text:
67 Islamist Terrorist Plots Since 9/11: Spike in Plots Inspired by Terrorist Groups, Unrest in Middle East
Report Terrorism
April 22, 2015 5 min read Download Report
Authors: David Inserra and James Phillips
In late February, Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Somalia, was arrested in Ohio and charged with various terrorist activities. Last week, news came that a Federal Grand Jury had indicted Mohamud on additional federal charges, including providing material support to terrorists and making a false statement involving international terrorism. With the indictment came greater details of Mohamud's travel to Syria, where he was trained by a terrorist group, and his return to the U.S. to target American soldiers in a terrorist attack.
This plot brings the total number of Islamist terrorist plots and attacks against the U.S. homeland since 9/11 to 67, with this indictment coming on the heels of three other plots that were foiled within 17 days of each other.[1] With terrorist plots spiking in the U.S., Congress must work to ensure that U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies have the tools they need to stop these terrorist plots. It is believed that Mohamud is the first American to have been trained by Syria-based terrorist groups to return to the U.S. in order to engage in terrorism. He is likely to be followed by others if current trends persist.
An International Terrorist Plot
Mohamud's family came to the U.S. from Somalia when he was young and he became a naturalized citizen in February 2014. According to the indictment, Mohamud applied for a U.S. passport about one week later in order to join his brother Aden, who was fighting with the Nusra Front, the al-Qaeda franchise operating out of Syria. Prior to his travel to Syria, Mohamud communicated with an unnamed person about his plans and eagerness to join Aden, and his own willingness to kill any U.S. allies in battle. Mohamud discussed with this unnamed person which terrorist group would be best to join and how Mohamud could smuggle money to Aden.[2]
In April 2014, Mohamud purchased a one-way ticket to Athens. During a connecting stop in Istanbul, he left the airport and began communicating with Aden about where he was staying and how he could travel to Syria. Through a contact of Aden's, Mohamud was picked up and smuggled into Syria. The indictment seems to indicate, though, that Mohamud intended to join ISIS not the Nusra Front, since he did not seem to meet up with his brother, and he subsequently posted photos on his Facebook page that appeared to have ISIS logos. Aden was killed sometime in May or early June 2014.[3]
After being trained in hand-to-hand combat, small arms, and explosives, Mohamud told an unnamed person that an ISIS cleric told him that he should return to the U.S. to commit terrorist acts. Mohamud told this unnamed person that he wanted to kill Americans, especially military personnel, police officers, or others in uniform, such as prison guards, and that he would soon join Aden. Upon returning to the U.S., Mohamud talked with a second unnamed person about his training and time in Syria. He also "talked about doing something big in the United States. He wanted to go to a military base in Texas and kill three or four American soldiers execution style."[4] The second unnamed person believed that Mohamud was trying to recruit him for this plot.[5]
Implications of the Plot
This plot is the fifth Islamist terrorist plot foiled inside the United States in 2015 and, like most of the plots this year, targeted military personnel and facilities. Since 9/11, 19 attacks or plots have targeted the U.S. military on U.S. soil, making the military the most common target for Islamist terrorists. This plot is also the 56th homegrown plot, since Mohamud was radicalized here in the United States. Mohamud is also the first terrorist since 2010 to have trained in a terrorist training camp and then targeted the U.S. homeland. Perhaps most worrying, Mohamud appears to be the first terrorist to have emerged from the conflict in Syria with orders from his superiors to attack targets inside the U.S.[6]
More than 150 American passport holders have traveled to Syria, or attempted to travel there, to join the fighting, along with more than 20,000 fighters from more than 90 countries.[7] Many of those with American passports are believed to have joined ISIS or the Nusra Front. Some, like Mohamud's brother Aden, have died in the fighting, but most of the rest are expected to return to the U.S. in the future, where they pose a potential terrorist threat.
Both the Nusra Front and ISIS espouse a hostile anti-Western Islamist ideology that calls for terrorist attacks against the United States. The leader of ISIS, self-proclaimed caliph Abu Bakr Baghdadi, threatened to launch attacks against the U.S. homeland in July 2012, when he warned Americans: "You will soon witness how attacks will resound in the heart of your land, because our war with you has now started."[8] Al-Qaeda also formed a new unit of veteran terrorists to recruit some of the Western foreign fighters in Syria and train them to conduct terrorist attacks in the countries in which they hold legal citizenship. This unit, dubbed the Khorasan group by U.S. officials, is embedded in the Nusra Front and is particularly interested in recruiting fighters who hold American passports.[9]
One other concerning detail is the integrity of the naturalization process. Mohamud was in the process of planning his travel to Syria when he became a U.S. citizen. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev became a citizen several months before the Boston marathon bombing, while older brother Tamerlan's application was pending due to Department of Homeland Security questions about an FBI interview with Tamerlan on possible connections to Chechen terrorists.[10] Faisal Shahzad, who plotted to bomb Times Square, became a citizen about one year before he was arrested.[11] In each of these cases, the radicalization process had begun before naturalization. U.S. citizenship is an honor to be bestowed on those who love America and the principles for which it stands. These recent failures to prevent radical and radicalizing individuals from becoming U.S. citizens, undermines the integrity of the naturalization process. Unfortunately, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is tasked with executing President Barack Obama's various immigration executive actions, making it unlikely that the agency will have the time or resources to secure the naturalization process.[12]
Congress's Role in Securing the Homeland
With every week bringing news of another foiled Islamist terrorist plot, the U.S. must ensure that its counterterrorism efforts are as sharp as they can be. Congress must:
Maintain essential counterterrorism tools. Support for important investigative tools is essential to maintaining the security of the U.S. and combating terrorist threats. Legitimate government surveillance programs are also a vital component of U.S. national security and should be allowed to continue. The need for effective counterterrorism operations, however, does not relieve the government of its obligation to follow the law and respect individual privacy and liberty. In the American system, the government must do both equally well.
Support stronger action against Islamist terrorist groups. The United States and its allies need to take more effective steps to isolate, undermine, and defeat ISIS and the Nusra Front. Greater intelligence and law enforcement cooperation is needed to uncover and neutralize terrorist plots, curtail the flow of foreign fighters to Syria, and monitor the activities of foreign fighters that have returned to the United States and other countries.
Ensure security at home. The U.S. cannot rest in its counterterrorism efforts. With a recent spike in Islamist terrorist plots bringing the total to 67 since 9/11, the U.S. must ensure that it is doing all it can to protect Americans, their liberty, and their way of life.
—David Inserra is a Research Associate for Homeland Security and Cyber Security in the Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for Foreign and National Security Policy, of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy, at The Heritage Foundation. James Phillips is Senior Research Fellow for Middle Eastern Affairs in the Allison Center.
[1] David Inserra and Charles D. Stimson, "Three Terrorist Plots Disrupted in Three Weeks: 66th Islamist Plot Reconfirms Scope of Threat," Heritage Foundation Issue Brief No. 4386, April 16, 2015, http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2015/04/three-terrorist-plots-disrupted-in-three-weeks-66th-islamist-plot-reconfirms-scope-of-threat.
[2] U.S. v. Mohamud, case no. 2:15-cr-00095-JLG (Oh. 2015), https://s3.amazonaws.com/s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1900046/mohamud-indictment.pdf (accessed April 20, 2015).
[5] Many details are not available in the indictment, such as which military facility in Texas was being targeted, the timeline of events whereby Mohamud returned to the U.S. and began his plotting, and the details of his arrest. These may be held for security reasons or to protect ongoing intelligence operations.
[6] Julia Preston, "F.B.I. Interview Led Homeland Security to Hold Up Citizenship for One Brother," The New York Times, April 20, 2013, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/21/us/tamerlan-tsarnaevs-citizenship-held-up-by-homeland-security.html (accessed April 20, 2015).
[7] Nicholas J. Rasmussen, Director National Counterterrorism Center, "Current Terrorist Threat to the United States," testimony before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, February 12, 2015, http://www.nctc.gov/docs/Current_Terrorist_Threat_to_the_United_States.pdf (accessed April 21, 2015).
[8] James Phillips, "A Resurgent Al-Qaeda in Iraq Threatens U.S. Attack," The Daily Signal, July 26, 2012, http://dailysignal.com/2012/07/26/a-resurgent-al-qaeda-in-iraq-threatens-u-s-attack/.
[9] James Phillips, "The Rise of Al-Qaeda's Khorasan Group: What It Means for U.S. National Security," Heritage Foundation Issue Brief No. 4281, October 6, 2014, http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2014/10/the-rise-of-al-qaedas-khorasan-group-what-it-means-for-us-national-security.
[10] Brian Bennett and Richard. A. Serrano, "Tamerlan Tsarnaev's Citizenship Application Was Pending," Los Angeles Times, April 21, 2013, http://articles.latimes.com/2013/apr/21/nation/la-na-nn-citizenship-ice-boston-20130421 (accessed April 21, 2015), and Ann O'Neill, "The 13th Juror: The Radicalization of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev," CNN, March 30, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/27/us/tsarnaev-13th-juror-jahar-radicalization/ (accessed April 21, 2015).
[11] "Bomb Suspect's Citizenship Raises Questions about Naturalization Process," Fox News, May 4, 2010, http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/05/04/times-square-suspects-citizenship-raises-questions-naturalization-process/ (accessed April 20, 2015), and Greg Miller and Jerry Markon, "Radicalization of Times Square Suspect Was Gradual, Investigators Say," The Washington Post, May 7, 2010, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/07/AR2010050700194.html (accessed April 21, 2015).
[12] David Inserra, "DHS's Focus on Amnesty a Greater Threat to Security than Budget Impasse," The Daily Signal, January 26, 2015, http://dailysignal.com/2015/01/26/dhss-focus-amnesty-greater-threat-security-budget-impasse/.
David Inserra
Former Policy Analyst for Homeland Security and Cyber Policy
Visiting Fellow, Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies
Times Square Attack Reminds Us That Terrorism Still Looms
Showing Strength in Face of Growing Threats Key to Preventing Another 9/11
Could America Have Avoided Tragedy in Afghanistan?


First time dominating another girl.
Now hold the leash and ask her to kiss your feet.
Exactly! , you see how much fun it is to own a slave? Do you feel the thrill in having such power?
Now she will do anything you want. She will serve you and worship you as her goddess.
You'll use her for your training. Once you are ready we will get you your own slave. You can choose female or male salve …or even both.
OK, I'll show you how to use the whip now and how it helps you to make your slave obedient.
You can come out darling. Your dinner is ready and served.
See, I'm such a good wife. I made your dinner. You should appreciate it.
You have 10 minutes to eat and to go back to the cage.
Harry up. I have to get ready for my date. He will pick me up in one hour.
It's the last time you call me by my first name. I am your goddess, not your wife anymore.
You will be punished now. Start counting slave!
Are you crying? However, we have 97 more.
You know you must get this punishment, try to focus on something else. It will ease your pain.
What is your name slave? Answer me!
Did you swallow your tongue in the presence of a goddess.
Of course you did. My presence is too much for you.
Now get your tongue out and kiss anything I step on.
Is there a way to follow you, goddess without signing into gmail; like on tumbler or on yahoo?
My technical slave will check it. if possible i will add it.


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iX1500Smart Wi-Fi Desktop Scanner with Touch Screen
S1300iCompact Duplex Colour Scanner
iX100Wireless Portable Scanner with Wi-Fi
S1100iLightest Mobile ScanSnap in the World
SV600Overhead Scanner for All Types of Documents
ScanSnap Software
ScanSnap Cloud
ScanSnap Celebrates 5 Million Unit Shipments!
Singapore, November 6, 2018 – PFU, a subsidiary of Fujitsu Ltd., the world's leading scanner manufacturer, is proud to announce that as of September 2018, global shipments of its image scanner, ScanSnap have passed the 5 million mark1.
The scanner that digitizes information with just one touch, ScanSnap was first released in 2001. From its release, it has been used in various regions throughout the world, in North America, Latin America, Asia, Oceania to EMEA, and has succeeded in achieving 5 million global shipments.
ScanSnap has been evolving continuously since its first release. Constantly reflecting customer opinions to the best of our ability, the ScanSnap iX1500 was launched in October as our flagship scanner with a completely new interface, 5 years after the launch of the iX500. This has led to the new ScanSnap generation with a new brand message, "Capture today. Advance tomorrow.", representing our desire to assist customers in to expanding their network of people and information.
"We would like to thank all our loyal customers and partners. Without your support, we could not have reached this remarkable milestone. We will continue to develop innovative products and assist customers in obtaining the ideal lifestyle and workstyle. ScanSnap, of course, will remain playing a big part, and will keep evolving to suit customer needs." said Managing Director, Fujio Nishida, PFU Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd.
Fujitsu is the leading Japanese information and communication technology (ICT) company, offering a full range of technology products, solutions, and services. Approximately 140,000 Fujitsu people support customers in more than 100 countries. We use our experience and the power of ICT to shape the future of society with our customers. For more information, please see http://www.fujitsu.com.
About PFU Limited
PFU Limited, a subsidiary of Fujitsu Limited, is a $1.3 billion global enterprise that designs, develops, manufactures, and globally markets computer hardware, peripheral products, enterprise software and systems. PFU is one of the world's leading document scanner companies which offer a broad portfolio of document scanners for personal, desktop, workgroup and high-volume production environment. PFU has been engaged in the document imaging scanner business for more than 30 years. PFU Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., renamed from PFU Technology Singapore Pte. Ltd, was established in Singapore in 1994. It is responsible for the marketing, sale and quality control of Fujitsu document scanners in Asia Pacific. For more information, please see https://www.pfu.fujitsu.com/en/.
1. The number encompasses ScanSnap shipped from July 2001 to the end of September 2018 (counted by PFU).
Copyright 2018 PFU Asia Pacific Pte Ltd. All rights reserved. Fujitsu and the Fujitsu logo are registered trademarks of Fujitsu Ltd.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
All Customers
How BCBS NC drives business value with bots
Needed an enterprise-wide tool that would increase efficiency without raising costs
Adopted agile methodology and RAD model to support the implementation of digital process automation
Uplifted revenue by half a million dollars
"We are getting better and better in automation toolkits and we're really excited about the next generation of Pega Infinity because I think some of the tools to manage the robots and the dashboards are only going to get better."
Samantha Bureau-Johnson Vice President, Business Process Solutions & Project Management Office
The Business Issue
As healthcare costs continue to rise, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBS NC) was seeking to drive value for the organization without rising premiums. Needing to scale while keeping costs low, the health insurer wanted to use tools to build capacity without having to hire additional employees. BCBS NC needed to build an enterprise-wide capability that would help increase efficiency for existing employees and drive bottom-line performance.
To increase efficiency at scale while keeping costs low, BCBS NC implemented digital process automation, including robotics. Working with Pega and Cognizant, the health insurer adopted an agile approach to development. Cognizant specifically recommended the Rapid Application Development Model (RAD model) to help deliver results quickly. Working within the new development framework and to ensure customer-centricity, BCBS NC had to rework its strategy to be business driven and IT-enabled.
Within 140 days, the organization built its first-generation center of excellence (COE) to handle several processes (e.g. change management, risk management, workforce management, customer management). To remove and prevent future silos, the organization also built a governance framework as it built the COE. By implementing digital processes like natural language processing and machine learning processing, BCBS NC could uplift consumer experience and employee satisfaction.
Implemented two bots in one quarter – now have 600 digital assistants and 14 robotic solutions
Automated the release of funds process in Finance and saw a revenue uplift of more than $500,000
Saved more than 500 hours of manual input on sending letters out to members
Freed up employees to do more important and valuable work
Learn more about bots – tiny technology, big impact
Read our whitepaper on why it's time to embrace DPA
See robotic automation in action. Watch the demo
Pega Workforce Intelligence
Get actionable insights into how work gets done.
Area prodotto: Automazione robotica Industry: Sanità Sfida: Eccellenza operativa


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Saudi Prince "pimps his ride" and drops a cool $480+ million on private A380
by jeffreyFebruary 5, 2014
So, this is the coolest thing I've ever seen: a Saudi Prince is giving a whole new meaning to the term "making it rain" by dropping more than $480 MILLION US DOLLARS on a "private jet." And, not just any private jet, the biggest passenger airplane to ever fly… an Airbus A380:
When the A380 was released in 2007, the average price was around $295-315 million–it was reported that the Saudi Price Al-Waleed bin Talal (net worth $20-30 billion, no big deal) bought the plane around this time. As of 2014, the average price is closer to $400 million for just the plane:
Doesn't suck to be this guy
And, if you're just 1 man, why would you want the 525 to 800 seats that come standard on the plane? Might as well call in the Xzibit of the uber-wealthy, Edése Doret Industrial Design who "designs Aircraft & Yacht interiors for Heads of State, Private Clients, Governments, VIP, Corporations & Airlines" to convert that monstrosity into a 100-passenger-max flying palace:
The upgrades designed by Edése Doret are said to cost somewhere in the $100 to $150 million range. Here's a glimpse at why:
While the following video isn't a rendering of the Saudi Prince's A380, it gives you an idea of what Edese Doret can do to a relatively smaller (but still giant) plane. Their Boeing 757 refurb:
Other pictures from the Prince's A380 Project:
"Doret designed a 14-seat dining table for the Prince and his guests, complete with cushy chromed chairs and a glass chandelier, all rendered in soothing neutral tones." source: curbed.com
"Adjacent to the dining area, a lounge area boasting three sofas, a pair of chairs, a shiny coffee table, and four rather hideous light fixtures. As if guests weren't impressed enough already by a half-billion dollar private jet, there's an illuminated nook in the divider to hold a scale model of the owner's absurdly large motor yacht. A huge flatscreen television, mounted on the wall opposite the ship model, provides more pedestrian entertainment." source: curbed.com
No Prince's flying Airbus palace is complete without a flying throne room
VIP Saloon
VIP Saloon Dining Area
News, Saudi Arabia
A380, Airbus
A380AirbusNews
Top 20: Longest Airbus A380 Routes in the World
Up to 6 Award Seats Per Flight on Etihad A380 First Apartment London –> Abu Dhabi
Tons of Etihad First Apartment A380 Award Space Available Abu Dhabi – Melbourne
Lincoln Restaurant Review – Washington, D.C.
Anonymous on Etihad A380 First Apartment – Flight EY 460 Abu Dhabi-AUH to Melbourne-MEL – Part 1
Anonymous on Top 7: Longest domestic US flights
Anonymous on Secret Travel Trick: Free Istanbul City Tour During Turkish Airlines Layover
Anonymous on Secret Travel Trick: Free Hotel Layover in Istanbul with Turkish Airlines
Anonymous on Top 16 Longest Emirates Fifth Freedom Routes: Coming to a City Near You


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Sarah Koenig says the third season of 'Serial' will be 'different'
BY Amanda | FILED UNDER: Everywhere Else | ON September 12, 2018 | TAGGED: podcast, serial
"Season 3 is very close to my heart. The stories are really good, and we're really excited to tell them to people. Then again… if you're looking for a murder mystery, this is not it." —Sarah Koenig https://t.co/ZErfeGxLnn
— Serial (@serial) September 6, 2018
Former Concord Monitor reporter Sarah Koenig, now the host of the podcast Serial, recently sat down with Elle Magazine to discuss the upcoming third season of the series, which will premiere on Sept. 20. Subsequent episodes will be released each Thursday.
Koenig, along with her co-reporter Emmanuel Dzotsi, spent more than a year inside Cleveland's criminal courts, learning the ins and outs of cases. The first two episodes will drop on September 20, with new episodes released each Thursday after that (though you can listen to a trailer right now).
Season 1 of Serial detailed the murder of Maryland teenager Hae Min Lee and the conviction of her ex-boyfriend, Adnan Syed. Koenig began to question if Syed had been wrongfully convicted of a crime he didn't commit, and many listeners seemed to agree. In the time since then, Syed has been granted a new trial, largely thanks to Koenig's reporting.
Season 2 took a look at the case of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.
Catch up on the last two seasons of Serial, as well as Season 3, here.


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Smoke Lake är en sjö i Kanada.   Den ligger i provinsen Alberta, i den centrala delen av landet,  km väster om huvudstaden Ottawa. Smoke Lake ligger  meter över havet. Arean är  kvadratkilometer. Den sträcker sig 4,1 kilometer i nord-sydlig riktning, och 4,7 kilometer i öst-västlig riktning.

I omgivningarna runt Smoke Lake växer i huvudsak blandskog. Trakten runt Smoke Lake är nära nog obefolkad, med mindre än två invånare per kvadratkilometer.  Trakten ingår i den boreala klimatzonen. Årsmedeltemperaturen i trakten är  °C. Den varmaste månaden är juli, då medeltemperaturen är  °C, och den kallaste är december, med  °C.

Källor

Insjöar i Alberta
Insjöar i Kanada större än 5 kvadratkilometer

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


In the bowl of a stand mixerl, beat the butter, sugar and salt together until light and fluffly. Then add the eggs one by one, mixing until fully incorporated between each egg. Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of flour if the mix becomes less homogenous. Then add the Greek yogurt and beat. Mix the flours and then sift them before folding them in the dough. Finally add the milk, lemon zest and lemon juice. Scrape sides of bowl well with a spatula and mix one last time.
Lightly grease and line with baking parchment 4 20cm tins (or one tin with high edges). Divide the dough between the tins, smooth the top with a spatula and bake for about 30-40 minutes at 160°C (bake for 1h20 for a single cake, cover with baking paper to prevent the top from burning). The cakes are done when a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Let the cakes cool for 10 minutes before removing from their tin on a rack. Allow to cool completely.
Once the cakes are cool, heat the water and sugar in a saucepan over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Cut the heat and add the lemon juice. Soak the cake with the syrup using a brush.
Pile the cakes, inserting a layer of icing between each cake. Then cover the whole cake with a very thin layer of icing. Place the cake in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Cover the cake with the white fondant and cut the excess with a sharp knife.


Sabermetric Research: The updated "Wages of Wins"
My copy of the updated paperback edition of "The Wages of Wins" arrived today. A list of differences between the old edition and the new can be found at the authors' website here; generally, some of the tables are updated for the 2006 seasons, but the content is almost all the same.
The most significant difference is that the authors changed the formula for QB Score. An interception used to be worth –50 yards; now it's only worth –30. Their explanation is that when they reran their regression with better data – specifically, starting field position of drives – the coefficient came out different. Actually, it came out to –35 yards, but the authors use –30 because it's easier to remember.
Another small change I happened to notice is in the discussion of NBA players' playoff performances. The first edition of the book noted that "Win Scores" drop in the playoffs because of team defense improves in the post-season. I argued that the difference was probably due to the fact that playoff teams face only other playoff teams; the absence of games against cellar-dwellers would reduce offensive stats. The authors apparently agree – they now added a line to say that "teams in the playoffs tend to be better, with better defenses." However, a few sentences later, they let stand an assertion that teams play better defense in the post-season. That implies that the defense of an individual team improves. I don't know if they still think this is true, or if they've changed their minds about it.
While I'm here, one other thing I noticed (in both editions) that I hadn't mentioned before.
At one point, the book looks at Michael Jordan's year-by-year record in the regular season, and compare it to his playoff performance. It turns out that in 11 of the 13 seasons, his performance declined. The authors note, of course, that performance does decline in the playoffs, by an average .03 units of "Win Score per Minute." But if you adjust by the .03, Jordan still only goes from 2-11 to 5-8.
However, the decline of .03 is an overall average for all players. But Jordan's overall score is more than twice the average. If that's the case, shouldn't his decline also be twice the average -- .06 instead of .03? That is, the average player drops by 23% (.03 divided by the average .128) because of the better competition. Shouldn't Jordan drop by the same percentage, rather than by the same raw number?
If you adjust his numbers by .06, instead of .03, Jordan now goes 10-3, which now coincides with his reputation as a clutch playoff performer.
Now, I don't know for sure if you should indeed adjust Jordan by .06, or .03, or some other number entirely. You'd probably want to examine players with high Win Scores to see what the typical decline is. In any case, without knowing the right number, it's hard to analyze anyone's clutch performance this way.


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This is an introduction of the basic techniques to the eCommerce style. Nonetheless every situation may need specific focus and various approaches. Hence it is always recommended to learn more regarding the uniqueness of your service and pick accordingly.
If you are constructing ecommerce from scrape, after that you need to think about items as the base of your future ecommerce web application. However, and this is possibly your case, in ecommerce circumstances we frequently see tradition ecommerce site, which gets the job done, as well as your duty is to offer some impulse as software program developer in your IT department to ecommerce integration advancement.
Globally eCommerce is on the increase and even more as well as more firms are concentrating their organisation into the eCommerce remedies field. When intending to start an eCommerce venture, the first thing to make a decision on is the eCommerce architecture. Prior to jumping into the service let us take an appearance at which architecture is finest matched for your eCommerce solution.
If you have to include your eCommerce solutions to an existing website, you can try the hybrid style. In hybrid, your eCommerce site utilizes SaaS while other capabilities are customized constructed as well as held independently with combination done through a common header and also footer.


Within the last year, there have been a number of studies published on the benefits of yoga for breast cancer survivors. All the studies point to an improvement in quality of life (QOL). In a pilot study at the University of Pittsburgh, involving 25 survivors with low QOL, recently published in Complementary Therapy in Clinical Practice, researchers found that those who had low emotional health had significant improvement in depression and anxiety scores.


In 2007, Deanna and high school sweetheart of 48 years previously, John Christiansen, reacquainted in New Hampshire, each having lived all over the country and then having been alone for several years—and, delighted at finding the important things in common, fell deeply in love, and married. Each had the desire to leave city life permanently and live in the country in New Hampshire, and soon they settled in a charming post-and beam house on a modest lot with beautiful woods. With the freedom of retirement, they continue reading widely, cooking together, laughing a lot, discussing world events and history, and practicing some country and craft ways—John, the art of heating with a woodstove, with its accompanying harvesting, splitting, stacking, and carrying of firewood, small vegetable gardening, designing and erecting a massive truckport worthy of Winters, drawing up plans for a walking path to the river, and taking up the banjo; Deanna, writing, learning to sew simple pieces, making herbal oils and vinegar, and beginning classes with a local potter. They love visiting historic sites and museums, and traveling to see more of New England, and family and friends over much of the nation, from time to time. They are blessed to have found worship, prayer, and community service nearby with other Christ-followers.
Deanna with the harvest of some plantings in New Hampshire's short growing season.


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Home > other > Busk in the spring and autumn
Busk in the spring and autumn
Henry David Thoreau said a famous quote, The failures and reverses which await men - and one after another sadden the brow of youth - add a dignity to the prospect of human life, which no Arcadian success would do.Why does Busk in the spring and autumn happen?This sentence brings us to a new dimension to think about this problem.
Zhang Jie once said a famous say, Don't imagine that every word you say is true, but it is true that every word you say is true.However, even so, the emergence of Busk in the spring and autumn still represents a certain significance.This makes us think deeply.
Liang Qichao said a famous quote, Success is easy to win, Shifeng, on stage, shallow and deep knowledge of people like Yan, who thought of hanging.Busk in the spring and autumn seems to be a coincidence, but if we look at the problem from a larger perspective, it seems to be an inevitable fact.Although this sentence is very short, it makes me think about it.
Mencken once said a famous say, Loyalty can be simply defined as an illogical belief in an impossible situation.This issue has caused wide public concern for Busk in the spring and autumn.This inspired me how to develop next.
Faraday Inadvertently said such a sentence, I can't say I do not cherish the honor, and I admit that it is very valuable, but I never had the pursuit of these honor work.The so-called Busk in the spring and autumn, the key is how to deal with Busk in the spring and autumn.Although this sentence is very short, it makes me think about it.
Tagore said a famous quote, We should not be at any price to keep our friendship, so that it is defiled. If you have to sacrifice friendship for that great love, that's no way to do it; but if you can keep it, it will be a perfect state.In life, if Busk in the spring and autumn appears, we have to face the fact that it appears.With these words, we have to examine this issue more carefully!
Ovid said a famous quote, The rich bring honor, create rich friendship, where are the poor people.Busk in the spring and autumn, what will happen, what will not happen.This sentence brings us to a new dimension to think about this problem.
Zuozhuan said a famous quote, The husband, and also the name of germany. Germany, the foundation of the state.Busk in the spring and autumn has become a hot topic among people,especially among the young and heated debates are right on their way.This inspired me how to develop next.
Someone said a famous quote if you find a job that you enjoy, then you won't have to work another day.With these problems, let's take a look at Busk in the spring and autumn.This seems to answer my doubts.
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Meridian Test Prep
Exam Preparation and Admissions Consulting
Below, you'll find the terms and conditions that will govern our sessions together.
Contract for Tutoring Services
Meridian Test Prep offers bespoke tuition for clients seeking to excel on standardised exams. By agreeing to begin tuition, all clients agree to be bound by the following terms and conditions.
Parties: The Parties to this agreement are as follows:
Name: Dr Patrick C Armshaw (Hereinafter referred to as 'the tutor')
Email: PatrickArmshaw@gmail.com,
The Student:
Name:_______________________________________________
Address:_____________________________________________
Email: _______________________________________________
Phone:_______________________________________________
Fees: The Student agrees to pay all fees promptly upon completion of tutoring sessions, unless alternative arrangements are made by common consent of the parties. Fees may be adjusted at the Tutor's sole discretion solely upon written notice being given the Student, becoming effective seven calendar days after such notice has been given. Under no circumstances will the Tutor retroactively alter agreed upon fee schedules or seek to alter fees for lessons paid for in advance. Under no circumstances will the Tutor charge any fees for travel expenses except by prior agreement in writing with the Student. Unless otherwise agreed beforehand and evidenced in writing, lessons shall be paid for according to the following fee schedule:
In-Person Tuition shall be charged at the rate of £70/hour.
Online Tuition, whether conducted via Skype, WhatsApp, Google Hangouts, or some other application to be selected via mutual agreement, shall be charged at a rate of £65/hour.
Payment: The Student agrees to make payment immediately upon completion of a session, unless alternative arrangements are arrived at by mutual consent of the Parties in writing.
Payments may be made in cash or via electronic bank transfer, using bank details to be provided.
Schedule of Lessons: Lessons shall commence at a mutually agreed time and location after the coming into force of this contract and continue thereafter on an ad hoc basis as agreed by mutual consent by the Parties.
Cancellation of Lessons: Where prior-arranged lessons must be cancelled, the Parties agree to the following terms:
Lessons Cancelled by the Student: Lessons may be cancelled at the request of the Student by giving at least 24-hours notice, in which case no fees will be incurred. Lessons cancelled with less than 24-hours notice will be charged at the full rate.
Lessons Cancelled by the Tutor: The Tutor may cancel lessons by giving notice of at least 24-hours notice to the client, in which case no fees will be incurred. Lessons that have been pre-paid will be rescheduled at the earliest mutually agreed upon time and place, failing which the Tutor will offer a full refund for the missed session.
Late Arrival: Both Parties agree to make every effort to arrive for lessons on time and ready to begin work.
Late Arrival by Student: Where a lesson is delayed by the late arrival of the Student, the fee for the agreed upon session will be governed under the relevant subsection of section 3; no reduction in fee will be granted for any missed time.
Late Arrival by Tutor: Where a lesson is delayed by the late arrival of the Tutor, the missed time will be compensated for by the extension of the lesson, where this is agreeable to both Parties, or made up at a different time and place by mutual consent. Failing this, the Student will receive either a pro-rata credit for future tuition or, where this is not possible, a pro-rata reduction in the fee owed. Where a lesson has been paid in advance, and none of the prior alternatives are possible, the Tutor agrees to refund the specified pro-rata amount to the Student.
Obligations of the Parties: Both Parties agree to the following undertakings:
Obligations of the Tutor:
The Tutor shall undertake to prepare lessons thoroughly and to structure them so as, in his professional opinion, to optimise time to the benefit to the Student.
The Tutor shall keep confidential all personal or sensitive information of the Student, not giving any such information to any third party without the express prior written consent of the Student.
The Tutor shall not assign any duties or obligations to any third party without the express prior written consent of the Student.
The Tutor shall at no time be required or obliged to execute homework or assignments on behalf of the Student.
Obligations of the Student:
The Student undertakes to assist the Tutor in identifying areas in which the Student requires specific tutoring.
The Student agrees that any homework, assignments or exercises specified by the Tutor are an integral part of the tuition, and as such shall undertake to complete such work on time.
No Warranties: The Tutor makes no promises or warranties with regards to the student's performance as a result of any tutoring provided.
Status of the Tutor: It is expressly understood that the Tutor is engaged as an independent contractor and not as an employee of the Student. The Tutor shall be responsible for his insurance and for fulfilling all statutory declarations and contributions regarding income tax.
Termination: This contract may be terminated upon the giving of at least seven days prior written notice by either party. Where lessons have been prepaid, in exchange for a discounted rate, the Student agrees to complete the contracted hours where possible: refunds in this case will only be granted upon frustration of the contract's purpose.
Relaxation of Terms: No relaxation, indulgence, waiver or release by either party of any of the rights in terms of this agreement on one occasion shall prevent the subsequent enforcement of such rights and shall not be deemed to be a waiver of any subsequent breach of any of the terms of this agreement.
Whole Agreement: This agreement constitutes the entire understanding between the parties regarding the matter thereof and the parties waive the right to rely upon any alleged express or implied provision not contained herein. Any alteration of this agreement must be in writing and signed by both parties.
Minors: Where the Student is a legal minor, the parent/guardian shall enter into this agreement on behalf of the student, agreeing to all terms and conditions contained herein on behalf of the Student.
Meridian Blog
Critical Reasoning – The Art of Arguments April 13, 2020
On Maths and Meaning April 2, 2020
A Quick Language Lesson March 29, 2020
On Average(s) March 23, 2020
Hercules and the Tortoise March 16, 2020
Meridian Test Prep,


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I Hate Christmas All Episodes Download 720p, 480p Watch Online
December 7, 2022 December 7, 2022 by Hemant
I Hate Christmas 2022For Christmas dinner with her family, Gianna must find a boyfriend within 24 days to avoid awkward discussions about her love life.
Young and unmarried Gianna (Pilar Fogliati) lies to her family about having a boyfriend to avoid awkward conversations about her love life. He must now find a partner within 24 days before Christmas dinner with his family.
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I Hate Christmas Web Series Download, a Christmas-themed romcom to release soon on Netflix. It is the first Italian Christmas series produced by Netflix. During her family's Christmas gathering, Gianna is under pressure to find a suitable suitor. The question is whether or not Gianna will be successful this Christmas.
Christmas is always a special time for Netflix fans. Like the routine schedule, Netflix has handpicked some of the best Christmas content for us this year as well. It's the season of celebration! Christmas is right around the corner, and that means "I hate Christmas"! Next week, Netflix will release its brand new drama series.
here you I Hate Christmas Series Download Filmywap Can watch the trailer online. The film shows that the Indian audience has matured, that it wants authentic stories and not true stories.
Some popular films like Warrior Nun Season 2, 1899, House Of The Dragon, Willow etc. have also become its victims.
Netflix will release the romantic comedy I Hate Christmas which is originally an Italian Christmas-themed series, on Thursday, December 7, 2022. To give you more idea about this upcoming series, let me tell you that this Norwegian TV series titled Hajem til July.
Christmas is not just a festival of cakes and Santa Claus, it is also a season of meeting loved ones. Christian families have a long tradition of hosting family dinners and cozy get-togethers. Gianna is a nurse who enjoys life to the fullest, and she is happy in her single and simple life.
Who needs a lover when you can enjoy life alone? Unfortunately, Gianna's relatives don't think so! Because of this, she hates family dinner, but this time she could not tolerate it.
I Hate Christmas Web Series To December 7, 2022 at 09:00 am IST Has been released worldwide. On the other hand, if you have a Netflix subscription, then you can stream it online and watch it. where you want it download You can also do it on your mobile or computer.
Netflix will be releasing a new show called I Hate Christmas that proves my theory that no one can hate Christmas.
I hope you must have already planned how you will celebrate Christmas eve with your near and dear ones as we are about to enter the month of Christmas very soon.
There isn't anyone in this world who can hate Christmas, but Netflix is coming out with a new series called I Hate Christmas Season 1 to prove my theory wrong. Netflix will release the first Italian Christmas-themed series in December 2022.
let's know now I Hate Christmas Web Series What is the full cast of If you are looking for I Hate Christmas Series Cast, you have come to the right place. Pilar Fogliati, Andrea Di Stefano, Nicolas Maupas are the main characters in the series. It will be available on Netflix on 7 December 2022.
We want to tell you about a web series, if you are not familiar with it, then let us tell you that once released it will be dropped on December 7, 2022, which is very easy to complete. The series can be seen on Netflix, but let us tell you that Netflix releases a new baby serial only once or thrice a week, when it comes with a very good bag, which is a very good web series.
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artists Pilar Fogliati Andrea Di Stefano Nicolas Maupas
director Armando Buttafava
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"I Hate Christmas" Season 1 stars the lovely and talented Pilar Fogliati as she explores the concept of love and joy! It started with Gianna lying to her parents and relatives. Looks like someone pretended to be boyfriend! The first season of the show is about to release this month, but today we are discussing season 2. Is Season 2 being renewed?
With December drawing to a close and Christmas approaching, we are inundated with loads of movies and TV shows that mark this festive season every year. Among the series to watch this December is I Hate Christmas, a comedy signed by Netflix starring Pilar Fogliati, shown on the social network with its first trailer, which also reveals its release date. In the meantime, let's discover the plot and cast of Netflix's Christmas series, which will release on December 7.
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With Christmas knocking on the door, Netflix has unveiled the official trailer for a new comedy series starring Pilar Fogliati. As we enter December and Christmas approaches, we are presented with a number of movies and TV shows to watch. We'll be seeing a handful of Netflix comedy series in December, including 'I Hate Christmas', which premiered on the social network and revealed its first trailer and release date.
The protagonist of this comedy series is Pilar Fogliati, who plays Gianna. In the present, Gianna is thirty years old, who hates Christmas with all her might. She hates it more than anything else.
Now is the time to ask her all the questions she raises, especially the questions she is in her life. She is happy in her single life with good friends and enjoys a job. For Christmas, she decides to bring someone home because she doesn't like being judged for not having a boyfriend or a family.
distributors netflix
Release date 7 December 2022
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In I Hate Christmas, Netflix's first Italian Christmas series, Pilar Fogliati (Quori) plays Gianna, a woman who doesn't buy into the sentimentality of Christmas and is content to be single during the season.
As she declares in the new trailer for I Hate Christmas, a Lux Video-produced TV show debuting Dec. 7, "I'm proud of my independence. I don't need a lover to be happy."
In the form of an advent calendar made up of blind dates and impromptu outings, Gianna spends 24 days searching for the man who takes her to Christmas dinner to learn more about herself and love. Based on the Norwegian play Christmas with a Stranger, the series takes place in the luxurious setting of Venice.
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Brian McFadden Will Be Coming To Malaysia To Perform With Boyzone, NOT Westlife
Is there drama between them?
By: Iylia Adreena
Boyzone/totallychaos.com
Bet y'all didn't see this coming, huh?
2019 seems to be the year of the boyband (and girlband) as many of our favourite groups have either reunited for a special performance or announced a worldwide comeback tour.
For us Malaysians, we had British group Blue earlier this year and soon, we'll be seeing Boyzone and Westlife in the flesh.
If you're a die-hard fan of Westlife, you'd know that they're now a four-piece group after Brian McFadden decided to leave in 2004 to focus on his family and solo career.
Many who adored McFadden probably had hoped he would rejoin the group for Westlife's upcoming 'Twenty Tour' and guess what, you might just get to see the man himself in Malaysia.
The Irish native will be heading to our soil soon but sorry Westlife fans, he'll be here to perform with Boyzone instead in June.
Yes, we didn't see that coming either. Is there any bad blood between his former bandmates? Is he throwing shade at Westlife? We'll never know for sure.
According to a report by the New Straits Times, McFadden was announced as a special guest for Boyzone's 'Thank You and Goodnight Farewell Tour'.
There was no official word as to why the 39-year-old decided to ditch his old band and join another band on tour.
Whatever the reason may be, he may not be "Flying Without Wings" but you can still watch him perform "No Matter What" happens.
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You Snooze, You Lose: Westlife Live In Malaysia Concert Tickets Have Sold Out!
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Fists Up! Malaysia's First MMA Film 'Sangkar' Is Coming Soon


text:
View all in Investments
Robo Advice
P2P Investing
Super Funds
Acorns to launch its own superannuation product
Alison Banney
Posted: 21 February 2018 12:01 am
The micro-investment app's new super product, Acorns Grow Australia Super, will be available from March.
Micro-investment platform Acorns has today announced it will launch its own super product to sit within its existing app. The Acorns app is popular with Australians, particularly millennials, for its simple approach to investing by rounding up everyday transactions and adding the loose change into an investment portfolio on their behalf. The super product, Acorns Grow Australia Super, will follow in the same footsteps aiming to simplify superannuation.
Managing director of Acorns George Lucas said the new super product, like the existing investment product, has been built with young Australians in mind. "We see younger Australians want to take a more active interest in their financial future and we want to help them understand that superannuation should be seen as their money, to invest in a way that aligns with their values and their lives."
"The millennial generation, which our user base skews heavily towards, have traditionally been viewed as poor savers, but we don't believe that stereotype at Acorns Australia. Hundreds of thousands of young people are building up a level of savings for retirement. Similarly, we're often told millennials do not engage with their superannuation, but we are confident we can also bust that myth with the upcoming launch of Acorns Grow Australia Super through the app," he said.
Acorns isn't the first product trying to grab a piece of the growing millennial superannuation pie. For example, there's Spaceship super, launched in January 2017, which has a strong focus on technology assets saying it invests where the world is going not where it has been. And GROW Super, launched a few months later in May, also targets millennials, armed with a modern user experience including the popular loose change round-up feature and the ability to customise and self-select insurance cover.
Lucas is confident the new Acorns super product will stand out in the market, citing its performance history and user-friendly platform as key advantages. Plus, there's the loyal user base of 400,000 Acorns users. "We have a performance track record, number one. So the average user of the Acorns portfolio has been getting about 13.99% p.a since inception. Everything will be through the Acorns app as well, including signing up and joining. It will be displayed in the same way, you can change portfolios in the same way, all that functionality that you have with Acorns will be replicated for the super product."
The new super product will have the same fees and portfolio options as the existing investing product. The app currently offers six portfolio options ranging from conservative to aggressive, and including a socially responsible portfolio option known as the Emerald Portfolio. While the new super product will not support the popular round-up feature that users have grown to love with the investing product, Lucas said it wasn't what customers wanted. "Our main priority is to keep the same functionality that the acorns app has, and to keep the same portfolio that Acorns users have been using, under a super wrapper. That's what customers have been asking for."
Users will be able to just use the existing investment product or sign up for only the super product, or they can choose to have both products. Users can register their interest in Acorns Grow Australia Super from today, and the product will be made available from March.
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Picture: Supplied by Acorns


text:
People are being encouraged to turn Blue Monday into Brew Monday
A former Supreme Court judge has been criticised after telling a woman with stage 4 bowel cancer her life was "less valuable" than others during an on-screen discussion on the price of coronavirus lockdowns. Jonathan Sumption, a prominent anti-lockdown campaigner, made the comments during a BBC One programme on Sunday while responding to a question posed by host Nicky Campbell on whether lockdown was "punishing too many for the greater good"....
Two Iranian nationals arrested after meth lab found in Lakemba
Iranians Hamed Yarmohammadi and Niusha Ojaghfaghihi have been arrested after allegedly trying to import 250 kilograms of methamphetamine through overseas cargo before processing it in a suburban warehouse.
ANDREW PIERCE: Cap'n Hindsight lacks foresight on council tax
ANDREW PIERCE: There was a rare policy announcement last week from Captain Hindsight, aka Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who called for a block on council tax increases in April.
Mr Navalny was detained on arrival in Russia after spending five months in Germany recovering from nerve agent poisoning.
Best-seller joins Samaritans to send socially distanced message at Waterloo
Best-selling author and illustrator Charlie Mackesy has teamed up with the Samaritans to send a positive socially-distanced message to travellers on Blue Monday. The charity's volunteers are usually out and about across the rail network today - which is regarded as one of the hardest days for people's mental health - running their Brew Monday campaign encouraging people to take time out with friends or family. But Covid restrictions means the...
Councillors up in arms over plans to name estate after English baron
De Clare Gardens in Caerphilly, south Wales, has been named after Gilbert De Clare, an Englishman who built a castle in the town to keep the Welsh under his control.
Police break up fight in London between 40 men involving knives and a sword
A brawl between 40 men using knives, bottles and a sword has been broken up by police in west London. Police initially reported that two swords had been used in the fight in Southall in the early hours of Sunday, but later corrected this to "at least one sword". At 8pm on Sunday, police released a statement saying that they had been called at "around 0200hrs to a large group of males fighting with knives and at least one sword in the area of...
Indonesian rescuers on Sunday retrieved more bodies from the rubble of homes and buildings toppled by a strong earthquake, raising the death toll to 78, while military engineers managed to reopen ruptured roads to clear access for relief goods. More heavy equipment reached the hardest-hit city of Mamuju and the neighboring district of Majene on Sulawesi island, where the magnitude 6.2 quake struck early Friday, said Raditya Jati, the National...
Vegan entrepreneur sparks planning row after applying to build pool
Ophelia Froud, a former BBC TV producer, and her husband Jolyon submitted plans to build a pool on the boundary with their neighbours' gardens at their home in Dorset.
'We're filled with hope': Bidens open inauguration events with message of positivity after Capitol violence
President-elect Joe Biden and his wife Dr Jill Biden opened Sunday night's "We The People" concert – and 2021 Inauguration Week – with a message of hope and unity, telling their audience how they were "filled with hope" at the days, months, and years ahead. Acknowledging the "difficult transition process" faced by the incoming Biden administration, Dr Biden expressed compassion for Americans who "have experienced loss over the last year", which...
Egyptian archeological mission discover Queen Neari in funerary temple
An Egyptian archeological mission discovered a funerary temple in Saqqara Necropolis, Eygypt, on Saturday 16th January dating back over 4,000 years, belonging to Queen Nearit, wife of King Teti. The expedition began in 2007.
Thousands of families struggling with home learning are being offered free high-speed broadband following a partnership between internet provider Hyperoptic and dozens of local authorities across the UK. Families in 37 local authority areas, from Tower Hamlets in London to Newcastle and Leeds that are struggling with remote learning due to poor or no internet will be offered the chance to have a high speed connection installed with no usage...
Preparations continue in DC for inauguration of Joe Biden
Preparations are continuing in Washington DC for the inauguration of Joe Biden as president and Kamala harris as Vice-president after Donald Trump leaves the White House.
Mass testing of regions to bring lockdown to an end by spring
Testing could be used to move the worst-hit areas of the UK down the tiers, which could be implemented as the third national shutdown comes to an end in March.
The risk of political violence increases when people are unable to agree on facts, a leading author on disinformation has warned, as the US braces for more protests from Donald Trump supporters ahead of Joe Biden's inauguration.
People aged over 70 and those listed as clinically extremely vulnerable will be invited to receive coronavirus vaccinations starting this week.
Twitter suspends Marjorie Taylor Green, QAnon-backing Republican
Twitter has temporarily suspended the account of the Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green, who has gained a large following on social media, in part by posting incendiary videos and comments. Greene, a Republican businesswoman, is the first candidate who expressed support for the baseless, far-right QAnon conspiracy theory to win a US House seat. Greene in November won the race for Georgia's 14th congressional district after her...
Gavin Williamson's 'incompetence' has left children hungry – Labour
Children have gone hungry because of Gavin Williamson's "incompetence" as Education Secretary, Labour has said, ahead of a Commons debate on free school meal provision. Shadow education secretary Kate Green accused her opposite number of letting parents down "time and time again". Labour will use an opposition day debate in the Commons on Monday afternoon to say that eligible families should be guaranteed to receive the full value of free school...
A computer cursor clicks on the instruction "Add as friend", and our screens open up to a theatre set where two millennials sing: "We came here to find friends, and just like that we felt a little less alone." Facebook's digital motifs – thumbs up symbols and love hearts – float around them to give the impression they are inside the social media website. This staged musical concert, streamed by Southwark Playhouse, takes Facebook's mission to...
Scrap benefits cut to stop millions falling into poverty, Boris Johnson told
Boris Johnson cannot claim to be "levelling up" the UK if he persists with a planned cut in universal credit for 6 million families, an influential thinktank has said, as pressure mounts on the prime minister over the issue from within his own party. The Resolution Foundation joined opposition parties, anti-poverty campaigners and many Conservative MPs in urging the government to extend the £20-a-week uplift introduced during the first wave of...
Will Donald Trump be a spent political force when he is replaced on Wednesday by Joe Biden after a single term in office?
Yan Bingtao shocks John Higgins to win Masters title
The 20-year-old rising star from China won a thrilling contest 10-8 in Milton Keynes to pocket the £250,000 first prize - almost four times his previous biggest payday.
US state capitals largely quiet after bracing for violent protests
Law enforcement officers far outnumbered protesters at state capitol grounds on Sunday, as few Trump supporters who believe the president's false claim that he won the 2020 election turned out for what authorities feared could be violent demonstrations. More than a dozen states activated National Guard troops to help secure their capitol buildings following an FBI warning of armed demonstrations, with right-wing extremists emboldened by the...


Aims: Out of the Blue offers regular weekly access to a wide range of participative arts activity for people with mental health needs. It aims to increase involvement in the arts both as participants and audiences, in the process developing new skills and fostering improvements in social, emotional and physical wellbeing. It works on a co-production model, including people as active agents in developing bespoke programmes of arts-engagement geared to promoting social inclusion, self-determination and self-confidence, personally and artistically.
We believe the most vulnerable should not rely on the whims and eccentricities of funding and grant giving systems. Our work is transformational, but the complex needs of participants can result in it being viewed as comparatively expensive. This risks making it potentially unattractive to grant funding models which in part judge outcomes for quantitative not qualitative impact. Such funding mechanisms negatively impact upon long term sustainability and outcomes of some of our most challenging work.
The Association for Suffolk Museums (AfSM) and Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT), developed a collaborative working partnership through a yearlong project; Creative Heritage in Mind. The project was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and delivered arts and heritage courses in four Suffolk Museums. The project sought to establish ways that health care and heritage sectors can come together to meet a shared aim of contributing to people's well-being through engagement in culture, heritage and art.
USE evaluation outcomes to develop an ongoing project.
CREATE and employ a robust evaluation framework.
SUPPORT people with mental health problems.
PROVIDE an early intervention facility.
Start's 'Inspiring Minds' service is for people suffering with mental health conditions ranging from mild /moderate to more severe and enduring problems. This programme consists of weekly studio-based creative workshops and encourages members aged 18 plus to access various learning opportunities and pre employment skills supporting them to recovery which ultimately leads them back into the community.
Aware of the need for access to meaningful art activity in an environment that was outside of statutory health institutions, the facilitator considered how she could enable people who are experiencing mental ill health, and who often feel excluded from the communities in which they live, the opportunity to become involved creatively at the very heart of our city.
To aid further research and development of X-System into additional uses to support more rapid, successful and economic outcomes in health care.
For adults experiencing mental distress or other long term conditions to work collectively in high quality participatory arts projects to create art works for local communities.
Through the above, for participants to improve wellbeing, learn new skills, build confidence and self -esteem, be more ready to meet challenges, to reduce isolation, be more active in the community, and improve their life chances.
To enrich people's lives through creation of high quality artworks.


The socio-economic and ecological importance of conservation of the environment is incontestable; however, total environmental conservation is an ephemeral goal, if development is to take place. Hence, the need to appraise the current levels of pollution, and environmental protection legislations in... The way forward to ameliorate the effects of environmental imbalance, environmental challenges and climate change are the minima r eduction of (CFCs) and (GHG�s) in the three tiers of the ecosystem.
Availability and Sources of Environmental Statistics in Nigeria Most environmental data in Nigeria are collected under the mandate of the various Government Ministries/Agencies, Environment NGOs, and Private Enterprise.
In the hierarchy of environmental control, pollution prevention and minimization of wastes are more desirable to pollution control. Most industries and individuals in this country have erroneously claimed that why they are not able to treat or control their wastes or reduce pollution is that government has not provided the necessary facilities for the management of such wastes.


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Tag Archives: Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka legislative election, 2015
Sri Lanka held its legislative election on 17 August. The election was billed by the Western media, such as BBC, as a fight between the premier appointed by the incumbent president and the ex-president whom the current one defeated.
The United People Freedom Alliance, led by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, won just 95 seats out of 225. The United National Party (UNP) of the premier, Ranil Wickremesinghe, won 106. This is good news for President Maithripala Sirisena, who is actually of the same party as Rajapaksa, but defeated him at the head of a pre-electoral coalition consisting of the UNP, and parties representing ethnic minorities, including Tamils.
Official results at SriLankanElections.com are different from those in the BBC report, although they agree on the scale of the UNP lead.
In the preceding legislative election, in 2010, the United People Freedom Alliance won 144 seats (60.3% of the vote) to 60 for the UNP (29.3% of votes).
Given that the president has the authority to dissolve the legislature, I was surprised that Sirisena did not go to the polls earlier following his victory in January. I believe the legislative term is six years (is that the longest anywhere for a first/sole chamber?); the preceding election had been in April, 2010.
The system of government is president-parliamentary. That is, the premier is responsible to the legislative majority, but also subject to dismissal by the president. In the case of Sri Lanka, the powers of the presidency are enormous, and one of Sirisena's campaign promises was to reduce presidential power. It is unclear to me what, if any progress, has been made in this front (beyond what JD reported here), or is likely to be made.
Posted in Asia (Central & South/S.W.)	| Tagged Maithripala Sirisena, Sri Lanka | 1 Comment
Choosing executive format in Sri Lanka and Mauritius
Posted on 21/01/2015 by jdmussel
comments are now open
As previously mentioned on this blog, Sri Lanka recently elected Maithripala Sirisena as president. Among his campaign promises was a pledge to initiate a series of constitutional reforms, including to the judiciary, parliament's electoral system, as well as the reform of his own post, the executive presidency. Though his manifesto is a little vague[1], it seems the intended reform is a return to parliamentarism.
Sri Lanka adopted semi-presidentialism in 1977, with the first direct presidential elections being held in 1982. The current constitution puts the president at the centre of the political system. Specifically, it is president-parliamentary, the semi-presidential variant which empowers the president both to appoint and to fire the cabinet, which is also subject to parliamentary confidence. This executive format has combined with other institutions to make for an exceptionally powerful presidency – some common in such systems (such as a dissolution power), other unusual among democracies of any executive format (such as the ability to call and set the date for a snap presidential election, as well as the ban on MP defection, which has allowed presidents to remove dissident MPs from their party from parliament, not to mention the recent amendment allowing a president to run for a third term).
This constitutional arrangement has been a source of contention for most of its existence; in fact, abolition of the executive presidency and a return to parliamentarism has already been promised by various politicians since the 90's, when Chandrika Kumaratunga was twice elected on that very platform. The new constitution which consequently emerged from multi-party talks was shelved by the withdrawal of the United National Party from the talks, preventing the necessary 2/3 majority from materialising. Sirisena's constitutional reform proposals face the same challenge; although his broader agenda seems to be picking up momentum in parliament, where he has secured a majority as a result of defections, his new coalition still falls far short of the necessary supermajority. If his proposals fail to pass, calling a snap parliamentary election looks like the obvious strategy.
Interestingly, voters in neighbouring Mauritius were recently offered a constitutional reform in the opposite direction. Like Sri Lanka, the country was a Commonwealth Realm before becoming a republic, but it is still governed under its inherited parliamentary system. Its electoral system is multiple-seat plurality or bloc voting (also known on this blog as Multiple Non-Transferable Vote or MNTV) along with a small number of members appointed from among the highest-voted losing candidates in order to ensure ethnic and religious minority representation. Over the last decades, elections have increasingly been fought between pairs of variable pre-electoral coalitions.
The 2010 general election was won by the Alliance de l'Avenir, consisting of Labour (PTR), PMSD and MSM, which faced the MMM-led Alliance du Coeur. The Alliance d'Avenir dissolved in 2012, leaving Labour governing alone. Before calling the December, 2014 election, Labour forged an alliance with MMM, with at its heart an agreement to establish a semi-presidential 'Second Republic', an idea which has been put forward before. Though the proposal is said to be inspired by the French model (as it had been in Sri Lanka), it, too, differs from it significantly. It would have elected the president, along with a vice-president, by plurality for a seven-year term (in France, it was reduced to five in 2002), while seemingly increasing the president's control over the cabinet to a level higher than standard premier-presidentialism,[2].
Under the agreement, if the alliance were to achieve the necessary three-quarters majority in parliament, the constitution would be amended to bring about the change, with Labour leader, Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam resigning to present himself as a presidential candidate and MMM leader Paul Berenger would replace him as Prime Minister. In the event, the Labour-MMM alliance lost the election to the opposition Alliance Lepep, led by MSM's veteran politician and longtime prime minister, Anerood Jugnauth. As it stood opposed to the 'Second Republic' proposal, the Alliance Lepep's victory puts it off the agenda for the foreseeable future.
[1] From Sirisena's manifesto: "The new constitution structure would be essentially an Executive allied with the Parliament through cabinet instead of the present autocratic Executive Presidential System", which I read as parliamentarism, but does not explicitly rule out that the emasculated presidency will remain directly elected.
[2] "The Prime Minister shall give effective consideration to any recommendation of the President to appoint and revoke a Minister." Some commentators have argued this amounts to president-parliamentarism.
Posted in Asia (Central & South/S.W.), Presidential & Parliamentary Systems	| Tagged Maithripala Sirisena, Mauritius, Sri Lanka | 2 Comments
Presidential elections with "distribution" or with ranked choice
In preparation for a grad seminar next week, I am re-reading Donald Horowitz's 1990 article, "Comparing Democratic Systems"* in which he argues against Juan Linz's critique of presidentialism as being too much of a "winner takes all" form of democracy.
In the piece, he speaks approvingly of alternatives to plurality and majority forms of direct executive election, and mentions the rules in Nigeria and Sri Lanka, which he says encourage the winner to appeal broadly. This has been on my mind anyway, with the surprise result in Sri Lanka's presidential election yesterday. It is not clear to me how much these various cases of more complex rules for direct election have mattered in practice.
On Nigeria, Horowitz says:
To be elected, a president needed a plurality plus distribution. The successful candidate was required to have at least 25 percent of the vote in no fewer than two-thirds of the then-19 states. This double requirement was meant to ensure that the president had support from many ethnic groups. (p. 76)
Subsequently, a similar "distribution" requirement has been built into the presidential election methods of Kenya, where the rule requires 25% of the vote in at least five of the eight provinces. This did not prevent a winner in 1992 from having only 36% of the national votes. Nor did it prevent a serious crisis over the 2007 election.
I believe there is, or was, a distribution requirement in Indonesia, although the IFES description of the system in 2014 just says two-round majority.
The Sri Lanka system as described by IFES:
Under the contingent vote system, voters may rank up to three candidates. If no candidate wins a majority in the first round of counting, ballots whose first ranking are eliminated candidates are redistributed to the next-ranked candidates on those ballots. The winner is the candidate with the most votes after this second round of counting.
(I gather that means that third preferences come into play only for voters whose first two choices were both eliminated? As I understand it, all candidates but the top two are immediately eliminated when no one has a majority.)
Horowitz says about the adoption of this system in 1978:
It was expected that presidential candidates would build their majority on the second and third choices of voters whose preferred candidate was not among the top two. This would put ethnic minorities (especially the Sri Lankan Tamils) in a position to require compromise as the price for their second preferences.
It would seem that this motivation has never been realized; in fact, in the just concluded election, the winner did obtain support from Tamils and other minorities–but in the first preferences. Just as if it were a plurality system–or so it seems to me.
I do not think actual second or third preferences have come in to play in any Sri Lankan election, although I can't claim to know. As for the "distribution" requirements, I wonder if any reader knows of elections in which campaign strategy was seen to be shaped by the rule. Of course, I generally believe rules shape strategy and behavior! But my limited knowledge of these cases does not lead me to be convinced that the outcomes have actually been different from what they would have been under more standard direct election rules.
* Journal of Democracy, Volume 1, Number 4, Fall 1990, pp. 73-79.
Posted in Electing presidents	| Tagged distribution requirement, Donald Horowitz, Sri Lanka | 20 Comments
Sri Lanka: Rajapaksa defeated
This is a surprise. And a pleasant one. Incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka has conceded defeat to Maithripala Sirisena.
The Department of Elections said that of 3.26m votes counted so far, Sirisena had taken 51.3% and Rajapaksa was trailing on 46.9%.
Although there obviously were other candidates in the race, evidently the ranked-choice ballots did not come in to play (again).
Posted in Asia (Central & South/S.W.), Electing presidents	| Tagged Sri Lanka | 1 Comment


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Twitter Tries Making Trump Realize That He Has Lost The Election To Biden, That Too On His Own Tweet!
Trump tweeted that there had been a "cesspool of fake votes" and "unthinkable and illegal" activity during the election and in response, Twitter added a warning label: "This claim about election fraud is disputed". Twitter's also flagging his tweets with the fact that Joe Biden won the election.
By Sadiqa Anum
Trump has still not believed that he has lost the elections to Joe Biden. Donald Trump is persistent of his fallacious allegation of fraudulent elections.
Trump has made numerous accusations of voter fraud following his loss to the 78-year-old Biden. He has also demanded that the ballots should be recounted.
Recently, he tweeted to his 88.6 million followers that there had been a "cesspool of fake votes" and "unthinkable and illegal" activity during the election.
On November 16, POTUS insisted once again on Twitter: "I WON THE ELECTION!" Twitter slapped his tweet with a warning: "This claim about election fraud is disputed"
Twitter also provided its users a link to a page offering more information about the results.
I WON THE ELECTION!
Biden's victory was confirmed on December 14, after California's 55 Electoral College votes were counted, meaning he had more than the 270 votes needed to win.
As per AP News, Biden made this speech after his victory was confirmed:
"Once again in America, the rule of law, our Constitution, and the will of the people have prevailed. Our democracy — pushed, tested, threatened — proved to be resilient, true, and strong."
Earlier the warning from Twitter said: "Official sources called this election differently".
Now that the Electoral College has confirmed Joe Biden's win, Twitter has changed this label to "Election officials have certified Joe Biden as the winner of the U.S. Presidential election".
Trump tweet
On December 19, the president tweeted: "The lie of the year is that Joe Biden won!" The false tweet was again slammed with the new warning: "Election officials have certified Joe Biden as the winner of the U.S. Presidential election".
Trump's Tweet
Even though Trump tried his best to claim the elections were fraudulent and even threatened legal action, the national, state, and private election officials have called the election the "most secure" in "American history".
On 12th November 2020, a joint statement from these officials was put forward, stating: "there is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised".
Also read:The Mayor Of Philadelphia Advises Trump To 'Put His Big Boy Pants On' And Praises Biden
Article source: vt.
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Q: JavaScript/jQuery - Convert Image to Base64 I got following Code in jQuery:
$.get("img/background.jpg", function(img){
    // Convert img to base64
    var base64Img = $.base64.encode(img);
});

The Plugin I am using in the example is https://github.com/carlo/jquery-base64 - which is not working at all.
Is there any way to get the Base64 (string) after getting an image in jQuery?
Thank you very much.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


3-11 - A Rate, Not a Date - Epoch Investment Partners, Inc.
Three eleven is not a date; it is a percentage, 3.11%. It was June 13th of 2003 when the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds touched 3.11%, its lowest in decades. That date signaled the end of an era and the arrival of a new epoch: one of rising rates, at an undefined pace for an unknown period of time. Nothing is more threatening to financial asset values than rising interest rates.
For historical perspective, the last time interest rates bottomed was 1946, the year that Congress enacted the Full Employment Act of 1946. That Act required the government and the Federal Reserve to pursue three objectives—full employment, stable prices, and maximum growth consistent with a full-employment economy. Two out of three objectives were realized. However, the goal of stable prices fell by the wayside as the specter of the 1930s loomed large over the shoulders of those executing economic policy, who allowed the relative importance of growth and employment to supersede price stability.
As a result, interest rates rose irregularly from 1946 to 1981, for a total of 35 years. Only when inflation replaced the bogeyman of the Depression era did policy emphasis change. The prime rate in 1981, by the way, was almost 19%.
Paul Volcker, the Fed Chairman at that time, is given credit for breaking that cycle, but the seeds of its disintegration were already sown in the marketplace and inflation would have broken of its own accord at some point. Volcker's actions occurred in 1979; the rate on 30-year Treasury bonds peaked in 1981 at 15% and were still at 13% in 1984, five years after monetary policy changed.
Just as the waning fear of inflation finally caused rates to retreat from the highs of 1981, waning fears of deflation caused them to bottom out in 2003. The fear of deflation arose because of poor job growth, "economic output gaps"1, and the specter of two billion, low-paid Chinese and Indians joining the world economy. Our country began to pursue monetary and fiscal policies with maximum vigor to prevent deflation. In a sense, the Full Employment Act of 1946 was turned on its head. We had stable prices but not full employment or a level of GNP consistent with full employment (hence, the focus on "output gaps" within developed countries).
The effects of these expansionary policies are very visible in today's U.S. economy. Mortgage debt today is $7 trillion, twice the level of 1997, only seven years ago. Consumer debt (largely credit card and auto debt) exceeds $2 trillion, over twice that of ten years ago. Virtually all of this increase occurred when interest rates were declining. Floating rate mortgage debt, increasingly popular, has risen significantly as a proportion of total mortgage debt. For example, over one-third of mortgage applications filed in May 2004 were for adjustable rate mortgages.
When one adds trade and fiscal deficits of almost 10% of GNP, a war whose costs seem limitless, and oil prices at multi-year highs to these consumer balance sheet issues, the resultant scenario is hardly conducive to low inflation and interest rates. Only one conclusion can be drawn from this state of affairs. Interest rates, after falling for over a generation, are going up. This will affect the financial landscape profoundly.
Here are our thoughts. Being long pure interest rate risk is financial suicide. In other words, long-dated U.S. Treasury bonds should be avoided (with the possible exception of TIPs (Treasury Inflation Protected Securities)). Owning a long-dated bond in a period of rising interest rates is a little bit like lead poisoning. At first you take no note, but ultimately it kills you. For example, in the bear bond market of 1946 to 1981, holders of 2 ½% 30-year U.S. Government bonds lost 83% of their principal, measured by purchasing power.
Globalization is a good thing in our view and we have written often on this subject. On a world scale, globalization will lead to increased earnings and productivity. Globalization plays—including agricultural companies, energy firms, infrastructure entities and many others—will be the winners of the next decade.
As an example, twenty years ago, according to one source, there were 60 private passenger vehicles in China3. China now manufactures that many each minute. It is estimated that when, not if, Chinese living in that country's coastal regions (a population of about 160 million people) own automobiles at the same rate as South Koreans, the world will need two new Saudi Arabias just to satisfy their gasoline demand! Energy will be a play for a decade, as will be certain farm commodities such soybeans. Equipment and service providers to these industries should thrive as well.
Of the positive events happening in today's world, most are centered in the Far East. These Asian countries have low labor costs, a highly productive workforce, strong currency fundamentals (unlike ours) and, in the case of Japan and large parts of China, a well-established industrial infrastructure. Asian plays, whether local or not, offer extraordinary return opportunities.
With respect to the economic relationship between the U.S. and China, there likely will be an uncoupling of the symbiotic relationship between trade and Asian bank purchases of U.S. Treasury securities that has existed in recent years. As the Far East's middle class grows and its banking system matures, this linkage should weaken. Increasingly, the region's growth rates will become internally generated, and its economies will no longer be perceived primarily as feeders or mercantile economies to the more developed countries of the world. Investing opportunities will emerge within these economies as the middle class grows.
A consequence of rising interest rates is falling P/E ratios, other things being equal. The remaining drivers of total return for equities will be dividends and earnings. As long as there is a 15% tax rate on dividends, management of many companies will be incentivized to reconsider dividend policy. Microsoft is one recent example; others surely will follow. Dividends matter; companies that offer reasonable yields plus the likelihood of increased earnings can be expected to outperform those companies lacking those attributes.
Free cash flow will replace earnings as the leading analytical metric. We have written on the subject before and will do so again. Free cash flow is, quite simply, a less subjective measure of corporate performance than other benchmarks. Suffice it to say that once free cash flow level is defined, there are only five potential uses—dividends, stock re-purchases, debt pay down, acquisitions and internal capital projects. Which one or combinations will most benefit shareholders? We seek to identify those companies that possess a good business with strong cash flow generation and whose management thinks as a shareholder would.
In summary, an epochal event occurred on June 13, 2003, when the ten-year Treasury bond rate touched 3.11%. That day portended the end of a long era of declining interest rates. The resulting sea change in the economic world will affect asset allocations within both the fixed income and equity segments of investment portfolios. On average, P/E ratios likely will decline with dividends and free cash flow replacing P/E ratios as the most important sources of investment returns. (Expanding P/E ratios explained nearly half of the returns on equity securities from 1980 through 2000.) The changed interest rate climate will eventually impact today's symbiotic relationship between Asia and the U.S. whereby we buy their goods and they buy our paper to finance our deficits so we can buy more of their goods. That relationship will become less stable.
The freight train of globalization cannot be stopped. It is creating significant opportunities to profit, but one must, in many cases, seek them beyond our borders. A one-dimensional regional perspective will no longer suffice for successful investing. Finance is now borderless and it requires a borderless perspective.
1An "output gap" is the difference between the level of GNP and the amount of GNP theoretically possible if all available resources were being fully utilized; e.g., no unemployment, factory operating rates at capacity, etc.
3We assume that this excludes government-issued vehicles.