blackwood Crossing)
Review at Dreams Come True Through Reading (Alaina Claiborne & Blackwood Crossing)
Review at Layered Pages (Alaina Claiborne)
Review & Interview at Jorie Loves a Story (Alaina Claiborne)
Review at A Chick Who Reads (Alaina Claiborne & Blackwood Crossing)
Excerpt at So Many Precious Books, So Little Time
Review at Quirky Book Reviews (Alaina Claiborne & Blackwood Crossing)
Review at The Lit Bitch (Alaina Claiborne)
Blog Tour Wrap-Up at Passages to the Past
Click Here to Enter to win a $50 Amazon Gift Card or a Blarney Lambswool Throw!
Labels: Historical Romance, M.K. McClintock, May 2014, Mystery, Virtual Book Tour
HFVBT Presents M.K. McClintock's British Agent Series Book Blast, April 13-17
Posted By amy @ 6:42 am | 2 Comments
Please follow M.K. McClintock's Book Blast for her British Agent Series, from April 13-17, and enter to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card!
Buy Alaina Claborne
Buy Blackwood Crossing
Pre-Order Clayton's Honor
British Agent Novels Book Blast Schedule
Mina's Bookshelf
Unshelfish
Dreams Come True Through Reading
To enter to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card please complete the giveaway form below.
Giveaway starts on April 13th at 12:01am EST and ends at 11:59pm EST on April 17th.
Giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY and you must be 18 or older to enter.
Winners have 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.
Please email Amy @ hfvirtualbooktours@gmail.com with any questions.
Labels: April 2015, Book Blast, Historical Romance, M.K. McClintock, Mystery, Uncategorized


When your body hurts you go to the Doctor, when your mouth hurts, you go to the Dentist. But what most people don't know, is you can go to the Physical Therapist for both.
The jaw, formally called the temporomandibular joint (or TMJ), is a joint like any other in the body and guides jaw movement. Problems with the TMJ are referred to as temporomandibular joint disorder or dysfunction (TMD). Up to 50% of the population will at some point experience at least one sign of TMD in their lifetime. Have you?
A physical therapist that specializes in TMD can help to decrease pain and other symptoms, restore the natural motion of the joint and prevent future occurrences. Our team can work with you and your Dentist to creat a care plan to help you get some relief. There is postural education and retraining you can work on to help alleviate some tensions, as well as manual therapy, pain treatments, and exercises.
If you are lucky enough to not be experiencing these annoying and painful symptoms, here are some general guidelines to follow to try to avoid TMD in the future.
Hippotherapy: Now Offered in Sumner!
She did WHAT during her pregnancy?
Popping Joints: Awesome or Awful?


I've played the violin since I was three years old.
When I was two years old, my mother took me to a concert put on by some local youth fiddlers. I was mesmerized. When I returned home, I told both my parents that I was going to be a fiddler when I grew up. They thought that was cute, but I was serious. I didn't give up, and so my parents decided to buy me my first violin when I was three years old. Since then, violin has been a huge part of my life. It has brought me together with my best friends, it has travelled with me throughout the world, and it has been my constant passion.
In 2011, I started posting YouTube videos, and they began to get some attention. I noticed that many of my followers were violinists themselves who had turned to youtube to find inspiration and learn new skills. Many people asked me for tutorial videos explaining how to play by ear, how to play certain tunes, and how to improvise.
Those comments inspired me to create an online violin school, which has turned into the website you're now looking at. I have spent hundreds of hours over three years creating the site (I knew NOTHING about building websites when I started!!) and preparing countless tutorials for you to enjoy.
For me, the violin has always been something that I have loved with all of my heart, and I want to convey that love to you. I've designed these lessons to be fun, motivating, and effective. Violin should never be a chore – it should be a passion.
Knowing how to play the violin the way that I do has opened up COUNTLESS doors. I've played for guests on a tall ship in the Mediterranean, I've supported my travels through busking on the street, I've travelled across Canada to perform at music festivals and shows, I've made best friends with people who I never would've met without music, and most importantly, I've been able to teach and inspire the next generation to find these same incredible opportunities.
Do you already play the violin, but feel stuck with your progress?
Are you completely new to violin but you want to start learning, building a strong technical foundation, and enjoying the process?
Did you see some of my videos on YouTube, and are curious about improvising and playing by ear?
… you came to the right place! I'm here to teach you how to play the music that you listen to, how to play with fellow musicians, and how to open doors for yourself with music. Playing the violin has changed my life, and I believe it can change yours too. It's not only an extremely satisfying skill, but it's a way to connect with people on a profound level. Music is a language, and learning how to speak it opens up a new world. Let me show you.


text:
Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather must recognize that it is he who is asked. In a word, each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible."
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVE
THE PURSUIT OF THE MEANING OF LIFE
The question of the meaning of life is one that fascinates most people alike. Although in different manners and terms, most of the great thinkers in history, philosophers in particular, have contemplated the question of what, if anything, makes life meaningful. Their thoughts are mostly constructed as considering which final ends we must strive to realize in order to have a life that matters. The debate continues to get more interesting with time as science reveals life as bereft of any preordained purpose.
Simultaneous with the death of positivism and of utilitarianism in the post-war period has been the upsurge of logical enquiry into non-epicurean notions of value, including ideas of meaning in life, based on relatively uncontentious (but not scientific or universally acknowledged) judgments. It is a diverse theme that involves rational investigation to no less an extent than more familiar ethical classifications such as wellbeing, honorable character, and right action.
More methodical efforts recognized numerous facets of meaning, encompassing purpose, acceptance of death, goal achievement, awareness that the future will hold meaning, existential vacuum, feelings of control in life, and a desire to seek more meaning. As the thought on the subject advanced, certain aspects came to be viewed as more essential and fundamental to meaning in life, while other dimensions were better understood as possible forerunners and consequences of meaning.
The question itself is possibly ambiguous. In inquiring about the meaning of life, one may be inquiring about the purpose of life, about life's essence, about whether and why anything matters, or about many other things. The conditions that are more likely to prompt one to ask about life's meaning comprise those in which: one is comfortable but troubled by either a sense of dissatisfaction or the possibility of bad things to come; one is young at heart; one has a sense of wonder; one is confounded by the dissonant multiplicity of things and wants to find some accord in all the diversity of existence; or one simply wants to know how to live in order to have a meaningful life.
WHAT THE QUESTION INVOLVES
While it seems that searching for the meaning of life has been a human pursuit from the beginning, it became a major theme for writing only early in the nineteenth century. The first English use of the phrase "the meaning of life" appeared in 1834 in Thomas Carlyle's (1795-1881) Sartor Resartus II. ix, where Teufelsdrockh notes, "our Life is compassed round with Necessity; yet is the meaning of Life itself no other than Freedom." The usage soon caught on, and over the next century and a half the phrase became common.
A plausible explanation of the upsurge of questions about life's meaning in the last two centuries indicates four different but not entirely unrelated reasons: (1) scientific discovery and progress at unprecedented scales; (2) the Protestant Reformation in the Christian world; (3) voyages and travels of exploration and discovery, which brought people of different cultures and geographies with very different outlooks on the nature of the universe and the meaning of life closer and made it more difficult to dehumanize those who were different from what one was used to; and (4) dilution of widely held religious conceptions of the nature of things.
While the quest for the meaning of life seems a standardized and simple question, it can be approached in many senses. For example:
i) The inquirer is seeking the core reality or the essence fundamental to life. Such a person feels that if they discover their essence, their true self, then they can find the meaning of life.
ii) In some instances the query is about the purpose and goal of one's own life. Here the seeker is likely looking to discover some pre-existing purpose.
iii) Sometimes the questioner is seeking to invent an aim or object of their life. So that when they are successful, they can claim having given a meaning to their life.
iv) Another way to approach the question is whether our lives, and anything we do within them, really matter, or have any sort of significance. If they matter, then one will have provided a functional answer to the question of the meaning of life.
v) Some people are troubled by the dissonance, complexity, and disordered nature of their experiential life as it is really lived. Hence they strive to see their life as intelligible, as something that has a meaning and a sense.
vi) In some cases people seek to feel a sense of meaning while living life, asking how one should live in order to have a meaningful life. They look for its meaning in religious rituals, volunteering, philanthropy etc.
vii) Some people confront their life with the basic question if it is worth living. They probably think that it would make sense to continue living only if life had a suitable meaning.
These mutations of the question of the meaning of life are by no means mutually exclusive. A person may very well be intrigued by several of them at once and see them as closely connected. In fact, in most cases more than one of the questions press themselves on the inquirer all at once. Therefore, often discussions of meaning in life attempt to capture in a single principle all the diverse state of affairs that can confer meaning on life.
THEORIES ABOUT WHAT WOULD MAKE LIFE MEANINGFUL
Let's indulge in succinct articulation of some of the more prominent theories of what would make life meaningful.
1. Existentialism
Existentialism states that our lives have no inherent meaning or purpose, but rather it is the purpose we create for our lives that gives them a sense of meaning. This consists of the systematic attempt to denote life's choices as a logical bearer of positive final value that an individual's life can exhibit. These people want to know whether and how the existence of an individual over time has meaning, a certain quality that is necessary for its own sake independent of the meaning of the human species or universe as a whole.
Simply speaking, existentialism suggests that each human creates their own meaning, rather than finding meaning in the world around them. Humans are at liberty to create meaning for themselves, but there is no intrinsic meaning in the universe they inhabit. This theory also implies that some phases of life are more meaningful than others and that some individual lives overall are more meaningful than others. However, all people still have an equal moral status. One's life logically could become meaningful exactly by forgoing one's pleasures, e.g., by helping others to the detriment of one's self-interest. It maintains that the inability to find a primary sense of life's meaning so far suggests that none exists. The idea of a worthwhile life is probably not identical to that of a meaningful one
2. Spiritualism
This includes most theories that are meant to capture all the specific ways that a life could find meaning. These theories are normally divided on a metaphysical basis, in terms of which kinds of properties are thought to create the meaning. Spiritualism contains theories arguing that meaning in life must be founded by a relationship with a spiritual realm. These theories entail that if one fails to establish the right relationship with God or soul then one's life is meaningless.
In the religious tradition, these theories are broadly divided into those with God-centered views and soul-centered views. The former take some kind of relationship with God to create meaning in life, regardless of whether one has a soul. The latter believe possessing a soul and placing it into a positive state to be what makes life meaningful, even if there is no God.
God-centered Beliefs: Simply put, God-centered theory of meaning in life is that the better one fulfills a purpose God has assigned the more meaning one's life has. It is founded in the idea that God has a scheme for the universe and that one's life is meaningful to the extent that one serves God to fulfill this scheme, preferably in the precise way God wants one to do so. Regardless of the existence of an afterlife, realizing God's intent by choice is the sole source of meaning, without which life would be meaningless.
Of course, theorists hold different views on what it is about God's plan that makes it exclusively able to bestow meaning on human lives. The opponents of God-centered views of meaning of life usually offer three main arguments.
First, a solely physical world appears able to do the job for which God is supposedly necessary. Nature seems able to instruct a universal ethics and the more or less final value from which meaning might arise.
Second argument is the existence of apparent counterexamples showing that a supernatural realm is not necessary for an ultimate meaning. If we think of the normal lives of Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, Mother Teresa, and Sigmund Freud, they seem meaningful even if we suppose there is no God.
Third argument points out a dilemma. On one side, in order for God to be the only fount of meaning, God must be completely unlike us; because the more God were like us, the more reason there would be to think we could get meaning from ourselves, without God. On the other hand, the more God is completely unlike us, the less clear it is how we could achieve meaning by relating to someone not like us.
Soul-centered Beliefs: This theory advocates that meaning in life emanates from relating in a certain manner to an immortal, nonphysical constituent that imposes on one's body when it is alive and that will forever survive the body's demise. It deems immortality necessary to fulfill the main principle about what is required for meaning. If one lacks a soul, or if one has a soul but connects to it in an improper way, then one's life is meaningless. The basic approach here is to appeal to the value of perfection – a perfect purpose to honor, a perfectly fair reward to enjoy, or a perfect being with which to connect.
This view is supported by Tolstoy who contends that for life to be meaningful something must be worth doing, that nothing is worth doing if nothing one does will make a lasting difference to the world, and that doing so requires having an immortal, spiritual self. Some opponents of this view argue that having an infinite effect is necessary for meaning. Some others point out that an immortal entity is not required to create and leave an infinite effect.
Another major justification proffered for a soul-centered theory of life's meaning is that a soul is indispensable for perfect justice, which, in turn, is essential for a meaningful life.
There are two prominent arguments for a soul-based perspective. It argues that life appears illogical when the evil flourish and the virtuous suffer if we suppose there is no other world in which these injustices will be remedied, whether by God or by Karma. However, the inferential construction of this one looks weak because even if an afterlife were necessary for just outcomes, it is not clear why an eternal afterlife should be thought necessary.
To me, another problem with arguments supporting soul-centered theory for meaning is even if they show that meaning requires immortality, they do not yet show that it requires having a soul. There is no basis to deduce that if one is immortal, then one has a soul.
The more assuring spiritualist theories for meaning seem to be ones that argue for the more complex view that both God and a soul combine to create meaning. Thinkers supporting this view, like Thomas Aquinas and Leo Tolstoy, claim that one must have a soul uniting with God in a spiritual realm such as Heaven. For some meaning comes from honoring what is divine within oneself.
3. Naturalism
This theory maintains that meaning in life is possible without a spiritual realm. Among those who believe that life can have a meaning in a purely physical world as known by science, there is argument on two things. One, the degree to which the human mind founds meaning. Two, if there are conditions of meaning that are constant among human beings. This divides naturalists into two groups, subjectivists and objectivists.
Subjectivists: Subjectivists believe that there are no unchanging criteria for meaning because meaning is relative to the subject and is contingent on an individual's attitudes such as desires, ends, and choices. They maintain that meaning in life differs from person to person, depending on each one's mental states. Something is meaningful for a person if they believe it to be or look for it. They think that one's life is more meaningful the more one obtains what one wants strongly, the more one achieves one's prioritized goals, or the more one does what one considers to be truly important.
Subjectivists are distrustful of endeavors to justify beliefs about objective value because they do not see how meaning could be based on something independent of the mind, whether it is the natural, the non-natural, or the supernatural. In contrast, it seems clear-cut to represent what is meaningful in terms of what people find meaningful or what people want out of life. This seems credible since it makes sense to think that a meaningful life is an authentic one.
Objectivists: Objectivists maintain, in contrast to subjectivists, that there are some invariable standards for meaning because it is at least partly independent of mind. Instead, it is something that exists irrespective of being the purpose of anyone's mental states. Something is meaningful (to some extent) by dint of its intrinsic nature, independent of whether it is believed to be meaningful or sought after.
Actions that are rooted in morality and creativity are deemed to bestow meaning on life, while brushing teeth or eating ice-cream are not. The former actions are meaningful irrespective of whether anyone judges them to be meaningful or looks to engage in them, while the latter actions simply lack meaning and cannot acquire it if someone believes them to have it or engages in them. To achieve meaning in one's life one needs to pursue the former actions.
Most objectivists concede that a life is more meaningful not only by virtue of objective factors, but also in part because of subjective ones such as thought, reasoning, affection, and emotion. As Susan Wolf, an American moral philosopher and philosopher of action who is currently the Edna J. Koury Professor of Philosophy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, puts it pithily: "Meaning arises when subjective attraction meets objective attractiveness." Pure objectivists refute that subjective attraction plays any constitutive part in conferring meaning on life. However, they only represent a small minority of objectivists.
4. Nihilism
Nihilism questions assumptions in keeping with which some lives can be meaningful. According to nihilism nothing can make a life meaningful. Atheism is prone to embracing nihilistic views on meaning of life. Albert Camus is well-known for articulating this kind of viewpoint, suggesting that the absence of an afterlife and of a rational, divinely ordered universe undercuts the possibility of meaning.
However, one does not have to be an atheist to be a nihilist and vice versa. Many contemporary nihilists share the view that there is something intrinsic to the human condition that prevents meaning from occurring, even allowing that God exists. They invoke the external perspective that supposedly reveals our lives to be unimportant. What one does in a certain society on Earth over let's say an 80 years life-span just does not add up to much when considering the billions of years and probably trillions of beings that are a part of space-time.
PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
As we have seen above, philosophical questions about the meaning of life look at life and the universe as a whole and ask what, in general, is the point of life, why does it exist, and what purpose does it serve? These purely philosophical questions are, however, "out of reach of modern objectivist scientific methodology" (Dominique Louis Debats et al., 1995, University of Groningen).
The goal of psychological investigation on meaning of life is less ambitious. It tries to study the subjective experiences of human beings and inquires what makes them experience meaningfulness in their lives. The fast progress over the past few decades in well-being and positive psychology research has helped to distinguish some philosophical constructs from meaning of life, thus directing emphasis on validating fewer aspects. From the perspective of psychology all accounts of meaning of life converge at sense making, which is about the ways that we make sense of ourselves and our environment.
In order to live in the world as reflective beings, humans appear to require three things: they require understanding the world around them, they require discovering direction for their actions, and they require finding value in their lives.
This has led to the current focus on seeing three aspects of meaning of life as central. These include Coherence, Purpose, and Significance. 1) Coherence or cognitive component is about making sense of one's experiences in life, 2) Purpose or motivational component is about pursuit and attainment of worthwhile goals, and 3) Significance or affective component is about feelings of satisfaction, fulfillment, and happiness accompanying goal attainment.
Cognitive component is regarded as the foundation of meaning that both guides the selection of goals and produces feelings of worthiness. It reflects that humans have an inherent need to make sense of their environment.
Motivational construal of meaning of life is that meaning arises when one has a clear purpose in life. While purpose is in many cases used synonymously with meaning, here purpose alludes precisely to having direction and future-oriented goals in life. These overarching goals then lend significance to one's present actions. The efficacy of a given purpose relies upon its scope, its strength, and its presence in one's awareness. Ideally purpose should have nobility and breadth of impact to be measured in terms of a lifespan or years rather than a day.
Affective component focuses on value, worth and importance. It can be defined as a value-laden evaluation of one's life as a whole concerning how significant, worthwhile, and inherently valuable it feels.
Coherence or cognitive component is value-neutral and descriptive whereas purpose or motivational component and significance or affective component are inherently evaluative and normative. Coherence is about describing the world as it appears to the individual, while significance and purpose aim to find value in the world in the present, as well as in the world that might arise from the pursuit of one's purpose.
The profound, intangible, conceptual work necessary to find coherence, purpose, and significance in life may be the most fundamentally human competence we have. This capacity for contemplatively construing one's life is what fuses all three facets of meaning in life. Coherence, purpose, and significance relate to different aspects of experience, but they are all about a thoughtful attitude to their respective aspects. Therefore, coherence is about not just experiencing the world as it is, but about creating a coherent mental representation about that world, having a cognitive map of the world that makes sense out of our experiencing. Purpose is not just about doing things, but about expressed and esteemed motivations engendering intentional behavior toward goals and aspirational strivings in life that have been intentionally chosen. Similarly, significance is not just about positive and negative feelings in life, but about the sense of value that arises when we measure our lives against some conceptual criteria that elicit certain emotions.
Hence, meaning of one's life can be summed up as arising from an integrative process of associations, interpretations, ambitions, and assessments that (1) make one's experiences understandable, (2) guide one's efforts toward the future one desires, and (3) provide a feeling that one's life matters and is worthwhile.
These three facets are connected with each other in many ways, which serves to explain why they are often treated as one phenomenon. One important connection lies in the fact that making sense of our lives is a precondition for valuing our lives. This is basically what Socrates said when he contended that unexamined life is not worth living. When our lives feel unintelligible, finding the things that make our lives worth living might be hard if not impossible. Lack of coherence can cause lack of significance and finding coherence can help in discovering significance.
Another connection is when purpose is an important source of significance. When we have some objective in the future that we covet, it can make our present efforts and our present life valued. Discovery of a strong sense of purpose in life can often function as a potent way of returning a sense of significance to our lives.
Finally, coherence and purpose have a great potential for synergy. Cognitive component can direct motivational component in the selection of goals by helping one to decide what would be an appropriate purpose. One could thus say that coherence creates the field from which one sources one's purposes. At the same time, purpose is important for coherence as well, as a clear purpose adds structure to one's life by ensuring behavioral consistency.
EMPIRICAL PERSPECTIVE
As we have seen above, finding meaning is ultimately a personal journey and can mean different things for different people. Viktor Frankl backs the idea that finding meaning is a unique journey when he writes In Man's Search for Meaning: "Man's search for meaning is the primary motivation in his life and not a 'secondary rationalization' of instinctual drives. This meaning is unique and specific in that it must and can be fulfilled by him alone; only then does it achieve a significance that will satisfy his own will to meaning."
During his torment in Nazi concentration camps, Frankl found out that the only way he could survive and preserve his sanity was to cling tightly to a sense of meaning and purpose. For Frankl, personally, meaning emanated from serving his fellow inmates as a psychiatrist and physician. The following passage from his illustrious book, Man's Search for Meaning, poignantly explains how reflecting on his love for his wife Tilly became a source of meaning for Frankl.
"We stumbled on in the darkness. The accompanying guards kept shouting at us and driving us with the butts of their rifles. Hiding his mouth behind his upturned collar, the man marching next to me whispered suddenly: 'If our wives could see us now! I do hope they are better off in their camps and don't know what is happening to us.' That brought thoughts of my own wife to mind. My mind clung to my wife's image, imagining it with an uncanny acuteness. I heard her answering me, saw her smile, her frank and encouraging look. I understood how a man who has nothing left in this world still may know bliss, be it only for a brief moment, in the contemplation of his beloved."
After having survived an ordeal that would have left most people dead or completely shattered, Frankl spent his life promoting the significance of meaning as a solace against suffering and the secret to happiness. Meaning helped him sustain through the Holocaust and shaped his entire approach to life. However, Frankl aptly provides the following warning: "One should not search for an abstract meaning of life." In the preface of his book Frankl beautifully illustrates what he means by this, "Don't aim at success—the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue."
Frankl, thus, advocates that meaning cannot be chased as a goal in itself. It must arise as a byproduct of following other goals. If what you really want is to find meaning, he teaches, "You have to let it happen by not caring about it." In its place, he recommends espousing activities that unite you with something greater. This can comprise any number of activities like writing a book, pursuit of knowledge, dedicating yourself to a profession, looking after people who need care, volunteer work, or raising a family.
Empirical research endorses Frankl's viewpoint. As per a 2008 research titled Being good by doing good: Daily eudaimonic activity and well-being, Michael Steger (Colorado State University), Shigehiro Oishi (University of Virginia), and Todd Kashdan (George Mason University) accomplished an online survey of more than 8,000 people across the globe. To evaluate meaning, they employed a psychological test known as the Meaning in Life Questionnaire, which gives two distinct scores. The first score shows the extent to which people are actively searching for meaning, whereas the second score shows the degree to which they have already discovered it. The results are exactly what Frankl would have predicted: Greater search scores were associated with lower life satisfaction and happiness.
To sum it up, the paradoxical approach to discovering meaning may be to not look for it. The most gratifying forms of meaning may flourish not when we chase them directly, but when we instead pursue giving, beauty, love, justice, or, as Frankl writes, "a cause greater than oneself." The code to a meaningful life may be to remind ourselves day after day to do what is right, love wholeheartedly, seek interesting experiences, and take on important tasks, not with the objective of increasing our sense of meaning in life, but because these quests are good in themselves. Life's experiential analyses have taught us that certain techniques can be helpful in our pursuit of meaning. Here are some suggestions:
Nurture a Passion
Either motivation or passion drives our interest in activities. While motivation is useful for mundane activities, passion is the driving force for activities that have significance for us. Passion can be negative or positive. Negative passions are obsessions that conduce to unhealthy behaviors. One the other hand, positive passions improve our behavior and enhance our life.
When you have a passion for something, you feel a great deal of pleasure in the activity to pursue it. You may personify that passion in your understanding of your identity (e.g., you may consider yourself a writer, a painter, or a coach). Personalizing the activity into your understanding of your self-concept can play a vital role in how we find meaning in our lives.
Nurture Social Connections
Building and maintaining relationships with other individuals is a reliable way to develop a sense of meaningfulness (Heintzelman & King, 2014). Research shows that people who report fewer social connections and exclusion also report lower meaningfulness (Williams, 2007). Vallarand's research (2012) showed that sharing one's passions with a group of compatible individuals helps further develop harmonious passions, which, in turn, can generate a sense of meaningfulness.
While social connections are important, not all social relationships are the same. Ensure to focus on relationships that make you feel like you belong, where you feel like you fit in with the members of that group and with the purpose.
Be Aware of Your Moods
Investigational laboratory studies have established a time-based relationship between positive mood and sense of meaning, suggesting that a positive mood results in a higher sense of meaning. If you are aware of your mood, you can manage it better by making time for interests and hobbies, getting enough sleep, exercising regularly, eating healthily, developing mindfulness, and practicing meditation.
Monitor Your Environment
Research has shown that a cognitively coherent environment can boost feelings of meaningfulness (Heintzelman & King, 2014). Heintzelman and King show that schedules, routines, patterns of your behavior and that of your family, time-management, cleanliness, better hygiene can all play a role in increasing the ability to make sense of one's environment, which then can contributes to an enhanced sense of meaningfulness.
However, do not be uncompromising in your expectations of your environment. Unexpected tasks will arise, your child will be cranky, you might drop your favorite crystal on the floor, or a visitor will arrive unannounced, but such challenges will have less of a negative impact if you already have a sense of control of your environment.
Curiosity about your own life can often help you discover meaning. What difficulties have you faced? What strengths enabled you to surmount them? How did other people help you? How did you use your gifts to help make life better for others? Emily Esfahani Smith, author of the book The Power of Meaning says "We all have the ability to make a narrative out of our own lives, it gives us clarity on our own lives, how to understand ourselves, and gives us a framework that goes beyond the day-to-day and basically helps us make sense of our experiences."
Research has established that those who are able to tell a story of change and growth, where they managed to overcome the obstacles they came across, are likelier to see meaning in their lives. Creating a personal narrative can help us to view our own strengths and how employing those strengths can make a difference in the world, which increases our sense of meaning.
Find Meaning as You Advance in Years
Our life experiences and conditions change as we grow in years and each life stage presents us with unique challenges and achievements. We also experience heartache as we age – we may lose our parents, our partners, lose our jobs, have an accident, or develop an illness. Then you grow old, but older age is not synonymous with a less meaningful life. There is vast evidence that busy lives and positive psychological profiles in older adults act as a buttress against illness, loneliness, and depression. Find ways to meet new people and form new relationships. Use more free time available to develop a new hobby or passion. We have already discussed the role that motivation plays in developing passion and how passion leads to a meaningful life.
LIFE'S MEANING
SENSE OF LIFE'S MEANING
I am currently packing (yet again) to move to a country which my family has called its home…


Sorry this one's a bit late. I'll try to have Monday's out on time, but I have a lot of Lightfest things to take care of! Stay warm, friends!
I will laugh so hard if by the middle of this adventure Skarva starts talking a little like a pirate and just gets angrier the more it happens.
"HA. I AM A PIRA- wait no ****" oh Skaervy. You silly, silly shark.
But traversing rigging is also a perfectly piratey thing to do.
The only way to win is not to play (but then you don't get to see the lovely treasure).
… I suppose that he could deal with the problem by calling in the authorities with the arrangement being that he get the item that he's looking for in exchange for the pirate crew and the remainder of the treasure, thus making him closer to a -privateer- — but somehow I doubt that Skärva would overmuch like deferring to the authorities either.
Is your pride really worth manual labor? What little pride there is?
Skaervs? I love this nickname!
It is like a montage!
The 6th and 7th panel would make some interesting Gravatars.
Of course, many of you guys would find the ensuing rage to be cute as well.
Ehehehehe, this is absolutely brilliant!


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Next up is the Oasis bird print top – I love this blue! It's £38 HERE. It also comes in a sweatshirt version HERE and is perfect for adding a bright element to your spring wardrobe.
This is the one I'm obsessed with – I love the bright splashes of colour on a neutral background from Avoca – it's the most expensive at £124 HERE but it's all kinds of lovely.
Since I've just laid down some grass seed which currently my little friend and all of his little friends are treating like a free ticket to The Ivy, I don't expect I'll be in a birdy mood for long!


text:
Travel restrictions and evidence‐based decision making for novel epidemics
Jessica Stanhope and Philip Weinstein
To the Editor: Travel restrictions to control the transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19), were rapidly implemented in Australia. Despite its apparent efficacy, this proactive approach has been criticised as unscientific and in breach of the International Health Regulations. A recently published comment1 claimed that travel restrictions were implemented without supporting scientific evidence and had "been challenged by public health researchers", citing research on Ebola and influenza. However, their interpretation is not consistent with an evidence‐based approach. When managing a novel infection, evidence‐based decision making should (i) use the best available relevant information that is generalisable to the novel infection — for example, an infection with a similar route of transmission; that is, not Ebola, but rather severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), influenza, and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) — and (ii) clearly define the outcome of interest (eg, prevention v delay). A recent review2 of travel restrictions for emerging infectious diseases, including SARS and MERS, found only one study regarding coronaviruses. The evidence identified supports the use of air travel bans to prevent the spread of coronavirus epidemics.2 Furthermore, systematic reviews,3,4,5 including the review4 cited in the comment,1 have reported that travel restrictions delayed, but did not prevent, the spread of influenza.3,4 These delays were up to 4 months,4 and up to 10 months if implemented in combination with other local strategies.5 At the start of the COVID‐19 pandemic, this reflected the best available evidence to make evidence‐based decisions regarding travel restrictions. The evidence suggests that travel restrictions may, therefore, be used to delay and attenuate the peak in case numbers to reduce the burden on the health system, allowing for preparations to be made to better manage the outbreak. The preparation measures may include upskilling the health care workforce, building new facilities, improving access to laboratory testing and ventilators, and stockpiling personal protective equipment. This is the primary goal of travel restrictions as public health interventions. We conclude that Australia's rapid introduction of travel restrictions is consistent with an evidence‐based approach that prioritises the precautionary principle and saving lives.
Jessica Stanhope
Philip Weinstein
University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA
Correspondence: Philip.Weinstein@adelaide.edu.au
1. Habibi R, Burci GL, de Campos TC, et al. Do not violate the International Health Regulations during the COVID‐19 outbreak. Lancet 2020; 395: 664–666.
2. Errett NA, Sauer LM, Rutkow L. An integrative review of the limited evidence on international travel bans as an emerging infectious disease disaster control measure. J Emerg Med 2020; 18: 7–14.
3. Ryu S, Gao H, Wong JY, et al. Nonpharmaceutical measures for pandemic influenza in nonhealthcare settings — international travel‐related measures. Emerg Infect Dis 2020; 26: 2298–2299.
4. Mateus ALP, Otete HE, Beck CR, et al. Effectiveness of travel restrictions in the rapid containment of human influenza: a systematic review. Bull World Health Organ 2014; 92: 868–880D.
5. Lee VJ, Lye DC, Wilder‐Smith A. Combination strategies for pandemic influenza response ‐ a systematic review of mathematical modeling studies. BMC Medicine 2009; 7: 76.


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