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Taliban, talks and political change
Editorial in Kantipur, 24 September
The Maoists have announced the start of a "Nava Kranti," or New Revolution. They have been extorting money from common people and they advocate a dress code for women, they have even taken to tearing the clothes off women that do not comply. The Maoist revolution's political philosophy revolves around bringing about fundamental changes in society. They realised that the other political parties just paid lip service to these issues but after seeing their ways now people have started challenging the Maoists and disobeying their directives. Terror, anti-nationalism and character assassination have become the hallmarks of their revolution. This all shows that the lower cadre of the Maoist organisation is out of the control of their leaders.
The underground comrades have set another record too. The cadre in Dailekh destroyed two statues of Bhagawati in a temple in Mehaltoli Village Development Committee (VDC). Many people used to worship these statues. This was another example of the Maoists taking on the character of the Taliban. Like the Talibans who destroyed the Buddha statues in Bamiyan they have attacked the icons in which thousands have faith. The Maoists have the right not to believe in god, but society and government cannot give them the right to destroy statues and temples which are icons of the people's faith.
Before destroying the statues, the Maoists had said that prayers were nothing but superstition and they would stop prayers at that temple. This happened on 19 September. The next day the Maoists disrupted Sanskrit classes at an ashram in Accham and forced the principal of the school to issue transfer certificates to 20 students so that they could attend another school nearby. They then closed down the ashram.
After this they manhandled the students and cut off their sacred threads and the tupi (tuft of hair on the heads of Bahuns). Everyone has the right to raise questions concerning religion and education, but no one has the right to impose their beliefs on some one else. Not even the Maoists.
After destroying the education sector, they have now turned their gaze on religion and temples. The people will definitely protest, and the administration must immediately take steps to halt them. If the Maoists continue with such behaviour, we can be sure this will be the beginning of their end. You can use hoodlums to spread terror in society but they cannot bring about political, social or economic changes...


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Ways to drop weight rapidly is a common adequate goal in today's weight consumed world, however it must be tempered with the need to stay healthy! There is a great deal of bad suggestions being given out by dishonest individuals, so if you really want to know ways to slim down quickly, this short article will show you the right way.
If you are major about attempting to lose weight, one of the very first actions you ought to take is to work out your intake of calories. If you can chop off, say, 500 calories, you will be going a long method to obtaining your ideal weight.
No crash diet – there is a better way. The human habit of consuming three meals a day fits far much better with the working day than with male's physiology. The body is not developed to manage big meals being taken in infrequently. If you eat smaller meals throughout the day, you will discover yourself less starving, you will need to eat less to get the very same nutrient, and you will slim down.
Do not consume more than you need to. One fascinating, and extremely appropriate truth, is that it takes around twenty minutes before the stomach gives the signal to the brain that it has taken in sufficient food. Snacking during the day is actually a very excellent practice to get into, constantly offered you are eating the ideal things.
If your body gets more food than it needs, the excess is saved as fat. If you take regular workout, the excess fat will be burnt off. When this happens, weight loss ends up being automated, so long as you keep your exercise program.
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If you are major about attempting to lose weight, one of the very first actions you ought to take is to work out your consumption of calories. If you can slice off, state, 500 calories, you will be going a long way to obtaining your ideal weight.
The human routine of eating 3 meals a day fits far better with the working day than with guy's physiology. If you eat smaller sized meals throughout the day, you will discover yourself less starving, you will require to consume less to acquire the very same nutrient, and you will lose weight.
When this takes place, weight loss ends up being automatic, so long as you keep your exercise program.


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Hosted by Otaviano Costa and the streamer Gab Zuski, Hot Tab Hero features LubaTV, Jean Luca, Calango, Rolandinho and more
São Paulo, 11 January 2023 – Opera GX, the world's first gamer browser, has just announced the launch of the game show Hot Tab Hero, which was recorded in Brazil for the first time with big names from the gamer scene such as LubaTV, Jean Luca, Calango and Gusang. Hosted by Otaviano Costa and the streamer Gab Zuski. Hot Tab Hero was recorded in two episodes, the first of which is available on Opera GX's YouTube channel starting today.
Hot Tab Hero – which was created by Opera GX in partnership with the global production company Dentsu Creative – brings together game creators and teams of their choice to fight for money that will be shipped to the winners' viewers. The different teams can win big money through a special trivia quiz, the objective of which is to see who knows more about the universe of games. The quiz features a series of questions about esports, game culture, and, of course, YouTube and Twitch creators and their fandoms.
According to Opera GX's product director, Maciej Kocemba, Brazil was chosen as the first place in Latin America to receive Hot Tab Hero because Brazilians are part of a very engaged community of users and fans. "With how well GX is received in the country, it was only a matter of time before we launched our own version of Hot Tab Hero there. With a prominent gaming scene in Brazil, fans are more than ready to find out who the country's Twitch kings and queens are," he said.
For Otaviano Costa, hosting Hot Tab Hero was an incredible opportunity, as the actor has been fascinated by the community and has been a gamer for many years. "Being able to be alongside such sensational and talented figures from this universe is pure fun and a great 'software update.' I hope people like what we prepared with great care and quality. Game on!" he said.
The goal in Hot Tab Hero is to answer as many questions correctly as possible, with each correct answer scoring R$ 500, and thereby secure a place in the finals to compete for prizes of up to R$ 40,000. Ultimately only one team can be crowned champion and take home the prize money that they will then distribute to their followers through raffles, vouchers, and via discounts on games or other initiatives that they will later define.
How does the show work and what is its reward?
Played in three rounds of multiple-choice questions, Hot Tab Hero features the streamer and vlogger LubaTV as captain of one of the teams in the first episode, alongside the gamers Rolandinho and Bruno Rataque. They are pitted against a team led by the gamer, actor, and digital influencer Jean Luca, who is joined by the gamer and content creator Caputile and the streamer Mands. The episode, which was shot with a live audience, is already available on the Opera GX browser.
"Bringing Hot Tab Hero to Brazil was a hit. Video games are infinitely more fun when you play and participate in a community, and being a part of the program, both as a spectator and as a leader of one of the teams, was amazing. Opera GX is already present in my daily life as the best browser for the gamer community, so it was very gratifying to be present on the game show!" said LubaTV.
"I thought something like that made specially for Brazil was really amazing! I've always followed many initiatives of this type outside the country, but Opera did a great job doing something 100% original and for the people here who, for sure, will have a lot of fun with the episodes. It was super fun and I already hope to be invited to the next ones," said Jean Luca.
In the second episode, which will be released soon, the streamer Calango, together with the gamer Multi and the vlogger and gamer Renan face the team of the YouTuber and gamer Gusang with the PS2 streamer Venão and the "the old influencer" Core.
About Opera GX
Since its creation in 2019, Opera GX has quickly become the browser of choice for millions of gamers looking for a more personalized Internet experience. Along with tons of customization options including color themes, sound effects, background music and a design inspired by the world of gaming, the GX even includes CPU, RAM and network bandwidth limiters that make the browser less dependent on resources to run online games well. The browser also includes a feature called 'Hot Tabs Killer', which allows users to "wipe out" the most resource-wasting tabs, and GX Cleaner, to eliminate those unwanted old files. rs.
About Dentsu Creative
Dentsu Creative is a Global Creative Network that transforms brands and businesses through the power of Modern Creativity. Led by Global Chief Creative Officer Fred Levron, 9,000 experts across the globe work seamlessly together to deliver ideas that Create Culture, Shape Society and Invent the Future. Dentsu Creative was launched in June 2022 to address a client need for simplicity.
Categories: Desktop general Opera Gaming Tags: news Opera GX
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The Hollywood Vedanta Temple is open daily to the public. Temple activities include a daily worship, meditation and vespers services, special puja celebrations, Sunday lectures, classes, Ramnams, retreats, seminars, and workshops. In Hollywood, the Vedanta Society has a monastery and a convent.


Families advertise their businesses to the group.
A Win-Win Situation. Homeschooling families who are business owners can promote their company to your group through the Business Directory.
Homeschooling families who are looking for quality services can check the Business Directory and patronize the business of a fellow homeschooling family. It's advantageous to all!
1-Click Approval. Your families who own businesses can submit their business directory listing for approval. The website administrator gives a one click approval or denial. If approved, the business owner manages their own directory listing.
Ability to organize by category.


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Kevin G. Riley
Kevin G. Riley is the editor of the Dayton Daily News and editor-in-chief for Cox Ohio Publishing's 12 newspapers and associated web sites. Riley was named editor in January of 2007. He had been deputy editor of the Dayton Daily News since September 2006, and served in many capacities for the newspaper since 1983, when he started his career as a copy editor. Former publisher of Cox Ohio's Springfield News-Sun, Riley has also served as Internet General Manager for Cox Ohio.
Riley has been named one of the industry's "20 Under 40" by the Newspaper Association of America. He was also a member of the association's Online Audience Development Committee and a mentor in its New Media Fellowship program. He has been a fellow at the University of Southern California's "Transforming News Organizations for the Digital Now," and he has attended Northwestern University's "Digital Strategies for Media Executives" conference.
Kevin Riley, editor, Dayton Daily News, says his goal, as a news editor, is "to make the world the readers live in a better informed place." "When we are at our best," he says, "we are making sense of things for our readers."
[OH 0202] - Part 2: Ethics & Content (5:38)
Kevin Riley, editor, Dayton Daily News, says the goal of his newspaper's website is "to be first and best. " He says the Dayton Daily News stresses "immediacy on line" and "importance" on the front page of its daily print edition.
Kevin Riley, editor, Dayton Daily News, says his newspaper now focuses on "key communities" and stresses local news. He is also hopeful the January 2010 merger with Cox-owned WHIO-TV and WHIO radio, will give the newspaper access to more useful research to guide its coverage.
[OH 0204] - Part 4: Adaptation & The Future (4:50)
Kevin Riley, editor, Dayton Daily News, says that as competition increases and resources are constrained today's newspaper reporters need to consider, "How can I work smarter and better use my time?"
[OH 0205] - Part 5: Prospects & Preparation (2:41)
Kevin Riley, editor, Dayton Daily News, believes there will always be a promising future for individuals who can: "write … think … analyze … and tell a story." So students who master those skills need not worry whether newspapers persist in print or transition into digital media.


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When Things Go Pop
Chasing Oscar
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A 27 year old trying to navigate a life of pop culture, PR and pressure, sometimes from others, sometimes from myself. Essentially, my life is all about the "p"s.
Sam Smith is Resigned to Heartbreak on the Decent "Too Good at Goodbyes"
by Brandon Lewis
After winning an Academy Award for his James Bond theme "The Writing's on the Wall," Sam Smith took an extended break from music to experience life and find inspiration for whatever music he would release next.
The two years since he kicked off his hiatus haven't brought the British singer much comfort, if "Too Good at Goodbyes," the lead single from his upcoming album, is to be believed. Sam is just as lonely and heartsick as he was on his debut album In The Lonely Hour. The hopeful romantic of "Stay with Me" has been bruised, though. The disappointment is less soul-shaking than it used to be; Sam has tempered his expectations, replacing his passionate pleas with begrudging acceptance. At least that's what he would like us to think. What gives Sam away is that voice, a vessel built for intense proclamations of love and longing. He play-acts aloofness, but that trademark quiver as he sings of protecting his innocence and soul reveals the bleeding heart underneath. Vocally, Sam is in top form here. He sounds stronger than ever, floating alongside the melody like a seasoned pro and leaving room for some great vocal flourishes. There is maturity and confidence in his delivery, and you can forgive him for showing off a bit.
In fact, I wish he showed off more, because "Too Good at Goodbyes" feels timid. It's a perfectly fine soul ballad, one that Sam could do in his sleep. The problem with "perfectly fine" is that it doesn't make for an exciting comeback single, especially for someone of Sam's caliber. The song meanders to what should be a lion's roar of a chorus, and ends up being a bark or yelp. It sounds lovely, but you yearn for that big pop moment that just never comes. Even the inclusion of a choir at the end feels tempered (a word that should never, ever be used to describe a choir).
"Too Good at Goodbyes" works, as an album track or as a third or fourth single. As the lead single off a highly anticipated album, released after winning a boatload of Grammys and an Oscar? Not quite. Sam's voice is a marvel as expected, but the song itself lacks the wow factor of his breakout "Stay with Me." After a long break and all of his success, Sam could've afforded a risk or two, to relish in the anticipation of his next move. His "Goodbye" is decent, but forgettable.
Maybe he should've said "Hello" instead?
Tags2017 • music • new music • sam smith • single reviews
About Brandon Lewis
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Taylor came home today. She spent six nights in Levine Children's Hospital. On Saturday, she had a surgical procedure that represents a milestone. It's not a happy milestone, like losing a front tooth or outgrowing training wheels or getting a first kiss. Families fighting a life-threatening disease have "milestones" they hope they'll never reach.
Some things about the surgery have been "good." My sister always had a beautiful complexion. She'll be 16 in August; at her age, I think I would have given just about anything to have skin like hers. Since Saturday morning, the color has eased back into Taylor's face, and the dark circles that ringed her bottomless eyes have begun to fade. And though it will take some time before she regains her strength and we all get used to our new "normal," I saw my sister's fire flicker not long after she returned to the small hospital room that served as her home for almost a week.
Charlotte, right, paid a special visit to Taylor on Sunday.
There are good people in this world, as I'm often reminded. Good people are good medicine. Thank you to everyone who reached out to me, via this blog or social media or email or phone or the old-fashioned way, to let me know that my sister is in their thoughts and prayers. Thank you to Dawn, who takes care of Taylor because it's her job but also because she loves my sister. Thank you to Linda, a good family friend, who read "Green Eggs and Ham" to Taylor on a bright, sunny afternoon when my sister couldn't get outside to feel the sun's rays on her skin. Linda's funny voices – different for every character in the book – made my sister laugh more than I've heard in a long time. Thank you to Jill, Taylor's vision teacher for many years, who spent time with her as she recovered and once gave her the gift of words after her world faded to black. Thank you to Charlotte, my sister's best friend from Fletcher and an angel. I didn't cry on Saturday morning when I watched them wheel my sister back to the operating room, but I held back tears when Charlotte knelt by my sister's bed and placed a framed photo from their fourth grade trip to the Radio Disney station in my sister's hands.
Charlotte will be a junior in high school next year. Taylor should be a rising junior in high school, too. She should be learning to drive. She should be walking and running, around a track or on a field or after boys. She should be enjoying her summer vacation.
I've watched my sister struggle with a learning disability and lose her vision. I've watched her suffer from seizures. I've watched her fine motor coordination dwindle. I've watched her run 5Ks without the gift of sight 10 short months after harrowing brain surgery on the other side of the continent. I've watched her run her last race. I've watched her lose her ability to walk. I've heard her sing her last notes. I've heard her say "I love you" for the last time. So why is this milestone so hard to bear?
Our fight has never been so difficult, but I'm as motivated as ever to beat Batten disease and other rare diseases. The science exists to build a better future – soon – for people like Taylor. Learn more about our efforts here.
Taylor was admitted to Levine Children's Hospital on Tuesday afternoon. When you're fighting Batten disease, nothing is ever easy. But we're all facing a crisis this week.
My mom used to be the queen of nighttime volunteer meetings, and growing up, we ate a lot of my dad's grilled cheese sandwiches and Papa John's pizzas for dinner. Taylor taught herself to read when she was 3, and I'll never forget the day she read a picture book to me in the time that it took Dad to run into the neighborhood Papa John's and pick up a pizza while we waited in the car.
I babysat my little sister more times than I can count. We spent a lot of hours snuggling on the couch in my parents' basement, eating slices of plain cheese pizza, slurping Diet Coke through straws and devouring stacks of Disney movies on DVD. After I got married, we had a lot of pizza nights at my house. Mom and Dad packed a bag for her if they knew they'd be late, and when they finally tiptoed through the back door, they'd find Taylor curled up asleep with my dog, Daisy, dressed in pink pajamas and fuzzy pink socks.
When Taylor got older, she befriended Callie, who's closer to my age and met our mom through another one of the community organizations she served. We had girls' nights at Callie's – Taylor, Mom, Callie and I. Callie always had pizza dough, and Taylor loved to make homemade pizza at Callie's. She loved to feel the cool, sticky dough between her fingers. One night, we made chocolate cake to celebrate Taylor's half birthday, even though it was almost a month away. My sister decorated the cake with lots of rainbow snowflakes, sprinkles and icing. Her vision was starting to fade by then, and that cake looked a lot like a Jackson Pollock painting, but I thought it was beautiful. We played Taylor's favorite music and moved the kitchen chairs to dance, and the dogs ran between our legs. After dinner, we sang to my sister, even though it was only her half birthday. Callie didn't have any birthday candles, so Taylor blew out a tea light in the middle of the Jackson Pollock cake.
It's been years since my sister saw a sunrise, and she won't walk without assistance again. So why is it so hard for me to accept that she'll never eat another slice of pizza or a piece of birthday cake?


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1. Complaint from public, various administrative authorities, NGOs, etc. are important sources of information for identification of vigilance related issues in the Railways. Complaints to the vigilance are thus meant to result in punitive action against the erring public servant(s). Relief as such in the matter to the complaint is only incidental to the vigilance action. Redressal of grievances vis-a-vis Government organizations or public sector enterprises should not be the focus of complaints to the vigilance.<?xml:namespace prefix = "o" ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
2. Complaint can be lodged only against Railway officials over which the Chief Vigilance Officer, North Eastern Railway, has jurisdiction. The vigilance department has no jurisdiction over private individuals and other Government departments. Therefore, please do not lodge complaints against officials of these organizations to the Chief Vigilance Officer, North Eastern Railway.
3. The complainant should note that :
i) The pre-requisite for investigation of a complaint, barring certain exceptions, is that the complaint should be signed and contain the name and address of the complainant. Any complaint that does not bear the name and address of the complainant is an anonymous complaint. A complaint which does not bear the full particulars of the complainant or is unsigned or is not subsequently acknowledged by a complainant as having not been made is a pseudonymous complaint. The vigilance department will not entertain both anonymous and pseudonymous complaints.
ii) If the complainant for valid reasons desires that his identity be withheld while processing the complaint, the complaint may be addressed to The Secretary, Central Vigilance Commission, New Delhi and should be superscribed "Complaint Under the Public Interest Disclosure" on the envelope.
iii) The Vigilance Department will not entertain or enquire into any disclosures –
1. In respect of which a formal and public enquiry has been ordered under the Public Servant's Enquiries Act, 1850 or
2. In respect of a matter which has been returned for enquiries under the Commission of Enquiries Act, 1952.
3. Complaint should be addressed directly to the Chief Vigilance Officer, North Eastern Railway. Complaints marked to a large number of functionaries are not normally pursued by the Chief Vigilance Officer.
4. Complaints must be specific and contain factual details, verifiable facts and related matters. It should not not be vague or contain sweeping general allegations.
5. Only those complaints which are against officials within the jurisdiction of the Chief Vigilance Officer, North Eastern Railway and have allegations of corruption will be investigated.
6. Other complaints will either be filed or will be referred to the department concerned for necessary administrative
7. At Railway board level, complaints may be addressed to : PED (Vigilance) ,Rail Bhavan ,Raisina road,New Delhi-110001 . Ph-(011) 47844551 . Email- amvig@rb.railnet.gov.in.
8. For PIDPI complaints : Mark the envelope as "PIDPI" and may addressto The Secretary, Central Vigilance Commission ,Satarkta Bhavan, Block-A ,GPO complex ,INA, New Delhi 110023
9. The Chief Vigilance Officer will not entertain unnecessary correspondence in the matter, but will ensure that the complaints are investigated and action taken to its logical conclusion.
10. In case the complaint is found to be motivated or vexatious, the Chief Vigilance Officer shall be at liberty
to take appropriate steps.
Any corruption related complaint pertaining to North Eastern Railway may be addressed to:
The Senior Deputy General Manager
& Chief Vigilance Officer,
North Eastern Railway,
GM Office, Gorakhpur- 273012
Tel No. 0551-2208002
Complaints can also be lodged over Phone on Rail Madad at 139
For more information send your queries to sdgm@ner.railnet.gov.in
The Vigilance Department looks forward to your co-operation to help in eradicating corruption and irregularities.


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O'Brien Under Fire For Offensive Tweet About New Muslim Superhero
Is it just me, or is this Conan's comic cartoon flap really just a bunch of crap. Don't know what I am talking about?
On Friday, late night comedian Conan O'Brien joked about Marvel Comic's new female Muslim superhero - Kamala Khan. Khan is jersey teenager, who is also Pakistani-American and Muslim.
The joke posted to his nine-million followers on his twitter account was: "Marvel Comics is introducing a new Muslim Female Superhero. She has so many more special powers than her husband's other wives."
The twitterverse blew up citing Conan's comments as Islamophobic, racist, sexist and bigoted. Maybe it is some of it was; maybe all of it was. But the point is... so what! It was a joke.
In the U.S., as we should all know by now, very little is held sacred and off limits from comedian and pundits alike. Comedian Conan obviously did not mean any harm. After all, it wasn't like it was FOX news dishing out daily doses of anti-Muslim demagoguery. And truth be told, it was probably not even Conan himself who wrote or even posted the lame two-liner. Don't big-wig celebs like O'Brien have hired help to do their dumb stuff, like tweet?
Needless to say, some got their knickers in a twist, citing that Kalama is just 16, she would not be married and she probably wouldn't be in a polygamous marriage. That, of course, would be the Saudi version of the super-heroine (just kidding!). The argument here is that these are stereotypical views being perpetuated as common practice of all Muslim chicks. Okay, I get that. But seriously, it was just a joke. I can't imagine that the majority of people took it to be a slam against Islam and Muslims. Sure, maybe not one of his better jokes, and, which by the way, the tweet has since been removed.
Let's face it folks, there is always some truth to jokes and stereotypes. The fact that Muslims are associated with low status of women is the real issue. Fix that and then there are no jokes to have to fight off. And don't forget, it was just a cartoon. Lesson learned, move on.
By the way, who is on Leno tonight?
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The tedious Legion teaches us nothing, except that Paul Bettany matches a fetching brunette.
Borrowing not only Assault on Precinct 13's premise of strangers fending off attacking hordes while holed up in a building, but also its signature use of an ice cream truck as a vehicle for unholy evil, Legion has the good sense to mimic a classic but otherwise has no sense at all. Like The Book of Eli, Scott Stewart's film pivots around the issue of true faith, interested as it is with an angel named Michael (Paul Bettany) who disobeys God's orders to lead an apocalyptic military campaign against humanity by plummeting to Earth, severing his wings, and stocking up on artillery in the hopes of saving a baby destined to lead mankind to salvation. This child is in the womb of a waitress (Willa Holland) at an isolated truck stop diner in the Mojave Desert, where random folk (including Dennis Quaid, Tyrese Gibson, and Charles S. Dutton) converge just as an end-of-days swarms of flies and divinely possessed zombies begin to appear on the horizon.
Stewart attempts to elevate this few-vs.-many conceit with an inquiry into the nature of religious piety: Is it blind obedience to His word, or does it also involve honest, compassionate questioning of His will? Given that rebellious Michael is the hero and dutifully murderous angel Gabriel (Kevin Durand) is clearly not, Legion's stance on the issue isn't difficult to decipher. More frustrating than such predictability, however, is the hollowness of the film's feigned theological struggle, which shares Eli's advocacy of following the spirit, if not the letter, of the Bible, but never uses these concerns as anything more than faux-profound window-dressing for a story that mainly wants to get by on the B-movie-cool notion of angels armed with machine guns.
Alas, aside from the sight of a monstrous granny climbing a ceiling on all fours, there's little genre juice to these lackluster proceedings, with Stewart unable to concoct any inventive or tense standoff scenarios to provide requisite action-horror anxiety. Instead, it's all just so much screaming and shooting delivered via blurry camera pans and herky-jerky edits, and perpetrated by motley-crew characters—including Bettany's supremely dull stoic-noble savior—whose grating one-dimensionality calls into question the wisdom of sparing the race from extinction.
The video presentation is spotty, with some instances of haloing and combing occasionally visible, but solid overall; this is an overly dark film, but black levels are strong and shadow delineation is impressive. The audio presentation is more uneven: The surround work is strong and dynamic, but dialogue is mixed too low, meaning your thumb will likely be affixed to your remote's volume control for the film's duration.
Three featurettes: "Creating an Apocalypse" focuses on the physical effects of the film and their sense of "good time" (which is what the filmmakers hoped to bring us with Legion), "Humanity's Last Line of Defense" subjects the shallow characters to needless scrutiny, and "From Pixels to Picture" shines a light on the film's hit-or-miss visual effects. Rounding out the disc is a series of previews, including one for the looks-unspeakable Unthinkable starring Samuel L. Jackson.


text:
Posted on March 29, 2019 March 30, 2019 by Debito Arudou Ph.D.
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Hi Blog. After a dip a few years ago, the population of NJ continues to rise, now reaching a new record, according to the Mainichi and the Yomiuri below.
This will probably continue, since, as I have noted in previous writings (see #1 here too), the Japanese Government is actively seeking to bring in NJ to fill perpetual labor shortages. But as noted, it won't be treated as an "immigration policy", meaning these people won't be officially encouraged to stay. Nor will they be treated with the respect they deserve (as usual) for their valuable contributions to society. As submitter JK notes, "Of course these reports aren't complete without the obligatory linkage between 'foreign' and 'crime' (i.e. illegal overstayers)." (The Yomiuri, true to form, puts that information in the very second sentence!)
When will the GOJ decide to give us some stats on how much NJ, as workers, contribute to the bottom line by keeping companies staffed and in business? Or by paying taxes? Other countries manage to come up with these kinds of figures, so why can't Japan? Well, because that would encourage regular folk to have justifications for seeing NJ as human beings, and wanting them to stay for reasons beyond facile curiosity/exploitation. Can't have that, can we. Debito Arudou PhD.
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Record 2.73 mil. foreign residents living in Japan in 2018
March 22, 2019 (Mainichi Japan), Courtesy of JK
http://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190322/p2g/00m/0dm/087000c
TOKYO (Kyodo) — A record 2,731,093 foreigners were registered living in Japan at the end of 2018, up 6.6 percent from a year earlier, bolstered by a rising number of students and technical trainees, the Justice Ministry said Friday.
The government is expecting a further rise in foreign residents under a new visa system to be implemented next month with the aim of attracting more foreign workers amid a severe shortage of labor in the country.
Among registered residents, technical trainees numbered 328,360 or a jump by 19.7 percent from a year before, and foreign students stood at 337,000, up by 8.2 percent.
Based on nationality, Chinese made up the largest group with 764,720, followed by South Koreans at 449,634. Vietnam, which sends the most technical trainees to Japan, ranked third with 330,835 residents, up 26.1 percent.
The number of foreigners illegally staying in the country rose by 11.5 percent to 74,167 as of Jan. 1, the ministry said.
Of those, the largest group was South Koreans with 12,766, down 0.9 percent from a year earlier.
Vietnamese came second at 11,131, a 64.7 percent jump, followed by Chinese at 10,119.
Those with permanent residency constituted the largest group among registered residents at 771,568, up by 3 percent, although the number of registered Koreans with special permanent status decreased by 2.5 percent to 321,416.
//////////////////////////////////////////
Foreign residents increase to record 2.73 mil.
March 23, 2019 Jiji Press/Yomiuri Shinbun, Courtesy of JK
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0005624612
TOKYO (Jiji Press) — The number of foreign nationals living in Japan as of the end of 2018 grew 6.6 percent from the year before to a record 2,731,093, rising for the sixth consecutive year, the Justice Ministry said Friday.
The number of illegal residents as of Jan. 1 this year jumped 11.5 percent to 74,167, up for the fifth straight year, the ministry said.
The increases in both categories chiefly reflected a rise in the number of people coming from Vietnam as technical trainees.
The number of foreign residents is projected to grow further as the government is slated to create new types of resident status next month in order to accept more workers from abroad.
By nationality, Chinese made up the largest group, at 764,720, or nearly 30 percent of the total number of legal foreign residents, including medium- to long-term stayers as well as specially permitted permanent residents.
South Koreans were the second most at 449,634, followed by Vietnamese (330,835), Filipinos (271,289) and Brazilians (201,865).
Vietnamese were the sole foreign nationality that marked double-digit growth, climbing 26.1 percent.
South Koreans topped the list of illegal foreign residents, though their number fell 0.9 percent to 12,766.
Vietnamese followed, surging 64.7 percent to 11,131. They include trainees who fled companies they were working for after finding it difficult to repay debts taken on to pay fees to malicious trainee-dispatch organizations at home, the ministry said.
PS: JK also sends further word about where many of these dreaded "foreign overstayers" might be coming from, and it's not from the original work visa-ed imported labor force:
JK: …apparently 東京福祉大学 (Tokyo University of Social Welfare) is practically hemorrhaging foreign overstayers:
Gov't investigates 700 foreign students AWOL from Tokyo college <http://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190318/p2g/00m/0dm/050000c>
Univ. campus inspected after 1,400 foreign students go AWOL <http://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20190326/p2g/00m/0dm/058000c>
PPS: Here's another reason why NJ workers go AWOV:
Probe reveals 759 cases of suspected abuse and 171 deaths of foreign trainees in Japan
BY MAGDALENA OSUMI, STAFF WRITER, THE JAPAN TIMES. MAR 29, 2019
A recent probe into Japanese firms using the state-sponsored Technical Intern Training Program to deal with acute labor shortages has revealed 759 cases of suspected abuse, including unpaid wages, the Justice Ministry said Friday.
The findings confirm growing concerns about the link between the interns' working conditions and their disappearances from work. Last year, the number of missing foreign trainees rose to 9,052, compared with 7,089 the previous year. As of December, 328,360 foreign people were registered as technical interns.
The results of the probe showed that 231 interns weren't paid overtime wages and another 58 were being paid below the legal minimum. One intern was paid only ¥60,000 per month during a 7-month stint and received an hourly payment of ¥700 for an average of 60 hours of overtime per month.
The ministry also found that 171 interns died while in the program between 2012 and 2017, the officials said. There were some 150,000 foreign trainees in 2012 and about 270,000 in 2017…
Rest at https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/03/29/national/probe-reveals-759-cases-suspected-abuse-foreign-trainees-japan-171-deaths/
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2 comments on "Record 2.73 million NJ residents in Japan in 2018; media also shoehorns in mention of NJ crime, without mention of NJ contributions"
Baud says:
"Vietnamese were the sole foreign nationality that marked double-digit growth, climbing 26.1 percent." – told you Vietnam was the new frontier for the ole revolving door/cheap labor scam!
TJJ says:
Yes, if Japan Today wants to focus on the 'good points' of Japan why don't they return the favor and focus on the benefits of having newcomers, just once, would be welcome.
Leave a Reply to Baud Cancel reply


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Robert William James (born December 26, 1983) is a former American football linebacker. He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at Arizona State.

Professional career

Atlanta Falcons
James was selected as a fifth round (138th overall) draft choice by the Atlanta Falcons in the 2008 NFL Draft. He was signed to the Falcons practice squad on September 6, 2009 and was elevated to the 53-man roster on December 29, 2009.

He was waived by the Falcons on October 5, 2010, but was re-signed to the team's practice squad a day later. Atlanta signed him to the active roster for the regular season finale at Tampa Bay where he saw action on special teams.

He was released during final cuts on September 3, 2011, and re-signed to the Falcons' practice squad the following day.  On December 28, 2011, a day after the Falcons placed veteran linebacker Mike Peterson on the injured reserve list, James was signed to the active roster.

James was released by the Falcons during the final cuts after the 2013 preseason.

Baltimore Ravens
James was claimed off waivers by the Baltimore Ravens on September 1, 2013. He was released on September 11, 2013.

Kansas City Chiefs
James signed with the Kansas City Chiefs on December 31, 2013, and appeared in their Wild Card loss to the Indianapolis Colts. He was released on March 6, 2014.

External links
 Arizona State Sun Devils bio

References

1983 births
Living people
Players of American football from Phoenix, Arizona
American football linebackers
Arizona State Sun Devils football players
Atlanta Falcons players
Baltimore Ravens players
Kansas City Chiefs players

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Washington state governor and presidential candidate Jay Inslee dropped by The View on Monday, where he ridiculed Meghan McCain's over-the-top fears about the Green New Deal, laughing in her face at one point.
Inslee continued to extol the role of solar, wind, and biofuels and compared the transition in energy to growing up "in the time of rotary phones and now we got cell phones." He urged McCain not to be "so narrow-minded", which set her off again. Cut off from attacking the particulars of the proposal, she pivoted to environmentalists.


PUNE: NorthEast United lifted themselves to second on the Indian Super League table with a 2-0 win over FC Pune City on Tuesday at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune.
Goals from Bartholomew Ogbeche (23′) and Juan Mascia (90+1′) secured the victory for the Highlanders, taking them two points adrift of leaders Bengaluru FC. While FC Pune City remain 8th on the table with 5 points.
The opening 10 minutes was a rather scrappy affair, with both teams unable to hold onto the ball long enough to create any decent scoring opportunities.
The first effort on goal only came in the 9th minute, when Ogbeche won the ball from a Pune defender on the left flank. The Nigerian had a chance to shoot by himself but decided to pass it to Mascia who tried to shoot but a defender blocked it away.
Three minutes later Pune City came bitterly close to taking the lead through Ashique Kuruniyan but his first time shot was superbly saved by the NorthEast custodian Pawan Kumar.
Pune City had another chance in the 16th minute when Iain Hume from the right-hand side nicely squared a pass to Marcelo Pereira who tried to round the defender but slipped and it has been cleared away.
NorthEast, thereafter, continued to press on, and it was no surprise when they took the lead in the 23rd minute though Ogbeche. Federico Gallego crossed it flat from the corner. It went past everybody at the near post and fell to Ogbeche who chested it down and slotted into the far post.
From the goal onwards, NorthEast dominated the proceedings, but poor decision-making let them down in the final third which saw Eelco Schattorie's charges went into the breather with only a solitary goal lead.
Pune City showed intent after the interval as they made more box entries in their quest to score the equaliser and the Stallions nearly found it at the hour mark when Mato Grgic's long throw inside the box found Marko Stankovic who took a first time shot with his right foot only to be blocked by Gurwinder Singh.
Despite being under the pump, NorthEast managed three shots on goal but none of those were on target to test Kamalpreet Singh in goal for Pune City.
Pune City then continued to dominate proceedings but they were repeatedly frustrated by good defending.
Despite the momentum turning in Pune City's favour, NorthEast managed to found the all-important insurance goal though Mascia who converted from the spot after Sahil Panwar clumsily tripped him inside the box and referee pointed to the penalty spot.
Mascia took on the responsibility of the penalty and placed it nicely to the left of the keeper to secure a vital win for the Highlanders.


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Руакана () - місто, розташоване на території однойменного регіону області Омусаті Намібії. Він знаходиться поряд з річкою Кунене біля кордону між Намібією і Анголою.

Населення - 10 722 чоловік (на 2012 рік).

В 2005 році отримало статус села, в 2010 році - міста .

Місто розвивалося через близькість до підземної ГЕС, пов'язаної з дамбою на річці Кунене у ангольського села Calueque. В 1988 році дамба та насосні станції були підірвані в результаті удару кубинської авіації під час громадянської війни в Анголі. Об'єкт було частково відремонтовано, і зараз намібійської національна комунальна компанія NamPower управляє трьома турбінами потужністю 240 МВт. У 1988 році селище складався всього з 17 дворів, з них 14 належали військам ПАР, а інші 3 були для сімей South-West African Water and Power.

Середньорічна кількість опадів 426 мм. Але сезон дощів 2010/2011 приніс 960 мм опадів .

Поблизу до міста розташована ферма Etunda площею 600 га, де в 1993 році була створена іригаційна система. Половина ферми служить для комерційного зрошення земель, а інша — розподілена між 82 дрібними фермерами. Etunda займається культивацією пшениці, кукурудзи, кавунів, бананів та інших культур .

Примітки

Посилання
 Ruacana Hydro's technical specs at Namibia Power's website
 Статистика населення (2004)
 Створення нових міст в Намібії
 Фотографії

Міста Намібії
Омусаті


text:
Pearl Harbor : From Infamy to Greatness Paperback / softback
by Craig Nelson
On 7 December 1941, an armada of 354 Japanese warplanes launched a surprise attack on the United States, killing 2,403 people and forcing America's entry into the Second World War.
With vivid prose and astonishing detail, Craig Nelson combines thrilling historical drama with individual concerns and experiences, following an ensemble of sailors, soldiers, pilots, diplomats, admirals, generals, the emperor and the president. Unmatched in breadth and depth, Pearl Harbor: From Infamy to Greatness in a portrait of the terror, chaos, violence and tragedy of the attack that would prove to be a turning point of the war.
Publisher:Orion Publishing Co
Also by Craig Nelson | View all
Basketball Skills & Drills
The First Heroes


Are You Suffering from Burnout? Writing Assistance, Inc.
Dealing with professional burnout is very difficult and everyone might experience it in their daily lives, either in themselves or in others in their profession. It can affect your health, happiness, relationships and even your job performance. But the problem is that it's very hard to detect it until the damage has been done.
In her article, Dealing With Professional Burnout, Whitney Potsus talks about the warning signs of professional burnout – in yourself or in an employee you manage. She provides a quiz right up front to tell if burnout is the problem, along with ways to help yourself or with the help of others. It even includes a short quiz you can use to see if you have professional burnout.
Read Dealing with Professional Burnout and then leave a comment here with your thoughts. Have you had to deal with burnout on the job in the past, either with yourself or with an employee? What did you do to overcome it?


text:
Mercedes-Benz EQS Is The Dawn Of A New Era Of Electric Luxury
by Martin Bigg Reveal / Comments
It's the S-Class of electric vehicles.
Two years after the Vision EQS Concept debuted in Geneva, the production Mercedes EQS has finally arrived to shake up the luxury EV segment and challenge the Tesla Model S, Audi e-tron GT, and Porsche Taycan. But comparing the EQS to other existing electric luxury sedans is futile: this is in a class of its own. Welcome to a new era of electric luxury.
Since the EQC SUV has been delayed in the US, the EQS is the first electric Mercedes-EQ to arrive in the US. But while the EQC shares the same platform as the combustion-powered GLC, the EQS is Mercedes' first model built on the new dedicated Electric Vehicle Architecture platform, allowing for a distinctive design that sets the EQS apart from the S-Class.
Thanks to its "one-bow," cab-forward design, the EQS has a sleek, coupe-style silhouette, coupled with a long, low front end, a curved beltline, and frameless doors. A lack of body creases and the addition of flush door handles also contribute to the clean design, while the front hood overlaps the fenders, reducing the number of visible panel gaps. A full-width light bar connects the LED headlights, which feature a striking daytime running light signature with three light dots.
Its curvaceous, flowing shape not only looks sleek and stylish, but it also gives the EQS an impressive drag coefficient of just 0.20, making it the most aerodynamic production car in the world. In total, there are seven dual-tone wheel designs to choose from, with sizes ranging from 19 to 21 inches.
In the US, the EQS will initially be available in two trims: the EQS 450+ and EQS 580 4MATIC. The EQS 450+ utilizes a rear electric motor generating 329 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque, whereas the all-wheel-drive EQS 580 4MATIC has two asynchronous motors generating a combined 516 hp and 611 lb-ft. 0-60 mph in the EQS 450+ takes 5.5 seconds, while the AWD EQS 580 4MATIC will do the same sprint in 4.1 seconds. Both models top out at 130 mph. A performance version with up to 630 hp will also join the lineup, which may or may not wear an AMG badge.
How The Corvette Z06 Compares To Nurburgring Rivals
Thanks to its optimized aerodynamics and a high-capacity 107.8 kWh battery, the EQS will last up to 478 miles on a single charge according to WLTP estimates. In the US, we're expecting the EPA range to be around 335 miles. Using a 200 kW public fast charger, it takes just 15 minutes to add an extra 186 miles of range and 31 minutes to charge from 10-80 percent. A standard 240V wall box takes 11.25 hours to charge from 10-100 percent based on WLTP estimations.
Inside, the Mercedes EQS is a technological tour de force. The clear highlight of the cabin is the new MBUX Hyperscreen, a massive curved 55-inch screen that stretches almost the entire width of the cabin. Three screens appear to merge seamlessly under a glass cover, combining a central 17.7-inch screen for the infotainment system with a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster and a 12.3-inch screen for the front passenger. The Hyperscreen is optional for the entry-level EQS 450+ and standard in the EQS 580 4MATIC. As standard, the EQS 450+ is equipped with a 12.8-inch central OLED portrait display. Standard luxuries include heated leather seats, rear headrest pillows, a 3D sound system, and a panoramic sunroof.
Thanks to its new "zero layer" design, the interface is more intuitive than ever, with the most important applications always accessible on the top level within sight. Like the S-Class, the EQS is also available with an optional head-up display featuring augmented reality technology that superimposes navigation elements onto the windshield in the driver's field of vision.
There are up to 350 sensors that monitor everything from distances, speeds, and acceleration, to lighting conditions, speech, and even the driver's blink of an eye. This enables the AI system to learn the occupant's habits and make personalized suggestions for infotainment and comfort functions.
For added convenience, optional automatic comfort doors at the front and rear extend the door handles when the driver approaches the car and open automatically when you get closer.
While passengers will benefit from the abundance of onboard luxuries and tech, the EQS is still satisfying to drive thanks to its optional new rear-wheel steering system that can turn the wheels up to 10 degrees for increased agility. This provides a turning circle of 35.7 feet, which is comparable to compact class cars. The standard rear-wheel steering system can turn up to 4.5 degrees.
As you would expect for a Mercedes, the EQS is loaded with advanced driver assists, including adaptive cruise control, that use map data to anticipate corners and intersections and reduce the speed accordingly, as well as lane-keeping assist, steering, braking, parking, and blind-spot assists.
The Mercedes EQS will arrive in US dealerships in fall 2021, with pricing to be confirmed closer to the on-sale date.
Tags: #Mercedes-Benz News #Electric Vehicles #Luxury #Reveal
Mercedes-Benz EQS Sedan
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2022 Mercedes-Benz EQS Sedan First Drive Review: A New Class Of Electric Luxury
The EQS begins a new era of silent serenity for the three-pointed star.
2022 Mercedes-Benz EQS First Look Review: Luxury Goes Electric
A segment previously dominated by V8s and V12s has a new arrival.


MISSISSAUGA, Ontario—ProMIS Neurosciences Inc. recently announced that they have identified several potential antibody therapeutic candidates aimed at selectively targeting toxic oligomers of the protein α-synuclein, which is considered a root cause of Parkinson's disease (PD) and is linked to Alzheimer's disease (AD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) as well. While the root causes of these related neurodegenerative diseases remain disputed, several studies definitively implicate toxic oligomers in the development and progression of PD.
ProMIS began looking at the toxic oligomer based on research linking it to Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's drug developers have predicated most new treatments on the long-held "amyloid hypothesis." This popular theory—with roots that date back more than 100 years—held that amyloid beta, a naturally occurring substance that forms clumps in the brain, could become dangerous for some people as they age, much like how a normal cell might become cancerous. The amyloid hypothesis held that sometimes these clumps—commonly called "plaques"—would strangle brain cells, leading to their death and eventually, disease onset. Drug developers erroneously believed that by targeting plaque in the brain, they could develop a therapy that would halt Alzheimer's disease, but 25 years of drug development were derailed when it was proven that plaque itself does not cause AD, thus raising doubt about the amyloid hypothesis.
ProMIS launched their Parkinson's program because significant data also implicate the toxic oligomer for PD as well as for ALS. For Parkinson's, they are targeting the toxic oligomer that derives from alpha synuclein, a naturally occurring protein. Despite broad evidence linking the toxic oligomer to neurodegenerative diseases, the challenge has been how to selectively target it for antibodies. The toxic oligomer is a highly unstable shape-shifter, making it very difficult to isolate. ProMIS applied its thermodynamic, computational discovery platform—ProMIS and Collective Coordinates—to predict novel targets known as disease-specific epitopes on the molecular surface of misfolded proteins.
Working with the French contract research organization Neuron Experts, they investigated the neuroprotective effect of ProMIS' antibodies on rat primary dopaminergic neurons injured by exposure to toxic oligomers of α-synuclein, an in-vitro model of PD. In the test, several ProMIS antibodies that selectively target toxic oligomers of α-synuclein significantly blocked the death of neurons induced by these oligomers.
Using their precision medicine approach, ProMIS is developing novel antibody therapeutics for AD, ALS and PD. They also hope the technique can eventually be applied to neurodegenerative diseases in general, spinal muscle atrophy, Huntington's disease and other dementias, such as Lewy Body dementia, frontotemporal dementia and prion disease. They also see an opportunity to explore the platform's potential in chronic, sports-related head trauma, called chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
While the latest release focuses on the progress ProMis has made looking at Parkinson's, they intend to aggressively pursue a treatment for Alzheimer's using the platform. According to Goldstein, they intend to look at other potential AD culprits as well.


Un immune to the economic climate, the university was forced to layoff eleven staff members at the end of last spring. An increased demand in financial aid during the recession forced the school to make the cuts. No professors were let go and student services were unaffected. The university offered an early retirement package to some staff members back in 2009; however the savings were unable to keep the university from having to make cuts. "Our commitment is to try to keep Hartford education affordable and accessible as possible we can given all of the pressures of the budget we face and our first commitment is to financial aid and so to meet that we have to make some choices that are not necessarily easy or pleasant," Said University President Walter Harrison. President Harrison also says students should not notice any difference in the daily operation at the university.


16 // convenient base class for the contents of a SparseMultiSet.
39 /// universe, so it is not recommended for building composite data structures.
40 /// It is useful for algorithms that require a single set with fast operations.
44 /// operations are all constant time, and typically faster than a hash table.
48 /// keys, but iterators are bidirectional.
52 /// independent on the size of the universe.
57 /// parameter provides a space/speed tradeoff for sets holding many elements.
60 /// sparse array uses 4 x Universe bytes.
67 /// uint16_t or uint32_t.
76 /// intuitive and fast removal.
78 /// @tparam ValueT The type of objects in the set.
79 /// @tparam KeyFunctorT A functor that computes an unsigned index from KeyT.
80 /// @tparam SparseT An unsigned integer type. See above.
95 /// freelist of recyclable slots.
105 /// List tails have invalid Nexts.
110 /// Whether this node is a tombstone node, and thus is in our freelist.
130 /// erasure, iterator preservation, and dense size.
143 /// list tail. D must be a valid entry node.
153 // Is N its own predecessor?
158 /// available. Returns the index of the added node.
176 /// Make the current index a new tombstone. Pushes it onto the freelist.
197 /// Set the universe size which determines the largest key the set can hold.
198 /// The universe must be sized before any elements can be added.
200 /// @param U Universe size. All object keys must be less than U.
204 // seem like a likely use case, so we can add that code when we need it.
206 // Hysteresis prevents needless reallocations.
212 // complain about branching on uninitialized data.
231 /// Whether our iterator has fallen outside our dense vector.
318 /// be decremented, but will compare equal to other end iterators.
324 /// Returns true if the set is empty.
326 /// This is not the same as BitVector::empty().
330 /// Returns the number of elements in the set.
340 /// Clears the set. This is a very fast constant time operation.
343 // Sparse does not need to be cleared, see find().
349 /// Find an element by its index.
351 /// @param Idx A valid index to find.
352 /// @returns An iterator to the element identified by key, or end().
360 // of a valid list.
363 // Stride is 0 when SparseT >= unsigned. We don't need to loop.
370 /// Find an element by its key.
372 /// @param Key A valid key to find.
373 /// @returns An iterator to the element identified by key, or end().
385 /// the number of elements of that key.
394 /// Returns true if this set contains an element identified by Key.
399 /// Return the head and tail of the subset's list, otherwise returns end().
418 /// to the newly added entry.
432 // Stick it at the end.
442 /// Erases an existing element identified by a valid iterator.
474 // Put in a tombstone.
481 /// iterators of that key.
488 /// Unlink the node from its list. Returns the next node in the list.
497 // If we're the head, then update the sparse array and our next.
504 // If we're the tail, then update our head and our previous.
Returns an iterator past this container.
Insert a new element at the tail of the subset list.
Returns true if this set contains an element identified by Key.
Returns the number of elements identified by Key.
The bounds of the range of items sharing Key K.
Return the head and tail of the subset's list, otherwise returns end().
An individual mapping from virtual register number to SUnit.
Set the universe size which determines the largest key the set can hold.
Find an element by its key.
Erase all elements with the given key.
Find an element by its index.
Our iterators are iterators over the collection of objects that share a key.


BF's Shane Clark is looking for running room here with mate Liam Hackett blocking. This run went for a short gain, Clark had a long kick-off return and a 58-yard touchdown carry in the tough 34-14 loss to Fair Haven last Friday night in the rain at Hadley Field.
REGION – The Bellows Falls Terriers have carried the area bragging rights throughout the football season. There was no bragging of any sort by anyone last week, as the opposition outscored our area football teams 136-20. BF did the best of the bunch, falling to Burr and Burton 34-14 in the battle of Vermont Division II unbeaten last Friday night. Springfield fell to Spaulding 42-6 and Fall Mountain was dismantled by Stevens 60-0.
Burr and Burton took the ball and marched the 85 yards to pay dirt with a combination of runs and passes. Stellar quarterback Griffin Stallcup ran it in on a quarterback draw the final six yards. The Terriers could only muster one first down in their next possession and then punted. The defending state champions took the ball with a short field (the BF kicking game, both of the punt and kick-off variety is a weakness they may not be able to overcome) and quickly found the end zone again, this time through the air to up the count to 13-0 with 9:16 remaining until the half.
Shane Clark's long kick-off return allowed BF to get in position to get on the scoreboard. Logan Cota had the biggest play in the drive with a run from the 30 to the 4. Jahyde Bullard tallied the six points on a 4 yard run at the 4:07 mark to cut the deficit almost in half 13-6. A very short kick-off put B+B right back with another short field and they took advantage with another Stallcup touchdown less than two minutes later at the 2:36 mark, upping the lead to 20-6.
One of the moments when they did execute was just after halftime when Shane Clark struck again, this time on a TD run to the left side of 58 yards with 9:43 remaining in the third quarter. The extra point play was special because Caleb Lisai thread one of those Tom Brady like passes near the ground, which could only be caught by the receiver. Clark gathered it in for the conversion, which brought the Terriers hope with a 20-14 score. The offense would not be heard from again. Two additional Bulldog tallies would provide the final margin of victory.
The Terriers travel to Fair Haven Friday night for a 7 p.m. kick-off and a game, which will determine which of those two teams will play at home in the first round of the play-offs. The two teams will meet again the following weekend at the site of the Friday night winner.
Springfield had hoped to land its' second win at Spaulding and entered play that day mathematically still alive for a play-off spot. A 42-6 defeat left fans of all types surprised. "In the end, their size was the differrence," Coack Rich Saypack offered. "It didn't take long to see that we were outmanned," he added, continuing on to say, "maybe we are just a JV football team." That statement was not putting his football team down, it was just speaking about you cannot take shortcuts to being competitive.
Ryan McSally found Jacob Stepler on a neat 80-yard pass play for the lone Springfield score. In a strange twist of fate, with the Cosmos not making the play-offs, yet guaranteed nine games by the state of Vermont football system, they travel back to Spaulding Saturday for another 1 p.m. kick-off.
The 0-7 Wildcats host Mascoma Friday night at 7 p.m.


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Week 3–The Changing Office Market…Into Condos??
Posted: Wednesday July 2, 2014
I have bemoaned this anemic job recovery to no end. Without jobs, office space is difficult to lease. One outcome of this slow recovery is that owners and developers are getting creative with their buildings. Or, more likely, the new owners who bought the building from the bank that reposed the project are now redeveloping them. Over half of the space being removed from the office market is being returned as a condo or apartment.
There are two ways this is happening. I have previously sent out an email showing the top six or seven office sites in Phoenix that have been sold to apartment developers and are now being built. These projects took over 3,000,000 potential square feet of office permanently off the market. In Phoenix, we have had just a few over the past decade. The most notable is 3033 N. Central.
In big cities like San Francisco, New York and Philadelphia, developers are also taking old office buildings and converting them to cool apartments or condos.
Before we started the Lee & Associates Arizona office in 1991, I began my brokerage career at Grubb & Ellis. One of the most creative brokers I ever worked with was Brian Day O'Connor. One of the deals he spent a lot of time on was selling the Valley Annex Building at Central and Monroe. That was over 25 years ago. Fast forward 25 years, a number of owners, a couple bankruptcies and you have the building in the exact same condition it was when Brian was selling it. At the bottom, I have included an article on the latest announcement of guess what? You got it—almost. A developer is buying and going to convert the building into a hotel. I think the time is finally right–For this project. For conversion development, there is no wrong or right, rather project by project careful analysis is necessary.
P.S. My favorite North American city (outside metro Phoenix) is Vancouver. One reader suggested the pricing in that market has gone crazy with mainland Chinese buyers. Now only second to Hong Kong pricing. At the bottom, there is a great article on what is happening in that market.
Developers Increasingly Find It Can Pay To Convert Office Buildings Into Apartments and Condos
More than Half of Office Space Removed from Inventory Returns To the Market as Residential
By: Randyl Drummer
Analysis presented at CoStar's recent Third-Quarter 2013 Office Outlook and Forecast found that developers added 39 million square feet of new office space over the last four quarters. However, the net impact was muted as another 22 million square feet of office space was removed from the market, either demolished or converted into other uses, with more than half of that former office space being converted to residential uses such as apartments and condominiums.
"Clearly, we see a shift in how real estate is being used and what developers are building," said Walter Page, director of office research for CoStar. "So far, over half of the office recovery has been driven by removals of space. We're still at a very low level of [net] completions, due mostly to demolitions."
Outdated office buildings nearing the end of their usable lifecycles have long been subject to the wrecking ball in favor of other uses such as upscale condos and apartments.
In the current cycle, however, developers are not just looking to demolish or convert lower-quality office buildings. They're also repositioning higher quality office properties to meet growing demand for urban residential space, particularly in transit-oriented markets such as New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
The trend has been especially prevalent in Manhattan where planned conversions are a key component in some of the largest office transactions of recent years, including 650 Madison Avenue, which sold for $1.3 billion, or about $2,200 per square foot, and 550 Madison Ave., which Sony Corp. sold for $1.1 billion to an investment group headed by developer Joseph Chetrit that is exploring a conversion into luxury condos, a hotel and upscale retail space.
Abundant capital is available for office-to-residential conversions in submarkets where existing office buildings still suffer from vacancy overhang, noted James Murphy, executive managing director in Colliers International's Investment Services Group. Residential condos in the same areas can command investment sale prices of up to $5,000 per square foot, far exceeding the going rate for even high-quality office buildings.
"In Midtown, you're seeing some of these [4 and 5 Star] buildings in a ring around Central Park being converted [in condos] and going for sky-high pricing, targeted at the sometimes-New York foreign crowd," Murphy said.
The majority of the office buildings being taken off line are older 1 or and 2 Star quality buildings that are no longer competitive, said Aaron Jodka, manager of U.S. research for CoStar forecasting and analytics company Property and Portfolio Research (PPR).
"In many cases, the better use is not as an office building, and that's really weighing on the demand side of the market," Jodka said, noting that opportunities to reposition and convert obsolescent office properties to housing and other products make this "a great time to be a value-add office investor."
The office-residential conversion trend has also been a major source of transaction activity in Baltimore, Chicago, San Francisco, and especially, Philadelphia and Northern New Jersey.
Northern New Jersey's overall office vacancy rate has continued to inch down this year, fueled by an uptick in demand for vacant suburban office buildings for residential conversions and other redevelopment opportunities.
"Vacant buildings considered functionally obsolete by today's office users are likely to remain on the radar screen for potential medical, mixed-use, multi-family or assisted living conversions," said Daniel J. Loughlin, managing director and Jones Lang LaSalle's office brokerage lead in New Jersey.
In many submarkets of Baltimore, landlords continue to struggle with chronic vacancy that has led to an increasing number of obsolete office buildings, which are now being considered for conversion to apartments, noted according Patrick Latimer, JLL senior research analyst.
In Baltimore City, the conversions will change the CBD landscape by helping offset the vacancy holes left by large tenants, such as Miles & Stockbridge, who over the past several years shifted from second- and third-generation space along Baltimore and Charles Street to newly-renovated Five Star product along Pratt Street. Over 800,000 square feet of office space has been removed from inventory in the Baltimore CBD for residential conversions in the last year.
Downtown Baltimore, however, may see the largest changes in 2013 as planned residential conversions could reduce vacancy by over 2% and spark the transformation of the traditional office oriented CBD to a mixed-use environment. The success of such projects as 10 Light Street, where Metropolitan is turning a 435,000-square-foot office building into 445 apartment units, may serve as a barometer for the viability of conversions for downtown office landlords, Latimer said.
Downtown Phoenix Art-Deco High-Rise Will Get $40 Million Makeover
By: John Guzzon
The 13-story Art Deco Professional Building at Central Avenue and Monroe Street in the heart of downtown Phoenix has been sold to CSM Corporation and will be converted into a premium select-service hotel.
Image courtesy CSM Corporation
Rendering of the Professional Building at Central Avenue and Monroe Street in downtown Phoenix.
The building originally opened in 1932, housing the offices for Valley Bank and Trust and the Maricopa County Medical Society above. It is traditional Art Deco style with strong vertical lines, a central tower with setback wings and windows, and decorative grills above the main entrance. at Monroe Street and Central Avenue. The building was immortalized in Alfred Hitchcock's iconic 1960 film, Psycho. In 1993, the Professional Building was included on the National Register of Historic Places and was vacated in 2000.
An earlier planned restoration failed with the bankruptcy of the project's primary lender, Mortgages Ltd. It was due for completion in 2008.
The CSM restoration project is currently budgeted at $40 million, and is planned to include renovation of the exterior, installation of new insulated windows, new mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, and full renovation of the former bank lobby. It will include a lobby bar and coffee shop. The facility will comprise 165 guest rooms on 12 floors, 5,000 square feet of meeting space, a 1,300-square-foot fitness center, a business center, a rooftop terrace, and parking. The plan also includes about 8,000 square feet of retail space along Central.
Completion of the project is scheduled to be completed in time for the National Football League's 2015 Super Bowl.
The 13-story Art Deco structure opened in 1932, housing the offices for Valley Bank and Trust on the three lower levels, and the Maricopa County Medical Society above. Its classic Art Deco style is reminiscent of the period with its strong vertical lines, central tower with setback wings and windows, and decorative grills above the main entrance at Monroe Street and Central Avenue.
According to CSM, the company is currently in negotiations with potential tenants and is exploring partnership possibilities, including branding options such as Hilton and Marriott. CSM expects the opening of the hotel to add 105 jobs to the downtown Phoenix marketplace, and its construction is expected to create 106 jobs. In additional to the $40 million project price tag, the overall economic and fiscal impact to Phoenix is estimated at $18 million, according to a study by Elliott Pollack.
CSM's hospitality management, ownership, and development division owns and operates 39 hotels throughout the United States.
"Our company has a particular love for bringing landmark properties back to life, transforming them into hotel space the public can enjoy, and providing a future of commercial viability," Bill Upshaw, president of CSM Lodging, said in a press statement. "CSM Lodging feels this property is ideally situated to be converted to a premium select service property, which is currently missing from the downtown market."
Vancouver's Skyrocketing Housing Prices: Are Mainland Chinese Investors To Blame?
By: Palash Ghosh
Vancouver skyline Shutterstock.com
Vancouver, Canada Reuters
Vancouver, the gleaming city in British Columbia in far western Canada, boasts the highest real estate prices in North America, and second-highest in the world (after only Hong Kong), according to a study by Demographia International Housing Survey, a housing pricing service.
For example, the average house in the wealthy West Side district of Vancouver clocks in at C$2.1 million (US$2 million), second only to Hong Kong. Over the past five years, the average price of detached properties on the West Side has soared by 45.3 percent, according to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. On the city's less affluent East Side, the average price for a home is still a hefty C$850,000, having surged by 35.2 percent over the past half-decade. In Vancouver's suburbs, including such satellite towns as Burnaby and Richmond, prices of single-family detached homes have jumped by 24.4 percent to C$922,600 over the past five years.
Much of the blame (or credit, depending upon one's perspective) for Vancouver's skyrocketing housing costs has been directed at deep-pocketed immigrants from mainland China who have poured into British Columbia in recent years, buying up luxury properties en masse. Joy Mo, 42, a Chinese-born Vancouver-area resident for 11 years, is one who blames wealthy investors from mainland China, shunting off prospective buyers like herself. "I'm quite disappointed," she told the South China Morning Post of Hong Kong. "This is a place for all of us, and if you drive all the local buyers out of the market, what is the community going to be?" Mo and her husband are renting a home in the suburb of Port Moody, about 20 miles east of Vancouver, after having sold their home in 2008 (just before the huge spike in local property prices). Now, they find it impossible to afford a home in Vancouver proper again.
But she won't blame all Chinese immigrants for Vancouver's soaring housing costs. "Most immigrants who came here before 2008 or 2007 were mostly independent immigrants who came here with certain technical backgrounds," she said. "They tried to find a job, settle themselves here. But after that, all of a sudden, there are a whole bunch of investor-category immigrants. Those are the ones that have a lot of money. They are generally not working and they don't really care about finding a job because they have a business back in China."
Indeed, literally tens of thousands of millionaire "investor-class" migrants from China have entered Canada simply by loaning C$800,000 (US$750,000) apiece in cash to the local provincial government – interest-free for five years. (That federal program ceased in 2010, according to the Globe and Mail, due to criticism and a huge backlog of applicants). Over the past eight years, almost two-thirds of the nearly 37,000 "investor-class" migrants who settled in British Columbia originated in mainland China. (Adding migrants from Hong Kong and Taiwan, that proportion climbs to 81 percent).
Mo said she was shocked by the attitude of Chinese in Vancouver who thought real estate prices in the area – where individual homes can cost as much as $4 million or much more — were "quite cheap." "I just gasped," she stated. "These numbers are just nothing to them, and I don't understand why they don't pay income tax and only pay the same property tax as everybody else. I don't think it's right. Our politicians overlooked this or don't think that it's a big deal… There's a loophole here." Mo said that when she and her husband applied to purchase a home in Vancouver, they were outbid by a Chinese investor.
To alleviate the problem, Mo suggested that foreign home-buyers in Vancouver should be subject to higher property taxes. The 15 percent levy that Hong Kong slaps on foreign buyers might be a good idea for Canada, she thinks. "I'm not sure [such a tax] would actually push the real estate prices down, but at least [offshore buyers] would contribute a little bit more to society," she said.
Citing data from Landcor Data Corp., the South China Morning Post reported that in 2010, among purchases of luxury homes and properties in Vancouver's West Side district, as well as the satellite city of Richmond, an overwhelming majority (74 percent) involved buyers with mainland Chinese surnames.
Julia Lau, a Vancouver real estate agent, told the paper that the actual figure is closer to 80 percent, but she views the influx of Chinese money as a boon. "I see a lot of [local] people here who bought in West Vancouver a long time ago, they can sell for a lot of money and move somewhere else outside Vancouver," she said. Moreover, Ming Pao, a Vancouver-based Chinese-language newspaper, reported that mainland Chinese and second-generation Chinese are the largest buyers of homes valued at $4 million or above in the region.
Thus, the lofty price of housing in Vancouver has far outraced the pace of household income. Put another way, the RBC Housing Trends and Affordability Report determined that in Vancouver it now requires more than 84.2 percent of pre-tax household income to service the cost of owning a home in the area. The comparable figure in Toronto is 55.6 percent, and in Montreal, only 38.3 percent.
However, since it is impossible to obtain exact data on foreign ownership of Canadian properties, the sentiment that Chinese buyers are driving up home prices is largely anecdotal, cautions Craig Alexander, chief economist at TD Bank Group in Toronto. Alexander said foreigners buying Vancouver properties is only one of several factors pushing up local prices. In a telephone interview, Alexander explained that Canada avoided the worst excesses of the global financial crises and emerged largely unscathed during the recovery, making it an attractive place to invest in. "Canada has also enjoyed low interest rates and low fixed mortgage rates, all of which provided a strong incentive for people to buy houses," he said.
Vancouver, he added, has many appealing qualities for both foreign and domestic home buyers. "It is beautiful, clean, safe and has a very mild climate," he noted. "As far as Asians are concerned, Vancouver is easily accessible from the Pacific Rim, more so than, say, Toronto or Montreal. Plus, Vancouver already has a large Asian community established, enabling friends and family from overseas to settle there."
Meanwhile, Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson has denied that local home prices are jumping thanks to mainland Chinese investors, adding that the Chinese have brought a "great influx of talent and culture" to his city. "We don't want to take any rash actions that might impact investment in the city," he said, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. "We're not Hong Kong. They saw real estate prices rise 26 percent last year, which is unbelievable – they had to take rash actions to deal with that."
But Robertson conceded that Vancouver housing price tags have indeed increased too high, too fast. "There are warning signs that we have to watch very carefully, and we may have to take action in the future if it's warranted," he added.
The Post noted, however, that unlike the enmity against mainland Chinese in Hong Kong, there appears to be little backlash against mainlanders buying up Vancouver properties and driving up prices. "It is mostly a mystery to me why more people in the Canadian media do not look more closely at how high immigration and foreign ownership affect the property market," said Douglas Todd, a columnist for the Vancouver Sun. "That said, journalists are like most 'nice' Canadians and are very fearful of offending any ethnic or immigrant group." Todd added: "I occasionally get accused of writing articles in which hyper-vigilant people say they detect an 'undercurrent of racism'. They say 'undercurrent of racism' because they can't find any actual racism, because it's not there."
Jillian Kohut, an economist at IHS Global Insight in Toronto, suggested that many foreign (that is, primarily Chinese) investors may be buying up properties in Vancouver simply as an investment. "Anecdotally, we have seen Chinese buyers purchasing houses and then letting them fall apart and become dilapidated," she said in a phone interview. "Ultimately, the real value is in the land, not in the houses. I suspect that what's really driving this are internal factors in China itself, which is compelling wealthy investors to park their money elsewhere, especially Canada, which is viewed as quite a stable and attractive place to invest."
The Vancouver Condo Report speculated on what would happen to the local condo property market – already heavily leveraged to Chinese buyers – if and when China's own precarious housing bubble pops. "If the Chinese housing bubble does burst, Chinese buyers who have invested in Vancouver condos will likely liquidate to shore up assets at home," the report stated. "But because these buyers have pushed up prices beyond the reach of local buyers, there's no local market for their condos. Prices will have to drop significantly, and that will mean heavy losses for both the Chinese investors and the developers catering to this market."
VCR warns that with such a large portion of the local housing market dependent on one source of buyers, speculation places a "huge burden" on Canadians homebuyers. "Households priced out of a market will have to increase their commute time to find affordable accommodation," VCR predicted. "The result is increased urban sprawl, increased pollution, increased taxes and a deteriorating quality of life."
Alexander, however, pointed out that making forecasts about Vancouver's housing market is rather compromised by the fact that there is apparently so much foreign ownership in the region. "Foreign money is not affected by domestic interest rates or most other domestic fundamentals," he said. "Foreign investment works rather like a wild card in this scenario." Still, Alexander believes that Vancouver properties are clearly "overvalued," but it's too early to call the market a bubble yet. "You really can't identify a bubble until it has burst, but I think there are some concerns that the market is overheating."
Kohut of IHS said threats of a bubble in Vancouver were probably greater two or three years ago, adding that the risks have likely waned since as the pace of property price growth has slowed. Indeed, she noted for example that most measures of property values on Vancouver (including the MLS Home price index) actually declined for several months in 2012. "Prices have actually backed off a bit, which tells me the threat of a bubble burst has eased up," she added.


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Why should the devil get all the good tunes? Even if Luther didnt say this, he was onto something since he borrowed and reshaped many fine secular songs and Catholic chants into Protestant hymns. This holiday season well dig up the roots of beloved church tunes, follow them into the 21st century, and examine how one man changed the course of music. Explore this transformation as wrought by Bach, Brahms, Distler, Handl, Mendelssohn, Praetorius, Schein, and Walther, with guidance, spiritual and otherwise, from our guest monk, narrator Stephen Wilson.
Its true! One hundred years ago, there were more pianos than bathtubs in American homes. Join us around the piano for a cozy evening of music-making in the parlor. With nationally acclaimed American music specialists Brian Thorsett , tenor, and Teresa McCollough, piano, well revisit a time when every living room was filled with music, and sight-singing was part of the American school curriculum. Music by Foster, Billings, MacDowell, Parker, spirituals and shapenote hymns, folk songs, work songs, and play songs.