text:
Peace Education Books
Q and A, as FAQ
How to Change the USA
Blog: Other Economic Worlds
Action for Justice
Art, Human Rights and Peace
Economic Guidance of Nicholas Kaldor
Ethics of Higher Pragmatism
New Market Paradigm
Political Economic Asylum
Reform the Global System
Research about Economy
Resist the Global System
Systemic Reform
Transform the Global System
Zero Unemployment
GPEC Papers
Atlantic Economy: Global Economy
Armenia: Political Economic Security
Economic Partners for Africa
Gift Economy: Mother Economy
Global Economic Recession
Globalization on Palestine
Human Growth Transforms Education
Human Rights after Keynes
Israel Violates Human Rights
Middle East Security: Justice
Nonviolence: Strategy or Lifestyle
Ubuntu and Partnership
War on Terror: a Global Civil War
Yugoslavia: Fragmented, Globalized
Dialog about Globalization
Solidarity of Consumers with Workers
Educating Cities Hit by Globalization
Site in a graphic chart
Directory of Flash graphics on site
Understanding the Global Economy
Part I: Comparative Advantage
Part II: Globalization of Production
Parte III: Theories about Technology
Parte IV: Kaldor's Theory, and Trade Practices of Firms and Nations
Parte V: Theories of Historical Discontinuity
Part VI: Marxist Theories and the Feminist Theory of Maria Mies
Part VII: Post-Marxist and Post-Structuralist Theory
Part VIII: How to Work for Justice in the Global Economy
Part IX: Scientific Conclusions
Part X: Vision of a World Free of Poverty
Part XI: A Logical Plan for Peace
Appendix A: Treadmill of Growth and Global Trends
Appendix B: Letter of Performative Care
Appendix C: Glossary
Comprensión de la
economía mundial
New Transparency in New Sanctuary
The New Sanctuary Test for the Integrity of Immigrants
Good of You to be "Illegal"
The New Sanctuary Today
NGOs Work for Immigrant Legal Rights
Update: 7/29/18
Site map • Contact
Info-tip • Info marooned
Immigrant Rights and Political Economic Asylum
The Sanctuary Movement in the 1980s
Political refugees are usually seeking liberation from economic tyranny, as well as the political oppression behind their economic plight. For example, in the 1980s the Central American Governments of Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala drove the indigenous peasants off their ancestral lands—by force, often deadly force. Therefore, the oppressed people had to seek a political economic asylum; there are instance of political asylum without the corresponding need for economic relief, but those cases are exceptional, even rare.
Other Central American countries in the 1980s could offer neither an economic nor a political option. The nearest option for political economic asylum would be the United States, if not for the fact that the Reagan Administration policy of denial and its persistence dollars, which backed the right-wing Central American Governments under the pretext of the U.S. Cold-war. Thus, the Reagan policy deemed the flight of the peasant refugees as merely in economic self-exile, which would deny them safe-haven in the United States. The policy prevailed even in the face of evidence of numerous cases of executions of the deported on return to their despotic countries. In fact, El Salvadoran para-military execution of Archbishop Oscar Romero and the four Catholic Sisters as volunteers from the United States—had no effect on the U.S. policy, arms supply and related funding.
A huge response, starting in cities nearest to the Mexican border, such as Tucson, an outpouring of churches in the U.S. responded to the crisis. Seeing the Reagan policy as fomenting the violation human rights and international law, many of these courageous churches invoked the ancient principle of sanctuary; this type of sanctuary has its roots in the ancient Judeo-Christian social teachings, in the Roman Law of All Nations and the Right of Sanctuary found in the Medieval Canon..
The Sanctuary Movement in the 1980s defied the restrictive and contradictory U.S. Federal Immigration Policy and rules designed to prevent asylum for Central Americans. At its peak, Sanctuary involved over 500 congregations across the country that made their churches shelters, with provisions and legal counsel to Central American refugees. Denominations committed to the movement include: Baptist, Catholic, Jew, Lutheran, Mennonite, Methodist, Presbyterian, Quaker, Unitarian Universalists and United Church of Christ. Movement members acted in open defiance of Federal law. In the mid and late 1980s, many leading Sanctuary figures faced arrest and trial for their "crimes" of compassion and decency.
The movement became the 1984 winner of the Letelier-Moffitt Human Rights Award. The Sanctuary movement continues into the 2000s by the movement of churches and other houses of worship to shelter immigrants in danger of deportation.
The New Transparency in the New Sanctuary
The tactic of Sanctuary in the 1980s was one of a necessary secrecy of the concealed whereabouts of the Central Americans in sanctuary. Secrecy was justified in the context of the power of the Reagan agenda and the life and death consequences at stake. Today, in contrast yet equally dramatic, transparency is the tactic of The New Sanctuary Movement, which continues to be largely an organized network of churches that facilitate this effort. Add to this, the current central theme of the interfaith alliance as the widening coalition of faith and charity-based institutions, which reflects the multicultural centrepiece of immigration and asylum for political/economic refugees worldwide.
The New Sanctuary participants see their action as in compliance with the law. In a sense, sanctuary is a compassionate detention center in lieu of pending court action. The transparent, clear and open window of the New Sanctuary
defies the current practice of a policy, which is likely as ill-conceived, un just and in violation of international law as the 1980s policy that denied asylum
in its open defiance, brings with it the confidence that the action of sanctuary is valid and justified, and
allows the sanctuary to serve as a compassionate surrogate to the harsh condition of apprehension and detention.
Thus far, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has yet to "storm" a New Sanctuary house. This fact says much about how Sanctuary is speaking its truth to and demanding justice and participatory democracy from power, so-called in the narrow sense. ICE and the judicial system in general, may see the mutual benefit the New Sanctuary in its the economic service as an extension infra-structure, which the New Sanctuary movement provides—at no cost to the taxpayer.
preferably employed or seeking employment in the U.S.,
a immigrant with no criminal past in the U.S. or country of origin (which excludes the crime so-called of illegal alien status)
preferably, an immigrant who has a dependant family in the U.S., and
the immigrant should be willing to speak about their plight to others, the media and the justice system. The New Sanctuary Movement estimates that at least 600,000 people in the United States have at least one family member in danger of the harsh conditions of detention and eventual deportation.
The refugees of Central Americans in the 1980s faced a life and death context. The Sanctuary Movement responded to that dire context with a great and corresponding expression of support. For the New Sanctuary Movement, the stakes are seldom in terms of life and death, yet the human suffering is still obvious. The new movement is smaller, less visible and muted by the louder clamour of anti-immigration. And the anti-immigrant argument, when voiced in rational terms does have important points to make. However, underlying the entire issue of the immigration of workers and working families is the essential need to place the appropriate accountability for the crisis at the feet of the actual architects and perpetuators—rather than the victims of the unjust economic policy, which increasingly fails to meet the needs of workers and family worldwide.
Its Good of You to be "Illegal"
Besides that, the economic data shows that the economic activity of immigrant workers amounts to a net gain in GDP in which all economic actors gain. An economy does, however, need to have a system of checks and balances on the flow of workers into the work force. The City of Oakland, California is proactive in its campaign to set the record straight about immigrant workers. The mass transit stations and kiosk, for example, have info-graphic displays of the actual economic gains that immigrant workers contribute; in addition, the city-sponsored information dispels the myths that the angry mob of opposition have spun over the years about immigrants.
New Sanctuary today consists of these NGO
California: The Interfaith Counsel for Immigration Rights: ICIR -CLUE-CA
Los Angeles: Clergy and Laity United for Economic Equality: CLUE in LA
Oakland: Working East Bay: Workers and Communities Building Power
San Diego: The Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice of San Diego County
San Jose: Working Partnerships USA
Simi Valley, CA: The United Church of Christ: the UCC in Simi Valley, CA
Boston: The Greater Boston New Sanctuary Movement: a broad coalition of twenty churches—The New Sanctuary Movement is a coalition of interfaith religious leaders and participating congregations, called by our faith to respond actively and publicly to the suffering of our immigrant brothers and sisters residing in the United States.
Chicago: Chicago Religious Leadership Network for Latin America: The Chicago New Sanctuary Coalition
Indianapolis: Disciples Home Mission: Refugee and Immigration Ministries
Milwaukee, WI: Milwaukee New Sanctuary Movement
New York City: The New Sanctuary Coalition of New York City — an interfaith network of congregations, NGO, and individuals, standing publicly in solidarity with families and communities resisting detention and deportation in order to stay together. We recognize that unjust global and systemic economic relationships and racism form the basis of the injustices that affect immigrants. We seek reform of United States immigration laws to promote fairness, social and economic justice.
Oregon: The Oregon New Sanctuary Movement (ONSM) is an interfaith coalition of individuals, faith leaders and congregations, called by our faith and conscience to respond actively and publicly to the suffering of our immigrant brothers and sisters residing in the United States. We are committed to lifting up the voices of our immigrant brothers and sisters, working for just and humane immigration reform, and the transformation of the social and economic systems that perpetuate the poverty in immigrants' home countries that drives much of the migration to the US. * — A comprehensive approach to and model of immigration reform
Seattle: The Washington New Sanctuary Movement — an interfaith group committed to publicly protecting the rights of all immigrants, especially those at risk of deportation and whose families face unjust separation. Comprehensive Immigration Reform, Faith based communities, Churches as sanctuary, Sanctuary City, sanctuary cities, Gang Of Eight, DREAM Act, Secure Communities, E-Verify, Border Patrol, Immigration
Question: Is there a New Sanctuary house in South Florida? It is rumoured (but only with broken linkage), and other Sanctuary houses may exist but are cloaked in the "old school" 19800s sanctuary of secrecy due to the climate of ICE, which, after all, was formed in 2002 the —grim and tense post-9/11 days— as the immigration enforcement arm of Homeland Security. Today, ICE is allowed or assumes its power to contract-out its detention jails to private companies that have a limited oversight from the public and our judicial system.
NGO work for Legal Rights of Immigrants:
The American Friends Service Committee : The Quakers continue to lead the way from their involvment through their work freeing slaves via the Underground Railroad
The Interfaith Coalition for Immigrant Rights of CLUE
The ACLU: Immigrant Rights Project
National Alliance for Immigrants' Rights: Advocates for the legal status of all illegal immigrant workers in the United States pending Congressional enactment of a comprehensive immigration reform. Sign the NAIR petition for U.S. Ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families
Action Alert on CAFTA -DR
Stop the FTAA
Zapatista Struggle against NAFTA: Indigenous Rights vs. economic violence
The Zapatistas and the electronic fabric of Struggle
NAFTA and the Zapatista Uprising
The Zapatista Uprising as seen by Noam Chomsky
top • © 2018


text:
Q: A problem with parallelize I am experimenting with Parallelize and ParallelTable
This is the code I am using:
K[a_, b_, r_] = a*Exp[-r/b]/r;

T = D[K[10^5, 10^9, s], s]/299792^2 /. s -> 7.6

R = Range[0, 7, 0.01];
\[Theta] = Range[0, 2*Pi, 0.05];

RcG[d_, t_] = Sqrt[7.6^2 + d^2 - 2*7.6*d*Cos[t]];
f[a_?NumberQ, b_?NumberQ] :=
  1/299792^2*NIntegrate[K[10^5, 10^9, x], {x, 7.6 - a, b}];

tab = Parallelize[
   Table[1/299792^2*
      d*(K[10^5, 10^9, RcG[d, t]] - K[10^5, 10^9, 7.6] - d*T) +
     f[d, RcG[d, t]], {d, R}, {t, \[Theta]}]];
p1 = ListPlot3D[tab, InterpolationOrder -> 4]

I want make a 3d plot using the complicated function defined in the table. When computing, Mathem. gives this error a lot of times:
NIntegrate::inumr: The integrand K[100000,1000000000,x] has evaluated to non-numerical values for all sampling points in the region with boundaries {{7.3,7.30039}}.

It doesn't happen without the Parallelize, so this means that I am using it wrongly, but I don't get where. I also used ParallelTable, with the same result.

A: 1) K is a built-in symbol. Don't use this symbol.
2) Use DistributedContexts with ParallelTable
  tab = ParallelTable[1/299792^2*d*(K[10^5, 10^9, RcG[d, t]] - K[10^5, 10^9, 7.6] - d*T) + f[d, RcG[d, t]], {d, R}, {t, \[Theta]}, DistributedContexts -> All];

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Dubai high-flyer now creating eco-friendly masterpieces in Devon
"It's evoking amazing emotions and that means a lot to me"
Charlotte VowlesDevonLive reporter
When Brendan Rawlings decided to make a gift for a loved one, he could never have foreseen where the idea would end up taking him.
In 2019, he made his brother-in-law a shark made from driftwood-and soon found himself with 20 commissions for further designs.
Within just three weeks, Brendan had enough interest to keep him busy full-time. He has been running Zen Wood Design from his workshop in Topsham, ever since.
On his sudden success Brendan said: "It was a full-blown accident."
Brendan with his driftwood shark (Image: Brendan Rawlings Zen Wood Design)
The thirty-nine-year-old had been living in Dubai, running a successful fitness company, but he eventually returned to Devon feeling somewhat "frazzled."
He based himself in Woodbury and realised how much he had missed engaging with nature. Brendan said: "I'm massively inspired by nature-I think it's something we should invest in."
See more of Brendan's amazing designs
Each of his unique designs is created using driftwood or other reclaimed wood, mostly collected in the Southwest. Brendan said: "Each wood is very different, you kind of have to go with the flow a bit.
"The power that drives my electric tools also all comes from sustainable energy sources.
"One of the most popular things I make is a highland cow head. I made 15 of those last year."
However, the cow design may have some competition as Brendan has recently started creating driftwood angels, which drew a huge amount of interest after he posted an image of one of his designs on Exmouth Beach.
Brendan's Facebook post drew a lot of compliments
Brendan said: "My wife said you need to get on Facebook because people are saying nice things about you. I definitely didn't expect that, I expected 10 likes or something."
He said he's even heard from people who are grieving that his angels have given them comfort. Brendan said: "Since I made my first angel I've kind of fallen in love with making those. It's evoking amazing emotions and that means a lot to me. It means different things to different people."
The designs take anything from a day to a week for Brendan to create - he has even made a life-sized cow in the space of two days.
He said: "That was bonkers and big 16 hour shifts. I'm gravitating to bigger pieces now. I'm in a little workshop in Topsham, people can come visit if they like."
Looking ahead, Brendan is continuing to accept commissions and is continuing to challenge himself. He said: "There's nothing so far that I've not been able to do."
He will also be continuing his monthly donation to The Devon Wildlife Trust,the Woodland Trust and The Tree Council - which goes towards planting new trees.
Brendan thinks he has so far helped fund the planting of 500-1000 new trees. He said: "It's my way of giving back."
#do1thing to help prevent climate change
Meet the man living off-grid
Met Office sea level predictions
Man to swim across Antarctic ice sheet
50 ways to reduce your carbon footprint
Brendan said he's keen to connect with other businesses who would allow him to plant trees on their land.
He said: "Looking further down the line, if that became a movement that would be even better.
"Nature feeds the soul and heals us to the core, so working in it and with it, has been an enlightening experience. I am now all the more grateful for making the decision to return to the green and pleasant land."

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Global Intellectual Property Academy (GIPA) Surveys
A Notice by the Patent and Trademark Office on 05/03/2017
Written comments must be submitted on or before July 3, 2017.
I. Abstract
II. Method of Collection
III. Data
IV. Request for Comments
Proposed collection; comment request.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)), invites comments on a proposed extension of an existing information collection.
You may submit any comments by any of the following methods:
Email: InformationCollection@uspto.gov. Include "0651-0065 comment" in the subject line of the message.
Mail: Marcie Lovett, Records and Information Governance Division Director, Office of the Chief Technology Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.
Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Requests for additional information should be directed to J. David Binsted, Program Manager, Global Intellectual Property Academy, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450; by telephone at 571-272-1500; or by email at james.binsted@upsto.gov. Additional information about this collection is also available at http://www.reginfor.gov under "Information Collection Review."
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) surveys international and domestic participants of the USPTO's Global Intellectual Property Academy (GIPA) training programs to obtain feedback from the participants on the effectiveness of the various services provided to them in the training programs. GIPA was established in 2006 to offer training programs on the enforcement of intellectual property rights, patents, trademarks, and copyright. The training programs offered by GIPA are designed to meet the specific needs of foreign government officials (including judges; prosecutors; police; customs officials; patent, trademark, and copyright officials; and policy makers) concerning various intellectual property topics, such as global intellectual property rights protection, enforcement, and strategies to handle the protection and enforcement issues in their respective countries.
This collection contains three surveys directed to separate audiences: Pre-program, post-program, and alumni. The pre-program survey is designed to obtain the background and experience of a participant and is delivered to the participant prior to their arrival for a GIPA training program. The post-program survey is used to analyze the overall effectiveness of the program and is conducted at the conclusion of the training program. The alumni survey is used to determine the value of the GIPA Start Printed Page 20588training program on the future job performance of the participant. The data obtained from these participation satisfaction surveys will be used to evaluate the percentage of foreign officials trained by GIPA who have increased their expertise in intellectual property, the satisfaction with the intellectual property program, and the value of the experience as it relates to future job performance. The data received from these surveys will also be used to help the USPTO meet organizational performance and accountability goals through the following legislative mandates: Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA), the President's Management Agenda (PMA), and the Office of OMB's (OMB's) Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART). These surveys also support various business goals developed by the USPTO to fulfill customer service and performance goals, to assist the USPTO in strategic planning for future initiatives, to very existing service standards, and to establish new ones.
The GIPA surveys are voluntary surveys. The USPTO expects to hire a survey contractor to conduct these surveys. The surveys will primarily be conducted electronically, but the USPTO will also have paper surveys to mail to those participants who have poor Internet connectivity or have access restrictions. In-person surveys may also be conducted. Survey participants will be able to access the online surveys through links provided to them in email invitations. The links provided in these emails are individualized links that are uniquely tied to the survey participants so passwords, user IDs, or usernames are not needed to access the surveys.
Information collected from the surveys will be kept private, to the extent provided by law. Responses to the pre-program, post-program, and alumni surveys can be linked to the participants and to the demographic data collected from them during the various GIPA training programs. However, the actual data recorded from the surveys will not be directly linked to the participants. Any data linking the individual to their responses will not be retained after the data has been aggregated. The USPTO will have limited access to the data. The only data that the USPTO can access will be the aggregated survey data and the frequency of the responses. The agency will not be able to view the individual responses or the data related to the survey. The survey contractor will have access to individual survey responses for analysis purposes only and will only report the aggregated data and the frequency of the responses. The USPTO does not intend to collect any personally identifying data from the participants and intends to maintain the contact information for the participants in a separate file for the quantitative data.
The surveys will primarily be online surveys but the USPTO will also have paper surveys to mail to those participants who have poor Internet connectivity or have access restrictions. The surveys will also be distributed by email. In-person surveys may also be conducted.
OMB Number: 0651-0065.
Form Number(s): None.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Affected Public: Individuals or households and business or other for-profit institutions.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 450 responses per year. The USPTO estimates that approximately 100% of the surveys will be filed electronically.
Estimated Time per Response: The USPTO estimates that it takes the public approximately 15 minutes (0.25 hours) to complete the surveys in this collection. This includes the time to gather the necessary information, respond to the survey, and submit it to the USPTO.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 112.50 hours per year.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Cost Burden: $20,475.00 per year. The USPTO expects that the audience for the GIPA training programs will typically consist of high-ranking government officials, judges, lawyers, examiners, and others. The USPTO estimates that roughly 20% of the attendees fall into the high-ranking categories, while the rest make up 80% of the attendees. The USPTO estimates the hourly rate of $410 for high-ranking attendees, while the rest would be roughly equivalent to the para-professional hourly rate of $125. Using a 20/80 weighted average for the attendee categories, the blended rate for attendees is $182. Since individuals with varying job titles and pay grades typically attend the GIPA training programs, the USPTO is currently unable to derive a concise international labor rate for these individuals. Additionally, since the training is conducted in the United States, the USPTO is using the corresponding United States pay rate to calculate the hourly labor rates. If the agency can obtain more concise hourly labor rate data for these individuals, these rates will be used to calculate the respondent burden in the future. The USPTO estimates that the total respondent cost burden for this collection is $20,475.00 per year.
Table 1—Total Hourly Burden
IC No.
Estimated time for response (hours)
Estimated annual responses
Estimated Annual Burden Hours
Rate ($/hr)
Estimated annual burden
(a) (b) (a) x (b) = (c) (d) (c) x (d) = (e)
1 Pre-Program Survey 0.25 150 37.50 $182.00 $6,825.00
2 Post-Program Survey 0.25 150 37.50 182.00 6,825.00
3 Alumni Survey 0.25 150 37.50 182.00 6,825.00
Totals 450 112.50 20,475.00
Estimated Total Annual Non-hour Respondent Cost Burden: $0.00 per year. There are no maintenance, operation, capital start-up, or recordkeeping costs associated with this information collection. These surveys do not have filing or other fees associated with them. The USPTO expects to conduct these surveys electronically using a survey tool and may also conduct in-person surveys. In either case, there will be no postage costs associated with these surveys.Start Printed Page 20589
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or included in the request for OMB approval. All comments will become a matter of public record.
The USPTO is soliciting public comments to:
(a) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility;
(b) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
(c) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and
(d) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.
Dated: April 14, 2017.
Marcie Lovett,
Records and Information Governance Division Director, USPTO, Office of the Chief Technology Officer.


text:
Home » Gov. Cooper: Spending proposal part of education 'catch up'
Gov. Cooper: Spending proposal part of education 'catch up'
By GARY D. ROBERTSON
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — It's time for North Carolina to "catch up" after years of neglect in education spending by GOP lawmakers, the state's new Democratic governor said Wednesday as he offered his first budget proposal.
Gov. Roy Cooper defended the more than $1.1 billion in additional total spending in his $23.5 billion proposal for the year starting July 1, compared to what Republicans approved in the current budget law.
The budget "shows what you can do if you make the right kind of investments, if you don't spend time continuing with corporate tax giveaways, continuing tax breaks for the wealthy," Cooper said at a news conference at Durham Technical Community College. "This is the kind of budget that you can have if you make education (and) people a priority."
Cooper has blamed former Gov. Pat McCrory and Republican legislators for emphasizing income and corporate tax cuts while education spending remained hamstrung after the Great Recession.
Republicans disagree that their tax plans have hurt education. They contend revenues have continued to grow and help pay for higher teacher pay and education spending.
Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, immediately criticized Cooper's proposal as bloated. It would grow 5.1 percent compared to the current year, which only saw a 2.8 percent increase. With veto-proof majorities in both chambers, Republicans could ignore Cooper's budget proposal, draw up their own plan and present it to him early this summer.
"His reckless $1 billion spending spree would surely return us to the days of high taxes and multi-billion dollar deficits," Berger said in a release.
But Cooper called his two-year plan fiscally responsible — setting aside another $312 million in the rainy day reserve fund and locating $115 million more for recovery from Hurricane Matthew and forest fires last fall without raising taxes and fees. He said his proposal offers much for Republicans to like, especially with the public schools.
Cooper said it would help make North Carolina a national leader in key education measurements by 2025. Those include pre-kindergarten enrollment, high school graduation rates and the percentage of adults with higher education degrees.
"These goals really don't come with party labels," Cooper said.
His budget would offer average 5 percent raises for public school teachers this fall and in the 2018-19 school year, bringing the average pay to just under $55,000. Raises would range from at least 3 percent to as much as 7 percent depending on experience levels. The Senate, which draws up a budget law first at the Legislative Building this year, already has said it's committed to hitting a $55,000 average.
Cooper would spend $18 million over two years to eliminate a waiting list so an additional 4,700 at-risk 4-year-olds can attend preschool classes. And Smart Start, an early childhood development program championed by former Gov. Jim Hunt, would get $30 million, marking its first state spending increase in 10 years, Cooper Budget Director Charlie Perusse said.
The governor also proposed using $19 million in lottery money to pay for tuition and fees for young community college students not covered by state or federal financial aid. He would revive a loan forgiveness program for prospective teachers who commit to teaching after graduation in the public schools. Both would begin in fall 2018.
The spending plan also would pay for infrastructure to attract manufacturing plants and expand broadband to rural areas.
Democratic legislators and their allies praised Cooper's plans. Other items are likely to get a cool reception from the GOP-led legislature, including expanding Medicaid under the federal health care overhaul law. The idea could be moot anyway, should Congress soon repeal that law.
Cooper wants to revive the state tax credit for child care and dependent care expenses and return the state's film and television incentive program to a more lucrative tax credit. GOP lawmakers eliminated the child care credit earlier this decade. The film incentive was turned into a grant program in 2015.
And Cooper wants to halt the scheduled expansion of a program that helps thousands of K-12 children attend private or religious schools with taxpayer funds. Republicans have championed the Opportunity Scholarship program.


text:
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Berlin Street Scene
Berlin Street Scene, ca. 1914
Pastel chalks and charcoal on laid paper
16069 Z
When the Brücke member Ernst Ludwig Kirchner moved from Dresden to Berlin in 1911, life in the modern metropolis became one of the central topics in his works. Today they rank among the highlights of his artistic oeuvre. This pastel of a Berlin street scene belongs in the conceptual context of many of the paintings, drawings and prints in which Kirchner took as his subject the bustle on the streets and squares of the capital and in each case made use of the special features of the technique in question.
The foreground of the scene is dominated by an arrangement of three elongated figures, who take up the entire height of the picture surface. With dynamic, rapid strokes, the artist has characterised a man dressed in a coat and hat and two fashionably dressed women. The women's outfits, the feather hats, the costume with the overlarge collar, and the high-heeled shoes are immediately eye-catching. The way they are posing and their mask-like faces - highlighted in a garish, pale blue and alertly registering their surroundings - make it clear that they are prostitutes. The scene derives its aggressive character from the jagged forms ending in acute angles and the dominant colours: black, the turquoise of the costume, the purple of the punter's hat and trousers, but above all from the sulphur-yellow light that surrounds them. A suggestive aspect is provided behind the right-hand figure by the phalanx of extended male legs running parallel to each other as they descend into the depths of an otherwise undefined space - a feature that recurs in the painting 'Friedrichstraße' (1914, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart). The energetically charged tension is, however, immediately converted into the powerful execution and intensity of the pastel colours in the drawing. The artist's gaze at the challenging eroticism of big-city civilisation is considerably different from the natural sensuousness of the works he created in Dresden and on Fehmarn. A drawing such as his 'Berlin Street Scene' colours our impression of the mood in the German metropolis on the eve of the First World War.
The Brücke artists' association disbanded in 1913 and Kirchner's involvement with the magazine 'Der Sturm' would take him to the centre of the Expressionist movement. This pastel belonged at one time to the collector Carl Hagemann, who maintained a friendly relationship with the artist until he died. It is thanks to the "Bequest of Dr. Carl Hagemann" that the Collection of Prints and Drawings has in its possession one of the most important collections of Expressionist art.
From 1900 onwards, the Frankfurt chemist and industrialist Carl Hagemann (1867‒1940) assembled one of the most important private collections of modern art. It included numerous paintings, drawings, watercolours and prints, especially by members of the artist group "Die Brücke". After Carl Hagemann died in an accident during the Second World War, the then Städel director Ernst Holzinger arranged for Hagemann's heirs to evacuate his collection with the museum's collection. In gratitude, the family donated almost all of the works on paper to the Städel Museum in 1948. Further donations and permanent loans as well as purchases of paintings and watercolours from the Hagemann estate helped to compensate for the losses the museum had suffered in 1937 as part of the Nazi's "Degenerate Art" campaign. Today, the Hagemann Collection forms the core of the Städel museum's Expressionist collection.
pastel chalk
autonomous drawing?
design for a painting?
Nicht bezeichnet
Verso Stempel des Städelschen Kunstinstituts, Frankfurt am Main (Lugt 2356)
Lenz 1974, 27
61E(BERLIN) names of cities and villages (BERLIN)
33C56 soliciting in the street ~ prostitution
33C52 whore, prostitute
31AA231(+72) standing figure - AA - female human figure (+ two persons)
33C86 woman-chaser
31A231 standing figure
41D211 dress, gown
41D222(STOLE) neck-gear ~ clothing (STOLE)
41D221(HAT) head-gear: hat
31AA513 making up - AA - (for) women
41D2121 coat
Carl Hagemann (1867-1940), Frankfurt
Nachlass Carl Hagemann, 1940
Schenkung der Erben an das Städelsche Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main, 1948.
Since 2001, the Städel Museum has systematically been researching the provenance of all objects that were acquired during the National Socialist period, or that changed owners or could have changed owners during those years. The basis for this research is the "Washington Declaration", also known as the "Washington Conference Principles", formulated at the 1998 "Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets" and the subsequent "Joint Declaration".
The provenance information is based on the sources researched at the time they were published digitally. However, this information can change at any time when new sources are discovered. Provenance research is therefore a continuous process and one that is updated at regular intervals.
Ideally, the provenance information documents an object's origins from the time it was created until the date when it found its way into the collection. It contains the following details, provided they are known:
the type of acquisition and/or the way the object changed hands
the owner's name and place of residence
the date on which it changed hands
The successive ownership records are separated from each other by a semicolon.
Gaps in the record of a provenance are indicated by the placeholder "…". Unsupported information is listed in square brackets.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact the museum at .
Auguste Chabaud Hotel Corridor
Johann Daniel Bager The Wedding Night
Albrecht Dürer Die Apokalypse, Einzeldrucke vor dem Text
Otto Muehl Materialaktion Nr. 19 (Bodybuilding), Perinetkeller, Perinetgasse 1, 1200 Wien
Christian Georg Schütz the Elder The Rossmarkt in Frankfurt
August Sander Painter [Anton Räderscheidt]
Barbara Klemm Weltausstellung, Osaka, Japan
Anthonie Palamedesz. Merry Company
Ursula Schulz-Dornburg Erevan - Parakar
David Vinckboons; succession Village Fair With Blind Hurdy-Gurdy Player
Barbara Klemm Louvre, Paris, Frankreich
Rhenish Master ca. 1330 Christ before Pilate, Lamentation, female Saint and holy Bishop (Augustine?) (painted surface heavily damaged)
Dennis Stock James Dean on Times Square
Barbara Klemm Santiago Sierra, Kunstwerke Berlin
Sibylle Bergemann Das Denkmal, 1975 - 1986
style of Joos de Momper d. J. Mountain Landscape with Travelers
Hendrik Meyer Landscape with Herd of Sheep in Front of a Peasant Hut in a Ruins
Full-scale
staedelmuseum.de/go/ds/16069z


Built in America, engineered in the pursuit of gold. We're going far beyond what was previously thought possible, while remaining true to our core values: innovation, authenticity and American spirit. The AP12 speed-suit defines the physics of fast.
Lightweight, hydrophobic micro-filament textile provides a high level compressive fit with 360 degree core stabilization. 85% Nylon 15 % Lycra.
Specialized seams and sleek designs combine to optimize body position and reduce drag.
Hydrodynamic three-panel design constructed to enhance compression and increase muscle fiber firing.
Smooth, soft and stitch-free for comfort, stability and drag reduction.
Range of Motion straps enable fluidity and explosiveness.
The combination of bonded seams on the inside and four-way lock seams on the outside creates the lowest possible profile, reducing drag.
The Summer 2014 Dolfin Uglies have arrived!


Most people think that growing old should be frustrating, unpleasant and disappointing. But, it does not have to be that way. Treat yourself properly now – you won't regret later!
As the time passes eventually we all face with different kinds of pains, one of those are problems with joints. But we have some advice to share with you, so you can keep calm.
Bones and joints' pain is not a usual pain, so those who already have experienced the feeling of that pain know that is a bit of a nightmare. In some cases, people are unable to walk or sit.
Did you know that the knees support more than 80% of the total body weight? Because of that reason you should take a good care about your knees.
What can cause pain in the joints is obesity, long standing hours and improper posture. Prevention is the best remedy which you can use, so, you should act on time! Once you notice some initial symptoms, you better react at that moment.
We will present you a natural remedy that will help you solve this problem and even restore the vitality of your bones.
Take the cayenne pepper and the ginger; you can choose between the warm olive oil and the apple cider vinegar both of them are effective equally. Mix the ingredients altogether; the most important thing is to stir well and to have a final product which is similar to a paste.
You should apply the paste directly to the affected area and wait for 20 minutes; it won't be a problem if it stays longer, it depends on your free time. It is important to remember that this paste can relieve you from the pain.
The cayenne pepper contains capsaicin, and it helps to soften the pain. The capsaicin warms the body and relieves any discomfort or pain because it is a great analgesic. This will help your tendons and ligaments to be stronger, and you won't feel pain anymore.
Share this article in order to help somebody who is facing this kind of problem.


text:
Does the 4 percent rule work in recent years?
In Financial IndependenceUpdated on February 18, 2020 March 8, 2020 By Mr. The Poor Swiss
(Disclosure: Some of the links below may be affiliate links)
Typically, when we do retirement simulations, we want to take as many years back as possible. For my previous Retirement simulations, this meant using about 150 years of data to do the simulation.
However, there is potentially an issue with that simulation. What if we are not in the same situation now anymore? What if the chances of success in recent years are significantly different from before?
I thought it would be an interesting analysis to focus on the last 50 years instead of taking the full 150 years of data. For instance, this would mean there would be no Great Depression in the analysis.
So, let's see if the 4 percent rule would have worked in the last 50 years. And of course, we are going to test many more withdrawal rates!
Is it different?
Returns on stocks
Returns on bonds
Is it really different?
Retirement of 20 years
Summary of the results
First, let's try to compare these two periods:
1870 – 2018: 150 years of data
1968 – 2018: 50 years of data
Are they really different? Many different events appeared in both periods. But we are interested in the stock market results and the inflation results. These facts could make a big difference if you rely on the 4 percent rule for your retirement. They will make a difference regardless of your withdrawal rate.
Let's look at stocks first.
In the last 150 years, the average monthly returns from stocks have been 0.82%. In the previous 50 years, the average monthly returns have been 0.88%. It means that average returns have been going up these last 50 years. We can probably explain this by the fact that we are the top of a very strong bull market.
In the last 150 years, there have been 690 negative months. It is 38.85% of the months. In the previous 50 years, there have only been 232, a slightly lower 37.90%.
In the last 150 years, the best month for stocks was April 1933, with +42.89% returns! In comparison, the best month in the last 50 years was October 1974, with only +16.77%. The peaks are much lower during the previous five decades.
The worst month for stocks in the last 150 years was September 1931, with -29.62%! In the last 50 years, it was October 1987 with -21.53%! Again, the peaks are lower in the last years.
It is interesting that in the last 50 years, the returns of the lowest month had an absolute value higher than the best month.
Overall, stocks have returned slightly more these last 50 years and have been slightly less volatile.
We can do the same analysis on bonds as well.
In the last 150 years, bonds returned an average of 0.39% per month. But in the last five decades, they returned an average of 0.62% The average returns on bonds are significantly higher these last 50 years! I am surprised. I was thinking bond returns have been going down. But this is not the case.
In the last 150 years, there have been 594 negative months for bonds (33.44%). And in the last 50 years, there were 232, which means 37.90%. We can see that bonds have been significantly more volatile these last decades.
In both periods, the best month for bonds was April 1980, with returns of 12.688%. It is a very high return for bonds over a single month! Almost as high as the best returns for stocks in the last 50 years (16.77%).
Again, in both periods, the worst month was February 1980, with a return of -7.91%! Still, this is significantly more than I thought.
So bond returns have been getting higher. However, they have also been getting more volatile with more negative months.
Finally, we can also look at the inflation data.
On average, monthly inflation has been 0.17% in the last 150 years. In the last five decades, monthly inflation has been 0.32%. It has been really higher recently!
The month with the highest inflation in the last 150 years was October 1902, with 6.96%! It is insanely high inflation for a month. In a single month, the cost of living went up by almost 7%! In the last 50 years, the worst month was August 1973, with 1.80% inflation.
The month with the lowest inflation in the last 150 years was June 1898, with -6.50%. Again, this is a crazy number! In the last 50 years, the lowest inflation in a month was in November 2008.
In the last 150 years, there were 379 months with negative inflation. It means that one month out of five, prices went down. But in the last 50 years, only 47 months were negative. It is only 7.67%.
So, inflation has really been higher these last five decades.
When we consider everything, things are not entirely different between these two periods. But there are still some significant differences.
First of all, the main difference is inflation. On average, monthly inflation has been almost twice higher during these last 50 years than it has been in the last 150 years. It is important because higher inflation makes it harder to retire early.
On the other hand, bonds and stocks have had higher returns. These returns compensate for the higher inflation. On the other hand, they have also both been more volatile. In both cases, there have been more negative months in the last 50 than in the last 150 years.
But what is also very interesting is that the magnitude of the worst and best month is also lower. The absolute values are lower. It is important because months with -20% can be extremely detrimental to your retirement. It is especially true if you withdraw money every month.
Now that we know the differences between these periods, it is time to run some withdrawal rate simulations!
For doing these 4 percent rule simulations, I am using United States Stocks, Bonds, and Inflation data from 1968 to 2018. It is the same data I have been using for several of my simulations. For instance, I have used them to refresh the results of the Trinity Study.
If you want more details, I detail the data on my post about my FIRE calculator based on my tool and data. The source code is also available!
For this particular simulation, I am going to use different portfolios and different withdrawal rates. In all simulations, I am going to use a yearly rebalancing. If you wonder why, take a look at simulations of rebalancing in retirement.
I am going to do the simulation for different numbers of years in retirement. I am going to start at 20 and end at 40 years of retirement. Ideally, we would want to simulation with more years. But we only have 50 years of data. Simulating for more than 40 years would not yield results with any statistical quality.
Let's see what were our chances of success in sustaining our portfolio for 20 years, in the last 50 years.
Chances of success for a 20 year retirement in recent years (1968-2018)
As you can see, the chances of success of such a retirement are really high. Even with a 4.5% withdrawal, we would have chances of success that are higher than 99%! With a 5% withdrawal rate and a decent amount of stocks, chances of success are still higher than 95%!
The 4 percent rule never failed in the last 50 years for a 20 years retirement. It is really impressive!
But how does it compare with classic results? Let's see the results with the entire period of data.
Chances of success for a 20 year retirement in the last 150 years (1870-2018)
We can directly see that the two graphs are very different! I did not expect so much difference when I started this experiment.
We can see that for all the portfolios, the success rates are significantly higher these last 50 years. It is especially true for bonds. Bonds in a portfolio have performed much better in the last 50 years than in the last 150 years.
Now, a 20 years retirement is a very short period. Most people will need to sustain their expenses for a significantly longer period. So, let's see what happens for a longer retirement in more detail.
Let's see what were our chances of success for a 30 years retirement in the last 50 years.
As we expected, the chances of success are much lower for 30 years than for 20 years. But all our portfolios are still doing a very good job when using the 4 percent rule. These are some very strong success rates!
Even for a higher withdrawal rate such as 4.5%, chances of success of portfolios with a lot of stocks have about 90% chance of success. It is a great result.
Even with only 20% of stocks, you would still be likely to succeed with a 4% withdrawal rate.
Let's put things in perspective with the results of the entire period.
The differences between the two graphs are very important! The impact on stocks is not very significant. But the effect on bonds is extremely significant.
In the last 150 years, the 4 percent rule would have failed with a portfolio with 20% or less of stocks. But in the last 50 years, this is entirely possible. It shows that the returns on bonds were exceptional in the last five decades. This situation was not the norm before.
But even with 40% of stocks, you would still have had more than 90% chances of success with the 4 percent rule. But people using that much bonds are very conservative. They would probably aim at more than 95% and would need a 3.5% withdrawal rate in that.
We can also observe another interesting fact. With high withdrawal rates, portfolios with a lot of stocks have done slightly better in the last 50 years than they have in the last 150 years. It is not a huge difference, but still significant. If you plan on a large withdrawal rate, this is something you may want to consider.
A 30 years retirement is already a great test for retirement. But we can see what happens when we do the test for a 40 years retirement.
First, I need to emphasize that 40 years of simulation over 50 years is not that relevant. It means there are only ten possible starting years for the simulation. And most of the ending years will end up in a strong bull market. The 30 years simulation has much more value. But we can still see what would happen with 40 years.
Here are the results for a 40 years retirement:
The first thing we can see is that 40 years is where high withdrawal rates stop to be working. The highest chance of success for a 4.5% withdrawal rate is about 67%. This where a withdrawal rate between 3.5% and 4% is best. I would say this range is the sweet spot for most people.
With the 4 percent rule, to have a decent (higher than 80%) chance of success, you will need at least 60% of stocks to sustain your lifestyle. Forty years is also where too little stocks will not play in your favor. If you want more bonds, you will need to get a lower withdrawal rate.
Now, let's compare with the results over the entire period:
We can observe two main things here.
First, the performance with 40% of bonds and more is worse than in the last 50 years. It makes sense since the returns of the bonds have been much higher recently. Even with the 4 percent rule, you would need at least 60% in stocks to sustain your expenses.
Second, the performance with a high allocation of stocks is significantly better than in the last five decades. This point can be explained mostly by higher inflation in the last 50 years. It can also probably be explained by a bad start to time between 1968 and 1978.
In the last 150 years, you would need at least 60% of stocks to use the 4 percent rule. It is an important fact to know! The 4 percent rule does not work for every portfolio! It is the reason why several people call it the 4 percent rule of thumb.
Given that we only have 50 years of data, it does not make sense to do a simulation for more than 40 years. It is the most significant caveat or reducing the period of simulation.
We can extract several interesting findings from these results.
On average, the chances of success in retirement are higher in the last five decades than in the last fifteen. It is especially true for portfolios with large allocations to bonds.
On the other hand, for a very long retirement, the chances of success of portfolios with significant allocations to stocks have been slightly lower.
Regarding the 4 percent rule, it is working very well in the last 50 years. Even for a long retirement, a 4% withdrawal rate would have been adequate. The only time when the rule fails is when you have less than 40% stocks. If you plan on having 60% or more bonds in your portfolio, you should probably opt for a 3.75% withdrawal rate.
For most portfolios, the safe zone is between 3.5% and 4% withdrawal rates. I do not think it makes sense to go lower than 3.5%. You will end up with a substantial amount of money when you die. And you will need to accumulate too much money to become Financially Independent.
To answer the question from this article: The 4 percent rule works really well in the last 50 years!
The last 50 years are significantly different than the last 150 years period. Inflation has been significantly higher. Also, bond returns have been higher. It makes sense since these two are correlated. Moreover, returns have been less volatile.
Once we simulate, we can see several differences during these two periods. In the last 50 years, portfolios with a high number of bonds have performed much better. On the other hand, portfolios with a very large allocations o stocks have performed slightly worse. Overall, if you have bonds in your portfolio, the chances of success are better in the last 50 years than in the last 150 years.
Now, we have to keep in mind that 50 years is a relatively short period. Simulations are getting better with the more data they have. Moreover, this does not allow us to simulate the retirement of more than 40 years. It is essential to realize this. It is the main reason why people simulate the entire period.
Finally, these are only simulations! Nothing is telling us that the next 50 years are going to look like the last 50 years. Maybe it will. Perhaps it will not. There is no way to know. It could change drastically. But this is still very valuable information.
Seeing these results, I am even more convinced that the 4 percent rule is strong! Moreover, this still reinforces my feeling that withdrawal rates below 3.5% are too conservative.
Before, I was planning on a 3.5% withdrawal rate. Now, I think that I will aim for a 3.75% instead. It would mean I have to save 114'000 CHF less than I was planning. I will reconsider this, of course. But I think this is a sound withdrawal rate with a substantial allocation to stocks.
If you want more simulations, I recently simulated retirement scenarios in a low-yield environment.
What do you think of this? Do you think it is harder to retire in the last 50 years? Do you think the 4 percent rule will still work?
Does The 4% Rule work in a low-yield environment?
A Free FIRE Calculator - Find your chance of success
Updated Trinity Study for 2021 - More Withdrawal Rates!
Get our best strategies and tips straight to your inbox.
Get personal finance tips that will help you towards Financial Independence, for free!
Mr. The Poor Swiss
Mr. The Poor Swiss is the author behind thepoorswiss.com. In 2017, he realized that he was falling into the trap of lifestyle inflation. He decided to cut on his expenses and increase his income. This blog is relating his story and findings. In 2019, he is saving more than 50% of his income. He made it a goal to reach Financial Independence. You can send Mr. The Poor Swiss a message here.
View all posts by Mr. The Poor Swiss
The Poor Swiss on Twitter The Poor Swiss on Facebook
Transparency Privacy Policy Disclosure Contact me
Copyright 2020 thepoorswiss.com


text:
Home Classifieds Directory About Contact Advertise
Board of Regents Approves Naming of the Tilleman Field
I'm pleased to share that on September 16th, the Montana Board of Regents officially approved naming MSU-Northern's new football field the Tilleman Field.
In September of 2019, the Tilleman family, owners of the Tilleman Motor Company and GMC dealership in Havre, made a lead gift to kick off public phase of the fundraising campaign of the new Northern Lights football field and stadium project.
Mike Tilleman, a former NFL football player, was also instrumental in bringing back Northern's football program twenty years ago, as well as founding the Northern Lights Athletic Scholarship Foundation (NLASF), which has contributed significantly to MSU-Northern Athletics over the last 20 years.
Through NLASF, Mike also created a celebrity pheasant hunt called Legends for Lights, which brings former NFL players to Havre every fall. All money raised is donated by NLASF to the MSU-Northern athletic program and provides vital funding for scholarships and staffing needs.
I cannot thank the Tilleman family enough for their unwavering support of our university, athletic programs, and most importantly, our students. We are pleased to be able to honor this long-standing relationship and recognize these incredible contributions through the naming of the Tilleman Field.
Greg Kegel


text:
Q: Ajax and PHP form - 500 (Internal Server Error) I have a contact form that will be sent to an e-mail, but when I try to send I get the 500 Internal Server Error.
I already check probable errors like wrong variable name on HTML file and these stuff.
My hosting is Digital Ocean.
Here is my js code:
  var form = $('#form-contact');
  var formMessages = $('#form-messages');

  $(form).submit( function( event ) {

    event.preventDefault();

    var formData = $(form).serialize();

    $.ajax({
      type  : 'POST',
      url   : $(form).attr('action'),
      data  : formData,
      beforeSend: function(){
         $(".load").show();
      },
    })

    .done( function( response ) {
      $(".load").hide();

      $(formMessages).removeClass('error');
      $(formMessages).addClass('success');

      $(formMessages).text(response);

      $('#form-contact input').val('');
      $('#form-contact textarea').val('');
    })

    .fail( function( data ) {
      $(".load").hide();

      $(formMessages).removeClass('success');
      $(formMessages).addClass('error');

      // Sending
      if ( data.response !== '' ) {
        $(formMessages).text( data.responseText );
      } else {
        $(formMessages).text( 'error.' );
      }

    });

  } );

And here, my PHP code:
if ($_SERVER["REQUEST_METHOD"] == "POST") {
  // Get the form fields and remove whitespace.
  $name = strip_tags(trim($_POST["user_name"]));
  $name = str_replace(array("\r","\n"),array(" "," "),$name);
  $email = filter_var(trim($_POST["user_email"]), FILTER_SANITIZE_EMAIL);
  $message = trim($_POST["user_message"]);

  // Check that data was sent to the mailer.
  if ( empty($name) OR empty($message) OR !filter_var($email, FILTER_VALIDATE_EMAIL)) {
      // Set a 400 (bad request) response code and exit.
      http_response_code(400);
      echo "error.";
      exit;
  }

  // Set the recipient email address.
  $recipient = "mail@here.com";

  // Set the email subject.
  $subject = "New contact from " . $name;

  // Build the email content.
  $email_content = "Name: ". $name;
  $email_content .= "\nE-mail: ". $email;
  $email_content .= "\n\nMessage:\n " . $message;

  // Build the email headers.
  $email_headers = "From: $name <$email>";

  // Send the email.
  if (mail($recipient, $subject, $email_content, $email_headers)) {
      // Set a 200 (okay) response code.
      http_response_code(200);
      echo "Thanks, your message was sent.";
  } else {
      // Set a 500 (internal server error) response code.
      http_response_code(500);
      echo "OOps! Sorry, error.";
  }

  } else {
      // Not a POST request, set a 403 (forbidden) response code.
      http_response_code(403);
      echo "Problem with your request!";
  }

A: That 500 is coming from your own code: http_response_code(500);
The reason your getting it is because mail() is returning false, which means that it's not configured properly. You'll need to install and set up postfix or fakesendmail.


For 32 years, Gordon Hikomak has been a member of the Kugluktuk Fire Department and for the past decade, he's been its fire chief.
Gordon Hikomak, right, has served as a member of Kugluktuk's fire department for 32 years and he's been fire chief for the past decade. His eldest son Billy, left, also became a volunteer firefighter and says his father has taught him a great deal.
He's still tethered to the portable emergency radio.
He leads fire department practices and meetings each weekend. At age 50, it's not as easy to do the heavy lifting, he admitted.
"Especially the breathing apparatus and that," he said of donning the hefty gear.
He keeps in shape by refereeing and coaching hockey as well as other forms of exercise.
Hikomak joined the fire department in 1986 when one of his friends asked him to become a member. He remembers the use of rain jackets and hip waders for the first 10 years he was involved.
With improved equipment comes the need for upgrading skills, such as for pump operators. The fire department either sends volunteers to larger centres for training or sometimes trainers come to Kugluktuk to give lessons, Hikomak said.
He served under fire chiefs such as Ron Tologanak, Gerry Atatahak and Ted Dupont. He started out as a corporal, then was promoted to captain, deputy chief and then chief.
"I worked my way up," he said.
The department currently has about 20 volunteers. When the numbers are lagging, calls for volunteers go out on the local radio station. Summer training with the pumper truck usually attracts the attention of new recruits as well, Hikomak said.
There's always a possibility of tragic situations as a firefighter. Hikomak said he was haunted by the death of a child in a house fire in the early '90s. He carried out the youngster's lifeless body. He said counselling is available through the hamlet, the wellness centre or GN social workers to help firefighters cope when such circumstances arise.
As fire chief, Hikomak often reminds people, particularly students in schools, to have working fire extinguishers at home, make sure smoke detectors are installed and operational and have an evacuation plan for their homes.
Sometimes students come by the fire hall and they'll get an orientation and put on the fire gear. That experience could spawn future generations of volunteers.
"Some students from high school say, 'Oh, I want to be a fireman like you guys,'" Hikomak said.
That's how Billy Hikomak, Gordon's eldest son at age 25, felt as a teenager. He looked up to his father and joined the department when he was 16.
"He's been helpful and teaching us a lot," said Billy, whose younger brother has also become a volunteer firefighter.
With so many years of service, Gordon said he's openly discussed retirement a few times but his sons and his two brothers, who are also members of the fire department, have changed his mind more than once.
"'Just stay,'" Hikomak recalled them imploring.


text:
Home Science New Apple Watch and iPad, but no iPhone 12: What to expect...
New Apple Watch and iPad, but no iPhone 12: What to expect from Apple's September event – CNET
After months of speculating whether or not we'll get an iPhone 12 and Apple Watch 6 in the same timeframe as previous years, , Apple has confirmed it will host a September launch event in 2020 — virtually, of course. The company sent out the official invite for Sept.15 at 10a.m. PT that can be accessed via Apple's website, YouTube channel or through the events app on Apple TV. Any other year, the headliner of this event would be obvious: a new iPhone. But the mess that is 2020 has likely forced some changes to the lineup.
Though Apple hasn't released an official statement about what we can expect, the company did warn investors in July that the next iPhone would be delayed by "a few weeks". A number of outlets, including CNET and Bloomberg, have also suggested we won't see an iPhone 12 until at least mid-October.
Subscribe to the Apple Report newsletter, receive notifications and see related stories on CNET.
But even with a new iPhone out of the equation, there's still a lot left for Apple to announce on Tuesday. We're expecting new hardware, software and subscription services at this event.
No iPhone 12, now what? Apple's September event preview
Hidden clues in the invite
The tag line "Time flies" on the invitation hints that the Apple Watch will be the headliner of this event. But there's also a very clear nod to augmented reality. Clicking on the event logo in Safari prompts the date of the event, 9.15, to appear as an AR animation. This could refer to a time of flight sensor that was rumored to come to the iPhone this year, like the one on the 2020 iPad Pro. Or it could hint at more AR Kit capabilities on the next iPad Air, which is also rumored to get a refresh at this event.
We can dissect the invite all day, but the only thing we know for certain is the time and date of this event. If 2020 has taught us something, it's that we really can't rule anything out. Instead, let's focus on what we know right now.
Several Apple Watches and iPads in the pipeline
Apple has filed multiple versions of the iPad and Apple Watch with the Eurasian Economic Commission, as originally reported by French tech site Comsomac. In the past, filings have provided a fairly accurate insight into what Apple may be launching next.
Angela Lang/CNET
The Apple Watch Series 6 is expected to have better battery life for more robust sleep tracking, and at least one new health tracking feature. The strongest rumor seems to be about new SpO2 or blood oxygen level tracking.
Read more: Apple Watch Series 6 rumors.
The other surprise may be a cheaper version of the Apple Watch, possibly called the Apple Watch SE, with the same look and feel as the current Series 3. It's likely it would cost the same, starting at $200 , but come with a newer processor.
The latest rumors about the iPad Air refresh point to a larger screen without bezels and a similar design to the current Pro model. That means flat edges and no home button. Rather than replacing TouchID with FaceID, rumors point to a TouchID sensor integrated into the side button. The updated iPad would likely also get an upgraded processor, as the current Air still uses Apple's older A10 chip. It may also switch to USB-C instead of a Lightning connector like the iPad Pro. The better processor would enable more ARKit capabilities, though not quite as advanced as what you get from the iPad Pro with its depth-sensing Lidar scanner.
Learn more about the expected new iPads here.
Software: WatchOS 7 and iPadOS 14 may get a full release
With the Apple Watch 6 and iPad Air out in the wild, it would only make sense for Apple to release their corresponding OS updates as well.
Releasing the final version of WatchOS 7 is a no-brainer. This update enables sleep tracking on existing Apple Watches (Series 3 or higher) and includes a new hand washing feature. Releasing just iPadOS on its own would be tricky because it's so interlaced with iOS 14, so Apple might wait to launch the new mobile OS alongside the new iPhone 12 in October.
New fitness service and a bundle called Apple One
Last year Apple went all-in with subscription services like Apple TV Plus, News Plus, and Apple Arcade, and we may not have seen the last of it. Apple is rumored to be launching a new fitness service with guided workouts, mostly geared to the Apple Watch, but also available to stream on the iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. There are plenty of third party apps that do this already, but this one would be Apple branded and directly integrated with the Health app, similar to what Fitbit offers with its Premium subscription service that costs $10 per month.
And if all that sounds like subscription overload, there's a bundle for that. Apple is also said to be launching a new subscription services bundle called Apple One. 9to5Google even found a reference of this hidden in the code of the Android version of Apple Music.
The other products that could make an appearance
There's also a possibility of one more thing at the end of the virtual presentation. If that's the case, here are a few other products we've been hearing rumors about that could make an appearance. In order of most to least likely:
Airtag trackers: Tile tracker competitors to track lost items.
AirPods Studio: Over the ear headphones with the AirPods name.
HomePod Mini: A smaller, cheaper HomePod.
Apple's long-awaited AR glasses.
Join us live for our Apple event preview at 9:30 a.m. PT on Sept. 15 on CNET.com and on YouTube, along with post event analysis following the announcements.
Previous articleNew Shelby Mustang is 'stunning perfection' at $298,000 – Detroit Free Press
Next articleSamsung's Galaxy Buds Plus are just $95 for one day only at Woot – The Verge
WHO explains why the coronavirus pandemic is about to get even...
kekenews - July 29, 2020 4


Three groups have been shortlisted as final bidders for Global Cloud Xchange (GCX), the international subsea network that also has enterprise and data centre operations in India.
The final bids were originally due in last week, but GCX has delayed the process until the future of its current owner, Reliance Communications (RCom), is settled.
Capacity understands that GCX is now looking at a date for clarity about its future at the beginning of July, though RCom is likely to take until August to sort out its own future. However, GCX is ring-fenced from RCom, and the futures of both are being decided separately.
RCom is attempting to reduce its debt by selling its valuable spectrum, switches, towers and fibre in India to the unrelated mobile operator Reliance Jio, and its real estate interests to a consortium of Chinese banks. If this process goes through it should result in RCom's debt being reduced from $7 billion to $2 billion.


The National appears at the top of a new course rating list by Fairways Magazine.
Yes, two more Canadian course ratings are out — one by Canadiangolfmagazine.com, an upstart publication, and a new Ontario list by Peter Mumford's Fairways magazine. Add this to SCOREGolf's established Top 100, Golfweek's Top Canadian classic and modern list and Golf Digest's recent Canadian list. That's a lot of ink spilled when I truly think there are maybe five or six great golf courses in Canada.
What's that you say? Five or six?
That's my take — Highlands Links, Hamilton, Cabot Links, Jasper, Banff, and St. George's could be considered on a world scale. There's lots beyond that that are very good — but not great. Even Hamilton could use an overhaul — right now it has horrible grassing lines and the bunkers are as plain as dry toast. But it has the essence of greatness — it is there in the bones. I love places like Westmount, Toronto GC, Eagles Nest, Muskoka Bay, Capilano and Devil's Paintbrush — and though they have individual great holes, I can't really conclude any of these courses are great. Not great like Winged Foot or Shinnecock. Not great like Royal St. George's or Ballybunion.
What's different at Canadiangolfmagazine.com? Not much, frankly. It has a nicely defined criteria — though if even one panelist can explain what a "course/land plan" is I'd be surprised — and apparently an expert list of panelists. I say "apparently," because though Canadiangolfmagazine.com goes to great lengths to talk about how its panel is different, it misses the basics of offering transperancy. No comps, but lots of "industry" people (who likely haven't paid for a green fee in a long time), no prior notice of visits (which I always think is funny since how does one change a golf course for a rater anyway?) and "basically [golfers] asked for a ranking where raters do not receive any sort of special treatment." Problem is the magazine won't identify those raters — which strikes me as a real problem when you are seeking credibility. Why not identify them? There's no real explanation given. I can't imagine taking any list seriously that doesn't tell you who is on it, that's my perspective.
Still, the magazine list they compile is fine. No revelations. The National sinks to No. 5, Cabot Links is 10 spots too low at No. 10, nice to see Kawartha at a deserving No. 41, etc.
Check their list out here. Editor Frank Mastroianni has done a nice job with the publication, though I wonder how long it can continue without much ad support. I also wonder if I'm one of six people in Canada interested in a magazine that heavily slanted to golf design. We'll see….
Fairways Magazine takes another swipe at it, this time using Ted McIntyre, the former editor of Ontario Golf, to run the ratings. That means unlike Canadiangolfmagazine, Ted offers full disclosure on not only who he used for the Ontario rating, but what they voted on. Credit to Magna's Danny King for having the strangest No. 1 pick — Osprey Valley. I applaud that sort of thinking — and it certainly provides a different perspective than the standard National/St. George's debate.
So what wins then? The National. Yawn.
That some American magazines can't distinguish a classic from modern course (Golfweek).
That no one has played Goodwood, which is the only explanation for the reason it hasn't appeared in any lists. Lorne Rubenstein ranks it ahead of St. George's, which is strange, but it does suggest it is very good. Very good indeed – but not better than St. George's, regardless of what Rubenstein suggests.
That Cabot Links hasn't come out of the gates quite the way many, myself included, expected (all lists have it around 10 in the country).
Very few new courses have entered any of the list in the past few years, making them quite static. Considering how few changes have been made to many, that's probably as it should be.
Maybe it is time for fewer courses rating lists all saying versions of the same story using different criteria.
Don't forget that Cabot Links opened around July 1 so it has only been open for four months of golf. Therefore many raters have not had the chance to get there yet, especially since few raters live nearby and it isn't easy to get to. Has any course moved up so highly so quickly in the past.
Give it a couple of years and it will find its rightful place in the top 5.
I would have to agree with you as far as the use of raters. For the most part they are all in the industry, and like myself and other industry people, we usually call ahead out of respect for fellow Club Professionals and Superintendents. It is in a lot of our Associations "Code of Ethics" for those who follow them. Most call just for the booking and free golf though.
Too many rankings! Do some of the rankings not have the same people on them? I noticed in Fairways several names that pop up in the Score rankings as well if my memory serves me. What's the point in that? Would it not be useful to take a whole new group to bring new perspective?
The ratings I do enjoy seeing are peoples favourite holes (3's, 4's and 5's), Best Bang for your Buck…etc.
I do like Frank M's new blog. Very good perspective on golf course architecture but you are right, does the average golfer care at all? Probably not.
Robert and Tremor, thank you for your comments. All opinions help us improve.
Regarding credibility, the proof is in the pudding…do you agree with our list or not? We use our ranking to validate our system and raters, we don't use our raters to validate our system and ranking.
Human nature is such that people are afraid to deviate from the norm. Anonymous rankings allow for unbiased, non-influenced ratings.
Courses do change. After seventeen years working at various ranked and non-ranked golf courses, I have done everything from change pin positions to blow gun a green in order to remove leaves while the rater was on course.
Finally, re: your advertising comment, we are a digital magazine built for the digital world. We don't work off traditional business strategies. Our choice, from the outset, was to have minimal advertising and maximum content. It is why all our pieces resemble full features and it is the strategy we will continue to use going forward…I wouldn't expect to see too many more advertisements.
As always, your comments are appreciated Robert and thanks for taking a look at the magazine.
I think everyone and every golf "magazine" has a right to publish their lists – the more the better IMHO. I find them all interesting, love to find things I don't understand or agree with, glad we don't have the blinders on like the Republican Party does. Is Royal Montreal slipping because of the improvements? Is there a relationship between the various lists – i.e. Cabot Links keeps appearing, have that many people played it?
Nice to have new golf things to read. Spring has come to Alberta too!
Wouldn't the restriction of not seeking access based on being a rater for a given publication make it damn near impossible to play a broad enough selection of courses to make an educated judgement – regardless of the criteria used? No matter how connected or how wealthy, isn't it is erroneous to believe that 79 anonymous individuals could make a meaningful assessment of the Top 100 courses in Canada?
Perhaps a disclosure of how many of the Top 100 each panelist has played – and played in the last 5 years – would either prove my argument wrong or vividly support the claim. Either way, I say kudos on a great magazine and wholeheartedly support any discussion on Canadian golf!
Sara: That would be a little simple, since I actually belong to a couple of panels. Nice try though.
Thank you for the comments. Members of our panel have been selected for their ability to gain natural access to golf courses across Canada as described in our magazine, but we will disclose the number of courses panelists have visited in the last 5 years next time.
I will tell you that we made it clear that we only wanted ratings for courses raters have played in the last 2 years and the rater with the lowest number of courses visited on the ballot was 27…if we wanted to go back 5 years I am confident it would be more.
I always enjoy the rankings, but do agree that with so few courses opening recently the results are getting a little monotonous.
That is one reason I found the Canadian Golf ranking interesting…finally some movement in the rankings.
Loved seeing Mt. Bruno, Essex in the top 25. Scarboro, Calgary, St. Thomas, Cherry Hill, Kawartha (finally someone gets it right), Lookout all in the top 50. Royal Ottawa and Montebello getting some love.
Also nice to see some 'sacred cows' get brought down to earth…Royal Montreal, Crowbush, King Valley, Taboo, Fox Harb'r.
Your take?? 5 or 6 great courses! Please Robert-Highlands Links, Hamilton, Cabot Links, Jasper, Banff, and St. George's are your choices. I'll give you Hamilton, Cabot and Jasper but the other 3???
It's your blog Robert BUT to not include the #1 rated course in Canada (again) shows you lack objectivity. The National Golf Club of Canada is the best course in the country. Period-full stop. To call Banff a great course and to leave The National off calls into question your objectivity and overall course knowledge.
I am surprised you didn't include Tarandowah in your top courses :).


One of the most important philosophies behind middle level education is teaming. Teaming is the best way to connect with students. We know that students who are placed on caring and academically challenging teams experience greater success.
At Westside Middle School, students are placed onto teams that share a common English, Math, Social Studies, and Science teacher. Each year, teams come up with a name and design a banner. Our community club members create the banners which in turn are displayed in the main hallway. These banners symbolize belonging for each student within the middle school.