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July 15, 2016 Random BloggingEvangelicals, Pence, TrumpSheila
Shortly after the news media announced that Trump had chosen Mike Pence as a running-mate (a choice that Trump later last night said was not yet firm!), I received a request from the New York Daily News to send them 350 words describing the Governor. Here's what I sent. (I actually think I was restrained. I could have given them the whole list.)
Yesterday, Donald Trump ended a week of feverish speculation (at least in Indiana) by choosing Governor Mike Pence as his running mate.
Color me bemused.
Pence, who describes himself as "Christian, Conservative, Republican in that order," has a well-earned reputation as a culture warrior. In his eleven years in Congress, he was best known for efforts to defund Planned Parenthood. A bill to end tax breaks for insurance providers whose policies covered abortion appears to be the only legislation for which he was actually responsible, not just a cosponsor.
As Governor, it quickly became obvious that he had no interest in the nitty-gritty of public administration. Instead, he continued his war on Planned Parenthood, signed the most restrictive anti-abortion bill in the country, diverted education funding to an extensive school voucher program—a gift to the state's religious schools—and most famously, infuriated the business community and a majority of Hoosiers by signing a "Religious Freedom Restoration Act" (RFRA) that would have allowed businesses to discriminate against LGBT citizens.
The blowback to RFRA was so intense that Pence folded, and signed an amendment "clarifying" the original bill. That retreat, in turn, infuriated the Indiana religious right activists who had promoted the measure—and who are Pence's base.
Pence has been so inept at justifying these and numerous other unpopular actions that most political observers expect him him lose his re-election bid. That likely loss probably explains why he found a spot on Trump's ticket attractive, despite the fact that it will require "Mr. Family Values" to sell a thrice-married proud philanderer who talks about the size of his penis to the only constituency with which he has any currency: the religious right.
What Pence adds to the ticket is harder to fathom. He certainly won't help with women, or LGBT folks, or immigrants (he tried to prevent Syrian refugees from settling in Indiana). His much-ridiculed interview with George Stephanopoulos in the wake of the RFRA debacle suggests he isn't nearly ready for the scrutiny he will receive on the national stage.
Trump must really need those Evangelicals.
Among the (many) things I didn't mention was the fact that any credible Republicans who might actually have helped the ticket had previously signaled that they that weren't interested. (Even Joni Ernst–the hog castrater–declined to be considered.)
Trump's available choices were Newt Gingrich (six wives between them, and visions of a colony on the moon….), Chris Christie (He's got a bridge…and an attitude) and our very own Mikey. All wounded, all with favorable ratings in the 30s or below.
Talk about your B teams…..
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64 thoughts on "The Odd Couple"
JoAnn Green says:
When I posted my "Pence Must Go" yard sign; Washington, D.C. was NOT the destination I had in mind. It will get him out of the Indiana governor's chair but, what will he be replaced with if John Gregg doesn't win.
I have decided to leave my "Bernie For President" yard sign standing because I still support his stand on issues. I read the letter Bernie sent to his "Bernie or Bust" supporters which included the list of issues he and Hillary agreed would be on the National Democratic Party campaign foundation before he endorsed her. Only one item is of real interest to Trump and possibly/probably Pence; "pass comprehensive immigration reform". Their plan is that wall which Trump will somehow force Mexico to pay for and to refuse to allow any and all Muslims from entering this country, including returning American military and business and vacation travelers. You must admit those can be considered to be "reform" but I see no successful end in sight during my remaining life span.
Hillary has said, if elected, she would put Bill in charge of this country's economy. The two of them together have certainly improved their own economy and money is the basis of the current GOP so, who knows what route either party would take on this issue but middle America will not come out the winner whoever sits in the White House.
I wasn't sure if I should include Bernie and Hillary's promised efforts to legalize marijuana or not. Indianapolis is home to the First Church of Cannabis…does that count as legalization.
In the words of the immortal Bette Davis; "Fasten your seatbelts fellas, it's gonna be a bumpy ride."
Jane Cook says:
Sheila, I have friends from out of state asking me about Trump's choice. Thank you for saving me from so much typing!
Anthony Hinrichs says:
Excellent, however, you may have scared off Trump.
daleb says:
I see Pence's selection for VP as another train wreck for the Republicans and for Indiana voters.
BJH says:
Excellent job! I, too, will be sharing with my out of state family and friends! I thought the Slate blog by Mark Joseph Stern this morning also did a good job of describing him for the masses: http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2016/07/14/vacuous_anti_gay_coward_mike_pence_is_a_perfect_vp_pick_for_trump.html
MartinaLevi says:
I was on the fence about voting for Trump, but now I have made up my mind. Myself, and all my children of voting age.
You are less-than-candid, when you continue to state that the goal of the RFRA was to discriminate against LGTBs. That is a callous manipulation of the facts. As a Jew, I applaud the RFRA, because it enables me to avoid being forced to work on my religious holidays, and it forces my employer to make accommodations in order to enable me, and other religious-observant people, to respect their holy days.
In regards to supporting the immigration of hoards of people from a terrorist country, suffices to say that we are watching Europe implode because of that. Terror is ingrained in Islam, and the Syrian immigrants are not cute families with ethnic-looking token-for-diversity children. The vast majority of them are young men with either no families, or who have deserted their families, to come here. Either way, they are more of a liability than an asset.
Sheila and the liberal left continue in their Goebbelical crusade: repeat a lie until it becomes a truth.
I will vote for Trump/Pence. At least, voting for them will ensure constant scrutiny from the liberal zealots, which, actually, is very healthy in a democracy: leaders who are held accountable by a system of checks and balances which I am not sure we can expect if the other candidate were to win.
Over It says:
Martina Levi, you should vote for Trump/Pence if you think your right to have the day off to praise a magic man in the sky is more important than the rights of those who the magic man commands must be put to death for their sins. Good for you and fairy-guy.
And of course those brown people TOTALLY just made up their magic man in the sky and are not to be trusted because everyone knows their fairy-guy is completely fictional and to praise him is to be a savage. Brown people. Not your tribe. Yucky.
Mark Small says:
I must (half-)seriously (well, okay, maybe 1/8 seriously) consider entering the race as the GOP candidate for Governor. True, the party "leaders," as I understand things, would choose a replacement. Also, I never have voted in a Republican primary. My roots go back over 50 years, though. I donated one-fourth of my weekly income (for one week only) to Barry Goldwater's campaign in 1964. I was (very) young, nine years old, and (very) impulsive. As candidate I would advance the following: (1) Aim to un-do jerrymandering in the lead-up to the 2020 decennial census; (2) Advance civil rights; (3) Ban TIFs as funding mechanisms; (4) Ban public finance of professional sports; (5) Ban Tom Izzo from this State (because he seems to steal Indiana basketball players for his Michigan State squad); (6) Rid the State of RICO forfeiture laws; (7) Legalize all drugs; (8) Ban elected officials from receiving passes or tickets or whatever to suites of any professional sports contests; and (9) Ban New York Yankees and New England Patriots apparel (probably a violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution—that pesky Constitution gets in the way sometimes) because—well, the Yankees and the Patriots are just evil. Those are just off the top of my head. I have as much chance of being the Republican nominee as a snowball has in the infernal regions, but if nominated I shall run and, if elected—I doubt the General Assembly would allow me to serve .
Aimee Yermish, PsyD says:
Martina Levi, as a fellow Jew, I consider it a shanda that you would be so ignorant about the content and effect of a law and not bother to actually read it before making statements like the one you made. I also consider it a shanda that you would think that a law enshrining the right of private businesses to discriminate is in any way consonant with Jewish values.
Read the law itself here:
https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2015/bills/senate/101#document-92bab197
Actually, the law does the *opposite* of what you say — it allows an employer to say that it is against their religion to accommodate yours, and the government cannot force them to do so.
The rest of your hate against Islam and Syrian refugees… Wow. So, you learned nothing from the story of the Exodus and the Holocaust other than a small-minded "I got mine, don't take it away from me?" Let's try "You shall have one law for the native born and for the stranger within your gates." And let's also remember that way more Americans are killed by right-wing-fringe Christians and white supremacists than by right-wing Muslim fringe types.
Remember, you are not just embarrassing yourself, but also presenting a face of Judaism to the rest of the world. A shanda.
Fran says:
I am adding Sharpie happy faces to my pence must go sign. But I am waiting until trump makes it official…….I don't trust trump to keep his word….hahaha to pence for having his big moment spoiled………poor Nice, France……horrible, heinous useless loss of life……I cannot understand.
Aimee, you are insulting me and that reflects upon you, not me.
I have read the law – I tend to inform myself before speaking. Sheila actually wrote a nice piece right before this one, about people surrounding themselves in tribes and not mixing up. I do not fear being among liberals, nor do I insult them, like many liberals do when a more conservative folk dares to express their viewpoint. THAT is a shanda.
You shouldn't arrogate to yourself being the voice of Judaism, nor speaking on behalf of the world Jewry. That reflects on you, again, not on me.
Moving on. If a business is un-savvy enough to deny me the catering to my son's bar mitzvah because their religion forbids them, first of all, good luck proving it in court. I don't know of any religion that advocates against Jews. Except Islam, of course, that advocates against killing you and me, and Christians, and Buddhists, and Sikhs, and atheists, etcetc.
It is not as complicated as liberals try to make it. It really isn't.
The country is imploding, just like France is, just like Sweden, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, and the rest of Europe who has chosen to keep their head in the sand.
If anyone is going to respond to my opinion, I would respectfully ask to refrain from ad-hominem attacks and foster respectful debate.
Excellent Sheila!
Aimee Yermish – Excellent response to MartinaLevi. You were able to put her in her place much better than any of the rest of us could have.
irvin BAA says:
Thank you Amiee! You are beautiful ! Irvin
Peggy Hannon says:
What does Pence bring to the Republican ticket? How about some Koch money? The Libertarian Kochs are actually nihilists and Pence has done virtually nothing in his time in government. He's their ideal candidate.
Hahah. You kids amuse me.
Why do I need to be "put in my place"? Why do some people feel compelled to cheer each other on, when they attack someone else?
This sounds more like bullying.
Let's see how the dynamic works here. You are all patting each other on the back, because there is no much dissent or difference in opinions on Sheila's blog. So y'all agree, and compliment one another, that's very nice. And when someone comes along and expresses a different viewpoint, he/she faces attacks and then the alliances and hostile support against the dissenter. Sheesh, people. Why do you need to do that, instead of just watching a rational debate, either in silence, or expressing your individual opinion, without forming alliances?
MartinaLevi:
You accused Aimee of insulting you and claimed that you do not insult others. In the paragraph below (copied from your first post) you insulted Sheila. In your response to Aimee you insulted her and you also insulted liberals and followers of Islam. At some point in time you adopted the phrase "that reflect upon you, not me". That is a very poor choice of words that you have adopted in an effort to convince yourself that you are above attacking others – which happens to be far from the truth. I suggest that you do some self-reflection about how you absolutely do judge others and then stop believing that you are innocent.
BSH says:
Top Contributors, federal election data
Election cycles covered: 2016 Presidential
From OpenSecrets as last reported on June 27, 2016
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres16/contrib.php?cycle=2016&id=N00000019&type=f
Brian Howey's piece on Sunday offered some nice insight. He suggests that Newt would not be as easily controlled as Pence, but he also brings home the point that the two will make very strange bedfellows. My take is that they both share on important value, expedience. All that stuff about being "Christian" is nothing but authoritarianism baptized with a veneer of righteous words.
I had to read the Huffington Post Pence description announcement a couple of times. It didn't sound like the Pence we know, but as was pointed out earlier, maybe they didn't want to scare off Trump. This choice is so good, and it will afford me the opportunity to vote against two fools with one vote. It's a two-fer.
MartinaLevi seems like that rarest of things, an informed conservative. Well, misinformed is more accurate but nevertheless thoughtful and studied.
Then the hate shows up, the lens through which the studying was done.
Yesterday I yet again repeated my home made slogan. "freedom at all is freedom for all".
It's tough to grant freedom with hate in the way. One has to assume all groups are worthy; none are entitled or superior and that's the obstacle that haters cannot overcome.
"Trumpence" are grand haters. They've got the world pretty much narrowed down to family as so entitled none of the rest of us even need consideration.
All of the analysis of Hillary is right on. She's a traditional public servant, the kind that brung us to the dance. Her constituents are all Americans regardless of where they were born or the trappings of their Faith. She knows details like what the Constitution says and what our government is required and permitted to be and do and not do. She also knows the world well. In other words is well traveled. Well connected around the world. All of the things that we have traditionally based politics on before Rush and Roger and Rupert and their hate factory.
I understand the feeling MartinaLevi that your tribe rocks and rules but I have come to value freedom more. There are great Jews and Muslims and none of the aboves and also some total wastes of flesh. The category doesn't earn any exception or entitlement. They all have a right to freedom until they individually earn otherwise.
Huffington Post made It official. Pence is his guy. Now, let's cross our fingers and hope that Mitch will remain happy with his ill-gotten position as the most anti-education president of Purdue.
It seems to be official. Donald has claimed that he can't do any better than Mike Pence.
Deborah Smith says:
I am sick to death of hearing militant Jews comment on American politics. They want our country to take up their hateful fight and that's what got us the war in Iraq, and subsequent terrorist groups because we disbanded the Saddam Republican guard. Now that they can't have a job, or support their families, they have radicalized behind a false religious war; they are thugs, nothing better, not principled or driven by a good cause. The hateful Jews have become the Nazis of today and we can't tolerate Americans speaking to the hate and perpetuating it. That woman is radicalized with Israeli politics, lead by Netanyahu, the head Nazi who kills Palestinians daily, and keeps them in poverty, promoting Jews to settle in the West Bank and other Palestinian areas. Shame on you, keep your religious bullshit out of our conversation. We don't promote your hateful cause and misinterpretation of everything to sway opinion to your horrible cause!
This is one of the best days here in blog land in my experience. Unbridled passion sprinkled with Hoosier enthusiasm for ridding the statehouse of Pence's.
Are 100 posts a possibility? Let it all out.
Paul K. Ogden says:
"Pence signed a "Religious Freedom Restoration Act" (RFRA) that would have allowed businesses to discriminate against LGBT citizens."
Come on, Sheila, as an attorney you know better than that. I was at a legal seminar after RFRA was adopted and even the ACLU attorney admitted that the law didn't do what you claim here, that the political spin RFRA opponents were using and you repeat here simply is not true. As the ACLU representative pointed out, whether businesses can discriminate against LGBT citizens depends entirely on whether there is a civil rights law protecting those citizens from service discrimination and RFRA did not change that in either direction. (Indiana doesn't have a state wide law civil rights laws protecting LGBT people, but some municipalities do.) RFRAs exist at the national level and in 30 states (20 by statute, 10 by court decision). There is not a single case where a RFRA was found to override a civil rights law relating to the service of goods and services. Not one. All the fix did, by the way, was reflect that fact that RFRAs don't override civil rights laws.
The irony is that the ACLU supported the federal RFRA at the very same time you were head of Indiana's branch of the ACLU. I assume you supported it then.
Louie says:
JoAnn, I took my Bernie signs down. I have read several articles from the Left just frying, slicing, dicing and roasting Sanders. Essentially, they say Sanders pulled his punches against Clinton during the campaign and has now knelt at the altar of corporatism. Among the critiques: Sanders surrender preserves the corrupt Capitalist Two Party System here in the USA once again. The possibility of a contentious Democratic Convention has now been foreclosed on. This is not a new critique of the Democratic Party Eugene Debs and Howard Zinn mention it also in their writings.
For those of you who thought you voted for Baron Hill in the Democratic Primary – Sorry- Evan Bayh has now decided he wants to run. The giddy delight of the Indianapolis Star, etc. , is in sharp contrast to another opinion by James Hohmann.
"One of the many reasons that so many of his Democratic colleagues did not like Evan Bayh during his tenure in the Senate was his excessive caution. The hyper-ambitious, always-privileged and ever-calculating son of a senator long dreamed of becoming president, and he represented a conservative-leaning state. So he was perennially nervous about taking tough votes or courageous stands. He often seemed to waffle and have his finger in the wind".
Hohmann, totally describes the Democratic Party in Indiana, and with few exceptions the Eatablishment Democratic Party in general.
Paul K. Ogden:
Sheila;s comments copied and pasted by Paul K. Ogden:
Paul K. Ogden copied and pasted from his own comments:
"Come on, Sheila, as an attorney you know better than that."
Paul K. Ogden copied and pasted as he points out the legal exceptions to his denial that RFRA discriminates against LGBTs:
"…whether businesses can discriminate against LGBT citizens depends entirely on whether there is a civil rights law protecting those citizens from service discrimination and RFRA did not change that in either direction. (Indiana doesn't have a state wide law civil rights laws protecting LGBT people, but some municipalities do.)"
Mayor Ballard, being fully aware of the exceptions, quickly jumped on the LGBT bandwagon to get a law passed in Marion County "protecting those citizens from service discrimination" bringing the total to 11 areas throughout the entire state of Indiana, tourist season was approaching. Those civil rights laws seem to be in and closely surrounding the larger cities in this state. The rest of the state, the vast majority, is unprotected.
The now unofficially official "Odd Couple" are both anti-LGBT; Pence claiming religious reasons, Trump claiming his right to discriminate against everyone or group he doesn't like because he IS Donald Trump. We now need to be deeply concerned, assuming Pence accepts Trump's invitation, about the voting history of the possible gubernatorial Pence replacement regarding the many groups Pence has denied rights to. We are still in a mess here; all the more reason to push, shove, beg, plead, threaten and/or kick butts to get Democrats to the polls to vote in November. The Republicans still have more money than Democrats.
Gerald E. Stinson says:
When I learned that Trump had selected Pence to shore up his evangelical credentials and connection with the nihilist deep-pocketed Koch Brothers, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. I am happy to see Pence and his toilet seat diversionary tactics out of Hoosier politics, but I think that Trump could not have picked a worse candidate to succeed himself in the event of a disaster – so I am not laughing at the prospect of a return not only to the economics of the Gilded Age but the Victorian culture as well. I will be voting for sanity and tomorrow rather than yesterday when I vote for Hillary this fall.
Paul, what did Indiana's RFRA hope to accomplish and why was it modified?
Deborah Smith,
Before going off half-cocked and uninformed on supposed militant Jews, whatever you mean by the term, let's retrace the money trail, go back to the OpenSecrets top contributors for Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential election.
As of June 27, 2016, Clinton's top contributor is Saban Capital Group who's contributed $10,036,171. Coming in 7th place as Clinton's top 2016 contributor is the Center for Middle East Policy, better known as the Saban Center for Middle East Policy as part of the Brookings Institution.
Haim Saban is a fascinating individual as per his bio from Saban Capital where he collaborated with Rupert Murdoch in the purchase and the ultimate sale of Fox Family Network Worldwide for the largest ever single Hollywood transaction. Mr. Saban supports the Soroka Children's Hospital in Israel, the John Wayne Cancer Institute, the Motion Picture and Television Fund, the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, the American Israel Education Foundation, and the Clinton Foundation Foundation.
In short, Mr. Saban is not a supporter of Muslim groups. https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/rania-khalek/when-hillary-clinton-threw-arab-and-muslim-americans-under-bus
jb says:
don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out pence
Many of us apparently wake up every day surprised at the complexity of the real world and wishing for more Hollywood reality programming in our daily diet of news.
It simplifies so much if the good guys wore white hats and the bad, black.
But alas, reality has to even deal with inconsistent people, bad sometimes and good others.
What's an extremist to do?
Unfortunately the answer to that is also complex and involves things like skeptical credibility and evidence and odds and probabilities and being wrong and right some of the time.
Being elected President in America in 2016 requires somewhere around $1B. That doesn't gain you an advantage, but only doesn't cost you advantage. We could and should wish for better in the future but that's today's reality.
Politics has always been the art of the possible and the search for the best that a majority of us can be sold. There is absolutely nothing solid about it. It's as fluid as the ocean currents and and as opportunistic as a day of fishing.
We need to grow up a little.
President Obama's best ever skills are a direct result of his pragmatism. He listens, he senses advantage and disadvantage, possibilities on both sides of every issue, the accumulation and spending of political capital, and risk management. He's not idealistic, he's practical but among the country's most accomplished Constitutionalists, so he's practical about the American Dream, almost an oxymoron.
It's probably not incorrect to say that he's one in several billion.
Is Hillary another like him? I doubt it, that would be too much to hope for. The one thing that can be said with absolute assurance is that she's the best that we will be offered.
"Among the critiques: Sanders surrender preserves the corrupt Capitalist Two Party System here in the USA once again. "
Louie; the American public has the option of Independent and Green parties and write-ins, they stay with the two party system by choice when they vote in primaries, general elections and presidential elections. They have always had other options – which in essence amounted to no option due to no chance of winning. The third party or write-ins do not have the support, the backing, the trust or the money to campaign on the level of Democrats and Republicans…and the current Democratic party doesn't have the money the Republican party has. The left has badmouthed Bernie and Hillary; the right has badmouthed all 17 of their hopefuls, it is the same story every election year…including state levels. Why would I want to write-in Bernie Sanders or vote for the Green party, which would increase the odds for the Republican party which means Trump and now, Trump plus Pence? I have a "Pence Must Go" yard sign; the current situation is not one I want or could have foreseen. My sign will stay.
Hillary Clinton is Donald Trump in drag; she is corporate America to the max. She and Donald Trump are buying their nominations and we are left with the option of voting for the lesser of two evils. I would vote for Charles Manson – or either George Bush – if they ran on the Democratic ticket. Don't blame the continuation of the current two-party system on Bernie Sanders; take it to the American public and see how far you get with changing their mindset.
"Hillary Clinton is Donald Trump in drag; "
Only difference is she's fully qualified to be President and he's completely unqualified.
JoAnn, just read your sentence "Hillary Clinton is Donald Trump in drag; she is corporate America to the max. She and Donald Trump are buying their nominations and we are left with the option of voting for the lesser of two evils."
I agree that Hillary Clinton and her 'Clinton Money Machine' are busy buying her presidential nomination, gathering millions of dollars from deep-pocketed donors who'll gladly vote for Clinton in return for her undying, loyal support of their favorite causes that enhance their personal or corporate bank accounts. On the other hand, I do not see Sanders or Trump buying their nominations, beating the bushes for monetary donations from those with deep-pockets whose contributions have strings attached. Clinton alone is the quintessential corporate establishment candidate, bought and sold.
Nancy Papas says:
Aimee – thank you for capturing RFRA is this succinct way: "it allows an employer to say that it is against their religion to accommodate yours".
It always bothers me when folks mistake Indiana's RFRA for the federal RFRA. They are not the same, and Gov. Pence's problems likely would not have occurred if the Indiana law was restricted to governmental discrimination. Business discrimination against anyone who was not already protected by state civil rights laws reminds of the Jim Crow days when businesses denied employment, service, and housing to blacks. Indiana's RFRA allowed an employer to say 'my religion is more important than yours" and with governmental protection. Religious institutions may discriminate basd on religion, but private businesses should not be able to refuse to serve or employ you based on your religion – or theirs.
I am still so impressed that some of Indiana's high profile businesses agreed. HOORAY for Cummins Engine, Lillys, Angie's list, and others who stepped forward to speak up against discrimination.
As for Trump's selection of Pence, that selection has angered at least some on the political right. Ann Coulter, a long-time Trump supporter who contends he's never made a mistake says Pence is Trump's first one. http://www.mediaite.com/online/trumps-first-mistake-ann-coulter-not-impressed-by-potential-veep-mike-pence/.
MSNBC is reporting that Trump was in California and upset when Pence's selection leaked out yesterday. Trump reportedly spent the evening trying to see if he could change the Pence selection even as Pence had made his way to New York for the scheduled announcement.
The important thing about Hillary's campaign was that it was successful. Other strategies were not.
Nobody of course knows what strings, if any, she accepted. I've been close enough to the business world to know that none are usually attached. It's typically just a reminder for the winner of who your friends are.
None of us can afford to live in a world without business. The country has to float all boats be they individuals or institutions. Balance is the key. Clinton I and President Obama did a masterful job of floating the whole fleet. I don't know if she will do as good or not but I accept that the wind blowing against her is 90% Republican flatulance for 30 years. They still haven't gotten over Bill weathering it as well as he did and President Obama merely setting his sails to take advantage of it.
While all of this is IMO accurate the bottom line is that the difference in qualifications for the Presidency between Hillary and Trumpence is nearly infinite.
She is raising the $1B just in case the number of blind Republican loyalists will make it necessary.
Sheila, are you censoring me? 🙂
Paul Ogden, you make an excellent point.
The hypocrisy of the left is astounding. Those of us who have followed politics for decades and know the intricacies of the law, and the political past those who today defenestrate RFRA, are not swayed by a pseudo-liberalism that actually seeks not equality, but despotic ruling of the self-appointed intellectual elites.
To the lady yelling obscenities there in the corner, take a chill pill.
MartinaLevi
So many good points. This group is only for diversity, as long as you agree with them.
You are accused of being critical of another by sayin they are 'less than candid.' ?
As if that is even close to 'militant Jew," or 'put her in her place.' Which is where?
Pete is for, and get this "freedom at all is freedom for all.' Make a t-shirt out of that!
True, unless it includes you having the freedom to practice your own religion.
True, unless your right to say something requires them to put you in your place.
True unless you are an unborn child who's right to life infringes upon her mother's right to choose.
Or you are are another country who we don't want a free trade agreement with.
Or you are a citizen of another country who voted to get out of the UE.
Or you agree with them.
Bingo, Pete! "Only difference is she's qualified…" Perfect summation without a whine or a rehash !
Good Lord! Where did that new one come from? Is that a female Gopper? She's madder'n hell, isn't she?
What restraint you've shown today, Sheila! There's plenty of crap to counter today, if you choose to!
William the difference between government, the topic here, and culture, your topic, is the Constitution. You are free to practice whatever culture you want as long as it doesn't impact the legal rights of others.
Love, hate, marry, agree or disagree with anybody you care to and so will I. That's the freedom that our law not only allows but promotes.
Typically when I disagree with you it's because you are advocating something that in my experience has failed in practice or is irrational or without supporting evidence. That's what I want others exposed to your public pronouncements to consider.
Freedom is based on equality of rights not entitlement. That line is apparently blurry to some.
And MartinaLevi-
Over It-How rude! How offensive! And no one called her out. That's 'yucky.'
It is okay to mock, ridicule someones deepest held belief because you don't hold beliefs?
And no one called her out?
That's what you are dealing with MartinaLevi.
Your rights and feelings are of no concern, if you don't hold the same beliefs as this 'tribe' holds, the good Dr. included.
Marv Kramer says:
Betty,
I think you're right.
'Freedom is as freedom does!' Now there is a t-shirt!
Constitution 14th Amendment:
Right to life, privacy
You are unable to concede that an unborn child, one minute prior to her birth, is considered a human being, yet the inferred right to privacy, granted in the 4th Amendment, gives women the right to deny life to an unborn child even after the child has been accidentally born, if it is the woman's choice to end the child's life.
Huh. I guess some rights trump other rights, and this tribe thinks that those with different constitutional priorities must be put in their place.
Thats where your 'culture' comes in.
This tribe cheers 'putting someone 'in her place.
This tribe doesn't condemn members who mock peoples' religion.
Trump is a disgrace, as are those in your tribe who don't condemn Over It for mocking someones religious beliefs.
Martina Levi says:
Pete, your rights end where mine begin. And viceversa. The US Constitution grants me the freedom to observe and practice my religion. It is between me, my soul, and my G-d. I will not force you to practice it. No worries. 🙂
You say that one can practice whatever culture one wants, unless it infringes upon the legal rights of others. I absolutely agree on that too, my friend.
But to imply that someone has the "legal right" to be served by someone's private enterprise, is egregious and an attempt against the very liberties on which this country was founded.
You are free to be you. I am free to be me.
The difference is that I am not trying to silence anyone with intimidation, insults, and bereating comments and vile ad-hominem accusations.
Oh, and for those foaming ouf of your mouths: grow up. This is real life, not the school yard.
Pete, your rights end where mine begin. And viceversa. The US Constitution grants me the freedom to observe and practice my religion. It is between me, my soul, and my G-d. I will not force you to practice it. No worries. ?
Culture. Faith. Opinion.
They all share common ground. They are all assumptions made in the absence of evidence. Therefor they are neither and both right and wrong. Not right or wrong in the absolute sense but some will have made similar assumptions and some opposing assumptions.
That makes them ripe for discussion and debate.
In contrast are the sciences. They are not assumed but proven through experimental evidence and peer review.
There are also political science and law which are means by which conflicting opinions can get resolved according to established rules.
People are entitled to culture, faith and opinion and also entitled to opposing culture, faith and opinion. That's freedom which includes free discourse about them.
Freedom bothers some people who feel entitled to more.
Clearly you have the right to follow your culture in your private house. When you open a public business it must follow the laws established for public businesses. It's part of the license that we the people grant for use of our "space".
Mitch D. on Community–Lost And Found
Theresa Bowers on An Ugly Omen
Todd E Smekens on An Ugly Omen
Sheila on An Ugly Omen
frank mcnutt on An Ugly Omen


Family Heritage is the gift from all of your ancestors. It is the unique story of your past. My goal is to assist your ancestor quest by offering services & Specialties and a small sample of Educational Upcoming Events.


Institutional Tesla investors, now is your time to unite.
The way I calculate it, I have been on more than 2,000 earnings calls in more than 14 years on Wall Street (I have no clue where the time has gone). It could be more, and it probably is. In all that time, I have never heard a call quite like the joke of a one hosted by Tesla (TSLA CEO Elon Musk on Wednesday evening.
If you missed the call, I suggest you grab a 100-ounce iced coffee and give it a listen on replay. Don't read the transcript as the mind-blowingness that was Musk gets lost in translation. If you own a single share of this stock, the earnings call should reaffirm why you are better off spending that $300 on an investor education class, new tires for your car or a sliver of bitcoin. Perhaps buy some shares in that hot new cannabis stock. Understand this: Tesla will not be a great company so long as Musk is running it. It's that simple.
There must be an institutional shareholder revolt that sends a powerful message to the lame Tesla board to take action and remove Musk. Tesla has enough of an operation and real promise that it deserves a real industrial CEO. I nominate former Ford (F CEO and execution wizard Alan Mulally. The top five institutional shareholders for Tesla, which own a collective 32% of the company, from largest to smallest holdings: FMR, Baille Gifford & Co. T. Rowe Price (TROW , Tencent (TCEHY and Vanguard.
This is your moment to rally people to drive change at Tesla. Take it now, or have your holdings forced 50% lower by Dec. 31, 2018, after three more Musk earnings calls. Here are three critical mistakes Musk made on the call.
The backlash off this call warrants another section. Here is what RBC Capital Markets Joseph Spak had to say Thursday. Spak was one of the analysts that Musk shot down on the call -- apparently the question wasn't exciting enough (aka wasn't pro Elon enough).
"The call was going somewhat normally until an analyst question about capital requirements was dismissed as a 'boring bonehead' question. We then, apparently touched a nerve, by asking about how many who have been invited to configure a Model 3 have taken the steps to do so. This was dismissed as dry, and then Elon stated "we're going to go to YouTube" and proceeded to take at least 10 questions from a financial blogger, who to be fair had some good but very big picture questions. To be clear, the point of our question was to get a sense of Model 3 demand in the face of some negative quality publicity and ultimately judge if consumers are waiting. We believe this is relevant and is a question clients have posed. Investor feedback to the call was shock that a CEO would be dismissive and the general sentiment was that the defensiveness spoke volumes. Needless to say, the call didn't go well."
TheStreet's Kinsey Grant will be attending an event Thursday where some of the world's most well-known short-sellers will be in attendance. I suggest you follow @KinseyGrant for live updates from this one - it's likely to be electric.
While earnings are coming in much better than expected, the market's price-to-earnings multiple is shrinking. This is either a dream taking shape for value investors or a perfect bearish indicator (you're call). Noted Yardeni Research: "The S&P 500's forward P/E, which stood at 18.6 in late January, has declined to 16.3. That's a pretty speedy drop, and it places the index's forward P/E dead on its 20-year average of 16.3." Other than that, I'm just trying to recover from the Tesla call. Have a lovely day.


Come and join us in the fight to end animal cruelty—become an ASPCA Member today!
These flowers are dying every day, just as the morals of society.
Why complain about something beautiful as the wind and rain? They are both parts of our lives that harmoniously keep us alive. They are strong components, and can't be controlled by humans. This is not our world, this is nature's world, and we have to respect that.
I hear all of the time about people dangerously riding out hurricanes and other wild storms. This is completely ridiculous. Our lives are more fragile than some of us would like to believe. It takes days for a hurricane to die down. It takes a millisecond for a human to die.
This reminds us that we have to learn to work together and try to make this world a better place, instead of ignoring the increasing dangers. A corrupt seed is growing- evil, hatred, and disrespect are all growing rampant, and frankly, it's almost impossible to stop it. But, my friends- there is still hope, and that hope is you. Respect nature, don't be afraid to snitch on the wicked and corrupt and money-hungry officials and thieves, but most importantly keep an optimistic yet aware mindset. I'm sure all of us agree that it couldn't hurt to try to positively increase the health of society and nature. It may be a losing battle, but it is truly a noble one, and if I died fighting for these rights, I would die I happy man.
Please take what I've said into consideration. I'm only 18, but when I'm grown and married, I want my children to live in a world that's even better than the one I live in now. It's up to us…. It's up to us.
Thank you so very much for your time- please comments with your advice and/or other links that I can add to the blog. This is no game, this is war- a war that we must win- for the sake of humanity.
We have to uproot the shameful seed our past generations have sown.
When children clean out their lockers and say farewell to school for the summer, there are some things they won't miss. Tests. Homework. Alarm clocks. But for the 16 million children who are eligible for the free or reduced-price lunches over the summer, there's one thing they could miss—lunch. When the school year ends, 80% of participants—more than 12.2 million children—lose access to federal meal programs.
For more than a decade, the Sodexo Foundation has helped cities across the country bridge that gap with Feeding Our Future, a summer lunch program serving more than 7,000 children nationwide.
The fight against hunger is waged with enthusiasm and commitment by students of all ages across the country. They volunteer at shelters and food banks and organize hunger awareness programs. Many college students participate in The Campus Kitchens Project, for which the Sodexo Foundation provided the seed money and continues to support at colleges nationwide.
During the school year it's easy to find a "home" on campus for volunteer activities—every bulletin board and school web site is full of opportunities. During the summer, it takes a bit more work, but organizations with national reach are just waiting for young people to sign up for a day, a week, or more of volunteering, wherever their travels take them.
To keep your fight against hunger going all year long, click on any of the links below for location information.
Today, May 15th, is Bloggers Unite for Human Rights, in which thousands of bloggers will write thousands of blogs dedicated to preserving human rights. The issue I want to focus on today is the unjust activities happening at Guantánamo Bay.
Since the beginning of the War in Afghanistan, 775 detainees have been brought to Guantanamo, approximately 420 of which have been released. As of August 9, 2007, approximately 355 detainees remain. More than a fifth are cleared for release but may have to wait months or years because U.S. officials are finding it increasingly difficult to allocate places to send them, according to officials and defense lawyers.
Prisoners are held in small mesh-sided cells, and lights are kept on day and night. Detainees have rations similar to those of U.S. forces, with consideration for Muslim dietary needs. However on occasion many of the detainees have been denied access to the Quran for daily prayer, due to claimed "high security measures" and as a form of preparation for interrogation. Detainees are kept in isolation most of the day, are blindfolded when moving within the camp and are forbidden to talk in groups of more than three. United States doctrine in dealing with prisoners of war states that isolation and silence are effective means in breaking down the will to resist interrogation. Red Cross inspectors and released detainees have alleged acts of torture, including sleep deprivation, the use of so-called truth drugs, beatings and locking in confined and cold cells. Human rights groups argue that indefinite detention constitutes torture.
The Bush administration has declared that the Third Geneva Convention does not apply to al-Qaeda or Taliban fighters, since the Geneva convention only applies to uniformed soldiers of a recognized government. Jim Phillips of the Heritage Foundation claimed that "some of these terrorists who are not recognized as soldiers don't deserve to be treated as soldiers." Critics of U.S. policy say the government has violated the Conventions in attempting to create a distinction between "prisoners of war" and "illegal combatants." A U.S. district court partially agreed with the Bush administration, finding that the Geneva Conventions apply to Taliban fighters but not to al-Qaeda terrorists. Amnesty International has called the situation "a human rights scandal" in a series of reports.
One of the allegations of abuse at the camp is the abuse of the religion of the detainees. The US government has claimed that they respect all religious and cultural sensitivities. However, prisoners released from the camp have alleged that abuse of religion including flushing the Qur'an down the toilet, defacing the Qur'an, writing comments and remarks on the Qur'an, tearing pages out of the Qur'an and denying detainees a copy of the Qur'an.
By 2008 there had been at least 4 completed suicides and hundreds of suicide attempts in Guantanamo that are public knowledge. No information is available on the number of suicides of prisoners that are classified secret, or their suicide attempts. On June 10, 2006, three detainees were found dead, who, according to the Pentagon, "killed themselves in an apparent suicide pact".
1.) Lasting security and real justice for the victims of terrorism cannot be achieved without real justice and respect for human rights.
2.) Illegally detained in US custody at Guantánamo and elsewhere are not being released.
3.) Those held at Guantánamo and elsewhere, including in secret detention centres, are human beings who haven't seen their homes or families for years and have faced torture and other ill-treatment.
4.) Indefinite and secret detentions are contrary to just human rights and are against international law.
5.) Each day that illegal detention at Guantánamo and elsewhere continues is a day too long.
Tearitdown.org is Amnesty International's global initiative to end illegal US detentions and a major online action under Amnesty International's campaign to Counter Terror With Justice.
For more on Bloggers Unite for Human Rights, Click Here!


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Colts are in a favorable salary cap position for 2019
Scott Horner
The Indianapolis Colts may be in the NFL's best financial position as they head toward the 2019 season.
General manager Chris Ballard didn't break the bank last offseason, relying on the draft for many additions. First-round pick Quenton Nelson and second-round pick Darius Leonard earned All-Pro honors. The biggest free agent contracts went to tight end Eric Ebron (who made the Pro Bowl) and defensive lineman Denico Autry (who earned a Player of the Week honor). They made a few midseason pickups to address injury issues (notably Mike Mitchell, Dontrelle Inman and Evan Boehm).
The Colts expect to have nine draft picks, including the New York Jets' second-round pick, which will be 34th overall.
On top of all that, the Colts have $122.4 million available in salary cap space heading into the offseason, according to Spotrac, plus the anticipated return of tight end Jack Doyle, whose season ended prematurely because of injury.
Colts Insider: The offseason still has plenty of action. Keep up with it with our email newsletter
The highest-paid player who didn't make a large impact in 2018 was receiver Ryan Grant, who was on a one-year, $5 million deal. He had 35 catches for 334 yards and one touchdown.
Inman, who appeared in 10 regular-season games (28 catches, 304 yards, three TDs) and had eight catches for 108 yards and a TD in the playoffs, may have been the best bargain (player listed at less than $500,000 for the 2018 season).
The following players are not listed as under contract for next season: Grant, PK Adam Vinatieri, DL Al Woods, DL Margus Hunt, OL Matt Slauson, CB Pierre Desir, OL Mark Glowinski, TE Ryan Hewitt, S Clayton Geathers, S Matthias Farley, TE Ross Travis, LB Najee Goode, DB Chris Milton, DB Corey Moore, LS Luke Rhodes, WR Chester Rogers, Mitchell, Boehm, Inman and OL J'Marcus Webb.
Who should the Colts target to bring back?
Players and their 2018 and '19 salary cap hits
Andrew Luck: $24 million, 27.5M
T.Y. Hilton: $13M, 15M
Anthony Castonzo: $10.8M, 11.1M
Jabaal Sheard: $7.5M, 8M
Denico Autry: $6.875M, 4.88M
Eric Ebron: $6.75M, 6.75M
Jack Doyle: $5.33M, 5.34M
Ryan Grant: $5M, not under contract
Quenton Nelson: $4.34M, 5.3M
Adam Vinatieri: $3.63M, not under contract
Malik Hooker: $2.86M, 3.4M
Ryan Kelly: $2.85M, 3.33M
Al Woods: $2.5M, not under contract
Margus Hunt: $2.47M, not under contract
Matt Slauson: $1,98M, not under contract
Pierre Desir: $1.75M, not under contract
Darius Leonard: $1.32M, 1.65M
Quincy Wilson: $1.31M, 1.58M
Braden Smith: $1.3M, 1.63M
Mark Glowinski: $1.22M, not under contract
Ryan Hewitt: $952,000, not under contract
Kemoko Turay: $948,800, 1.19M
Clayton Geathers: $838,482, not under contract
Le'Raven Clark: $836,433, 926,433
Tyquan Lewis: $793,828, 992,285
Hassan Ridgeway: $770,055, 860,057
Jacoby Brissett: $760,076, 915,114
Joe Haeg: $690,602, 789,604
Nyheim Hines: $661,136, 751,136
Marlon Mack: $659,912, 749,912
Grover Stewart: $659,912, 749,912
Matthias Farley: $630,000, not under contract
Ross Travis: $630,000, not under contract
Najee Goode: $630,000, not under contract
Chris Milton: $630,000, not under contract
Corey Moore: $630,000, not under contract
Luke Rhodes: $630,000, not under contract
Chester Rogers: $630,000, not under contract
Nate Hairston: $621,946, 711,946
Anthony Walker: $621,353, 711,353
Rigoberto Sanchez: $559,000, 649,000
Brad Kaaya: $555,000, not under contract
Kenny Moore: $555,000, 645,000
Jordan Wilkins: $540,310, 630,310
Matthew Adams: $505,395, 595,395
Zaire Franklin: $501,764, 591,764
George Odum: $484,333, 574,333
Zach Pascal: $480,000, 570,000
Jihad Ward: $453,530, 720,000
Mike Mitchell: $444,706, not under contract
Evan Boehm, $444,705, not under contract
Marcus Johnson: $440,470, not under contract
Dontrelle Inman: $407,647, not under contract
J'Marcus Webb: $406,941, not under contract
Ronald Martin: $393,000, not under contract
James Wright: $393,000, 645,000
Al-Quadin Muhammad: $391,764, 645,000
Deon Cain: $389,408, 536,408
Carroll Phillips: $384,176, 645,000
Mo Alie-Cox: $338,820, 570,000
Josh Andrews: $222,354, not under contract
Jonathan Williams: $222,354, not under contract
Skai Moore: $212,118, not under contract
Reece Fountain: $112,940, 570,000
J.J. Wilcox: $92,941, not under contract
Ahmad Thomas: $84,705, 570,000

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Editors' Choice, Featured, Global Governance, Headlines, Human Rights, Migration & Refugees, Press Freedom, TerraViva United Nations
Reporting from Inside a Refugee Detention Centre
By Andy Hazel	Reprint | | Print | |En español
Journalist and asylum seeker Behrouz Boochani is detained indefinitely by the Australian government on Papua New Guinea's Manus Island. Credit: Aref Heidari.
UNITED NATIONS, Dec 29 2016 (IPS) - Despite being locked up in an Australian detention centre on Papua New Guinea's Manus Island, Kurdish-Iranian journalist Behrouz Boochani has continued reporting – gaining bylines and media attention around the world.
Journalism is the reason Boochani was forced to flee his home country of Iran, and – like the other 900 men detained indefinitely on Manus Island – seek refuge in Australia.
"When the Australian government exiled me to Manus Island I found out that they are basing their policy on secrecy and dishonesty," Boochani told IPS.
"In my first days here I started to work to send out the voice of people in Manus. Why did I start? Because the Australian government's policy of indefinite detention is against my principles and values, and against global human values."
"I know that I am a refugee but I'm a journalist and writer too. I have been denied my identity as a journalist because of this refugee concept and most of the media don't care about that." -- Behrouz Boochani
Boochani worked as a freelance writer in Iran and founded the magazine Werya, devoted to exploring Kurdish politics, culture and history. In February 2013 the offices of Werya were raided by the paramilitary agency the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, also known as Sepah, classified by the US government as a terrorist organisation.
Boochani was in a different city when 11 of his colleagues were arrested. The story he wrote about the raid on the website Iranian Reporters quickly went global and put him in the government's sights and he fled.
Boochani spent his first two years in detention writing and publishing articles under a fake name, for fear of losing the mobile phone that has been his lifeline since arriving on Manus Island.
"We were not allowed to have phones until April this year," he explains. "The guards twice searched my room looking for my phone. After two years of sending out my work in this way I felt that I had become part of Australian society and with the support of (international organisations) PEN International and Reporters Without Borders, I started to use my real name. I would never say that I'm not scared, but I say that fear is not powerful enough to stop me or prevent me from working on my mission. It's my duty to document all of what happens here."
What has been happening on Manus Island has attracted global condemnation. In May the UN Human Rights Council condemned the detention centre and Papua New Guinea affirmed that it would be shut down. Since then, the Australian government have declared the centre 'open', meaning that inmates can come and go freely though they cannot leave the island. Boochani and other detainees have spoken of being encouraged to accept residency in Papua New Guinea, despite attacks on detainees from both local residents and police forces. Returning to Iran, Boochani says, is not an option.
"PEN International and a coalition of human rights groups launched an international campaign on behalf of Mr Boochani in September 2015. The campaign called for Mr Boochani's request for asylum to be processed by Australian immigration officials as soon as possible and urged the Australian government to abide by their obligations to the principle of non-refoulement—as defined by Article 33 of the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. Despite numerous approaches to the Australian government and relevant ministers and departments, by the campaign coalition and its supporters, there has been no response from senior government officials."
– PEN International letter to Australian Minister of Immigration Hon. Peter Dutton MP, November 3, 2016
"The political situation in Iran does not change especially for Kurdish people. There are about 20 journalists still in prison there. In November, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution against the Iranian regime for violating human rights. Last year they hanged more than 1,000 people. How can I go back?"
Since arriving in Manus Island, Boochani has written for Australian and international newspapers and radio programs and co-directed the feature length documentary about life on Manus Island Chauka, Please Tell Us the Time. He has continued to write articles about Kurdish culture and politics for Kurdish media, published poetry and essays, contributed to two forthcoming books and completed his first novel, due in mid-2017.
One of the greatest challenges facing Boochani is what he calls "the refugee concept", the willingness of Australian and international media to use his insight and words but to cast him as a "broken man" or a refugee.
"This is a big form of censorship," he says. "I know that I am a refugee but I'm a journalist and writer too. I have been denied my identity as a journalist because of this refugee concept and most of the media don't care about that. When I have found a subject for a story and provided information and documents to other journalists sometimes they have ignored me, or other times they published a story on the basis of my information but denied my identity by referring to me only as a refugee. I'm doing the same job as other journalists in Australia or anywhere else, but I am always called a refugee."
Overcoming the international concept of Australia as a peaceful, law-abiding nation with a relaxed attitude to life also presents a difficulty to Boochani as a journalist. "We are being tortured by a western country and the media and human rights organisations find it hard to believe that a country like Australia is implementing policies that are the same in many ways as Iran or Saudi Arabia," he says. "I am a prisoner like the others here. It's hard to work in this situation. I have to endure prison and torture and at the same time work as a journalist or human rights defender."
The Manus Island detention centre holds around 900 men, most of whom are refugees intercepted en route to Australia having fled conflicts in countries such as Sudan or Syria, or persecution as is the case with Rohingyas from Myanmar.
The detention centre is a key part of a multi-billion-dollar bilateral agreement between the Papua New Guinean and Australian governments. Condemnation of Australia's offshore detention of asylum seekers has come from several branches of the United Nations including the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Committee Against Torture, the High Commissioner for Refugees, the Special Rapporteur on torture and the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants.
While identifying as a journalist and writer, Boochani is not motivated by profit.
"If I do work for money, I will lose my way. The important thing is to send out a voice from Manus and let people know the reality."
"I am a journalist, I am a writer, I am a prisoner. The history of this prison is written in my hand … I am here with only a phone and my tongue and say: I am more than you know. The Australian government made a mistake exiling a journalist to this prison and keeping him as hostage. Writing is my mission, my work, it is me."
Correction: An earlier version of this article said that the UN Human Rights Council had declared Manus Island Detention Centre illegal. The council condemned the centre, and in response the PNG government declared it illegal.
Follow @@AndyRickie
Manus Island
Can you correct the link in paragraph 9 which is supposed to link to the UN Human Rights committee declaring the detention centre illegal.
It currently links to a UN review of PNG's response to a human rights report I didn't see any such declaration about the detention centre by the UN.
Lyndal Rowlands
Thank you – have amended. – Ed.


I have a guest post over at Matthew Nisbet's new Age of Engagement.
The blog had featured a post about modern fan culture and marketing. I couldn't help but fold this into some thoughts on science communication. Can an awareness of tensions and connections between fan culture and entertainment marketing have applications for work aiming to connect members of "the public" with scientific ideas and communities? I left a comment and Nisbet asked me to expand as a post.
It's something I've thought about a bit over the last few years. I discussed the notion of a rhetorical reference to a community of readers in my PhD, and discussed audience-to-audience interaction with students when teaching courses on science online and science's interactions with fiction. I also wrote an article a couple of years back about branding and children's literature which involved some study of social marketing. I should admit the blogpost was slightly hastily put together though, grabbing through some disparate ideas on something that there probably should be more research into. There's a load more I could say around the topic, I'm still working out how to put them together, and what would make the right case study. I'd love to hear further thoughts (or examples, from science and/ or fan culture), either here of over at the Big Think post itself.
Nisbet's been blogging about science communication for a while. His 'Framing Science' at scienceblogs is mentioned in my list of blog recommendations for prospective students last month). His new blog promises to maintain this interest, but take a broader look at communication, culture and public affairs, as well as reinvigorate his interest in the relationship between science and religion (see his introductory post for more details).
He's been setting up in his new home with a prestigious quantity of posts for the start of term. I've already been interested to read pieces reflecting upon the NYTimes article about peer review, and (re)framings of nuclear power. The Big Think site it is hosted on is sometimes known as the YouTube for ideas, and there are a fair number of videos in blogposts (which I'd say is a good thing, something and plan to experiment with myself in the next year).
So, go read my ramblings on fan culture and public engagement, let me know if you have any thoughts, and do add Nisbet's new blog to your list of regular reads.
This entry was posted in blogging, engagement, fiction, geekculture, media, publics, web and tagged blogging, engagement, fiction, geek culture, media, publics, web on August 28, 2010 by alice.


Shot to the heart! Arrow, Chicago Med and The Affair actor Colin Donnell said "I do" to Broadway actress Patti Murin Friday evening in a New York City celebration that included fellow Arrow co-star Stephen Amell and a nod to the bride's favorite reality TV show, The Bachelorette, according to E! News.
"Last night on #TheBachelorette, Colin D. took home the most dramatic rose ceremony ever," Murin wrote on Twitter, detailing a rose ceremony that included another star guest, Broadway actor Andrew Rannells. "Thank you @AndrewRannells for being my Chris Harrison. I love you to pieces."
Murin tweeted again, nailing home her affection for the show: "But seriously you guys, @AndrewRannells and I literally held a rose ceremony. Like, we went there."
Photos snapped by the actor's older brother, editorial photographer Ryan Donnell, and posted to Twitter show the couple deliriously happy. Photographer Laurie Marie Duncan was also on hand to capture the couple, Murin dressed in an ivory rouched gown with delicate lace detail on its straps, and Donnell decked in a classic black-and-white suit. The bride carried a round bouquet of champagne and ivory-colored roses.
Murin also took to Twitter to show off her wedding band and engagement ring, which appears to be a square-cut emerald.
"All I want to do is talk about our wedding last night so please bear with me for a few days," Murin captioned the photo of her rings. "We are officially hitched!"
The couple also shared a bit of their love story with their guests, labeling their "Colin & Patti's Central Park Punch" signature cocktail with a description of how they met. The cocktail, a mixture of gin and creme de violette liqueur, was created by cocktail book author Tim Federle, who riffed off the couple's love story and Shakespearean plays to develop the mixture. How adorable!


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Sony/ATV: We'll share Tencent equity profits with our songwriters | Music Business Worldwide
Yesterday (June 4), MBW revealed that Sony/ATV Music Publishing owns an equity stake in Tencent Music Entertainment.
Other music industry parties who own a chunk of the Chinese company – which is majority owned by media giant Tencent – include EMI Music Publishing and Universal Music Group (via EMI Group Ltd.).
Tencent Music Entertainment is expected to launch an IPO in the US later this year, which could value it at $25bn.
To put things into perspective, if Sony/ATV (or the other music parties) owned a 0.5% stake in TME and sold its shares at that valuation, the music company would take home $125m.
If it owned 1% of TME equity, Sony/ATV, which is run by Martin Bandier (pictured), would take home $250m.
Sony/ATV has now told MBW that it will share any proceeds from the sale of its stake in TME with its songwriters.
"If at any time the company's equity in Tencent Music Entertainment is monetized our songwriters will share the benefits of it, which is our customary practice," said a spokesperson for the publisher.
"If at any time the company's equity in Tencent Music Entertainment is monetized our songwriters will share the benefits of it, which is our customary practice."
Sony/ATV Spokesperson
That's in line with policies from the major record companies in terms of their approach to profits made from their stakes in Spotify, which floated on the New York Stock Exchange on April 3.
Since then, Sony Music has sold over 50% of its stakes in Spotify for around $750m, while Warner has sold 75% of its shares for over $400m.
Both have committed to sharing this money with artists and label partners.
MBW has verified that Sony/ATV and the other major publishers (UMPG and Warner/Chappell) do not and have never owned stakes in Spotify.
In December last year, Tencent took control of a 9.1% stake in Spotify – of which, around a quarter was directly owned by TME.
In return, as part of a stock swap, Spotify took control of a non-controlling equity interest of approximately 9% in Tencent Music Entertainment.
MBW understands that Sony/ATV managed to get hold of equity in China Music Corp (CMC), before Tencent acquired a majority stake in the then-$2.7bn-valued company in 2016.
As part of that merger, TME took control of Kuwo and KuGou.
Sony Corp is the 100% owner of Sony/ATV, following a $750m deal with the Jackson Estate in 2016.Music Business Worldwide
[from https://ift.tt/2kVf04A]


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Modla může znamenat:
 Modla – předmět náboženského uctívání, zobrazení boha
 Modla (Chřiby) – vrch v pohoří Chřiby
 Modla (potok) – přítok Labe v okrese Litoměřice
 Modla (oslovení) - hanlivé oslovování pobožného člověka
 Modła – název více vesnic v Polsku

Rozcestníky - místopisné jméno

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
\section{Introduction}
As in classical devices, measurement-based feedback control is expected to become an indispensable tool for stabilization and protection of individual quantum systems against decoherence~\cite{Dowling:2003, Giovannetti:2011, Escher:2011}. But quantum feedback control is fundamentally different to its classical counterpart, due to the inevitable backaction caused by a measurement~\cite{Braginsky:1980, Braginsky:1992, Wiseman:1994, Lloyd:2000, Nelson:2000, Smith:2002, Steck:2004, Gillett:2010, Sayrin:2011, Vijay:2012}. The latter is famously exemplified in Heisenberg's microscope thought experiment~\cite{Heisenberg:1949} that demonstrates how position measurements perturb the momentum of a particle and thus heat the motional degrees of freedom. Here we investigate parametric feedback for cooling a single neutral atom in an optical cavity in the regime where the quantum backaction from the measurement easily disturbs the atomic motion. Our technique makes use of position information extracted from a probe laser transmitted through the cavity, and requires only a single control laser along the cavity axis to actuate on the atomic motion, making it ideally suited to miniaturized systems with poor optical access for additional cooling beams. Cooling atoms in cavities is not only of interest for investigating quantum feedback and control but also improves the localization of the atom in the cavity mode and thus the coupling strength, which is crucial for the observation of a variety of fundamental quantum effects~\cite{Birnbaum:2005, Schuster:2008, Kubanek:2008, Ourjoumtsev:2011}. In contrast to previously demonstrated feedback schemes that rely on single-shot or discrete algorithms~\cite{Fischer:2002, Kubanek:2009, Koch:2010}, the technique described here employs a continuous parametric feedback strategy. Effectively, this increases the duty cycle, decreases the required measurement rate, and can thus cool the fast ($\sim$ 500\,kHz) oscillation of the atom along the axis of a standing-wave cavity field. We also demonstrate an increase of the average storage time of a single atom in the cavity by a factor of 60 to more than 2 seconds.

Parametric excitation of large numbers of particles in a confining potential is familiar in cold atom physics, where it is known as a major source of heating in far off-resonance optical traps~\cite{Savard:1997, Gehm:1998} and is often used to measure trapping frequencies~\cite{Friebel:1998}. In addition, it has been demonstrated that parametric excitation in an anharmonic trap can selectively evaporate atoms with higher energies, leading to cooling~\cite{Poli:2002}. Parametric resonance phenomena have also been studied in micro- and nano-electromechanical systems~\cite{Turner:1998}, and parametric feedback has been used to stabilize nano-mechanical oscillators~\cite{Villanueva:2011} and to generate squeezing~\cite{Vinante:2013}.

Continuous parametric cooling of a single particle by active feedback was recently investigated~\cite{Gieseler:2012} and cooling of a laser-trapped nanoparticle to a center-of-mass temperature of less than 1\,mK was demonstrated~\cite{Jain:2016}. However, in these experiments the particle undergoing feedback was much more massive than a single atom, and therefore remained virtually undisturbed by the measurement. Weak probing and long integration times reduce the measurement-induced back action enabling sub-Doppler cooling of a single ion in a Paul trap through direct feedback~\cite{Bushev:2006}. However, in contrast to an ion that is held in a trapping potential that exceeds its kinetic energy by orders of magnitude, the atom in our experiment is held in a much shallower optical potential that exceeds its kinetic energy only by about a factor of two~\cite{Koch:2010}. Therefore, the atom is very sensitive to the measurement-induced back action and its motion decoheres after only a few oscillations in the trap.

Our feedback technique relies crucially on a continuous, weak probing of the atomic position, from which we update the parametric feedback amplitude and phase on a timescale comparable to the oscillation period. The system is in the strong-coupling regime of cavity quantum electrodynamics (QED), where the cavity resonance splits into two normal modes and the transmission at the empty-cavity resonance is reduced to near zero. As the atom moves away from the center of the cavity mode, the coupling strength is reduced and the transmission increases. Continuous modulation of the trap potential with an amplitude and phase determined by the measured probe transmission removes kinetic energy from the atom. Note that the velocity-dependent cooling force originates from the periodic modulation of the conservative force confining the atom, not from two subsequent position measurements that are made to determine the velocity of the atom~\cite{Fischer:2002, Kubanek:2009, Koch:2010}. As a matter of principle, this allows one to reduce the measurement rate and therefore the associated measurement-induced back action from the probe beam. In fact, cooling in our experiment is achieved with a probe beam intensity so low that the resulting photon detection rate is smaller than or at most on the same order as the trap frequency, either $\sim$~5\,kHz or $\sim$~500\,kHz.

\section{Experimental setup}

\fig{1.00}{figure1}{(Color online.) Experimental setup. A single atom is trapped inside the optical cavity by a red-detuned dipole trap. This system is probed with a resonant beam that is detected by avalanche photo diodes (APDs) in photon counting mode and demodulated in real-time at a preset frequency $f_{\text{pfb}}$ on a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) shown in the green box. The amplitude and phase are extracted and used to feedback to the atom via a sinusoidal intensity modulation of the dipole trap. The parameter $\phi_{\text{pfb}}$ advances the phase of the feedback with respect to the atom's oscillation to enable cooling.}

Our cavity QED apparatus has been described in detail elsewhere \cite{Koch:2010,Koch:2011}. Briefly, single $^{85}$Rb atoms launched from an atomic fountain are captured in a standing wave dipole trap inside a high-finesse ($\mathcal{F} = 195,000$) Fabry-Perot cavity of length 260\,$\mu$m (Figure \ref{fig:figure1}). The maximal atom-cavity coupling constant $g/2\pi = 16$\,MHz exceeds both the atomic dipole decay rate ($\gamma/2\pi = 3.0$\,MHz) and the field decay rate of the cavity ($\kappa/2\pi = 1.5$\,MHz), placing our system in the strong coupling regime of cavity QED $g \gg (\gamma,\kappa)$. The dipole trap beam is red-detuned by four free-spectral ranges from the rubidium D$_2$ line at $\lambda=780$\,nm, and also serves to stabilize the cavity length. The intracavity dipole trap power is typically 950\,nW, creating a trap with depth $k_B \times 850\,\mu$K and harmonic oscillation frequencies $\omega_\rho/2\pi = 4.8$\,kHz and $\omega_z/2\pi = 500\,$kHz in the radial and axial directions, respectively.

Our weak measurement of the atom's position in the cavity comes from the transmission of a weak ($\sim 3$\,pW) TEM$_{00}$ probe beam which is close to resonance with the $5S_{1/2}, F=3\rightarrow5P_{3/2},F=4$ cycling transition. As a consequence of the normal-mode splitting, the probe transmission at empty cavity resonance drops monotonically as the coupling strength increases \cite{Boca:2004,Maunz:2005,Kubanek:2011}. This strength, however, varies as a function of position due to the cavity mode function, which has a Gaussian profile in the radial direction and varies sinusoidally with a period of $\lambda/2$ along the cavity axis due to the standing wave pattern of the probe beam. The cavity transmission therefore directly depends on the position of the atom in the cavity mode.

\fig{1.0}{figure2}{(Color online.) Observing the atomic motion. (a) Transmission for a typical atom storage event; low transmission indicates the presence of an atom. The zoomed-in section shows how the FPGA locks to the atomic oscillation. The black (solid) trace is the measured cavity transmission, the red (dotted) is related to the inferred atomic oscillation amplitude (see text), and the green (dashed) is the local oscillator phase-locked to the measured atomic oscillation. Below in blue (solid) is shown the measured phase difference between the local oscillator and the atomic motion. (b) Fourier transform of measured transmission. The peak appears below the expected frequency of $2\omega_\rho/2\pi$ due to the nonlinear dependence of cavity transmission on radial position. It is broadened due to the measurement back action, reflecting decoherence of the atomic oscillation by the probing laser beam. A fit incorporating the nonlinear transmission function, which connects the atomic position to the transmitted intensity, yields a $Q$-factor of 2.8 (see text for details).}

As the atom oscillates back and forth in the trapping potential, the coupling constant and thus the cavity transmission vary at twice the oscillation frequency. The transmitted probe signal is demodulated at approximately this frequency, and the amplitude and phase of the motion are fed back via modulation of the intracavity dipole trap intensity in order to cool the atom. An example feedback trace is shown in Figure \ref{fig:figure2}(a). The detected amplitude is used to adjust the modulation strength, which allows us to damp the feedback for very cold atoms which yield insufficient phase information to suppress heating. Continual updating of the modulation phase based on the information obtained from the measurement is critical to the success of this method. If the phase were fixed, the oscillating atom would phase-lock to the parametric drive and its energy would increase exponentially, eventually expelling it from the trap. To avoid this, phase of the feedback signal is adjusted according to the measured phase difference between the local oscillator and the atomic motion (blue trace in Fig. \ref{fig:figure2}a) plus a variable phase advance $\phi_\text{pfb}$.

The price paid for this measurement, of course, is that the atom can also scatter probe photons into free space modes outside of the cavity. The random nature of this spontaneous emission leads to decoherence of the atom's oscillatory motion and heating. In our experiment, the scattering rate during radial feedback was roughly 20\,kHz, which is sufficient to decohere atomic oscillations in the dipole trap within a few periods. Our feedback loop therefore operates in the regime of poor quality factor, where a measurement can only be used to predict the future motion of the atom for a short time.

We measure the quality factor of the oscillation by fitting the Fourier transform of the cavity transmission (Fig.\ \ref{fig:figure2}b). This analysis needs to take into account the nonlinear atom-cavity coupling function and the anharmonicity of the trapping potential. The cavity transmission relates nonlinearly to the actual (radial) atomic position via the cavity coupling function $g(r) \sim e^{-r^2/w_0^2}$. Additionally, the anharmonic potential causes the atomic oscillation frequency to depend on amplitude (higher amplitudes result in lower frequencies), which skews the transmission peak towards lower frequencies. We fit the measured transmission using a damped harmonic oscillator model that incorporates these effects, as well as a $1/f$ noise background from the photodetectors. This is shown as the solid line in Fig.\ \ref{fig:figure2}b, and yields a quality factor of $Q = 2.8\pm0.1$.

The cavity transmission is measured by four avalanche photodiodes (APDs) in photon counting mode and sent to a field-programmable gate array, which also runs the feedback algorithm (Fig.\ \ref{fig:figure1}). The FPGA output controls an AOM which modulates the intensity of the dipole trap laser (and thus the trap stiffness) at frequency $f_{\textrm{pfb}}$, with a phase and amplitude determined by the measured atomic motion.

The feedback algorithm implemented on the FPGA is shown schematically in Fig.\ \ref{fig:figure1}. It begins by summing the number of photons detected during 8\,ns time intervals. This signal is sent through a moving average low-pass filter with a 3\,dB bandwidth of 3.2\,MHz, and the in-phase and out-of-phase quadrature components are extracted by multiplying it with a local oscillator. These two channels represent the complex oscillation amplitudes at the feedback frequency $f_{\text{pfb}}$. These amplitudes are integrated by another moving average filter, with the integration time $\tau$ adjusted to an integer multiple of the oscillation period, $\tau = n / f_{\text{pfb}}$. The moving average therefore acts as a low-pass filter with a 3\,dB bandwidth of $n \times 0.44f_{\text{pfb}}$. Non-integer multiples will lead to artefacts, especially when $\tau$ is on the order of only a few oscillation periods. As this filtering is applied in the complex plane, it acts as a resolution bandwidth filter (RBW) allowing to extract the narrow-band spectral component at $f_{\text{pfb}}$.

A subsequent complex-to-polar conversion extracts the magnitude and phase information from the complex oscillation amplitude. Note that the inferred magnitude (red curve in Fig. \ref{fig:figure2}a) represents the amplitude of the atomic oscillation as expressed by the cavity transmission, which relates nonlinearly to the actual atomic position via the cavity coupling function (see above). The phase is used to lock the local oscillator generated by the FPGA to the detected oscillation. The phase of the oscillator is additionally advanced by the parameter $\phi_{\text{pfb}}$, which allows us to tune the feedback algorithm to either heat or cool the atom. The amplitude of the output modulation is varied depending on the inferred magnitude of the atomic oscillation.

\section{Radial feedback results}

The performance of the feedback algorithm is determined by measuring the average time for which a captured atom remains in the trap before escaping. Since capture attempts are not always successful, we require that an atom remains in the cavity mode for at least 2\,ms (corresponding to $\sim10$ radial oscillation periods) for it to be considered trapped. Storage times are averaged over at least 100 individual measurements of a trapped atom.

The optimum modulation amplitude was found empirically to be 11\% for the maximum inferred atomic oscillation (that which causes the transmission to increase to its empty-cavity value), corresponding to an increase in the trap depth by $k_B \times 90\,\mu$K. A typical modulation during feedback was 6\%. The optimum integration time was found to be one oscillation period, $\tau = 1/f_{\text{pfb}}$. This is expected due to the low $Q$-factor: the measurement back action renders the atomic motion incoherent over timescales longer than the oscillation period, so integrating for longer than this degrades our estimate of the atom's amplitude and phase.

\fig{1.0}{figure3}{(Color online.) Radial parametric feedback. Average storage time of an atom in the cavity as a function of phase advance $\phi_{\text{pfb}}$ for various feedback frequencies. The phase advance which gives optimal cooling decreases as the feedback frequency increases. Error bars represent the standard error in the mean for the storage time. The lines are fits of a periodic Gaussian that is used to determine the ideal phase advance. The dashed horizontal line shows the average storage time without feedback.}

Figure \ref{fig:figure3} shows the average storage time with feedback for single atoms trapped in the cavity, as a function of the phase advance $\phi_{\text{pfb}}$ and for $f_{\text{pfb}} = 4$, 7 and 10\,kHz. These frequencies are too slow to interact with the axial atomic motion and therefore affect only the radial oscillation, whose natural frequency is 4.8\,kHz. Nonetheless, the feedback has a strong effect on the storage times, which for $f_{\text{pfb}} = 7$\,kHz vary by more than two orders of magnitude as $\phi_{\text{pfb}}$ is tuned. Both cooling and heating are observed at different values of the phase advance, and the phase advance which results in the best cooling performance decreases as the feedback frequency is increased. The maximum average storage time is approximately 2\,s at $f_{\text{pfb}} = 7$\,kHz, and occurs at a phase advance of approximately $\phi_{\text{pfb}} = \pi/2$. By contrast, the average storage time without feedback is $(55 \pm 5)$\,ms.

The qualitative behavior observed is as expected for a parametrically driven oscillator. When the parametric modulation is out of phase with the oscillator's motion, the potential relaxes when the oscillator is at the center of its swing and stiffens as it reaches the turning points, thus amplifying its motion. When the modulation is in phase, on the other hand, the situation is reversed and the oscillator's motion is damped. Normally, near a parametric resonance, the oscillator phase-locks to the drive and absorbs energy exponentially. However, our active feedback algorithm maintains the phase difference between the measured atomic motion and the parametric drive, preventing phase locking and allowing us to parametrically cool as well as heat.

\fig[b]{1.0}{figure4}{(Color online.) Radial parametric feedback versus feedback frequency. Measured average storage time (circles, solid line) and optimal phase advance (squares, dotted line) as a function of feedback frequency $f_{\text{pfb}}$. The error bars represent the standard error in the mean for the storage time, and the fitting error in the determination of optimal phase.}

We also investigate the performance of the feedback algorithm as a function of the parametric driving frequency $f_{\text{pfb}}$. The maximum average storage time, obtained from fits such as those shown in Fig.\ \ref{fig:figure3}, is plotted as a function of $f_{\text{pfb}}$ in Fig.\ 4, as well as the phase advance at which the corresponding maximum was measured. The feedback performance peaks at around $f_{\text{pfb}} = 7$\,kHz before falling off at higher frequencies. The optimal phase advance crosses $\pi/2$ at the peak in the cooling performance. The observed behavior is due to a combination of the detection procedure and the parametric oscillator response. The oscillator response is maximum at the principal parametric resonance at $2\omega_\rho/2\pi$, with smaller peaks at the higher order resonances $2\omega_\rho /2\pi n$. The in-phase/quadrature (IQ) demodulation, with a moving average filter whose kernel length is exactly one oscillation period, results in a broad sinc-shaped envelope which shifts the peak lower in frequency. Longer integration times would give a sharper peak closer to the parametric resonance.

\section{Axial feedback results}

Previous attempts to apply feedback cooling to the fast oscillation of an atom along a standing wave dipole trap have failed~\cite{Kubanek:2009,Koch:2010}, since not enough information about the atom's position could be obtained within a single oscillation period to effect useful feedback. Here, we show that our new technique can also be applied to cool the atom's motion along the cavity axis, which due to the standing wave trapping potential has a much higher natural oscillation frequency of approximately 500\,kHz. This is possible because the feedback algorithm exploits our pre-knowledge of the oscillation frequency (both in demodulating the transmission signal at $2\omega_z/2\pi$ and in modulating the trap stiffness at this frequency), and thus relies less on information extracted from the real-time measurement of cavity transmission.

\fig{1.0}{figure5}{(Color online.) Axial parametric feedback. Performance of axial feedback cooling at $f_{\text{pfb}} = 625$\,kHz, corresponding to twice the natural oscillation frequency of the atom along the axis of the standing wave dipole trap. The data points represent experimental measurements of storage time averaged over at least 100 runs per point, and the solid line is a sinusoidal fit to the data. Error bars represent the standard error in the mean for the storage time.}

Figure \ref{fig:figure5} shows the average storage time as a function of phase advance $\phi_{\text{pfb}}$ for a feedback loop operated at $f_{\text{pfb}} = 625$\,kHz, which was found empirically to give the best feedback performance. The modulation amplitude was 36\% for the maximum inferred atomic oscillation. (Note that the phase advance $\phi_{\text{pfb}}$ here is not absolute, as small delays in the signal path are not negligible at these frequencies.) As in Fig.\ \ref{fig:figure3}, it is seen that the algorithm is capable of either cooling or heating the atom, depending on whether the parametric feedback is kept in phase or out of phase with the axial oscillation. At the optimal phase advance, the average storage time shows an improvement of more than 30\% compared to the case without feedback. Note that the storage time without feedback, $(7.1\pm0.3)$\,ms, is smaller than in Fig.\ \ref{fig:figure3} due to the fact that the probe power was increased by a factor of 10 compared to the radial feedback experiments, which is necessary to ensure the algorithm has enough information to operate at the higher frequency. The success of axial cooling demonstrates the speed and versatility of our parametric feedback algorithm. We note that the atoms are expected to move less in the axial direction since cavity cooling acts along this axis, which may explain the relative effectiveness of radial feedback over axial feedback.

\section{Conclusions and Outlook}

We have demonstrated a continuous parametric feedback algorithm that efficiently cools a single atom held in a standing wave dipole trap within an optical cavity. The back action caused by our measurement of the atom's position decoheres its oscillatory motion within a few periods; nonetheless, by applying feedback to the radial motion of the atom, its average storage time can be increased by a factor of 60 to 2\,s. Additionally, the feedback algorithm is able to damp the motion of the atom in either the radial direction or along the cavity axis, where it oscillates at a frequency of about 500\,kHz.

In addition to experiments on measurement-based quantum feedback, our work has immediate impact on fundamental investigations of quantum-optical phenomena and application-oriented research in quantum-information processing. This comes from the fact that cooling improves the localization of the atom in the cavity mode and thus the atom-cavity coupling strength $g$. With all parameters of the atom and the cavity alone kept constant, the increase of $g$ has (at least) two distinct advantages: First, it directly increases the photon-number dependent splitting between the dressed states of the strongly coupled atom-cavity system. This makes it easier to selectively drive single- or even multi-photon transitions between certain pairs of these states. As a result, genuine quantum-nonlinear phenomena like photon blockade \cite{Birnbaum:2005,Hamsen:2017} and conditional phase shifts \cite{Turchette:1995,Beck:2016} become more pronounced. Second, a stronger atom-cavity coupling enhances the photon emission and absorption rate of an atom into and from the cavity, respectively, as compared to the corresponding rates in free space \cite{Northup:2014,Reiserer:2015}. This is a reminiscence of the Purcell effect and makes the atom more one-dimensional from a radiation point of view. It dramatically improves the efficiencies of unidirectional atom-photon quantum devices including entangled-qubit sources \cite{Wilk:2007,Weber:2009,Stute:2012} and single-qubit memories \cite{Specht:2011,Korber:2018}. In addition to these advantages, cooling not only increases the average value of $g$ but also decreases the thermal fluctuations of $g$. This makes it easier to discriminate between classical and quantum noise and possibly even eliminate the former completely. Last but not least, the fact that our technique uses only information extracted from the cavity transmission makes it ideally suited to miniaturized systems with large atom-cavity coupling but without optical access for additional cooling beams \cite{Dayan:2008,Gehr:2010,Rosenblum:2015,Scheucher:2016}.

\section{Acknowledgements}

\begin{acknowledgments}
C.S.\ acknowledges financial support from the Bavarian Ph.D.\ program of excellence QCCC, P.A.\ from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and the European Union through the Marie Curie Initial Training Network CCQED (Project No. 264666), and C.H. from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft via the excellence cluster Nanosystems Initiative Munich (NIM).
\end{acknowledgments}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


The Additional Notes will be consolidated and treated as a single class with the existing EUR 350m 5% senior secured notes due 2023.
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We've been asked to help out at Opti Nationals this year in Patchogue.
Specifically, our help is needed for measurement on Tuesday (July 22), and the supervision/coordination of opti launching and retrieval each morning and afternoon (Wednesday thru Sunday, July 23-27).
To enable an easy "Self-Service" sign up process, we've set up a spreadsheet that everyone can access (no password needed) to fill in your volunteer times. Just click and sign up for for times when you can help out.
Although you can access the site at anytime to add, update, change or move your desired volunteer times, please sign up early so we know if there are areas that need more help.
The link will also be on the LISOT website home page.
Thanks in advance for helping make this years' Nationals a great regatta for our kids.


text:
Proposal to grant Rioja Alavesa wineries greater autonomy withdrawn
By Eric GrahamPosted on December 6, 2021
Last week, Basque National Party (PNV) spokesperson Aitor Esteban announced the withdrawal of a bill that, if passed, would have granted Basque winemakers of the Rioja Alavesa region greater autonomy.
A proposal to establish a breakout Viñedos de Álava DO for Rioja's Basque enclave was originally launched in 2016 by the Association of Rioja Alavesa Producers (ABRA), which represents over 100 local wineries. While a number of Basque producers continue to battle for the creation of an entirely separate denomination through the local Basque government, the bill that the PNV planned to discuss in parliament did not propose a rupture from the wider Rioja DOCa. On the contrary, it suggested the adoption of a system of sub-denominations similar to some already seen in other European wine regions.
'There are some wineries that are pushing to get their own denomination through the Basque government, which has to listen to their demands and send them to the European Union,' Esteban told Decanter. 'We're not against that, but since there are so many conflicting positions, we were trying to find a midpoint and discuss that in parliament. There is no need for a breakout, we can keep things under the umbrella of the Rioja DOCa.'
Indeed, the PNV's bill proposed the creation of separate administrations for the three areas that are already recognised within the current Rioja DOCa regulations: Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental.
According to Esteban, the bill was widely misunderstood, with both local and national media misreporting its intent, in turn stimulating an unpleasant political environment.
'Anyone who has read our proposal has been able to verify that [it does not suggest a breakout],' said Esteban. 'The problem is that anything that has to do with the Basque country seems to be about breaking up Spain, it's very easy to make accusations, so we have regretfully decided to withdraw the bill.'
The withdrawal arrived once the PNV secured the current Spanish Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food Luis Planas' commitment to acknowledge the needs of Rioja Alavesa producers and discuss them with all parties involved – the Consejo Regulador, Basque wineries, and local governments – before a new reform can be drafted and debated in parliament.
'Once it was confirmed [with the Minister of Agriculture] that it will be possible to discuss this issue in a more serene environment, we made the decision to withdraw the bill, so that things can get done rather than uselessly crash against walls,' said Esteban.
José Luis Lapuente, general director of Rioja's Consejo Regulador, welcomed the withdrawal of the bill, which he believes would have resulted in the fragmentation of the DOCa. 'Since July 2020, the Consejo has fought hard to ensure that the future of the DOCa is not impacted by political interventions nor debated in forums which have no jurisdiction over the DOCa,' said Lapuente.
He added: 'The DOCa Rioja is a great success story and the Consejo will always strive to protect its reputation and credibility and will continue to address any future attempts to change the structure of the Denomination.'
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Source: Proposal to grant Rioja Alavesa wineries greater autonomy withdrawn
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Google is only days away from unveiling its new Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones, powered by the newly-released Android 7.0 operating system, which debuted on LG's new V20 smartphone. But today, we have the best look at the Pixel and Pixel XL yet, resembling a lovechild of the iPhone and Nexus smartphones.
Rozetked has made some of the most realistic renders of the Pixel and Pixel XL yet, with both of the smartphones looking pretty damn sharp. We should expect four colors on offer: black, silver, gray, and gold. But the varying colors are joined by some design tweaks on the rear - and I have to say, they're looking damn good.
We have rumors that Google will be pricing the 5-inch Pixel smartphone at $649, which is expensive considering previous generation Nexus smartphones were always a cheaper alternative. Google is hosting its media event on October 4.