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Home » A case for casings
A case for casings
Truck and OTR tire casings are in short supply, particularly out of Japan. That was the case even before an earthquake and tsunami devastated the country in March. Now, it's just worse.
"Truck casings will continue to be in short supply," says Mike Berra, president of Community Tire Co. in St. Louis, Mo. In particular, size 11R22.5 casings are "next to impossible to get in any quantity."
One retreader in the Midwest estimates 11R22.5 casing prices rose more than 18% the first three months of this year. Size 295/75R22.5 casing prices were up more than 21% over that same span.
Both new OTR tires and used OTR casings also are in demand, and not just the large or giant sizes, says Berra. "I'm talking 29.5's, sizes that are mainstream."
And it's a global problem. "Domestically, what we make is what we get."
Despite the lack of casings, Community Tire is adding small OTR tire retreading capacity and new tread patterns for existing sizes. It ranks 30th on the "MTD Top 100 Retreaders in the U.S." list (information on the list is based on production in 2010).
Community Tire is not the only Top 100 retreader to invest in plant production in 2011.
Wingfoot Commercial Tire Systems LLC, a subsidiary of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., is number one on our list. Its 37 plants retread 6,180 truck tires a day, or 167 a day per plant.
Wingfoot plans to increase each plant's units-per-day efficiency while maintaining a low manufacturing cost.
"This includes investing in the plants to add productive equipment, improving plant through-put by streamlining the steps in the production process, and expanding select plants to better serve our customers," says Mark Totten, Wingfoot's vice president of marketing.
[PAGEBREAK]
Snider Tire Inc. (Greensboro, N.C., 5th), will open a plant in Greensboro on May 1. It will be Snider's sixth Michelin Retread Technologies plant.
McCarthy Tire Service Co. Inc. (Wilkes-Barre, Pa., 9th) is adding equipment at all six of its retread plants. That includes builders, buffers and chambers, and "hand-helds for field operations," says Vice President Neil Horn. In addition, the Wilkes-Barre plant is updating its computer-related systems.
B.R. Retreading (Glasgow, Ky., 12th) is adding radial OTR tire molds. It is the third largest OTR tire retreader in the U.S.
Service Tire Truck Centers (Bethlehem, Pa., 15th) bought Avenel, N.J.-based Perth Amboy Tire in February. The acquisition increases the company's plant total from three to four. "We have added extra equipment in our York, Pa., location to move production up to 500 per day," adds CEO and President Ron Bennett.
Belle Tire Distributors (Allen Park, Mich., 19th) is upgrading equipment in its Bandag plants. Tom Bowman, vice president of the commercial division, says the company is well-situated to increase production, take on new customers and provide "the best level of service in the industry, without compromising customer service."
"We will also continue to provide retread plant tours for new prospects, new customers, and our current customers, not only giving them the understanding of the overall process, but also giving them the knowledge and the understanding of the technology of retreading."
Parkhouse Tire Inc. (Bell Gardens, Calif., 21st) has added its fifth shearography machine and its third model 4150 quick cure chamber.
The new equipment is part of the company's goal to "continue to grow business in our existing (two) facilities and constantly seek to improve quality and efficiency, utilizing the latest in technology and machinery," says Jason Smith, director of manufacturing.
H&H Industries Inc. (Oak Hill, Ohio, 23rd), one of the largest OTR tire retreaders in the country, wants to expand its customer base. President Noah Hickman says the company wants to expand further south and west, "and increase our export business."
Craft Tire Inc. (Uniontown, Pa., 33rd) CEO Mark Goodes says the company is thinking about buying a new large OTR tire builder for its Shrader's plant in Greenville, Ohio. (Craft purchased the assets of Shrader's Inc. in 2003.) "It appears that we will have to increase plant employees soon. We have been working overtime to handle the increased production."
Sullivan Tire Co. Inc. purchased Connecticut's largest commercial truck tire retreader, Bergson Tire Co. Inc., in January. The acquisition gives Sullivan four plants and increases its capacity by more than 100 tires a day.
Morton Supplies Inc. (Morton, Ill., 41st) moved 20 spots on the list, thanks to an increase in its daily truck tire retread production. "Our max capacity is 393," says owner Fred Schmidgall. "We hope to get to over 500 within two years."
Colony Tire Corp. (Edenton, N.C., 44th) also is adding equipment, according to CEO Charlie Creighton. Colony Tire was the biggest mover on the "Top 100" list, jumping 36 spots
Sumerel Tire Service (Newport, Ky., 73rd) is adding a tire plant, its second. The precure plant, located in northwest Ohio near Findlay, will do business as Hancock County Tire and Retreading. It also will distribute Acutread mold cure retreads from Sumerel Tire's plant in Newport.
Black's Tire Service (Whiteville, N.C., 77th) added a new repair station to its retread plant in Clarkton, N.C. Jeremy Benton, vice president of commercial sales, says the upgrade will help the repair section flow better. The company also added a monorail.
Not all the top retreaders are adding shops or equipment. Jerry Bauer, president of Bauer Built Inc. in Durand, Wis., says his seven truck tire retread plants give him adequate capacity. Bauer Built, the 14th largest domestic retreader, retreads an average of 940 truck tires a day.
"In spite of the economic forecast, we plan to figure out a way to sell more retreads than we did in 2010."
See the Top 100 Retreaders chart here
Bob Ulrich was named Modern Tire Dealer editor in August 2000 and retired in January 2020. He joined the magazine in 1985 as assistant editor, and had been responsible for gathering statistical information for MTD's "Facts Issue" since 1993. He won numerous awards for editorial and feature writing, including five gold medals from the International Automotive Media Association. Bob earned a B.A. in English literature from Ohio Northern University and has a law degree from the University of Akron.
Recent Articles by Bob Ulrich
End of the Line for Me, But Not for You, the Independent Tire Dealer
It All Starts With the Cover
Federal Shakes Up its LT Lineup With the Xplora R/T
Look for a renewed consumer focus on performance vs. price
TIA's Global Tire Expo aims to offer a road map for growth


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Q: How to create variables in a dataframe as there are days between two dates? In a data.frame, I would like to create as many variables as there are days between two dates.
Here's my example below.
Many thanks in advance !
mydf <- data.frame(
  ident = c("a","b","c"),
  start = c("2023-01-01","2023-01-06","2023-01-24"),
  end = c("2023-01-03","2023-01-12","2023-01-30")
)

ident      start        end
1     a 2023-01-01 2023-01-03
2     b 2023-01-06 2023-01-12
3     c 2023-01-24 2023-01-30

# Expected output
mydf <- data.frame(
  ident = c("a","b","c"),
  start = c("2023-01-01","2023-01-03","2023-01-24"),
  end = c("2023-01-03","2023-01-12","2023-01-30"),
  `Sunday 1 January` = c(1,0,0),
  `Monday 2 January` = c(1,0,0),
  `Tuesday 3 January` = c(1,1,0),
  `Wednesday 4 January` = c(0,1,0)
)
  ident      start        end Sunday.1.January Monday.2.January Tuesday.3.January Wednesday.4.January
1     a 2023-01-01 2023-01-03                1                1                 1                   0
2     b 2023-01-03 2023-01-12                0                0                 1                   1
3     c 2023-01-24 2023-01-30                0                0                 0                   0

A: Creating columns where the column name is effectively "data" is generally a bad idea for several reasons; it's generally better to work with the data in a long format and then pivot into something with "date-like column names" just for rendering. But if you really need it, then
library(dplyr)
library(tidyr) # unnest, pivot_wider
mydf %>%
  mutate(
    z = 1L,                              # uses as the "value" later
    across(c(start,end), as.Date),       # because we need seq.Date
    dates = Map(seq.Date, start, end, list(by = "day"))
  ) %>%
  unnest(dates) %>%
  pivot_wider(
    c(ident, start, end), names_from = "dates",
    values_from = "z", values_fill = 0L)
# # A tibble: 3 x 20
#   ident start      end        `2023-01-01` `2023-01-02` `2023-01-03` `2023-01-06` `2023-01-07` `2023-01-08` `2023-01-09` `2023-01-10` `2023-01-11` `2023-01-12` `2023-01-24` `2023-01-25` `2023-01-26` `2023-01-27` `2023-01-28`
#   <chr> <date>     <date>            <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>        <int>
# 1 a     2023-01-01 2023-01-03            1            1            1            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            0
# 2 b     2023-01-06 2023-01-12            0            0            0            1            1            1            1            1            1            1            0            0            0            0            0
# 3 c     2023-01-24 2023-01-30            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            0            1            1            1            1            1
# # ... with 2 more variables: 2023-01-29 <int>, 2023-01-30 <int>

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How to download premium LUTS in Aurora and Luminar, both 2018 and 2019 in my new computer, please?
Luminar 3.1 - How to update?
Still on schedule to release Luminar 3 update the end of April?
What is a soft launch?


Losing Weight-Do You Start From Your Family?
People tend to blame it all on genetics when it comes to obesity. However, being overweight can run in families in more ways than just metabolism and genes. Obesity in the whole world is on the rise, with some staggering statistics that make tackling the problem paramount. The journey to healthy living, while long and challenging, should be made in good company. When considering a support network, family and friends are undeniably the two most important factors. Family weight-loss camps are taking this to heart and home.
Family weight-loss camps may be resort-like or home based, either way, fitness camps are not about location but about education. A structured fitness vacation can guide and instruct families in healthy living and may easily replace the traditional summer vacation. Another approach may include community classes or sports-based camps. These classes are designed to teach weight management and engage families in aerobic activity. Research the options available and decide together on what is right for the family – fitness is a team sport. Remember, before beginning any type of weight-loss program, first check with your doctor.
The key to success is to be positive. The focus is not on the numbers or diets; it is on developing and implementing good habits. Don't define the routine as exercise but as activity and play. Keep it interesting by changing it up. Instead of choosing a movie, choose an adventure. Reward efforts with inedible gifts or allowances. A child's just deserts should not be desserts. Food should be considered a necessity not a prize. The strategy is not to single out an individual, but to target the development of healthy habits.
Teaching families how to lose weight should be your primary goal. Working out with personal trainer at professional weight loss retreat is a great way to receive one-on-one instruction catered to the family lifestyle. If a personal trainer is not on the radar, many community classes are offered that teach a multidisciplinary approach to fitness. Limit the time spent on the endless supply of gadgets and time bandits. Cater the activities to the likes of the family; it should not seem like work but like living. Learn how to think, eat and exercise in a results-driven way.
Even diligent activity cannot combat the effects of poor nutrition. It has been proven that sitting down to eat as a family can encourage healthy eating habits. Weight loss camps can convince even the pickiest of eaters, that good food can taste good. Passing up on the fast food, and sitting down to a home cooked meal can unite a family, while providing the added benefit of nutritious eating. Weight loss camps develop an action plan to balance healthy eating with proper exercise. Eating as a family does not ensure everyone will like what is on the menu. Nutrition classes can educate families in the best foods to bring harmony to the table.
Besides the obvious benefit of a healthier family, weight-loss camps may create many unexpected joys. Working together opens up the lines of communication, which helps greatly in the stress management department. Striving for a common goal encourages closeness and support and allows everyone to share in the success. The crowning achievement, however, is knowing that being fit and eating healthy have become the permanent mindset by which to live.


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About Submit
The little-known religious history of Balakot
Today, the city of Balakot espouses uniquely South Asian religious traditions.
Haroon KhalidUpdated 10 Feb, 2020 07:36pm
In the middle of the historical city of Balakot, which has lately been in the news for all the wrong reasons, is the shrine of Bala Pir. It overlooks the spring of Bala Pir, whose water is believed to cure diseases, particularly leprosy.
It is a Muslim shrine which is also claimed by Sikhs, who associate it with Bhai Bala, one of the two trusted companions of Guru Nanak, the other being Bhai Mardana.
The story goes that Nanak, Mardana and Bala arrived at this place to spread their message. While Nanak and Mardana moved on, Bala stayed back for a time to continue preaching.
In later years, Nanak's devotees built a shrine to commemorate the guru's visit to what came to be known as Bhai Bala Ka Baithak. There was a small plinth here once, meant to symbolise Bala's seat.
An important figure in Sikh iconography, Bala appears frequently in the depictions of Nanak. Like Mardana, he is said to have been with Nanak since they were children. While Mardana came from a Muslim family, Bala was born Hindu.
Related: The legacy of Guru Nanak lives on in four historic gurdwaras in Punjab
In one of the most iconic stories associated with Nanak, Bala is a central character. In this story, Bala and Mardana ask Nanak what religion they should adopt to be his true followers.
He replies that if one is Hindu one should be a good Hindu; if one is Muslim then one should be a good Muslim. That is how they would be able to follow his teachings.
In Sikh lore, Bala accompanies Nanak on his extensive travels and records what he witnesses in Bhai Bala's Janamsakhis.
A key source of Nanak's life story, the Janamsakhis are said to have been written on the advice of Guru Angad, Nanak's spiritual successor. But recent scholarship challenges this telling.
Also read: This village near Lahore serves as a reminder of Sikhism's diverse past
For one, unlike Mardana, who is mentioned in early Sikh literature, Bala's name appears nowhere except in his own Janamsakhis. Moreover, a linguistic analysis of the text seems to show the language could not have been used during Nanak's time; it developed much later. It thus appears that Bala is a fictional character.
In any case, in the true spirit of Nanak's message, Bala's Baithak emerged as a spiritual centre that not only attracted Sikhs but Muslims and Hindus as well.
The annual festival at the shrine drew thousands of devotees of all faiths. This syncretic tradition received a blow from Partition, when Sikhs and Hindus from the region migrated to India.
For local Muslims, though, the shrine has remained embedded in their religious tradition, though with some changes. To adapt the shrine to the post-Partition environment, the local Muslims cultivated the legend of Bala Pir, a Muslim saint.
Inspiring a different tradition
Across the River Kunar from the shrine is a grave whose story is similarly rooted in Balakot's history.
It is the resting place of Syed Ahmad Barelvi, a 19th century religious preacher who arrived from what's now Uttar Pradesh to wage war against the Sikh Empire in Punjab and reestablish Muslim rule.
Tombstone of Syed Ahmad Barelvi.—Wikimapia
Inspired by the reformist philosophy of Shah Walliullah, Barelvi criticised the veneration of Sufi shrines. He saw it as a corruption of Islamic values, and urged his followers to return to the "original message" of Islam found in the Quran and the traditions of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
He would have been critical of a shrine like Bhai Bala ki Baithak that brought together Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs.
Explore: The transformation of Punjabi identity over the centuries
Many historians regard Barelvi's campaign as the forerunner of the more puritanical Wahhabi and Ahl-i-Hadith movements in South Asia. Moving away from the "shrine culture", he made mosques the centre of Muslim mobilisation.
It may be tempting to see Barelvi's movement within the framework of a conflict between puritanical and Sufi interpretations of Islam, it is not necessarily so.
He was imbued with the Sufi Islamic culture and drew many of his religious tenets from that tradition. His movement, in fact, is evidence of how diverse and open to varied interpretation "Sufi Islam" is.
Barelvi's religio-political movement needs to be located in its time. In the 19th century, Muslim political power was on the wane as Punjab had fallen to the Sikhs, while the British were slowly spreading through India.
Seeing the demise of Muslim power as a result of their lack of religiosity, Barelvi wanted to reassert this political power, which is what brought him to the western boundary of Punjab.
Here, in a predominantly Muslim region, he wanted to lead an uprising against local Sikh overlords and eventually make his way into Punjab.
Now read: Remembering Dulla Bhatti, the landlord who stood up to the mighty Akbar
A few historians have pointed out that after the Sikhs in Punjab, he wanted to challenge the British. However, he had grossly misread the situation.
The local tribal communities "betrayed him" to the Sikh ruler. He eventually lost his life in the Battle of Balakot in 1831, hundreds of kilometres away from his home, and his movement was brutally crushed by the Sikhs. His philosophy and jihad, though, continued to inspire those who sought the purity of religion.
Today, the city of Balakot espouses both these uniquely South Asian religious traditions.
While Barelvi continues to inspire the Muslim elite, the shrine of Bala Pir remains popular with the local people.
The article was originally published on Scroll and has been reproduced with permission.
Haroon Khalid has an academic background in anthropology from Lums. He has been travelling extensively around Pakistan, documenting historical and cultural heritage. He is the author of four books — Imagining Lahore, Walking with Nanak, In Search of Shiva and A White Trail.
Lost in Partition, the Sikh-Muslim connection comes alive in the tale of Guru Nanak and Bhai Mardana
In India, a poem composed after Babri Masjid tells tales of the country's path
With Pakistan's rivers dying, are its ancient cities running out of time?
Waleed Tahir
Very nice article. Took me on a 7 min historical journey. Looking forward to more!
Neptune Srimal
Your columns are always enriching and enlightening!
beautiful and very informative. thank you.
liked your writing style.. very candid!
Tariq Amir
Good research. Interesting and informative.
Mr. Khalid, I always enjoy your articles - they are always well researched, unbiased and make a wonderful historical narrative.
Brij Sharma
Excellent historical facts explained professionally. Thanks a lot.
Superb article. Always a delight to read your articles. Thank you.
Thirumalaisamy
Hindus, Muslims and Sikh are people with different tags. Religion was created by man. There is no need to fight based on religions! Peace and love, Truth and compassion are the core teaching in any religion. Let all Pakistanis, Indians live in harmony and peace!
A Punjabi from AHLU near Lahore
Guru Nanak " replies that if one is Hindu one should be a good Hindu; if one is Muslim then one should be a good Muslim. That is how they would be able to follow his teachings" In today's uncertain times this will work if we all follow it truly wouldn't it?
Spot on Haroon! Exactly what we as Sikhs, Muslims and Hindus needed to know.
A Salman
There is shrine/resting place of Shah Ismail Shaheed in Balakot also.
The pains of 1947 has not been addressed and on top of it by the pains of Kashmir and East-Pakistan. What happened in East-Punjab is extremely shameful and painful. There are videos on Youtube of survivors for those who want to understand history. 70 years forward and I see a bhai-chara, a brotherhood, among Muslims and Sikhs. It is only after we lost each other we realized the common Punjabiness. Thank you very much for this article.
Very nice, detailed explanation , Mr. Khalid you write always best articles. Thank you for posting...............
Very informative. Thank you
bhushan Parimoo
thanks informative
Ayub
Very informative article.
I p Narang
Very touching. Love will trimph over hatred.
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text:
Fight to regulate crypto at crossroads as ripple ruling looms
By Eileen Lauer Last updated Jan 17, 2023
In the wake of the implosion of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, one urgent question keeps resurfacing: Who should regulate the industry?
An upcoming ruling in New York federal court could help determine the answer, along with the fates of numerous crypto investors and companies. The case hinges on whether a prominent digital token should be treated as a security, which would fall under the Securities & Exchange Commission's jurisdiction.
The dispute dates back to 2020, when the SEC accused San Francisco-based Ripple Labs Inc. of selling unregistered digital tokens without adequate disclosure.
SEC chairman Gary Gensler has been working to position his agency as the force that would rein in the crypto industry, and should the regulator prevail it would strengthen its grip at a crucial moment. A decision could come in the first half of 2023.
Among a handful of closely watched fintech lawsuits, the Ripple decision is the most high profile: its digital token, XRP, is the sixth-largest crypto token with a market value of almost $20 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.
The recent turmoil in crypto markets could taint the court's view, said Joseph Hall, a partner at Davis Polk & Wardwell who worked at the SEC from 2003 to 2005.
"You just have to imagine that the judges will be influenced by the investor losses they've seen," Hall said. "And the SEC will make clear to them that if you rule the other way, we will not have the tools that we need to fight this kind of activity."
FTX's bankruptcy in November left customers and investors facing billions of dollars of potential losses, and several of the company's executives have been charged with various types of financial fraud. Before his arrest, FTX's founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, was a prominent voice in the policy debate around regulation.
He formed close ties with US legislators and advocated for a bill to give the Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight of certain tokens — a move some saw as an attempt to wrest jurisdiction away from the SEC.
Sam Bankman-Fried, co-founder of FTX. Photographer: Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg
The fallout from FTX's implosion was swift and devastating, pounding an industry that had already had a rough year. Token prices plummeted, deepening a rout that began last April, several crypto firms filed for bankruptcy and high profile backers of FTX were forced to write investments down to zero.
"The potential contagion effects of crypto collapses are now more apparent," said Howard Fischer, a partner at Moses & Singer and former senior trial counsel at the SEC. "The FTX disaster will be more of a touchstone in inspiring government regulation."
For an asset to be classed as a security it must meet a legal standard from a 1946 US Supreme Court ruling about the sale of tracts of Florida citrus groves to investors. The test is met if investors kick in money with the expectation of profiting from the efforts of an organization's leadership.
Ripple has contended that XRP doesn't meet that test because sales took place in the secondary market and there was no pooling of profits.
"Selling an asset on a secondary market is most akin to a commodity, and should be regulated as such," the company's general counsel, Stuart Alderoty, said in an interview. "You don't lose consumer protection and you keep bad actors out. Regulation needs to be done in a way that respects the reality of what an asset is."
An SEC spokesperson declined to comment on the Ripple suit.
Trading in digital asset commodities, which US regulators have largely agreed includes Bitcoin, is subject to a patchwork of state regulation but not federal oversight. Some policymakers have sought to rectify that through legislation to give the CFTC authority over those types of tokens.
But if the Ripple ruling determines that XRP is a security, it would give the SEC ammunition to claim jurisdiction over the majority of digital assets, said Carol Goforth, a professor at the University of Arkansas School of Law who specialises in fintech regulation.
Gensler has slapped multi million-dollar fines on crypto companies and those who promote digital assets. The SEC, however, hasn't produced specific guidance for when a digital token amounts to a security — and Gensler has said existing rules are clear.
He's faced criticism from crypto industry insiders over the approach, which they say relies on enforcement instead of clarifying rules. In its latest salvo, the SEC on January 12 sued crypto firms Genesis Global Capital and Gemini Trust Co. for raising billions of dollars worth of crypto assets from investors through a program that it said amounted to an offering of unregistered securities.
"Instead of engaging in transparent and public rulemaking, with industry comments, the SEC has chosen to mark its digital asset territory via the federal court system," said Arthur Jakoby, a former SEC attorney and partner at Herrick Feinstein.
One recent court decision did define a digital asset as a security. A federal judge in New Hampshire ruled in November that blockchain-based publishing platform LBRY Inc. violated US securities law by selling its token without registering offerings with the SEC. The Ripple case has more at stake — $1.3 billion in allegedly unregistered issuances, versus $12.2 million for LBRY — and is in NY federal court, which generally carries more weight than New Hampshire, said Bloomberg Intelligence litigation analyst Elliott Stein.
The first insider trading allegations involving digital coins could also influence the industry's future. In July, a former Coinbase Global Inc. product manager and two others were charged by the Justice Department and sued by the SEC for allegedly participating in a scheme to trade on confidential information. Ishan Wahi, the Coinbase manager, has pleaded not guilty. His brother, Nikhil Wahi, admitted to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and was sentenced on January 10 to 10 months in prison. A third defendant hasn't appeared to face charges.
No case has captured as much attention as Ripple. Since the SEC filed the suit, a nearly 150 000-strong group known as the XRP Army has kept crypto social media abuzz with round-the-clock posts discussing proceedings and searching for trails that they hope might lead to a victory.
The company has hired former SEC heavyweights to defend it: Mary Jo White, who led the agency for almost four years under President Barack Obama; and Andrew Ceresney, who served as her director of enforcement.
"Most of the projects the SEC has gone after have either not had the resources to fight, or for other reasons have found it financially expedient to enter into a settlement," said Ripple's Alderoty.
More than a dozen entities have submitted briefs to the judge in support of Ripple's position, including the Chamber of Digital Commerce and the Blockchain Association.
While observers often look to a judge's past decisions for clues as to how a case might turn out, that's more difficult in younger industries like crypto with few examples to draw from.
While US District Judge Analisa Torres, who's overseeing the case, hasn't presided over many other crypto-related cases, she has supervised major business cases. One — a gender-bias class action against Goldman Sachs Group Inc. — is scheduled to go to trial this summer.
Both the SEC and Ripple have asked Torres for a ruling in their favor without a trial, arguing that she has enough information to make a decision. Now they just have to wait.
Even if Ripple triumphs, it might not be the ticker-tape parade moment that crypto enthusiasts are hoping for, said Andrew Stoltmann, a securities litigation attorney in Chicago.
Lawmakers were mulling a number of crypto oversight bills before FTX filed for bankruptcy, but those efforts had largely stalled. Now, given the publicity around FTX's collapse and the contagion that's imploded other crypto firms, the federal government is more likely to wade in.
"I anticipate Congress will come in over the top and basically decide who gets jurisdiction with respect to enforcement," Stoltmann said.
© 2023 Bloomberg
Eileen Lauer 25256 posts 0 comments
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package org.laughingpanda.beaninject.target.annotation;

public class AnnotatedClass {

    @MyPrivateFieldAnnotation
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    @MyProtectedFieldAnnotation
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    @MyPublicFieldAnnotation
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    @MyPackagePrivateFieldAnnotation
    String annotatedPackagePrivateField;

    public String propertyWithPublicSetter;

    @SuppressWarnings("unused")
    private String propertyWithProtectedSetter;

    @SuppressWarnings("unused")
    private String propertyWithPrivateSetter;

    @SuppressWarnings("unused")
    private String propertyWithPackagePrivateSetter;

    @MyPublicSetterAnnotation
    public void annotatedPublicSetter(String value) {
        this.propertyWithPublicSetter = value;
    }

    @MyProtectedSetterAnnotation
    protected void annotatedProtectedSetter(String value) {
        this.propertyWithProtectedSetter = value;
    }

    @SuppressWarnings("unused")
    @MyPrivateSetterAnnotation
    private void annotatedPrivateSetter(String value) {
        this.propertyWithPrivateSetter = value;
    }

    @SuppressWarnings("unused")
    @MyPackagePrivateSetterAnnotation
    private void annotatedPackagePrivateSetter(String value) {
        this.propertyWithPackagePrivateSetter = value;
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Sea Cliff is a fitting name for this station because it is built directly into a hill with the depot above the New York-bound platform almost overlooking it. The station has two 4-car side platforms a short ways beyond the grade crossing of Sea Cliff Avenue that is the only connection between them. These high-level platforms each have the late 1990s design of green fencing and black lampposts but for shelter for waiting passengers there is a single historic wooden gabled roof shed, one of the few older shelters left on the LIRR with a bench inside it. This is the only provision for waiting passengers. The Oyster Bay-bound platform is along its own small parking lot with staircases and a ramp up to it. The New York-bound platform has access via a walkway to a ramp up from the grade crossing as well as from its slightly larger parking lot that is higher than the platform because the station is built into a hill. On the edge of this parking lot, overlooking above the platform and tracks, is where the historic Sea Cliff depot is. It opened in 1888 as a plaque on the building informs and is on the National Register of historic places. It is a brick building with a gabled roof and large sheltered areas coming off from either side that form a bit of an observation platform above the tracks. These areas were designed for the loading and unloading of carriages. The waiting room inside with some modern curved wooden benches and a restroom is still open from 5am to 2pm. It was staffed with a ticket agent until April 3, 1996 (Sandra Saslovsky, 'In Oyster Bay: LIRR Riders Await the Machine Age' Newsday March 24, 1996. E.09 Archive Link).


text:
Q: Is there a programming language that performs currying when named parameters are omitted? Many functional programming languages have support for curried parameters.
To support currying functions the parameters to the function are essentially a tuple where the last parameter can be omitted making a new function requiring a smaller tuple.
I'm thinking of designing a language that always uses records (aka named parameters) for function parameters.
Thus simple math functions in my make believe language would be:
add { left : num, right : num } = ...
minus { left : num, right : num } = ..

You can pass in any record to those functions so long as they have those two named parameters (they can have more just "left" and "right").
If they have only one of the named parameter it creates a new function:
minus5 :: { left : num } -> num
minus5 = minus { right : 5 }

I borrow some of haskell's notation for above.
Has any one seen a language that does this?

A: OCaml has named parameters and currying is automatic (though sometimes type annotation is required when dealing with optional parameters), but they are not tupled :
    Objective Caml version 3.11.2

# let f ~x ~y = x + y;;
val f : x:int -> y:int -> int = <fun>
# f ~y:5;;
- : x:int -> int = <fun>
# let g = f ~y:5;;
val g : x:int -> int = <fun>
# g ~x:3;;
- : int = 8

A: Sure, Mathematica can do that sort of thing.


text:
Left of North
a blog about irregular migration facilitation
The Night of the Humanitarians
Since June 14, I've been traveling from Athens to Berlin and writing about refugees and the people who help them get where they want to go. In my last post I wrote about Macedonia, a hostile country refugees have to cross as quickly and quietly as possible. Serbia is a good place to rest. Although the country is surrounded by closed borders, it's own borders are open. That means once refugees enter Serbia, they can stay, they can buy bus tickets to other points within the country, they can rest up for their trip north. Almost everyone I talked to was heading north, to Vienna, to Switzerland, to Germany.
When I arrived in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, there was an event at a bar/art space where refugee helpers were going to share stories and strategies. It was a glimpse into the world of humanitarianism, and I learned two things: There are too many NGOs in this world to keep track of; and people working on the ground tend to look askance at the people in charge of the money.
A row of unframed black-and-white photos in a hall, hanging next to a bar, finger food, people in little clusters, chatting. I was looking for Elise, the German woman from Refugee Aid Serbia who had invited me, but I didn't know what she looked like. I went over to the photos, read the artist's statement: "Older Syrian men are a pleasure to photograph…" I suppose the series of portraits intended to make refugees appear human to the people who only see refugees depicted in photographs.
As I stood there trying to feel the humanity in the old Syrian man's eyes, a photographer approached the woman next to me, who was also reflecting on the art. She was a thin and beautiful woman with great big bracelets, wild cosmopolitan hair, an art-gallery dress.
"Can I take a photo of you?" asked the photographer.
The woman agreed.
"Can you stand in front of the photograph again?"
The woman moved to the spot indicated.
"Thank you," said the photographer.
At the end of the little installation was a table with the artist's business cards, each of which was backed with a photo of refugees. I took one. Now I have a picture of a stranger's kids in my wallet.
I identified Elise, finally, and she was standing in a circle with an older Italian couple (the woman, a Belgrade volunteer, the man, an attaché of the Argentinian Ambassador in Italy, or the Italian Ambassador to Argentina, I can't remember), and another German woman from Hamburg. I awkwardly interrupted, and pretty soon they were giving me the history of refugee aid in Belgrade.
One thing I've found in every city I've visited: There are one or two or a half-dozen "main spots" where aid workers and refugees meet — sometimes initiated by the former, sometimes the latter — and this is where information circulates, food and clothing gets distributed, voyages encouraged or called off. Lots and lots of selfies are taken.
In Belgrade, the main spots are the two parks in front of the bus station. According to Elise, when the parks filled up with tents and sleeping bags last summer, some local folks began slapping together non-profits to help the new-comers. They turned an art space called Miksalište into a community/distribution center. The group Refugee Aid Serbia came out of that effort. Some other people bought a little wooden hut and set it up in the park and called it Info Park.
I know this sounds like something you would read in a free magazine. But consider this. Miksalište, now managed by a 20-something Brit named Albert who came to Belgrade to teach English, served 1,000 meals the day I arrived in the city. Several hundred people from Afghanistan and Syria spend their entire day in these central parks, planning their routes, swapping info, and Info Park and Miksalište are at the center of all of it, handing out band-aids, serving tea, managing disputes between park security and refugees.
Albert of Miksališta.
Today, when I arrived at the Serbia-Hungary border I swapped stories about Info Park and Miksalište with refugees. We had met the same volunteers, because there are only a dozen, maybe two dozen, who run the whole show.
Clothing distribution at Miksalište.
The event this night was called "Humanity in Motion: Volunteers' Stories," and there was going to be a round-table discussion. By 9 p.m. there were about a hundred people there, and I think about 17 knew this had something to do with refugees. The music had started, it was a hot day, and most people were about three beers in. All except for a small group of volunteers who were supposed to be sharing their insights, but were instead being lectured about the nature of refugeehood by a Berlin architect.
So the round-table was ruined by patriarchy. When I jumped in on the conversation, this architect from a reputed lefty Berlin establishment called Holzmarkt was already deep into a pitch about… Well, I couldn't really tell because it was encrypted in that capitalist language that only reveals its meaning when you commit money or sign a contract. "We need to find people brave enough to say, 'I can't help everyone'," he said. Then he looked around at everyone, his captive audience, through his thick-frame glasses, with that I-just-surprised-myself look a doctor will give you when he explains how an infection works. He was talking about trying to find employment for refugees with a background in the arts, and someone asked the natural question: How would that jibe with their status as refugees?
"But they're not refugees! These are artists who just happen to come from a different country."
"But I'm talking about 'refugee' as a legal status," the guy rephrased, a bit embarrassed.
"But I'm not. As far as I'm concerned, these are just people!"
I can only imagine what the volunteers — most of them women who had spent the better part of a year turning Belgrade into a safe place for refugees — I can only guess what they felt as this guy went on and on about his ideas for solving the refugee crisis, one brave new start-up idea at a time. Es geht um Geld, as the Germans say. It's about money.
"Coats you can use as sleeping bags! It's perfect!" was the last thing I heard him say.
Tagged belgrade, beograd, berlin, holzmarkt, info park, migration facilitation, miksališta, refugee aid serbia, refugee camp, refugee crisis, refugee stories, refugees, serbia
Published by Amien Essif
View all posts by Amien Essif
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text:
A Breakthrough on the TAPI Pipeline?
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India and Pakistan hint that progress has finally been made with Turkmenistan on the huge energy project.
By Micha'el Tanchum for The Diplomat
Credit: Gas pipeline via Shutterstock.com
Indian and Pakistani press reports surrounding the March 15 meeting in Kabul of the steering committee Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline suggest a breakthrough has finally been achieved and construction on the mega-project could begin in 2015. The apparent impasse over Turkmenistan's terms for financing the pipeline's construction seems to have been resolved owing to the Turkmen government's new determination to diversify the markets for its natural gas. With the drastic reduction and imminent cessation of Russian imports of natural gas from Turkmenistan, China has become Turkmenistan's sole export market. While welcoming economic cooperation with China, Ashgabat has been working assiduously to avoid undue economic dependence on Beijing and therefore has been motivated to make key concessions for the construction of the TAPI pipeline. By creating the first significant overland link with India, the TAPI pipeline project will not only diversify Turkmenistan's gas exports – it will permanently alter the pattern of Central Asian connectivity.
On October 2014, Russian natural gas giant Gazprom announced it would cease purchasing natural gas from Turkmenistan. Following through on its announcement, Gazprom slashed its imports from Turkmenistan by almost two-thirds at the beginning of 2015. In 2003, Turkmenistan's state-owned natural gas company Türkmengaz signed a 25-year agreement with Gazprom for the delivery of 70-80 billion cubic meters (bcm) of Turkmen gas per year to Russia. By 2008, Turkmenistan's gas exports had reached 45 bcm. Due to an April 2009 explosion in the Truboprovodnaiia sistema Sredniaia Aziia-Tsentr (Central Asia-Center pipeline system), commonly known as SATS, near the border between Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan's natural gas exports to Russia were temporarily halted.
Although the flow of gas via SATS was restored, China exploited the hiatus to develop its own share of Turkmen gas exports. In December 2014, one month prior to the resumption of gas deliveries to Russia, Turkmenistan opened the first section of a pipeline designed to transport 40 bcm per year to China. Construction of the 1,833 km/1,139 mile pipeline was financed by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). With Russian imports of Turkmen gas falling from 45 to 4 bcm, China has become the only significant export market for Turkmenistan's gas. While Turkmenistan now exports 35 bcm annually to China, the revenues that Ashgabat earns are offset by the debt it owes CNPC for building the China-Turkmenistan pipeline. Without other export outlets, Turkmenistan risks developing a dangerously high level of economic dependence on China. CNPC is the sole service contractor for the second phase of development of Turkmenistan's Galkynysh field, the world's second-largest natural gas deposit. Compounding the problem, Ashgabat and Beijing signed the May 2014 China-Turkmenistan Friendly Cooperation agreement, committing Turkmenistan to increase natural gas exports to China to a minimum 65 bcm per year via the construction of an additional two pipelines from Turkmenistan to China's Xinjiang province.
To diversify its natural gas markets, the formerly reclusive Turkmenistan has recently reached out to Turkey, Japan, and South Korea to develop projects in Turkmenistan for LNG, Gas-to-Liquids, and the manufacture of fertilizers from natural gas. However, Turkmenistan's best immediate hope for export diversification is the TAPI pipeline project. The TAPI pipeline is slated to transport 33 bcm of natural gas, roughly matching Turkmenistan's current exports to China. By transporting gas from Turkmenistan's Galkynysh field to the neighboring South Asia region, transporting 14 million standard cubic meters a day (mmscmd) of natural gas to Afghanistan, while India and Pakistan will each receive 38 mmscmd.
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However, the route of the $10 billion, Central Asia-South Asia pipeline traverses Afghanistan's Kandahar province and the neighboring Quetta region of Pakistan, traditionally the heartland of Taliban militancy. Because of the risk involved, progress on TAPI has stalled. The Asian Development Bank (ADB), which assumed the role of transaction advisor to facilitate the construction of the pipeline, estimates that the delays have raised the cost of the project by $2.5 billion to its current $10 billion price tag. In October 2014, the ADB commissioned a feasibility study for the TAPI pipeline project as part of its effort to establish a consortium that would construct the pipeline by 2018. At the TAPI Steering Committee meeting held in November 2014 in Ashgabat, representatives from the four nations and the ADB agreed to an accelerated timetable for completion of the pipeline. Pending selection of a consortium leader, construction could begin in 2015 and the pipeline could be operational by 2018.
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Yet the selection of a consortium leader has proven to be TAPI's main stumbling block. U.S. oil majors Chevron and Exxon Mobil initially expressed interest in the role. However, owing to Turkmenistan law, which precludes the private ownership of land, both companies withdrew from consideration after Asghabat's refusal to issue an equity stake in the Galkynysh field in exchange for assuming the risk of construction. Total S.A., after Chevron and ExxonMobil's withdrawal, was considered the leading candidate. Still, the recent February 11, 2015 TAPI steering committee held in Islamabad failed to select the French energy giant as consortium leader and special TAPI meeting was called to be convened in the Afghan capital Kabul on March 15, 2014 to select a consortium leader.
In his remarks following the Kabul meeting, Sartaj Aziz, adviser to Pakistan's prime minister on national security and foreign affairs, stated that a breakthrough is expected on the TAPI pipeline project by the end of 2015. Without providing details but promising that the issue of pricing would be finalized soon, Aziz declared that most of the issues were settled at the Kabul meeting and a leading financing entity had agreed to finance the project. In addition to Total, Russia's Rostec and CNPC are also being considered for the project. Yet, according to a recent Indian press report from a newspaper known for its links to India's ruling BJP, two consortiums may be established for the TAPI project. One will be a joint venture between the Turkmenistan government and Total for Galkynysh's upstream operations, while Total would serve as consortium leader with Russia's Rostec and CNPC for the pipeline construction. If true, this suggests that Turkmenistan has opted to arrive at a breakthrough by offering Total a sufficient profit share in the gas field to warrant its assumption of the risk of the pipeline construction, while Turkmenistan technically will retain legal ownership of the land. Such a solution could come in the form of a modified Technical Services Contract that would give Total the first right of refusal over gas extracted from Galkynysh. The participation of Rostec and CNPC as consortium partners for the construction of the pipeline under Total's leadership would also constitute a savvy move by Ashgabat to mollify Moscow and Beijing as Turkmenistan stands on the threshold of developing new connectivity with New Delhi.
The construction of the TAPI pipeline and the development of India as an export market for Turkmenistan would constitute an important breakthrough toward Turkmenistan's ambitious energy production and export goals. Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov has committed his government to raising foreign investment in Turkmenistan's energy sector to achieve his goal of doubling Turkmenistan's natural gas production by 2020, on the way to achieving an annual production rate of 250 bcm by 2030. In addition to moving Turkmenistan closer to realizing its objective of becoming an energy exporting economic tiger, the TAPI pipeline will also change the regional diplomacy of Central Asia through the establishment of connectivity with India. The success of a trans-national Central Asia-to-India pipeline would certainly spur the expansion of current efforts to create road and rail transportation connectivity between Central Asia and India. With this connectivity, India would be able to deepen its bilateral economic partnerships with the Central Asian republics and become a major player in the emerging Eurasian regional architecture, creating the possibility of new alliance formations that would help ensure that Central Asia would not become subject to some form of Sino-Russian joint hegemony.
Micha'el Tanchum is a Fellow in the Middle East and Asia Units, Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace, Hebrew University. Dr. Tanchum also teaches in the Departments of Middle Eastern History and East Asian Studies as well as the Faculty of Law at Tel Aviv University. An earlier version this article was first published in the Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst, a biweekly publication of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program Joint Center.
Central Asia-Center pipeline
TAPI pipeline
Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline
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Taliban Visit Turkmenistan, Promise (Again) to Protect TAPI
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TAPI has long been hailed as a monumentally important project – but it's unclear whether it will ever be built.
TAPI Moves Into Afghanistan, Taliban Promise to Protect the Project
Yet another ceremony to mark progress on the TAPI pipeline.
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But as the projected operational date gets pushed back, the surveys may be progress for progress' sake.
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The long-expected acquisition marks the latest evolution of Southeast Asia's naval arms competition.
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There are thousands of pedestrians on Las Vegas streets and walkways at just about any time during the day or night. We all have a certain expectation of safety when walking on a sidewalk or crossing the street. Not many pedestrians traversing Las Vegas Boulevard would expect to be hit by a car or other vehicle, but at one time or another, Nevada residents of all ages are exposed to the risk of a pedestrian accident.
Whether walking from their parked car to their job, walking to school, taking the bus, or jogging, pedestrians share public roadways with motor vehicles, placing themselves at direct risk. While pedestrian accidents represent only 0.2% of all traffic crashes in Nevada, they usually result in injury. These accidents account for an average of 6.4% of severe injuries and 17.8% of all motor vehicle-related fatalities in Nevada each year.
The effects of a pedestrian accident can be wide-ranging and severe. Some of these incidents result in only minor injuries, while others can be catastrophic and cause lifelong, debilitating physical issues. A car or truck, even at slow speeds, can cause significant bodily injuries.
It is vital to seek legal assistance from an experienced Las Vegas personal injury lawyer as soon as possible following the accident. At Oronoz & Ericsson , we will take the time to gather witness statements and any other details to help your case. The earlier you contact us, the more likely you are to see success when you file a claim for compensation. Our legal team can put together a solid case that helps you protect your rights against the insurance company of the at-fault individuals. Our firm provides compassionate legal advice and aggressive representation in negotiations and at trial.


I BELIEVE AN UNREASONABLE PERSON IS A STRONG-WILLED INDIVIDUAL WITH INFALLIBLE CAPABILITY. HE MUST BE INHERENTLY COMPELLED TO ACTION.
While most people living in the rural area leave for big cities, curator Ou Ning has left his home in Beijing and moved to the Bishan village in Yi County, Huang Mountain. He resides here with his whole family, working towards revitalizing the rural community as we know it the Bishan Project. The aim of Bishan Project is to preserve rural charm without falling behind the times. Ou Ning hopes he can revitalize this village into a more livable place, so the countryside can become an alternative to the city. However, his intentions are at times beyond what the villagers comprehend. And he is working diligently to help them better understand. He hopes he can help to further improve the way of life in this village.
Ou Ning is an unreasonable person.


Turtle robots have been around since Grey Walter's Tortoise of the late '40s. When hobbyist robots started to be popular in the early '80s, robots such as the Tasman Turtle (shown in Figure 1) were popular. They were easy to interface and control by an Apple II or similar computer.
Newer turtle-type robots such as the BBC Turtle robot shown in Figure 2 or the Propeller-head Geek Turtle robot shown in Figure 3 are still popular and are sold at many hobby robot outlets. These robots are simple to construct, interface, program, and operate as they are usually differentially-driven and have a clear plastic shell that shows the interior. They offer beginners a way to learn programming techniques to control a basic robot.
The term 'turtle' has recently taken on a new meaning with the introduction of two turtle-style experimenter's machines that are changing the face of hobby and advanced experimental robotics. I've reviewed many robots over the years, but have rarely come across two entirely different machines at the same time that have really offered so many capabilities and opportunities for serious robotics research. Both machines have a long list of users who have nothing but praises for their robot. With newer, powerful software suites coupled with equally powerful sensors, these two advanced turtle-style robots offer serious experimenters complete robotics packages that would rival the most advanced university level machines of five years ago — but at a fraction of the cost.
One is the Willow Garage ROS-based TurtleBot and the other is Eddie from Parallax that is based on Microsoft's Robotics Developer Studio, RDS4. Neither of these two robots actually utilize turtle shell construction and both feature Microsoft's powerful vision sensor: the Kinect. Each robot actually has so many features that I will do a comparison over the next couple columns. I'll concentrate on the TurtleBot this month. Next time, we'll take a look at Eddie.
In reading emails and other news items (and talking with WG personnel in early 2011), I heard rumors that WG was developing a small robot to serve as a base for their open source Linux-based software platform, Robot Operating System (or ROS). When I visited their facility in 2010 and got to know their amazing PR2 robot, I was also introduced to ROS which was the software for the PR2. I knew that WG was anxious for the robotics community to discover ROS and to implement it into various robot designs.
FIGURE 1. Tasman Turtle Robot from theoldrobots.com.
FIGURE 2. BBC Turtle Robot.
FIGURE 3. Propeller-head Geek Turtle robot.


text:
Local Elections in Belarus - 25th April 2010
Domestic Election Monitoring
Report №1:
European Exchange and Belarusian Human Rights Defenders begin their Monitoring of the Local Elections in Belarus
In Belarus, elections to the local councils are being held on the 25th April. European Exchange is continuing its cooperation with the Minsk Human Rights Organisations – the Human Rights Center 'Viasna' and the Belarusian Helsinki Committee – which began during the Belarusian parliamentary elections in 2008. This year, it is again reporting on the developments of the elections. The election monitoring campaign, 'Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections', which was initiated in 2008, has since received the award 'Civil Campaign of the Year 2008' from the Association of Pro-Democratic Nongovernmental Organisations in Belarus.
This year, the campaign 'Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections', in which around 130 local experts, lawyers and journalists in all regions of the country are involved, should observe whether the election campaign is conducted in the correct manner. Because the international organisations are not sending a full-scale election monitoring mission to the local elections, the reports from the non-partisan, domestic election observers will be the central independent source of information during the entire election process in Belarus. The assessment of the local election campaign will also be a test for Lukashenka's government ahead of the presidential elections, which are to take place in the winter of 2010-2011.
European Exchange will provide information about the events in Belarus and is sending a weekly newsletter in English and German to interested persons and organisations. This is being supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Warsaw and the German Marshall Fund of the United States in Berlin.
In the first edition, we will be reporting on the formation of the election commissions in the light of the newly amended electoral code, which was introduced in January 2010 in line with recommendations from the OSCE.
The political situation in Belarus on the eve of the local elections
Belarus has been governed in an autocratic manner since 1994. The opposition has not been represented in parliament since the 2004 elections. Of more than 5000 members of the regional and city councils, less than 20 represent the opposition. Nongovernmental organisations and opposition parties are subject to repression from Lukashenka's government and the local authorities. Since the year 2000, not a single party has been officially registered.
In response to the release of political prisoners in August 2008, including the former presidential candidate and Lukashenka-opponent Alyaksandr Kazulin, the Council of the European Union relaxed its sanctions against Belarus. The ban on Lukashenka and other regime functionaries entering the EU was lifted for a trial period of six months on the condition that Belarus progress with its democratisation. This was done in spite of the parliamentary elections in September 2008 being manipulated and not receiving recognition from the international community.
The EU has decided to pursue its dialogue with Belarus in spite of unsatisfactory progression in its democratisation process. In May 2009, Belarus was, along with Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, accepted into the European Union's Eastern Partnership. It should therefore come to benefit from the new instruments of the European Neighbourhood Policy. Since 2009, the International Monetary Fund has supported the Belarusian Economy, which has been affected by the worldwide financial crisis, with 3.5 billion US dollars of loans. However, the political liberalisation which the West is demanding is only moving forward very slowly. Arrests and questioning of members of the opposition and independent journalists, intimidation of the Polish minority which is critical of the regime, as well as the case of new political prisoners – Mikalai Autukhovich and Uladzimir Asipenka – describe the current situation in the country.
The amended electoral code – theory and practice
In January 2010, the Belarusian parliament accepted the amendments to the electoral code and in so doing at least partly implemented the proposals of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and of independent Belarusian experts, which had been made years ago. However, Belarusian election observers warn against a premature evaluation of the election campaign, which could assess the conditions as positive. It will only be seen whether the regime is genuinely prepared to allow substantial democratic reform ahead of the presidential elections, which are to take place by February 2011 at the latest, when the new rules are put into action during the local elections.
'Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections' bemoan the weak representation of opposition parties in the regional election commissions
According to the new electoral code, opposition parties and NGOs should be strengthened in the election commissions and the number of officials loyal to the regime should be reduced. This is ensured by allowing parties and NGOs on the one hand, and the administration on the other hand, to each provide up to a third of the members of the election committees. The remaining seats should be filled by representatives of the workers' committees and by candidates who have collected at least 10 signatures. Those applicants who are not chosen are able to appeal against the responsible election authority's decision in court.
In spite of these new rules, the domestic election observes are displeased with the disproportionately low number of parties' representatives in the regional election commissions: 407 of a total of 16558 members of the regional election committees are representatives of parties (around 2,4 %). Whilst of the 379 candidates from parties loyal to the regime (including the Communist Party of Belarus and the Agrarian Party), 320 (around 84%) were appointed as members of the election commissions, only 87 of the 238 (around 37%) opposition applicants (including the Belarusian Party of United Leftists 'Just World', the Belarusian Social Democratic Party 'Gramada', the United Civil Party and the Party of the Belarusian National Front) were appointed to the election commissions. Parties and nongovernmental organisations were indeed able to occupy around a third of the seats in the election commissions but the vast majority came from organisations loyal to the regime: 'Belaya Rus', the Belarusian Republican Youth Union and the Belarusian Public Association of Veterans.
In addition, 'Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections' is criticising the rules of the electoral code, according to which parties can only present their candidates for regional election commissions via officially registered regional offices. "Many political parties do not have any registered structures in the regions" – explains Valiantsin Stefanovich, a legal expert for the Human Rights Center 'Viasna' in Minsk. "This meant that, for example, the Belarusian Christian Democratic Party, which is not registered, was unable to present candidates for the election commissions, and was therefore forced to nominate its representatives by way of the collection of signatures. In any case, of over 40 Christian Democrat candidates, only three managed to make it into the election committees", says Stefanovich in Minsk.
The Belarusian election observers also draw attention to the fact that the decisions on the nominations of members to the election commissions lacked transparent criteria and were often taken behind closed doors by the regional executive committees. "Belarusian political parties are, just as before, excluded from participating in the work of the election committees" – comments Uladzimir Labkovich, a legal expert for the Human Rights Center 'Viasna'. "In a situation where there are no criteria for the appointment of commission members and where the authorities responsible for the formation of the election committees cannot be brought to account, an appeal in the courts is also pointless" – says Labkovich.
State officials dominate in the election commissions
The Belarusian Human Rights Defenders also point to there being a disproportionately high number of employees of state administrative bodies represented in the election commissions. They are appointed by the means of collecting signatures as representatives of political parties or of civil society organisations. Due to this practice, which has already taken place at this early stage of the election campaign, the legally envisaged balance in the election commissions between one third of the seats for those loyal to and one third for those critical of the regime is destroyed. In addition to this, the domestic election observers report that the state-controlled local press is not announcing the actual positions of the state officials, so that their real number in the commissions cannot be determined. According to a statement from the Human Rights Defenders, the officials are generally appointed as members of the parties loyal to the regime (Communist Party of Belarus, Agrarian Party) or those nongovernmental organisations which are close to the state ('Belaya Rus', Belarusian Republican Youth Union, Belarusian Public Association of Veterans). "The election commissions find themselves under total governmental control" – declares Uladzimir Labkovich.
Structure of the Election Administration
Up-to-date election news, reports and comment can be found at any time on the internet sites of European Exchange in Berlin (www.european-exchange.org), the Belarusian Human Rights Center 'Viasna' (www.spring96.org) and the Belarusian Helsinki Committee in Minsk (www.belhelcom.org).
In the next newsletter, we will be reporting on the coming stages of the local election campaign in Belarus: the registration of candidates' supporter groups and the nomination of candidates to the precinct election commissions.
The European Exchange, Human Rights Centre 'Viasna',the Belaruski Helsinki Committee


My sisters and I used to make fun of our mom when she had trouble reading fine print. She would make a fist, leaving a tiny opening of light through her curled fingers, and then eye-to-fist-to-paper, she would be able to see the words. She swore it worked and we would just laugh.
Well, I found out last week it does indeed work–guess Mom's laughing now! (OMG, I'm becoming my mother!!!) I was in the shower and couldn't tell which bottle was the shampoo or conditioner (in my defense, they were travel-size containers). So, there I am straining my eyes at the travel-size print, and not wanting to waste water, I decided to apply my mom's "fist technology." Good thing I did because I was holding the skin lotion.
The dimming of my vision has been humbling, yet it has definitely made me appreciate this amazing sense. You can read more thoughts on my aging eyes HERE. One way to embrace our precious eyesight is to eat foods that help protect it and this week I've shared my top-ten list of visionary foods.
Here's wishing you fist-free vision!
The anti-oxidants, lutein and zeaxanthin, along with omega 3 fatty acids, zinc, and vitamins A (beta carotene), C and E are the most important nutrients for protecting your vision as you age. The following foods are great sources of these nutrients.


This page describes some statistics of the GLAM-WIKI conference 2015 in The Hague.
The official report of the conference is published together with its Project & Event Grant application on meta.wikimedia.org.
4.3.3 What should be better next time?
151 people have subscribed to come to the conference.
147 people attended the conference.
Of the 147 conference attendees, 88 were male and 59 female. 40,13% female participants.
The participants came from 32 countries and six continents (7-continent model). The conference also included presentations by representatives from each continent.
Additionally, during the conference itself, two spontaneous meetups took place.
No less than 54 separate presentations (sometimes very short ones) were given. This means that on average one in three GLAM-WIKI attendees has also taken the stage at the conference.
Facebook event. 59 people indicated they were 'going', 8 people 'maybe'.
The hashtag #GLAMWIKI was tweeted 1,500 times. This reached 662189 people via Twitter.
The news item about GLAM-WIKI on the website of Wikimedia Nederland has been checked 46 times.
In the weeks right after the conference, a survey was held among the participants.
The anonymised results (without email addresses) can be found here.
Of the 147 attendees, 63 people have completed this survey (42.86%).
The 63 people who completed the questionnaire indicated the following as their occupation(s) / profile. It was possible to check more than one answer.
The conference, overall, got an average rating of 8.42/10.
"The diversity of the projects and participants. I also liked seeing so many female presenters!
The venue was great and the tours were a definite highlight.
Also, the WiFi. It was fast and consistent - A+"
"I have met 30 people from 7 countries in one day."
"The best thing about GLAM-WIKI 2015 is its audience. Thanks to the organizers for carefully choosing the right mix of audience : Chapter members, volunteers, Wikimedians-in-Residence, experts in GLAM partnerships and representatives of cultural institutes. This right mix of audience gave everyone a chance to pick up conversations with people from every aspect of GLAM. I think I found experts from every GLAM domain, so there was always someone who could answer my questions about legal, technical or cultural issues related to GLAM. I am also very pleased that WM-NL took extreme care in diversity of participants, by giving ample opportunities to those from global south and women."
I hope the next GLAM WIKI conference will have a lot of workshops and interactive sessions."
"The UNESCO session, because it had actual outcomes, which were actionable."
"So much learning! I came to know more about projects that are like mine. It was really good to pick up conversations with people who work with GLAM and medicine. I also learned a bit more about Wikimetrics and gathered a lot of points from the discussion about gendergap in GLAM and Wikimedia. The informal conversations picked up with the attendees were really useful in that, I could learn a lot about library projects and maintaining archives. I was happy to know about projects of different ranges : from small backyard projects to huge GLAM content donations."
"How to make stone soup."
"- The impact of Wikidata on semantic enrichment of linked open data is really significant for GLAMs.
- The wiki reporting tools that GLAMs need don't exist as a simple dashboard - yet!
- a clear explanation of the advantages of cc-by is needed."
"Strategies, Chapter organisation and planning, geolocation, maps, Wikidata, library relationships, helpful contacts, new and strengthened relationships."
"A bit less than I expected, having attended previous GLAM-WIKIs, and not being very interested in Wikidata. Wikidata was the big new theme."
What should be better next time?
"Some of the daily wrap ups felt a bit redundant."
"You had a lack of focus: Sometimes content seem specialized, sometimes content seems superficial. As an attendant, I don't knew how to select and event, because I had not information about its level."
"1. Plan for the conference a bit ahead of time so that there is enough time for attendees to mark their dates and apply for the visa.
5. A conference app for connecting the attendees beforehand, or an active mailing list for the participants to get to know each other ahead of participating in the conference."
"I think it would be nice to have a sort op opening activity in the hours between the opening of registration and the start of the conference, also for the people how are not participating in the guided tours. Now I had the idea that some of the people who registered early but did not register for the guided tours felt a bit lost. Maybe a consul with a Wiki-game people can play together or a world map where they can put a pointer in with the city the dirive from or some computers with wikipedia for people to sit behind and edit articles or upload pictures?"
"Less tracks division to suit the small conference size, the four competing sessions was really restrictive for those who were engaged in hosting or presenting. It seemed that for a conference of this size there should have only been 2 tracks most often."
"As a programme committee, I found that some people lacked the confidence to present with the ""big boys"". To get a diverse range of presentations in future, delegates will have to be encouraged to share their work, and should be given longer to give more detail (10 mins for each).
Also, due to three people not getting their visas in time, the scholarship decision needs to be made with at least 6 weeks to spare to allow for the time. "
"There was a little too much mansplaining from some of the men who were present. Gender gap implications aside, some of the key mediawiki players had a sometimes standoff-ish, know-it-all way of communicating that was uncomfortable to experience. The good news is that this wasn't the norm and that the bulk of the attendees, organisers and presenters were warm, friendly and welcoming.
Beyond that I had a wonderful time and look forward to following along with GLAMWIKi news and developments from home."
An event like GLAM-WIKI shows its impact over a longer period. In October 2015, a follow-up survey will investigate the longer-term effects of the conference.
Deze pagina is voor het laatst bewerkt op 24 jun 2015 om 10:36.


Are Your Employees Firing On All Cylinders?
If Bob Costello, VP & Chief Economist of the American Trucking Associations, is right, the recovery has started.
This is good news and potentially not such good news.
Recently a leader shared with us a challenge we might all be facing. He had cut his staff in reaction to reduced demand and when he received a large customer order, he was unable to provide the usual level of service. His customer was not happy. This is a likely scenario for many of us as business increases, especially if we have the starts and stops in business that are typical during a recovery.
Now is the time to clean house, get things in order and get the right systems, processes and people in place to capitalize on new opportunities. "Productivity and efficiencies are what will make us survive and succeed today," says Shorty Whittington, President of Indiana-based Grammer Industries and immediate past chairman of American Trucking Associations.
eliminate waste and get ready for increased business volumes.
The Editor http://www.lmi-uk.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/lmi-logo-1-300x138.png The Editor2014-08-27 12:50:162014-08-27 12:50:16Are Your Employees Firing On All Cylinders?
Your ability to do the right things, at the right time, for right length of time in order to achieve your goals will ultimately be the key element in your success. Staying focused on your high pay off activities is the key to productivity and productivity is the well spring of success.
The introduction of mobile communication, text, voice mail, email etc simply means that we are all just a matter of seconds away from an interruption or distraction. How long does it take between a telephone ringing, and email pinging or some other such alert informing us that somebody somewhere wants our attention.
I can add testimony to the success of such developments however I worry that technology is now getting in the way of individuals personal productivity. A key to managing this situation is by managing expectations. If you always respond to an email by return it will become expected, it will become normal. If you always answer your mobile when it rings it will become expected and normal.
Let's be honest what percentage of communications really demand our immediate attention? If on the other hand you schedule time during the day to read emails and prioritise them, you listen to your voice mail and prioritise them in order of importance you can take control of your own agenda. If you communicate this to your staff, colleagues and clients then their expectations are more informed.
If you say you will call someone back in 30 minutes and you call them back after 60 minutes they will be annoyed, if on the other hand you tell someone you will get back to them in 90 minutes and you call them in 60 minutes they think you are great. You have delivered exactly the same service the only difference being that you have managed their expectation.
Schedule your day around your high pay of activities and manage the expectations of others, go on be brave, turn off you phone for an hour, turn off your email for an hour…..the world will still be there when you turn them back on!!
There is a great quote that goes something like this "whatever you achieve in this life is all your fault, what would you be happy to take the blame for?" I'm not sure who said it but it's brilliant.
Let's face it, footballers blame the referee, students blame their teachers, the old blame the young, employees blame their bosses, criminals blame society, the people blame the government and so on and so on. Every day, every week and every month we waste enormous amounts of time and energy blaming others leaving little or nothing left for personal growth and development.
Only when you accept personal responsibility for your attitudes, actions and subsequent outcomes can you really influence the way you want to live your life and design your future success. No one says it will be easy and most definitely events and circumstance outside of your control can have a negative impact on your emotions, but how you react in that situation is a matter of choice. Eleanor Roosevelt said "no one can make you feel inferior without your consent" No one can make you feel anything unless you choose to let them, personal responsibility, your ability to respond to circumstance is a choice you make, no one can steal or take it away from you.


"Apis Habitat" is the name we have chosen for the Habitapis building project. The site is close to natural water springs and the border between the urban and agricultural areas. It has an area of 2100 square meters including 200 square meters of building area.
With the "Apis Habitat" project we will be able to save approx. 80% of the drinking water and 75% of electricity.


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Wednesday 06 November 2019 12:10 am
City Moves for 6 November – Who's switching jobs at Quadrant, Trend Micro and Liontrust Asset Management?
By: City Moves
Send your appointments to citymoves@cityam.com
Today's City Moves includes Quadrant, Trend Micro and Liontrust Asset Management
UK real estate asset management and development company Quadrant has appointed Rowan Jenkins as partner. Rowan specialises in development and project management and brings 25 years' experience in delivering large-scale retail, commercial and residential developments, including managing acquisitions, concept design, planning approvals and project delivery. Tristram Gethin, founding partner at Quadrant, said: "Having worked on major projects in both Australia and the UK, Rowans joins Quadrant bringing a strong project delivery background, new ideas and a fresh way of thinking to some of our projects such as 30 South Colonnade at Canary Wharf and a number of new acquisitions."
Cybersecurity solutions firm Trend Micro has appointed industry expert Jay Coley as its new UK technical director. Jay's cybersecurity career started with an 11-year stint in the US Navy, during which time he took a degree in Computer Science and Information Technology, before moving into internet service provider network engineering. Jay then worked at Prolexic Technologies where he led the firm's global security architect team, and was instrumental in growing revenue from $11m (£8.6m) to $70m within just four years. Commenting on his move, Jay said: "Trend Micro's vision, extensive security portfolio and amazing team proved irresistible to be a part of. I'm excited to help Trend Micro achieve its security goals and vision."
Liontrust Asset Management has appointed Martyn Jones as fund manager on its sustainable investment team. He has also been appointed co-manager of the Liontrust Sustainable Future (SF) UK growth fund, SF European growth fund, the SF Pan-European growth fund and the firm's UK ethical fund. Martyn has been with the sustainable investment team since 2012, during which he has been responsible for thematic analysis, stock picking and active ownership of several of the firm's themes. He is currently undertaking a Masters degree in sustainable leadership at the Cambridge Institute of Sustainable Leadership. Commenting on the appointment, Neil Brown, fund manager at Liontrust, said: "Integrating environmental, social and governance factors into fundamental company analysis is detailed and complex work. Martyn's deep understanding of this dynamic field has been a tremendous asset to the team for many years and we welcome him to fund management."


We help families develop learning environments at home so children can flourish.
The workshops are for parents/carers covering subjects and themes most relevant to children's learning, well-being and development. Our workshops provide practical and simple techniques that parents can use on a daily basis to support their children at home. These workshops are all delivered by experienced teaching professionals.
Our parent talks give you an opportunity to hear some of the most distinguished academics or experts in their field discuss a topic in depth. These talks are always followed by Q&A sessions, giving parents the chance to ask questions and contribute to the debate.
Thanks so much for last night. It was so helpful and I really feel I have the heads up, it really made me think.
Our son is in reception and reading together was always nice, but at times extremely frustrating. Having attended and picked up a handful of invaluable techniques, it's easy to see his interest and development have really improved.
Presenters were excellent and provided brilliant tangible examples. I feel more armed to tackle situations at home.
I attended the Growth Mindset talk in St Albans - I thought it was excellent.
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to you tonight. Thank you very much.


OFF GRID LIVING!  This is an amazing fully off grid site built home.  Glass back splash and custom flooring throughout.  3 wood stoves to comfortably heat this home. For cooling, open up windows at night and then close everything down during the day, will stay nice and cool in home during summer months. This home is equipped with a burglar alarm that is not in service at this time. 40 acres of land to make your own. Several out buildings, a two car detached garage as well RV hook ups for your friends and family to enjoy a visit to the beautiful white mountains. Come take a look, you won't be disappointed!
Direction: Bourdon Ranch Road to right on Ripple (across from air park entrance). Left on Raven, right on Grant, follow Grant to the left, .2 miles to right between fences, 1.4 miles to end.


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Tanker STELIOS K Hijacking – Upgraded to Kidnapping
ESSCom forms task force against robbery at sea
157 Iran-backed Houthi naval mines removed from Red Sea
Alarabyia News Reports The Arab Coalition has removed a naval mine placed in the south of the Red Sea by Iran-backed Houthis on Saturday.
The coalition said that 157 naval mines that have been randomly deployed by the Iran-backed Houthis, the mines have been discovered and removed. The coalition added that the Houthi militia continues to threaten maritime navigation and global trade in the Bab al-Mandab strait and the southern Red Sea.
Earlier this week the Arab Coalition successfully intercepted and destroyed two explosive-laden boats in the Red Sea, launched by Iran-backed-Houthi militia in Yemen, Spokesperson Colonel Turki al-Maliki said on Wednesday
The spokesman said the boats were launched from Hodeidah Governorate, which the Houthi militias use "as a base to launch ballistic missiles, drones, booby-trapped remote-operated boats, as well as the random deployment of sea mines in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and a violation of the provisions of the Stockholm cease-fire agreement in Hodeidah."


A unique light and silky day moisturizing cream especially created to include the powerful anti oxidant and moisturizing properties of Vitamin C contained in African Marula Oil. African Heirloom plant extracts combine in this excellent facial moisturiser to help smooth and protect the skin; an excellent choice for a healthy and radiant complexion.
Gently massage into the face and neck after cleansing and toning.
Aqua, Pentylene Glycol, Hydrogenated Olive Oil Cetyl Esters, Cetearyl Alcohol, Vegetable Glycerin, Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) Oil, Macadamia Ternifolia (Macadamia) Nut Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Oil°, Squalane, Cetearyl Glucoside, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat Germ) Oil, Croton Lechleri (Dragons Blood) Resin Extract, Panthenol, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Gluten, Cera Alba (Beeswax), Caesalpinia spinosa (Tara) Gum, Colloidal Silver, Rosa Canina (Rosehip) Oil°, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Root Oil, Beta-Carotene, Pelargonium Graveolens (Geranium) Oil°, Sclerocarya Birrea (Marula) Oil, Adansonia Digitata (Baobab) Oil, Linalool, Limonene, Citronellol, Geraniol. °Organically produced. *Denotes components of essential oils.


Hope all my East Coast friends are hanging in there – grace and strength to you who are in difficult circumstances.
Intended Primary Audience – Fellow preachers who don't preach weekly.
My previous post on preaching dealt with the praises and pitfalls associated with preaching, especially for those of us who don't preach weekly. This post I want to tackle the other side.
First, the effort that it takes to be a "weekly preacher" is incredible and I tip my hat to those that preach those 40-50 times a year. The preparation involves so much more than simply digging through commentaries and outlining and scripting and delivering. And when you start factoring in that you do this year after year and do not want to sound like last year – there is more energy spent. Then there are the countless other duties that preaching pastors have, it's an incredible responsibility – I don't know you do it – may the Lord continue to bless and strengthen you and your congregation.
Preaching is a tricky thing – and it is actually difficult. Aside from perhaps a lecture at school (that you not only chose to attend, but pay to attend) or a work presentation (which you get actually get to attend), the weekly sermon is incomparable. We just don't choose to sit in a room full of people listening to someone for 30-40 minutes uninterrupted week after week for free.
Then there's you as the preacher who stands up in front of a large group of people and talk for 30-40 minutes without any commercials, without any laugh-track, without any explosions, without any celebrities endorsing you, without any of the gratuity our media has conditioned us to – you simply get up there and talk.
Obviously this being my blog, I don't speak for anyone else (including my friends or anyone I've served with in the past, currently serve with, etc.) but It's been good for me to write about preaching as it's forced me to think and put words to some of this.
If you are like me, I've come across so much stuff regarding dealing with the feedback to sermons. Our homiletics courses, preaching seminars, magazines, sites, books on preaching/teaching have offered many good words but for whatever reason it never feels like enough. How do we handle the feedback, the praises, the criticisms, the in-between comments, the awkwardness, etc.?
I've been in ministry for almost 13 years now. I'd say in my early years, I was really relying on the feedback. Then I went through a season that more or less thought, "I gave the message God laid on my heart" and walked away and let the encouragements and rebukes wash over me. The latter started off healthy but later I was discovering that not only was I becoming numb but (for me) it was a self-defensive mechanism that was distancing myself from community.
I am a firm believer that the messages, stories and themes of pop-culture serve as modern day scripture. Really.
I know, I know sounds a bit of a reach but here's what I mean.
I think the title of the post describes my preaching style quite accurately. Of course, I would hope terms like Christ-centered, Biblically-rooted, Spirit-led, and a few others would work in there as well too.
– I'm not sure I preach often enough to warrant the posts.
– Some blog posts I read on preaching bug me and I don't want to bug you, well maybe some of you.
– Lastly, these posts have the potential to come across as defensive or as an apologetic.
But lately I've been thinking that I may have something to offer others and it's in this respect that I am creating this/these posts. I think what I can offer is some of my experience and thought process of how I am intentionally trying to craft messages for the underchurched and overchurched. It's been my experience that they tend to be drawn to similar things (and bothered by similar things).
Where Have All the Great Churches Gone?
In the previous post I echoed a question that some have asked regarding where have all the great Presidents gone? If you missed it, you can read my thoughts on the possibilities and the question itself but at the end of the post I mention that I am more concerned with a different question and that is, "What happened to all the great churches?" I meant it rhetorically but it got me thinking so I thought I'd unpack that a little.
The first question is usually asked in conversation informally longing for the days of old. And the latter is usually asked from a pulpit or from some type of a stage or found in a book that is going to attempt to alter your perspective on the church, discipleship and what it really means to …. (insert book's thesis here). Btw, a number of these books (and the people asking the question) are great, some not so much.
Now, let's get some of the obvious things out of the way – certainly there are a number of great churches today. Secondly, the standard of measuring the greatness of churches deserves many more words than I intend on giving. So for the sake of simplicity, I'm merely suggesting that great churches are those that are deeply committed to following Jesus, rooted in Scripture and boldly and effectively proclaiming the good news of Jesus in their community and throughout their world.
The point of this post is that we don't get too hung up on the question but move forward being intentional about being communities that truly love others and faithfully follow Jesus. But before we get there, we should allow ourselves to be humbled by the question, then motivated to live its answer in a way that is great in Christian Kingdom sense, not great in the world sense. Here's a bit of what I mean.
There's a question that's often asked in pastor circles that goes likes this, "If you church suddenly closed down, would anyone in your community miss it?" It's often met with a groan of fear, while the internal monologue worries over "Would we be missed??" It's a question that gives small and mid-size churches a great deal of anxiety and it calls for all sorts of questions in larger ones.
I'm a big fan of the missional church conversation and I remember talking with a pastor whose church he described as "very missional." They were very intentional about reaching out beyond their four walls and serve the community. He actually used this question as part of their mission statement, "We want to be a church that would be missed if we left the community." I was dialed in as he told me that their building (that they inherited from a congregation that ceased to gather so they gave them the property for a $1) is used by various organizations in the community like AA, ESL, various Moms Groups, Girl Scouts even, and various other support groups.
I asked a couple questions regarding the interaction between the church community and these groups that met. He admitted there was very little but they were very comfortable with that. I was too, in the Christian sense but as I left for home, I couldn't help but think that if this church closed down, these groups wouldn't really miss them, they would only miss the free meeting space that the church approved.
I'm certainly not saying that those who participate in such groups should also be required to worship and tithe on Sundays in order to continue meeting there. I don't believe in attaching such strings. Also, I still think this pastor has a great church and I still think they are on the right track of being missional and so forth but what I am saying is that these are not great examples of fulfilling their mission.
To go back to the earlier question that laments why isn't our church "great" anymore. Greatness isn't exclusively found in high attendance, building projects and an energetic atmosphere. In that sense, the church may have been large, but may not have actually been great. Certainly, those are all good things but I think we've seen how such "results" do not always give answers to the questions being asked.
Greatness is not to be equated with indispensable. There is nothing in the created in the world that is actually indispensable. As theists, we would say that only the existence of a Triune God is actually indispensable. Some might say this is circular, I'll suggest that it is merely logical but in the Christian perspective, only God is indispensable.
Consider if we apply the question to outside the Church. Which company could we as a nation really go without? Which college/university if it were to suddenly close down would truly impact our society? Which institution is so great that if it were dissolved would truly bring ruin to us?
If Harvard closes down, students will apply to other Ivy League schools, if Apple loses it all, we'll buy Samsung. If Facebook becomes the new MySpace, something else will become the new gathering point(s) of social networking.
Nothing in this world is so great that it is truly indispensable.
Those churches that really want to be great, must learn what it means to be "last" in this sense. Such communities need to be committed to "be great" in being sacrificial, great in loving, great in intentionally reaching out in a way that is truly Christian.
There are many churches that desire to be that – but I doubt any of us would say we are satisfied with how sacrificial, how loving, how far-reaching we are.
May we do more, give more, be more for the sake of the Kingdom of God.