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Donor - Kerk In Actie
Photocopy machines and maintenance
Beneficiary: Ezz Aldin Dabbagh
Ezz Aldin is the father of three children, living happily in Salah Aldin area in Aleppo city until the war happened.
Since he was young, Ezz Aldin worked with his uncles in repairing and maintenance of photocopy machines, he learned and became skillful in this business.
During the war in 2016, the armed groups entered the area of their residence, fearing for his pregnant wife at the time and their two children, he left everything and moved out. After a year and...
During the war in 2016, the armed groups entered the area of their residence, fearing for his pregnant wife at the time and their two children, he left everything and moved out. After a year and a half of living with their parents, they came back to find an empty house, robbed from everything, but still he considers himself lucky that his house is standing still without structural damage.
Ezz Aldin took his family back to their house after refurnishing it as much as possible in these difficult economic circumstances.
His business also took a hard hit because of the bans on importing during the war, Ezz Aldin and his uncle couldn't import new machinery or the parts necessary to presume their business, at least not without paying high shipping costs. Being the sole provider for his now family of five makes him feel frustrated and overwhelmed with the whole situation.
All that Ezz Aldin needs today to restart his business in the same field, is a little support to purchase the machines and equipment that could allow him to improve his life.
Handbags Manufacture
Beneficiary: Ebrahim Hajj Mohamad Ali Hazzouri
It is the best to work in what you love and be good at it.
Ebrahim Hazzouri shares his home with seven other members; his wife Walaa, their four children; two boys and two girls, his mother and his single sister.
Since he was a young boy back in 1997, Ebrahim worked in making handbags, he used to go to work after school hours, before he dropped out in the sixth grade and devoted himself to work so he can help his...
Since he was a young boy back in 1997, Ebrahim worked in making handbags, he used to go to work after school hours, before he dropped out in the sixth grade and devoted himself to work so he can help his family especially that his father passed away and left five children without any income, which has put big pressure on the livelihood situation.
The family originally lived in Hanano area, when the war started this area was left without any water or electricity, they left to Tartous but he couldn't find any job there so they moved again to Damascus and settled for five years, the rent was very high and it was dangerous because of the mortar bombs. One day in 2016, a shell fell and injured Walaa and the children; eventually they were okay but they still have some scars from that horrifying day.
Ebrahim moved back to Aleppo with his family, they found their house ruined from the inside and everything was broken. They all live now in Maysaloon area, Ebrahim's brother was recruited in the military service so he became the only provider for the family.
Ebrahim currently works in a workshop, he makes handbags from synthetic leather, he wants to get machinery so he can have a bigger percentage from the profit and the income will improve gradually. It is the profession that he is skilled in and he wishes to continue with the support of this initiative that will help him progress and get his life together again.
Beneficiary: Aya Hetalani
Family members: 12
On a January morning in 2013, Aya's life was changed dramatically; her husband Eyad was shot by a sniper while working in an ice cream shop in Bab Al-Faraj area. Aya never had the chance to say goodbye to her beloved partner, she suddenly found herself as a 19-years-old widow with two children; Mohamad was 2 years old, and her youngest (who was named after his father) Eyad was only two months old.
Although she felt heartbroken, shocked and afraid from...
Although she felt heartbroken, shocked and afraid from the vague future she has to face, but in those difficult days, there was no time to grief. She left the city to stay with her in-laws in Al-Dana village. Eventually when she returned to Aleppo, she found herself facing another loss, this time it was her house in Bustan Al-Qasr that became out of reach. Without even a roof to seek shelter under, Aya took her two sons and found refuge at her parents' house. Aya's family had their own share of agony too, her sister was also widowed and living with her children in the family house with her mother and brother and his children, when Aya joined them after losing her home.
Not long after, the whole family was displaced when their house got destroyed by the missile attacks near Jisr Al-Hajj area. However, not every place they rented was safe, in fact Aya and her two kids were injured many times in the head due to the shells' shrapnel, fortunately, none of them had any permanent damages.
When Aya's life changed from being a housewife to a single mother and provider for herself and for her two boys in times of cruel war, she had to do something, it occurred to her that she can learn sewing and tailoring, she was a fast learner and engaged in work but after a while she felt overwhelmed, since this job was paying her in a minimum wage and taking her away from her kids for long hours… That's why Aya turned to hairdressing and makeup, the thing that she always was good at. And to be near her kids, she decided to work from home, their current home has a room she could dedicate for her work to maintain her customers privacy, but at the same time to be around her children when needed.
The only obstacle was the lack of tools and material which nowadays cost a fortune. With a little help Aya will get all the material she needs to meet her customers' requests, and at the same time create a new source of income to help secure a better life for her children.
Beneficiary: Huda Tallise
Since 2005, the 63-years-old Huda Tallise has been working in tailoring. First, she had started to work for someone, but with the start of war her employer immigrated like many Syrians, she found herself looking for a job just to be able to survive.
She managed to find work in a clothes manufacturing workshop, and despite the low salary, the long hours of work, and even being tiresome for her age she had to take it, because otherwise there will be...
Age: 0 years old
She managed to find work in a clothes manufacturing workshop, and despite the low salary, the long hours of work, and even being tiresome for her age she had to take it, because otherwise there will be no source of income for her and for her brother Andre who is completely dependent on her.
Huda and Andre live together in their family house in Jabriyeh area, their neighborhood suffered a lot during the seven years of armed conflict in Aleppo, many mortar shells had fallen in their street, luckily Huda and her brother were unharmed by them, but their house was affected with some damages from the near explosions.
Huda is overwhelmed by the burdens of life, and the mounting life costs of daily living, she is the only provider, and she's getting older by each day. Hence her job in workshops is not suitable for her age anymore. With the grant she wants to purchase a stitching and sewing machine, to work from home. Her long years in the business has helped her gain a lot of acquaintances and great experience that she is willing to utilize in this new chapter of her career.
Beneficiary: George Khachadorian
Seven years ago, George Khachadorian chose to enter the food business, and he's been enjoying it ever since.
The war caused all the foreign importing companies to close, and George who used to work in a cosmetics' company was suddenly left jobless. However, having good skills in the kitchen and interest in culinary arts encouraged him to go in that direction, later he worked in many restaurants.
But the last place he worked in closed, so he started working from home and...
But the last place he worked in closed, so he started working from home and occasionally helping a friend in his shop in Telephone-Hawaae area. The war was going endlessly, especially in Al-Midan area where George's house was located, the whole area was heavily bombed to a degree that George and his mother were forced to move to a much safer place.
George rented a house for him and his mother to stay in, it was a hard, but wise decision. Shortly after they move, they learned that their building in Al-Midan was destroyed completely… However, being jobless was a big challenge in those hard times, George had to get help from his brother and rely on the church aid to survive.
One of George's friends offered him a place in Al-Hamidieh to work in, which encouraged George to think of starting his own project. However, the location is suitable for a workshop but not suitable to be a selling shop, and that leaves him ought to collaborate with other shops to sell his bakery. George is in need for some tools and equipment to restart with the job that he loves.
Beneficiary: Aziza Issa
An invincible smile and weary chapped hands are evidence of what Aziza faced of cruel reality in order to take care of her big family.
Her tiny body and delicate features make it hard to imagine how strong she really is. The war cost her more than she could afford, from its early start in 2012, when armed groups entered Al-haidarya area and her family of 13 were all displaced. The family was homeless for a while, her husband who was...
Her tiny body and delicate features make it hard to imagine how strong she really is. The war cost her more than she could afford, from its early start in 2012, when armed groups entered Al-haidarya area and her family of 13 were all displaced. The family was homeless for a while, her husband who was working in a masonry workshop, decided to leave Aleppo with his family. Their journey away from Aleppo city was not completed safely. On the rocky road to Manbij city, a fatal car accident had put an end to two of Aziza's sons, and Aziza herself was injured badly. At first, they didn't tell the poor mother about her sons' death, her own health was a concern, but eventually she learned the devastating news.
Her recovery journey wasn't easy either, it took her a whole year to be walking again, leaving her nine children, her husband and in-laws depending on financial aids and food supplies from charities. The reason Aziza is the back bone of the family is that her husband's leg was amputated after being injured by the falling mortar shells.
However, Aziza's Tiny shoulders can carry a burden of a tribe, and her loving heart can give unconditionally. This 41-years-old woman had the determination to work inside and outside her home just to provide for her family who are in severe needs after coming back to their destroyed house in Al-Haidarya.
Taking advantage of an old talent she once had when she was thirteen years old, when she learned sewing from her mother, Aziza today without any tools or equipment, fights daily so she can put some bread on the table for her children.
Sometimes when hardships and agony overwhelms a person, a reached out hand seems an unimaginable dream to believe , in fact that's what Aziza expressed when she heard about the help she is getting, joyful tears burst out of her hopeful eyes and filled the room with gratitude to God who didn't forgot about her, "I will work and feed my children" Aziza enthusiastically said "I can't believe that I can work again, and I will be able to buy winter clothes for my kids, buy them mattresses to sleep on… what can I say, my ambition can reach the sky, maybe after a while I can expand and teach girls sewing to help others like I was helped today."
Beneficiary: Nina Beidoun
Perseverance is something that often comes in one's personality, it surfaces in the darkest moments of the broken and overwhelmed person, Nina Beidoun has it both in her heart and her mind.
Nina, the 48-years-old woman chose to be in the tailoring and fashion design domain, from a young age it was her passion. She pursued her dream and entered a famous and specialized fashion designing institute in Lebanon, and graduated to return home and fulfill her dreams.
What Nina chose as...
What Nina chose as her career wasn't far from her family business, her brother used to own a cloth manufacturing factory in Al-Sheikh Najjar, which gave Nina the perfect space to design, tailor, and master her profession. However, Nina went beyond that and started teaching fashion design in a local institute and as well as giving private lessons.
She was at the peak of her professional life when the war started in 2012, everything went down the drain so suddenly. Al-Sheikh Najjar became under the armed groups control. They lost their factory which was a hard hit for the family, but it wasn't the only unfortunate incident, Nina's house was hit by mortar shells twice, and she had to repair it by herself, while her parents were in their hometown (Al-Jdaydeh village) near Idleb, where they are also suffering from the armed groups confiscating properties and kidnapping civilians, in fact her father was kidnapped several times in order to force him leave his house and land, but it only made the old man even more determined to stay and fight for his existence.
Today, Nina works from her own house, and instead of doing unique "haute couture" pieces or collaborate with fashion designers like she used to, she is barely making a living from daily clients and occasional orders; like making uniforms for medical scrubs. The problem is in the shortage of the sewing machines that Nina owns, in addition to the lack of a convenient place to welcome the clients is a huge obstacle in Nina's way.
To overcome those hardships, she needs a stitching and sewing machines, in addition to a pressed ironing machine and some relevant equipment to improve her work. Nina believes that having these tools and dedicating a room in her house to become her work place, and a place for client's fit rehearsals, all this would make a huge difference in her career and income.
Beneficiary: Mary Melkon
When you are a single mother living on your own in these difficult times your struggle become much harder. Mary Melkon knows all about the struggle to be self-independent and keep going no matter what. She is a 34-years-old mother to a teenage boy; Arshag.
When she got divorced in 2007, Mary moved out with her son to her parents' house in her hometown, the city of Deir Al-Zour, where she found comfort and support.
Mary's brother was a well-known hairdresser that...
Mary's brother was a well-known hairdresser that owned a hair salon there, Mary started helping in her brother's salon and slowly she developed an interest in the beauty industry, she started doing makeup and manicures by herself for some clients and actually became good at it. Things were going good until the war started in 2011, Deir Al-Zour became under the full control of the armed groups and almost all Christians living there were displaced, among them were Mary and her family, they all fled back to Aleppo, Mary's brother rented a salon for them both to work in, and indeed they became well known. but since Aleppo wasn't safe and things became dangerous, her brother decided to immigrate to Sweden and start a life for himself there. After he left the family was torn apart, they couldn't afford rent so Mary and her son stayed in a friends' tiny office in Al-Midan area, while her mother and sister went to Latakia seeking some safety.
Since then, Mary has worked on-and-off between salons, she even worked between houses, but it was frustrating and hard, her son recently began working for a barber's shop to help his mother with the house income. Mary was trying to do her best to secure a good life for her family, she bought a tattoo machine and started working on it, but because of the high costs of the materials like the inks, she couldn't afford to repurchase the makeup products she needs to continue her work.
With the help of this grant, she will be able to continue in the makeup business, and at the same time master her work on the tattoo machine; the thing that will reflect significantly on her income.
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This legendary pair may be the last people earth, but that doesn't mean they can't dress to the nines and fight the undead with high-tech weapons and a sassy attitude.
Posted in Heroes and Allies, Miniatures, New Releases, Post Apocalyptic.
Tagged as Apocalypse, Heroes, Science, Survivors.
Sculpted by Ernst Veingart. Supplied unpainted and with 25mm slottabase. Painted for display by Mystic Spirals.


I liked the location. The bathroom was very small. There was hardly any room between bathroom door and the toilet.
I did not like that one tower has no climate control within each individual room. We had to switch rooms at 1am because the heat in the tower was turned on and our room became unbearably warm.
the location is favorable to the airport. other than that, the room was a joke tucked back in an area on the second floor that is embarrassing and feels like a motel. In addition, I checked in and paid for a room with a king and only received a twin. One of the worst overall experiences with a hotel, in terms of the appeal of the room that I have had and I travel every month.
The parking situation is confusing. They charge $32 to park for one night. Only one elevator worked. There was a half drank water bottle left in our room.
Hotel was nice and the staff were pleasant, however, I had a vehicle parked for one night ($32) and my final bill showed three nights worth of charges for parking.
First room they gave us was aweful. We walked in and the chemical odor was unbearable. We had to haul our luggage back down to the front desk and demand a different room. After several minutes, they conceded. The second room was much better than the first one.
Nice hotel close to the airport . We took the shuttle they had to the airport that was very convenient.
I enjoyed the hotel and staff vary much.. but i disliked the room. No view and no fridge. Poor lighting in the room. Vending machine was empty most of our trip.
I would not stay at another Sheraton property. I recently stayed at a Sheraton in Atlanta during July and the facility was about the same. Horrible image of this hotel brand. I won't be spending my money with them in the future.
I found the room and premises a bit outdated and the room had a particular odd odor. If booking s room here, request a room away from the stairway as people come and go the metal door shuts loud. The staff was friendly and the shuttle service was on time for early pickup. Great hotel if you don't have anyone to take you to the airport for early flight. Safe travels!!!
Very confortable hotel, nice room, big bed, big bathroom, very close to the airport, with free shuttle service, nice bar, very affordable, definitely i reccomend this hotel.
Located in LAX Area, Four Points by Sheraton Los Angeles International Airport is within a few miles (5 km) of sights such as Los Angeles Forum and Hollywood Park Casino. This 3.5-star hotel welcomes guests with 557 rooms and conveniences like an outdoor pool, free in-room WiFi, and a free airport shuttle.
You can enjoy a drink at the bar/lounge or visit the onsite restaurant for a bite to eat. Savor a meal from the comfort of your room with room service, or get a quick energy boost at the coffee shop/café. For your convenience, a buffet breakfast is served for a fee each morning from 6 AM to 11 AM.
Guests can expect to find free WiFi and 32-inch an LCD TV with cable channels and pay movies. Pillowtop beds sport premium bedding and the bathroom offers a hair dryer and free toiletries. Other standard amenities include a coffee maker, free weekday newspapers, and free bottled water.
At Four Points by Sheraton Los Angeles International Airport, guests enjoy an outdoor pool, a fitness center, and free WiFi in public areas. If you drive, self parking is USD 32.00 per day, or you can take advantage of the free airport shuttle (available 24 hours). The front desk has multilingual staff on hand 24/7 to help with concierge services, luggage storage, and securing valuables. Additional amenities include conference space, a business center, and a computer station.
Thank you for taking the time to complete the Guest Experience Survey. We are pleased to hear that you enjoyed your stay. It is our goal to provide our guests a magical and memorable visit.
Thank you again for your candid feedback. In your shoes I would have been very upset and frustrated. I sincerely apologize that we didn't get it right for you this time. I really do appreciate your comments and have already used them as a catalyst for improvement here at the hotel.
Thank you again for your candid feedback. In your shoes I would have been very upset and frustrated. I sincerely apologize that we didn't get it right for you this time.
Recreation features at Four Points by Sheraton Los Angeles International Airport include an outdoor pool and a fitness center.
The front desk is open 24 hours a day, and checking out is easy with express services. For convenient arrivals and departures, you can take advantage of the free airport shuttle (available 24 hours). Driving? This property offers parking (fees apply).


The special will feature Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA, 43rd District) delivering an exclusive rebuttal to the president's state of the union address. Representative Waters is widely recognized as one of the most outspoken political leaders against Donald Trump's presidency and his administration; she has called for his impeachment on several occasions.
Also joining the program's guest panel: Spokesperson of Color Of Change PAC, Rashad Robinson; Democratic candidate for Georgia Governor and former House Minority Leader, Stacey Abrams; Executive Director of the National Black Justice Coalition, David Johns; St. Paul, MN mayor, Melvin Carter; Executive Director of The Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), Opal Tometi; DC Insider and public affairs strategist, Stefanie Brown James.
Rye and the expert panel will discuss President Trump's first year in office, exploring how his agenda is affecting African-Americans. The special will also explore ways to increase and mobilize black political power to enact change.
The former top Democrat in the Georgia legislature, candidate for Governor of Georgia and former House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams received degrees from Spelman College, the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas, and Yale Law School. As co-founder of NOW Account – a financial services firm that helps small businesses grow – Stacey has helped create and retain jobs in Georgia. Through her various business ventures, Stacey has helped employ even more Georgians. As House Minority Leader, she has worked strategically to recruit, train, elect, and defend Democrats to prevent a Republican supermajority in the House, and has worked across the aisle on behalf of all Georgians. During her tenure as House Minority Leader, she has stopped legislation to raise taxes on the poor and middle class and to roll back reproductive healthcare. She has brokered compromises that led to progress on transportation, infrastructure, and education. Dedicated to civic engagement, she founded the New Georgia Project, which registered more than 200,000 voters of color between 2014 and 2016. And under the pen name Selena Montgomery, Stacey is the award-winning author of eight romantic suspense novels, which have sold more than 100,000 copies.
Melvin Carter is a fourth-generation Saint Paul resident, Saint Paul Public School graduate, former Saint Paul City Council member, father, and Mayor of Saint Paul, MN. He lives in Saint Paul's Rondo neighborhood with his wife, Sakeena, and three of their five children.He is the son of a police officer and a teacher (who later became a County Commissioner), both of whom instilled in him the value of community and public service. Melvin's passion for civic engagement began in 2000, when as a college student his brother-in-law was turned away from casting an all-important Presidential election ballot in a Florida polling precinct. After arguing for his brother-in-law's right to vote and protesting that year's historic acts of disenfranchisement in the Florida State Capitol, Melvin found himself on a path toward public service. Since then, Melvin has been working to engage, enfranchise, and uplift people in Saint Paul and across the state and nation. He's trained political candidates, community organizers and campaign staff in over 30 states with several national organizations, including Wellstone Action.
David J. Johns is known for his passion, public policy acumen and fierce advocacy for youth. He is an enthusiast about equity—leveraging his time, talent and treasures to address the needs of individuals and communities often neglected and ignored. A recognized thought leader and social justice champion, David's career has focused on improving life outcomes and opportunities for Black people. On September 1, 2017, David Johns began his next life chapter as the executive director of the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC)—a civil rights organization dedicated to the empowerment of Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people, including people living with HIV/AIDS. NBJC's mission is to end racism, homophobia, and LGBTQ bias and stigma. In 2013, Johns was appointed as the first executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans (Initiative) by President Barack H. Obama and served until the last day of the Obama Administration in January, 2017. Johns has been featured as an influential politico and advocate by several publications and outlets, including TheRoot.com, NBC, EBONY and The Washington Post. Johns is a prominent strategist who offers commentary for several media outlets including BET, CNN, EducationPost and TV One.
Opal Tometi is a New York based Nigerian-American writer, strategist and community organizer. Ms. Tometi is a Co-founder of #BlackLivesMatter. The historic political project was launched in the wake of the murder of Trayvon Martin in order to explicitly combat implicit bias and anti-black racism and to protect and affirm the beauty and dignity of all Black lives. Ms. Tometi is credited with creating the online platforms and initiating the social media strategy during the project's early days. Ms. Tometi is currently at the helm of the country's leading Black organization for immigrant rights, the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) founded in 2006, is a national organization that educates and advocates to further immigrant rights and racial justice together with African-American, Afro-Latino, African and Caribbean immigrant communities. As the Executive Director at BAJI, Opal collaborates with staff and communities in Los Angeles, Phoenix, New York, Oakland, Washington, DC and communities throughout the Southern states. The organization's most recent campaign helped win family reunification visas for Haitians displaced by the 2010 earthquake. BAJI is an award winning institution with recognition by leading intuitions across the country.
Stefanie Brown James is a master of making the political, personal. As an experienced social entrepreneur, Stefanie is the Co-Founder and Senior Advisor for The Collective – a consortium of political action organizations including The Collective PAC and The Collective Super PAC – dedicated to recruiting, training, funding and supporting black candidates to run for office on the local, state and federal level. Founded in August of 2016, The Collective has raised over $500,000 from 13,000+ individual contributions and organizations to support 39 endorsed candidates and launched a national campaign training operation to prepare campaigns to win. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Stefanie is also the CEO and Founding Partner of Vestige Strategies, LLC – a Washington, DC based community engagement firm that specializes in grassroots community and civic engagement strategies. In 2012, Stefanie served as the National African American Vote Director for the Obama for America Campaign where she created and managed the national strategy to engage African American leaders and voters to re-elect President Barack Obama, leading to the highest black voter turnout in history.


Where Are The Best Austin Texas Food Trucks?
"Where are the best Austin Texas Food Trucks?" This is a question that many people have on a regular basis when visiting Austin because we have "legendary" food trucks here that serve delicious tacos, grilled meats and so much more.
With the weather still warm enough to enjoy a meal outside, here is a list of the best Food Trucks In Austin Texas.
Located at 1309 Rosewood, right in the heart of East Austin is Micklethwait Craft Meats. They are most notable for their juicy brisket and wonderful smoked meats.
If you ask any local they will have at least one favorite barbecue restaurant in Austin and one of our favorite places to get savory barbecued meats is La Barbecue. They are located in their fourth year of operation and going strong with their excellent pulled pork, sausages and more.
The place to be for some of the best breakfast tacos in Austin. We also love their quesadillas, smoothies, and juices.
Llama's specializes in Peruvian Cuisine, a mixture of influences from Spain, China and Africa in a way that reflect the practices and ingredients of Peru.
To learn more about life in Austin Texas, or to view homes for sale, contact us today by calling (512) 306-1001 or click here to connect with us online.


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Safalta Ki Kunji: The secret of success is hidden in these two things, the one who knew it became 'wealthy'
Safalta Ki Kunji, Motivational Thoughts in Hindi: The key to success says that to get success, a person should imbibe some good things in his life. The secret of success is hidden in good things, those who follow the wrong paths to achieve success, they are not able to enjoy success for a long time. The key to success says that if you want permanent and long-lasting success in life, then you have to adopt the best qualities. What are these best qualities, let us know-
sweet voice- The key to success says that speech plays a major role in the success of life. Many times it is seen that a person is very capable and efficient, but a sense of arrogance and anger is visible in his speech. Such people are not liked due to lack of sweetness of speech. Others distance themselves. Due to lack of sweetness in speech, the ability of a capable person also proves to be in vain.
The key to success says that when there is sweetness in speech along with ability, then the person's ability gets four moons, such people achieve immense success in life. Such people get appreciation. The key to success says that even an enemy can be made a friend with a sweet voice. Therefore the person's speech should be sweet. Do not speak such a voice that fills the heart of others with pain.
Politeness- The key to success says that success and failure are hidden in the nature of a person. People who are arrogant in nature and consider themselves superior, they never get respect. Other people like to keep distance from such people. On the other hand, the person who will have tenderness and humility in nature, everyone likes him. Such people get respect everywhere. They are loved by all. They never suffer in life. They get the support of others even in bad times. Such a person is also blessed by the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi ji.
Chanakya Niti: These words of Chanakya are for the students, it is very useful, gives success in education and career
Guru Asta 2022: The problems of these three zodiac signs may increase, Dev Guru Jupiter is going to be 'set'
Astrology: Even the truth accepts the lie, due to innocence, girls of these zodiacs have to bear the trouble
Tags: Chanakya, chanakya niti, motivational quotes, Motivational Thoughts in Hindi
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Matt is the CEO and Co-Founder of Vehicle, a mobile personalization and engagement platform based in Seattle (Vehicle is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sinch, formerly known as CLX Communications). Vehicle helps brands strengthen their relationship with their consumer by transforming the customer journey through the use of personalized video and dynamic content to enhance engagement and increase message relevance. Matt has unique experience, having served as a senior executive both on client and agency side of the business; leading fast growth, dynamic organizations within the technology, mobile, hospitality and food-service segments. He is a seasoned marketing professional with expertise developing comprehensive and successful brand strategies and leading the development and execution of integrated campaigns throughout mobile, digital, and offline channels. Select clients include: AT&T, Cricket Wireless, Verizon, T-Mobile, Comcast and Miller / Coors.


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Ipswich Star > Things to do
Fancy seeing Aladdin at the Felixstowe Spa Pavilion? Your wish is Dennis Lowe Theatre Company's command
Wayne Savage
Published: 7:00 PM December 21, 2017
Suzie Lowe and her daughter Mila. The Dennis Lowe Theatre Company stage Aladdin at Felixstowe's Spa Pavilion from December 23-January 7. Photo: Contributed - Credit: Archant
It wouldn't be Christmas at Felixstowe's Spa Pavilion without the Dennis Lowe Theatre Company. Suzie Lowe talks about the show, her new daughter's stage debut and carrying on her father's legacy.
The Dennis Lowe Theatre Company stage Aladdin at Felixstowe's Spa Pavilion from December 23-January 7. Photo: Contributed - Credit: Archant
Only a few days until curtain up...
Yeah... I absolutely love it. This will be the third year we're back (at Felixstowe's Spa Pavilion). It's gone really quickly. We're already planning for next year. It's still home from home and still one of my favourite places ever.
How have rehearsals gone...
They're gone ever so well, amazing. Obviously having my babe (nine-month old daughter Mila) there about 80% of the time I have to think quicker and work faster to get things done. I just have to be a little bit more on the ball.
She's almost walking. She's on her feet so you never know, next couple of weeks she might let go as well which will be nice. It's funny because when I was a baby, a couple of months older then Mila, my dad (Dennis Lowe) did Aladdin at the Spa and made me costumes. I had a pair of ballet shoes made because at the time you couldn't buy them small enough. We have those, so if she goes on she'll be wearing my costumes from when I was a baby and my ballet shoes. If she's not walking I'll carry her on just so she gets to wear them. It wasn't until we got into it that we suddenly went "hold on a minute, the timing of this is hilarious".
You're hands on with shows, how many hats are you wearing this time...
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10 Matchday Recap: Town beaten 2-0 at Bolton
Every single hat you can possibly imagine. I revised the script, chose the songs, directed and choreographed the show and then I'm also in it - I'm not sure if I'm pushing myself too much (laughs). It's an ensemble part. I'm a dancer this year so if I need to be with my babe at any time it's not the end of the world if I don't quite make it on.
Has becoming a mother helped you find an ever higher gear multi-tasking wise...
Absolutely, she's quite full on in that she's very forward for a nine-month-old but I wouldn't change it for the world. I feel like I could take on the world right now (laughs).
Tell me about Aladdin...
There's lots of audience participation, which is one of my favourite things about panto; the audience's reaction and all of that. We've got really strong and beautiful songs and fabulous dancing. We've got some lovely fairytale bits, a magic carpet ride and then there's something that happens in the cave scene, a little surprise.
We'd done Cinderella and Jack and the Beanstalk and I love Aladdin, it's one of my favourites, everything's so glitzy and pretty and you know magical so I thought it's about time.
Audiences are happy to see the Dennis Lowe Theatre Company back at the Spa each year since it reopened...
It's unbelievable how well the show does over the Christmas period and I'm really thankful for everyone that comes... it's them that keeps us going because obviously it costs a lot to put on a show, of this scale anyway and for this amount of time.
Next year's panto is Sleeping Beauty written and directed by you...
It's already on sale. We're going to do a completely new script, not one of my dad's revised scripts. He wrote the script once before and he didn't like it so it was never used. I'm going to completely re-write the story and do a completely new show I've never done before.
There will always be aspects of him there, 100%, but yeah it's very exciting. I've got a year to do it (laughs). With my dad's scripts there's always been his base there and I've maybe changed a scene, updated it to make it more current; written one new scene. Writing a whole new script is a completely different ball game. I'm just going with a blank lap-top screen and my thoughts.
What didn't your dad like about his script...
He just wasn't happy with what he wrote. He always felt other pantos were stronger. He always spoke about re-writing it and it never quite happened so I think it's about time I did something about that. It's a big story nowadays, a lot of theatres do Sleeping Beauty panto; it's a quite big one to do. My dad was very good at it, he found it very easy.
• Aladdin, by the Dennis Lowe Theatre Company, runs from December 23-January 7, at Felixstowe's Spa Pavilion. Take a magical carpet ride as Aladdin's dreams of marrying Princess Jasmine are scuppered by the wicked magician Abanazar who has tricked him into finding a hidden magic lamp. Our young hero will need your help if he's going to win fame, fortune and the girl. Review online Saturday night.
Suffolk Magistrates Court
Man assaulted junior nurse at Ipswich Hospital after being told to wait
Michael Steward


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Q: Creating Custom Paper Size in Javafx 11+ I am trying to create a custom Paper size in JavaFX 12.
The older method would require using the PrintHelper class and the Units class which exists in the package com.sun.javafx.print. However in a JavaFX 11+, this package is not exported and as a result I cannot use these classes.
What are the alternatives to this classes in JavaFX 11+ ? every time I search I get the result from JavaFX 8, which are not helpful in the scenario

A: Thank to you , your post has steered me to the right direction .
I suppose , to create a new Paper , you are going to use PrintHelper.createPaper(String , double , double , Units) to access the private constructor of Paper.
However, somewhere along the way , we got the message:
class YourClass (in unnamed module @0x2feb050e) cannot access
  class com.sun.javafx.print.Units (in module javafx.graphics)
  because module javafx.graphics does not export com.sun.javafx.print
  to unnamed module @0x2feb050e

By simply adding --add-exports javafx.graphics/com.sun.javafx.print=ALL-UNNAMED into VM option should fix the problem .
hope that I am not too late to answer your question .

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Editor's Note: A portion of this article comes from Daniel Mwesigwa's post with An Xiao over at TechPost Uganda.
NAIROBI– Death. Destruction. Violence. Kenyans are rioting in the streets, looting shops, burning down buildings. Democracy is failing, and only the people are to blame. A man was seen with a machete and fork clearing out…a plate of rice and beef. Oh wait. Most of Kenya is actually quite peaceful. And despite reports coming out from foreign media, the country's historic elections have come and gone with little incident.
The response was so strong that his team issued a response on air justifying their use of the word "dramatic" to describe events.
And then after a CNN video focused on Kenyans arming themselves before the elections.


Mental health is the foundation of human activity at all levels and a part of health and basic human need. In my thesis I researched the importance of self-help groups for individuals with mental health problems to maintain mental health in social inclusion process and stigma effects reduction. In the first part I explain the terms and concepts of mental health in relation to mental illness and mental disorders, I cover the terms of stigma and the function of prejudices in the process of stigmatization, followed by the description of needs of people with mental health problems and how an individual with mental health problems is taken care of by the community and social surroundings. I have summarized the types of assistance and features of the self-help and self-help groups within the associations or non-governmental organizations in the field of mental health. Using the method of qualitative analysis I came to the conclusion, that self-help group plays an important role as an intermediate structure in providing shelter, security, support and expansion of social networks for people with mental health problems in the process of deinstitutionalisation and it helps reduce the risk factors and stigmatization. Users and other people who engage in self-help group, through mutual cooperation gain new experiences, skills and strategies to solve problems. Self-help group helps the users to overcome mental health problems, encourages and strengthens weakened power, gives new knowledge and experience, which helps the users to become independent in decision-making, thoughtful in their actions, at ease to make contacts to others, strengthen relations with the community and society and will take more control of own behavior and emotional responses to others in accordance with societal expectations. User receives help from his family and friends, professional help and help from individuals that are included in the association or non-governmental organizations, with the aim of promoting and reducing the harmful effects of hospitalization, building a stronger identity and frequent active involvement in the social environment.


Attention North Carolina residents! Now you can sign up for a library card at the Government & Heritage Library, part of the State Library of North Carolina. To get your library card, sign up here and email the form to slnc.reference@ncdcr.gov.
If you are a North Carolina resident or a state agency employee, you can apply for a library card and borrow items from our circulating collection. If your library is a member of the NC Cardinal Consortium, you may place a hold on circulating materials and they will be sent to your library.
State Library card holders can access many databases off site. GHL subscribes to many different databases. Check our website to determine access availability. Some databases are only available on site.
Fill out a library card application and email it to us or bring it in. You will need to present a state issued identification card to complete your registration and receive your library card.
Additional information may be found in the North Carolina Administrative Code: 07 NCAC 02H .0100-.0109.
The News and Observer has also published an article about the library and the new service allowing residents to borrow materials, as well as a short video about the service.


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sport news (Page 105)
Alexis Lafreniere scores his first goal to win in overtime(Video)
The first overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft scored his first professional goal when it mattered the most. The New York Rangers were a part of a return-to-play bubble for the Stanley Cup Playoffs this past summer, but were the first team to leave Toronto after getting swept inRead More →
Penn State football loses quarterback Will Levis to the transfer portal
Penn State is losing backup quarterback Will Levis to the transfer portal. The Penn State Nittany Lions had a weird season in 2020. They got off to an 0-5 start, only to play with some pride and finish the year at 4-5. Things got so bad early that head coachRead More →
Post-pandemic, Super Bowl hype will never be the same again
After we emerge from the current pandemic, much of life will return to relative normal. The Super Bowl, however, may never be the same. Super Bowl LV will be very different from its recent predecessors. Calmer. Mellower. More like a football game than a zydeco/klezmer/speed metal music festival overrun byRead More →
Packers make a coaching staff change, but it's not Mike Pettine
The Green Bay Packers have made a change to their coaching staff and no, it doesn't involve defensive coordinator Mike Pettine…yet. Three days ago, the Green Bay Packers were heartbreakingly eliminated from the playoffs by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. There was plenty of blame to go around as to whyRead More →
3 free agents the Steelers should avoid
The Steelers have a ton of work to do in free agency, but it"s imperative for Pittsburgh to avoid spending big on these three players. Ben Roethlisberger's contract issue will dominate the headlines of Pittsburgh's offseason, but that doesn't change the reality that the Steelers have a ton of workRead More →
Austin Rivers literally could not miss against the Jazz (Video)
Austin Rivers went absolutely nuclear for the New York Knicks Tuesday night. Maybe Austin Rivers wanted to bounce back from a couple of poor performances. Maybe he was due for a great game. Maybe he heard the Derrick Rose trade rumors, or maybe it was all of the above. WhateverRead More →
Clemson football: Mike Jones entering transfer portal shakes up Tigers depth chart
Clemson football star Mike Jones has entered the dreaded transfer portal. Despite playing for the best program in the ACC, linebacker Mike Jones has entered the transfer portal after his sophomore season with the Clemson football team. Jones is a former four-star recruit who had 30 tackles and two interceptionsRead More →
Chelsea's sacking of Frank Lampard could win them the Champions League
Chelsea canned coach Frank Lampard on Monday following a string of poor results. A new coach could mean a shot at winning the Champions League. Chelsea sacked manager Frank Lampard on Monday and are set to announce the appointment of Thomas Tuchel as his replacement. "This was a very difficultRead More →
3 free agents the Jets should avoid in the 2021 offseason
The New York Jets should really avoid signing these three free agents. It will be a busy offseason for the New York Jets, who have hired head coach Robert Saleh and could be busy wheeling and dealing in free agency. General manager Joe Douglas has a ton of draft capitalRead More →
Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor and other UFC 257 winners (and losers) react
The winners and losers of UFC 257 took to social media following their performances on Fight Island. The final event of the most recent UFC tour on Fight Island came to an end on Saturday with UFC 257. The event was headlined by a lightweight fixture between former two-division championRead More →


I feel warm like I might have a fever. I've been so busy wiping runny noses and holding fussy kids today that I've been ignoring that nagging sore throat and dull headache. I need to go to bed, but who has time for that?
This part of motherhood must have been in the fine print of the mommy manual. After the cuddles on page three and giggles while changing adorable little outfits on page ten. I didn't see it either when I flipped through the cute mommy outfits or the section about taking the perfect autumn walk while pushing your sporty jogging stroller.
No, it definitely wasn't in there. I guess moms aren't allowed to get sick. Or tired.
I feel the need to make some honesty amendments to the mommy manual before we hand them out to any more naive little girls. And start by saying motherhood is not a walk in the park. Well, not a pretty one at least. You'll get there with three kids in tow and crowd as many as you can onto your double stroller. You take a few steps and the complaining starts, the asking for snacks, then of course, the poop explosion.
Motherhood isn't all cuddles and coos. It's hard work. It takes a strong woman or rather makes a woman strong. It requires a lot of learning and laying down. Laying down your pride when you have to say no to friends. Laying down your selfishness as you split the last pecan truffle among the kids rather than hiding in the kitchen and eating it yourself. (No wait, I failed on that one…) Laying down your very desire to lay down and instead staying up late to comfort your little one in the dark. Holding, loving, giving when you have nothing left to give.
It's in these moments that I feel like I can barely see my hand in front of my face. I'm just doing the next thing. Its stressful, but exhilarating. Almost like I can physically feel God shaping and molding me into a better person. It's raw and it's real. And I'm not sure how He does it, but He's taking the ones I love the most and stretching me to love them more.
I guess it's not something you can put in a manual or even really describe. It's just experiencing it. The good, the bad, and yes, sometimes the ugly. But I can tell you…its worth it. All of it. It fills my heart with love, my days with purpose, and my soul with joy. Its colorful, adventurous, meaningful, and precious. Motherhood is a gift. A wonderfully messy, tiring, rewarding gift.
So so good! Wish I had these words of wisdom before I became a mama. Thanks for the encouragement!


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How The World Bank Weakens Health Systems
November 2, 2022 People's Dispatch. Resistance Report Health Care, Pandemic, Public Health, World Bank
Natalie Rhodes, PhD candidate at University of Leeds, and People's Health Movement, along with Remco van de Pas, researcher at the Centre for Planetary Health Policy, and People's Health Movement discuss in detail about the implications of the newly established World Bank fund for Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response and the Bank's other policies pertaining to public health.
Protesters Outside IMF, World Bank Meetings Demand Climate Action
October 14, 2022 Channel News Asia. Resist! climate crisis, climate debt, IMF, Washington D.C., World Bank
Dozens of protesters demonstrated outside the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington DC on Thursday (Oct 13), expressing opposition to funding of fossil fuels and demanding urgent action to tackle climate change. Some of the activists gathered on bicycles and called for support for nations affected by climate change. They carried posters that said "World Bank of climate chaos", "stop funding fossil fuel", "People over profit" and "actions speak louder than words".
World Bank Downgrades Global Growth Forecast
January 13, 2022 Nick Beams, WSWS.org. Educate! Financial Crisis, Global Economy, World Bank
As the Omicron variant of COVID-19 rips through the world's population, the World Bank has forecast slowing global growth for 2022 as well as the following year in its Global Economics Prospects report issued on Tuesday. While it was certainly not its intention, the report is an exposure of the claims by capitalist governments that no serious public health measures can be undertaken to eliminate the pandemic because they would be detrimental to the "economy." In fact, as the figures in the report make clear, the policy of "let it rip" being pursued by virtually all governments is producing ever worsening economic conditions. No changes will be made, however, as the economy is completely subordinated to finance capital which opposes any measures that impede the accumulation of wealth in the hands of a rapacious oligarchy.
Solely Because Of The Increasing Disorder
September 10, 2021 Vijay Prashad, Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. Educate! COVID-19, Finance and the Economy, Poverty, World Bank
A few days ago, I spoke to a senior official at the World Health Organisation (WHO). I asked her if she knew how many people lived their lives on our planet without shoes. The reason I asked her this question is because I was wondering about Tungiasis, an ailment caused by the infection that results from the entry of a female sand flea (Tunga penetrans) into the skin. This problem has a variety of names in many different languages – from jigger or chigoe to niguá (Spanish) or bicho do pé (Portuguese) to funza (Kiswahili) or tukutuku (Zande). It is a terrible problem that disfigures the feet and makes mobility difficult. Shoes prevent these fleas from burrowing into the skin. She was not sure about the number but presumed that at least a billion people must live without shoes.
Pandemic Could Push Up To 150 Million Into 'Extreme Poverty' By 2021
October 9, 2020 Jessica Corbett, Commondreams. Educate! COVID-19, Poverty, Recession, World Bank
Amid findings that the combined wealth of the planet's billionaires skyrocketed to $10.2 trillion during the coronavirus pandemic, the World Bank warned Wednesday that the public health crisis could cause global extreme poverty to rise for the first time in over two decades and push tens of millions of people into that category by next year. "Between 88 million and 115 million people could fall back into extreme poverty as a result of the pandemic, with an additional increase of between 23 million and 35 million in 2021, potentially bringing the total number of new people living in extreme poverty to between 110 million and 150 million," the report says.
Agony And Death Of Neoliberalism In Latin America
November 4, 2019 Atilio Boron, Pagina 12, Translated Resumen Educate! IMF, Latin America, Neoliberalism, World Bank
During the last few weeks, neoliberalism faced a series of defeats that sped up its agony and are leading to its death amidst large and violent upheavals. After nearly half a century of pillage, outrage and crimes of all kinds against society and the environment, we witness the downfall of the ruling model promoted enthusiastically by the governments of advanced capitalist countries; institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank; and self-righteous intellectuals and establishment politicians.
The Mexican Debt Crisis And The World Bank
August 13, 2019 Eric Toussaint, Cadtm.org Educate! Debt, New Economy, US Imperialism, World Bank
Robert McNamara and president Luis Echeverria (1970-1976) were thick as thieves. The Mexican president had cracked down on the radical left. From 1973 on, Mexico's foreign currency revenue soared thanks to the tripling of oil prices. This increase in currency revenue should have prevented Mexico from borrowing. However the volume of WB loans to Mexico rose sharply: it quadrupled from 1973 to 1981 (from USD 118 million in 1973 to 460 million in 1981). Mexico also borrowed from private banks with the World Bank's backing.
The World Bank Needs To Understand Poverty And What It Actually Costs A Family To Live On
August 12, 2019 By Sharan Burrow, Ipsnews.net Educate! Inequality, Poverty, World Bank
The World Bank's extreme poverty line of US$1.90 a day is in fact not based on real estimates of people's cost of living within countries. This explains why it fails to capture the desperation experienced by so many. As soon as we focus on people's lived experience, the picture becomes more stark. At a most intuitive level, we know that poverty is determined by a person's inability to meet their material needs. Perhaps the most basic of these needs is food. The UN's 2018 figures on hunger show that it is on the rise globally. It estimates that 821 million people are currently going hungry.
"Theoretical Lies" Of The World Bank. Developing Countries And The Hidden Agenda Of The "Washington Consensus"
June 29, 2019 By Eric Toussaint, Globalresearch.ca Educate! IMF, Inequality, US Imperialism, World Bank
The World Bank claims that, in order to progress, the Developing Countries [1] should rely on external borrowing and attract foreign investments. The main aim of thus running up debt is to buy basic equipment and consumer goods from the highly industrialised countries. The facts show that day after day, for decades now, the idea has been failing to bring about progress. The models which have influenced the Bank's vision can only result in making the developing countries heavily dependent on an influx of external capital, particularly in the form of loans, which create the illusion of a certain level of self-sustained development.
Theoretical Lies Of The World Bank
June 27, 2019 By Eric Toussaint, Cadtm.org Educate! Aid, History, New Economy, Propaganda, World Bank
In 2019, the World Bank (WB) and the IMF will be 75 years old. These two international financial institutions (IFI), founded in 1944, are dominated by the USA and a few allied major powers who work to generalize policies that run counter the interests of the world's populations. The WB and the IMF have systematically made loans to States as a means of influencing their policies. Foreign indebtedness has been and continues to be used as an instrument for subordinating the borrowers. Since their creation, the IMF and the WB have violated international pacts on human rights and have no qualms about supporting dictatorships.
Leaked Wikileaks Doc Reveals US Military Use Of IMF, World Bank As "Unconventional" Weapons
February 8, 2019 By Whitney Webb, Mintpressnews.com Educate! IMF, US Imperialism, Wikileaks, World Bank
WASHINGTON – In a leaked military manual on "unconventional warfare" recently highlighted by WikiLeaks, the U.S. Army states that major global financial institutions — such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) — are used as unconventional, financial "weapons in times of conflict up to and including large-scale general war," as well as in leveraging "the policies and cooperation of state governments."
US Provides Weapons And Loans To Encourage Ukraine To Keep Provoking Russians
December 27, 2018 Finian Cunningham, Strategic-culture.org Educate! IMF, Inter-Imperialist Rivalry, Russia, Ukraine, US Imperialism, weapons, World Bank
Oh what a lovely big stocking-filler for the Kiev regime this week from Washington. Just in time for Christmas too, and only weeks after President Petro Poroshenko tried to incite a war with Russia from a naval provocation in the Kerch Strait. First we had US government envoy Kurt Volker announcing this week that an additional $250 million in military weapons were being packaged in Congress for Ukraine. Then the DC-based international lending institutions, the IMF and World Bank, signed off on multi-billion-dollar loans for Poroshenko's regime. US government-owned Radio Free Europe described the new financial loans as a "victory" for Poroshenko.
World Bank Continues To Drive People From Their Land
October 12, 2018 Staff, Intercontinentalcry.org Educate! Land, World Bank
Bali Nusa Dua, October 11, 2018–New analysis by Urgewald, the German human rights NGO, finds that the World Bank is still resettling people in many of its development projects. Altogether, Urgewald screened 1,920 projects approved by the World Bank in its last 4 fiscal years (FY). From 37.2% to 40.1% of the projects were connected to the World Bank resettlement policy: 37.2% in the FY 2015, 39.7% in 2016, 37.7% in 2017 and 40.1% in 2018. Typical projects include road construction, mining or agricultural projects. This week, the Bank is holding its annual meetings in Indonesia. The study results put further pressure on its board and its president Jim Yong Kim to ensure the protection of people affected by the Bank's projects.
World Bank – IMF Guilty Of Promoting Land Grabs, Increasing Inequality
October 9, 2018 Staff, Viacampesina.org Resist! IMF, Inequality, Land, Land grabs, World Bank
07 OCTOBER, BALI: At a meeting of La Via Campesina facilitated by Serikat Petani Indonesia (SPI) in Bali, peasant organizations from Asia, Africa, Americas, and Europe have unanimously held World Bank and IMF responsible for facilitating large-scale land grab, deforestation and ocean grabbing around the world, which has led to inequality, poverty, and global hunger. Peasants pointed to several decades of neo-liberal push from the World Bank and IMF for privatization and de-regulation in developing countries, as among the major factors that have led to increased cost of living for peasant communities. Over the last 30-40 years, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and more recently the WTO has forced countries to decrease investment in food production and to reduce support for peasant and small farmers.
Time To End Business Rankings Of The World Bank
January 28, 2018 Staff, oaklandinstitute.org Educate! Corruption, World Bank
OAKLAND, CA—The revelations that led to this week's resignation of World Bank Chief Economist Paul Romer point to flawed methodology and political manipulation in the World Bank's Doing Business report. Romer admitted that the Doing Business rankings may have been manipulated to make Chile's economic environment look worse under the sitting socialist president Michelle Bachelet. These revelations add to a long list of concerns that have been raised by civil society in recent years. The Our Land Our Business campaign was launched in 2014 to demand the end of the Bank's Doing Business rankings. Over 280 organizations, including NGOs, unions, farmers, and consumer groups from over 80 countries have joined this call so far.


Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas are living the life–to the hilt. Sophie posted a photo on social media showing off their holiday getaway on a $45,000-a-night private island in the Maldives. Who said the rich are not like you or me?
The couple confirmed their engagement last October and took some time off for vacation at the ultra-exclusive Coco Prive island in the Maldives. It's a popular redoubt for Hollywood stars and celebrities–who can pay the tab.
Sophie, 21, showed just how nice the island is with an Instagram post. She's chilling in "paradise" on the beach, cocktail in hand, she said.
"Brb. In paradise @cocopriveprivateisland #CocoPrive," she wrote in the caption.
Coco Prive is small private island that has a master residence, as well as five villas. There is a 40-metre pool, one of the largest in the Maldives.
But who needs it with a beach like that?
To unwind at the end of the day–or middle, or beginning–the resort has a massage therapist and full spa available day or night, as well as a private chef.
It's a far cry from the cold climes of Winterfell Castle, the home of her character on the show. But, hey, she probably deserves the down time.


Quality is the foremost consideration in all decisions related to service, design, cost and delivery.
Quality means having a consistent understanding of customer specifications and to meet or exceed their requirements and expectations.
People make the difference. Quality products and services are the result of peoples' actions and are, therefore, the responsibility of every member of the Schott Team.
Quality is built into our products and services through continuous efforts of monitoring and improving our processes to reduce variation and improve value to the customer.
Our objectives are defined, measured and charted to monitor our efforts towards continuous improvement. Areas of greatest importance are: Quality, Cycle Time, and On-Time Delivery.
Quality products and services are attained by preventing defects and errors. Prevention is only possible when processes are properly designed, controlled and improved.


Hello Prof. Nelson and the rest of the Core!
Hope you're all doing splendidly. I'm enjoying Athens very much. It's very hot this time of year, but the shade is cool, and so is the wine.
I thought a lot about the Core as I walked around the Acropolis and the ancient agora. My next steps include the island sanctuary Samothraki and then Crete. Plenty of beach there!
PS: Say hi to everyone!!
Marguerite has just finished her MA in anthropology at the Harvard Extension School, and is living in Somerville for a few months while preparing for a research trip to Kenya. Connect with her online here.


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Lola's Story
Lola's Story: Cooking up a Storm
Lola grew up in care from the age of four. During her teenage years, she became immersed in gang culture. After a number of abusive relationships, Lola ended up escaping her area and was referred to Centrepoint, enrolling on a number of courses and programmes provided by the organisation. She's now very close to completing her hospitality traineeship with a major media company.
Lola describes her adolescence as wild. "I was living the street life – alcohol and drugs. I had quite a lot of abusive relationships because of the people I was hanging around with. It was very scary and emotional," she recalls.
"I was around gangs – I didn't get involved in craziness, but I was around bad influences and I had people in my ear, pressuring me – I'd think it was acceptable, but it wasn't. I believe people get involved in gangs due to family issues. Mostly it's not having someone there to talk to you and guide you in the right way so you turn to someone else. Sometimes that person can be a bad influence, but because there's no one else, you stick by them," she says.
When Lola got into a new relationship, she left her foster family to move in with him. Her new boyfriend was involved in a gang and after a short time, he started become abusive and Lola felt trapped. "I felt I could only depend on him. He used to poke me on my arm and legs with sharp objects like knives. Not deep, just a little poke to shut me up. At that point, I wasn't really in my right mind – I thought that was acceptable. I didn't have anyone else to lean on. I didn't care what he did," she remembers.
Finding Centrepoint
Lola ended up at Centrepoint when she left her borough – "there were too many bad memories and I just wanted to get away. Luckily, my new council found Centrepoint for me and I was there for about a year. When I turned 22 they helped me to secure my own flat," she says.
"When you're a Centrepoint resident, if the staff see that you're vulnerable and don't want to do anything with yourself, they will check up on you and encourage you. They always make sure you're OK and are very keen to help you."
Centrepoint traineeships
Lola has completed a wood-laying and printing course through Centrepoint and The Prince's Trust. She has also completed a catering programme at our training centre and is about to finish a hospitality traineeship at a major media corporation.
"I didn't really cook much before I came to Centrepoint; I just loved eating. The staff were always telling me about this free cookery training. One day I decided to go and eat some of the food. I came; I ate the food; they didn't make me feel uncomfortable. The next time, I went a bit earlier and gradually they started to get me involved. The earlier you get there, the more opportunities there are to prepare the food. I started coming earlier and earlier and people would tell me how good the food was and it was just such a good feeling to see they were enjoying what I'd prepared. It makes me happy to know I've contributed to their enjoyment. Now I love cooking" she says.
"Because I've passed my hospitality assessment with Centrepoint, Tom, the hospitality trainer at Centrepoint, connected me with a great traineeship. Tom is so cool. He's a great guy, good chef. Very easy to understand and gives me really clear instructions. He's great to work with."
"Centrepoint link you up with great places. They won't link you up with fast food outlets, they'll link you with companies where you feel you are making progress, where you want to do your best and you don't want to give up," she says.
"I'm really enjoying my traineeship. I love it; I love serving the customers and presenting food on the plate, it's fun and creative."
Looking forwards
"If I hadn't connected with Centrepoint, I wouldn't be where I am now. I wouldn't be thinking about education or achieving my goals. Centrepoint makes you want to do better. Sometimes making the staff proud of you is a real buzz and I want to make them proud again. A lot of the young people at Centrepoint don't have family to be proud of them. You start feeling you can do better because the staff lift you up. They believe in me and that helps me to believe in myself."
*names have been changed
If you'd like to make a donation to Centrepoint and support our progress, please visit our donation page.
Skills and Learning
For homeless young people, a job is almost as important as a home.
We give them the opportunity to complete their education, gain skills and prepare for a career.


All decentralized by-blockchain products (e.g. ICO, securities, funds,.. ) are completely regulated by the governments.
Is this really what Satoshi expected 10 years ago?
We cannot use the rules of centralized paradigm to embrace decentralized paradigm.
It doesn't make sense and it always cripples new technology.
They want to WARN the public, that cryptocurrency is unsafe. It's used by drug dealers, terrorists and scammers. We need a red flag waving person everywhere it goes.... just like 1865!
Do you consider Red flag traffic laws to be crazy?
Stop using centralized crypto exchanges just now!
Is it really so bad to have the residence here?
More taxes you pay to your government, more corruption you support!
Imagine that whistle-blowers (like Snowden) can be entirely funded by an anonymous crowd!
This means a total decomposition of all government secret agencies and government "classified" agencies-> covert agents may be significantly economically motivated to earn anonymous money and anonymously leak sensitive information.
Do you want smaller taxes? Bet your cryptocurrency that there will be unchanged or higher taxes in the next two years.
but this may be very painful - a lot of innocent people will be sacrificed during this battle.
Be a part of Parallel Polis!
And enjoy your new life!


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La Daimler Phoenix-Wagen è una autovettura prodotta dal 1897 al 1902 dalla Casa automobilistica tedesca Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft.

Storia e caratteristiche

Genesi: c'era una volta un propulsore

Il nome Phoenix fu adottato per la prima volta da Wilhelm Maybach per denominare un tipo di motore a scoppio da lui realizzato. Tale tipo di motore era un bicilindrico in linea con camere di scoppio parallele ricavate in un monoblocco. Tale monoblocco era poi montato su un alloggiamento di forma sferica destinato a contenere l'albero a gomiti. Tale motore, denominato appunto "motore Phoenix" fu una delle caratteristiche della storia della produzione automobilistica della Daimler, sarebbe stato montato su alcuni modelli di sua produzione ed avrebbe dato a sua volta il nome ad un modello di autovettura della Daimler stessa, nonché a due suoi modelli da competizione.

Il modello di serie: la Phoenix-Wagen

La Phoenix-Wagen fu presentata nel 1897 al pubblico e la commercializzazione avvenne di lì a poco. Compito della Phoenix-Wagen era quello di affiancare ed in seguito sostituire la Riemenwagen, il cui esito commerciale si dimostrò alquanto felice.
Tecnicamente le prime Phoenix-Wagen non presentavano grossissime novità rispetto alla Riemenwagen. Le uniche novità stavano nel nuovo telaio in lamiera d'acciaio con sezione ad U, e nel nuovo cambio, non più a nastro ma ad ingranaggi, sempre a 4 marce. Inizialmente la Phoenix-Wagen era equipaggiata unicamente da un bicilindrico Phoenix da 1060 cm³ montato già sulla Riemenwagen. Tale motore era proposto di serie con potenza di 4 CV a 700 giri/min, ma su richiesta poteva essere potenziato a 6 CV o ridotto a 2.3 CV.  In questa sua prima veste, la Phoenix-Wagen raggiungeva una velocità massima di circa 25 km/h.
Una svolta si ebbe nel 1898, quando la Phoenix-Wagen vide una decisa evoluzione nel sistema di accensione, non più mediante tubi ad incandescenza, bensì tramite magnete a bassa tensione, un sistema ideato in quel periodo dalla Bosch, all'epoca ancora una giovane azienda.
Nel 1899 la Riemenwagen uscì dal listino e fu proprio la Phoenix-Wagen a sostituirla, anzi, proprio nel 1899 la gamma venne ampliata con l'introduzione di una nuova versione equipaggiata da un 4 cilindri, il primo nella storia dell'automobile. Tale motore nasceva dall'accoppiamento di due bicilindrici utilizzati nella versione di base, ma dotati di alesaggio ridotto da 75 a 70 mm, così da ottenere una cilindrata di 1845 cm³. La potenza era di 6 CV a 700 giri/min. La velocità massima di questa primordiale versione di punta era di 40 km/h.
La Phoenix-Wagen stradale è stata l'ultima Daimler stradale a portare tale marchio: essa venne infatti sostituita nel 1902 dalla Mercedes 8/11 PS.

Le Phoenix sportive

Il nome Phoenix è stato utilizzato anche per denominare due modelli Daimler destinati alle prime corse automobilistiche della storia. Il primo modello è stato commissionato alla Daimler dal console austro-ungarico Emil Jellinek, un personaggio importante nella storia tedesca dell'automobile, poiché sarà alla base della nascita del marchio Mercedes, il quale a sua volta originerà in seguito la famosa Mercedes-Benz.
Emil Jellinek, oltre che console austro-ungarico a Nizza, era anche un grande appassionato di autovetture e di corse automobilistiche.
La Daimler approntò una vettura ad alte prestazioni (per l'epoca): era equipaggiata da un grosso 4 cilindri della cilindrata di ben 5507 cm³, in grado di erogare una potenza massima di 24 CV. Nel 1900, in occasione della Settimana di Nizza, una gara automobilistica molto nota all'epoca, lo stesso Jellinek commissionò alla Daimler una nuova versione di tale autovettura, dotata dello stesso motore, ma capace di erogare fino a 28 CV ad 800 giri/min, e di spingere la vettura ad una velocità massima di 80 km/h. Purtroppo, l'esordio di questa nuova versione della Phoenix da gara venne funestato da un tragico episodio: poco dopo la partenza della nuova edizione della Settimana di Nizza, una delle Phoenix, pilotata dal capo-officina della Daimler, Wilhelm Bauer, si schiantò alla prima curva contro un muretto. Rimasto ferito gravemente, morì il giorno seguente. Il principale problema di molte auto da competizione di quei tempi era il baricentro troppo alto, poiché il concetto di assetto da gara era ancora pressoché sconosciuto.

Voci correlate

Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft
Gottlieb Daimler
Motore Daimler Typ M "Phoenix"

Altri progetti

Collegamenti esterni

Phoenix-Wagen

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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On March 19th of this year, the Maryland legislature approved a bill that would raise Maryland's current state estate tax exemption from its current $1 million leve. The Maryland legislation, which is expected to be signed shortly by Governor Martin O'Malley but as of today it is still awaiting his signature would eventually raise the Maryland state exemption level to the federal estate exemption level.
Currently, assets forming part of a Marylander's estate upon his or her death in excess of the $1 million threshold would be subject to astate-imposed estate tax this year. Unlike the 2014, federal estate tax exemption amount of $5.34 million. The Maryland legislation provides for the estate tax threshold to continue to rise until it is aligned with the federal estate tax exemption in the year 2019. In 2015, the threshold will be $1.5 million; in 2016, $2 million; in 2017, $3 million; in 2018, 4 million; and finally, in 2019, an amount equal to the federal threshold (which is projected to be $5.9 million in that year once it is adjusted for inflation).
I met a couple today (who could become my clients.) The husband is a medical specialist who has been making close to $1mm a year, the wife is a psychologist who was making peanuts. They are both retired now and planning to claim social security incomes.
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Ben joined me for coffee recently and brought along a friend, Simon (not his real name). Those of you who have read the Offshore Pilot Quarterly for several years will recall my infrequent mention of Ben in the past and our occasional meetings for coffee. I had never met Simon but he came across as a mild-mannered Englishman, perhaps in his late 60s, whose demeanour suggested a background in either accountancy or law. Neither was the case, as I subsequently learned, and during a varied career as a banker he had been at one time a financial services regulator. He was in Panama for a few days and Ben, a friend of his from the past, thought I might like to meet him as we had much in common, each having been involved with the regulation of financial services in the Caribbean.
We had, in fact, both been contracted by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office and whereas Simon had taken over from someone, I had been engaged, inter alia, to establish a regulatory authority and recommend appropriate legislative improvements. And although he had a path to follow and I encountered virgin terrain, we found a lot of similarities with our respective island experiences.
Just that week, I told them both, I had read about one financial services jurisdiction whose companies had been involved in the laundering of some $36 billion from the former Soviet Union; that is an amount that could finance the present Panama canal expansion project at least six times over. In this same jurisdiction, Russian officials had used companies to unlawfully divert $15 million in international aid meant to fund a safety upgrade of former Soviet nuclear power plants and in another case an individual had set up more than 2000 companies, established bank accounts for them without disclosing identities, and then passed some $1.4 billion through the accounts. It turned out, in fact, that one of those companies had received over 3,700 suspicious wire transfers which, during a two-year period, added up to just over $81 million.
But the authorities could not pursue this case because they were unable to discover who owned the company due to the lax laws of the jurisdiction.
With examples such as this, was it any wonder that the wrath of the United States Senate (expressed recently and publicly in vociferous terms) was aroused, when it is already trying hard to stop offshore financial abuses, especially tax evasion, perpetrated by American citizens? The US jails more people than any other country and, for the first time in its history, over one in every 100 of the nation's adults is in jail, according to the Pew Centre, described as a fact tank that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world through public opinion polling. There are over 2.3 million adults (China has 1.5 million) in jail and the prison population has almost tripled in 20 years.
One could ponder that the Senate should count itself lucky that only around 20% (see the June, 2006, OPQ issue) of Americans have passports: just imagine the trickery they might get up to if they could actually travel to the world's international financial centres and take a more hands-on role in those abuses?
Democratic Senator Carl Levin, chairman of the sub-committee on investigations of such offshore abuses, has not minced his words in some recent, and public, outbursts: "Tax havens are engaged in economic warfare against the United States… The iron ring of secrecy around tax haven banks and their deceptive banking practices enable and encourage tax cheats to hide assets". Not to be outdone, the sub-committee's ranking Republican, Senator Norm Coleman, declared that foreign banks were acting as "Al Capone safe houses for evading taxes".
The US and all the developed nations are right to try and discourage financial misdeeds perpetrated beyond their borders because of slack rules, but such efforts should not allow a smoke screen to descend that obscures the need for similar remedial efforts to be made onshore.
John Milton, the seventeenth century English poet, may have observed that "neither man nor angel can discern hypocrisy, the only evil that walks invisible;" but its presence is palpable today in the case of mainland attitudes towards offshore financial business. We'll come back to those double standards at the end of this newsletter and, meanwhile, just keep in mind Mark Twain's words: "Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please".
Using the word "offshore" is now becoming less in vogue, bearing in mind that it has been a flag – depending on your perspective and also your experience – for shady dealings. Even the International Monetary Fund, which since 2000 has had a separate assessment programme for offshore financial centres in place, has decided to close it which will "eliminate the need to maintain a potentially discriminatory list of offshore financial centre jurisdictions". Defining the varieties of financial centres, however, is becoming a little complex and applying the nomenclature "tax haven" is even more difficult to nail down; for some, Senator Levin's country qualifies as a tax haven.
There are, in fact, just two international centres that can be described as Global Financial Centres, according to a report published earlier this year which was commissioned by the City of London.
Those centres are London and New York which met the criteria and scored the most points in the key five areas: people (talent), business environment, market access, infrastructure and general competitiveness. The report mentioned four other categories of centre, namely, the International Financial Centres which are involved with high volume cross-border transactions (Hong Kong, for example, undertakes a large amount of Asian financial activity), followed by niche, national and regional (within a country's borders) centres.
Niche centres have developed a particular product, such as private banking in Zurich, reinsurance in Bermuda and producer-owned reinsurance companies in the Turks & Caicos Islands. National centres, on the other hand, conduct the largest portion of a country's financial business; but sometimes a large country will have more than just one such centre and the choice then seems to depend on the city which predominates in foreign exchange transactions. The fourth and final category, regional financial centres, are centres within a country where a large amount of a particular region's financial activity takes place.
Perth has become the financial capital of Western Australia, for example, with a strong presence of bankers and mining companies.
We were engrossed in discussing the subject of financial services, with its many facets, and we ordered more coffee. While we waited for it Simon remarked on some of the frustrations he had experienced and likened them to being a referee on a football field with the public sector at one end and the private sector at the other. Frequently, both scored own goals and whilst the rules of the game were clear, not everyone followed them; and when the referee used his whistle, it was often ignored. It seemed also that red cards were acknowledged on a selective basis because some offenders played on regardless. As he continued, I began to compare his regulatory experience to that of Penelope in Homer's Odyssey, she who patiently keeps the suitors at bay for three years, craftily unpicking at night what she has woven by day. Only in this instance, it was Simon who had been weaving whilst others did the unpicking. I recognised and sympathised with a fellow weaver.
Confusion sometimes arises over where ultimate power resides in respect of those islands whose flags, in some cases, incorporate the Union Jack and promote themselves as financial service centres.
The most important point is that they do not possess absolute sovereign independence – whilst accepting, at the same time, that some enjoy more independence than others. This is an issue which has been raised before in the OPQ. The UK has 9 such islands, a mix of Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories, whose populations, like the international financial services they offer, vary.
Alphabetically, the islands comprise: Anguilla (13,500), Bermuda (63,500), British Virgin Islands (27,000), Cayman Islands (48,300), Channel Islands (200,000), Gibraltar (28,700), Isle of Man (80,000), Montserrat (4,800) and the Turks & Caicos Islands (30,600).
Like populations (given here in round figures) and services, the quality of regulation found can also differ. Even if every island had good laws, without good regulation (and regulators) they will not achieve their (sorry, Simon) goal.
Perhaps if Senator Levin could allocate more time to addressing the loopholes in America's financial services industry, especially when it comes to transparency (read on), the British government could allocate equal time to effectively tackling the contentious offshore island issues which, ultimately, are its responsibility.
It is over 15 years since I last walked through the portals of power on my official visits to the FCO in London, but I have maintained a continuing interest in its affairs as they relate to regulation of those island finance centres. So it was with great interest that I sat down and read the House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts report issued in May which, inter alia, considered the FCO's oversight of offshore financial services in the Overseas Territories. I would suggest that for many exregulators reading the report who have worked in one or more of those territories, and who had gone out to do a job, rather than keep one, the comments of the late H. L. Mencken, that literary curmudgeon, would ring true: "Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats".
I had followed up on Simon's analogy by reminding him that the referee in his regulatory game of football had more than just the players at both ends of the field to contend with; there was the Football Association as well, only in his scenario that would be the FCO. You only had to read the May report to see that. Emotions, not economics, may have the greatest impact on stock markets but in the case of regulation it is, like most fields of endeavour, always personalities, not practicalities, that too often prevail. The report recognises how acute this aspect can become, noting how a system of government operating in a small community, where friendships and family ties are more concentrated, can lead to conflict of interests.
Personally, it was the words uttered by Edward Leigh, Chairman of an earlier meeting of the Committee of Public Accounts, on 10th December, 2007, and mentioned in the report, which caught my attention. It was a question directed at Sir Peter Ricketts, the Permanent Secretary of the FCO, who was attending as a witness, and it was this: "Tell us exactly what is happening in the Turks and Caicos Islands and [give us] reassurance that you have got a grip there, please".
I could have helped Mr. Leigh with that question. I also suspect that parts of my answer would have been helpful to Jamaica (see the January issue of our regional newsletter, Letter from Panama) as well as Trinidad and Tobago where international financial centres are in the works.
Ben said that he had read where Jamaica might focus its offshore services on the sport and entertainment sector. An enthusiastic Dr. Trevor Thomas, who is an international tax consultant, apparently envisages Jamaica as a financial centre for the stars which, in turn, could attract lesser known entertainers; he supported his reasoning by quoting the Frank Sinatra fan who said that "What's good enough for Ol' Blue Eyes is good enough for me". I know this much: setting up a Jamaican finance centre could lead to a lot of black eyes for its government if it is not careful.
We had finished our second cup of coffee and it was time for me to go.
"You must tell us more", Ben added as he scraped back his chair, "about the Turks and Caicos, I mean".
"Hopefully before Simon leaves I'll be able to." We got to the door, shook hands, and then Simon said: "That jurisdiction you mentioned, involving over $36 billion in money laundering out of Russia. You never said which centre it was".
"I can tell you that none of the members on Senator Levin's sub-committee would need passports to visit it, because those abuses all took place in the US," I replied.
I went on to tell them that the 2000 companies I had also talked about were set up in Delaware and the Russian revelations involved companies registered in Nevada and Pennsylvania.
I remarked that it seems that the crack in Pennsylvania's Liberty Bell is slight when compared to the one in its company registration system. Nationwide, the US forms nearly 2 million companies each year and US Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Michael Chertoff, has complained that "In countless investigations where the criminal targets utilise shell corporations, the lack of law enforcement ability to gain access to true beneficial ownership information slows, confuses or impedes the efforts by investigators to follow criminal proceeds". So shell companies are not all offshore.
In fact, back in 2006, the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering, the leading organisation in its field, issued a report which criticised the US for failing to be able to obtain beneficial ownership information. I told Ben and Simon that the FATF had asked the US to correct this deficiency by July, 2008, the very month the three of us were meeting for coffee.
"There's still two weeks to go", Simon said wryly and we laughed.
Then we all went on our way and as I walked back to my office thoughts of Milton, Twain, black flags and slitting throats were fixed firmly in my mind.