text:
package org.maltparser.core.syntaxgraph.reader;

import java.io.File;

import org.maltparser.core.config.ConfigurationDir;
import org.maltparser.core.exception.MaltChainedException;
import org.maltparser.core.flow.FlowChartInstance;
import org.maltparser.core.flow.item.ChartItem;
import org.maltparser.core.flow.spec.ChartItemSpecification;
import org.maltparser.core.helper.URLFinder;
import org.maltparser.core.io.dataformat.DataFormatException;
import org.maltparser.core.io.dataformat.DataFormatInstance;
import org.maltparser.core.io.dataformat.DataFormatManager;
import org.maltparser.core.options.OptionManager;
import org.maltparser.core.symbol.SymbolTableHandler;
import org.maltparser.core.syntaxgraph.TokenStructure;

public class ReadChartItem extends ChartItem {
	private String idName;
	private String inputFormatName;
	private String inputFileName;
	private String inputCharSet;
	private String readerOptions;
	private int iterations;
	private Class<? extends SyntaxGraphReader> graphReaderClass;

	private String nullValueStrategy;

	private SyntaxGraphReader reader;
	private String targetName;
	private String optiongroupName;
	private DataFormatInstance inputDataFormatInstance;
	private TokenStructure cachedGraph = null;

	public ReadChartItem() { super(); }

	public void initialize(FlowChartInstance flowChartinstance, ChartItemSpecification chartItemSpecification) throws MaltChainedException {
		super.initialize(flowChartinstance, chartItemSpecification);

		for (String key : chartItemSpecification.getChartItemAttributes().keySet()) {
			if (key.equals("id")) {
				idName = chartItemSpecification.getChartItemAttributes().get(key);
			} else if (key.equals("target")) {
				targetName = chartItemSpecification.getChartItemAttributes().get(key);
			} else if (key.equals("optiongroup")) {
				optiongroupName = chartItemSpecification.getChartItemAttributes().get(key);
			}
		}

		if (idName == null) {
			idName = getChartElement("read").getAttributes().get("id").getDefaultValue();
		} else if (targetName == null) {
			targetName = getChartElement("read").getAttributes().get("target").getDefaultValue();
		} else if (optiongroupName == null) {
			optiongroupName = getChartElement("read").getAttributes().get("optiongroup").getDefaultValue();
		}

		setInputFormatName(OptionManager.instance().getOptionValue(getOptionContainerIndex(), optiongroupName, "format").toString());
		setInputFileName(OptionManager.instance().getOptionValue(getOptionContainerIndex(), optiongroupName, "infile").toString());
		setInputCharSet(OptionManager.instance().getOptionValue(getOptionContainerIndex(), optiongroupName, "charset").toString());
		setReaderOptions(OptionManager.instance().getOptionValue(getOptionContainerIndex(), optiongroupName, "reader_options").toString());
		if (OptionManager.instance().getOptionValue(getOptionContainerIndex(), optiongroupName, "iterations") != null) {
			setIterations((Integer)OptionManager.instance().getOptionValue(getOptionContainerIndex(), optiongroupName, "iterations"));
		} else {
			setIterations(1);
		}
		setSyntaxGraphReaderClass((Class<?>)OptionManager.instance().getOptionValue(getOptionContainerIndex(), optiongroupName, "reader"));

		setNullValueStrategy(OptionManager.instance().getOptionValue(getOptionContainerIndex(), "singlemalt", "null_value").toString());

		initInput(getNullValueStrategy());
		initReader(getSyntaxGraphReaderClass(), getInputFileName(), getInputCharSet(), getReaderOptions(), iterations);
	}

	public int preprocess(int signal) throws MaltChainedException {
		return signal;
	}

	public int process(int signal) throws MaltChainedException {
		if (cachedGraph == null) {
			cachedGraph = (TokenStructure)flowChartinstance.getFlowChartRegistry(org.maltparser.core.syntaxgraph.TokenStructure.class, targetName);
		}
		int prevIterationCounter = reader.getIterationCounter();
		boolean moreInput = reader.readSentence(cachedGraph);
		if (!moreInput) {
			return ChartItem.TERMINATE;
		} else if (prevIterationCounter < reader.getIterationCounter()) {
			return ChartItem.NEWITERATION;
		}
		return ChartItem.CONTINUE;
//		return continueNextSentence && moreInput;
	}

	public int postprocess(int signal) throws MaltChainedException {
		return signal;
	}

	public void terminate() throws MaltChainedException {
		if (reader != null) {
			reader.close();
			reader = null;
		}
		cachedGraph = null;
		inputDataFormatInstance = null;
	}

	public String getInputFormatName() {
		if (inputFormatName == null) {
			return "/appdata/dataformat/conllx.xml";
		}
		return inputFormatName;
	}

	public void setInputFormatName(String inputFormatName) {
		this.inputFormatName = inputFormatName;
	}

	public String getInputFileName() {
		if (inputFileName == null) {
			return "/dev/stdin";
		}
		return inputFileName;
	}

	public void setInputFileName(String inputFileName) {
		this.inputFileName = inputFileName;
	}

	public String getInputCharSet() {
		if (inputCharSet == null) {
			return "UTF-8";
		}
		return inputCharSet;
	}

	public void setInputCharSet(String inputCharSet) {
		this.inputCharSet = inputCharSet;
	}

	public String getReaderOptions() {
		if (readerOptions == null) {
			return "";
		}
		return readerOptions;
	}

	public void setReaderOptions(String readerOptions) {
		this.readerOptions = readerOptions;
	}

	public int getIterations() {
		return iterations;
	}

	public void setIterations(int iterations) {
		this.iterations = iterations;
	}

	public Class<? extends SyntaxGraphReader> getSyntaxGraphReaderClass() {
		return graphReaderClass;
	}

	public void setSyntaxGraphReaderClass(Class<?> graphReaderClass) throws MaltChainedException {
		try {
			if (graphReaderClass != null) {
				this.graphReaderClass = graphReaderClass.asSubclass(org.maltparser.core.syntaxgraph.reader.SyntaxGraphReader.class);
			}
		} catch (ClassCastException e) {
			throw new DataFormatException("The class '"+graphReaderClass.getName()+"' is not a subclass of '"+org.maltparser.core.syntaxgraph.reader.SyntaxGraphReader.class.getName()+"'. ", e);
		}
	}

	public String getNullValueStrategy() {
		if (nullValueStrategy == null) {
			return "one";
		}
		return nullValueStrategy;
	}

	public void setNullValueStrategy(String nullValueStrategy) {
		this.nullValueStrategy = nullValueStrategy;
	}

	public String getTargetName() {
		return targetName;
	}

	public void setTargetName(String targetName) {
		this.targetName = targetName;
	}

	public SyntaxGraphReader getReader() {
		return reader;
	}

	public DataFormatInstance getInputDataFormatInstance() {
		return inputDataFormatInstance;
	}

	public void initInput(String nullValueStategy) throws MaltChainedException {
		ConfigurationDir configDir = (ConfigurationDir)flowChartinstance.getFlowChartRegistry(org.maltparser.core.config.ConfigurationDir.class, idName);
		DataFormatManager dataFormatManager = configDir.getDataFormatManager();
		SymbolTableHandler symbolTables = configDir.getSymbolTables();
		inputDataFormatInstance = dataFormatManager.getInputDataFormatSpec().createDataFormatInstance(symbolTables, nullValueStategy);
		configDir.addDataFormatInstance(dataFormatManager.getInputDataFormatSpec().getDataFormatName(), inputDataFormatInstance);

	}

	public void initReader(Class<? extends SyntaxGraphReader> syntaxGraphReader, String inputFile, String inputCharSet, String readerOptions, int iterations) throws MaltChainedException {
		try {
			final URLFinder f = new URLFinder();
			reader = syntaxGraphReader.newInstance();
			if (inputFile == null || inputFile.length() == 0 || inputFile.equals("/dev/stdin")) {
				reader.open(System.in, inputCharSet);
			} else if (new File(inputFile).exists()) {
				reader.setNIterations(iterations);
				reader.open(inputFile, inputCharSet);
			} else {
				reader.setNIterations(iterations);
				reader.open(f.findURL(inputFile), inputCharSet);
			}
			reader.setDataFormatInstance(inputDataFormatInstance);
			reader.setOptions(readerOptions);
		} catch (InstantiationException e) {
			throw new DataFormatException("The data reader '"+syntaxGraphReader.getName()+"' cannot be initialized. ", e);
		} catch (IllegalAccessException e) {
			throw new DataFormatException("The data reader '"+syntaxGraphReader.getName()+"' cannot be initialized. ", e);
		}
	}

	public boolean equals(Object obj) {
		if (this == obj)
			return true;
		if (obj == null)
			return false;
		if (getClass() != obj.getClass())
			return false;
		return obj.toString().equals(this.toString());
	}

	public int hashCode() {
		return 217 + (null == toString() ? 0 : toString().hashCode());
	}

	public String toString() {
		final StringBuilder sb = new StringBuilder();
		sb.append("    read ");
		sb.append("id:");sb.append(idName);
		sb.append(' ');
		sb.append("target:");
		sb.append(targetName);
		sb.append(' ');
		sb.append("optiongroup:");
		sb.append(optiongroupName);
		return sb.toString();
	}
}


text:
Bad Buyer: dizq9979_qn0g5zya24 (Not a registered user - immediately after buyer refund awarded by eBay) <dlzsespp@ecdnd.com>
QiGe Ming
dizq9979_qn0g5zya24 (Not a registered user - immediately after buyer refund awarded by eBay)
dlzsespp@ecdnd.com
325 w Washington street, unit2947 san diego, CA 92103
eBay item #:
(The below correspondence is partially redacted and will be sent as original to eBay (corporate) along with 40 enclosures)
eBay Headquarters
2025 Hamilton Avenue
SELLER ACTUAL ADDRESS:
First MI Last
UNIT 15XXX BX XXX
APO AP 96XXX-5XXX
SELLER SALES REFERENCE: Intel Core i7-8700K Desktop Processor 6 Cores up to 4.7GHz Turbo Unlocked LGA115, Item ID: 192665026530
SELLER RETURN ADDRESS (at time of sale):
XXX DESIDERIO CT
UNIT XXX
WAHIAWA, HI 96786-6383
SELLER USER Info:
Member since Sep 17-03 (see Enclosure 01)
User Name: xxxxxxxxxx
E-mail Address: xxxxx@gmail.com
SELLER eBay MONEY BACK GUARANTEE CASE SR#: 1-181058612380
BUYER DELIVERY ADDRESS:
325 w Washington street, unit2947
(Address as spelled on eBay)
BUYER USER Info:
Effective Date: Sep-21-18
User Name: dizq9979_qn0g5zya24 (Not a registered user) (see Enclosure 02)
E-mail address: dlzsespp@ecdnd.com
BUYER RETURN CASE ID: 5181065892
eBay Customer Service,
In late September 2018, my youngest son, using my eBay account, while residing with my middle son at Schofield U.S. Army Barracks, Wahiawa, Hawaii (Oahu), made a sale of a CPU to a buyer, listed above, whose mail delivery address was listed as being located in San Diego, California. Having researched the address used by the buyer, it was discovered to be a rented mailbox in the Mission Hills area from, rented from an establishment named, "mailStation" (see Enclosures 03 & 04).
Briefly stating, the buyer immediately requested a refund claiming that the CPU received, which was recently purchased, brand new, sealed in original plastic, contained in original box and never used, was unserviceable. My son immediately accommodated the buyer's wishes and followed up by asking him several questions regarding how he used the CPU, which the buyer never responded by answering the questions. To make a long story short, the buyer ended up getting a refund without mailing the CPU back to my son. See below for details.
Although the ad for the CPU stated "no returns," (see Enclosure 05) my son felt obligated to accept the return, not wanting to possibly jeopardize my 100% eBay rating.
The CPU was never delivered and numerous searches, without avail, of my son's Schofield U.S. Army Barracks neighborhood mailbox were made in addition to inquiring at his unit's mailroom.
Below is a timeline of events involving the transaction from sale to return of funds to buyer:
On or about Sep-28-18, seller received a notice from eBay that buyer requested return (see Enclosure 06).
On or about Sep-28-18, my son accepted the return (see Enclosures 07).
On or about Sep-28-18, my son responded to buyer with, "I am sorry that the CPU does not work. I bought it brand new from Rakuten.com and did not use it at all, so I could not check if it worked or not. I will have to talk to Rakuten now. I accepted the return" (see Enclosure 08).
On or about Oct-04-18, eBay notified seller that the buyer started shipping processes and to refund the buyer when the item was delivered (see Enclosure 09).
On or about Oct-04-18, my son sent the following inquiry to buyer, "I see that you shipped out the CPU. May I ask a couple questions to ensure the condition and quality of the CPU? What motherboard did you use? How did you install the CPU? Is the CPU still in good, new condition? And why did it take 6 days to ship it back? Thank you" (see Enclosure 10).
On or about Oct-04-18, my son sent a follow-on inquiry to buyer asking, "May you please respond back to my questions ASAP?" (see Enclosure 11)
On or about Oct-05-18, my son sent another follow-on message to buyer, "If you cannot write back to me, I will have to contact eBay" (see Enclosure 12).
On or about Oct-06-18, my son informed buyer that the (first of two) tracking numbers that buyer provided did not work, that he did not reply to his messages of inquiry, that it took 6 days for buyer to return the CPU, that buyer's account was very new (zero ratings) and that he would have to contact eBay about the situation (see Enclosure 13).
On or about Oct-06-18, buyer responded by saying, "hi, sorry I was out of town last week" (sic) (see Enclosure 14).
On or about Oct-06-18, buyer responded by saying, "hi, sorry I was out of town last week without stable internet connection, but i had already send back the item last week, let me contact the post office and see what happen. i will get back to you as soon as possible. thank you" (sic)
(see Enclosure 14).
The buyer's claim on Oct-06-18 of sending the CPU "last week" is not true. According to the last tracking number that the buyer provided, the date of send is Oct-03-18 (from a location in the State of New York - Islandia, to be exact) (see below, page 04 of 07, "Tracking status").
On or about Oct-06-18, my son responded to buyer, "Seems to be a very convenient time to go out of town without internet connection. May you answer my other questions I've sent?" (see Enclosure 15)
On or about Oct-10-18, buyer opened a case, asking eBay to step in, hastening the flow of his return approval (see Enclosure 16). It appears that buyer may have been worried, now, that my son's language had turned accusatory, thus, the reason for his asking eBay to, "step in."
On or about Oct-10-18, eBay sent a message stating the case had been closed with a refund to the buyer (see Enclosure 17).
On or about Oct-10-18, from Korea, where I work for the U.S. Army, I made a telephonic inquiry to eBay (using my MagicJack state-based telephone number: 1-XXX-XXX-XXXX) to report a likely fraud. At the time, I spoke with three separate eBay representatives over the course of about an hour to an hour and a half explaining that the CPU never had arrived in addition to suspicions that the buyer had carried out fraud.
On or about Oct-10-18, eBay responded with a, "Your eBay Money Back Guarantee case," resulting from my telephonic inquiry in which time, I explained how it appeared that the buyer enacted a scam regarding the "return" of the CPU, not having been delivered to my son's address in Hawaii (see Enclosure 18).
On or about Oct-13-18, eBay replied with a message informing that they had received seller's appeal and that it would be reviewed and a reply would be made to seller within 48 hours (see Enclosure 19).
On or about Oct-17-18, my son sent eBay an inquiry asking for more time to gather information. At the time he made the sale, he was staying with my middle son on Schofield U.S. Army Barracks, an Army post on Oahu, Hawaii. While there, he had no means of transportation. My middle son, who is in the Army, due to Army duties, was not able to help my son visit the Military Police (MP) Station to ask to file a report or to, at least, obtain minimal information as requested by eBay (see Enclosure 20).
On or about Oct-17-18, eBay sent another, "Your eBay Money Back Guarantee case," message informing seller that the case was put on hold for 10 days and would expire on October 20th. An extension was not granted resulting from my son's request (see Enclosure 20).
On or about Oct-20-18, eBay sent a message saying that the case had been closed and that a refund is not going to be issued (see Enclosure 21).
On or about Oct-20-18, eBay sent messages saying, "We kept the original outcome of case" and "We weren't able to give you a refund" (see Enclosure 22) and "After reviewing your appeal, we won't be able to change the outcome of the case, unfortunately" and "We kept the original outcome because we received valid proof that the item was returned to you" (see Enclosure 23).
If "valid proof" is a tracking number originating from a destination slightly under three thousand miles from where the buyer received the CPU that lists only the town, state and zip code, not the specific "mail to" return address of, "XXX DESIDERIO CT, UNIT XXX, WAHIAWA, HI 96786-6383," I would ask that eBay seriously review their standard operating procedures to refine how a tracking number is determined, "valid."
See the following USPS tracking status: (see Enclosure 24)
USPS Tracking – Sep 20 > 420921039400109699937907835329: seller's tracking number for delivery of CPU to California (see Enclosure 25)
USPS Tracking – Oct 04 > 927489021032451511093: buyer's first tracking number, which proved defunct (see Enclosure 26)
USPS Tracking – Oct 06 > 940011089953306728400: buyer's second tracking number, which also proved defunct. For matters of clarity, it is pointed out that the last digit may have been overlooked, since it is obvious the same number as below minus the last digit (see Enclosure 27)
USPS Tracking – Oct 10 > 9400110899533067284003: buyer's third tracking number (see Enclosure 28)
What makes the third tracking number peculiar is that the "send from" mailing address is based in ISLANDIA, NY 11749, when the CPU was mailed to buyer in SAN DIEGO, CA 92103. In the scope of geographical city locations in the continental United States, very few locations are further away from San Diego, California than Islandia, New York. To mail an item out of New York, the buyer would have had to travel approximately 2,900 miles from San Diego and had the wherewithal to carry with him the CPU at the time (see Enclosure 29). That is, unless the buyer had a predetermined method of obtaining a tracking number from New York without actually having to physically travel to New York. In having said that, the question that comes to mind is, "What would be the buyer's reason and purpose for mailing something out of New York if there was no felonious intent involved?"
In the event that the buyer actually mailed something from the New York location, what prevented him from mailing "anything" to a generic based address in Wahiawa, Hawaii just so his objective was met in producing a USPS tracking number showing that "something" arrived in Wahiawa, Hawaii, showing the same zip code as my son's mailing address in Hawaii?
I have heard, and from research on the Internet, that eBay favors buyers in this type of situation, leaving the burden upon the sellers to prove a return was not made. Although, my son was not able to visit the Military Police Station, what is laid out herein is ample enough evidence to exhibit the highly suspect nature of the transaction that took place resulting in a CPU being stolen, nothing physically returned, and the buyer absconding with the CPU at no monetary cost of his own.
Supporting facts/justification/red flags:
•	buyer member since Sep-21-18 (no longer a registered user) (see Enclosures 30 & 31)
•	buyer has (0) rating
•	buyer User Name of dizq9979_qn0g5zya24 appears to have no logical purpose other than to be used, one-time-only, for the act of deception
•	buyer used a rental box to receive the CPU in California
• buyer supposedly returned CPU by mailing it from an address based in the State of New York, when seller mailed CPU to buyer in California
•	buyer replied in Oct-06-18 message, stating that he sent back the item, "last week," when item was actually sent on Oct-03-18, not "last week," and, once again, from a location in the State of New York - Islandia, to be exact (see Enclosures 28 and 29)
•	buyer provided two different return tracking numbers of which the first was defunct and the second, highly suspect, having been initiated from the State of New York although buyer received CPU in California
•	A Google search produced no such name as QiGe Ming
I have been a reputable customer of eBay for over 15 years, both in buyer and seller roles. In fact, as a buyer, myself, who requested to return an item in the past, I was refused by the seller and because of it, I lost out. I also learned a lesson, that as a buyer, I have some rights, which, if I ever run into a similar situation, I will exercise.
As like most eBay sellers, I put a great deal of trust in eBay, that, as a seller, I will be protected. Although what I have read about eBay favoring buyers over sellers in return cases, I realize sellers are the ones that provide revenue for eBay. Favoring the buyer over the seller does not make financial sense when it is the sellers that provide business.
It is obvious that my son was the victim of a "bait and switch" tactic used by an unscrupulous individual to dupe him into losing all-around. It is presumed, persons who engage in this type of criminal activity take the items that they "win" to local retailers in exchange for refunds and then return mail unserviceable items or pseudo items to the seller for the purposes of obtaining "bogus" tracking numbers. In my son's case, nothing was received - not even a rock.
I understand that eBay's customer service representatives that work return appeals may not dive deep into seller cases because of any number of reasons, such as time, procedures won't allow it and other corporate rules, etc., but in saying that, I state that it did not take long for me to figure out that this particular buyer clearly swindled my son out of a CPU and out of roughly four hundred dollars.
eBay provides a way for people to create their own businesses, but, sadly, because eBay exists, it also provides a way for people to scheme and take advantage of others by dishonest practices such as the one that I have outlined herein. In saying that, I am not inferring that eBay is complicit in what happened. What I am saying is, eBay should honor honest sellers when it is clearly apparent that they have been scammed. My son is nineteen. He does not sell many things on eBay, but from time to time he has something to sell. For the most part, he and I have had good experiences using eBay to both buy and sell. Four hundred dollars is a huge amount of money to my son, who is currently unemployed.
Having gone to lengths to present eBay the above, enclosed, and below, I respectfully request a refund in full, which is the amount awarded to the buyer.
Of note:
01) It appears, on the eBay site, that seller made two deliveries. This is an erroneous capture due to the seller tracking number having been listed twice, once by inputting, "9400109699937907835329" and the other, "420921039400109699937907835329." In actuality, 22 numbers are the same - only, the second series of numbers includes an additional 7-digit prefix. This point is made to dispel any semblance that there might be impropriety on the side of the seller (see Enclosure 32).
02) The address shown on the top of the second page of Enclosure 24 was a former address of mine when residing in California from 2014 to 2016. Since, then, the mailing address has been updated to my present mailing address, in Korea, as: First, MI, Last, UNIT 15XXX, BX XXX, APO AP 96XXX-5XXX (see Enclosure 24).
I have yet to rate this transaction. Please accept this request for redress as our, "Letting you know how it went" (see Enclosure 34).
I know that the person who orchestrated stealing the CPU from my son abruptly unregistered, but the financial account used to "buy" the CPU must be known. If it is possible, I request, in the name of justice, that eBay go after this perpetrator to recover the funds that he was erroneously reimbursed. Additionally, in this time and age of internet and computer technology, I recommend that you put a flag on any and all accounts that this user has used currently and in the past. It appears that this "buyer" is well-versed in this type of ploy, however, it remains questionable why he chose New York to "return" the CPU from.
The perpetrator's claim of, "this intel core is not working from the min i receive it. i tried to boot up the machine and nothing happens, not even any beeps that indicate a POST test is running," is faulty logic (see Enclosure 23, comments made on Sep. 28). One does not know in the first minute that a CPU is not working. It takes well over one minute to install a CPU correctly. There are intricate steps that are required in order to properly affix a CPU to a motherboard. It takes that time or more to free the CPU from the sealed plastic. The buyer's refusal to answer my son's technical questions is telling, also.
When I first heard about the buyer's request to return the CPU, I was disappointed. To off-set some of my son's costs associated with the return transaction, which at the time seemed legitimate, I offered to buy it off him, anticipating that the CPU really had nothing wrong with it in the first place. Unfortunately, without a CPU having been mailed, I am not able to do so.
Amendment:
I asked my son to send me a copy of any PayPal transactions resulting from interaction with the buyer. He sent me the transaction details where eBay refunded the buyer monies (see Enclosure 34). As I was screening the information of the PayPal transaction details, I noticed an e-mail address (dlzsespp@ecdnd.com) provided by the buyer. I "Googled" it and received no matches. I then Googled only the suffix part of the provided e-mail address and it turned up two links at the very top of my screen, which led to the documents listed as Enclosures 35 thru 38 (see Enclosures 35 thru 38).
Both "bad buyers" referenced in the "BadbuyerList.Org" website (see Enclosures 35 & 37) used the same mail facility, mailStation of Mission Hills, San Diego, California, that my son's buyer did, but with slight variations in the "apt" and "aprt" numbers. The numbers are four-digits long and begin with "2", same as the number provided by the person who scammed my son, albeit, he used "unit" instead of the aforementioned "apartment" descriptors. I clicked on both "buyer's usernames" provided by BadbuyerList.Org. Each time, a hyperlink directed me to eBay, where I found what is displayed in Enclosures 36 and 38 (see Enclosures 36 & 38). As you see, both "buyers" were short-lived eBay customer buyers, have 2 and 1 rating/s respectively and are both, "Not a registered user." It can be safely assumed that the feedback they received was the results from sales of items scammed from honest sellers. Having, now, seen three like instances as explained above, I am led to believe that there may be a group of people in that area who partake in this criminal activity for a living.
I filed a report on buyer on BadbuyerList.Org (see Enclosures 39 & 40).
What I have researched and documented has taken the majority of the week-end, quite a bit of time and effort put towards attempting to recoup an amount slightly under four hundred dollars. To eBay, that is a drop in the bucket, but to my son and I, it is more than crumbs. I do not take lightly any human being stealing from my family. I am a man of principle, a retired U.S. Army Soldier and presently, a U.S. Department of the Army civilian employee. I know when to fight and when not to fight. This particular incidence is one of those times to fight for what is right.
One last thing: What is eBay doing in order to prevent what is described herein from happening, something that most certainly continues to happen every day?
If this request is not suffice to grant a refund, I request another 10-day period in which a Military Police report or, if refused, a point of contact can be obtained. This time, I will ensure that, between both sons, one or both of the above will be secured.
eBay Member, since 2003
Thank you very much for your detailed report.
I believe that I have also haD a scam attempt by this buyer for the very same Intel CPU model, which was brand new and sealed. Their eBay account was opened on Oct 21, 2018, and it has already been closed. I found your post by Googling the domain name of the buyer's email address "ecdnd.com."
I will also fight for what is right, and will file a police report, if necessary.
Posted 9 months ago by 162.158.X.X Report as SPAM
I found your post by Googling the domain name of the buyer's email address
https://123gamesfree.com/tag/freecell-123-double/
I like the post of you
https://123gamesfree.com/tag/big-tower-tiny-square-hacked/
Wish I saw this a month ago. Same exact situation. Im out of $360 and the processor. Ebay refuses to do anything as the return shows as delivered.
Posted 3 months ago by 172.68.X.X Report as SPAM
So an update to my case as it was overturned in my favor. I did get very lucky though, but hopefully, this helps someone else. The buyer is taking advantage of an incomplete tracking and is shipping a random item to a storefront/fast food location within your zip code. When you track the item via his provided tracking, it just shows city and zip, not the actual address and that is all eBay will go by for delivery confirmation.
Continued from above.
Even though I shipped the CPU to 325 w Washington Street San Diego, CA 92103 he buys an item on Amazon with a gift card from Pharmapacks and has it shipped to the location close to your home from Islandia NY. In my instance, it was Wendy's restaurant. The manager of my Wendy's kept the package and did not open it. With proof of tracking and a Police report, she gave me that package and I took it back to the Police station. It contained $2.89 in glue sticks. I then went to the post office and wiht the package in hand, I was able to get them to produce the detailed trackign that also showed it was delivered to Wendy's and was shipped from Islandia, NY.
If you can get the detailed tracking via the tracking number and postal inspector, that should be enough for eBay to overturn this. My buyer's alias was neiyay-lovp3h on eBay and Yechang Pu on PayPal. If they purchase anything from you, make sure to notify eBay and Paypal ASAP and NO NOT SHIP.
Sergio Bovino sergio1975@sbcglobal.net 203-879-7778 2014-03-17 0
Mohamed Niushad or Moosa Habeeb niushad25@hotmail.com 7773845 2016-02-25 2
Justin Kassels jkas1@mm.st 2016-05-26 0
Brett Purcell purcellb@iinet.net.au (0400) 820561 2011-12-28 0
Calvin Mosely newstar.elmonte@gmail.com 626-545-7735 2018-11-25 0

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


interest. Prentice Hall Biology utilizes a student-friendly approach that provides a powerful framework for connecting the key concepts a biology. Students explore concepts through engaging narrative, frequent use of analogies, familiar examples, and clear and instructional graphics. Whether using the text alone or in tandem with exceptional ancillaries and technology, teachers can meet the needs of every student at every learning level.


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Ottawa Sports Live Here
CEBL
Sens 2017-18 Report Cards: Forwards
Bycamchaddad
The time has finally come, after a rocky six months, the Senators' season has finally come to an end. It had its moments, but all in all, it was a huge disappointment coming off of game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final the season prior. With the regular season now over and the Sens a mile out of the playoffs, to keep fans occupied until the draft lottery we'll be taking a look at the different position groups and grading their performance from this past season. This article will be focusing on the team's forwards.
The team's forward group had some of the very, very few bright spots from this season. The group was not a complete disaster, there were some players who had very impressive seasons, and broke out of their shells and brought it to the next level. Players such as Mark Stone and Ryan Dzingel are the only forwards that warrant an "A" grading this season. Stone and Dzingel were the only players that consistently gave their maximum efforts this season. Dzingel set a career high with 23 goals and was one of the few players who was a consistent threat for the team and didn't take any games off. Dzingel has definitely raised fan expectations for himself going forward and it will be interesting to see what his next contract looks like (UFA after next season). Mark Stone cemented himself as one of the league's elite players this season finishing over a point per game and amassing 20 goals in an injury shortened season. Stone was the Sens best forward this season and arguably their best player, he is without a doubt a franchise building block going forward.
Only one player received a "B" ranking this season and that is Matt Duchene. Duchene finished tied for the team lead in goals. He was a consistent offensive threat and was one of the team's most dynamic players all season long. If he didn't have a slow start when he first arrived with the team he would have most likely gotten a better grade. Look for Duchene to have a crazy season next year with Hoffman and possibly alongside Stone.
Now into the more disappointing forwards this season; several players received a "C" grade for their work this season. Those players include J.G. Pageau, Mike Hoffman, Magnus Paajarvi, and Max McCormick. While Hoffman's point totals are far superior to the other players in this group, his on ice play left a lot to be desired. When Hoffman put in his full effort Duchene and him were unstoppable and were so much fun to watch, however as the season started to slip away he just took too many games off. If he wants to be a piece of the solution going forward he needs to up his intensity level and be more of a nightly threat or he may not be in Ottawa much longer. Pageau had a decent season, but it was nowhere near his best. When he is on his game he can be a dominant third line centre and provide tremendous depth, he just didn't show that consistently this season. However, with Brassard gone he should have every opportunity to win the 2nd line centre position next season. Paajarvi provided some nice depth after being claimed on waivers during the season considering there was essentially no expectations for him. I definitely would not mind him on next season's roster in place of someone like Alex Burrows. McCormick was also a decent depth option and played alright to close out the season with the team, hopefully he has a big summer and can take his game to the next level to match his new one-way contract for next season.
Now onto the players that were extremely disappointing this season and received a "D" grade for this season. The players who showed the least this season were Bobby Ryan, Zach Smith, Alex Burrows, and Tom Pyatt. Bobby Ryan finally had fans believing in the playoffs last year and he followed it up with an 11 goal season and injured his hand for what seems like the 1,000th time since joining the Sens. Ryan really did not show anything this season to be valued anywhere near his current $7.25 million cap hit and is possibly even a buyout candidate heading into the summer. Zach Smith also had an extremely disappointing season notching only 5 goals all season. Him and Tom Pyatt were also common members of the league's 26th ranked penalty kill (76.2%, only 3% above worst). Alex Burrows essentially contributed nothing on the ice all season. I will be completely confused if Burrows is on the team again to start next season, he essentially provides nothing to the team except taking a younger player's potential roster spot. He is however, exceptional on the Powerplay and was crucial to the team achieving the honor of the 5th worst PP in the league. The trade looked bad when it was first completed and looks even worse now with the awful extension they awarded him. The sad part is the Sens have over $13 million committed to this group of players for next season.
This season was definitely a disappointing one for the majority of the team's forwards. The group does have potential and the organization has a plethora of young talent that could step in next season and improve the group going forward. This group will definitely need an overhaul for next season, however the building blocks are laid out for Pierre Dorion. Let's see what he does with them over the next seven months.
A Season to Forget
Sens 2017-18 Report Card: Defence & Goalies
By camchaddad
Aspiring sports journalist, currently studying at Carleton University. Co-founder of 613 Sports blog
Ottawa Senators report cards: game 2 vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
Jan 16, 2021 Kened Sadiku
The Best Fit: How the Ottawa Senators should use Tim Stützle
One thought on "Sens 2017-18 Report Cards: Forwards"
Sens 2017-18 Report Card: Defence & Goalies – 613 Sports says:
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Ottawa Titans sign Pitcher Justin Watts
Jan 14, 2021 Ron Patey
Are you smarter than 2 sports bloggers???
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NKI41eTbwo
Cheat The Spread EP: 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sjm_eirE_hI&t=476s
Merchandise Payment


KQUE is an AM radio station broadcasting at 980 KHz. The station is licensed to Rosenberg/Richmond, TX and is part of the Houston-Galveston, TX radio market. The station airs spanish religious programming and goes by the name "Radio Aleluya 980" on the air. KQUE is owned by Univision Communications. This station broadcast a majority of its content in Spanish.
The station airs tejano programming and goes by the name "Tejano" on the air. KQUE is owned by Univision Communications..... WHAT A JOKE..why does this station advertise as playing tejano music..? Does the owner have any idea what the term tejano music is ??...its as bad as advertising playing country and western when only playing RAP! Where is the FCC ??


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Home Food & Drink Alcohol Dead Man's Fingers Rum Goes Large Six Popular Flavours Now Available in 1.75l Bottles
Dead Man's Fingers Rum Goes Large Six Popular Flavours Now Available in 1.75l Bottles
Feb 25, 2021 Alcohol
Unconventional Spiced Rum brand, Dead Man's Fingers, has announced that it is extending its range to include a new, striking 1.75l bottle format across six of its popular flavoured variants.
Dead Man's Fingers is now the fastest growing premium rum in grocery[1], and the no.2 premium rum brand[2], delivering £11.2m year on year[1].
The brand continues to build on this success with its new bottle format, which are 2.5 times larger than the traditional 70cl format, and have been created in response to ongoing demand from fans across the brand's social media channels. The move will see Dead Man's Fingers Spiced, Pineapple, Mango, Raspberry, Passionfruit and Lime all available in the new, larger size.
Samantha Caulfield, Brand Manager, Dead Man's Fingers, comments; "As the popularity of flavoured rum continues to grow, we've seen strong results for the Dead Man's Fingers range, and fantastic engagement with the brand. For some time now, fans across our social media channels have been calling out for us to introduce a larger format, so we're naturally very pleased to announce this latest news.
"Our new 1.75cl bottles are the perfect sharing size for barbeques and big nights in, whether that be with a simple mixer, or as a base for a range of tasty cocktails. Therefore, as we begin to approach the Spring/Summer season we're confident that this hugely versatile and much loved range in the new 1.75L format will provide retailers with a significant sales opportunity".
The new 1.75cl bottles will be available to order from 15th February 2020, RRP £50.
[1] Total Coverage, MAT Data to 02.01.21
[2] Total Coverage, MAT Data to 02.01.21 (total portfolio)
Dead Man's Fingers Sweetens Things Up with New Raspberry Rum Cream Liqueur


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Q: Difference between local, static and global functions? What are the differences between local functions, global functions and static functions in C - language. I thought local and static functions are same? Is it right or wrong?

A: Local and static in the case you described are synonyms, however, static is the keyword that you use to make a function local (i.e. private).  Global functions are not private to the source file they're defined in.  They can be externed to other source files, typically by including the header file for the function you want's source file.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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The Battle of Heavenfield
Xmas is usually a quiet time on the gaming front for obvious reasons, but this year with the family away in Los Angeles (a long story) I was able to meet up with my friend Keith for a game or two of Dux Bellorum (he fancied something a bit different for once). I got everything set for when he arrived and so after the usual chat about wargaming etc, we sat down to play the 'River Battle' scenario straight from the book.
This turned into a bit of a slugging match over the ford as I had only made it wide enough for one unit to cross at a time, so wasn't a very challenging game to be honest. We both agreed that the ford needed to be wider in future and also that having the odd cavalry unit would help due to their greater mobility. Time was still on our side so we proceeded to play a straight 'Annals Battle' which was much more fun and challenging. Again we both agreed that the odd cavalry unit here and there would add another level to the game, so my partially painted cavalry for my Saxons have been bumped up the painting ladder as it were.
The following day I went to WH Smiths and bought the latest issue of Miniature Wargames magazine, which I thoroughly enjoy reading. By chance it had a scenario from Dux Bellorum author Dan Mersey in it based upon the historical 'Battle for Heavenfield', between Cadwallon and Oswald. I had left the table out from the previous night with the intention of playing a solo game or two from the book, but decided there and then to game the Heavenfield scenario as I had enough units for both forces from my collection of Pendraken figures.
Dan had also come up with a nice little pre-game idea where both players can bid secretly for certain terrain, re-inforcements etc. As I was playing solo I ignored this but am keen to try it out in future games. To my mind it looks a lot of fun and will add something extra to the game which is always a bonus in my book.
I won't go into the detail of the background of the battle here, but recommend that you buy the magazine instead. However I will give the forces for both sides to help understand the units on the table.
Oswald's Army - Repeller
1 x Saxon Shieldwall Companions (with Oswald)
3 x Saxon Noble Shieldwall
2 x Ordinary Irish Warriors
2 x Saxon Foot Skirmishers (I opted to equip them with bows)
2 Extra Leadership Points
Cadwallon's Army - Agressor
1 x Welsh Shieldwall Companions (with Cadwallon)
7 x Ordinary Welsh Shieldwall
2 x Saxon Ordinary Warriors
Oswald's forces deployed on the hill as per the historical battle, in a strong defensive position, facing the numerically larger force of Cadwallon.
The shieldwall units deployed in the centre with the Irish Warriors and skirmishers on the right flank.
Cadwallon deployed his Shieldwall units into two blocks, with the aim of the centre tying down Oswald's forces on the hill while the right flank attempted to move round and attack the left flank of Oswald. The Saxon Warriors deployed on the left flank facing the Irish Warriors of Oswald.
How the game played out.
Cadwallon's line advanced en masse whilst the Irish Warriors and Saxon skirmishers of Oswald's army advanced to threaten Cadwallon's left flank.
Cadwallon's army continues to advance, but the central Shieldwall units fail to move. The Saxon skirmishers shoot into the Saxon Warriors, causing a hit, before combat is joined. The Irish push back one Saxon unit and elect to follow up.
Cadwallon's army advance in unison this turn whilst the Warriors and Skirmishers continue to battle it out, with the Irish gaining the upper hand.
Only Oswald's centre manages to advance with the Warriors continuing to fight it out.
Cadwallon's right flank fails again leaving the centre to charge uphill into Oswald's Noble Shieldwall, who unsuprisingly come off worse. The Saxon skirmishers shoot and charge into support on the right flank with the Saxon Warriors under severe pressure from the Irish.
With the loss of a Saxon Warrior unit, Cadwallon's left flank is starting to look vulnerable. The centre gamely continues to attack Oswald's Nobles, but to no effect. Finally Cadwallon's right flank starts to move up into support.
The remaining Saxon warrior unit is assailed from all sides, but somehow manages to draw the combat! Cadwallon's units start to really threaten Oswald's left flank, forcing him to move back slightly. The centre continues to slug it out with Oswald's Nobles, who show the mettle.
The Irish Warriors see off the last Saxon Warrior unit, leaving Cadwallon's left flank rather exposed. On the hill Oswald's left flank comes under attack but grimly holds on depsite being assailed on two sides.
Cadwallon's Army attempts to envelope Oswald's Nobles, but is attacked in the rear by Irish Warriors.
Multiple attacks from front and rear see the loss of two off Cadwallon's sheidwall units, which he can't afford to lose. To add insult to injury his right flank fails to move into the attack. Cadwallon is now down to 2 LP's and 1 off his break point. Oswald still has 7 LP's tp play with.
The battle descends into a confused melee, but Cadwallon's forces are under severe pressure, but crucially do not lose any units this turn.
The inevitable happens and Cadwallon loses enough units to force a break test, which results in other units fleeing the battle, thereby taking him over 75% and thus 'losing' the game.
As this was essentially an 'End of Reign' battle, it was a draw as neither side had succeeded in killing their opposite number. However Cadwallon's forces had lost 6 units to Oswald's 2, even before rolling for break tests. So in my mind a victory to Oswald and the death of Cadwallon, cut down near the stream as happened at the end of the real battle.
I found this a thoroughly entertaining game, made all the better by the background detail provided by Dan in his article. So here are a few thoughts on the game:
Shieldwall units on a hill are damned hard to shift.
The lack of skirmishers for Cadwallon told in the end as they helped Oswald's Irish Warriors win the flank battle. Also they are very useful at attacking shieldwall units with their hit on 5+.
With the loss of the left flank, Cadwallon's army was always going to be in a tricky situation.
If Cadwallon's force had made a unified attack on Oswald's Noble shieldwall from the front and side, this would have helped. In the end I was too hasty and commited the troops to soon and in a piecemeal fashion. Lesson hopefully learnt!
Cavalry would have helped Cadwallon's army as their mobility might have been enough to un-lock Oswald's shieldwall. Dan does mention the option of this in his article.
So having had a few games in quick succession, I'm going to order a few more units from Pendraken to flesh out my existing armies. Broadly speaking these will be a mix of cavalry and foot, to allow me to field a Late Roman army as well as Irish and Pict allies. With Pendraken due to release some new Ancients ranges next year, these should be ideal for the latter.
Labels: Dux Bellorum
General Musings on AARs
Some General Background Information
Craig and I visited Warfare in November for our first proper chance to walk a wargames show. Normally we are putting on demo games and so have little chance to really have a good look around. Sadly the demo games were not up to much, but this was more than offset by the traders, and both of us picked up some goodies from Pendraken. Craig ended up with a decent amount of kit to put together a nicely balanced battlegroup for BKCII. We resolved there and then to try and get a game in with our new toys before Xmas. There is nothing like a deadline to focus the mind on the painting and modelling front.
We agreed to do a fairly mobile scenario to reflect the early days of Operation Overlord and the fluid nature of the front and the battles that took place in early June. We decided upon a straight forward 'Encounter' scenario from the book, with each side having 2,000 pts. It was nice to be playing something a bit different from the, for us, fairly standard attacker versus dug-in defender scenarios that we have played of late.
For my Brits I decided upon the following:
4th Battalion Somerset Light Infantry, 129th Infantry Brigade, 43rd 'Wessex' Division.
Support from 'A' Company, 8th Battalion, The Middlesex Regiment.
1 Troop, 43rd Recce Regiment.
477th Battery, 112th 'Wessex' Field Regiment Royal Artillery.
As always, I really enjoyed researching the units I was to field. For the scenario, it was to be based upon the figthing that took place on the second day of Operation Epsom, in and around the villages of St Mauvieu and Marcelet, with the crossroads located between the villages as the objective. The Germans were a Kampfgruppe from the units of 12th SS 'Hitlerjugend' and 21st Panzer Division.
So after some research I came up with the following layout for the table:
The outskirts of St Mauvieu are on the right (British deployment), with Marcelet on the left (German deployment). The objective of the scenario was control of the crossroads in the centre of the table.
The view from Marcelet towards St Mauvieu.
The view from St Mauvieu, with Marcelet in the distance.
Departure From the Norm
Now those of you that follow my Blog know that generally speaking I like to do fairly detailed AARs to show how the game went. Afterall this is something I like to see on other Blogs. But on the day I just was not in the mood to take copious notes and photos to put together my normal AAR. And do you know what? I enjoyed the game much more!
So this got me thinking about why do we bother with putting up AARs on our Blogs? After all as I've mentioned before, they can take up an inordinate amount of time, generally a lot longer than the game itself. So with a couple of weeks to mull over this issue, I thought I'd jot down some musings from my perspective with regards the above:
Good Points
I like to show how I came up with a scenario, the table layout, the forces involved etc. After all that is something I enjoy on other Blogs as it can inspire me to try something a bit different.
A good description of how the game went accompanied by some nice photos showing progress of the units makes for enjoyable reading IMHO. You do not need to be Tolstoy, but a clear and coherent narrative with appropriate pictures and captions normally suffices. Whitty and dry comments are a bonus, one that my friend Keith excels at.
The background 'fluff' to a game I always find interesting, even if it is not from a period I normally game.
Bad Points
Writing AARs take time; an awful lot of time in my case. Maybe I ramble on too long and should try a case "of less is more".
Taking notes during the game disrupts the flow as well as ones concentration. It also takes time to write them, increasing the length of the game. I was pleasantly suprised at how much more I enjoyed the game when I was able to give it my undivided attention.
Taking the pictures during the game, then editing them and sorting the good from the shocking (too much of the latter I'm afraid) takes time. Then you have to remember which pictures fit in which part of the game notes and then try and add appropriate captions to help with the narrative.
In future I still want to post useful and hopefully interesting AARs on my Blog, but I will try during the game to be less distracted by the whole taking notes business, and maybe rely more upon the pictures to job my addled memory. Hopefully this will work but only time will tell.
For those that are interested, the British won the game around the 6th Turn, when their Churchill tanks saw off the last of the German Pz IVs, leaving them with no viable anti-tank units to contest the crossroads.
Until next time...
Labels: BKCII, General Wargaming
The Battle for Sene Golf Course Club House
A week or so ago the opportunity arose for a solo game of BKCII, a rare occassion these days. I remembered in "Invasion!" by Kenneth Macksey, the fictionalised account of Operation Sealion, an account of an attack over a golf course in the South of England. I thought this would make for an interesting scenario and certainly a different looking table. So I read up on the 'battle' and with a look at Google maps, I was able to come up with the layout of the table.
My next decision was whether to go with the battle based around Operation Sealion or one set in the AVBCW. In the end I decided with the latter purely as I wanted to field my armoured canal boat as well as some cavalry units that hadn't seen 'action' for some time.
I felt that the Deliberate Attack scenario best fitted in with the forces at my disposal as well as the feel of the battle as described. The BUF were to be dug-in around the clubhouse as well as defending the bridge crossing the military canal. Their Italian Allies would be off table and held in reserve to come onto the table via mobile deployment at a time of their choosing. The BUF also had three pre-registered defensive fire areas, with the clubhouse acting as their command post.
The Loyal Army of the South deployed as per the scenario in the rulebook, with one battalion of infantry South of the canal, with the remainder to the North on the golf course. Their objectives were to be the control of both the bridge and the clubhouse by the end of the game.
British Union of Fascists & Italian Expeditionary Force
1 x CO
3 x HQ
1 x FAO
1 x Infantry Recce
12 x Infantry (Regulars) with 3 x ATR upgrade
5 x MG
2 x Mortars
1 x 45mm ATG
1 x IG
1 x MKIV Male Tank
3 x L3/35 Tankettes
3 x Cavalry Horses
3 x Motorcycles
3 x 75mm Artillery (off-board) with 3 x HE Assets
1 x Command Post
2 x Barbed Wire
9 x Trench
2 x Gun-pit
Loyal Army of the South
23 x Infantry (Regular)
2 x Mortar
5 x Armoured Cars (non-Recce)
3 x T-26
1 x Truck
3 x 3" Artillery (off-board) with 6 x HE & 3 x Smoke Assets
1 x Bomber with 1 x Air Asset
1 x Armoured Canal Boat
Armoured Canal Boat
After some thought I came up with the following stats for the canal boat:
Move Weapon AT AP CA Hits Save Cost
10 (MG) - 2/40 2 3 6 100
(Mortar) 3/120 3/120
Hit on 5+ due to being in the water. If attacker on the river bank hit on 4+ as 'in the open'.
Starting Positions
A view of the battlefield from the East. The BUF are dug-in in and around the clubhouse and by the bridge, behind a defensive screen of barbed wire. The LAotS are at their jump off points on the Southern end of the table.
A view from the South and the LAotS starting positions. Their plan was to pin the forces down at the bridge, and force a crossing if the battle went well for them on this flank. Meanwhile th main part of the battlegroup would swing around the woods in the centre of the golf course to try and flank the BUF positions. Speed would be the key to victory.
The main BUF force dug-in by the clubhouse.
The BUF force guarding the bridge.
The LAotS force tasked with capturing the bridge if at all possible.
The armoured canal boat that would add its fire to the bridge attackers.
The main LAotS force ready to attempt to force the BUF flank.
The tanks and cavalry that would spearhead the attack.
The BUF command and reserve awaiting to see where the 'schwerpunkt' would develop.
A patchy start by the left flank of the LAotS saw some of the units advance towards the bridge, supported by the armoured canal boat. The cavalry on the right flank advanced towards the hedgeline, but the centre failed to move in support as planned.
With the slow start by the enemy, the BUF commander kept his powder dry and watched to see where the schwerpunkt would develop.
Both flanks advance but sadly the centre fails to move up in support.
On the left flank troops advance towards the bridge, supported by armoured cars and canal boat.
The cavalry on the right flank made a gallant dash from the hedgeline towards the wooded ridge and halted awaiting further orders. Once again the centre was less than supportive but at least made an effort to move to aid the cavalry, who were somewhat exposed on their own. On the left flank the troops and armoured cars once more advanced, this time to contact with the enemy, with their recce unit spotting for the mortar on the canal boat. The FAO tried to get through to his battery of guns but once again failed.
With contact joined at the bridge, the BUF concnetrated fire towards the LAotS centre, causing hits from off-table artillery and dug-in infantry gun and mortar. The CO moved the 'Beast of Bodmin' and his reserves towards the wooded ridge to counter the threat from the cavalry and T-26s. The Italians were still held in reserve with the aim to take the LAotS forces in the flank as planned.
The cavalry have swept around the flank as planned, but are somewhat isolated as their nearest support is still behind the hedgeline.
The left flank gathers for the attack.
The 'Beast of Bodmin' and support moves up to protect their left flank.
The LAotS unleashed its scheduled bombardment of the bridge with HE, shortly after followed by a light bomber flight. Sadly for the LAotS troops preparing to attack the bridge, the bombardment was less than effective, only suppressing the dug-in ATG on the road.
Under cover of the bombarment, the troops advance towards the bridge ready to assault over it, but communications break down at the critical point, leaving them rather exposed on the road...
Once again the centre is on the slow side of tardy and the cavalry fail to do anything, despite the earnest attempts by the CO to get through to them. A poor turn for the LAotS.
The BUF troops on the bridge, hardly able to believe their luck, call down a registered barrage on the LAotS troops in the open. Rather unsuprisingly they are badly mauled as a result, with many units being suppressed. The CO moves up the 'Beast' and his reserves to the fence line behind the clubhouse to take up a strong defensive postion on the left flank.
Sensing the time is right to attack the beleagued cavalry, the Italians launch their assault, but a somewhat less than effective, only causing one hit on the cavalry.
The light bomber follows on after the preliminary bombardment of the bridge, but to little effect.
The LAotS left flank caught in the open by the registered concentration of fire from the BUF artillery. The effect is all too clear to see.
The Italians launch their suprise attack.
The LAotS attack is stalling.
Despite their suprise assault, the effectiveness of the Italian attack is plain to see.
The 'Beast' and supporting troops take up position along the fence line behind the clubhouse.
Fortuitously for the LAotS left flank, a smoke barrage arrives to cover their attempts to reform after the BUF bombardment, which is all they are really able to do. The centre once again is a few shots off the pace and the cavalry dismount in the face of the Italian assault. The CO and his tanks advance in support of the cavalry, with the combined fire disrupting the Italian units.
With most of the BUF force blinded by the smoke, the CO opts to stay put along the fence and the Italians fail their command roll, obvioulsy shaken by the strength of the counter-attack.
The LAotS attack is spread out and so the effectiveness is dissipated.
The LAotS counter-attacks.
The smoke screen brings relief to the LAotS left flank.
As the smoke screen lifted, the LAotS left flank launched a piece meal attack towards the bridge, achieving the destruction of the dug-in ATG. With the way open, other troops in support fail their command roll! Finally the centre gets going and combined movement and fire from all units sees the demise of the dug-in IG in front of the clubhouse. The way is starting to open up for an attack towards the clubhouse. Things are looking up for the LAotS.
On the right flank, the Italians continue to takea lot of fire, losing units and a L3/35 tankette with the other 2 suppressed. The dismounted cavalry take up positions along the wooded ridge, effectvely sealing off the Italian attack.
With the bridge looking vulnerable, the BUF FAO calls in his artillery, which even thought it deviated, still supresses LAotS infantry on and around the bridge. The dug-in infantry add to the woes caused by the artillery, finishing off 2 infantry units and supressing more. The ability of the LAotS troops to prosecute their attack on the bridge has been severely reduced.
The Italians do their level best to hold their own against the T-26s, but there is only so much a mortar can do. Their lack of AT weapons leaves them extremely vulnerable to the T-26s and armoured cars of the LAotS.
The attack begins to make headway in the centre and the right flank is more than holding its own.
The Italians are hard pressed by fire from the T-26s.
Having forced the bridge with armoured cars, the infantry are still some way back, held off by the combined fire of the dug-in BUF troops.
The BUF centre is weakend by the loss of the dug-in IG.
At this point time was against me and I called an end to the game. Even thought the LAotS had lost more troops than the BUF, the latter had no AT weapons left and only 1 tank. This was not much to face 3 T-26s and 5 armoured cars. I think it would have been only a matter of time before the BUF were overwhelmed by the LAotS troops, supported by their tanks and ACs, as they still has another 7 Turns to go. It would most likely have been a pyhrric victory though, so in my mind the battle was a draw.
After the game I made some notes on my observations of the game in particular, and gaming in general:
In the cold light of day, I simply had too many units on the table for a solo game. I kept forgetting things like mortars and auto-suppression, mainly due to the fact that I had som much 'stuff' to command. The forces would have been fine for a normal or even multi-player game, but not solo. In future I will try and resist the temptation of getting all of my toys on the table. Sometimes it's definitely a case of "less is more".
The scenario, although fun to research from the book, didn't work that well as a game. The wide open space of the golf course and the limit of the canal, made it rather hard for the attackers. Maybe it would have worked better for a game centred around 1944 and the forces available to both sides. Maybe I can try this another day. At least the attackers did suffer as they did in the book, so maybe I got something right.
Don't play when you're tired. This didn't help the first point above.
The BUF need more armoured support, or consequently the LAotS less. Personally I like having armour on the table, so it will be a case of the former I'm sure.
Once again dug-in troops proved they are hard to shift. Unfortunately I didn't remember auto-suppression from artillery until Turn 3, which didn't help. For my next game I want a very different feel from attacking dug-in troops, so I will have to have a think on this with regards to scenario choice.
The canal boat was fun to have on the table, but I don't think this scenario suited it that well. Again I will have to have a think about this.
Uping the command value of the CO and HQs to 9 and 8 respectively worked well. It certainly gave for a more fluid agame, despite the LAotS trying to prove otherwise.
Post match I thought that the LAotS might have been better off making a dircet assault with all of their forces either side of the canal. The cavalry could have provided an effective screen to the right flank along the hedgeline and the central wood, allowing the rest of the force to conctrate on attacking the dug-in troops in front of the clubhouse.
I enjoyed the adhoc mobile Italian force but they were of limited use, due to their lack of AT capability. However in other scenarios they will be rather useful.
The cavalry on both sides as well as the motorcycle riders proved to be very mobile and as above, rather useful for future games.
The clubhouse command post was very beneficial to the BUF and their FAO especially. From his elevated position combined with the +1 to his CV, the artillery fire he was able to call in was most effective.
Registered targets work very well when in defence, especially combined with the point above.
So there we have it. Not the best game I've had by a long way, due to the points listed above, but at least it was a game nontheless and one that I've hopefully learned from.
Labels: AVBCW, BKCII
Junkers Freedom Fighters for KR-16
Well I finally got around to finishing off my Junkers Freedom Fighters for use with the KR-16 rules from Michael at Angel Barracks. I've had these a few years now and it feels good to finally have got one faction finished. The figures are exceptionally well sculpted for 6mm and the detail only really becomes apparent when you start to paint them
The figures were based on 1mm black styrene sheet, 13mm in diameter, that I had made for me at work. A wipe of finesurface polyfilla blended the figures to the base, and when dry, pva glue was applied and a very fine sand applied. The figures were then sprayed with a black undercoat and the bases drybrushed in my normal manner. To help me see the detail of the figures before applying any colour, I drybrushed the figures with a medium brown paint to show up the detailed sculpting. This helped an awful lot and this is a technique I will be using in future.
The figures were then grouped into units of 5, and a basic pallet of greys, greens and browns applied to them. For example the first figure would have grey trousers, the next a grey shirt, the third a grey hat etc. This way all the units had a random look yet the basic pallet of colours tied them all together. I had planned on added some form of flock to the bases, but I couldn't find anything that looked right, so in the end decided to leave them plain 'dirt'. This will certainly fit in with Michael's terrain. As usual for me the bases had their edges painted black.
Now I'm certainly no David Bailey, but hopefully the following pictures give you an idea of how the Junkers look en masse. Hopefully when I next meet Michael I might be able to persuade him to take some better pics for me.
The Junkers in the fields and hedgerows of their settlement.
A Junker section guarding their crops.
The other three Junkers sections in the open.
A junker rocket launcher on the right. These I have a yellow tail to denote the rear and therefore the danger end, with a red tip indicating the rocket ready to launch. These should be easy to see when on the table.
A sniper takes up position in the hedgerow. Both the sniper and the rocket launcher have silver sights painted on their weapons.
Labels: KR-16


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Down The Hill: The Delphi Murders
Society & Culture, True Crime 8 helmi 2021
Abby and Libby - 2 young girls murdered. Investigators are searching for the killer using their biggest clue: a recording of his voice from one of the victims' phones ordering the girls Down the Hill. Almost three years later, it's a mystery that still haunts the small town of Delphi, Indiana while police say the killer may walk among them.
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Unlocking Us with Brené Brown
Education, Society & Culture 12 huhti 2021
I've spent over 20 years studying the emotions and experiences that bring meaning and purpose to our lives, and if there's one thing I've learned it's this: We are hardwired for connection, and connecting requires courage, vulnerability, and conversation. I want this to be a podcast that's real, unpolished, honest, and reflects both the magic and the messiness of what it means to be human. Episodes will include conversations with the people who are teaching me, challenging me, confusing me, or maybe even ticking me off a little. I'll also have direct conversations with you about what I'm learning from new research, and we'll do some episodes dedicated to answering your questions. We don't have to do life alone. We were never meant to. Unlocking Us is a Spotify Original from Parcast.
News, True Crime 28 huhti 2021
Serial is a podcast from Serial Productions, a New York Times company, hosted by Sarah Koenig. Serial unfolds one story - a true story - over the course of a whole season. The show follows the plot and characters wherever they lead, through many surprising twists and turns. Sarah won't know what happens at the end of the story until she gets there, not long before you get there with her. Each week she'll bring you the latest chapter, so it's important to listen in, starting with Episode 1. New episodes are released on Thursday mornings.
Monster: DC Sniper
True Crime 10 tammi
From iHeartRadio and TenderfootTV, 'Monster: DC Sniper' reinvestigates the beltway sniper attacks. This true crime podcast places the listener in Montgomery County, Maryland on October 2nd, 2002 when an unidentified sniper began randomly killing people going about their daily lives. Host Tony Harris traces what investigators, journalists and the public learned from the first shot until the last and ultimately asks the question: Does the person convicted of these crimes ever deserve a second chance?
If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you've found your people.
HOSTEing Laura Jackson
Arts, Society & Culture 13 maalis 2020
Forever the Host and never the hosted? In her debut podcast series, broadcaster, interiors fanatic, food lover and founder of Hoste - Laura Jackson is handing over the apron strings to chat food, travel and interiors with guests that do the hosting. If you want to know all about their hosting secrets, inside their black book for restaurants, in-the-know holiday destinations or even where they shop for vintage crockery - this is the podcast for you. Whether it be at their house, their local coffee spot, or even in their favourite hotel room, join our hosts and Laura for a cuppa or a margarita... whilst we unpick what it means to hoste.


Karima Moyer-Nocchi is an American woman who teaches at the University of Siena. When she had been here almost 25 years she developed something of an obsession. On the one hand, she watched "a bewildering decline in the quality and craftsmanship of Italian food together with a skyrocketing deification of it". On the other, "in a vicious circle, the decline stimulated the explosion of the gastronomic nostaliga industry, which in turn, hastened the very process it claimed to quell".
This is not something you would notice. The modern idea is that Italian cuisine has always been more-or-less what it is, and that if there were a difference between social classes, it was more about how often they ate certain dishes, or the quality of the ingredients, than about what they actually ate. As Karima Moyer-Nocchi discovered, that rose-tinted view is at odds with what actually went on.
In an attempt to make sense of the changes, Moyer-Nocchi turned to women, now aged 90 and more, who had grown up under fascism and who, perhaps, could shed light on the recent history of Italian food. She gently coaxed their memories of food from them, and created a book that is part oral history, part academic history, and that puts the current mania for Italian cuisine in perspective. There's no way we could cover it all in one interview, but I think you can get some idea of how things have changed, mostly for the better, and also how little one knows about the real history of food in Italy.
The book is Chewing the Fat: An Oral History of Italian Foodways from Fascism to Dolce Vita , and in the interests of full disclosure, I should mention that if you follow that link straight to Amazon and buy it, I get a teeny reward.
The banner image, from a photograph by Henri Roger-Viollet (I think), shows Mussolini taking part in the first wheat threshing in Latina in 1932, a temporary victory in the Battle for Wheat. The podcast cover image is from a photograph by Mario Giacomelli.


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Beverly Hills Welcomes Visitors Back to Famed City Where There is Always Something to Feel Good About
Beverly Hills Conference & Visitors Bureau (BHCVB) announced today the launch of its fall campaign, Something to Feel Good About. Based on the concepts of: Your Safety is Our Priority, Simple Pleasures Bring Joy, Take Some Time for Yourself, and Shopping Local has Never Mattered More, the campaign encourages travelers to remember that, even in the midst of an unprecedented year, there is always Something to Feel Good About in Beverly Hills. Corresponding hotel packages offered for a limited time now give visitors even more incentive to visit the city's world-class hotels, celebrity-dotted restaurants, and idyllic shopping experiences, and to experience first-hand the enhanced hygiene practices that the city has undertaken in order to ensure the safety of all visitors.
Experience the interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8779651-beverly-hills-conference-visitors-bureau-something-to-feel-good-about-campaign/
For over a century, Beverly Hills has been known as the epitome of luxury and world-class service. Unsurprisingly, industry-leading standards in safety and hygiene have always been a critical element of this experience and have been seamlessly and subtly executed behind-the-scenes for decades. To meet the changing needs of today's travelers, the Beverly Hills hospitality community has quickly pivoted to bring its safety expertise to the forefront to ensure all visitor safety and security concerns are being met head-on. For more information on the decisive actions that the city has taken, visitors can view BHCVB's new safety video here.
"Beverly Hills has always been a leading expert in providing a pristine experience," said Julie Wagner, CEO of BHCVB. "Now more than ever, it is important that guests see all the ways that we are ensuring their safety. Visitors today will find the same Beverly Hills that they know and love – but with a few visible changes, reflective of the changing times."
To welcome visitors back to Beverly Hills, and in partnership with its collection of world-renowned hotels, BHCVB is thrilled to offer visitors bookable packages from September 21, 2020 through December 31, 2020 that include valuable add-ons such as: complimentary parking, Food & Beverage credit, room upgrades, late checkouts and complimentary breakfasts, among others. The special packages are available from 10 of Beverly Hills' most celebrated hotels, including:
AKA Beverly Hills
Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel (Re-opening October 1, 2020)
Sirtaj Hotel
The Beverly Hills Hotel
The Beverly Hilton
The Maybourne Beverly Hills
The Mosaic Hotel
The Peninsula Beverly Hills
Viceroy L'Ermitage Beverly Hills
Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills
The packages are perfect for enjoying an extended summer in always beautiful Beverly Hills. For more information on BHCVB's Something to Feel Good About campaign, or to book your stay, visit https://www.lovebeverlyhills.com/something-to-feel-good-about.
About Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills is one of the world's most sought-after locales. Centrally located in greater Los Angeles, Beverly Hills is a premier holiday and business travel destination, with beautiful weather year-round, acclaimed full-service and boutique hotel accommodations, superb dining, and unrivaled shopping. Synonymous with Hollywood glamour, Beverly Hills enjoys an international reputation as the home and playground of A-list movie stars. The city is not only known worldwide for its grand mansions and chic shops along Rodeo Drive, but also for its multitude of art and architecture, spas and salons, and exceptional walkability. Learn more at www.lovebeverlyhills.com or on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.


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Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation
Chairmans Medal
Founders group
Helping rewrite the future
Mid North Coast
2019 Chairman's Medal recipient announced
This year's Chairman's Medal recipient is a long-time volunteer – and a lupus sufferer herself.
Retiree and volunteer Carolyn Comyns' dedicated support has been invaluable to the work of the Autoimmune Resource and Research Centre (ARRC) for the past 11 years, and has now earned her the honour of receiving Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation's 2019 Chairman's Medal.
The Chairman's Medal was established by the Charitable Foundation to honour the late Michael (Mike) Slater, who was both Chairman of Newcastle Permanent Building Society and Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation for almost 10 years, and acknowledges the contribution of an outstanding volunteer to their organisation's work. Dr Marline Squance, ARRC CEO, said there could not be a more deserving recipient than Carolyn to receive the 2019 Chairman's Medal – the second awarded since it was established in 2018.
"I was so excited when I heard that Carolyn was being acknowledged for the work that she does," she explains. "As a small charity that offers support and education to people with autoimmune diseases, we wouldn't exist without our volunteers. Since Carolyn started volunteering for us in 2008, she's become more and more involved and is now instrumental in our organisation."
2019 Chairman's medal recipient Carolyn Comyns
Introducing this year's Chairman's Medal recipient, Carolyn Comyns.
Charitable Foundation Chair, Phil Neat, said the Chairman's Medal recognised the value of volunteers within community organisations and celebrated their achievements, particularly in regional communities.
"The Charitable Foundation funds the tangible items community organisations need to deliver their life-changing programs to those people most in need within our community, and the Chairman's Medal recognises the intangible and invaluable contribution made by volunteers in delivering those programs.
"Volunteering is the ultimate display of dedication to a cause, other people's well-being and service to community. This award recognises Carolyn's selflessness as a volunteer with ARRC and the grass-roots way she is helping to rewrite the future for other people living with an autoimmune disease," Phil said.
ARRC supports people with a range of autoimmune diseases such as Lupus, Scleroderma and Sjogrens Syndrome. Autoimmune diseases primarily affect women and are more likely to appear at ages 25-45. Most have no known cure, so ARRC's mission is to improve quality of life for people living with autoimmune diseases – through education, support, advocacy and access to the latest screening and therapeutic strategies. The charity does this with no government funding, and relies on grants like those extended by the Charitable Foundation – as well as its hard-working volunteers.
"Since Carolyn started volunteering for us in 2008, she's become more and more involved and is now instrumental in our organisation," said Dr Marline Squance, ARRC CEO.
The Charitable Foundation recognises the important role volunteers play in regional areas – and charities like ARRC count on that help to deliver programs and initiatives that improve the lives of people facing disadvantage, marginalisation or isolation.
"People who live in regional and rural areas often miss out on access to allied health and specialist services – and there's not a lot of awareness out there, so people can feel isolated and find it hard to connect with others who have the same illness or suffer the same symptoms," explains Marline. "And if you can get that support, you're going to be in a better position to learn to manage your illness."
That's where Carolyn has come in. Despite living with lupus herself since her diagnosis in 2008, she's happily become ARRC's 'go-to lady' – helping with everything from fundraising to admin, to selling patient wellness products and distributing fact sheets and brochures. But perhaps the role in which Carolyn has really come into her own is offering support to newly diagnosed people who are feeling vulnerable and unsure how to navigate the often confusing health system.
"Carolyn has been the prime contact for Newcastle's Café Conversation group, which meets to support patients and share experiences and social times together," says Marline. "It's vital that people living with disease finds someone they can relate to – and Carolyn's empathy with other people living with autoimmune illness allows her to ease the worries of new patients. A new patient is often scared, and her understanding of the confusion and grief that can occur when given a diagnosis of illness is profound. She has the ability to help people find their way forward after a diagnosis."
Carolyn knows all about the day-to-day challenges of autoimmune disease. "I suffer fatigue, joint pain, muscle pain – it's a matter of managing what you can do," she explains. "You're not sure when the pain will hit so you have to take into consideration where you're going, how long it'll be and whether you'll be able to get through the day comfortably. It's unexpected; you feel like you're getting the flu."
She says she was honoured when she found out she was the recipient of the 2019 Chairman's Medal. "I don't like to draw attention to myself so I find that awkward, but I'm also very pleased for the funds to be going to ARRC for the excellent work that they do," she said. "It'll allow them to reach more people, to pass on more information and guide others through their journey."
And despite dealing with her own illness, Carolyn shows no signs of slowing down when it comes to her charity work with ARRC.
"I just want to continue supporting ARRC so they can support other people and I can do whatever I can do to help them achieve this," she says.
"There are so many people out there who don't have the support that I have; it's an ongoing thing and so many people need help. Plus, there's always enjoyment when you get a group of women together – we have a chat and a laugh. It's helped me too. It's made me go out, talk to people and mix with new people. I've always done some volunteer work but it does make a difference to mix with others – it keeps a smile on your face."
Read more about the Chairman's Medal
Grant helps extend therapy program
Program for victims of childhood abuse extended to address growing demand.
Grant for Cancer Council
$154,000 grant helps pilot innovative booking system.
Home Loan Personal Loan General Financial Planning
Visit Newcastle Permanent
© Newcastle Permanent Community Foundation Company Ltd
ABN 79 092 437 379 as Trustee for Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation


A non-greasy tinted texture for a natural tan which leaves no streaks. This gel, which is rich in self-tanning active ingredient, provides a long-lasting tan.
Apply evenly to face, neck and décolleté avoiding hairline and eyebrows. Wash hands with cold water after use. Reapply 2 to 3 times a week to maintain the intensity of tan.


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Gone in a flash
Sometimes being a skeptic means answering the question, "So what happened?" with the rather unsatisfying response, "We don't know and may never know."
That was my immediate reaction upon reading a report out of Argentina from a little over a week ago, over at the website Inexplicata. (Here are the links to part 1 and part 2 of the report.) The gist of the story is as follows.
On Tuesday, November 15, a woman from the town of Jacinto Araúz went missing. A search was launched in the area where she was last seen, but there were no traces -- no signs of a struggle, no note, no vehicle missing that she might have taken if she'd run away from home. The search, in fact, turned up nothing. Trained search dogs were brought in, and they easily picked up the woman's scent trail near her house, and then abruptly lost it after only 150 meters. Neighbors said that there was no way she'd simply walked away -- her physical condition was poor, and a leisurely one-kilometer walk was enough to tire her out.
The mystery deepened when several relatives received messages from the woman's cellphone number, but the messages contained nothing but a mechanical buzzing noise and static.
Then, twenty-four hours later, she turned up again -- in Quinto Meridiano, sixty-five kilometers away. She had a cut on her forehead, but otherwise was physically unharmed.
She seemed to be in a profound state of shock, however, and wasn't able to (or at least didn't) speak a word to authorities. She was taken to a local hospital, where she wrote down what she claimed had happened to her. She said that on Tuesday, she'd been in her house when she'd heard a noise. She went outside, and there was a sudden, blinding flash of light. When her vision cleared, she was in Quinto Meridiano -- with no apparent lapse of time.
[Image licensed under the Creative Commons Grelibre.net, Spectre Brocken, CC BY-SA 3.0]
The report, of course, made all the UFO aficionados start jumping up and down making excited little squeaking noises. The area around Jacinto Araúz is a "hotspot," they said. I saw a reference to the "Dorado Incident" in the report, but I wasn't able to find a good account of it; apparently it was some sort of UFO sighting nineteen years ago. The report mentioned other sightings in the vicinity that have included spacecraft that landed, leaving scorch marks on the ground, and a "red-eyed creature" that has been seen more than once nearby.
But that's about all there is to the woman's story. She's missing for a day, then turns up with a superficial injury, apparent emotional shock, and a strange tale of vanishing in a flash of light.
So what really happened?
Seems to me there are five possibilities:
Her story is substantially true, and she was teleported (for want of a better word) from Jacinto Araúz to Quinto Meridiano more or less instantaneously by some unidentified, possibly extraterrestrial, agent.
She's lying -- she made the whole thing up for her "fifteen minutes of fame." She went to Quinto Meridiano by one of the usual means of transport, and invented the flash-of-light stuff. The dogs lost her scent because that's the point at which she got in a car and drove (or was driven by an accomplice) away. The phone calls with the buzzing noise were manufactured.
She's mentally unbalanced, and got to Quinto Meridiano somehow but doesn't remember how. Sixty-five kilometers would be a significant walk in twenty-four hours even for someone in good shape, but there's no reason she couldn't have hitchhiked.
She was kidnapped -- knocked on the head (thus the injury on her forehead, and possibly explaining her perception of a flash of light), and then driven to Quinto Meridiano, where she was dumped by the kidnappers.
The people who reported the story made it up, and the mysterious and unnamed woman doesn't even exist.
All of these explanations, however, leave some serious unresolved problems. In order:
Instantaneous transport, or even something very close to it, seems to break just about every law of physics we know.
This all seems like quite an ordeal to put oneself through just to give UFO enthusiasts multiple orgasms. Not only do we have an apparently weak, unwell woman taking off for the next town for a day, but giving herself a deep cut on the forehead, for no other reason than to fool a bunch of people and worry the absolute shit out of her friends and family.
If she is simply mentally ill, and hitched a ride from Jacinto Araúz to Quinto Meridiano, why hasn't anyone turned up saying that they'd seen her or given her a lift? According to the sources, her disappearance was widely publicized -- it seems like someone would have reported seeing her.
Why was she kidnapped? There's no mention of her being robbed or raped. It seems like there's a complete lack of any plausible motive for kidnapping.
It's possible the story is made up from stem to stern, but there's been enough mention of it in other news sources (such as here and here), with enough details about which police departments were involved in the search, that if it was an out-and-out hoax, it would have been debunked by now.
As I asked before: so, what really happened?
The answer is: we don't know. Perhaps more evidence will surface that will allow us to eliminate one or more of the explanations in the list, but given all we know at the moment, there's no way to narrow it down further. We have to fall back on the ECREE principle -- extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence -- which would suggest that the supernatural/paranormal explanation (#1) is less likely than the natural ones (#2-#5), but "less likely" doesn't mean "impossible."
As I used to tell my Critical Thinking classes, you don't have to have an opinion about everything; being a skeptic means that in the absence of conclusive evidence, we have to accept the rather unsatisfying outcome that we need to hold off making a conclusion, perhaps forever.
So that's our exercise in frustration for the morning. A peculiar story out of Argentina with no clear explanation. It'd be nice if everything was neat and tidy and explicable, but we have to accept the fact that there are things we don't know -- and may never know.
I've always loved a good parody, and one of the best I've ever seen was given to me decades ago as a Christmas present from a friend. The book, Science Made Stupid, is a send-up of middle-school science texts, and is one of the most fall-out-of-your-chair hilarious things I've ever read. I'll never forget opening the present on Christmas morning and sitting there on the floor in front of the tree, laughing until my stomach hurt.
If you want a good laugh -- and let's face it, lately most of us could use one -- get this book. In it, you'll learn the proper spelling of Archaeopteryx, the physics of the disinclined plane, little-known constellations like O'Brien and Camelopackus, and the difference between she trues, shoe trees, and tree shrews. (And as I mentioned, it would make the perfect holiday gift for any science-nerd types in your family and friends.)
Science education may never be the same again.
Labels: Argentina, disappearances, Jacinto Araúz, missing woman, Quinto Meridiano, time lapse, time slip, UFOs
The law of small numbers
Vikings, auroras, and tree rings
Cloudy, with a chance of disaster
The legend of the lost sister
Requiem for a gentle soul
The book in the bog
The fear loop
The rain of glass
Reconnecting the isolates
Can't win, can't break even
Shame, lying, and Archie Bunker
Prelude to a detonation
The ghoul's head and the three-body problem
Gems of dialogue
Analysis of a triple-whammy
Canine gap analysis
The galactic spiderweb


For decades now, the most enjoyable and memorable of all holidays are the ones where the children and adults are equally holidaying. What could be more fun and magical than the world of Disney? Welcome to the Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland or simply 'Wow!' to most of us. It is a dream vacation for kids and parents alike, so why not check a few ways to looking for just the right Disney World packages?
Compare tickets in each package - Disney World offers about 65 varied Disney World packages for your stay. Compare the packages for price differences to save money; say a 2 day Magic Your Way ticket and a 2 day Magic Your Way Hopper ticket will have a difference of about $20!
Choose your hotel carefully - Disney World and Orlando is a major tourist attraction for international visitors as well with vacation crowds coming in the hundreds every week. With so many visitors, Orlando offers numerous hotels for your stay. Some of the properties have a lot to be desired and you must be careful while choosing the right place for your family. A neat and beautiful property closer to Disney World would make the best Disney World packages ever!
Time Share - These will save you some money on your Disney World packages but the tours are usually high pressured and do not allow you to really enjoy the trip at leisure. Instead opt for good Disney World packages that are at a low cost and yet give you the freedom to explore and have fun at your own leisurely pace.
Hidden fees - Some websites offer you low cost Disney World packages and after you have spent half your day looking through it for comparisons; you are hit with delivery fees and other hidden charges! Make sure you book your tickets through an authorized Walt Disney World Resort Ticket agency.
Cancellation procedures - Though you are all geared up for a perfect holiday, something could always come up to make you postpone or cancel your vacation. Always read up and understand all cancellation procedures and charges before buying Disney World packages. Some agencies require you to cancel a few days in advance with a small fee; others may charge a hefty amount or not allow you to cancel your Disney World packages at all! Make sure you are aware of all charges and procedures to avoid any disputes or surprises in case of last minute cancellations.
Local travel agencies - Probably a better deal could be through the local travel companies in Orlando to offer you Disney World packages. Most of them claim wholesaler rates on the hotel prices and since they are local, they have no offer schemes like a 24 hour no cancellation fee policy. So unless you are arriving in the next 72 hours, you would not be charged a cancellation fee.
Transportation - While booking your Disney World packages, inquire about transportation to the various theme parks. Many hotels offer complimentary transportation to the Walt Disney World, Universal Studios and the Sea World theme parks. This is convenient and will save you money as well on your Disney World packages.
Most Disney World packages include 2 to 7 day stays and even allow you to customize your packages. If you are a returning visitor, you are bound to have the information to make your own Disney World packages. If this is your first visit to Disney World, follow a suitable package and ask for recommendations from friends and family who have vacationed there before. Enjoy your vacation with the right Disney World packages!


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LUKE BRYAN'S "WAVES" IS MOST-ADDED SONG AT COUNTRY RADIO THIS WEEK
Despite sharing news he is currently in quarantine with COVID 19, Luke Bryan and the team at UMG Nashville do have something to celebrate today with the out-of-the-gate success of his brand new single "Waves" as it tallies the most adds at country radio its debut week. Luke premiered a pre-taped performance of "Waves" on Good Morning America last Friday.
The music video also premiered on April 9 with media claiming it brings the song's "summer love story to life." Watch the video HERE.
"Waves," written by Zach Crowell, Ryan Hurd and Chase McGill, is the fifth single from BORN HERE LIVE HERE DIE HERE (Deluxe Edition), which was released last Friday with six additional songs. It is the follow up to the project's already four consecutive #1 singles. Get the album HERE.
BORN HERE LIVE HERE DIE HERE (Deluxe Edition)
1. Knockin' Boots (Hillary Lindsey, Jon Nite, Gordie Sampson)
2. What She Wants Tonight (Luke Bryan, Ross Copperman, Hillary Lindsey, Jon Nite)
3. Born Here Live Here Die Here (Jake Mitchell, Jameson Rodgers, Josh Thompson)
4. One Margarita (Michael Carter, Matt Dragstrem, Josh Thompson)
5. Too Drunk To Drive (Luke Bryan, Michael Carter, Brandon Kinney)
6. Build Me A Daddy (Jake Mitchell, Josh Thompson, Brett Tyler)
7. Little Less Broken (Michael Carter, Lindsay Rimes, Matt Rogers)
8. For A Boat (Randy Montana, Josh Thompson, Mike Walker)
9. Where Are We Goin' (Luke Bryan, Brent Cobb)
10. Down To One (Dallas Davidson, Justin Ebach, Kyle Fishman)
11. Country Does (Ross Copperman, Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne)
12. Drink A Little Whiskey Down (Luke Bryan, Matt Dragstrem, Josh Thompson)
13. Waves (Zach Crowell, Ryan Hurd, Chase McGill)
14. Bill Dance (Luke Bryan, Rhett Akins, Dallas Davidson, Ben Hayslip)
15. Up (Jeremy Bussey, Taylor Phillips, Bobby Pinson)
16. Floatin' This Creek (Luke Bryan, Chase McGill, Jeff Stevens, Jody Stevens)


Jim Beard was introduced to comic books by his father, who passed on to him a love for the medium and the pulp characters that preceded it. After decades of reading, collecting, and dissecting comics, Jim became a published writer when he sold a story to DC Comics in 2002. Since then, he's written stories for Dark Horse Comic's Star Wars as well as IDW Publishing's Ghostbusters comic books.
A native of Toledo where he is a regular columnist for the Toledo Free Press, Jim broke into the world of "New Pulp" in 2012 when Airship 27 published Sgt. Janus, Spirit-Breaker, a collection of ghost stories featuring an occult detective, and Captain Action: Riddle of the Glowing Men, the first prose novel based on the 1960s action figure. Other fiction by the author includes Captain Action: Hearts of the Rising Sun, the sequel to his best-selling Airship 27 novel; Monster Earth, a shared-world anthology of giant monster tales; and Sgt. Janus Returns, a second, all-new collection of suspenseful adventures featuring his popular creation. Jim also provides regular content for Marvel.com, the official Marvel Comics website and has contributed articles and essays to several volumes of comic book history. His work has also been featured in Gotham City 14 Miles: 14 Essays on Why the 1960s Batman TV Series Matters, a critical evaluation of the ABC television show.
Join "The Beard" on Saturday, August 9th, at 2 PM when Jim will be reading from Sgt. Janus Returns, Betrayal on Monster Earth, and Pride of the Mohicans, a new anthology based upon The Last of the Mohicans. To learn more about this exciting new fictioneer, please visit The Beard: The Jim Beard Fan Page.
For those attending our Saturday afternoon programming, we'll be offering a chance to win a fabulous door prize donated to PulpFest by Radio Archives–an audio-book edition of Will Murray's Doc Savage and King Kong adventure, Skull Island, read by Michael McConnohie.


I am working on an interface where i need to split files within BPM.
I know,i can achieve it in Message Mapping by mapping Recordset to Target structure and then using Interface Mapping within Transformation step.But i dont want to follow this.Is there an alternative way to achieve this within BPM.
Is there a way, where i can specify this condition within BPM , that split files for every H.
If the occurrence of H is fixed after 4 records, then you may use FCC option "Recordset Per Message" = 4.
I am using Dynamic Configuration udf in Message Mapping to extarct the company code from my header and to append it with the source file name to get my target file name.But i could not achieve splitting of file and Dynamic Configuration in one single Message Mapping.
So currently,i have just used Dynamic Configuration in Message Mapping.
So i want to achieve splitting in BPM.
Can you please suggest me a way out.
Splitting and Dynamic configuration can be applied in the same mapping.