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Tag Archives: Judge Roy Moore
Black Women and What's Left of Moderate Republicans Save Alabama, Maybe America
Lafayette Whether you woke up to the good news or went to bed with a smile of your face, deep down in your heart of hearts, you were relieved that the country had not sold all of its soul to the devil by standing up and sending Judge Roy Moore to abysmal defeat. Even though you may be still be confused about the psyche of the American people, you were proud that there was enough strength of character to send a message to Washington and beyond there there are places we will not go.
Today, we give thanks once again to African-American women, who turned out in force to push Doug Jones, the Democrat in the race, into the US Senate to finish the current US Attorney General Jeff Sessions unexpired time in the Senate.
Today, we also give thanks for the first time in a long time to moderate Republicans who might not have been able to get their "Jones" together, but stepped in and wrote in the name of other candidates when they couldn't in good conscience vote for Moore, as a molester, hater, and past-the-pale right winger. We now almost know exactly how many moderate Republicans are left in a deep red state like Alabama, about 20,000 or roughly 1.7% of the electorate yesterday – about the same margin Jones recorded in his victory.
Will this teach Washington a lesson? Maybe, even though it won't teach the President much of anything. The plane engine has hardly cooled down from taking him to a rally on the Alabama-Florida line, and he's already saying, he told us so, and he knew Moore would lose. So, forget about that. The rest of Washington though has gotten a warning about the price they may have to pay to be card carrying members of the Trump-Republican party. Some are going to have trouble not seeing the Virginia governor's race, the Alabama Senate race, and other recent contests as a sign that this stuff is not selling and the voters have stamped an "expire by" date on these shenanigans.
But, while we're giving thanks, what can we do to help the white woman of Alabama? Who is going to protect their daughters, since they seem to have signaled that it's open season on them. Early indications are that they voted decisively for Moore even in this #MeToo moment. What message did they just send to the good ol' boys around the state? Do whatever, we'll look the other way, and we'll forgive you later? That's what Trump is hoping for as he tries to pretend he doesn't even know the women accusing him of abuse and harassment, despite photographic evidence, and, furthermore, attacks the woman who is a US Senator from New York for calling him down on his behavior.
As a woman said to me today when she saw me scratching my head over these puzzles, "It's like Harriet Tubman said, 'I could have saved more, if they had known they were slaves.'" Perhaps that's not the exact quote, or even what Tubman really said, but it's true as it can be, and it applies perfectly in this situation.
This entry was posted in Ideas and Issues and tagged Alabama Senate Race, Judge Roy Moore, Trump Administration on December 13, 2017 by Wade.
Once Again O'Keefe Amateur Hour Antics Busted, This Time by Washington Post
New Orleans James O'Keefe is a bad penny that just keeps turning up every time there's an election these days or some opportunity for him to insert himself into another ridiculous, if not illegal, scam. O'Keefe is a convicted criminal in 2010 for his role along with several confederates in trying to bug the local New Orleans office of former Senator Mary Landrieu on a fantasy claim that her staff was not answering the phone for calls about the Affordable Care Act. O'Keefe made his name for his falsely edited videos targeting ACORN's housing operation, triggering widespread Congressional and other conservative attacks on the organization. Now reporters with the Washington Post have busted O'Keefe and his operatives trying to lure them into a "fake news" scam as he tries to help embattled senatorial candidate in Alabama, Judge Roy Moore.
This time he had a woman named Jamie Phillips contact Post reporters in the wake of reports of Moore's molestation of a 14 year old when he was in his 30s. Phillips claimed to reporters that she had a secret sexual relationship with Moore in more recent decades, and he had impregnated her when she was 15 and took her to Mississippi for an abortion. She claimed she only wanted to come forward if the reporters could guarantee it would eliminate Moore from the race. They repeatedly told her that they could offer no such guarantees and insisted that they would have to fact check her story. She continually tried to get the reporters to offer their opinions on Moore and the Alabama election, which they also refused to do.
Over a two-week investigation, the Post became increasingly skeptical of her story. They found a GoFundMe site in her name where she indicated that, having lost her job working as a mortgage broker, she was joining a conservative outfit to expose media problems. They discounted the story she told about her cellphone and other inconsistencies, like her claim of a current employer who had no record of her work. They then realized that where she had moved in the New York New Jersey area was only 16 miles away from the O'Keefe's Project Veritas headquarters. They also found a fairly recent job positing by Veritas to hire a dozen agents of sorts to do the kind of thing that Phillips might be doing. They began following her. They organized another meeting with her. The reporter was careful to block her purse on the table with her own purse so she could not be filmed. They confronted her with the information from the GoFundMe site. She claimed she had interviewed with the Daily Caller, but it had not worked out. The Post contacted numerous people at the Caller and no one with her name or the alias she gave had been interviewed by them. The Post reporter had their own videographers recording the meeting, and then told her the meeting was being filmed and recorded, ending the meeting.
In a final coup d' grace, two other reporters ended up following her and she was observed going into the Veritas offices for over an hour with her car in the parking lot. Turning the tables, they also tried to interview O'Keefe as he left the building about his connections to this mess, where he refused to be interviewed and obfuscated.
Once again, O'Keefe and his methods have been exposed and thoroughly discredited. In the past, I've thought each time his absurd projects have been exposed that it had to be the end for him and his tactics, but instead he has raised millions for Veritas now that it has tax-exempt status (though barred from raising money in Mississippi and Utah because of O'Keefe's criminal record). With Steve Bannon back at Breitbart, O'Keefe has a waiting outlet for his mischief, so no matter how embarrassing or inept, or how many times his stings backfire, I no longer predict his demise in these politically polarized times where people believe what they want to believe, no matter how preposterous, even when proven to be a total falsehood, and blame the messenger, if it's not their own, no matter the ridiculousness of the message, or how ill gotten it was obtained.
In a politics without principles, O'Keefe can still aspire to be a prince.
This entry was posted in Ideas and Issues and tagged Alabama Senate Race, james o'keefe, Judge Roy Moore, Project Veritas, washington post on November 28, 2017 by Wade.


The 21st Annual Starlight Celebration & Fireworks show will take place on UNG's Gainesville campus Saturday, August 24, 2019 with rain date of saturday, September 7th. The signature event of the Gainesville campus welcomes 4,000 guests to the beautiful grounds of UNG for an evening of music with fireworks at dusk. Proceeds from this event benefit UNG students.


As an altcoin enthusiast myself, I just want to say that having multiple cryptocurrencies is a good thing, not a bad thing. Bitcoin works well with Litecoin, because Litecoin can test things like confidential transactions, and if it's successful it can be implemented into Bitcoin. Ethereum has a place too for things like CryptoKitties, decentralized finance (like MakerDAO and Dai), and other useful dapps. All of which, by the way, help bring people into the cryptocurrency space which weren't there before. Anyone can buy a CryptoKitty and sell it at a higher price, and decide to keep profits in BTC. It all works together nicely, and the Bitcoin community should be happy about the achievements of other cryptocurrencies.
This little pump is only to serve a later massive dump, which will happen very soon.
I've been altcoiner since 2013 but for the first time I bought a bit of Bitcoin for hold 2 days ago before the pump, observing the history of many fallen coins with broken promises I started doubting in some of my hodlings but I still believe some will have a worldwide use, question is which ones.
Here, no doubt, he could continue to be a lying fuckwit and hope to evade the law.


Israel-based search engine marketing (SEM) automator Kenshoo has received another capital injection from its existing backers Sequoia Capital and Arts Alliance.
As with the Series A round, this second round of funding remained undisclosed, although our contact person at the company ensures it that this was an "up-round" financing and that the valuation was "50% higher than the last time" it attracted outside capital.
The startup, based out of Tel Aviv but active worldwide, says it will use the funding to further fuel its expansion and explore new business opportunities in the search marketing space.
Kenshoo's flagship product, Kenshoo Search, is billed as an end-to-end SEM platform and essentially automates most if not all of the work usually carried out by marketing consultants (who are of course much pricier than automation software). In that regard, Kenshoo also competes with bid-management software from all the online advertising giants (DoubleClick, aQuantive's Atlas Solutions, and Omniture) but at the same time goes a step beyond that by taking a look at the quality of the campagns. Kenshoo is able to find relevant keywords across different search engines, and automatically changes campaign specifics to maximize their returns.
In the economic downturn we're in, marketers should be focused on building or maintaining decent levels of Website traffic and drive better conversions. Search marketing is still the best customer acquisition tool in the online space, so it's not a surprise that eMarketer predicted continued growth from 2008 to 2013 in a very recent report on the state of SEO spending in the U.S.
If Kenshoo can keep winning customers over by cutting out the middlemen and maximizing campaign ROIs, it definitely has potential to continue riding that wave and keep / make their investors happy.


Global Staffing Services is the bridge between Competent Health Care Professionals and NHS Trusts in UK requiring Permanent Clinical staff.
GSS is a MINTOSH ADVISORY company.
Doctors, nursing and midwifery personnel for permanent posts across a vast range of specialties.
GSS provides long term staffing solutions to NHS Trusts in UK. This process starts with an exclusive contract with the NHS Trust. The Trusts which are reliant on short term agency staff to fulfill their work commitment gets in touch with GSS. A jointly prepared long term staffing requirement is listed out. A Skills matrix is prepared in conjunction with the relevant doctors and nurses from both the organizations. The Skills Matrix identifies the minimum qualifications as well as the essential and desirable skill set, the Trust requires, the newly employed staff to possess for a long term permanent staffing contract.
Identify personnel with the minimum qualifications required by an interview process.
Assess the candidates for skills that are essential as well as desirable.
Provide a training/upskilling package to the Healthcare professional to meet the Skills Matrix criteria.
Once, all essential criteria are met, the candidate is given the permanent contract in India itself.
An extended hand holding is offered to all candidates to help them with the Immigration formalities while they are in India. This hand holding will be more useful as GSS will help them settle and integrate socially as well as the working culture of the NHS. GSS will also provide them with options of working extra hours within the same trust or in the surrounding area.
It is essential to have a score of 7.0 in all the segments of the exam. GSS is offering a week long crash course in IELTS exam to suitable candidates.
GSS is also offering coaching for the CBT as well as the OSCE exam in India as well as in UK.
Resuscitation and other courses which are deemed essential before employment will be arranged in India as well as in UK before the candidate takes up the post.
PS: The expenditure of all or most of these courses will be Reimbursed back to the candidate by either the Trust or GSS, which will be made clear at the time of the first interview.
GSS provides long term staffing solutions to NHS Trusts in UK. This process starts with an exclusive contract with the NHS Trust in need of permanent Nursing staff in various specialties. This is not a short term Locum agency option, but a permanent contract until retirement. GSS is in a role, as a direct representative of the Trust. The HR of the hospital is part of the interview panel of GSS when recruiting from India.
A Skills matrix is prepared in conjunction with the relevant doctors and nurses from both the NHS Trusts as well as GSS.
The Skills Matrix identifies the minimum qualifications as well as the essential and desirable skill set, the Trust requires, the newly employed staff to possess for a long term permanent staffing contract.
GSS will have an extended hand holding with the candidate when they arrive in UK. Free advice and counselling is offered to all potential candidates aspiring to go to UK for Clinical posts in the NHS. The Medical personnel of GSS had emigrated to UK at some stage in their careers for employment in the NHS. Therefore, they are well versed with all the initial anxieties, apprehensions and uncertainties the candidates will be having before embarking on this career move.
Visa and Residence status for self and family.
Healthcare for self and family.
The candidates along with their families emigrate to UK and will be part of a system of excellent schooling and training opportunities for everyone as well as a free Health care system which is the best in the world.
GSS, with its expertise in Imigration, will help the candidates with guidance on avoiding the pitfalls and to improve their socio-economic profile for a smooth transition from a Work permit to Indefinite Leave to remain (Permanent Residency) and then to becoming a British Citizen if the candidate choose.
Global Health Alliance is an initiative which is aimed at delivering up-to-date short accredited courses and programs for health professionals. The team consists of experts from renowned universities and hospitals from across the UK. The courses are meant for doctors, nurses, specialist nurses, paramedics, cardiac physiologists & general public.
ICATT is an organization founded and Lead by a team of UK trained Anesthetists/ Intensivists providing a Flying ICU service for India. In association with GHA, they are also providing a cross section of Emergency and Resuscitation courses in India to suit the requirements of JCI and NABH accredited hospitals.
Team of Clinical Consultants and Business Experts with previous experience of establishing and growing healthcare businesses. This organization provides business solutions to a vast number of NHS Trusts as well as Private Health care facilities in the United Kingdom.
© Copyright Global Staffing Services. GSS Training Pvt Ltd. All Rights Reserved.


teach them to understand and appreciate the use of information presented in a mathematical form.
The school follows the recommended National Curriculum programmes of study.
The programme of study for maths is more specific when using standard written methods for the four operations and using these earlier. There is a lot more emphasis on calculating and solving problems with fractions and decimals and less on data handling (now called statistics).
The links below show how addition, subtraction, multiplication and division are taught and recorded at Broad Oak.


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Forest Investments Benefit Wildlife, Water Sources, and Local Communities
Mary Jo Brooks
DENVER – Investments to restore healthy, functioning forests will benefit wildlife, safeguard water sources, and help protect western communities from unusually large wildfires. The National Wildlife Federation applauds the Biden Administration for expanding its efforts to restore forests across 11 landscapes in Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.
"Restoring our nation's forests – especially older, complex forests—will help tackle the biodiversity crisis, ensure clean drinking water, promote carbon sequestration, and reduce the size and severity of wildfires and the flooding that often follows," said David Dreher, senior policy manager for public lands at the National Wildlife Federation. "We thank the U.S. Forest Service for collaborating with Tribal Nations and local communities to determine the most ecologically-appropriate ways to restore these landscapes and urge administration officials to continue that partnership going forward. The future of our forests, water, and wildlife depends on their success"

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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مقاله انگلیسی رایگان در مورد یادگیری از بازی های ویدئویی در آموزش عالی – الزویر ۲۰۱۸
9th, سپتامبر 2018
ترجمه عنوان مقاله نگرش دانش آموزان به توسعه مهارت های مبتنی بر بازی: یادگیری از بازی های ویدئویی در آموزش عالی
عنوان انگلیسی مقاله Student attitudes to games-based skills development: Learning from video games in higher education
مقاله بیس این مقاله بیس نمیباشد
نمایه (index) Scopus – Master Journal List – JCR
شاخص H_index ۱۲۳ در سال ۲۰۱۹
رشته های مرتبط علوم تربیتی
گرایش های مرتبط تکنولوژی آموزشی
مجله کامپیوترها در رفتار انسان – Computers in Human Behavior
دانشگاه School of Humanities – University of Glasgow – Glasgow – UK
کلمات کلیدی بازی های ویدئویی، یادگیری مبتنی بر بازی، آموزش عالی، ویژگی های فارغ التحصیل، توسعه مهارت ها
کلمات کلیدی انگلیسی Video games، Game-based learning، Higher education، Graduate attributes، Skills development
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.11.030
۲- Method
۳- Results
۴- Conclusion Funding sources
Qualitative interview data is presented in support of previously-published quantitative evidence that suggests commercial video games may be used to develop useful skills and competencies in undergraduate students. The purpose of the work described here was to document the attitudes of those students involved in the quantitative study and to explore how the game-based intervention was perceived. To this end, student attitudes to the use of specified games to develop communication skill, resourcefulness and adaptability are examined. A broadly positive perception of the games' efficacy for skills development is revealed, and the aspects of game play that students believe contribute to skills development are discussed. These aspects include the need to communicate with team mates in order to succeed, and the fluid, unpredictable nature of in-game challenges. It is suggested that while the games played an important role in skills development, interaction between students, facilitated by game play, was also a significant factor.
In Barr (2017), quantitative evidence is presented to suggest that commercial video games may be used to develop in students a number of useful skills and competencies: communication, resourcefulness and adaptability. Such skills are referred to as 'graduate attributes' (Barrie, 2006; Hughes & Barrie, 2010) and are generally associated with the employability of higher education graduates. The rationale behind the work described by Barr was that commercial video games are designed to exercise such skills. In that study, a randomised controlled experiment was used to measure the effects of playing selected games on the attainment of the specified graduate attributes. Undergraduate students were randomly assigned to either an intervention or a control group and previously validated, self-report instruments to measure adaptability, resourcefulness and communication skill were administered to both groups. The intervention group played specified, high quality video games under controlled conditions over an eightweek period. The selected titles comprised: Portal 2 (Valve Corporation, 2011), Team Fortress 2 (Valve Corporation, 2007), Gone Home (The Fullbright Company, 2013), Minecraft (Mojang, 2009), Papers, Please (Lucas Pope, 2013), Borderlands 2 (Gearbox Software, 2012), Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light (Crystal Dynamics, 2010), and Warcraft III (Blizzard Entertainment, 2002). The games were selected by presenting a panel of games scholars and games industry personnel with a list of the specified attributes and asking these experts to suggest games that might exercise such attributes. The suggested titles were then filtered based on logistical concerns, including hardware constraints (the specification of the computers used in the study) and network restrictions (availability of the ports required for online play). For example, both Minecraft and World of Warcraft (Blizzard Entertainment, 2004) were suggested as candidates for developing communication skills. However, while Minecraft was included in the study, the MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games) World of Warcraft was not, due to the technical challenges involved (an internet connection is essential to play, and the university infrastructure did not permit such a connection) and the steep learning curve associated with the game. With just 2 h of play per game, novice players would barely scratch the surface of World of Warcraft, and not experience the collaborative team-based questing that might exercise their communication skills.


Ask a question about 4001 5th Ave, or schedule a tour.
This single family home located at 4001 5th Ave, Holmes Beach, FL 34217 is currently listed for sale by Fine Properties, with an asking price of $1,345,000. The property was built in 2004 and has 4 bedrooms and 3 baths with 2,478 sq. ft. 5th Avenue is located in the Holmes Beach neighborhood of the Anna Maria Island area. Search all Anna Maria Island real estate on MichaelSaunders.com today.
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Diaries & Personal Narratives
Dress, Fashion, & Ornamentation
Frontier & Pioneer Life
Genealogist's Shelf
Health, Medicine, & Disease
How to. .
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Maps, Atlases, & Geography
The Thayers of Mendon, Massachusetts
By: Susan Salisbury
Book Details: 140 pages, 5.5x8.5, 2004, 5.5x8.5, paper, index, 140 pp, Softcover, Heritage Books, Inc
Susan Salisbury. Ten generations of the descendants of Johanes Thayer are presented here in Register format, wherein each descendant is numbered consecutively, in addition to being labeled with the number of his or her generation. Typical entries include name, place and date of birth, and date of death. Marriage information is supplied when known. Mini-biographical sketches of principal family members often provide further information, especially regarding second and third spouses and their parents. Place of burial is noted when known. Thomas Thayer (Generation No. 2) was born in 1596 in Thornbury, Gloucester, England and died in 1665 in Braintree, Mass. He and his wife, Margery Wheeler, had eight children, seven of whom are known to have been born in England. A quick glance through the index reveals these other frequently mentioned surnames: Albee, Aldrich, Aldridge, Cook, Daniels, Darling, Dorman, French, Hayden, Hayward, Holbrook, Keith, Legg, Partridge, Smith, Taft, Thompson, Wheelock, and White.
140 pages, 5.5x8.5, 2004, 5.5x8.5, paper, index, 140 pp, Softcover, Heritage Books, Inc
Title: The Thayers of Mendon, Massachusetts
Author: Susan Salisbury
Categories: S-Z, Massachusetts,
Publisher: Heritage Books, Inc: 2004
Seller ID: S3139
Keywords: NEW,
Men of Progress: Biographical Sketches and Portraits of Leaders in Business and Professional Life In and Of The State of New Hampshire
By: Richard Herndon
Deaths in Central Texas, 1925-1934
By: Monyene Stearns and PatFehler
Jacob Ebersoll, the Immigrant of 1763, and his Descendants
By: Robert A. Heilman
Descendants of Walter Cook
Revolutionary War Veterans, Chenango County, New York, Volume III, I-R
By: Nelson B. Tiffany
The Darlings of Mendon, Massachusetts
Founded in 2003, Maia's Books is a store specializing in genealogy, history, social history, conversation starters for discussing and sharing family history, and other items of use and interest to genealogists and historians.
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Fish can navigate on land
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Another study shows us that pigs are smart. Please respect them.
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Dog intelligence varies and some dogs learn many words
The intelligence of the domestic dog varies considerably. We know this because some clever dogs can quickly learn human words in large numbers while others can't....
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Big brained wild animals at greater risk of extinction?
Wild animals with bigger brains may be at greater risk of extinction according to a study led by Manuela Gonzales-Suarez of the University of Reading. She...
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How intelligent are ants?
It appears that ants are very intelligent, far more intelligent than perhaps 99.9% of the human population believe. A recent study supports the assertion. The study...
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Elephants can catch a yawn from humans
Contagious yawning between animals is common apparently. However, it is rare for animals to "catch a yawn" from a human. But it has been seen in...
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Cows have a very interesting social life and have friends
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The story of the brokenhearted swan and how she found love again
At Highgate Ponds on Hampstead Heath, London, lived a "married" couple of swans. They were committed to be married for life although sometimes divorces happen. Although...
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Goats are smarter than we realise
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Chimpanzees like to share experiences and it helps them bond just like humans
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Dimitry went to Norway to fish snow crab – he never came back
THE DEADLIEST CATCH
Dmitry Kravchenko (33) went to Båtsfjord in Finnmark to ensure his family's future. On September 4 this year he disappeared at sea. The death of the snow crab fisherman helps to uncover inhumane conditions on the fishing boats and the hiding of responsibility.
By: Gunnar Thorenfeldt, Siri Gedde-Dahl, Leif Stang, Ola Strømman, Hans Arne Vedlog and Rønnaug Jarlsbo
Photos: Øistein Norum Monsen, Tomm W. Christiansen and private
This article is published in cooperation with Dagbladet which has published a serie of articles about this issue in Norwegian.
«Hi my sweethearts. Daddy loves you. Daddy is on a boat in Norway right now. It is December 19th and it's midnight. Have a good time without me, I'll be back in about five months. Look how beautiful the nature is here! »
- Dmitry Kravchenko
HOME IN ODESSA: Dmitry Kravchenko at home with his son Timofei (1)
It is five days to Christmas Eve, the year is 2015, and on deck of snow crab vessel "Valka" stands Dmitry Kravchenko from Ukraine. The vessel is at the jetty in Båtsfjord in Finnmark. It's minus five degrees C with a stiff breeze and some heavy gusts. The sea looks black against the white snow. Dmitry has just come to Norway to fish snow crab. He has traveled from war. Poverty. Falling exchange rate. Unemployment. And from wife Irina and little Timofei who is only one year old. It's them he's talking to through his smartphone's camera:
«Listen to mom! Be a good boy! Keep well! I send many kisses. I love you so much. Look at my beard! It makes me feel warm and I'm not cold. Norwegians think I was born here. Everything is going to be okay. Be patient and all will be well.»
FISHED CRAB: Dmitry Kravchenko (33) went to Finnmark to be a part of the snow crab fishing adventure.
The new gold
It has been twenty years since the first snow crab appeared outside Norway, on the Goose Bank in the southeastern Barents Sea. Since then, more and more of this sought after species have made it into the waters north of Norway and Russia. The snow crab is gourmet food of the same status as king crab on Asian, American and now European restaurant tables. In recent years, international demand has expanded. The average fishermen's price has tripled from 26 kroner per kilo in 2014 to 88 kroner today.
In 2014, the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research estimated that the catch potential for snow crab in the Barents Sea in 2035 would be somewhere between 40,000 and 100,000 tonnes.
While Norwegian fishermen took a wait-an-see approach to refitting their boats and getting in the new gold rush, fishing boats from other parts of the world set course towards small Båtsfjord in 2013. First, a Spanish vessel came. Then Latvian and Lithuanian boats started to appear, as well as boats from the Russian Pacific. The fishing boats were rigged with South Korean crab traps. Russian, Ukrainian and Indonesian sailors worked on board the boats.
One of them was Dmitry Kravchenko from Ukraine.
DREAMED OF NORWAY: - We dreamed of moving to Norway, says Irina Kravchenko, pictured here at her apartment in Odessa.
Behind the scenes stood Russian, Korean and American business people in an obscure corporate network stretching from Seychelles to Panama, to Vladivostok, to Hong Kong. They were busy making sure that they made as much money as possible while the fishing was still unregulated.
By the end of 2016, a total of 31,000 tonnes of snow crab was landed in Norway to the first hand value of NOK 900 million. Foreign fleet accounted for two thirds of that.
After 2016, Baltic and Russian boats stopped landing snow crab in Norway because of Norwegian and Russian restrictions.
Fell in love love with Båtsfjord
Dmitry's first meeting with Norway was through the windows of the van that brought him and the other sailors from the airport in Murmansk to the harbor in Båtsfjord. The seamen filmed their trip across Finnmark on a mobile phone: the men on the video laughed.
They were in a good mood, clearly excited about what was in store for them. Through the windows they saw snow-covered mountain peaks and dwarf birch bending in the wind. As they approached their destination, trees and shrubs disappeared giving way to the Arctic landscape. They finally arrived in Båtsfjord, a sleepy small town in Northern Norway living of fish and fishing industry. It was December. Most locals stayed indoors.
IDYLL: For Dmitry, the meeting with Båtsfjord was the start of a crush. This is one of the many photos he sent home to his wife.
The videos and photos Dmitry sent home to Odessa showed empty streets and Christmas-decorated wooden houses: roofs with colorful string lights and fir trees covered in Christmas lights. One garden had a sled with a Santa sitting behind a glowing reindeer.
For Dmitry, the meeting with Båtsfjord was the start of a crush. He enthusiastically told his wife in Odessa that no one in Båtsfjord had grills on the windows, they felt safe and did not go around with constant fear of someone breaking into their homes. People in Norway earned good money, they were not poor like people back home in Ukraine.
Out in the Loophole
The few days the crew spent in Båtsfjord before the ships headed for the international waters in the Barents Sea known as the Loophole (Smutthullet), Dmitry walked around the streets between the wooden houses. He realized that what he saw was just a little glimpse of the country, but Dmitry had decided: he loved Norway and the Norwegian nature so much that one day he would take his wife and Timofei and move here. He had to work hard to make it happen, he wrote, but the dream would come true.
IN ROUGH WEATHER: Dmitry sent this photo home to his wife from the snow crab boat "Valka" while he was at work in the Barents Sea in March 2016.
Just two months later he sent home another video. It was already 2016. The Latvian crab boat "Valka" was in the middle of the Barents Sea loaded with hundreds of traps and heading towards the Loophole:
In the course of two years, "Valka" delivered over 300 tonnes of snow crab to the local cold store Båtsfjord Sentralfryselager. Both the cold store, majority-owned by the municipality, and the harbor of Båtsfjord received significant revenues from the snow crab fishery by foreign boats.
The strong wind makes it almost impossible to hear his voice, but the videos shows how the crabber battles against surging waves. The cold water has turned into ice on the deck, wires and railings. Three men in orange Sou'wester hats try to keep their balance while they put the traps out into the ocean. They are soaked through and look like they are dancing on top of an unsecured washing machine:
«This is our turbo-gang. Everybody's busy. This is the way it is. And this is how we work. Now we're going to catch crabs»
Snow crab rush was welcomed in Båtsfjord and gave the community an economic injection in the form of jobs and money.
THE LOOPHOLE:
Is an area in the Barents Sea between Norway's economic zone, the Svalbard Fisheries Protection Zone and Russia's economic zone. The area is considered international waters or "open sea". The continental shelf under the sea in the Loopholeis 85 percent Russian and 15 percent Norwegian.
THE SVALBARD ZONE:
According to the Svalbard Treaty, a number of countries have the right to exploit natural resources in and around Svalbard. Therefore, foreign vessels with quota can fish there. However, Norway believes the seabed around Svalbard is part of the Norwegian continental shelf. Should the Latvians win in the Supreme Court, all oil and gas resources around Svalbard may be at stake.
It is far from Båtsfjord in Finnmark to Odessa in Ukraine. While Norwegian prosperity rules supreme in Båtsfjord, the majority of Ukraine's population live in deep poverty. The suburbs of Odessa are lined with typical gray residential blocks found throughout the former Soviet Union. In the entrance hall of a two-bedroom apartment in one of the blocks there hangs a Norwegian flag. For the last few years this sixth floor apartment has been the home of Dmitry Kravchenko, his wife Irina (27) and their son Timofei.
Irina has long dark hair. She is tall and slim and tries to smile. Her gaze is fixed. Focused. Almost impudent. Even though she has studied economics for more than five years and is working as a manager in a bank, she has to make do with a salary of just around 3000 kroner a month. Electricity, kindergarten, football training and heating of the apartment cost her 1569 kroner.
It became harder and harder for people to make ends meet.Dmitry originally worked as a ranger in a nature reserve, but when the war came to Ukraine in 2014 its economy collapsed. In the course of that year, average wages in Ukraine fell from 4000 kroner to around 1600 kroner a month. At the same time, the cost of living saw a dramatic increase.
"Eventually Dmitry's salary was less than 1000 kroner a month. We saw that it was no longer enough and that he had to go out and find work," says Irina.
She is sitting on an ottoman in the small living room. Her son Timofei, who is now four years old, is at the kindergarten.
Hunger and cold
Someone told them about a job on a Latvian fishing boat operating off the Norwegian coast. In the late autumn of 2015, Dmitry took the opportunity. The employment contract said that he was employed by the crewing company Mayking Managements in Seycelles. The boat he was to work on was owned by the Latvian shipping company Baltjura-Serviss.
NO TRUST: - I've lost my loved one. Perhaps everything, says Irina Kratvchenko.
A crab species which has become a delicacy on a par with king crab. Especially popular in the United States, Korea and Japan. Native to the Pacific Ocean from Japan to the Bering Strait and to the Atlantic Ocean from Cape Cod to Western Greenland. Was first registered in the Barents Sea in 1996. The Norwegian Institute of Marine Research estimates the catch potential in the Barents Sea at 40,000-100,000 tonnes in 2035. Only the males, which can be up to 1.5 kg, are caught commercially.
Irina and Dmitry were relieved, the world suddenly became brighter. According to the contract, he would earn at least 13,000 Norwegian kroner a month.
Unfortunately nothing would turn out the way they dreamed.
- When he came home after five months, there was almost nothing left of him. His cheeks were hollow, and he had to pull in his belt fifteen centimeters further to hold his trousers up. He told me they were working between 12 and 16 hours, every single day. Without a break. That at times the ship had so little food left that they had to eat bait right from the bucket, says Irina.
Dmitry was constantly cold during the five months he worked on board "Valka". His feet were so big that there was no work boots that fit and he had to work in regular shoes with two pairs of socks. Out on the open deck the thermometer often showed minus fifteen degrees. Sometimes they had to work inside the freezer, which was even colder.
- He called it hell, says Irina.
- Although he earned good money, it was not a place you would want to be at. He promised that he would never go back there again.
HAD TO EAT BAIT: Sometimes there was so little food onboard that the crew had to eat bait.
The following year Dmitry looked for work in his home country, but without success. In January 2018 there was another trip to Norway and Båtsfjord as the pay was too tempting. The little family needed the money. The owners of the crab fishing boat "Kalmar" he was hired to work on were the same as the last time.
Devastating news
Irina is sitting in the living room with a wedding photo in her hands. In the photo she smiles so much that her face is almost ready to burst. She is safe in the arms of her husband Dmitry who stands behind her.
It's been two weeks since the captain of "Kalmar" called. Irina was at work getting ready to pick her son up from the kindergarten.
ON THE WAY HOME: - Dmitry called it hell, says Irina. Dmitry took this photo before traveling home in the summer of 2016.
- At first I thought it was a mistake. That this could not be true. That the call might have been for somebody else. That's why I asked to call him back.
Irina locked the doors of the bank where she worked. Then she walked out onto the street, sat down on a bench and called the captain back.
WORN OUT VESSEL: The 2015 photo of the snow crab boat "Kalmar".
- Then I realized that it was true. I had lost my loved one.
Four days later, Irina received an email from the captain who confirmed what he had said on the phone:
«This is to inform you that on September 4, 2018, your husband Dmitry Kravchenko left the cabin at 03:35 and never reported for watch. He was not found anywhere on board and it was concluded that he had fallen overboard because of negligence. (…) We searched for three days, but to no avail - (…) neither him, nor his body was found. (…) inform you officially of the death of your husband Dmitry Kravchenko. Please accept our condolences, both mine and the crew's».
According to the ship's electronic tracking data obtained by Dagbladet Magasinet, "Kalmar" set the course north on September 5, one and a half days after Dmitry's disappearance.
When Captain Igor Vladimirovitsj Zalogin is confronted with the discrepancy between the tracking data and what he told Irina about the search, he insists that they searched for Dmitry for three days.
Irina speaks about about her son, who believes that his dad is alive and working on board a boat and that he is strong and can withstand anything.
- He asks every day: "When will daddy come home?"
The 27-year-old cannot hold back the tears.
- I do not understand this. When he signed up, I thought he would work for a serious company in Norway.
HAPPY TIMES: Dmitry and wife Irina with their son Timofei. 2014 was not an easy year to become parents. War broke out in Ukraine and the economy collapsed.
Nobody will take responsibility
That her 33-year-old husband is gone forever, is just one of the things Irina Kravchenko does not understand. Why did he disappear at sea off the Canary Islands if the boat was going to fish crabs in Norway? Was his job really fishing for crabs? Who did he really work for?
And why does no one assume responsibility for paying compensation or insurance for Dmitry Kravchenko?
LATVIAN BOAT: Although Dmitry worked on a Latvian boat, he was employed by a company registered in Seychelles.
Norberts Petrovskis is a Latvian inspector with the International Transport Federation (ITF). He has tried to help Irina find out what rights she and her son have.
- Had Dmitry been employed by a company that paid tax for its employees in Latvia, his family would be able to claim compensation from the state. The problem here is not Latvian law, but that the Latvian fishing company Baltjura Service arranges employment contracts via a company in Seychelles, says Petrovskis.
He thinks that Irina's only chance of getting compensation is to start negotiations with Dmitry's employer.
Irina has called and sent emails to the company and the authorities, but got no response. She has considered traveling to find the boat, get the police to investigate the owners and search the cabins.
She wants those Dmitry worked for to be brought to justice. But she does not know who they are, and she is unsure whether it will be safe for her to dig deeper into this case.
Angelica Gjestrum, an ITF-inspector with the Norwegian Seafarers' Union, speaks Russian and has looked through Dmitry's employment contract at the request of Dagbladet Magasinet. She calls it a "standard Russian employment contract", and finds nothing illegal in its wording. She nevertheless believes that the fact that the contract is made with a company in Seychelles, when Dmitry actually works for a Latvian shipping company, deserves a lot of criticism. This puts him in a very weak position, said Gjestrum.
Course for Africa
According to Irina, both she and Dmitry believed that he would be fishing for crab again when he traveled back to Båtsfjord on January 2 this year. But the Latvian boat "Kalmar" had been barred from crab fishing on the Norwegian continental shelf since January 2015. The Norwegian authorities decided then that snow crab belonged to the Norwegian continental shelf. Norway also refused to approve the quotas that the EU had given to the Latvian boats in 2016.
SAILED TO GREENLAND: Dmitry participated in experimental snow crab fishery off the coast of Greenland before the boat turned south.
The Latvian boats could still fish in Russian waters until the fall of 2016, when the Russians said no too. Therefore in January 2018, the coast guard would have gone after "Kalmar", had the boat to fish for snow crab anywhere in the Barents Sea.
On three occasions foreign boats have been seized for what the Norwegian Coast Guard considers illegal snow crab fishing.
On January 13, 2018, "Kalmar" left the Båtsfjord area and headed south to Klaipeda, a port city in Lithuania. Dmitry stayed there for several months and it was not for fishing crab. He helped fix the boat.
On June 20, "Kalmar" left Klaipeda to pick up bait in Iceland. On the night of July 24, the boat set the course for Greenland, and during the following few weeks she shuttled between Reykjavík and the open sea outside Greenland where they tried fishing for snow crab.
- Dmitry said it had become so hard to find crabs outside Norway. Therefore, they had to try to find new places. Unfortunately, none of the locations gave the results the owners wanted, says Irina.
"Kalmar" set the course south again and on September 3 the crabber arrived at the Canary Islands.
Dmitry told Irina that they were now on their way to Africa to look for new species to fish.
That same night, on September 4, at 3:35 pm, half an hour before he was due to report for his watch, Dmitry left the cabin never to be seen again.
A few hours earlier, Irina had spoken to him:
- He told me then that the boat was on its way to Mozambique. He was in a good mood. His coworkers had bought gifts and a cake to celebrate his 34th birthday in four days.
DIRTY CABIN: According to the crew, conditions on board "Kalmar" were poor. Photos show leaks sealed with polyurethane foam.
Nothing suggests that Dmitry knew of the previous history of the two boats he had signed up to work for in Norway. His primary goal was to support his family.
Dagbladet Magasinet has obtained access to notes of concern, reports, court documents, letters to unions and regulators, and pay raise requests, all of which pertain to the Baltic snow crab fishing fleet that "Valka" and "Kalmar" are a part of.
«We are trash. Second hand»
- Sailor, "Kalmar"
Already on June 6, 2015, half a year before Dmitry signed up for the first time, a group of mothers and wives sent an e-mail to the International Transport Federation (ITF) where they sought help on behalf of their husbands and sons aboard «Kalmar» far out in the Barents Sea:
LEAKS: The ceiling in the messroom aboard the "Kalmar" leaked.
"Wages have not been paid for three months. They have 16-hour workdays, they have to do the cargo handling without extra payment and they are not given any time to rest. The conditions are very unhygienic, and they ran out of fresh water and food already two weeks ago," they wrote.
Dagbladet Magasinet has talked to a number of seamen who have been on board "Kalmar". None of them wants to speak publicly, and several say they are afraid. But they have given us their payslips and employment contracts, and photos and videos evidencing the critical conditions on board:
«Look here: (…) No life jacket, no gas masks, nothing is available. If we die, we die like rats.»
The voice comments on a video showing that all doors of cabinets storing safety equipment have padlocks. The same video also shows that the windows in the cabins are unprofessionally sealed with foam. Then the camera zooms onto a half full one-liter bottle of water.
- UNHYGIENIC: The crew complained about sordid and substandard conditions.
"This is all the water we have left," says the voice, before the camera moves over to a bundle of cables.
"Last night I stumbled when I was going to the toilet," he goes on. His pals in the cabin say they are tired because of the long working hours.
"We are trash. Second hand," says one of them.
Fearful seamen
Testimony from over 40 snow crab fishermen, several of whom have worked on the same boats as Dmitry, tells a story of untenable situations. Some talk about rusty drinking water, some that when they had meal breaks, they ate crab claws and bait. In their case it was frozen squid.
The Norwegian Coast Guard has heard similar stories from this snow crab fleet. Several of the fishermen say they had to pay a lot to get a job off the Norwegian coast:
FEAR: The seamen are afraid to speak out.
Vessels from the Baltic states and Russia dominated the snow crab fishery in the Barents Sea since its start in 2013. In the peak year of 2015, more than 16,000 tonnes of crab was landed in Norway. The fishery remained unregulated in the Norwegian sector of Barents Sea until late 2014 and until the autumn of 2016 in the Russian sector. Norway now has a general ban on snow crab fishery and only Norwegian vessels with a special permit are allowed to fish. Over the last two years annual quotas have been set at 4,000 tonnes.
"I paid an agent 25,000 kroner for the job. They said I would earn 25,000 kroner a month. But when I got on board, it turned out that I only got 6000 kroner. In addition, they wanted me to pay for the journey and food and accommodation on board. When I left the boat seven months later, I still owed money."
"I was left with 24,000 kroner after several months, after I had worked like a slave for 16 hours each day, without rest. I never got paid for three of the months on board."
"A representative of the company told us that if we ever told anyone about the conditions on board we would never make it home. There would be people waiting for us on the Russian side of the border, and we would disappear and not be found until the snow melted."
Dagbladet Magazine knows the identity of the man who allegedly made death threats. He has not responded to our inquiry.
«There was an older man on the boat. When he did not work fast enough, the crew began to abuse him. He was punched and beaten up every night. After a month he asked to leave the boat without being paid. It is still painful for me to talk about it. But I dared not do anything to save him. I was afraid they would go after me if I said anything.»
A 2003 EU directive prohibits 16-hour workdays, limiting them to 13 hours. There should be 11 hours of rest between each shift. Working hours per week are limited to 48 averaged over a year. The employment contracts of the seamen Dagbladet Magazine has talked to have no provisions about working hours.
Dagbladet Magasinet has confronted the shipowners and relevant companies with the seamen's evidence of the working conditions, but got no response. However, one of the captains of snow crab vessels did respond to our inquiry.
- This is not slavery
Captain Igor Vladimirovich Zalogin is 53 years old. He has spent 36 of them at sea, the last 15 years as captain. When Dmitry disappeared from "Kalmar," Zalogin was its commanding officer.
When Dagbladet Magasinet speaks to him, "Kalmar" is in the South China Sea, a day from Busan in South Korea.
On the phone he denies that the conditions on board are, or have been, as critical as Dmitry and former crewmembers have described.
- This is insane. This is neither slavery nor human trafficking. People know what they are in. The working conditions are in the contract. Working on a boat is very hard. Everyone says that crab fishing is the world's hardest job. But I promise you: people earn well on these boats. We do not have enough jobs for those who wants them, says the captain.
He will not comment on the allegations of the crew about scarce or bad food. He says he is not aware that crews have received death threats or been fooled by agents. He does not think that Irina's husband has been subjected to something criminal but he does not know what could have caused the death:
DISPUTE WITH THE EU:
Norway believes foreigners have no right to fish for snow crabs either in the Loophole or in the Svalbard zone even though these are international waters. Norway believes snow crab belongs to the continental shelf. This is controversial and the EU has allocated quotas to EU vessels in the Loophole and in the Svalbard zone contrary to Norway's interpretation of the law.
- We can only guess. It was night, it was dark. Most crew members were resting. We were on our way from one port to another, he says.
- Afterwards the whole crew was questioned, nobody had seen anything. We know that Dmitry left his cabin with his phone and headphones, so probably he was going to call home. It blew pretty good that night, maybe he was careless and slipped and fell overboard?
The captain says he does not know who owns "Kalmar" or the Baltjura-serviss company.
- Do you think they would tell me that? As a rule, we do not know who we are working for. I do not know who owns the company.
Zalogin says he took Kravchenko's death hard.
- I take it hard because my reputation is hurt. In practice, the captain is always to blame. Everything that happens on board a boat is the captain's responsibility, regardless if he is awake or asleep. The feeling of that cannot be described and will pursue me for the rest of my life.
BOSS IS OUT: Baltjura-Serviss is headquartered here in Liepaja, Latvia.
Hair salon becomes shipowner
Who did Dmitry really work for? A web search shows that "Kalmar" and "Valka" are owned by the Baltjura-serviss company, which is based in the Latvian port city of Liepaja. According to the Latvian business register, the company had no turnover in 2017. Contact person for the company is Aleksandras Ramanauskas.
The register further states that Baltjura-serviss is owned by a small Lithuanian company, Turijanus, which in its turn is owned by a Russian named Maksim Chan.
Until 2014 Turijanus dealt in hair and beauty care, but then switched to fish and seafood production. The company has one employee and a turnover of less than 50,000 kroner.
BECAME SHIPOWNER: Here is the hairdresser's in Klaipeda, Lithuania, which later became an owner of a large snow crab fishing fleet in the Barents Sea.
At Turijanus' address in the port city of Klaipeda in Lithuania, there is no fishing company to be found. Instead we find a hair salon, which used to be called Turijanus. The woman who works in the salon says she remembers a guy named Ramanauskas who was in charge of the hair salon before the new owner.
Turijanus sole shareholder, Russian Maksim Chan, is a lawyer specializing in maritime law and representing key players in the crab industry. There is no answer on the lawyer's Russian telephone number. Instead, there is a message in Korean that the phone is off.
Nor at Baltjura-serviss' office address in the Latvian port city of Liepaja is there a sign or a call button with the company name. Most offices in the old concrete block seem empty. In a corridor we meet an elderly woman with white hair and steel-framed eyeglasses.
- Hi, is this Baltjura-serviss?
- No, I have never heard of them. Try further down the hall.
At the end of the hallway an older man is sitting in something that resembles a small radio workshop.
- Baltjura-serviss? I think I've heard about that company. Perhaps they are in the back yard?
In the backyard we meet two women. They look scared.
- Yes. This is Baltjura-serviss.
The boss is out, the ladies say, but one of them offers to write down his name and phone number: Aleksandras Ramanauskas. As we leave the backyard, one of them comes running.
- Hi. Mr. Ramanauskas wants you to talk to Didzis Šmits. He is the company's spokesman.
We already know the name. Didzis Šmits is one of Latvia's most famous lobbyists. In October he was elected to the Latvian Parliament. He is said to be a potential candidate for the post of finance minister in a new government.
- That's all I know, says the woman.
- WORTH BILLIONS: - We believe that crab meat will be worth as much as cod in the future. Theses riches are so huge that we cannot resist fighting for them. We can earn billions, but Norway is trying to stop us, says Didzis Šmits, spokesman for Eurocrab in Latvia.
Latvia's chief lobbyist
Didzis Šmits (43) is sitting in a four-story neoclassical 19th century building in the old town in the center of Riga, the capital of Latvia. He is wearing a dark blue suit, a white shirt and a red tie. On the wall of his office there is a large map of Europe.
- Latvian businesses do not always know that much about what is happening in the EU. That's where I come in. I help business understand how things work in Brussels, says Šmits, who has worked for the past few years for the snow crab boat owners.
- We believe that crab meat will be worth as much as cod in future. Theses riches are so huge that we cannot resist fighting for them. We can earn billions, but Norway is trying to stop us, he says.
Šmits says that in August 2015 two Latvian companies joined forces to establish the European Crabbing Association. The organization tasked Šmits to front the eight boats, which they called the "EU fleet".
MAY BECOME NEXT FINANCE MINISTER: In October this year, Šmits was elected to the Latvian Parliament. Now he is said to be a potential candidate for the post of finance minister.
"A new era for the crab industry," says the website of the organization, describing how the crab industry will soon become a billion-dollar industry. There is also an overview of the boats comprising the "EU fleet". Two of those which adorn the front page are "Valka", which Dmitry worked on in 2015, and "Kalmar", which he got on in 2018.
Šmits explains that the organization's goal was to obtain crab quotas in the Loopholebefore Russia and Norway started regulating the resources.
- We realized that it was a matter of time, that crab fishery would be regulated. It was important for us to get in quickly, says Šmits.
When Norway and Russia closed the crab fishery in the Loopholefor other nations in 2015 and 2016 respectively, the Latvians set their sights on the fishery protection zone around Svalbard.
- This is an asset that Latvia and the EU should fight for, says Šmits.
Will not disclose owners
He has little desire to say anything about his clients, the owners of Baltjura-serviss.
- Of course, I know who they are. But I do not have the necessary permission to disclose them to you, says Šmits, adding that he can ask them if they think it's okay.
He says he will send us an email when he has talked with them. Despite countless reminders that email never comes.
Dagbladet Magasinet tries again to get the CEO of Baltjura-serviss Aleksandras Ramanauskas to comment on the allegations of social dumping and Dmitry's death.
- I will not answer any questions. I have my PR advisor in Riga. You know that very well, says Ramanauskas before he hangs up.
Nor does the parent company Turijanus respond to Dagbladet Magasinet's inquiries.
We go back to Šmits and ring the doorbell. We knock. But nobody opens. Instead, Šmits sends a text message to a journalist in Latvia who has assisted Dagbladet Magasinet in working on this article:
«Hi. There will be no comment from me. These 'colleagues' from Dagbladet work for the Norwegian government against the interests of the Latvian state. I think you know this very well. They spread lies and falsify information (…) I urge you and all other colleagues not to betray your country's interests, and not to work with these 'gentlemen' on this case!».
Irina's plea
It is a morning in late October, almost two months after Dmitry Kravchenko disappeared. Irina Kravchenko is sitting in front of a PC at the kitchen table in her apartment in Odessa. Her son Timofei is at his grandmother's. Over the past few weeks, Dagbladet Magasinet has kept in touch with Irina over the Internet. She looks tired. Thoughts of her husband's death and the so far futile attempts to find out whether she and her son are entitled to compensation keep her awake at nights.
- I just want to get answers about what has happened, but nobody wants to talk to me. Nobody will explain what has happened, she says.
STILL HOPEFUL: - What if Dmitry has survived? If someone has picked him up? Perhaps he is severely injured in a hospital where no one knows him? I must know if there is hope, says Irina.
Dagbladet Magasinet's investigation has shown that her husband worked on a Latvian-flagged boat owned by a Latvian company, which in turn is owned by a Lithuanian company, which, according to papers, is owned by a Russian lawyer. Dmitry Kravchenko's employment contract was with a crewing company in Seychelles, while his salary came inter alia from a bank in Busan, South Korea.
According to Irina, Dmitry received agreed wages while working on "Valka" and "Kalmar".
Baltjura-serviss has given Irina an e-mail address and a telephone number for the Mayking Management crewing agency in Seychelles, but the e-mail address does not exist and the phone is off.
When Dagbladet Magasinet finally gets hold of a Mayking Management representative, the man who signed the employment contract with Dmitry, it is on an African phone number:
- Hi. Unfortunately, I have no time to talk about this now, he says and hangs up.
After this he responds neither to emails nor to text messages.
Norwegian lawyer Sigmund Zwilgmeyer Berg has assisted several Russian seamen in Norway who have not been paid wages they were due for the snow crab fishing in the Barents Sea. He says he sees a pattern from a number of cases where obscure wording of employer conditions is used as a way to avoid responsibility:
- It is arranged this way so that the employees will have no rights, says the lawyer.
Irina Kravchenko continues to look for answers:
- What if Dmitry has survived? If someone has picked him up? Perhaps he is severely injured in a hospital where no one knows him? I have to know if there is hope.
Captain Igor Vladimirovich Zalogin believes there's no hope left:
- I do not think there's any chance that he's alive, he says to Dagbladet Magasinet, adding that he understands it's painful to lose the family's sole breadwinner.
- But she's young. She should look for a job now and take care of her son.
Journalists Audra Girijote and Janis Zvers from Lithuania and Latvia, respectively, have contributed to this article with research, translation and facilitation of the interviews.
Do you have tips or information related to this article?
Send e-mail to krabbekrigen@dagbladet.no
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THE UNKNOWN HELL: Dagbladet reveals everyday life on board snow crab boats that operated from Båtsfjord. Video: Øistein Norum Monsen and Gunnar Thorenfeldt. Edit: Per Ervland


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Pick your Packers' all-time Super Bowl team
Bart Starr, Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers: Each cemented their place in Packers history by winning the Super Bowl. But which quarterback performed the best when the stakes were the highest?
Pick your Packers' all-time Super Bowl team Bart Starr, Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers: Each cemented their place in Packers history by winning the Super Bowl. But which quarterback performed the best when the stakes were the highest? Check out this story on packersnews.com: https://pck.rs/1WUGeSC
USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin Published 6:03 a.m. CT Jan. 31, 2016 | Updated 8:20 a.m. CT Feb. 1, 2016
Enter PackersNews.com's Ultimate Championship Super Draft contest.(Photo: USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)
You make the call.
Enter our "Ultimate Championship Super Draft" contest — in recognition of the Super Bowl's 50th anniversary — and choose your all-time Packers Super Bowl team.
It's easy to play. Simply build a team by selecting the best Packers player at each position (offense, defense and special teams, plus a coach) from the lists provided online. The idea is to pick a team based on how the players and coaches performed in the four Super Bowls that were won by Green Bay: Super Bowl I, II, XXXI and XLV.
So at quarterback, for example, choose Starr, Favre or Rodgers based solely on how they played in their Super Bowl victories. Career statistics mean nothing here: What matters is how each Packers player or coach fared on the NFL's biggest stage.
After readers submit their "Ultimate" team, a panel consisting of members of USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin's Packers coverage team will judge each submission and select the entry it thinks best represents the "Ultimate" team. The winning entry will receive a Packers helmet signed by running back Eddie Lacy.
To submit your "Ultimate Championship Super Draft" team, go to www.packersnews.com/ultimateteam. The deadline is Friday, Feb. 5. The winner will be announced by Feb. 12.


Not learning to swim as a kid was never an option for me. Growing up in a household that lived close to the biggest lake in the southern hemisphere, it was inevitable we had to learn to swim, or sink.
As I sit down to write this on my laptop my lovely husband has taken our two little people to the park to give them some fresh air, and me some space to work. It's a cold wet day, they're rugged up, and I can almost hear their squeals of delight on the swing from here. Thankfully, even though there has been some encouragement from me on the more difficult days, they're just not really that interested in technology as yet. I suspect this disinterest will be short-lived.


carry that weight mattress Puffy Mattress is a prominent supplier as well as vendor of memory foam mattresses. Under this promotional offer, consumers are permitted to take the bed mattress house for a 101 evening long FREE trial. As the test period expires unsatisfied consumers will certainly be able to return their mattress for a full return.
Besides being excellent in quality, bed mattress from Puffy are shipped complimentary to your door. Thus, you will be able to save a substantial quantity of loan by purchasing their items directly. The Puffy is a net based shop, which is why their items come at an affordable rate. The lack of 3rd parties, shops, suppliers, etc. supplies them with excellent margins which they show to their clients. Acquiring a Puffy Mattress is as basic as sending out an e-mail. Open their website and also there, you will certainly have the ability to buy by providing three clicks approximately.
The Puffy as its pointed out on their internet site is providing handcrafted bed mattress. Well, in this age of automation it is quite difficult to locate authentic handmade mattresses, which is why our team believe Puffy is an excellent selection. The feature-rich handmade bed mattress they are providing featured remarkable advantages as well as a guaranteed edge over various other mattresses which are produced with automated processes.
The Puffy Mattress is made to do its job no matter its host surface area. Speaking you consider anything like flat structures, box springs, flexible frames, slats or perhaps the flooring. Your bed mattress is going to generate same outcomes until and unless you won't make a decision to find up with something from regimens like gardens or open areas.
Another wonderful function of their items is the unification of that firm core assistance as well as cooling down cloud makings the bed mattress qualified for adapting each point of your body flawlessly, allowing you neglect you assume that you are on a mattress. As for the air conditioning device of Puffy' s bed mattress is worried, they have their very own copyrighted innovation known as the cooling cloud( tm). The cooling cloud functions especially. On the one hand, it presses warmth out of your cushion while on the other hand, its cloud gel layer aids you in preserving your body temperature at an optimal level.
Puffy claims that their bed mattress has some distinct features which keep sleepers back aligned while handling the stress points by removing them. It refers that much better and sound rest can bring a very favorable influence on your total emotional as well as physiological health and wellness and also well-being.
The bears ensure for their bed mattress as long as a customer has it. Well, Puffy' s we could not consider it as good as an orthopedic bed mattress but still, it tends to aid you to cope with pressure point associated concerns as well as excessive pains.
Simply like numerous various other businesses the Puffy is operating with an extremely well made CSR task. Each year the firm invests a certain share of its revenue to get beds for the youngsters in requirement. They, do it by donating to a number of kids shelters. Thus, favoring Puffy while searching for a budget bed mattress could make you join an extremely honorable cause.
Log on to their website, pick a cushion size, pay online as well as that's all. The procedure of purchasing a bed mattress is not that basic on different other online shops.
Puffy is a self-adjusting cushion, and it will get accustomed to your needs within a hr or so – this features it a superb choice for customers from different backgrounds and also age.
The Puffy have a strong team of professionals active in research as well as advancement tasks. Probably this is the factor behind that steep learning contour this cushion maker is following.
carry that weight mattress Puffy Mattress is a popular vendor as well as vendor of memory foam bed mattress. The Puffy is an USA-based company, and also all of their products are manufactured here. Whereas, the foam which they use in their products is licensed by CertiPUR-US. Those who are not ready to acquire and afterwards attempt could choose Puffy' s FREE 101 NIGHT SLEEP TRIAL. Under this promotional deal, consumers are permitted to take the mattress residence for a 101 night long FREE test. As the trial period expires unsatisfied customers will be able to return their mattress for a complete return.
Apart from being excellent in quality, mattresses from Puffy are shipped free to your door. The Puffy is an internet based shop, and that is why their items come at a practical price. Purchasing a Puffy Mattress is as simple as sending an e-mail.
The Puffy as its stated on their internet site is supplying handmade mattresses. Well, in this age of automation it is fairly difficult to find real hand-crafted mattresses, and also that is why our company believe Puffy is a good selection. The feature-rich handmade bed mattress they are providing come with incredible advantages as well as a definite edge over various other bed mattress which are made with automated processes.
The Puffy Mattress is created to do its task despite its host surface. Talking you think about anything like flat frames, box springtimes, adjustable structures, slats or perhaps the flooring. Your bed mattress is going to generate exact same outcomes up until and unless you will not choose to find up with something from regimens like yards or open spaces.
Another wonderful function of their products is the consolidation of that firm core assistance and also cooling cloud which makes the mattress qualified for adjusting each point of your body completely, allowing you forget you believe that you are on a cushion. As much as the air conditioning device of Puffy' s mattresses is worried, they have their own trademarked modern technology referred to as the cooling cloud( tm). The cooling cloud functions especially. On the one hand, it pushes heat from your mattress while on the various other hand, its cloud gel layer aids you in preserving your body temperature level at an ideal level.
Puffy cases that their bed mattress has some unique attributes which keep sleepers back aligned while taking care of the stress points by eliminating them. It refers that much better and sound rest could bring a really favorable effect on your general mental as well as physical health and wellness and wellness.
The bears ensure for their bed mattress as long as a customer owns it. Well, Puffy' s we can not consider it as excellent as an orthopedic mattress yet still, it tends to aid you to deal with stress point relevant issues and also undue discomforts.
Simply like many various other businesses the Puffy is running with an effectively developed CSR project. Every year the business spends a specific share of its income to get beds for the children in requirement. They, do it by contributing to numerous children shelters. Therefore, choosing Puffy while searching for a budget plan cushion could make you sign up with a very worthy reason.
Log on to their web site, select a cushion dimension, pay online and also that's all. The process of buying a cushion is not that basic on numerous other on the internet stores.
Puffy is a self-adjusting cushion, and also it will certainly get accustomed to your needs within a hr or two – this features it an outstanding option for customers from numerous backgrounds as well as age groups.
The Puffy have a strong team of professionals active in research and growth activities. Perhaps this is the factor behind that steep knowing contour this mattress maker is following.
carry that weight mattress Puffy Mattress is a popular supplier and also seller of memory foam mattresses. The Puffy is an USA-based firm, as well as all of their items are made below. Whereas, the foam which they use in their items is accredited by CertiPUR-US. Those who are not willing to get then attempt could opt for Puffy' s FREE 101 NIGHT SLEEP TRIAL. Under this promotional offer, customers are allowed to take the mattress home for a 101 evening long FREE trial. As the test period ends dissatisfied consumers will be able to return their mattress for a full return.
Besides exceling in top quality, mattresses from Puffy are shipped cost-free to your door. Therefore, you will be able to save a significant amount of money by getting their products directly. The Puffy is an internet based shop, and also that is why their items come with a reasonable price. The absence of 3rd parties, stores, dealers, and so on gives them with excellent margins which they show to their customers. Getting a Puffy Mattress is as straightforward as sending out an e-mail. Open their internet site as well as there, you will certainly have the ability to purchase by releasing three clicks approximately.
The Puffy as its mentioned on their web site is providing handmade cushions. Well, in this age of automation it is quite difficult to find real hand-crafted mattresses, which is why our company believe Puffy is a good option. The feature-rich handmade bed mattress they are offering come with tremendous benefits and also a guaranteed edge over various other bed mattress which are produced via automated processes.
The Puffy Mattress is designed to do its work no matter its host surface. Speaking you think about anything like flat structures, box springs, adjustable structures, slats or perhaps the flooring. Your cushion is going to create same results up until and also unless you will not choose ahead up with something from routines like yards or open rooms.
An additional excellent attribute of their products is the consolidation of that firm core assistance and also cooling down cloud which makes the bed mattress qualified for adapting each factor of your body completely, letting you neglect you think that you are on a mattress. As much as the cooling system of Puffy' s bed mattress is worried, they have their very own trademarked technology called the air conditioning cloud( tm). The cooling cloud functions particularly. On the one hand, it presses warmth out of your mattress while on the other hand, its cloud gel layer helps you in maintaining your body temperature level at an optimal level.
Puffy claims that their bed mattress has some unique features which maintain sleepers spinal column straightened while dealing with the pressure factors by eliminating them. It is a matter of the truth that much better as well as audio rest can bring a very favorable influence on your general mental and physiological health as well as well-being.
Another remarkable point concerning Puffy, worthy to be pointed out right here is that life time warranty they are supplying. It is not comparable to the other common guarantees being given these days. The bears guarantee for their mattress as long as a consumer possesses it. Well, Puffy' s we can rule out it comparable to an orthopedic mattress but still, it has a tendency to aid you to handle pressure point relevant problems and undue pains.
Simply like several other services the Puffy is operating with an extremely well made CSR task. Thus, favoring Puffy while looking for a budget bed mattress could make you join an extremely noble reason.
Log on to their site, pick a cushion dimension, pay online and also that's all. The process of getting a cushion is not that basic on various other on the internet stores.
Puffy is a self-adjusting bed mattress, and it will certainly obtain accustomed to your demands within an hour approximately – this showcases it an exceptional choice for consumers from different histories and also age.
The Puffy have a strong group of specialists active in r & d tasks. Perhaps this is the reason behind that high learning curve this bed mattress manufacturer is following.


i have fond memories of pancakes. growing up my dad would usually make them on saturday or sunday mornings. sometimes we would add blueberries, or bananas, or if we were super lucky we would be allowed to add chocolate chips. as my brother and i got older my dad taught us how to make pancakes: how to cook them evenly, how flip them without getting the uncooked batter all over the place. and lastly he taught us that adding butter instead of oil makes pancakes even that much tastier. the little tips that he gave us along the way have stayed with me to this day. i don't think i'll ever be able to make pancakes without thinking of him.
this pancake recipe is technically gluten free, and dairy free. it's not quite vegan because it contains eggs, but i suppose you can swap the eggs for flaxseed or chia seeds. similarly, you can use any flour you have on hand, just make sure that whatever flour you're using equals 1 cup. the vegan buttermilk can be swapped for dairy buttermilk. the coconut oil can be substituted with butter. and the agave can be replaced with sugar or honey. the 3 flours used here are a great trio. the oat flour makes for a nutty, almost toasted tasting pancake. the almond flour provides a subtle sweetness. and the buckwheat flour brings its own distinct flavor, along with a slightly grain(y) texture. the whisked egg whites provide the gluten-less pancakes with some extra fluff that they otherwise wouldn't have had.
the blueberry sauce is just an added bonus as far as i'm concerned. it's like having inside out blueberry pancakes. easy breezy to make, and really delicious. i encourage you to give it a go.


text:
Libyan national army arrests Turkish elements fighting with terrorists in Tripoli
- Breaking News- Latest News
On Apr 26, 2019 14,896 0
Turkish soldiers
Libyan national army arrests Turkish elements fighting with terrorist militias in Tripoli.
The Turkish forces were arrested along with the militias and terrorist organizations in Tripoli.
The LNA, led by Marshal Khalifa Hafer, besiege remnants of the armed groups, to figure out Turkey efforts to change the course of the fighting by supporting Sarraj with weapons and mercenaries.
The Turkish elements have recognized that they arrived in Libya with direct instructions from the Turkish intelligence service to fight alongside the militias and in support of Sarraj government.
They added, there are huge amount of Turkish weapons delivered in Libyan ports by direct agreement between Sarraj and Erdogan.
Earlier, Major General Ahmad al-Mesmari, LNA's spokesman, revealed that it had detected dozens of terrorist fighters that have joined the forces of Fayez al-Sarraj.
al-Mesmari added that, Abdulhakim al-Salabi is responsible for the organization of the terrorist fighters in Tripoli, he is the one who spent many years in Qatar acting as a coordinator to send arms shipments and Turkish terrorists to support the terrorist militias and the Muslim Brotherhood in Misurata and Tripoli in particular.
According to the confessions of the Turkish elements, Erdogan offers all kinds of support to the militias of Al-Siraj.
In their confessions, they added that the Turkish president was betting on his militants in Libya, using them as a military base in Egypt's side, and at the same time using them as a wall against all those calling for the unification of Libya and ending the war there.
Sri Lanka attacks plotters have links to Yusuf Al-Qaradawi
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text:
Dearborn's Elayna Bowser Leads After First Round At 2016 Michigan Women's Amateur
August 8, 2016 by The Original Golf Blogger
Elayna Bowser, leader after the first round at the 2016 Michigan Women's Amateur
Dearborn's Elayna Bowser Burns Up Back Nine to Lead 100th Michigan Women's Amateur
LINDEN – Dearborn's Elayna Bowser made four birdies to fashion a back-nine 32 in a 3-under 69 Monday, and was four shots ahead of the rest of the field through the first round of the 100th Michigan Amateur Championship presented by Carl's Golfland at Spring Meadows Country Club.
"My game has been there all summer, but I haven't been able to score," said Bowser who is 19 and a Loyola University Chicago golfer. "I had some putts drop on the back nine."
Bowser was four shots better than defending champion Allyson Geer of Brighton and University of Michigan golfer Emily White of Saline, who each carded 73s.
Michigan State golfer Jacqueline Setas of East Lansing shot 74, and the 75 shooters included Mackenzie Blomberg of Auburn Hills and Grand Valley State University, Morgan Smith of Muskegon and Oakland University, 15-year-old Anika Dy of Traverse City and Cordelia Chan of Birmingham and Williams College (Mass.)
The field plays 18 more holes of stroke play Tuesday to determine the medalist/No. 1 seed and the 32 golfers for the match play bracket. Match play continues through Friday to determine a champion.
Bowser had five birdies against two bogeys in her round, made the turn at 1-over and then birdied Nos. 10, 14, 17 and 18. She had a tap-in birdie on No. 10, made a 25-footer on No. 14, almost made hole-in-one on 17 and dropped a 30-footer from the fringe for birdie on No. 18.
"The putt at 14 probably had 10 feet of break, so that was really nice that it went in, but at 17 it was just sitting on the lip – almost a hole-in-one," she said. "I played well all day. I put the ball in the right spots in the fairway, I hit a lot of greens and I finally scored."
Geer, a home-schooled 17-year-old and a 36-hole medalist the last two years, said she couldn't get putts to fall until she birdied Nos. 15 and 16 at the close of her 73.
"I just want to be in a good seed for the match play," she said. "I was 3-over out there and was able to turn it on coming in and get back close to par. I'll build on that."
White, who will be a junior on the Michigan golf team and won her first collegiate tournament last fall, said she used driver sparingly on the tight Spring Meadows course.
"I made up this yardage book last night and told myself to stick to my game plan for every shot, and I did that," she said. "I had only two putts inside 10 feet, and missed those, so that was a little frustrating, but I had 17 pars. I'll take 17 pars most days and be fine."
Setas, who will be a junior at Michigan State, said she hit just one bad drive in her 74 and hit the ball well tee to green.
"The putts just wouldn't drop," she said.
RESULTS: Complete scores are at www.gam.org
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