text:
package com.swetha.datetimepicker;

import java.util.Calendar;

import com.swetha.easypark.R;

import android.content.Context;
import android.text.Editable;
import android.text.InputFilter;
import android.text.Spanned;
import android.text.TextWatcher;
import android.util.AttributeSet;
import android.util.Log;
import android.view.LayoutInflater;
import android.view.View;
import android.widget.Button;
import android.widget.EditText;
import android.widget.RelativeLayout;

public class DateTimePicker extends RelativeLayout {
		private int startYear = 1900;
		private int endYear = 2100;

		private View myPickerView;

		private Button month_plus;
		private EditText month_display;
		private Button month_minus;

		private Button date_plus;
		private EditText date_display;
		private Button date_minus;

		private Button year_plus;
		private EditText year_display;
		private Button year_minus;

		private Button hour_plus;
		private EditText hour_display;
		private Button hour_minus;

		private Button min_plus;
		private EditText min_display;
		private Button min_minus;

		private Calendar cal;
		// Constructor start
		public DateTimePicker(Context context) {
			this(context, null);

			init(context);
		}
		public DateTimePicker(Context context, AttributeSet attrs) {
			this(context, attrs, 0);
		}

		public DateTimePicker(Context context, AttributeSet attrs, int defStyle) {
			super(context, attrs, defStyle);

//			// Get LayoutInflater instance
//			final LayoutInflater inflater = (LayoutInflater) context.getSystemService(Context.LAYOUT_INFLATER_SERVICE);
//			// Inflate myself
//			inflater.inflate(R.layout.datetimepicker, this, true);
			LayoutInflater inflator = (LayoutInflater) context
					.getSystemService(Context.LAYOUT_INFLATER_SERVICE);
			myPickerView = inflator.inflate(R.layout.datetimepicker, null);
			this.addView(myPickerView);

			initializeReference();

		}
		private void init(Context mContext) {
			LayoutInflater inflator = (LayoutInflater) mContext
					.getSystemService(Context.LAYOUT_INFLATER_SERVICE);
			myPickerView = inflator.inflate(R.layout.datetimepicker, null);
			this.addView(myPickerView);

			initializeReference();
		}
		private void initializeReference() {

			month_plus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.month_plus);
			month_plus.setOnClickListener(month_plus_listener);
			month_display = (EditText) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.month_display);
			month_minus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.month_minus);
			month_minus.setOnClickListener(month_minus_listener);

			date_plus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.date_plus);
			date_plus.setOnClickListener(date_plus_listener);
			date_display = (EditText) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.date_display);
			date_display.addTextChangedListener(date_watcher);
			date_minus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.date_minus);
			date_minus.setOnClickListener(date_minus_listener);

			year_plus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.year_plus);
			year_plus.setOnClickListener(year_plus_listener);
			year_display = (EditText) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.year_display);
			year_display.setOnFocusChangeListener(mLostFocusYear);
			year_display.addTextChangedListener(year_watcher);
			year_minus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.year_minus);
			year_minus.setOnClickListener(year_minus_listener);

			hour_plus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.hour_plus);
			hour_plus.setOnClickListener(hour_plus_listener);
			hour_display = (EditText) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.hour_display);
			hour_display.addTextChangedListener(hour_watcher);
			hour_minus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.hour_minus);
			hour_minus.setOnClickListener(hour_minus_listener);

			min_plus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.min_plus);
			min_plus.setOnClickListener(min_plus_listener);
			min_display = (EditText) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.min_display);
			min_display.addTextChangedListener(min_watcher);
			min_minus = (Button) myPickerView.findViewById(R.id.min_minus);
			min_minus.setOnClickListener(min_minus_listener);

			initData();
			initFilterNumericDigit();

		}
		public void initData() {
			cal = Calendar.getInstance();
			month_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MONTH)));
			date_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)));
			year_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.YEAR)));
			hour_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.HOUR_OF_DAY)));
			min_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MINUTE)));
		}

		private void initFilterNumericDigit() {

			try {
				date_display.setFilters(new InputFilter[] { new InputFilterMinMax(
						1, cal.getActualMaximum(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)) });

				InputFilter[] filterArray_year = new InputFilter[1];
				filterArray_year[0] = new InputFilter.LengthFilter(4);
				year_display.setFilters(filterArray_year);
				hour_display.setFilters(new InputFilter[] { new InputFilterMinMax(
						0, 23) });
				min_display.setFilters(new InputFilter[] { new InputFilterMinMax(0, 59) });
			} catch (Exception e) {
				// TODO Auto-generated catch block
				e.printStackTrace();
			}
		}

		private void changeFilter() {
			try {

				date_display.setFilters(new InputFilter[] { new InputFilterMinMax(
						1, cal.getActualMaximum(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)) });
			} catch (Exception e) {
				date_display.setText("" + cal.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH));
				e.printStackTrace();
			}
		}
		public void setTimeChangedListener(TimeWatcher listener) {
			this.mTimeWatcher = listener;
		}

		public void removeTimeChangedListener() {
			this.mTimeWatcher = null;
		}

		View.OnClickListener hour_plus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {
				hour_display.requestFocus();

				try {
						cal.add(Calendar.HOUR_OF_DAY, 1);
					sendToDisplay();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					Log.e("", e.toString());

				}
			}
		};
		View.OnClickListener hour_minus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {
				hour_display.requestFocus();

				try {
						cal.add(Calendar.HOUR_OF_DAY, -1);
					sendToDisplay();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					Log.e("", e.toString());
				}
			}
		};

		View.OnClickListener min_plus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {
				min_display.requestFocus();

				try {
					cal.add(Calendar.MINUTE, 1);
					sendToDisplay();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					e.printStackTrace();
				}
			}
		};
		View.OnClickListener min_minus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {
				min_display.requestFocus();

				try {
					cal.add(Calendar.MINUTE, -1);
					sendToDisplay();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					e.printStackTrace();
				}
			}
		};

		String[] months = { "Jan", "Feb", "Mar", "Apr", "May", "Jun", "Jul", "Aug",
				"Sep", "Oct", "Nov", "Dec" };

		View.OnClickListener month_plus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {

				try {
					cal.add(Calendar.MONTH, 1);

					month_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MONTH)));
					year_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.YEAR)));
					date_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal
							.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)));

					changeFilter();
					sendToListener();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					Log.e("", e.toString());
				}
			}
		};
		View.OnClickListener month_minus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {
				try {
					cal.add(Calendar.MONTH, -1);

					month_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MONTH)));
					year_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.YEAR)));
					date_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal
							.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)));

					changeFilter();
					sendToListener();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					Log.e("", e.toString());
				}
			}
		};
		View.OnClickListener date_plus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {

				try {
					date_display.requestFocus();
					cal.add(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH, 1);

					month_display.setText(months[cal.get(Calendar.MONTH)]);
					year_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.YEAR)));
					date_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal
							.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)));

					sendToListener();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					// TODO Auto-generated catch block
					e.printStackTrace();
				}

			}
		};
		View.OnClickListener date_minus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {

				try {
					date_display.requestFocus();
					cal.add(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH, -1);

					month_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MONTH)));
					year_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.YEAR)));
					date_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal
							.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)));

					sendToListener();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					// TODO Auto-generated catch block
					e.printStackTrace();
				}
			}
		};
		View.OnClickListener year_plus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {

				try {
					year_display.requestFocus();

					if (cal.get(Calendar.YEAR) >= endYear) {

						cal.set(Calendar.YEAR, startYear);

					} else {
						cal.add(Calendar.YEAR, +1);

					}

					month_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MONTH)));
					year_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.YEAR)));
					date_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal
							.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)));

					changeFilter();
					sendToListener();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					// TODO Auto-generated catch block
					e.printStackTrace();
				}

			}
		};
		View.OnClickListener year_minus_listener = new View.OnClickListener() {

			@Override
			public void onClick(View v) {

				try {
					year_display.requestFocus();

					if (cal.get(Calendar.YEAR) <= startYear) {
						cal.set(Calendar.YEAR, endYear);

					} else {
						cal.add(Calendar.YEAR, -1);

					}

					month_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MONTH)));
					year_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.YEAR)));
					date_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal
							.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH)));

					changeFilter();
					sendToListener();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					// TODO Auto-generated catch block
					e.printStackTrace();
				}

			}
		};

		class InputFilterMinMax implements InputFilter {

			private int min, max;

			public InputFilterMinMax(int min, int max) {
				this.min = min;
				this.max = max;
			}

			public InputFilterMinMax(String min, String max) {
				this.min = Integer.parseInt(min);
				this.max = Integer.parseInt(max);
			}

			@Override
			public CharSequence filter(CharSequence source, int start, int end,
					Spanned dest, int dstart, int dend) {
				try {
					int input = Integer.parseInt(dest.toString()
							+ source.toString());
					if (isInRange(min, max, input)) {
						return null;
					}
				} catch (NumberFormatException nfe) {
				}
				return "";
			}

			private boolean isInRange(int a, int b, int c) {
				return b > a ? c >= a && c <= b : c >= b && c <= a;
			}
		}

		public void reset() {
			cal = Calendar.getInstance();
			initFilterNumericDigit();
			initData();
			sendToDisplay();
		}

		synchronized private void sendToListener() {

			if (mTimeWatcher != null) {
					mTimeWatcher.onTimeChanged(cal.get(Calendar.HOUR_OF_DAY),
							cal.get(Calendar.MINUTE), -1);
			}
			if (mDateWatcher != null) {
				mDateWatcher.onDateChanged(cal);
			}
		}

		private void sendToDisplay() {

			hour_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.HOUR_OF_DAY)));
			min_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MINUTE)));
		}

		TimeWatcher mTimeWatcher = null;

		public interface TimeWatcher {
			void onTimeChanged(int h, int m, int am_pm);
		}

		TextWatcher hour_watcher = new TextWatcher() {

			@Override
			public void onTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int before,
					int count) {

			}

			@Override
			public void beforeTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int count,
					int after) {

			}

			@Override
			public void afterTextChanged(Editable s) {
				try {
					if (s.toString().length() > 0) {
							cal.set(Calendar.HOUR_OF_DAY,Integer.parseInt(s.toString()));
						sendToListener();
					}

				} catch (Exception e) {
					e.printStackTrace();
				}
			}
		};

		TextWatcher min_watcher = new TextWatcher() {

			@Override
			public void onTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int before,
					int count) {

			}

			@Override
			public void beforeTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int count,
					int after) {

			}

			@Override
			public void afterTextChanged(Editable s) {
				try {
					if (s.toString().length() > 0) {
						cal.set(Calendar.MINUTE, Integer.parseInt(s.toString()));
						sendToListener();
					}

				} catch (Exception e) {
					e.printStackTrace();
				}
			}
		};

		public int getYear() {
			return Integer.parseInt(year_display.getText().toString());
		}

		public int getDay() {
			return Integer.parseInt(date_display.getText().toString());
		}

		public String getMonth() {
			//String monthInwords =  month_display.getText().toString();
			return String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.MONTH));
		}

		public int getHour() {
			return Integer.parseInt(hour_display.getText().toString());
		}

		public int getMinute() {
			return Integer.parseInt(min_display.getText().toString());
		}

		public void setDateChangedListener(DateWatcher listener) {
			this.mDateWatcher = listener;
		}

		public void removeDateChangedListener() {
			this.mDateWatcher = null;
		}

		View.OnFocusChangeListener mLostFocusYear = new OnFocusChangeListener() {

			@Override
			public void onFocusChange(View v, boolean hasFocus) {
				if (!hasFocus) {

					year_display.setText(String.valueOf(cal.get(Calendar.YEAR)));
				}
			}
		};

		TextWatcher date_watcher = new TextWatcher() {

			@Override
			public void onTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int before,
					int count) {
			}

			@Override
			public void beforeTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int count,
					int after) {

			}

			@Override
			public void afterTextChanged(Editable s) {

				try {
					if (s.toString().length() > 0) {
						// Log.e("", "afterTextChanged : " + s.toString());
						cal.set(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH,
								Integer.parseInt(s.toString()));

						month_display.setText(months[cal.get(Calendar.MONTH)]);

						sendToListener();
					}
				} catch (NumberFormatException e) {
					// TODO Auto-generated catch block
					e.printStackTrace();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					e.printStackTrace();
				}

			}
		};

		TextWatcher year_watcher = new TextWatcher() {

			@Override
			public void onTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int before,
					int count) {

			}

			@Override
			public void beforeTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int count,
					int after) {

			}

			@Override
			public void afterTextChanged(Editable s) {
				try {
					if (s.toString().length() == 4) {
						int year = Integer.parseInt(s.toString());

						if (year > endYear) {
							cal.set(Calendar.YEAR, endYear);
						} else if (year < startYear) {
							cal.set(Calendar.YEAR, startYear);
						} else {
							cal.set(Calendar.YEAR, year);
						}
					}

					sendToListener();
				} catch (Exception e) {
					// TODO Auto-generated catch block
					e.printStackTrace();
				}
			}
		};

		DateWatcher mDateWatcher = null;

		public interface DateWatcher {
			void onDateChanged(Calendar c);
		}

}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Greece's pinched pennies
Saving cash to survive a summer of debt payments.
| Getty
By Zeke Turner
May 15, 2015 6:41 pm CET
This week, the Greek Ministry of Finance's general accounting office released its headline budget figures for April 2015. The numbers reflect the country's success watching every penny it spends and trying to build up revenue through tax collection, all in an effort to hoard its available cash and survive a summer of debt payments.
In April, Greek net budget revenue surpassed its target € 500 million — the result of some 380,000 taxpayers applying for a favorable payment plan offered by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' left-wing government that allows a delayed payment of property tax, dividends to private sector business and relaxed terms on overdue debts.
Tax payments had fallen off dramatically between December and February, when citizens began to worry that Greece might fall out of the eurozone.The increased revenues show Tsipras' government building back some of the lost trust. State budget revenues for the first four months of the year have clocked in €372 million above their target — beating their goal in April alone by €278 million. For April, the Greece's budget deficit was only €506 million, much better than the expected €2.9 billion shortfall. The budget primary balance showed a surplus of €2.16 billion — a figure that doesn't include debt interest payments — beating a target of €287 million.
According to Silvia Merler at Bruegel, "in cumulative terms the state primary balance has over-performed the target by as much as €2.45 billion." That doesn't mean everyone sees this as some kind of turning point. "Greek media friendly towards the government and especially Avgi daily newspaper ran a piece hailing the result of the primary surplus as a welcome surprise," said Mujtaba Rahman of the Eurasia Group. "We are skeptical. More likely: it is the result of an internal 'default within the government by drastically cutting spending, by not paying or delaying paying suppliers, by the fact the Public Investment Program is now almost 2 billion down etc."
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Manos Giakoumis, the head analyst at the Greek economic and political analysis site Macropolis, drilled down into this internal default. "We know that pensions and salaries have not been cut or trimmed, so whatever the other expenditure cuts are, they come from the non-payroll costs," he explained. In the first quarter, the Greek government shorted non-payroll costs in two areas: "Grants to the social security sector" and "other primary expenditure," which comprise payments to hospital and university suppliers, grants to families with many children, contributions to the intergenerational Solidarity Fund (AKAGE) and agricultural subsidies. "This was the picture for Q1, and I don't see any reason why it would be any different for April," Giakoumis said.
While the Greek government has been draining the reserves of pension funds, hospitals and universities while letting other payments slip into arrears, it also has raised €600 million by ordering local governments to centralize their cash reserves to the Bank of Greece. On Tuesday the government fulfilled a €750 million debt payment to the International Monetary Fund, by tapping €650 million from its own reserves at the Fund. In June, Greece owes another €1.5 billion to the IMF, and won't be able to make the same maneuver. Without a deal with European creditors to unlock the last €7.2 billion from its second bailout package, it will prove difficult if not impossible for the government to come up with cash for that payment.
"I don't think is done for fiscal purposes, it's done for cash purposes — to eliminate what is not used for immediate spending to save for the external payments, the payment to the IMF," Giakoumis said about the positive headline accounting figures for April. Miranda Xafa, a Greek economist formerly on staff at the IMF and a senior scholar at the Center for International Governance, agreed with that estimation. "These figures are basically on a cash basis, so my guess is arrears account for much of the spending under-performance," she said.
For the Syriza government, which has been fighting against austerity imposed by European creditors, it might seem strange for the government to pinch expenditures in areas that affect hospitals and certain social subsidies. "Yes it is strange, but so far it is not evident in the society," said Giakoumis. "It is mostly evident in the numbers. It is not something that the society is actually suffering. It was usual also in the past that some payments and subsidies were delayed, so this is not out of the blue. It gradually started three or four years ago, so from the beginning of the Greek crisis."
Elsewhere in the April figures, expected revenues from privatizations came in €60m short of expectations, and in talks in the Brussels Working Group — the political front in the negotiations — European creditors have been demanding a further €3 billion in primary budget surplus in order to unlock the final tranche of loans.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Simple Cushion Cover Get to grips with the basics of sewing and using a sewing machine right from the beginning whilst making a beautiful envelope cushion cover with a lovely top stitched border. This project is perfect for those getting to grips with using a sewing machine for the first time or those who want a refresher after stuffy days in school making aprons.... Simple Cushion Cover Get to grips with the basics of sewing and using a sewing machine right from the beginning whilst making a beautiful envelope cushion cover with a lovely top stitched border. This project is perfect for those getting to grips with using a sewing machine for the first time or those who want a refresher after stuffy days in school making aprons.
Each cushion will require 2 circles and one strip measuring 3 inches x 43.5 inches. Set aside and begin making your ties. I cut out (2) two inch x 24 inch strips.
Simple Cushion Cover Get to grips with the basics of sewing and using a sewing machine right from the beginning whilst making a beautiful envelope cushion cover with a lovely top stitched border. This project is perfect for those getting to grips with using a sewing machine for the first time or those who want a refresher after stuffy days in school making aprons.


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text:
Recovery room allows IC first responders to float, relieve stress
Iowa City first responders have begun utilizing the Iowa Recovery Room, a local business in Iowa City, to destress and unwind from their day-to-day work.
The Iowa Recovery Room is seen on Wednesday, February 6th, 2018. The Iowa Recovery Room is a clinic specializing in non-traditional treatment for mental health issues such as anxiety, depression and PTSD.
Tate Hildyard
Alexandra Skores, News Reporter
Updated on February 8, 2019 at 12:26 am
The Iowa City Police Department and Iowa City Fire Department have recently been supporting their first responders in a new way to unwind: float therapy.
Patrick Krier, owner and operator of Iowa Recovery Room which is offering the service, said float therapy is a form of relaxation where a person soaks in water and 750 pounds of diluted Epsom salt. The therapy allows participants to disconnect and unwind, as they are not with a cellphone during this "float." However, they can listen to music.
"It's pretty simple," said Krier. "The water is heated to your skin temperature of 94 degrees. It's like laying on the softest memory foam mattress you've ever been on."
The Iowa Recovery Room, which open in March of 2018, also offers a sauna in addition to having the sensory deprivation tanks.
RELATED: Clayton: My hour in a sensory deprivation tank
Krier said "floats" last for approximately one to one and a half hours, allowing for participants to relax mentally and de-stress. The therapy is popular with athletes, he added.
"It's very popular for the physical relief after strenuous exercise and the mental relief," he said. "Being without any sort of stimuli and in the comfort of a warm tank allows you to ponder new athletic moves, think on school work, or focus more intensely on tasks at hand."
Krier said the first responders have been benefitting greatly over the past few weeks because of the float therapy, and it has allowed them to sleep well.
Officer Ashley Jay, one of the ICPD officers in charge of starting this initiative, said she was searching for better ways to take care of her officers and had never heard of float therapy. Upon a quick Google search, she saw the benefits and research behind the method.
"I saw that in research there was a lot of benefits to the therapy," said Jay. "Officers carry a lot of weight in our day-to day jobs, and it can be very hard to adjust mentally."
Jay stressed how ICPD calls could be as simple as helping someone get into a locked car, but then quickly turn to responding to a death scene.
"It's very stressful to be normal people outside of work," she said. "After seeing something traumatizing at work, then coming home to your smiling kids—it's a big mental adjustment."
ICPD officer Ashten Hayes tried the float therapy for the first time and said she was a little nervous to step in.
"I had never heard of it before until Ashley had gave us all the information on it," said Hayes. "I was a little nervous to be in this box for an hour and honestly was a little uncomfortable until I was able to be relaxed."
Hayes said that, after overcoming her discomfort, her first time in the float therapy helped her unwind mentally and physically.
"I felt very relaxed," she said. "Not everyone is going to have the same benefits in relaxation, but for me, it helped me destress and have a good night sleep after a long day of work."
LGBTQ Resource Center changes name to Pride Alliance Center to promote inclusion
A proposed law could change carrying guns around schools
Montserrat Fuentes, final UI provost candidate, discusses retention, opportunity
Alexandra Skores, News Editor
Alexandra Skores is a News Editor at The Daily Iowan. Last year, she was a news reporter covering the UI's graduate...


text:
Hungarian teen breaks Phelps' record, Peaty completes double
AgenciesUpdated July 25, 2019
GREGORIO Paltrinieri of Italy competes on his way to winning the men's 800m freestyle final at the Nambu University Municipal Aquatics Center on Wednesday. — Reuters
GWANGJU: Hungarian teenager Kristof Milak shattered Michael Phelps' 10-year-old world record in the 200-metre butterfly on Wednesday while Adam Peaty sewed up a third straight breaststroke double with victory in the 50 metres at the World Swimming Championships.
Budapest-born Milak won gold in a time of 1:50.73, lopping 0.78 seconds off Phelps' 1:51.51 set in Rome in 2009.
"It's a tremendous honour to set such a great record," he said. "Until 14 I was a backstroker and later I focused on the butterfly. But earlier I only did 100 metres because I wasn't strong enough."
There can be no question about his strength now. At 19, Milak is the youngest winner of the 200 butterfly since Phelps triumphed as an 18-year-old in 2003, the second of the American great's five world titles in the event.
Peaty shattered a record of his own on Sunday, becoming the first swimmer to go under 57 seconds in the 100 breaststroke semi-finals and while he could not repeat the feat in the 50 he was still streets ahead of his rivals.
The Briton posted 26.06, the third fastest 50 of all time and 0.6 seconds ahead of his nearest challenger, Brazilian Felipe Lima.
"Got the triple double which is a massive thing for me," said Peaty. "It's what I came here to do. The 56 happened so its just everything complete really."
Chinese swimmer Sun Yang has been a lightning rod for controversy at the championships but his bid for glory in the 800 freestyle fizzled out as he trailed home in sixth.
Sun is swimming under a cloud in Gwangju with a doping case against him set to be heard at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in September.
His presence has upset fans and fellow athletes alike, with two swimmers, Australian Mack Horton and Briton Duncan Scott, showing their displeasure in the most public way possible.
Horton refused to share the podium after picking up silver behind Sun in the 400 while 200 bronze medallist Scott refused to shake his hand at the medals ceremony, a move that triggered a furious response from the Chinese swimmer.
All three athletes were sent warning letters by governing body FINA over their conduct.
There was double freestyle delight for Italy with Federica Pellegrini winning the women's 200-metre world title for a fourth time and Gregorio Paltrinieri taking gold in the men's 800 metres.
Paltrinieri said he took no additional pleasure in beating Sun, who also served a doping suspension in 2014.
"I don't want to think about anything while I'm racing like doping or something, I just don't care. I just want to beat them all," said the Italian.
World record holder Pellegrini, who won her first 200 title a decade ago, hunted down Australian teen Ariarne Titmus over the closing 50 to claim gold in 1:54.22.
"I'm too old for this," joked a breathless Pellegrini, who celebrates her 31st birthday next month.
Titmus, who stunned Katie Ledecky to win gold in the 400 on Sunday, is the new kid on the block at the worlds but the 'Terminator' has a big future.
Australia ended the night on a high note though with their mixed 4x100 medley relay team pipping the United States to gold by 0.02 seconds, Cate Campbell powering home in a scintillating anchor leg to overhaul Simone Manuel.
Since anchoring the women's 4x100 freestyle relay team to gold on Sunday, Campbell has been stuck in the athletes' village watching television while her team-mates raced.
"I feel like a bear who has been in hibernation," she said. "I was starting to get a little bit restless in the apartment, I was like 'come on let me out, let's start racing again. There are only so many episodes of Friends I can watch.'"
Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2019
Phelps wins 19th medal to set record
Is Phelps the greatest Olympian?
Phelps admits 'bad behaviour' after cannabis picture
Gordon D. Walker
Jul 25, 2019 09:31am
Congratulations! A real physical accomplishment measured ever so precisely... Gordon D. Walker Canada
Kudos to Milak, a progress long overdue.
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93 killed as harsh weather torments country


21/02/2015 · This is a google cloud services enabled printer. Is there a way to add this printer to the list of my cloud printers from my chromebook? (That is, without going thru another win pc set up as I had done long time ago for my older classic printer).... Confirm that your HP printer supports Google Cloud Print. To register and set up your printer to use the Google Cloud, go to Connecting and Using Google Cloud Print . To quickly locate your printer model , click or scroll to the section for your printer model, and then hold down the CTRL and F keys.


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Het gat van Hengelo was een krater van 4.5 meter diep en met een doorsnee van 30 meter. Het gat werd veroorzaakt door zoutwinning.

Zoutwinning

Sinds 1919 wordt er zout gewonnen in de omgeving van Hengelo (Overijssel).
Ondergronds zijn er 250 cavernes, holtes in de steenzoutlaag die per caverne zo groot zijn als een voetbalstadion. 62 van deze holtes zijn ontstaan voor 1980 en geven instortingsgevaar.

Krater

Op 18 januari 1991 ontstaat er aan de Enschedese Havenweg in Hengelo (Overijssel)  een gat in de weg van 4.5 meter diep en met een doorsnee van 30 meter. Een zoutcaverne in het buitengebied was ingestort. Er vielen daarbij geen slachtoffers. Wel moest een nabijgelegen boerderij gesloopt worden door de ontstane schade.

Invloed

AkzoNobel, het bedrijf dat het zout wint, had voor 1991 niet het besef dat de zoutwinning tot kraters kon leiden. "Tot die tijd hadden we alleen glooiende kommen" aldus een woordvoerder van het bedrijf.
Het gat van Hengelo zorgde voor een omslag in de omgang met de cavernes. Een aantal cavernes werd uit de productie genomen en toekomstige cavernes worden niet meer zo groot gemaakt. Er blijft instortingsgevaar bestaan bij een aantal oude cavernes.

Vliegas

Een oplossing voor de instortende cavernes zou kunnen zijn om de cavernes met vliegas te vullen. Dit plan stuit op veel tegenstand van omwonenden en natuurorganisaties. Een alternatief is nog niet gevonden. Reëel instortingsgevaar is te verwachten rond 2020-2025

Hengelo
Twente
Zoutwinning

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps motor-racing circuit is the venue of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix, and of the Spa 24 Hours and 1000 km Spa endurance races. It is also home to the all-Volkswagen club event, 25 Hours of Spa, run by the Uniroyal Fun Cup. It is one of the most challenging race tracks in the world, mainly due to its fast, hilly and twisty nature. Spa is a favourite circuit of many racing drivers and fans.


text:
Jack Cullen – Shine | New Music
20 Mar 2019 — Filed Under: Music, New Music
Hertfordshire based singer-songwriter Jack Cullen tackles the new year head-on with sublime new single "Shine".
"Shine" is an impressive follow up to his first official singles "Learn" and fan favourite "Teabags & Cigarettes". A real display of the spellbinding vocal that Jack possesses, it brings intensity and warmth in equal measure and is topped with Jack's pure, heart-felt lyrics. Produced by Dan Frampton, "Shine" looks set to turn the heads of fans and critics alike.
Speaking on the track Jack states: "Personally the song is an appreciation of someone in particular that made me feel good and gave me a new lease of life, whenever I was feeling down. In a time of darkness, whatever that may be to someone, there will always be someone or something to provide light. You just have to find it."
Since leaving the world of professional Rugby in Ireland, Jack has been making a real statement of intent in regards to music. Writing and touring with the likes of the multi-platinum rock band Keywest has offered a plethora of experience and a sold-out his first ever headline show at The Troubadour is a massive career boost. It's only onwards and upwards for Jack from here.
#Peace.Love.JackCullen
Jay Tijani
A little bit of Music, Politics & Fashion | jaytijani.com | MCMXCVI
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Don't go into the city centre tonight if they win this one.
If they win this tonight, is the league theirs? City cant lose again can they? ffs.
Got a draw written all over it.
The shite win tonight and it's over imo.
The shite win tonight and it's over imo.
Yes Sal, and your point is ? If I stand pitch side of the line and the sun is behind me then my shadow is goal side of the line.


Call it history repeating itself. In the fall of 2013, Anne Lara and her team were knee-deep in plans to become one of just two organizations (at the same) to migrate to Meditech 6.1. A year and a half later, Union Hospital of Cecil County is at it again, paving the way by going live with Meditech's scribe functionality. In this interview, Lara talks about what it takes to be an early adopter, the biggest hurdles with attesting to stage 2, how her team is partnering with DataMotion to enable direct messaging, and the complexity of HIE when you closely border two states. She also discusses the culture change needed to increase patient engagement, her key concerns as CIO, and why she feels "very positive" about where the industry is headed.
We need to make sure those things that are patient care-critical are always operational from a wireless perspective. So we're always looking at ways to improve, enhance, and make sure that we're prepared for what's coming next.
HIM and HIS departments are kind of the wind beneath everybody's feet. You don't necessarily know that they're there unless something goes wrong.
It's proof that sending that information from one EMR to another one works. So now we have to make that even more meaningful in terms of how can you consume that information; how can you present that data in such a way that it's meaningful to the individuals that are looking at it.
Gamble: That's a really interesting initiative. It's one of those things where you have to lay the groundwork and go from there. But you're talking about changing the culture, changing the way patients relate with clinicians. To me that's an approach that really makes sense like, okay, we're going to start here.
Lara: And build on it.
Gamble: That's great. It's very exciting.
Lara: We're really excited, and it's been a great partnership with our case management group. They're really excited. They've embraced the concept too, and again, the feedback that we get has been positive. We actually have a weekly call with Vivify just to make sure we're doing what we need to do. If there's any problems or questions, the folks at Vivify are there to help us with that too, so it's a great partnership. The industry is so replete with all sorts of folks to work with. I've met a lot of really good folks in the industry that are all trying to do the same thing in our own little way. Vivify through their technology, AT&T through their data use plan, DataMotion through their secure messaging, CRISP, etc. It's a great time to be in healthcare.
Gamble: Definitely. Did we touch on most of what you're focused on for the next year or so? I know there's so much going on.
Lara: I think so. The other thing that always from a CIO perspective that maybe doesn't keep me up at night, but I always have to be kind of worried about, is the infrastructure to support all this stuff. It's all well and good to make use of Bluetooth technology or wireless technology, but one of the other things that I'm always cognizant of is I need to make sure that my data is backed up, my data is going to be available, and my system is working and operating the way it should be from a performance perspective. The most recent statistic I've heard is that there are three wireless devices per individual now, so I need to make sure our other focus for this year is making sure that our wireless infrastructure is set up to support end-users and support the technology, because everything, if you look at it, everything is wired. My IV pumps are wireless. We have a new program that the nursing department has set up called TeleSitting. So rather than have an individual sit with a patient that may have a potential for falling, it's kind of like a remote patient monitor in the hospital. We have like a camera on wheels that gives audio and visual cues, and we have folks watching via monitor what's going on the patient, but that's a wireless device too. So we need to make sure those things that are patient care-critical are always operational from a wireless perspective. So we're always looking at ways to improve, enhance, and make sure that we're prepared for what's coming next. So infrastructure is really, really important.
Gamble: Absolutely. Without that, all these cool things don't do much good.
Lara: That's exactly right. And they're foundational. Information security is always very foundational for us too. And again, it's important and why is it important? Well, it's important because we're responsible for making sure that patient information is kept confidential where it needs to be. We're responsible for the health and the wellness of the hospital's infrastructure — we don't want nasty bugs or hackers to get into our system. And finally, from a Meaningful Use perspective, the government is really honing in on that information security piece and making sure that you do your security assessments routinely and that you're mitigating any vulnerabilities. That's one of the requirements that you have to attest to. So it's really, really important.
Again, infrastructure information security is always foundational. And I think I mentioned this before, but my staff is extremely, extremely important to making all of this work — making sure that they're up to speed from an industry expertise perspective, making sure that they're challenged, making sure that they feel engaged, and making sure they realize how important they are and what a difference that they're making. Because sometimes HIM and HIS departments are kind of the wind beneath everybody's feet. You don't necessarily know that they're there unless something goes wrong. So it's making sure that they understand how important the things that they do are. I call them the unsung heroes; from an infrastructure perspective, from a data perspective, from a data governance perspective, they're it. That goes with all these wonderful things that we're doing. We couldn't do it without a very, very dedicated and engaged staff.
Gamble: I guess the big question is, what are some ways to try to make sure that they are engaged and they are feeling that appreciation?
Lara: That's a great question. One of the things we do is look for opportunities to have them shine — are there special projects that they can work on? And there's plenty of special projects. Is there a way to take a look at some of the daily things they're doing that maybe they shouldn't be doing, like password resets, for example. Do I need somebody on the phone helping to reset a password, or is there technology out there that can help free that individual up to do other things where they can kind of grow and divide.
I think recognition is big — calling them out when they've done a good job. Union Hospital does a really nice job with employee recognition, but we also try to do it in the department also and recognize when someone kind of goes above and beyond. It's really hard in my group because everybody goes above and beyond. And I'm just not saying that, but again just doing that, and trying to get us on the radar screen. This the third year we've been voted one of the best IT shops from a hospital perspective, so we're really excited about that, and we say that proudly. You just always have to be on the lookout for ways to make people feel good about what they're doing.
My philosophy in life is I want people to jump out of bed in the morning and say, 'I have to go to work!' It's the little things. It's making sure that maybe they get face time with the executive team, as kind of scary as it sometimes is, and maybe they'll talk to the leadership team about what they're doing. It's just looking for those opportunities where they can shine and grow.
Lara: Exactly. They should be proud of what they do. It's not an easy job — folks usually don't know you're there unless something goes wrong. And I say that to people, you're doing a good job. And they great customer service skills. Again, I'm very, very fortunate; very, very lucky.
Gamble: Okay, well, the last thing I wanted to do is get your take on where the industry is headed with Meaningful Use. Obviously, there have been some bumps in the road, but in general, what are you feelings on this direction that the industry has taken in the last couple of years?
Lara: I feel very positive about Meaningful Use. I know it's sometimes challenging and time consuming to try to figure out how to meet the requirements, but I think it's taking the industry to a place it wouldn't have gone unless there were Meaningful Use. I think the whole incentive program I think has worked really well. What I'm finding is folks are actually getting the actual meaning and learning how to use their EMRs in a meaningful way.
CPOE is very, very important. CPOE is one of the ways that we're reducing medication errors, and looking at making sure that med reconciliation is done. What does that mean? It's taking a step back and saying it's not just about collecting the data providers; med reconciliation is all about making sure that somebody is looking at the number of medications the patient is on at every opportunity. I don't want to say forcing, but that part of the Meaningful Use criteria is making folks take a pause and say, 'does Mrs. Jones really need to be on these 50 medications?' So again, it's looking at those pieces and parts and making us think critically about some of the decisions we're making.
Some of the things we're looking at in terms of VTE or stroke or AMI — they're all clinically driven, and are using the EMR to help with decision support or having the providers actually take a pause and say, 'hmm, I wonder did I really order this anticoagulant when I should not have?' It's really helping us use the system in a meaningful way, but it's also geared toward helping patient outcomes.
It's also requiring us to become a little bit more standardized in terms of data and data collection. So as we move forward with population health or data analytics, we're kind of comparing apples to apples. We know what practice is, we know how to compare it to best practices, and we know where there's a gap and we know where there's opportunity. So I think it's driving us in that direction.
In terms of the whole concept of transitions of care, I think we'll get there. I'm not quite sure we're there yet. The CCD document is a great document, but is very long. It has a lot of the extraneous information. We'll figure it out. But it's a step. It's proof that sending that information from one EMR to another one works. So now we have to make that even more meaningful in terms of how can you consume that information; how can you present that data in such a way that it's meaningful to the individuals that are looking at it. I think there's going to be more and more patient engagement and tools to support patient engagement, which ultimately are going to drive cultural changes to make the patient and the consumer know that it's their responsibility to know about their health and their wellness. So I think there's more to come. I see good things happening, and we've only just started the journey.
Gamble: I think that's a really great perspective. It's good to keep that in mind. We hear so much about all the challenges, but it's great to get that big picture perspective and look at how we're changing things.
Lara: Exactly. And again, it's going to be interesting to see. I know ONCHIT just came out with their interoperability proposal, and interoperability is really, really important, because as you said, how do you share the information? Are we ever going to get to the point where proprietary information is in this format? I'm not quite sure, but at least we're addressing the concept. At least we're addressing the issue.
Because again, going back and putting it down at the patient or the consumer level, five different patient portals for one individual is a lot. So what can we do to interoperate the information that's in all those patient portals so that the information is there in one place, and it's there when either the patient needs it or the provider needs it? There's a lot of things going on, a lot of things that are happening that I think are going to lead us down a good path.
Gamble: I think so too. Alright, well that's a pretty ideal way to wrap things up, I would say. Thanks so much for your time. It's been really great to follow up and hear all the progress you've made. It sounds like you're doing a lot of great things.
Lara: Kate, it's always a pleasure to talk with you, and I look forward to the next time.
Gamble: Definitely. Me too. Thank you so much.
Lara: Thank you. Take care.


text:
Die Parlamentswahlen in Osttimor 2023 entscheiden über die Zusammensetzung des sechsten Nationalparlaments Osttimors (Parlamento Nacional de Timor-Leste). Sie werden am 21. Mai 2023 stattfinden.

Politische Situation vor den Wahlen

Bei den vorgezogenen Parlamentswahlen 2018 gewann das Parteienbündnis Aliança para Mudança e Progresso (AMP) aus Congresso Nacional da Reconstrução Timorense (CNRT), Partidu Libertasaun Popular (PLP) und Kmanek Haburas Unidade Nasional Timor Oan (KHUNTO) die absolute Mehrheit im Parlament. Premierminister Marí Bin Amude Alkatiri von der FRETILIN musste sein Amt an Taur Matan Ruak von der PLP abgeben. Ein Großteil der vom CNRT nominierten Kandidaten für die Regierungsämter wurde aber von Staatspräsident Francisco Guterres (FRETILIN) die Ernennung verweigert, da er sie aus unterschiedlichen Gründen für nicht geeignet hielt. Taur Matan Ruak gelang es, trotzdem ein Kabinett zu bilden, indem die vakanten Positionen der fehlenden CNRT-Mitglieder von anderen Regierungsmitgliedern mitverwaltet wurden. Im Nationalparlament verweigerte die AMP den Oppositionsparteien FRETILIN und Partido Democrático (PD) eine angemessene Beteiligung im Präsidium und in der Leitung der Ausschüsse, was zu weiteren Konflikten führte.

2020 machten Abgeordnete des CNRT immer mehr Premierminister Taur Matan Ruak mit dafür verantwortlich, dass der Großteil der CNRT-Minister nach 18 Monaten immer noch nicht im Amt war. Am 17. Januar scheiterte der Haushaltsentwurf der Regierung, weil sich die CNRT-Abgeordneten der Stimme enthielten. Taur Matan Ruak erklärte daher das Ende der AMP, Präsident Guterres forderte ihn aber auf, die Regierung einstweilen weiter zu führen. Am 22. Februar unterzeichneten CNRT, KHUNTO, PD, União Democrática Timorense (UDT), Frenti-Mudança (FM) und Partidu Unidade Dezenvolvimentu Demokratiku (PUDD) eine Koalitionsvereinbarung zur Bildung einer neuen Regierung. Das Rücktrittsgesuch von Taur Matan Ruak zwei Tage später nahm Guterres aber wieder nicht an und forderte ihn stattdessen auf, weiter die Übergangsregierung zu führen. Mit Ausbruch der COVID-19-Pandemie in Osttimor Ende März kam eine weitere Krise auf das Land zu. Daraufhin erklärte die KHUNTO, sie wolle nun wieder Taur Matan Ruak unterstützen, und dieser nahm sein Rücktrittsgesuch am 8. April wieder zurück. Der Vorschlag der Sechs-Parteien-Allianz, Gusmão zum Premierminister zu ernennen, wurde von Präsident Guterres nicht beantwortet. Am 27. April verlor die Koalition im Parlament eine Abstimmung zum Notstand wegen COVID-19, da PLP, KHUNTO und FRETILIN geschlossen abstimmten. Das war das Ende der Koalition, und die VIII. Regierung nahm nun Vertreter der FRETILIN ins Kabinett auf, ebenso Júlio Sarmento da Costa von der PD, die nun ebenfalls die Regierung unterstützte. Parlamentspräsident Arão Noé da Costa Amaral vom CNRT wurde durch Aniceto Guterres Lopes von der FRETILIN ersetzt und die Ausschussvorstände neu besetzt, wodurch nun der CNRT ausgeschlossen wurde.

Xanana Gusmão, der Führer des CNRT, versuchte bei den Präsidentschaftswahlen 2022 die Macht zurückzugewinnen, indem der CNRT den beliebten parteilosen Friedensnobelpreisträger José Ramos-Horta als Kandidaten aufstellte. Im Wahlkampf machte Gusmão deutlich, dass er im Falle eines Wahlsiegs von Ramos-Horta die Entlassung der Regierung und Ausrufung vorgezogener Neuwahlen erwarte. Ramos-Horta, der in seinen Reden immer auf Ausgleich zwischen den politischen Parteien bedacht war, blieb in seinen Aussagen zu seinen Plänen nach der Wahl vage. Nach seinem Sieg über Amtsinhaber Guterres erklärte Ramos-Horta, dass er die VIII. Regierung bis zum Ende ihres Mandates unterstützen werde. Die regulären Neuwahlen für das Parlament setzte er im November 2022 auf den 20. Februar 2023 fest. Danach entbrannte eine Diskussion über den Wahltermin. Schließlich verkündete Präsident Ramos-Horta als Wahltermin den 21. Mai. Im Juni könne so das Endergebnis bekannt gegeben und das neue Parlament zur gleichen Zeit antreten, wie die Parlamentarier zur Legislaturperiode von 2018 (damals am 12. Juni. Die neue Regierung wurde am 21. Juni vereidigt). Zudem könnte rechtzeitig der Staatshaushalt 2024 verabschiedet werden, was verschiedene Probleme vermeiden würde und im September findet der ASEAN-Gipfel statt, bei dem Osttimor als Mitglied aufgenommen werden soll. Die FRETILIN hatte ein Datum im zweiten Halbjahr vorgeschlagen.

Wahlvorgang
Das Secretáriado Técnico de Administração Eleitoral (STAE) plant, insgesamt 1500 Wahlzentren und 1880 Wahllokale im Land bereitzustellen. Bisher mussten Wähler ihre Stimme in ihrer Heimatgemeinde abgeben, was für viele Einwohner der Hauptstadt Dili bedeutete, dass sie am Wahltag in ihre Heimat fahren mussten. Nach Erfahrungen bei den letzten Präsidentschaftswahlen soll nun auch bei den Parlamentswahlen für jede Gemeinde Osttimors in Dili ein Wahlzentrum eröffnet werden, um den Wählern die Reise zu ersparen. Mit der fünften Änderung des Wahlgesetzes von 2006 soll außerdem die Briefwahl für Osttimoresen im Ausland eingeführt werden. Zudem sollen Journalisten an ihrem Arbeitsort ihre Stimmen abgeben können und die Öffnungszeiten der Wahllokale sollen geändert werden. Die Änderung muss noch vom Nationalparlament bestätigt werden.

Die Sitze werden nach dem D'Hondt-Verfahren den Listen zugeteilt, wobei der letzte Sitz, im Fall mehrerer gleicher Höchstzahlen, der Partei mit den wenigsten Stimmen zugesprochen wird. Um die Vier-Prozent-Hürde überspringen zu können, können Parteien Wahlbündnisse bilden.

Am 14. März legte Präsident Ramos-Horta sein Veto gegen eine Reihe von Änderungsanträgen zum Gesetz über die Wahlen ein. In seinem Schreiben an die Abgeordneten im Parlament befürwortete er die geplante Einführung von Briefwahl und Unterlagen in Blindenschrift, lehnte aber die parallelen Wahllokale für Wähler, die nicht in ihren Heimatort zur Stimmabgabe fahren können ab. Diese hatte es erstmals bei den letzten Präsidentenwahlen gegeben und sollten nun ausgeweitet werden. Ramos-Horta erklärte die dafür notwendigen Mechanismen und Register würden fehlen, um doppelte Stimmabgaben zu verhindern. Auch kritisierte er die geplante direkte Weiterleitung der Auszählungsdaten an die Nationale Wahlkommission (CNE), obwohl die Verfassung zuerst eine Auflistung an der Wahlurne und dann auf kommunaler Ebene verlangt. Außerdem nennt das neue Wahlgesetz nicht die neue Gemeinde Atauro, weswegen auf der Insel gar kein Wahllokal vorgesehen ist. Das Parlament muss nun über die Änderungswünsche des Staatsoberhaupt entscheiden. Bei erneuter Verabschiedung des neuen Gesetzes ist der Staatspräsident dazu verpflichtet, es mit seiner Unterschrift in Kraft zu setzen. Gibt es keine Entscheidung des Parlaments, bleibt das bisherige Gesetz von 2018 in Kraft.

Parteien und Parteienbündnisse

Bis zum 15. März 2023 konnten Parteien ihre Teilnahme an der Wahl melden. Am 19. April beginnt der Wahlkampf.

2018 entzog das Obersten Gericht Osttimors (Tribunal de Recurso) den sieben Parteien ASDT, KOTA, PDL, PUN, PARENTIL, PNT und PTT, die Wählbarkeit, so dass die CNE am 15. Februar 24 anerkannte politische Parteien in Osttimor aufzählte. Dazu gehören auch die 2022 registrierten Grünen (PVT). Allerdings stellte das Tribunal auch bei der Partido Milénio Democrático (PMD), der Partido Democrática Republica de Timor (PDRT), der Partido do Desenvolvimento Popular (PDP) und der Partido Timorense Democrático (PTD) fest, dass diese wegen Fehlen gesetzlicher Vorgaben bei den Parlamentswahlen 2023 nicht antreten können.

Ende Januar wurde die Aliança Democrata (AD; ) von der Aliança Nacional Democrata (AND), PDP und Partidu Liberta Povu Aileba (PLPA) gegründet. Die offizielle Anerkennung der AND als politische Partei beim Tribunal ist bisher noch nicht abgeschlossen.

Am 4. März schlossen sich vier Parteien zu einem Wahlbündnis zusammen. Der Frente Ampla Democrática (FAD; ) gehören die UDT und die FM sowie die beiden nicht im Parlament vertretenen Parteien Centro Acção Social Democrata Timorense (CASDT) und Partido do Desenvolvimento Nacional (PDN) an. Eine weitere Koalition kündigten die PDRT und die Associação Popular Monarquia Timorense (APMT) an.

Am 13. März bestätigte die CNE die Meldung der drei Koalitionen, doch das Tribunal lehnte alle drei Bündnisse ab. Die PDP von der Aliança Democrata und die PDRT hätten beide die gesetzlichen Vorgaben als wählbare Parteien nicht  mehr erfüllt, so dass deren Parteienbündnisse obsolet sind. Die AND hatte ohnehin noch nicht die Anerkennung als Partei erlangt. Bei der FAD war die PDN aus dem Bündnis am 14. März ausgetreten und reichte als einzelne Partei eine Wahlanmeldung ein. Das Tribunal stellte fest, dass bei der PDN kein Kongress oder nationale Konferenz die Kooperation mit den anderen Parteien bestätigt hatte, womit die gesamte FAD keine Zulassung erhielt. Den verbliebenen Partnern der verschiedenen Bündnisse blieb noch die Möglichkeit der Einzelanmeldung zur Wahl.

Am Stichtag, dem 15. März hatten schließlich insgesamt 17 Parteien ihre Wahllisten eingereicht:

 APMT
 CNRT
 CASDT
 FM
 FRETILIN
 KHUNTO
 MPLM
 PD
 PDC
 PDN
 PLP
 PLPA
 PR
 PST
 PUDD
 PVT
 UDT
 UNDERTIM

Aufgrund des innerparteilichen Streits in der Frenti-Mudança wurden sowohl von Parteichef Ricardo Cardoso Nheu als auch von seinem Vorgänger Egídio de Jesus Wahllisten eingereicht. Bis zum 25. März muss das Tribunal entscheiden, welche Listen, Parteien und Bündnisse zur Wahl zugelassen werden und die offizielle Liste am 29. März veröffentlichen. Nach den Vorfällen um die Zulassung der Wahlbündnisse und der Frage, welche Parteien überhaupt antreten dürfen, forderten sowohl das Tribunal als auch die CNE von der zukünftigen Legislative eine Klärung der Zuständigkeit über die Entscheidung der Zulassung von Parteien und Wahlbündnissen, da hier Gericht und Wahlbehörde in Konflikt geraten.

Einzelnachweise

2023
Osttimor Parlamentswahlen


The evolution of technology has quite evolved in a manner to touch several spheres of human life. The human inventions coming in today are always in an effort to improve the quality of our lives. Assuredly put, the ability of the human brain in inventions is boundless in creating the wildest and craziest imaginings. The field of entertainment was neither spared of these inventions of technological advancement. Several gadgets of entertainment that are technologically oriented have been developed. The mobile games that we enjoy today are amongst the inventions of technology that we enjoy today.
Mobile phones have gone beyond the boundaries of being mere gadgets for telephone connectivity needs. Like a friend of mine used to tell me sometime in the past witnessing the speedy progress in technology in the mobile phone industry, mobile phones then were a complete set of entertainment to the home. As a matter of fact, that point has sunk deeper in me today. It has indeed been confirmed today that mobile phones are a full set of entertainment.
The mobile phones we have today in the market often come enabled with application software such as games . The modern ones like the smartphones will offer a good deal of entertainment at home. The smartphones also known as touch phones will give their users a chance to enjoy their games of choice by the installation of mobile games application on them.
The mobile games quite popular today are a favorite to many, young and old alike. When you get to playing the mobile games, one often gets so engrossed that time simply flies away without their noticing. And ideally that is the key focus of any game. A mobile game can actually get you off this world of much cares and worries and as such are a good wind down activity. How about a stress relief! Introverts have actually come to enjoy life even more the development of mobile games. Introverts are generally perceived to be crowd-shy and always find themselves staying withdrawn from crowds. The mobile games are ideal for such people since they will in them find an opportunity to get entertained and also learn some basic skills in life. However keep in mind the fact that mobile games are not only focusing on entertainment. The creation of these mobile games today has a learning concept in the that the players can keep handy with them. Examples of the life kills one can learn from a mobile game include skills in socializing, first aid tips and even skills in self defense.
For the first time I now know that mobile games are as entertaining as they are informative.


but to the various communities to which we belong.
but in the larger sense, in which a 1+1 relationship, when blessed, can equal "3".
and blessed me in many ways.
Now I have many meaningful Christian friendships.
and the love of Father God which surpasses full understanding.
I hadn't known what I had been missing!
is the time spent with a close friend.
Undoubtedly, Jesus is THE best friend that any and every person could have.
All that He hears from the Father, He shares with us.
I am His personal friend, and He is mine!
Remember that a friend is more than the condition of having access to someone's social media page.
It takes more than accepting a digital request to be a real friend.
and I say that in the kindest, most compassionate way possible.
The best friendships are based on a mutual relationship with God.
David and Jonathan come to mind as Biblical best friends.
was loyal in saving brother-in-law, and close friend, David.
All the difference in His everlasting Kingdom.


text:
The Vogue Grifter Wore Polka Dots To Sentencing
Story from Fashion
The Vogue Staffer Who Stole From Grace Coddington Wore Polka Dots To Her Sentencing
Channing Hargrove
Photo: Scott Eisen/Bloomberg/Getty Images.
Right now in popular culture, we're fascinated by women who seem to have gotten away with something. Whether it's Elizabeth Holmesfooling investors and the media, Anna Delvey claiming to be a German heiress, or Lori Loughlin's alleged college admissions scam, we can't stop looking at these women — and more specifically, what they are wearing.
On Wednesday, former Vogue staffer Yvonne Bannigan, who is accused of stealing more than $50,000 USD while she worked as Grace Coddington's assistant, was sentenced to do three years probation. A noted fashion enthusiast, she wore a black-and-white-polka-dot dress for the occasion. Last month, Loughlin was photographed on her way to a court appearance in Boston. The actress, famous for her role on Full House as Aunt Becky and a slew of Hallmark Channel films, took the opportunity to sign autographs for fans outside the court house. She wore a light brown statement suit with a ribbed gray shirt and a pair of leather round-toe boots, topped with a pair of smart-looking eyeglasses.
Photo: TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images.
Loughlin isn't the only famous woman championing a certain aesthetic for their court appearances. Early last week, alleged scammer Anna Sorokin (née Anna Delvey) was to appear in front of the New York Supreme Court but was a no-show — because she didn't have the right outfit. According to The Daily Beast, Delvey is working with former Glamour magazine editor Anastasia Walker to pull together looks for her courtroom appearances.
Her courtroom outfits have even inspired an Instagram account, Anna Delvey Court Looks, that's amassed over 3k followers. The comments range from support with "yes give them docile doll anna" to speculation about whether she is plotting on a new business venture. "Maybe she's decided to wear it all the time to start a trend," one user wrote of Delvey's choker. "I could very easily see her serving her time and then getting actual investment for a legit business. [...] I think she expects to move past this," the person continued.
For her last two court appearances, Delvey wore delicate, feminine looks. A white lace dress for her final court date, and a black frock belted with a bow for her sentencing. Both looks seem to aim to make her look innocent despite the litany of charges — a ploy that's just as manipulative as the crimes she's been accused of.
Not everyone is as impressed by Delvey's outfit changes, particularly Judge Kiesel. Because Delvey's outfit had not been delivered to Rikers Island Prison, Delvey refused to come before the judge wearing the court-issued black pants and white shirt. "Either the clothes go to Rikers, or she shows up here in black and white," Judge Kiesel said. "This is the last day we're playing with clothes."
The courtroom outfit has long been a subject of fascination. Historically, defendants and plaintiffs alike wear muted, pared-down pieces of clothing to appear solemn in front of the judge and jury. Few courtroom looks have garnered the type of media attention that Lori and Anna now enjoy, except for Naomi Campbell's Azzedine Alaïa dress and Lindsay Lohan's manicure that was a literal Eff You to the judge. What does it say about our culture, and these women, that the courtroom outfit has become akin to a red carpet moment?
With the swarm of photographers, endless news coverage, and celebrity status afforded to defendants like Anna Delvey, it's not surprising that people are treating court appearances like red carpet moments. It's a way for celebrities to act as their own historians, turning every public moment into a photo opp, a headline, a chapter in their memoir, or a visual flashcard about their narrative which they want to control.
By diverting attention to their clothing, they're shifting the focus away from their (alleged) crimes and onto their exterior selves, their taste, and their access to money and luxury. Anna Delvey's fixation on what she wears — and her refusal to show up to court because of her outfit — is blatantly disrespectful to our legal system. And perhaps if Loughlin had spent more time reading her plea deals and less on what she was wearing, she wouldn't be facing more prison time.
Already, courtroom looks are inspiring press releases, Instagram accounts, and trend recaps. The question is ... how far will it go? Once people start using court appearances to promote their fashion lines, for example, we'll really be in trouble.
Vogue Grifter Gets Three Years Probation For Stealing
written by Channing Hargrove
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July 3, 2020 July 4, 2020 Gary Wells
The Flickers: Chrome and Hot Leather
"Chrome and Hot Leather" (1971)
Starring William Smith, Peter Brown, Marvin Gaye, Tony Young, Kathrine Baumann, Herb Jeffries, Bob Pickett, Cheryl Ladd, Dan Haggerty, Larry Bishop and Erik Estrada. Directed by Lee Frost. From American-International Pictures.
The Wizards are a motorcycle gang lead by T.J. (Smith). While cruising down the highway one day, they hassle a couple of pretty girls in a big Lincoln. The Lincoln goes off the road and the girls are killed; the gang lams it.
The passenger in the Lincoln, Kathy (Ladd), was engaged to Mitch (Young), the leader of a platoon of Green Berets training in the area. When Mitch finds out, he vows to find the motorcycle gang responsible and get his revenge.
By 1971, the outlaw biker genre was in full flight. Brando had put bikers on celluloid in 1953's iconic The Wild One but biker films really didn't hit their stride until the late '60's when the Hells Angels motorcycle gang started to show up regularly in the media. American International had released a couple of bike flicks in the Fifties but when the studio's The Wild Angels (1966) became a big hit, biker films really took off. Chrome and Hot Leather added a different element. It's probably the only "Green Berets vs. bikers/revenge" flick.
Lee Frost was a career B-movie director. He directed 26 feature films using 6 different names. The year after our film, he helmed the classic The Thing With Two Heads starring Ray Milland, Rosey Grier and pretty Kathy Baumann, again. Frost also served as this film's cinematographer. Michael Haynes plays Casey, who runs the girls off the road, and he also co-wrote the screenplay. He would go on to a long career as a Hollywood stuntman. And does he not look like George Clooney? Or Ben Stiller? Or their older brother, at least.
William Smith is quite a guy. Still alive as of this writing, aged 87, Smith had been a child actor before joining the Air Force in 1951. He ended up working for the NSA and – having both NSA and CIA security clearance – he planned a career working for the government before signing a contract with MGM. In addition to his many acting credits, Smith holds a black belt in karate, was a two-time world arm wrestling champion, holds records for reverse-curling his own body weight and his trademark arms measured 19 1/2 inches.
Huge, this guy.
Smith may be best known for playing Falconetti in the Rich Man, Poor Man mini-series. He appeared in many biker/drive-in/exploitation flicks through the Seventies and Clint Eastwood's Any Which Way You Can (1980). He played Conan's father in Conan the Barbarian (1982) but I will always think of him as having been in Francis Ford Coppola's two adaptations of S.E. Hinton's novels, The Outsiders and Rumble Fish, both in 1983. Look for him in Irresistible, his 276th credit, that stars Steve Carrell and opened in June, 2020.
Tony Young is one of those actors we love to profile here at SoulRide, an actor that worked relatively extensively while managing to remain invisible. A veteran of the US Air Force, Young appeared in several episodes of westerns and other programs while never being able to land a steady gig. He was married to Madlyn Rhue and it took me a second but I spotted him as having been in Elvis Presley's serious western, Charro! (1969). Another western television actor appears here, Peter Brown. After a stint in the US Army, Brown was pumping gas on the Sunset Strip and one night filled the tank of one Jack L. Warner; the next day, Brown got a screen test. Brown is known to me for his role in Ride the Wild Surf (1964).
Inexplicably, Marvin Gaye appears in Chrome and Hot Leather, his only feature film. Lacking a biography of the legendary soul singer, it is almost impossible to come upon an explanation as to why he made this film. All I could find was an entry in Marvin Gaye's brother's book that said the film did nothing for Marvin except get acting out of his system and revive his interests in motorcycles; once filming completed, Marvin bought one. It's certainly interesting casting, though, and Gaye does alright. Larry Bishop – Joey's kid – plays pinball-loving Gabe and "Bob" Pickett (as in Bobby Pickett) plays Sweet Willy. Look for Dan Haggerty (Grizzly Adams, Muscle Beach Party) and Erik Estrada – I couldn't spot Erik.
Bob and Larry
As mentioned before, Cheryl Ladd makes the first of her totally forgettable dozen big screen appearances; I had to go back to recognize her as the camera is so close to her face in the cramped quarters of the big, ol' Lincoln that goes over the cliff. Herb Jeffries plays Ned, a bartender. I thought I recognized the name so I looked him up. Herb – born Umberto Alexander Valentino – was an actor and singer who made "race" westerns and was billed as the "Sepia singing cowboy". Jeffries was of mixed race but instead of trying to "pass" for white, he did the opposite and claimed an African-American heritage and even darkened his skin. He released many albums of cowboy music and calypso through the Fifties. He was once married to peeler Tempest Storm.
Kathy Baumann
I watched Chrome and Hot Leather on the heels of The Take, a film I reviewed recently. Actually, this is like something out of our UnEarthed series; Frankie Avalon lead me to The Take, a film that featured Kathrine Baumann – she of the fancy handbags; see my review of The Take – who was in Chrome and Hot Leather, a film that lead me to the interesting stories of William Smith and Herb Jeffries. I have found that, in the summer, I'm drawn to these drive-in films, these exploitation movies. They just seem to take me back to the early Seventies, when a bunch of kids would've piled into the El Camino and gone down to the Star Lite Drive-In for a double feature of goofball movies like Chrome and Hot Leather. The film itself is fun but pretty bad, as you might expect. It does have a real outdoorsy feel as it was shot in and around Los Angeles in locations like Crystal Springs and Piru in Ventura County and Sylmar, LA's northernmost neighbourhood.
There are some great road shots and I particularly like a sort of slow-motion shot employed when the girls are going over the cliff. I can imagine veterans of the Armed Forces would get a hoot out of the film's "Green Berets" going through their training exercises though I do like the touch of the Berets using sergeants stripes as their "gang colours".
What more can be said, really? You wouldn't watch this movie wanting an accurate depiction of Green Berets or bikers – or what would happen if the two went to war. But there's enough of a story here and more than enough notable faces to make this film a fun watch. You don't really need me to review this film. Just think of this as me making you aware of it. If you're suffering through a scorching hot summer and Covid-19 has closed your favourite vacation spot, you could do worse than to stay in and dig a bonkers drive-in movie like Chrome and Hot Leather.
Previous The Flickers: The Take
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georgefairbrother says:
I loved the comment about the film's effect on Marvin Gaye…"Got acting out of his system and revived his interest in motorcycles…"


text:
THE WITCH'S WATCH
A short story prequel to THE ARTIFACT HUNTERS…
THE WITCH-WIFE'S WATCH
In the Depths of Time
On the north end of Scotland, by the North Sea, near the point of John o'Groats, lived a man, Tam, who was clever with his hands, so clever that he crafted time-pieces of rare beauty when time-pieces were rare altogether. One day while walking along the shore a selkie spied Tam and loved him in the instant and she changed her form to that of a bonny young maid. When Tam clapped eyes on the selkie-maid he loved her in turn, and so he took her to wife.
For several years they lived in happiness. One day Tam told his selkie-wife that he needed to purchase more parts for his time-pieces and that would require a journey far to the south. She begged him not to go, for she had an ill feeling, but he made ready nevertheless. Just before leaving Tam pressed his most astonishing watch into his selkie-wife's hand, telling her to mark the time until his return.
The watch was in the shape of a skull whose mouth opened to reveal the dial. The skull was engraved with symbols pertaining to time: Adam and Eve, proving that time devours all things; a serpent eating its tail, the symbol of eternity.
"As eternal as my love for you," Tam told his selkie-wife as he departed. "And so that time will not take its toll."
But the unfortunate Tam fell prey to robbers not far along his journey, and they tossed him near death into the sea.
Tam's selkie-wife waited and waited, until walking by the shore she came upon a washed-up satchel she recognized, and she knew her Tam was drowned.
In her grief and anger she turned from selkie-wife into selkie-witch, and placed a curse upon the watch. She bound a piece of her soul inside to make mischief to all who walk the land on two legs and might use this watch, for she hated men, blaming them for robbing her of her love.
The selkie-witch left the watch inside a casket in her hut and then returned to the sea to be a selkie forever, and to hope to be reunited with her Tam.
The casket was discovered first by a fisherman who took it to his laird, and from there the cursed selkie-witch's watch began its journey.
In the Deep Silent Sea
Over many years the selkie who was Tam's beloved has not found him, in all the dark pockets of water, sand, rock, and coral, though she has searched and searched.
Over the many years while she searched the cursed witch's watch has ruined many lives of men.
The selkie swims to the very depths of the sea, where lives the oldest of old wise whales, to seek his help.
"You placed a curse upon this watch," he says. "Because your curse was born in hatred of all who walk the land on two legs you will not find your Tam, for he was born a land-man. You must undo the curse."
"But I bound a piece of my soul inside this watch," she cries. "I cannot undo it without undoing myself."
"Well, then," he says, "you must balance your curse."
"But how?" asks the selkie, desperate.
"With a promise," he says. "Those who use the watch to gain power or do ill may suffer from your curse, but those who use it to make good will be blessed." He nods. "Only then may you find your Tam." And he adds, "And only if the watch is used for good."
He sinks away into the abyss.
Though she still harbors hatred of those who walk the land on two legs, the selkie will balance the watch's curse so that she might be reunited with her Tam.
The selkie finds the rocky cliffs and rises from the waves and sends her magic and another piece of her soul across the moors and fens, over the burns and kills, until it finds the sealed casket that carries the witch's watch. Anyone who uses the watch for good will find strength. Anyone who uses the watch for ill will find despair.
The watch is then balanced and carries a witch's curse and a witch's promise.
But it also carries a newly born magic, and that magic is bound with time. For time, no longer of Tam's making, will take its toll.
On a May Night
The full moon sheds a silver light over the heath. The tinker's caravan, pulled by a heavy-footed dray, creaks and groans. The tinker has stilled the cheerful bells and doused his lantern, and the thick heather muffles the dray's footfalls, as the caravan makes away from the coast. A fox watches from the top of a granite boulder. A badger pauses in its dig. A weasel ducks into its shelter as the caravan passes. Every few minutes the tinker glances back, his sharp eyes glinting in the moonlight.
He stops as he ascends the last hill before the moors, and turns right around and looks back, drawing his hood over his head as the bitter chill settles. One yellow light shines from Lochleven, the castle from which the Queen is making her escape southwards just as he makes for the Highlands. The small sealed casket – sealed by her before his eyes, with an inscription he cannot read – the casket behind his seat holds a singular possession that belongs to the Queen, a possession he has been tasked with carrying to safety, for she flees on foot and in disguise.
He lusts after the contents of the casket, a lust that grows the farther he is from the Queen. He doesn't know that this object carries a curse, a curse that will touch the Queen quite soon, condemning her to the axe.
This unfortunate tinker thinks of using this object – the witch's watch – to gain power over others.
He makes his way across the moors, not stopping until the moon has set and the night is full dark, when he finally drives his caravan into a thicket by a burn. He is weary and chilled – has he caught a fever? – but he unhitches the dray before climbing inside the caravan and tucking his body around the carved casket for a brief but restless sleep.
When his caravan is discovered years later, time has taken its toll. Vines creep up and over the wood whose surface now only hints of the once bright colored paint. The wheels have sunk deep into the muck of the burnside. Reeds rattle at the door, knocking against it like skeletal fingers.
The boys who find the caravan dare one another to enter, and when they do, there lies the husk of the nameless tinker, arced around a space, his arm draped as if he would protect some precious thing.
In a Deep Vale in Autumn
The gyptian who prised the casket from the tinker's unbending arms, long before the boys discovered the caravan, has not broken the seal. He doesn't know the meaning of the words imprinted in the lead, but he senses the wrongness of the thing. He has kept it hidden, his mind a back-and-forth of desire and restraint.
Then one day when he is quite old, he has had enough. Restraint overwhelms desire. He takes the casket to the deepest part of the forest and leaves it there to rot. Lucky, lucky man.
But the casket does not rot, and when the hunters stumble upon it they carry it home, a trophy to compensate for their lack of game. They arrive home and break the seal and open the casket.
They fight over what's inside, and two hunters die, and more follow as they use the watch for ill, and the village sinks into despair and starvation.
On a Winter's Night
The border reivers strike with impunity, and this dark night they put the desperate village to the torch. As they carry off the spoils, among the loot is a carved casket still carrying a broken lead seal.
Their leader contemplates the casket as he paces his firelit hall. Something about it troubles him and he's not used to feeling troubled. Perhaps it is the broken seal itself, its imprinted Latin inscription: Memento mori.
Remember that you must die.
Without ever opening the casket he re-heats the lead and solders the seal and retires.
In the morning, the casket is gone. The fortunate man is blessed with a full and comfortable life.
In a Chilly Spring
The fae has heard the rumors. A small sealed casket. Almost all who have possessed it by theft or desire have been cursed.
The fae is certain that some profound magic must lie within that casket, and he is certain he can handle some profound magic. He makes for the Highlands on a black dragon, following the trail of rumor and muttered prayers.
When he reaches the castle of most recent rumor the keep is already in flames. The fae stands at the edge of the woodland watching the despoiling clan ransack the ruins, shouting and laughing. He waits, his only hope of finding the casket his patience.
But there is no casket. He searches the ruins, sifting ash and rubble, but finds nothing. He'll have to follow the marauders. Eventually, if the curse is true, they will also suffer the consequences and he will seize the booty. And then he will find and use the magic it contains to his own purposes.
The fae does not know that history will bear down upon the clans and the casket, and the casket will be lost again along with many lives in a rising that has no hope, and the memory of the casket and its contents will sift into the recesses of his distractible fae mind.
The selkie roams the dark sea, searching, searching. She has lost two parts of her soul and a portion of her magic and she grows weak. So many of those who used the watch have used it for ill. Some have let it be.
But none have yet used it for good.
For the selkie, time has taken its toll. She will not be reunited with her Tam until her witch's watch fulfills her promise. She fears she may not ever be reunited with her Tam.
Legends of the watch in its casket have traveled far, across the moors and heaths of Scotland, across the rolling hills of England, across the Channel, across the continent, and even to the middle of Europe.
The legends have given the watch a name: Death's Head.
The legends have traveled for centuries, until they reach a time of strife which beckons dark magic and all the misery and mischief it can make. This is a time of war among those who walk the land on two legs, and they seek power wherever they can find it – even within a magical Death's Head watch.
Whether this witch's watch makes magic for good or ill is left to whoever possesses it next. The selkie who gave the watch its magic hopes that the possessor will use it for good and fulfill her promise so that she may find her Tam. But time, oh, time. It has taken its toll. She yearns, fading.
Who will possess this watch now? Someone who will find themselves in a castle, perhaps, in Scotland, maybe, facing a terrible evil? Someone with much to gain, and much to lose? Someone who can reunite a selkie with her Tam?
In a Hut in the Orkneys…
…is a boy whose parents have given him a casket.
Answers to Secrets
Clockwork & Tech
The Artifact Hunters
Artwork © Greg Ruth
Text © Author Janet Fox
Published by Viking


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Vincent van Gogh (March 30, 1853, Zundert-July 29, 1890) was a Dutch draughtsman and painter, classified as a Post-Impressionist. His paintings and drawings include some of the world's best known, most popular and most expensive pieces. The fact that he cut off part of his left ear is very well known, as is the belief that he was driven to an early suicide by lack of recognition of his genius. Here reality and myth are intertwined, and although he certainly suffered from recurrent bouts of mental illness, his suicide was preceded by growing praise for his work from radical critics and fellow avant-garde artists-something which paradoxically caused the painter considerable anguish. Van Gogh spent his early life as an art dealer, teacher and preacher in England, Holland and Belgium. His period as an artist began in 1880 and lasted for a decade, initially with work in sombre colours, until an encounter in Paris with Impressionism and Neo-Impressionism accelerated his artistic development. He produced all of his work, some 900 paintings and 1100 drawings, during the last ten years of his life. Most of his best-known work was produced in the final two years of his life, and in the two months before his death he painted 90 pictures. Following his death, his fame grew slowly, helped by the devoted promotion of it by his widowed sister-in-law. -Wikipedia (Read more...)
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Laying the Groundwork for More Efficient Retirement Savings Incentives
Report PDF (880 KB)
Summary PDF (579 KB)
Report	 Nov 18, 2015
Policymakers should pursue a number of steps at the federal and state levels to make existing savings incentives more effective and address the retirement crisis.
Christian E. Weller
Teresa Ghilarducci
Advancing Racial Equity and Justice, Building an Economy for All, Strengthening Health and Ending the Pandemic, Economy, Housing, Retirement, Retirement Security, Small Business, Worker Rights
Julia Cusick
Senior Director, Media Relations
jcusick@americanprogress.org
Colin Seeberger
cseeberger@americanprogress.org
pgordon@americanprogress.org
Jerry Parshall
Deputy Director, State and Local Government Affairs
jparshall@americanprogress.org
Michael Vanatta stands on the boardwalk in Vero Beach, Florida, on December 8, 2010. (AP/J Pat Carter)
Americans want to be financially secure throughout their retirement years. While Social Security offers a basic income to almost everybody, most people need to save a lot of money on their own to be able to enjoy the retirement they envision.
However, people often encounter substantial obstacles to saving more money, such as low income, lack of retirement benefits from their current employers, and limited help from existing savings incentives in the tax code. Hence, fewer and fewer working-age households can expect to maintain their standard of living in retirement. One widely cited 2013 estimate from the Center on Retirement Research showed that a little more than half—52 percent—of all working-age households were at risk of having to cut back their consumption in retirement, up from 31 percent in 1983. As a result, a growing number of people are more likely to retire in poverty, to experience economic hardships such as not being able to afford necessary medication, and to have to rely on public assistance and family members for financial support. This retirement crisis is real and is only getting worse.
The U.S. tax code offers financial incentives—such as contributions to certain retirement plans not being subject to federal income taxes—to encourage people to save more money than they would otherwise. These savings incentives exist under different rules in a wide variety of retirement savings accounts, including 401(k) plans and individual retirement accounts, or IRAs. The rules for these types of plans vary by how much people can contribute each year, the role employers play in offering these plans, and when people need to pay taxes.
Current savings incentives, though, are inefficient. People who need the most help to save more for retirement often get little or no help. Better designed savings incentives that target lower-income workers—for instance, those who do not work for an employer that offers retirement benefits—would make a real difference in workers' retirement preparedness. Economic research shows that low-income people do save for their futures when offered substantial financial incentives. An often-cited 2005 experiment that researchers conducted with H&R Block in predominantly lower- and middle-income neighborhoods showed that offering a 50 percent match—people received 50 cents for each dollar they saved—increased the likelihood that people participated in an IRA from 3 percent without matches to 14 percent with a match, an increase of almost 400 percent. And in the same experiment, the amount that people who participated in an IRA saved increased sevenfold when they were offered a 50 percent match.
These are examples of the potentially large benefits of well-targeted savings incentives. It is worth remembering, however, that more efficient savings incentives and greater access to these incentives are not the only fixes necessary to address the looming retirement crisis for many low- and middle-income people. But they would be important steps in the right direction.
What exactly are the problems with the existing incentives? The federal government and states forego revenue of more than $100 billion annually to help people save, but the effect on increasing savings is often small or negligible. A recent estimate suggests that each $100 in savings incentives offered under the current structure increases savings by only $1—a low payoff for a big investment. The reason for this small effect is that incentives are skewed toward high-income earners, frequently not reaching the Americans who need the most help with saving. And savings incentives are overly complex, possibly slowing savings for people who are unaware of these benefits or do not fully understand them. Moreover, how much people can possibly benefit from savings incentives depends to a large degree on whether or not they work for an employer that offers retirement benefits; employers that do can make it easier for their employees to qualify for savings incentives. Put differently, people who do not get retirement benefits at work likely also receive fewer savings incentives. The result is a well-intentioned—but dysfunctional—tax benefit system that is in need of reform to change the way that people save for retirement.
Because the current system only works for the lucky few, it does not offer much assistance to the vast majority of Americans who are trying to build a better future. Only households in the top fifth of the income distribution tend to have resources, receive substantial tax incentives, and have significant access to employer and nonemployer retirement plans to benefit from current savings incentives. It is, for example, only among households in the top fifth of the income distribution that a substantial majority of households have one or more tax-advantaged form of savings, while the majority of households in the rest of the income distribution—the bottom 80 percent—have no tax-advantaged savings.
Reforming the tax code to make it more efficient should prioritize refundable tax credits over new tax deductions; emphasize progressive savings matches that offer relatively higher benefits to lower-income households; create savings incentives that are simple to use; and establish new savings options, such that gaining access to savings incentives depends less on employers offering retirement plans. Federal and state policymakers should consider five important steps that could make savings incentives more attainable and efficient. The benefits of these steps would largely go to the Americans who need the most help saving more, including lower-income workers and people who work for employers that do not offer retirement benefits. The five policy recommendations include:
Make the Saver's Credit fully available to lower-income households
Establish and expand progressive savings matches
Simplify retirement savings incentives by streamlining rules
Limit the automatic increases of tax deductions
Create simple, low-cost, and low-risk options for people to save for retirement outside of employer plans
Policymakers should pursue these steps to ensure that more middle-class Americans enjoy greater benefits from existing retirement savings incentives. All five recommendations would benefit lower-income earners, especially those who work for employers that do not offer retirement benefits.
Since a single report cannot possibly address all potential tax reforms, this report begins by highlighting a few basic reform principles that would make savings incentives more efficient to guide the subsequent recommendations. The report then summarizes the main problems that underlie the inefficiencies of current savings incentives, followed by recommendations to address these problems.
A better network of targeted savings incentives and supporting policies would go a long way toward addressing the looming retirement crisis.
Christian E. Weller is a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress and a professor of public policy at the McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. Teresa Ghilarducci is the Bernard L. and Irene Schwartz chair in economic policy analysis in the Department of Economics and the director of the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis at The New School in New York.
Senior Fellow
The Inefficiencies of Existing Retirement Savings Incentives
Christian E. Weller, Teresa Ghilarducci
A Step in the Right Direction on Retirement
Joe Valenti, David Madland
A Win-Win for an All-In Nation
Christian E. Weller, Farah Z. Ahmad
Keep Calm and Muddle Through
Christian E. Weller, David Madland