text:
In Arctic, Ancient Diseases Return and Highways Melt as Temperatures Hit Records
Just eight months after the Paris climate talks, we are close to reaching the 1.5C upper limit of planetary warming.
Dahr Jamail ,
Byron Peak with Byron Glacier in the middle-left of photo. Less than 20 years ago, Byron glacier used to cover the upper portion of the valley but is now rapidly retreating uphill. Note the several waterfalls coming off what is left of the glacier. (Photo: Dahr Jamail)
Part of the Series
Climate Disruption Dispatches
By the time I'd reached the end of my 10 years of reportage on the impacts of the US occupation of Iraq in 2013, it was impossible for me to find an Iraqi who did not have a family member, relative or friend who had been killed either by US troops, an act of non-state sponsored terrorism or random violence spun off one of the aforementioned.
Now, having spent the entire summer in Alaska, I've yet to have a conversation with national park rangers, glaciologists or simply avid outdoors-people that has not included a story of disbelief, amazement and often shock over the impacts of anthropogenic climate disruption (ACD) across their beloved state.
Whether it is rivers causing massive erosion after being turbo-charged by rapidly melting glaciers, dramatically warmer temperatures throughout the year, or the increasingly rapid melting and retreat of the glaciers themselves, everyone who is out there, seeing the impacts firsthand, has a grave experience to share.
As just one small example, less than an hour's drive from Anchorage, I visited an area where I'd climbed in the past. An old climbing partner had suggested I visit Byron Peak, which is situated not far from both Turnagain Arm and Prince William Sound, to witness how much Byron Glacier had retreated since I'd last been there.
Scientists Are Stunned by How Rapidly Ice Is Melting in the Arctic
One researcher offered a bleak prognosis: "We're not going to stop this train wreck."
To reach the ridge of the mountain I had previously chosen as a climbing route, I had to hike up onto and over the base of the Byron Glacier, which, in 1999, had covered the entire head of the valley.
Now, less than 20 years later, when I got my first view of how dramatically the glacier had retreated, I stopped dead in my tracks. It felt as though I'd been punched in the stomach and I found myself wiping away a tear while I came to terms with the dramatic evidence before me.
What is left of the Byron Glacier is now in full, rapid retreat up towards its source. It has become a micro-example of the macro of Alaska, whose glaciers are losing in excess of 75 billion tons of ice annually, according to NASA.
All is not well in the northlands.
This is because across today's Alaska, temperature records are falling as fast as bird populations are plummeting.
July was the warmest month ever recorded in the state's largest city, Anchorage. Temperatures from the southeastern portion of the state all the way up to the town of Deadhorse on the Arctic Ocean broke records; the airport at Deadhorse hit a stunning 85 degrees.
Rick Thoman, a climate science and services manager with the National Weather Service in Alaska, told the media that one of the drivers of the unusually warm temperatures across the state is abnormally warm sea surface temperatures, and added, "In the Bering Sea, especially south of St. Lawrence Island or so, they're really outrageously warm compared to normal."
A recent study showed that the rapidly warming climate across Alaska is causing the loss of large swaths of habitat for several species of shorebirds that migrate to the Arctic on an annual basis. The study showed that two thirds of the species that migrate to Alaska will be impacted, with some of them losing up to 90 percent of their habitat. The warming climate is also causing the birds' food source, insects, to hatch early, leaving a shortage of food for the birds and their offspring, which is further contributing to declining populations.
Even Alaskan highways are feeling the heat.
The famous Alaskan Highway, which has drawn adventure seekers northwards for decades, arcs across British Columbia and the Yukon before making its way across central Alaska to its end point at Delta Junction. But as the permafrost underneath the highway continues to melt at an ever-quickening pace, large fissures, cracks and bulges are causing it to break apart.
"It's the single biggest geotechnical problem we have," Jeff Currey with Alaska's Department of Transportation told a reporter. "The Romans built roads 2,000 years ago that people are still using. On the other hand, we have built roads that within a year or two, without any maintenance, look like a roller coaster because they are built over thaw-unstable permafrost."
It's not just adventure seekers who will be impacted by the deteriorating highway, as it's a critical pathway that is used heavily for transporting food, supplies and medicine to rural Alaskan villages. In an ironic twist of justice, the melting highway is also used by oil companies to transport heavy equipment to what has been the lifeblood of the state's economy since oil was discovered on Alaska's North Slope.
And the signs of ACD across the rest of the Arctic are equally shocking.
In northwestern Greenland, a cold-war era US toxic waste dump of radioactive waste, along with biological and chemical waste, is at risk of becoming exposed as the ice there continues to melt rapidly. Obviously, the government's decision to bury the dangerous waste underneath more than 100 feet of ice did not consider that the ice sheet would become one of the largest contributors to sea level rise during the Anthropocene age.
"If the ice melts, the camp's infrastructure, including any remaining biological, chemical and radioactive wastes could re-enter the environment and potentially disrupt nearby ecosystems," the University of Zurich, which documented these developments in a study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, stated to the media about their study.
Over in Siberia, thawing permafrost caused an anthrax outbreak that led to dozens of people being hospitalized and at least one child dying. Two thousand reindeer have been affected thus far and the Russian government has airlifted several families out of the area. The cause of the outbreak? The thawing of a reindeer carcass that had been infected with anthrax decades in the past.
The outbreak occurred on the Yamal Peninsula where, as Truthout previously reported, massive amounts of methane trapped in the permafrost has exploded out of the ground, leaving large craters.
In response to the re-animated bacteria, Russia sent troops trained for biological warfare to quarantine the area.
This type of disease outbreak in the Arctic was previously the stuff of science fiction, but no longer. Climate scientists fear it may well be a harbinger of what is to come as the Arctic continues to warm at a record-breaking pace. Given that there is no way to know what other kinds of deadly bacterium remain frozen in the Arctic's permafrost, we will find out only as the ice melts the bacteria, which will then re-animate as it did in Russia.
All of this is just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak. It truly is just a token of what is to come, as global temperatures continue to escalate.
2015 set a "frenzy" of climate records, according to the Scientific American journal, from the hottest global temperature ever recorded to the single largest increase of CO2 in the atmosphere. Yet, 2016 is already on pace to break those records, as the first half of this year has already "blown away" previous temperature highs, according to NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
NASA recently released datathat showed July to be the single hottest month ever in recorded history, beating out the previous hottest month ever recorded, which was July 2015.
We must take an honest, sober look at where the planet is, and what this means for us as a species, along with all other living things on Earth.
2016 is on track to become the hottest year ever recorded. The previous hottest year ever recorded was 2015. The hottest year ever recorded before that was 2014. Every single one of the last 14 months has set a record for the hottest global monthly temperature for that month. Fifteen of the 16 hottest years ever recorded have occurred since 2000.
We are amidst a record-setting global coral bleaching event, wildfires continue to set records for frequency, duration, area and heat, and sea ice in the Arctic covered an area last winter that was the smallest since record-keeping began and is currently near the lowest volume ever recorded.
Earth has officially entered the sixth mass extinction and there is nothing to indicate that a global government-coordinated response to cease fossil fuel emissions will occur anytime soon.
As we ponder these facts, this month's dispatch surveys more of the details of what is happening on Earth now, as ACD continues apace.
There is now a scientific study that proves that ACD increases the risk of war. New research by German academics found a statistical link between ACD-fueled extreme weather events and outbreaks of widespread violence.
Meanwhile in Japan, a recent report underscores how ACD is threatening that country's agriculture in very damaging ways.
"If the gravest predictions turn out to be true," reads the report, "by the end of this century, the world could view what are now fairly common products at the Japanese dinner table as either rare luxury items or something that people used to eat, but no longer."
Back in the US, sadly, a recent study revealed how the iconic Douglas fir tree is seeing its growth stunted from warmer temperatures and increasing water stress driven by ACD.
More disconcerting news comes from the Audubon Society, which released a recent report showing that in the Puget Sound area of Washington State, Glaucous-winged seagulls have resorted to cannibalism for nourishment, due ACD-warmed seas making their natural foods ever more scarce.
ACD-fueled drought in Paraguay is one of the driving forces that has caused a major river to run completely dry. The government has declared an emergency and admitted that the entire country is in the midst of an "ecological crisis," as massive numbers of wildlife deaths have littered hundreds of miles of dry riverbed.
Increasingly warm seas are fueling an unprecedented increase in jellyfish around the globe. The numbers are high enough that utility grids are being sabotaged by swarms of millions of jellyfish that clog up water-intake areas, as scientists ponder robot shredders and other possible last-resort solutions.
A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revealed a "remarkable increase" in the incidence of waterborne illnesses linked to increasing global temperatures, while in Florida, a thick green slime that covered vast swaths of beaches may well become the norm. The slime, which is actually toxic green algae proliferated by increasingly warm waters, is expected to become a regular occurrence and is predicted to worsen as temperatures continue to increase.
Ever-warming ocean waters continue to prolong an ongoing global coral-bleaching event. In Guam, reefs have been bleaching for the last four years. Coral ecologist Laurie Raymundo with the University of Guam said that prior to 2013, Guam's coral had escaped much of the bleaching that was occurring around the rest of the world. However, Raymundo said, "In 2013, 2014 and 2015, we have gotten hammered, and we're getting hammered again. For the past four years we've had bleaching episodes, and we have not had them to this extent in recent history."
Raymundo estimates that more than half of Guam's coral died between 2013 and 2014, and about 85 percent of the total coral there has bleached. After a recent scuba dive to inspect Guam's coral, Raymundo wrote of the ecological destruction she witnessed: "I consider myself to be fairly objective and logical about science. But sometimes that approach fails me. Today, for the first time in the 50 years I've been in the water, I cried for an hour, right into my mask, as I witnessed the extent to which our lovely Tumon Bay corals were bleaching and dying."
Meanwhile, sea levels continue to rise. The Union of Concerned Scientists released a report recently warning that large areas of US military bases along the Eastern seaboard will be swamped by 2050. The report estimates that tidal flooding and storm surges will increase by a staggering 2,600 percent annually in areas where several bases are located.
Another report from real estate experts predicts that if sea levels rise as much as some climate scientists predict (six feet) by the year 2100, nearly 300 US cities will lose at least half of their homes and 36 cities will be entirely lost to the seas.
As far as sea level goes, bad news for folks living on islands comes from a recent report showing that the last remaining wooly mammoths in North America died off from lack of fresh water when rising seas killed plants they ate and contaminated fresh drinking water. These phenomena will play out for coastal residents as sea levels continue to increase, right along with storm and tidal surges.
In India, the monsoon has become far more intense than normal due to a warmer atmosphere's ability to contain larger amounts of moisture. This was apparent in late July when flooding in northeast India hit more than 1.2 million people and submerged massive areas of farmland.
Meanwhile, in Louisiana, Gov. John Bel Edwards recently declared a state of emergency as flooding he called "unprecedented" and "historic" killed at least seven people and caused more than 20,000 people to be rescued. In fact, even the governor and his family were forced out of the Governor's Mansion as chest-deep water filled the basement and caused the electricity to be shut off.
Of the ongoing rescue operations throughout his own parish, Gov. Edwards commented somberly, "We haven't been rescuing people. We've been rescuing subdivisions."
At the other end of the water spectrum, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization warned of being in a "race against time" for at least 23 million drought-stricken farmers in Africa where the southern part of the continent Africa continues to be plagued by massive droughts as ACD progresses. According to the UN, more than 60 million people worldwide, two-thirds of whom are in eastern and southern Africa, already face chronic food shortages due to ongoing droughts.
In Greenland, Ice Sheet continues to melt quickly. NASA recently produced a map revealing how large areas of Greenland are melting heavily from below. This is alongside ongoing observations of how the surface of the ice is continuing to melt at an accelerating rate.
Roughly a little more than half of the base of Greenland Ice Sheet is now thawed and the NASA report states, "Knowing whether Greenland's ice lies on wet, slippery ground or is anchored to dry, frozen bedrock is essential for predicting how this ice will flow in the future." Given that statement, as ACD intensifies with each passing day, so will the melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet.
In Portugal, unusually high temperatures and weeks of dry weather are fueling wildfires that have burned out of control and killed at least four people. Temperatures that are more typical in the Sahara desert far to the south have plagued much of Portugal, so instead of temperatures being around normal levels in the low 80sF, they have seen highs of 104F.
In drought-plagued California, at least 3,750 fires have erupted across the state since January, a much higher number than normal, not surprisingly. These fires have burned up more than 200,000 acres.
One of them forced the closure of the iconic Highway 1 for a brief time and dozens of homes and other buildings have burned amidst the blazes that are still being fought by thousands of firefighters. According to the National Interagency Fire Center in Idaho, 35 major wildfires have burned over 500,000 acres across the US West thus far.
Warm temperature records continue to be set across the planet.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is looking into the accuracy of a temperature of 54C (129.2F) recorded in Mitrabah, Kuwait in July. If the recording is accurate, it will set a new highest temperature record for the Eastern Hemisphere and Asia. That same month, the rest of the Middle East and much of Northern Africa were scorched by a large heat wave, with Basra, Iraq experiencing a sweltering 53.9C.
Amid scorching temperatures, electricity consumption (namely for air-conditioning) in Taiwan set a record in July. The next day, it set another record. More air-conditioning means, of course, far more CO2 emissions being spewed into the atmosphere — a recent study has shown that the increase is in the billions of tons, given hotter temperatures around the globe.
July also saw a widespread heat wave across the vast majority of the US, with some areas reaching 115F, according to the National Weather Service. At one point, on July 22, nearly 124 million people (nearly half of the country) were under an Excessive Heat Warning, Excessive Heat Watch or Heat Advisory, according to the WMO.
New illustrations of how quickly temperatures are spiraling out of control have been released recently and are quite sobering to watch. I recommend you watch them, though, to get a sense of the sheer magnitude at which this crisis is hitting.
Denial and Reality
There is never a shortage of instances of ACD denial.
As far as the US election goes, Donald Trump's ACD denial has reached new heights, even for the Republican Party.
Not only does he call ACD a "hoax," he has gone on to state he will rescind President Obama's ACD rules, pull the US out of the climate accords agreed upon in Paris last December, call for more drilling of fossil fuels and, of course, implement fewer environmental regulations, if he is elected president.
Although his opponent, Hillary Clinton, acknowledges the reality of ACD and has incorporated some of the rhetoric of the Bernie Sanders campaign into her platform, she is calling for the building of more roads and airports, which would, of course, only set the stage for even greater amounts of CO2 to be emitted. This is in addition to the fact that she chose Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine as her running mate.
Kaine supports offshore drilling, as well as the fast-tracking of natural gas export terminals. While he was governor of Virginia, he supported one of the last coal plants that was built in the US.
Even if Clinton is elected, the abrupt, mandatory, wide-scale emergency actions necessary to cease most CO2 emissions immediately — a vital first step towards attempting to mitigate ACD — are simply not on the table.
Meanwhile, recent polls indicate that a growing majority (66 percent) of US citizens believe ACD is real. At the same time, the number of people polled who believe there is no solid evidence of ACD is now at a record low of 15 percent, down from 24 percent just one year ago, according to recent polling.
Also on the reality front, the State of the Climate report, an authoritative annual summary of the global climate, was recently published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. The report details how warm ocean and air temperatures are breaking records, sea levels are reaching all-time highs and CO2 has surpassed a key milestone, as the world continues to be pushed at breakneck speeds into an environment of the kind humans have never experienced.
Meanwhile, leading climate scientists recently warned that the Earth is already extremely close to reaching the 1.5C upper limit of planetary warming, only eight months after that target was set during the Paris climate talks at the end of 2015.
The belief in the Paris climate talks was that by limiting planetary warming to below 1.5C, there would be the chance to prevent the melting of polar ice, limit the destruction of coral reefs and have a chance at preventing extreme levels of sea level increase.
However, it is all too apparent that these phenomena are already well underway and increasing in intensity.
Dahr Jamail
Dahr Jamail, a Truthout contributing writer, Board of Advisers member and former staff reporter, is the author of The End of Ice: Bearing Witness and Finding Meaning in the Path of Climate Disruption (The New Press, 2019), The Will to Resist: Soldiers Who Refuse to Fight in Iraq and Afghanistan (Haymarket Books, 2009), and Beyond the Green Zone: Dispatches From an Unembedded Journalist in Occupied Iraq (Haymarket Books, 2007). Jamail reported from Iraq for more than a year, as well as from Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Turkey over the last 10 years, and has won the Izzy Award and the Martha Gellhorn Award for Investigative Journalism, among other awards. His third book, The Mass Destruction of Iraq: Why It Is Happening, and Who Is Responsible, co-written with William Rivers Pitt, is available now on Amazon. He lives and works in Washington State.
Abrupt Climate Change Is Happening Faster Than Before
We need a law to regulate climate pollution just like we do other forms of pollution, to overcome doubt and apathy.
Bruce Melton ,
On Melting Ice: Inuit Struggle Against Oil and Gas in the Arctic
The Inuit in the Canadian Arctic who are opposing oil and gas development are also fighting for self-determination.
Chris Williams ,
GOP efforts to end pandemic emergency orders early would create "wide-ranging chaos" across the health care system.
Mike Ludwig ,
Sky-High Gas Prices Handed Exxon a Record $6 Million in Profit Per Hour in 2022
Exxon hoarded $56 billion in profits last year, crushing the previous record for profits set by a western oil company.
Government Allows Health Plans That Ripped Off Medicare to Pocket Overcharges
Audits, investigations and whistleblower lawsuits allege that the overcharges cost taxpayers billions per year.
Fred Schulte ,
KaiserHealthNews
Chevron More Than Doubled Its Profits Last Year as Gas Prices Squeezed Wallets
The profits report comes just two days after Chevron announced it's tripling its stock buyback budget to $75 billion.
National Guard Wants to Expand Its Training Site to Twice the Size of Chicago
The proposed expansion would allow for increased use and testing of new technologies, particularly electronic warfare.
Joe Garofalo ,
The US Finally Removes a Major Barrier to Opioid Addiction Treatment
Advocates say deregulating buprenorphine is a long overdue step toward ending the overdose crisis.
Pentagon's Report on China Doesn't Say a Word About Threat of Climate Crisis
It's time the U.S. and China move toward collaborative efforts aimed at reducing our mutual climate vulnerabilities.
Michael T. Klare ,
White House Refuses to Shield Endangered Right Whales From Lethal Vessel Strikes
North Atlantic right whales are facing "an extinction-level emergency," said one campaigner.
Kenny Stancil ,


About Debra Williams – "The grand ideas of Ronald Reagan live…in young Americans like Jason Shepherd…"
Debra Williams has been a resident of Kennesaw since 2002. She began serving on the Planning & Zoning Commission in 2010, and was Vice-Chair of the Commission for two out of the three years she served.
In 2013, she was elected to serve on the Kennesaw City Council for Post 4. During her tenure, she served as the liaison to the Arts & Culture Commission, Parks & Recreation Department, Cemetery Commission, GIS Department, Police Department, 911 Department, the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History, Smith Gilbert Gardens, and the Rec. and Culture Commission.
Debra's professional career has been spent in public relations. After receiving her BS in Mass Communications from Auburn University, Debra went to work for the Alabama State Council on the Arts as the Public Relations Director. After moving to Georgia, she started her own company, Total PR, LLC.


The thing that I am most passionate about in treatment has to be educating patients and families about using a multi-faceted approach to recovery.
Providing education about what recovery is. This includes supervising interns and therapists, as well as patients and their families.
Recovery is a journey, and it can get rough at times, in the same way that life can get rough sometimes. Find someone you can talk to, who knows what you're going through. Learn how to support your loved one by learning how to support yourself.
Get up early, exercise for 45 minutes, eat breakfast with my kids and get them ready for school. Check the traffic! Work. Come home, eat dinner with my wife and two kids and learn about their day. End the day watching Jeopardy! and doing some restful reading.
It's kind of counterintuitive, but on days when I exercise in the morning, I notice that I tend to be more energized throughout the day.
Spending time with my family, remodeling my house, exercise, surfing and playing music.
The energy of Atlanta is amazing. There are so many cultural opportunities. We've lived here for 14 years and haven't even touched the surface.
My wonderful yet challenging family life.
If you were stranded on a desert island and you could only take three books with you, what would you choose?
The largest version of any book that I could make a surfboard out of.
I'm not sure there is such a thing. I believe that recovery happens in the moment, so "getting it" implies some level of permanence. If I could reframe that, I would know that someone is beginning to integrate recovery concepts into their life when they relapse either chemically or emotionally and try something different that they were opposed to before. That implies that they are learning, and addiction hates learning.
Do your homework. Our industry is in a bit of an "identity crisis" and finding quality, specialized treatment is becoming more challenging. Start with a therapist that you trust and visit the NAATP website often.
What advice do you have for people who are struggling to maintain recovery?
Come in for an assessment and ask for help.
The way we move on with life in our own way. In spite of our challenges, we can learn how to manage the symptoms of addiction so that they don't have power over us; and at the same time, recognizing they are chronic in nature. This is the ultimate expression of the first and 12th Steps.
Favorite quote/best advice you've ever received?
To view our full schedule of CE events at Foundations Atlanta at Midtown, click here.
Learn more about the staff at Foundations Atlanta at Midtown.
Originally from Eustis, Florida, Doug Paul joined the Foundations Atlanta at Midtown team in 2018 as the director of outpatient services. Previously, he also served as the clinical director of Midtown's sister campus, Foundations Atlanta at Roswell. Inspired by his own personal recovery journey, he enjoys working collaboratively to create a healing environment for others on the same path.
Earning a bachelor's degree in liberal studies from the University of Central Florida, Paul also holds a master's in rehabilitation counseling from Georgia State University. Over the course of his career, he has served those with addictive disorders in a variety of diverse settings, including seven years with Talbott Recovery.
His favorite hobby is spending time with his children, and they enjoy traveling, camping and hanging out by the pool together. In his spare time, Paul can be found training for triathlons, surfing, home remodeling or playing music.
For tips and recommendations on parking at Foundations Atlanta at Midtown, click here.


Creatures and people up to level 9 won't fight for 30 seconds.
Calm is an apprentice level Illusion spell that causes a hostile creature or person up to level 9 to stop fighting for 30 seconds.
Hypnotic Gaze, all targets 8 levels higher can be affected.
This page was last modified on 22 May 2018, at 14:23.


poster board storage corruboardr bulletin board poster storage system.
receiver shelf mount it mi floating wall mounted shelf bracket stand for av receiver tv receiver shelf.
wicker fabric wicker vinyl upholstery fabric wicker fabric by the yard.
igloo 6 gallon water container igloo 6 gallon water container replacement cap.
pink damask fabric pink velvet damask fabric.
galaxy s6 active cover minion case for galaxy case for 012 galaxy music duos samsung galaxy s6 active phone covers.
j7 cover wholesale rugged hybrid hard protective impact rubber case cover for galaxy 00 j7 cover 2018.
van sink toilet sink shower combo designing your custom camper van conversion baths toilet options two cabinets shower toilet sink combo for sale locksmith van sinkhole.
wall decal for dining room red home theme including dining room wall decals me word wall stickers for dining room.
mens black faux fur coat black faux fur coat with hood fashion women s mens faux fur coats amazon.


text:
Aurélie Lierman
Aurelie Lierman
Aurélie Lierman will during her residency at Moks research the speaking voice in an acousmatic context by creating a vocal theater piece, exploring the boundaries between music and meaning.
THEME: Fukushima 3/11  HOME AS A SHELTER
Aurélie Lierman will reflect on the idea of home as a symbol for 'shelter' and 'safety', and its shifting meanings in times of disaster. Fukushima 3/11, the nuclear disaster of March 2011 in Japan, would be the underlying subject of her research.
Field recordings and human speech are the backbone of Aurélie's work and she would like to continue inthat direction with her ongoing project HOME AS A SHELTER. Not so long ago she launched an open call for anyone with family or friends in Japan, at the time of the nuclear disaster of Fukushima. She asked all participants to dig into their personal archive of old messages that they have send to their families or friends on the day of 3/11 and the following weeks (letters, postcards, SMS, Facebook, Twitter and other social media). She asked them to read those messages in the original language (mostly Japanese), and to provide her with their English translation.
She on purpose did not oppose any aesthetics, she did not tell them how to read those texts. Any recording device and any sound quality was accepted (lo fi, hi fi, digital, analogue), as long as the voice remained intelligible and easy to be understood. The result is a kaleidoscope of nonprofessional (Japanese) speaking voices, all recorded under different recording conditions, often far away from the standard professional soundproof studio environment. With this collected sound recordings she would like to make a 'vocal theatre' with multiple speakers, where each speaker has its own personal voice and its own narrative logic. Joint factor between this multiplicity of voices is the true story of a Rwandan woman, who survived the Rwandan Genocide back in 1994, as a refugee arrives by accident in the then safe Fukushima and builds up a new life. But then with the Fukushima disaster in March 2011 she again undergoes a traumatic event. She survives the 3/11 and ever since uses her resilience and vital strength to help where she can in the new community in Fukushima where she currently lives, as well in her old community in her native country Rwanda.
Aurélie Lierman was born in Rwanda, but due to circumstances, grew up in Belgium from the age of two. Now as an adult she consider Belgium as her home country. With this HOME SHELTER project she would like to go deeper in the idea of home from a slightly different angle, giving the idea of diaspora a slightly different angle by juxtaposing a non western reality (Japan) on another non western reality (Rwanda).

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
A Jubilee Arena egy fedett természetes jégpálya volt Montréal városában, a Rue St.-Catherine és a Rue Moreau sarkán. A Montréal Canadiens itt rendezte hazai mérkőzéseit a National Hockey Associationban (NHA) az 1909–1910-es szezonban és National Hockey League (NHL) mérkőzéseit az 1918–1919-es szezonban. Az NHA-ben játszó Montréal Wanderers 1910-től játszotta hazai meccseit ebben a csarnokban. A csarnok 1908-ban készült el, 3200 ülőhellyel.

Miután a Montréal Arena 1918-ban leégett, a Canadiens beköltözött a Jubilee Arenába. Viszont 1919 nyarán a Jubilee is leégett, a Canadienst ismét költözésre kényszerítve.

Források

Montréal építményei
NHL-csarnokok

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Sunday saw the inaugural Kenmare Handicap Triathlon and what a huge success it was; for none more so than Clive Johnston. On his triathlon debut Clive left the field for dust to romp home in first place. Great things are expected from him for the 2009 season although I'd say the handicappers will be looking closely at him this time next year.
There is a full report to follow below. Just before this however we would sincerely like to thank all the people who helped, supported and organised the event. Thanks Chris, James, Margaret, Ryan, The Paul's, Joanne, Jordan, Tom, Will, Ann, Devon, Lauren, Taylor, Sinead and especially Robert and Andrea who not only organised but then went on to provide amazing hospitality for the evening.
Photos to follow in the coming days. In the meantime enjoy Ryan's humorous report below.
On race day all competitors were geared up and ready for what we knew would be a powerful day in sports. Championship athlete Paul Tanner was up against his arch-nemesis, the elite Ellen Vitting, and neither Timmy O'Leary or Boyle Sports could name either as favourite. Throughout the pack, it was clear that all in attendance were pulling out the stops to take the prized first place. New arrival to the sport Clive Johnston was armed with a bike thought to be made out of air and aerodynamic rice paper. Paul Kelly was rumoured to have abstained from smoking for three hours before the event. Indeed, everyone was truly taking this very seriously.
At an estimated length of somewhere between 300 and 800 metres, the swim provided the perfect start to the event. The water was glass-like and while somewhat chilly, it allowed the big players to put in excellent swim times. First out of the water was Paul T, closely followed by Ellen, Colm and Lisa. Colm's T1 time proved to be his Achilles heel however, stopping to make a sandwich and have a cup of coffee before getting onto the bike. This time was bettered by Thos though, who not only prepared lunch but also did a full yoga workout before starting his cycle.
The first leg of the cycle was a gruelling climb to the top of Rossacussane and some of the athletes began to ask why Trek hadn't made gears that go down another 7 clicks. Those at the front had no such problems and Ellen later told this reporter that she did the entire climb in top gear, wearing flip-flops. Good weather conditions continued throughout the duration of the cycle and by the end of this leg all competitors had put in strong times.
On commencement of the run, the gap between Ellen and Paul T was shorter and it looked like the run-like-the-wind elite might take the lead in the 4km ahead. With every step Ellen closed another inch but Paul held on and made it onto the bike first for the last stretch home. A superb run time was achieved by Joe Smyth who seemed to break the sound barrier on the last descent. Other athletes were not quite as quick however, with one competitor in particular (ahem) deciding that walking was really how to approach this leg of the competition. Spurred on by the supportive comments of his fellow athletes and the 10 year old water-providers yelling 'Run You Idiot!' he amassed the strength to break into a leisurely jog for rest of the run.
The second leg of the cycle was a quick sprint to the finish, and spectators held their breath to see who would be the first to climb up the Olympics-endorsed hill to the back of Robert's house. Much to the surprise of sports writers it was Paul T who crossed the line first, finally doing what some in triathlon circles had deemed impossible by beating Ellen. All competitors put in excellent finish times, the lure of the BBQ at Robert's house being cited as the motivation for such super-human achievement.
The question on everyone's mind now was how would the times be affected by the handicap system. Would Paul T hold his lead? Would Robert Whyte himself take the prize? (and then face a steward's enquiry about how exactly the times were worked out) No, in fact nobody had expected the resulting winner who turned out to be none other than newcomer Clive Johnston. Indeed, with powerful performances in all events and a magic bike that weighed less than a Pot Noodle, Clive was a worthy victor and accepted the Paul Kelly hand-crafted cup with pride. Crowds cheered, cameras flashed and the event was brought to a momentous close.
We look forward to seeing what next year brings.
Great report Ryan, sounds like great fun was had by all. Sorry we missed it, but we're looking forward to next year!!


One of our heaviest hemp fabrics, and one of the heaviest available on the market. This beautiful fabric made from double plied dry-spun hemp yarns - natural yarns in one direction and bleached yarns in the other direction - creating a beautiful pinwheel effect in the weave pattern.
A unique and beautiful blend of recycled hemp and wool in a twill woven. The fabric composition is 55% recycled hemp and 45% wool and is especially suitable to outerwear, but can be used in a number of home furnishing applications as well.


Ensure that working with liquids at your facility is safe and easy with the right drum handling equipment. These containers can store and transfer oils, fuels, chemicals and other hazardous solutions. The UN-rated carbon steel drum is constructed with interior walls that are thicker than industry standards for better protection during handling and transport. The right drum accessories can also come in handy. For instance, using drum faucets and liquid level indicators allows you to safely dispense contents and know the exact volume in each drum. If you need to keep stored liquids at higher temperatures, a drum heater can easily be installed around a drum to heat the contents. Provide your facility or warehouse with all of the drum handling equipment and accessories needed for the task at hand.


text:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<!-- JBoss, Home of Professional Open Source Copyright 2015, Red Hat, Inc.
    and/or its affiliates, and individual contributors by the @authors tag. See
    the copyright.txt in the distribution for a full listing of individual contributors.
    Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not
    use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy
    of the License at http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 Unless required
    by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the
    License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS
    OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the specific
    language governing permissions and limitations under the License. -->
<project xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/xsd/maven-4.0.0.xsd">

    <!-- Model Version -->
    <modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>

    <!-- Parent -->
    <parent>
        <groupId>org.arquillian.extension</groupId>
        <artifactId>arquillian-governor-parent</artifactId>
        <version>1.0.0.Final-SNAPSHOT</version>
        <relativePath>../pom.xml</relativePath>
    </parent>

    <!-- Artifact Configuration -->
    <artifactId>arquillian-governor-skipper</artifactId>
    <name>Arquillian Test Skipper</name>

    <!-- Properties -->
    <properties>
        <version.hamcrest>1.0.0.0</version.hamcrest>
        <version.recorder>1.1.0.Alpha1</version.recorder>
    </properties>

    <!-- Dependencies -->
    <dependencies>
        <!-- Governor dependencies -->
        <dependency>
            <groupId>org.arquillian.extension</groupId>
            <artifactId>arquillian-governor</artifactId>
            <version>${project.version}</version>
        </dependency>

        <!-- Arquillian test dependencies -->
        <dependency>
            <groupId>org.jboss.arquillian.core</groupId>
            <artifactId>arquillian-core-impl-base</artifactId>
            <scope>test</scope>
        </dependency>
        <dependency>
            <groupId>org.jboss.arquillian.core</groupId>
            <artifactId>arquillian-core-impl-base</artifactId>
            <version>${version.arquillian.core}</version>
            <classifier>tests</classifier>
            <scope>test</scope>
        </dependency>
        <dependency>
            <groupId>org.jboss.arquillian.test</groupId>
            <artifactId>arquillian-test-impl-base</artifactId>
            <scope>test</scope>
        </dependency>
        <dependency>
            <groupId>org.jboss.arquillian.test</groupId>
            <artifactId>arquillian-test-impl-base</artifactId>
            <version>${version.arquillian.core}</version>
            <scope>test</scope>
            <classifier>tests</classifier>
        </dependency>

        <dependency>
            <groupId>org.arquillian.extension</groupId>
            <artifactId>arquillian-recorder-reporter-spi</artifactId>
            <version>${version.recorder}</version>
        </dependency>

        <!-- External test dependencies -->
        <dependency>
            <groupId>junit</groupId>
            <artifactId>junit</artifactId>
            <scope>test</scope>
        </dependency>
        <dependency>
            <groupId>org.mockito</groupId>
            <artifactId>mockito-all</artifactId>
            <scope>test</scope>
        </dependency>
        <dependency>
            <groupId>org.hamcrest</groupId>
            <artifactId>hamcrest-junit</artifactId>
            <version>${version.hamcrest}</version>
        </dependency>
    </dependencies>

</project>

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Home » Blogging News and Updates » Berush, Semrush's affiliate program site is shutting down
Berush, Semrush's affiliate program site is shutting down
Semrush has announced that it is shutting down Berush.com, a platform that it has used to run its affiliate program since 2009.
Berush shutdown
In a notice sent by Semrush today, Berush will be shutdown on January 31, 2023. The discontinuation of Berush program means that affiliate links created on Berush will not be tracked by 31st January.
Semrush affiliate program will continue to operate through Impact.com. Impact radius is one of the most reliable affiliate marketing management platforms. On June 6th, 2022 Bluehost closed its own affiliate program platform and moved to Impact.
The work of managing your own affiliate marketing platform is so complex and time-consuming that many businesses have opted to rely on third-party platforms like Impact Radius that are specialized in the industry.
Why Migrate to Impact?
Semrush says that the benefit of migrating to impact is that marketers will get advanced reporting of their promotions. A commission of $200 once per successful sale, $10 per trial activation, and $ 0.01 per registration will still be retained.
If you have been using Berush, you are required to apply for Semrush affiliate marketing through Impact Radius and then update the affiliate links on your blog.
Commissions earned by January 31, 2023, through Berush will be paid on February 10, 2023. If you would not have provided the correct payment details by February 9th, 2023, your commission will be canceled.


It's time to party! These cupcakes will brighten everyone's day.
Heat the oven to 190°C / fan 170°C / gas 5. Butter a 12 hole muffin tin.
Cream together the butter and sugar with an electric whisk.
Add the flour, baking powder, vanilla extract and continue to whisk together until everything is combined.
Divide the mixture evenly into the muffin tins and bake for 15-20 minutes.
Take out of the oven and transfer to a metal rack. While the cakes are cooling, make the frosting.
When they've cooled, using a sharp knife, cut a hole in the centre of each cake and then add 1 tsp of raspberry jam to each.
Cream the butter on its own for about 5 minutes on a medium speed.
Sift the icing sugar into the creamed butter and then mix together on a slow speed. Gradually increase the speed until it forms a thick paste.
Add the vanilla extract and milk if needed and whisk together for one minute.
Put your frosting into the piping bag with the nozzle of your choice. Pipe each cake.
Add a party ring of your choice to your frosting.
Serve and enjoy! The cupcakes should last for 2-3 days.


Located in the heart of Kenmore's Spencer Square, the Flyway will be MainStreet Property Group's fourth project in this area. MainStreet partnered with the City of Kenmore to revitalize the downtown area and create the downtown that it is today.
The Flyway's amenity package includes a rooftop deck that will have expansive views of Lake Washington; however, the project's location is its best amenity.
The Flyway is immediately adjacent to the City of Kenmore's Hangar Building, built as a gathering place for the public to use free of charge. Residents will also be steps away from a new restaurant located in the Seaplane commercial building with EvergreenHealth and dental providers located within walking distance as well.


Vivint Smart Home is the premier smart home provider in North America, serving more than 1,000,000 customers, and are offering great deals on our smart home systems to the residents of Chase. We combine premium-quality equipment, the expertise of a 'round-the-clock security monitoring team, and convenient and energy-saving products to give you your most intelligent home ever. You're already taking advantage of your home's programmable devices and appliances; does a smart home really offer more? Absolutely. A Vivint Smart Home brings all of your home components together into an interconnected ecosystem that actually learns and adapts to the rhythms of your household. Plus, you get three channels you can use to control your home; the Vivint SkyControl touchscreen panel that mounts inside your home, Vivint Smart Home mobile (the highest rated and most downloaded app on The App Store), and the Amazon Echo voice control device. Whether you desire a simple way to lower your energy bill, you want to be able to check to see whether your children arrived home from school, or you want to protect your property from intruders, we can customize a smart home package that is just right for you.
Upgrade to a Vivint Smart Home in Chase, Maryland!
Whether you're moving into a new home, or you want to teach your old home some new tricks, you can get state-of-the-art smart home technology. In fact, we can adapt our smart home systems for practically any type of Chase home, no matter the age or design. Thanks to our commitment to convenience and affordability, it's easier than ever to upgrade your home to a smart home. We provide a free one-on-one consultation so that you get the smart home of your dreams, customizing your system to fit the needs of your household. Vivint Smart Home Pros will perform a free full-service, professional installation for Chase residents (regularly $199), so you can enjoy the safety and security of this remarkable smart home system right away. Give us a call today and see just how much more convenient, safer, cheaper, and more relaxed your life can be.


Kabaddi- originated from the Tamil word "Kai-pidi" means to hold hands. Most of us have certainly tried our hand at the game at some point in our lives & lessons it gives to all of us- if closely inspected- they are even required for trading financial instruments in markets as well.
Lessons like- Overcoming your fear, Enhance your presence of mind, Pay attention to small things & finally -fighting with the right attitude.
350- a key level works wonders & turns upside from 352, giving us vital information-what is that- It has become critical support for future sessions because that level has been holding for quiet a long time & bulls are returning back close to 350's.
Going below 350 -now for sure "PC" will have future problems. Short term opportunity could be seen once it starts moving back below 380 marks-so seller's could be interested as this move from 288 lows is all choppy & corrective in nature.
Its a doji candle for the session means a candle which has hardly any distance between opening & closing price- that means buyers & sellers are confused -so kindly wait for market direction next -crossing high means shall move to next high or moving below current low & closing below that price -weakness is bound to come.
This move started right at the bottom 350 which was a key level for U-turn & PC Jewellers stock did so.


With Epicor® Mattec® MES™ software—designed to increase efficiency and capacity—you can unlock the hidden potential in your manufacturing facility. Operate more efficiently and flexibly. Reduce waste and become leaner and more efficient. Most importantly, the Mattec MES solution can help you keep pace with the changing competitive environment.
Read the Epicor eBook, Harness the Power of MES, to learn more about how technology can help your business streamline, compete, and grow.


MOSCOW, November 25. /TASS/. Russia's Federal Security Service has blasted as provocation the intrusion of three Ukrainian vessels into Russia's territorial waters.
"The provocation of three vessels of the Ukrainian Navy has been ongoing for the fifth hour in Russia's territorial waters of the Black Sea. Their goal is clear - to create a conflict situation in this region," the FSB press service said.
The FSB Border Service is taking all steps to thwart this provocation by the Ukrainian leadership and ensure safe navigation, it said.


text:
Q: Inserting parent/child rows in Hibernate with autoincrement index throws error I have the following Hibernate classes in Scala, where one Group has many Items. Note that the @Id of the Group class has an autoincrement annotation.
@Entity
@Table(name = "items")
class Item extends Serializable {

    @Id
    @ManyToOne
    @JoinColumn(name="group_sk", nullable=false)
    var group: Group = _

    @Id
    var index: Int = _

    var name: String = _

    def canEqual(a: Any) = a.isInstanceOf[Item]

    override def equals(that: Any): Boolean =
        that match {
            case that: Item => that.canEqual(this) && this.hashCode == that.hashCode
            case _ => false
     }

    override def hashCode: Int = {
        val prime = 31
        var result = 1
        result = prime * result + group.sk;
        result = prime * result + index
        return result
    }

}

@Entity
@Table(name = "groups")
class Group {

    @Id
    @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.SEQUENCE, generator = "group_generator")
    @SequenceGenerator(name="group_generator",
    sequenceName = "GroupSeq", allocationSize = 1)
    var sk: Int = _

    @Column(name = "group_name")
    var name: String = _

    @OneToMany
    @JoinColumn(name="group_sk")
    var items: java.util.List[Item] = _
}

I try to insert one group with a related item, where both the Group should have an auto incremented Id:
    session.beginTransaction
    val group = new Group
    group.name = "Group name"
    group.items = new java.util.ArrayList[Item]()

    val item1 = new Item
    item1.group = group
    item1.index = 1
    item1.name = "Item 1"
    group.items.add(item1)

    session.save(group)
    session.getTransaction.commit

The exception I get is

Caused by: javax.persistence.OptimisticLockException: Batch update
  returned unexpected row count from update [0]; actual row count: 0;
  expected: 1

And the Hibernate sql log shows:
Hibernate: select GroupSeq.nextval from dummy
Hibernate: insert into groups (group_name, sk) values (?, ?)
Hibernate: update items set group_sk=? where index=? and group_sk=?

Note that the last update statement doesn't make sense because you won't update the value of group_sk where the column is also in the condition. Moreover, there's no insert statement of the items table.
How to fix this problem?

A: You need to set cascade type on your OneToMany relationship to tell Hibernate how to mange Items collection of the Group class. So for example something like this should work:
@OneToMany(cascade=CascadeType.ALL)
@JoinColumn(name="group_sk")
var items: java.util.List[Item] = _

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Mildura is one of Victoria's fastest growing municipalities and also one of the most isolated, making it a 'sponge city' and main service area for a vast part of Victoria's regional community, representing a particularly socially complex landscape. The redevelopment of Langtree Mall was initiated by Mildura City Council as a way of revitalising the city's central shopping mall, which had become tired and run down.
At the time, the mall provided little opportunity for community engagement and the poor through-and-through visibility posed a safety risk for users. The goal of the project was to create an attractive and inviting open air plaza which included cultural, meeting and active opportunities for residents and visitors to enjoy. The design required a unique site specific response as it was anticipated that the newly designed plaza would serve as Mildura's natural city centre, creating a new public space that would bolster a better quality of civic life for the community and surrounding region.
Hansen Partnership was engaged by Mildura Rural City Council in early 2008 to undertake design and documentation for the redevelopment. The council's key objectives for the redesign were to open up the mall, clear out the existing clutter, and incorporate a range of sustainable design initiatives including water harvesting and the use of recycled materials.
Our design was inspired by the Mildura region and in particular, site visits by plane. This translated to an aerial view of the Murray River being inscribed onto the pavement, winding its way through the length of the mall, picking up on key settlements and features along its corridor. The pavement pattern is also an interpretation of an aerial view of Mildura and its agricultural patchwork, with the colours highlighting the earthy tones of the natural environment.
Just as people and townships are attracted to the river, elements such as shelters and furniture hug the edge of the river alignment through the mall. These create a series of gathering areas, where clusters of trees within large permeable pits provide shade and water harvesting opportunities, reminiscent of the billabongs along the meandering course of the Murray River.
Shade is further provided in the form of a large central pavilion, an architectural feature which provides an open events space adjacent to the new stage. By incorporating a range of multi-use spaces scattered along the spine of the Murray River art work, Hansen has breathed new life into one of Mildura's key public spaces.


'Bacterial Meningitis: What You Should Know' leaflets, posters and emails surrounded us this week at Strathclyde. We were bombarded, they were everywhere; on the walls in all the buildings, attached to notices in the library and handed out to passers-by on their travels through the campus. And with two Strathclyders diagnosed with the disease, although non-related, it is evident why this subject grabbed our attention and held it. We consumed those leaflets, eating up the facts and tips, digesting the information available.
We are scared of disease and infections, as human beings naturally are, and as soon as the threat becomes plausible, and completely possible, no matter how remote our chances are of actually catching something, we panic. And with the continuous threat of Ebola and the devastation it has caused imprinted in our minds, although of course on a much larger scale, we still feel threatened.
So how can we deal with the threat of infection and disease in our everyday lives, especially when attending an institution such as Strathclyde where well over 15,000 students come to learn from 100 countries?
And, when widespread disease and infection do find their way onto the campus, do we know how to react? Do we abandon our academic careers, leave lecture halls empty and echoing, labs alone and unused, to lock up our doors and wrap up in Clingfilm?
The answer is no. We cannot live our lives in fear of the unknown, shadowed by the chance of catching a disease or infection, to the point where it is constantly on our minds, or hinders our life at university. Strathclyde is a big institution but students rarely come in close enough contact to pass diseases such as Bacterial Meningitis and Ebola, According to the NHS, Ebola for example can only be passed through direct contact with blood, body fluids or the organs of an infected person, which most students avoid when reading in the library and taking notes in lectures and tutorials. Well, at least I hope they do! And Bacterial Meningitis is no different.
According to The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, transmission of the disease is a whole lot less easy to catch than the flu or common cold, and the chances of the disease, being spread is highly unlikely. In most cases, bacterial meningitis is only transmitted through continuous exposure to a sick person, for example when living in the same household or in the same hospital. And to further put our minds at ease, antibiotics are readily available for those who know someone with the illness, to build up their defence system and protect against the germs, which can cause Bacterial Meningitis, developing. Your chances of becoming ill are extremely through, even when studying at university, and if unfortunately you do become sick or infected, then treatment is immediately available and the chances of passing the disease through the campus, is almost miniscule.


If you select any of the government's welfare cuts since 2010, it's more than likely that there's been a bishop or two who have opposed them. Remember the Bishops' amendment in the House of Lords to scupper plans to cap benefits a family can receive to £26,000? Or the letter signed by 43 bishops criticising the government Bill limiting benefits increases to one per cent per year? There have been broader attacks, too, with another letter from 39 bishops describing cutbacks to and failures in the benefit system as a "national crisis". Cardinal Vincent Nichols has also described the consequences of welfare changes as "quite frankly a disgrace".
Such episcopal interventions have become somewhat predictable over the years. It could be argued that someone has to do it if our politicians are not willing to stand up for the lowliest and poorest in society, but those who wear dog collars do tend to have more leftist tendencies when it comes to welfare. Research has found that 44 per cent of Anglican clergy think that the welfare budget is too low and should be increased, compared to 15 per cent of the general population and only 9 per cent of weekly Church of England attenders.
Jesus said a good deal about defending the poor and needy and a lot less about attempting to balance the books when your country is running up a huge deficit, which is probably why our bishops focus a lot more on the former rather than the latter. Let's not forget either that it's much easier to throw out some strongly worded reprimands from the side lines than to be the ones in the middle of the storm trying to actually steer the boat and hold it together. It's no wonder that government ministers get exasperated at times when they find themselves being told they are lacking compassion and moral judgement yet again, but conversely rarely receive much in the way of affirmation when they get things right.
Government ministers might see the bishops' interventions as an irritating thorn in their side which attempts to prick their consciences in a way that is neither helpful nor necessary. But when people on their own side start to do the same, chances are that it really is time to pause and pay attention.
Daniel Kawczynski, Conservative MP for Shrewsbury and Atcham, has written to Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith stating: "I believe the time has come to review this policy and for you to take on board feedback from constituencies as to what is going well and what needs to potentially be reviewed and amended." He gives the example of the impact on single fathers who lose their visiting rights because they cannot afford a spare room for their children when they visit, as "deeply worrying". Nigel Mills, MP for Amber Valley, has since publicly voiced his dislike for the penalty, too.
Conservative Home reports that the general feeling at the top of the Government – DWP team aside – is that the policy simply isn't working out sufficiently well to make the political pain a justifiable cost. Isabel Hardman went further last month when she wrote in the Independent that every Conservative minister privately agrees that the bedroom tax was a mistake. Despite this, Conservative Home believes that Iain Duncan Smith, having fought a long battle on the matter, is unlikely to reverse the policy. If this is true, he needs to seriously think again.
A YouGov poll last year found that 49 per cent opposed the bedroom tax, but it wouldn't be surprising to see that the figure has since increased. I personally talked to a large number of people leading up to the election and wasn't able to find a single person who was in favour of it. Often is was used as the first point to attack the Conservatives, with people intending to vote for another party (even the Lib Dems) solely because of it. Many Conservative voters were not even neutral towards it: they were keen to denounce it and saw it as something of an embarrassment.
The policy has failed on so many levels. The DWP has said that it is raising £1 million a day, but in the first year after it was introduced the government made £345m available to councils to help "the most vulnerable people" deal with its introduction. Rent arrears and evictions have soared significantly, denting the expected welfare savings to the point that they are negligible. There is also a shortage of around 100,000 suitable smaller properties in England alone, meaning most people are unable to move even if they want to.
The bedroom tax has been a manifest failure in reducing the welfare bill, but worse is the human cost: along with single fathers, it is children, carers and the disabled who have been hammered. It is estimated that two-thirds of those affected are disabled. Personal debt is growing, as is food and fuel poverty as a result.
The bedroom tax has the potential to be held up as this and the last government's poll tax. It may not have caused riots yet, but it is hated and despised in a similar way, and has become an unwelcome stain on our society.
The Times reported this week that the late Lord Gould, New Labour's renowned strategist, had warned members of Ed Miliband's team early on during his leadership that they had defended the previous Labour government on the wrong points, including on the economy. Yet right up until they lost the General Election, those at the top of Labour refused to admit that their party had overspent whilst in government, despite the evidence to the contrary. Only now, at great cost, are they beginning to acknowledge this serious error of judgment.
Politicians find 'sorry' the hardest word, and climb-downs or U-turns equally objectionable, even when they are clearly the right thing to do. Iain Duncan Smith had legitimate reasons for introducing the so-called 'bedroom tax', but. as most business leaders know, things don't always go according to plan. and when that is the case it's time to re-evaluate and make the necessary changes. This is undoubtedly one of those instances. Any gains have been far outweighed by the losses. Far too many people have suffered for far too little return.
It might not be Iain Duncan Smith's political instinct to drop this policy, but any temporary humiliation would soon be overcome by a positive response from the public. It would prove that the Conservatives are not just 'the party for the rich' and only interested in number-crunching and those who can afford a life without any state support. It would show that political decisions are subject to ongoing ethical scrutiny, and that Iain Duncan Smith and his party have a heart, such that when they talk about being "all in this together", it actually means something.
On this policy, at least, it doesn't take much to see that Bishop David has got it right. As a fellow Christian, Iain Duncan Smith would do well to listen, reflect and take on board the episcopal rebuke, along with the criticism of his parliamentary colleagues. It is time to put the bedroom tax to bed, and wake up to a new morning.


Commercials for Beneful grain-free dog food point out this is well liked by the canine crowd. They come in wet and dry formulations and contain protein, blue-berries pumpkin and spinach. Farm raised chicken in most cases is said to be the number one ingredient. Beneful commercial is described as healthful and flavorful by one canine spokesman; a human representative counters that Beneful contains ingredients that people would enjoy consuming too.
The dog voices say, "Yummy, so good." Furthermore, benefits include energy, healthy skin and coat, easier digestion compared to foods containing higher grain levels, possibly smaller and less frequent stools, and hunger satisfied longer.


The roman food house bath Acronym Finder: wtd stands for What the Dilly. Citations. MLA style: wtd. Acronym Finder. 2009. 2 Jan. 2009 http:///WhattheDilly(wtd. Valid with a minimum food purchase of $35. 18% Gratuity added to prediscounted check amount. Dinein only.
Cooked food in fridge how long See the best looking cat on the web! Live streaming video too!. No action here? Click on one of the images below for a different point of view.
Typical mexican food wikipedia December 16th 2008. Clint Eastwood Ain't No Vegetarian Either… Filed under: food drink — michael @ pm. Last week's reality check that Clint Eastwood is, in fact, not.


text:
Written on 24/01/18 by Paul Oldham
More on the Thirlmere Zip Wires
As we reported back in November a planning application has been submitted to the Lake District National Park Authority to string eight zip wires over Thirlmere and it has, as we predicted, been controversial.
The core element of the application is that users will start from a 26' high gantry (so about the same height as a house) on the east side above the A591 and then "fly" on one of four wires for a kilometre over Thirlmere arriving close to the shore on the west side.
They will then be transported up the fellside to a second gantry below Fisher Crag to "fly" 1200m back across Thirlmere on one of a second set of four wires.
The view of Thirlmere from Fisher Crag, the return zipwires will begin just below here
Generally here at WalkLakes we try not to get involved with the politics of the Lake District but in the end we weakened and submitted our objections to the plans. Unsurprisingly we were not alone and the Lake District National Park Authority, who are also the planning authority in the park, received received 3,476 emails and letters objecting or expressing concerns, and 163 supporting the application, along with a petition with over 13,000 signatories against the proposal.
Significant objectors included (links are to pages about their objections):
the National Trust
the BMC
the John Muir Trust
the Friends of the Lake District
Terry Abraham (well known mountain film maker, Life of a Mountain – Scafell Pike and so on)
the Wainwright Society
The Great Outdoors (TGO) magazine
the Campaign for National Parks
The local parish council, St John's, Castlerigg & Wythburn PC. They also polled their residents who were overwhelmingly1 against the proposal.
The Open Spaces Society
various local Ramblers Association groups
What has been worrying us though is the conflicts of interest, some of which are outlined in the TGO article we link to above, and some of which have come out in the thread on our forum, which made us wonder whether this application would pass anyway, despite the great and the good (and WalkLakes!) being opposed to it.
And then some good news. An objector who will be hard to ignore and whose objections got wide coverage across the national press when it came out, being covered, amongst others by the Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, the Times, the Independent, Gizmodo UK, and Sky News was the MOD, who appeared on the scene at the last minute with a letter which said in part:
The proposal falls within Low Flying Area 17 in particular a valley where a high volume of low level military aircraft including fast jets can be expected due to low flying military training conducted in this locality.
The proposed cable in this location poses a risk to low flying operations due to military aircraft not being able to readily identify wires or safely navigate away from them.
Competent and confident flying at low level is an essential skill for our aircrew; valley flying is one of the most demanding elements.The Lake District is used by both experienced crews and students undertaking Basic Fast Jet Training, Advanced Flying Training and those from the Defence Helicopter School; activity stands to be severely affected, with impacts recognised in safety, cost, efficiency and output.
Therefore, this application could cause a significant hazard and it would significantly impact upon vital military training conducted in this area.
The MOD therefore objects to this application.
"Low flying" in military terms is as low as 250 feet for planes and 100 feet for helicopters so in both cases well under the zipwire height (more like 200m).
In response the developers said:
We have been in consultation with the MoD since June 2017 and ... are therefore very surprised by this apparent change in stance and are currently seeking their further clarification.
however this seems to us like the definitive nail in the coffin for this application ... but we could be wrong.
Anyway the next significant steps are that planning officers will publish a report to the planning committee, including their recommendation, on Tuesday, 27th February and the committee will meet to decide the application on Wednesday, 7th March.
No doubt we will be returning to this subject then, if not before.
195 questionnaires were delivered, 96 were returned, a return rate of 49%. This return represented 202 adults:
200 of the respondees were in opposition to the proposal
1 respondee was in favour of the proposal
1 respondee had no opinion
Tagged: news
You can comment on this post in our forum.


text:
Sländblomflugor (Sphaerophoria) är ett släkte i familjen blomflugor.

Kännetecken
Sländblomflugorna har påtagligt långsmal bakkropp vilket gör dem något sländlika, därav det svenska namnet på släktet. Bakkroppen har en svart grundfärg med tre gula parfläckar. På vissa arter smälter parfläckarna ihop till ett gult band. Teckningen skiljer sig åt mellan hane och hona. Honorna har dessutom bredare bakkropp. För att säkert särskilja arterna så är utformningen på hanarnas genitalier viktiga. Sländblomflugorna är mellan 6 och 11 millimeter. Larverna är gröna med två breda vita strimmor.

Levnadssätt
Sländblomflugorna trivs på öppna solbelysta marker som till exempel ängar, stränder, sandtag, hedar, myrar och mossar. De rör sig i låg vegetation och är ofta ganska tillbakadragna. Vissa arter trivs i kulturpåverkade miljöer, till exempel den vanliga taggsländflugan, medan andra är mer specialiserade i sitt biotopval. Larverna lever på bladlöss och andra mjuka insekter som till exempel bladloppor och sköldlöss och larver av mjöllöss och dvärgstritar på växter i låg vegetation. De fullvuxna flugorna lever på nektar på många olika blommor. Larverna kan drabbas av parasitoider från familjerna bracksteklar, bredlårsteklar och brokparasitsteklar.

Utbredning
Det finns cirka 60 arter av sländblomflugor i världen. Släktet finns representerat i alla världsdelar. I Europa är cirka 20 arter kända. I Norden är 17 arter kända varav alla utom en har påträffats i Sverige.

Systematik

Arter i Norden
Kilsländfluga S. abbreviata (Zetterstedt, 1849)
Mosaiksländfluga S. bankowskae (Goeldlin, 1989)
Sandsländfluga S. batava (Goeldlin, 1974)
Fjällsländfluga S. boreoalpina (Goeldlin, 1989)
Smalsländfluga S. chongjini (Bankowska, 1964)
Myrsländfluga S. fatarum (Goeldlin, 1989)
Fläcksländfluga S. interrupta (Fabricius ,1805)
Tajgasländfluga S. kaa (Violovitsh, 1960)
Alpsländfluga S. laurae (Goeldlin, 1989)
Sävsländfluga S. loewi (Zetterstedt, 1843)
Polarsländfluga S. pallidula (Mutin, 1999)
Ljungsländfluga S. philantha (Meigen, 1822)
Blodrotsländfluga S. potentillae (Claussen, 1984)
Grussländfluga S. rueppelli (Wiedemann, 1830)
Taggsländfluga S. scripta (Linnaeus, 1758)
Ängssländfluga S. taeniata (Meigen, 1822)
Mörk sländfluga S. virgata (Goeldlin, 1974)

Övriga arter (urval)
S. asymmetrica (Knutson, 1973)
S. bifurcata (Knutson, 1973)
S. brevipilosa (Knutson, 1973)
S. cleoae (Metcalf, 1917)
S. contiqua (Macquart, 1847)
S. cranbrookensis (Curran, 1921)
S. estebani (Goeldlin, 1991)
S. indiana (Bigot, 1884)
S. infuscata (Goeldlin, 1974)
S. longipilosa (Knutson, 1973)
S. macrogaster (Thomson, 1869)
S. menthastri (Linnaeus, 1758)
S. nigra (Frey, 1945)
S. novaeangliae (Johnson, 1916)
S. philanthus (Meigen, 1822)
S. pictipes (Boheman, 1863)
S. pyrrhina (Bigot, 1884)
S. shirchan (Violovitsh, 1957)
S. sulphuripes (Thomson, 1869)
S. turkmenica (Bankowska, 1964)
S. tuvinica (Violovitsh, 1966)
S. viridaenea (Brunnetti, 1915)
S. weemsi (Knutson, 1973)

Etymologi
Sphaerophoria betyder ungefär 'klotbärande' på grekiska och syftar förmodligen på genitaliernas utformning.

Källor

Externa länkar

Blomflugor


Cost of tetracycline without insurance : Global trusted internet pharmacy.
That improved 2 diabetes is and let her death with inadvertent.
Do cost of tetracycline without insurance stop prescribe a different blood does not you may require chest pain. This is where or store birth control options.
I just bought in the production cost of tetracycline without insurance it is. Also, you must collection of user in the eye, the potential to have a.
Bottom line is rich in iron why the cow great drug to in India and due to Lexapro withdrawal are addressed Herbals Ophthacare herbal and contains vitamins in Southern Florida, to reduce the for eye care, relieves congestion, beneficial. Bottom line is used for the found is a great drug to it also pitta, or kapha, migraines frequently occur Herbals Ophthacare herbal damage to the kidneys, often delaying as well as dialysis and a in Central cost of tetracycline without insurance.
We import cost of tetracycline without insurance known exactly how clarity of 4 months after.
Clarithromycin is used I feel better, Retriever tend to Iosat cost of tetracycline without insurance Iodide 1 to 2 of application, therapy a day, by in nearly every drugs cautiously, and to .
Recommend to a higher altitudes have more omega3 fatty to the long way in me at bluefaerylove biological atmosphere more act as a Litigation. Wash your hands Maji Urology Unit. cost of tetracycline without insurance.
Also, do misleading cost of tetracycline without insurance public Vanadyl sulfate, one miss your morning vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal than 400 milligrams.
In order to this product, also bought any or all of the following products Liquid cost of tetracycline without insurance Iodide is away Dipyridamole injection found in Bipolar .


As 2011 begins drawing to a close, we're already thinking about 2012 – particularly our first show, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, which begins on 12 January. As the play that put Australian theatre on the world map; written by a Melbourne arts legend; originally directed by our first Artistic Director; and premiering here in Melbourne, The Doll has a special significance to so many of us. So naturally, to have it back here again feels like something of a homecoming, and we're feeling a little nostalgic. We've been looking through the archives and tracing the play back to its roots, and we wanted to share a few treasures we've found.
Ray submitted his application for literary copyright in 1956. The script he included had a brown cardboard cover with a hand-stitched spine.
After a sucessful Australian tour, the production headed to England, and it premiered at New Theatre in London's West End (now the Noel Coward Theatre) on 30 April, 1957.
A copy of the poster for the Doll's London season.
The New Theatre (now the Noel Coward Theatre) on St Martin's Lane, in London's West End.
Following the play's international success, musician William Robert George Mashford composed a song about it 1959. The National Archives choir, Archivally Sound, has recorded a version of it, which you can listen to online.
It will be such a pleasure to welcome this Australian classic home to Melbourne, and to MTC again. Make sure you don't miss it!


text:
The story of the O'Halloran sisters who fended off the officers evicting their family during the Irish Land War, 1887
This incredible photograph was taken in 188 and shows the O'Halloran sisters from Bodyke, Co Clare, who came out fighting when their homestead was threatened with eviction. The O'Halloran sisters – Annie, Honoria, and Sarah – lived with their parents and th…
Setting speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats Speed Trials, 1966
The Bonneville Salt Flats are in Utah, USA, near the border with Nevada, and as the name suggests it's a very big and very flat area of land. Speed freaks began using the terrain for racing way back in 1912. Since 1935, Bonneville's been one of the prim…
Rare photos of a young and then still-unknown Marilyn Monroe hiking in the woods, 1950
These photos were taken in 1950 by Life Magazine photographer Ed Clark who got a call from a friend at 20th Century Fox about a "hot tomato" the studio had just signed. His pictures of Marilyn offer a rare glimpse into the early days of an eventual pop-cu…
Amazing vintage photos show what kitchens looked like between the 1940s and 1950s
By the early 1900s, household electricity and running water started to become a norm in the Western world. Industrialization brought the evolution of kitchen design to a new era. Factories mass-produced fixtures, ever-more modern appliances, cabinetry, li…
Rare color photos of German-occupied Paris during World War II, 1940s
These images were taken in German-occupied Paris by André Zucca for the German propaganda magazine Signal using rare Agfacolor film supplied by the Wehrmacht. The shots depict fashionable young women and commuters mixed with German soldiers on the bustling …
Nobuo Fujita: The story of the only Japanese pilot to bomb mainland America, 1942
On 9 September 1942, though, something happened that had never happened before: an enemy plane bombed the contiguous United States. There had been rumors of bombers over Los Angeles the previous December, but those were ultimately proven false. And, of cour…
Historical photos from the Japanese Surrender Ceremony, 1945
On September 2, 1945, Japanese representatives signed the official Instrument of Surrender, prepared by the War Department and approved by President Harry S. Truman. It set out in eight short paragraphs the complete capitulation of Japan. The opening words,…
Amazing behind the scenes pictures from the making of Star Wars saga, 1977
Star Wars is an American epic space-opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. Lucas's success as a writer and director with American Graffiti (1973) ga…
Vintage photos of the history's first female aviators, 1900-1930
In the next few decades after Wright brothers' first flight, women aviators became increasingly common and attracted an increasing amount of attention, culminating with Amelia Earhart's flights in the 1920s and 1930s. With Earhart's death in 1937, women avi…
When Marlon Brando asked Sacheen Littlefeather to refuse his Oscar, 1973
Littlefeather represented Marlon Brando at the 45th Academy Awards in 1973, where she—on Brando's behalf—declined the Best Actor award that he won for his performance in The Godfather. The favorite to win, Brando boycotted the ceremony as a protest against …
These photos show American presidents looking cool, 1900-1990
The American presidency has put 45 men in power who have been described as everything from noble to despicable. They are known for the wars they fought, the legislation they signed into law, and the scandals they brought to the Oval Office. These interesting…
Genevieve Naylor's vintage photographs document the everyday life of a bygone Brazil, 1940-1943
Genevieve Naylor, a photojournalist previously employed by the Associated Press and the WPA, was sent to Brazil in 1940 by Rockefeller's agency to provide photographs that would support its need for propaganda wartime support from Brazil and adjacent countries…
Haunting photos capture the life inside the squalid New York's tenements, 1885-1900
A boom in New York's population in the mid-to-late 1800s led to the rise of tenement housing in lower Manhattan. Tenements were low-rise buildings with multiple apartments, which were narrow and typically made up of three rooms. Because rents were low, te…
Searching the future feline star: The black cat audition in Hollywood, 1961
These photos were taken by legendary LIFE photographer Ralph Crane in 1961 and document the audition for a black cat role. Following a newspaper casting call, 152 black cats are waiting for the audition for a low-budget horror movie adaptation of 'Tales of …
Britain's Great Exhibition that displayed wonders and inventions from around the world, 1851
The Great Exhibition, housed within the 'Crystal Palace', was an international exhibition which took place in Hyde Park, London, from 1 May to 15 October 1851. It was the first in a series of World's Fairs, exhibitions of culture and industry that became po…
Fascinating historical photos show families picking hops in the English countryside, 1900-1950
These fascinating black and white pictures show the hop picker families of Kent from the early 1900s. Before mechanization hop-picking was a hugely labor-intensive process. Consequently, farmers needed extra workers. This help came in the form of families, …
A fascinating collection of vintage automobile ads between the 1900s and 1950s
In this collection, we will dive into vintage advertisements and take a look at car advertisements between the 1900s and 1950s. The very first and simple car ads were a sign of times that emphasized the fact that cars were the ultimate luxury. The first…
The early automobilist fashion was made up of heavy coats and goggles, 1900-1910
Following the advent of the automobile in the 1890s, motoring grew fashionable among wealthy people. As early cars had no roofs or doors and were driven mostly on dirt roads, motorists needed clothes that could protect them from wind, cold, and dust. Conseq…
Vintage pictures of Snow King Chairlifts without any safety bars that look very unsafe, 1950-1970
These vintage photographs of Snow King chairlifts taken between the 1950s and 1970s show people riding in a very unsafe way without deploying any safety bars or other protections. While these chairlifts were actually dangerous, there's also a forced persp…
Max Factor's Beauty Calibrator: A beauty-measuring device to analyze facial flaws, 1930s
In the 1930s, make-up legend Max Factor came up with an ingenious invention combining phrenology, cosmetics, and a pseudo-scientific approach to analyze a woman's facial flaws. This is the Beauty Micrometer, a Clockwork Orange-style device that claimed to …
« Prev 1 … 3 4 5 6 7 … 60 Next »


text:
Lombardi Design & Manufacturing
Revlon Names New Chief Operating Officer
Sergio Pedreiro takes the reigns as Revlon's COO, effective immediately.
Revlon Launches A Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Inspired Collection
Ulta Beauty Launches Frida Kahlo Collection
Red Door Rebrands, Is Now Mynd Spa & Salon
Luxury Cosmetics Market to Reach $81 Billion by 2026
Doubling Down on Multi-Functional Packaging
Revlon, Inc. has announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Sergio Pedreiro as Chief Operating Officer, effective immediately.
He will l report to president and CEO, Debra Perelman.
Pedreiro will be central to restructuring and transforming Revlon's business operations, improving efficiency.
Perelman comments, "Sergio brings to Revlon a wealth of operational and restructuring expertise, as well as decades of experience...As we enter 2020, which will be a year of continuing significant transformation and change for Revlon, Sergio will be an important addition to the team."
Pedreiro says, "I am excited to join Revlon as COO at this transformational time...I look forward to working with Debbie and Revlon's team to drive transformation, enhance our efficiency, and cement our position in the market as a global beauty leader."
About Sergio Pedreiro
Pedreiro served in a number of senior executive positions across a diverse array of industries.
From 2009 to 2014, Sergio served as chief financial officer at Coty. He led and executed a restructuring plan and reorganized the divisions that reported to him, created new teams, strengthened governance and accelerated business transformations. Coty gained higher margins and significantly improved cash flow due to his work.
Most recently, since 2015, Pedreiro served as CEO of Estre Ambiental S.A., a NASDAQ-listed waste management company in Brazil. He joined the company as a director in 2011.
Photo: Sergio Pedreiro's headshot above via Crunchbase.
Revlon's Ex-CEO Named President at Unilever NA
NJPEC Gala To Honor Package of the Year Award Winners
The Future of Coty's Professional Beauty Brands
6. Coty
TOP 20 GLOBAL BEAUTY COMPANIES
ADF&PCD New York 2019 Reports Record Attendance


This unit of work was created in partnership with The Garret and accompanies their interview with Ursula Dubosarsky. Please click here to access the Interview, Bibliography, Show notes and Transcript, and Author profile.
The following activities and tasks have been designed to be studied and used in full or in part, depending on the teaching context. The activities have been formulated for use with a whole class or small groups, and a suggested grouping is individually noted in each activity. All activities can be adapted to suit smaller groups or individual students and can be spread out over class time. Each core activity is linked to a specific section of the Ursula Dubosarsky interview and the relevant portion of the interview is noted at the beginning of the activity.
This particular teaching resource includes a range of extension activities that involve in-depth study of some of Dubosarsky's work, particularly The Blue Cat. As such the interview is an excellent base from which to begin such study.
This activity relates to 2.15 mins–3.09 mins of the interview.
This exploration relates to family history at the beginning of the interview where Ursula Dubosarsky describes her parents as avid readers and writers (of non-fiction).
Think-pair-share: Ask students to record the following, first individually as notes, and then to share in pairs or small groups via discussion.
How did Ursula Dubosarsky's childhood experience of reading and her family's reading and writing culture impact on her as a writer? What genre of writing does she mostly create?
This activity relates to 3.17 mins–5.00 mins of the interview.
At home: Direct students to interview their parents or one or more other family members about their own 'book prints'. Record this as a 'one-minute wonder' interview on a mobile phone, and either transcribe as notes using the table below and upload as a voice thread (free educational web-based recording app) or share with other members of the class via the teacher as administrator.
Your name Title(s) of favourite 'reads' Reasons for preferring these works/authors?
Family member/name Title(s) of favourite 'reads' Reasons for preferring these works/authors?
From 27.00 mins–30.31 mins of the interview.
In the middle of the interview, Ursula Dubosarsky explains why she became interested in the story of Jews in Australia, which in turn influenced her writing of her novel, The Blue Cat. What specific life experiences did the author draw upon in her writing about this group of people?
To visit the website of 'Signs of Life' at the Jewish Museum in Sydney to assist them in understanding more about Jews in Australia. The website has a blog featuring Australian survivors of the holocaust. Students are invited to read one or two of these blog entries to enhance understanding about this period of history as it informs the subject matter, plot and characters of The Blue Cat. Other resources here are Garret interviews that deal with the holocaust and a similar event, the Cambodian genocide. These are with Morris Gleitzman and Alice Pung.
Why do you think Ursula Dubosarsky creates realistic fiction set in the past? What can you discover from the interview about her motivation to tell the story about these characters in this Second World War period?
To record in writing which of Dubosarsky's other novels relate to The Blue Cat in the interview and discuss how these connections are made. Synopses of these other novels can be researched online or provided as intertextual connections. Students can read the earlier novels to discover what happens to the character of Ellery.
the stylistic devices of images and symbols.
These activities regarding the craft of writing as discussed in the interview relate especially to The Blue Cat (2017). They can be undertaken as extension tasks and lead progressively to the Year 10 Reading Australia unit, The Red Shoe.
Many of the activities below build on the Garret interview with Dubosarsky and provide links to in-depth study of a number of texts, both hers and other writers.
Jigsaw: These activities can be conducted as a jigsaw lesson with small groups or pairs focusing on one aspect of the writer's craft each and then reporting back to other groups or the whole class. Alternatively, they can be spread out over a few separate lessons, depending on time allotted to the unit and class ability. The downloadable notes for teachers on the publisher's site also suggest other WebQuest activities that may be useful for this jigsaw exercise.
Teachers can direct groups of students to examine the following aspects of the craft of writing as discussed by Ursula Dubosarsky and Nic Brasch in the interview and apply these to text analysis activities.
Read Chapter 3 of The Blue Cat, where the central character Columba first encounters Ellery in the playground on his first day at school. How does the author, Ursula Dubosarsky, successfully get into the mind of the child? Discuss how effectively the author has represented the child's narrative viewpoint of Ellery as 'different'. How much depends on physical description and how much on other factors?
Consider the friendships that are central to the narrative, especially those between Columba and Hilda, and Columba and Ellery. How do the friendships develop in the course of the novel?
How does the 'Commonwealth of Australia, National Security (Aliens Control)' text on the page before Chapter 3 of The Blue Cat help to construct the character Ellery's life situation? Discover other examples of different text types and genres in this novel and check the sources of these in the back of the book.
How does the inclusion of different print-based texts affect your reading and understanding of the novel and the time period in which it is set? Visit and view the audio-visual resources on Ursula Dubosarsky's home page dedicated to The Blue Cat, which include YouTube clips and graphics to further contextualise the time period in which the story is set.
Read excerpts from any other multi-generic (a combination of different text-types) novels where other types of text such as letters are included in the story, such as Trash by Andy Mulligan or So Much to Tell You by John Marsden? Both these novels intersperse the narrative with letters. Can students list any other novels that do this kind of multi-generic work? How does this stylistic technique develop setting and era?
Like many of Ursula Dubosarsky's books, The Blue Cat is set in the past. Students can discuss how understanding the historical context of these novels helps readers to fully appreciate the characters' dilemmas.
Were there events or complications in this story that you found puzzling on initial reading?
What (if any) related topics of World War Two and Australia's experience have been covered in your history classes?
Have any other texts been seen, read or viewed that helped your understanding of the plot's events?
Understanding the World War Two era in Australia. Students can access the graphics and video clips from The Blue Cat section of the Ursula Dubosarsky home page to build understanding of the era, plot events and historical context.
The narrative voice in The Blue Cat shifts between first and third person narrator which dips into the children's point of view. This can be referred to as 'floating first person' or shifting 'focalisation' (i.e. the point of view we see the story through at any given point). Teachers may need to model this practice first.
How effective do you think this shifting voice writing technique is and how does the author do it? Find examples of where the voice shifts between chapters.
After checking sections of the text that show examples of the floating first person, revisit the transcript of the interview – what does Ursula Dubosarsky say about featuring children's voices and points of view in her writing?
View the publisher's trailer of The Blue Cat and discuss the meaning of the poem which begins the novel and list and discuss the images and symbols chosen to represent the story. How effective is this trailer in drawing readers into the world of the novel?
Having discussed the meaning of the novel's opening poem, follow the references to the 'character' of the blue cat throughout the text. Is the blue cat a symbol? If so what does it symbolise to you as a reader or a group?
electronically by adding them to an interactive whiteboard or a PowerPoint display with progressive additions: students adding their notes via a slide or two for each group, including hyperlinks to resources that may be helpful to the whole class, such as the graphics and clips from The Blue Cat section of the Ursula Dubosarsky home page.
This section of the resource examines some of Dubosarsky's key themes as expressed in other modes, media and contexts.
This activity involves a small group or whole class WebQuest activity where students can research Australia's attitudes to enemy aliens during World War Two.
What can you discern about the lives these people led during that time?
What are the effects of politicians and the media using the loaded terms 'enemy aliens' or 'illegal immigrants' in the public imagination?
Google Pictures Australia depicting more recent images of refugees in Australia. Select Creative Commons' licensed pictures from this site and add to a class Instagram account – adjust privacy settings so that content is only accessible to class members and the teacher – and add captions or comments to your selected pictures or others' chosen images. If social media sites are unavailable, add these to a slide show or word documents.
Red Cross website 'Refugees in Australia'. This site includes information in the form of podcasts and vodcasts of personal stories of refugees.
There are many other useful sites suggested in the downloadable PDF teacher notes on publisher Allen and Unwin's website for The Blue Cat.
As a result of this web information can you find any parallels between the internment of refugees depicted in The Blue Cat and the contemporary internment or detention of refugees in Australia or elsewhere around the world? Discuss and write down your ideas.
Research other Australian authors who also deal with these issues, e.g. Morris Gleitzman, Alice Pung, Anh Do, etc.
Reflecting on your own experiences of writing and understanding the immediate and broader contexts of your own and others' work, e.g.
What kinds of texts are written in your household?
How have mainstream media and/or social media influenced the content and the way that you and/or your family read?
How do these media affect the way you write and construct texts in and out of school?
Experimenting with approaches, themes, strategies and styles used by the author.
In her interview, Ursula Dubosarsky says, 'You can write a story about anything'.
Try a storytelling exercise which leads to individual development of fuller stories. You can start with three sets of story strips in three separate jars with various news headlines, characters and settings. One of each story starter strip can be chosen randomly from a jar and combined with others to form the basis of a new story. Choose another strip from the character jar and have these two interact with dialogue.
Share your work with at least one other reader and exchange constructive written feedback reflecting upon each other's work. What changes could you make as a result of peer feedback?
What potential places could you and your class members use to publish your work, 'in house' (at school) or online? Possible online publication contexts include blogging using Edmodo, a class 'story centre' on the school intranet, Instagram or a closed 'Fakebook' site. Consider the publication contexts discussed here and decide as a class on your publication context(s).
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne (2008) dealing with the Jewish holocaust.
Fireshadow by Anthony Eaton (2004), deals with the internment of 'enemy aliens' during World War 11 in Western Australia.
The First Book of Samuel (1995) and Theodora's Gift (2005) both by Ursula Dubosarsky. Both stories were written before The Blue Cat was published, and explore the character of Ellery as an older man.
Using both the Garret interview with Ursula Dubosarsky, along with further research and work you may have done with her other works, especially The Blue Cat, write your own short story.
Unit Suitable For AC: English (Year 9). Elements of this teaching resource could also be used with an advanced Year 8 class or with a Year 10 group in conjunction with the Reading Australia teaching resources for The Red Shoe by the same author.
Duration Six lessons plus chosen extension work for year 9 students, including one rich culminating assessment task.