text:
require 'rails_helper'

module Bookkeeping
  describe Entry do
    before(:all){ @user = FactoryGirl.create :user }

    describe "Validation" do
      before(:each){ @entry = FactoryGirl.build :entry }

      it { should validate_presence_of(:transactionable) }
      it { should validate_presence_of(:description) }

      it "should have credit amount" do
        expect(@entry.valid?).to be false
        expect(@entry.errors[:credit_amounts].blank?).to be false
      end

      it "should have debit amount" do
        expect(@entry.valid?).to be false
        expect(@entry.errors[:debit_amounts].blank?).to be false
      end

      it "should have equal amounts" do
        @entry.debit_amounts.build(amount: 100)
        @entry.credit_amounts.build(amount: 10)

        expect(@entry.valid?).to be false
        expect(@entry.errors[:amounts_equality].blank?).to be false
      end
    end

    describe "Methods" do

      describe '.prepare' do

        before(:all) do
          @credits = FactoryGirl.create :credits, accountable: @user
          @income = FactoryGirl.create :income, accountable: @user
        end

        it 'should set description' do
          description = "description"
          entry = Entry.prepare do
            description description
          end

          expect(entry.description).to eq description
        end

        it 'should set transactionable' do
          entry = Entry.prepare do
            debit @credits, 100
            transactionable @user
          end
          expect(entry.transactionable).to eq @user
        end

        it 'should has debit amounts' do
          entry = Entry.prepare do
            debit @credits, 100
          end
          expect(entry.debit_amounts.any?).to be true
        end

        it 'should be valid' do
          entry = Entry.prepare do
            transactionable @user
            description "description"
            debit @credits, 100
            credit @income, 100
          end
          entry.save!

          expect(entry.valid?).to be true
          expect(Account.balanced?).to be true
        end
      end

      describe '.rollback' do

        before(:all) do
          @credits = FactoryGirl.create :credits, accountable: @user
          @income = FactoryGirl.create :income, accountable: @user
        end

        it "should rollback transactionable" do
          entry = Entry.prepare do
            transactionable @user
            description "description"
            debit @credits, 100
            credit @income, 100
          end
          entry.save!

          expect(@credits.balance).to eq 100
          expect(@income.balance).to eq 100

          rollback_entry = entry.rollback
          rollback_entry.save

          expect(entry.rollback_entry).to eq rollback_entry
          expect(@credits.balance).to eq 0
          expect(@income.balance).to eq 0
        end
      end
    end
  end
end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


After a quiet morning at home and with me feeling very sleepy after getting almost no sleep last night, Bronwen and I drove to the city, had a wander through Roma Street Parklands where there was a cosplay meet and a group of people playing some interesting party games (a sort of relay race with bags on their heads, and trying to make the longest line out of things).
It was incredibly hot, so we headed to a 7-11 and bought two slurpees (they had a two-for-one deal) and then had sushi for lunch in the city, before heading to New Farm park, buying a few things from the Coles there (which is, as far as I know, the only Coles in QLD that is open until 9 PM on a Sunday), and then driving out to Maz's.
Bronwen, Maz and I drove to Nandos for dinner, and ended up staying at Maz's until late.
I had a quiet day at home.
Created about 3 yrs, 2 mths ago (January 29, 2016). Updated about 3 yrs, 2 mths ago (January 29, 2016).


Shop for books about GIMP.
GIMP ("GNU Image Manipulation Program") is a bitmap editing program (with some vector capabilities, originally developed by Spencer Kimball and Peter Mattis in 1995, and now maintained by a group of volunteers. The software, which is distributed under the GPL is included as standard with most Linux distributions, and are versions of the program are also available for Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows.
GIMP works on Mac OSX, Linux, and Windows. This book shows how to install it on each platform.


text:
Showing results for tags 'Ambassador'.
LDD: New gallery
The following was recently shared with the LEGO Ambassador Network by Signe Lonholdt, Experience Manager LAN & LEGO Rebrick:
Changes to the Community Team
Tanja Friberg from the LEGO Community Team shared the following with the LEGO Ambassadors today. It may not mean much to some of you, but I think it's important to share, especially since it comes shortly after LEGO announced disappointing profits and lay-offs. At this point, I don't think the full ramifications for what this means for BZPower and the rest of the community is very clear, so if you have questions, please ask them here. I will do my best to pass them on and get answers from the source. I will also try to share answers to the questions that other Ambassadors ask. Please spread the word about these changes - they're they kind of thing that could have a large impact on how the fan community interacts with The LEGO Group.
Behind Bzp - Being An Ambassador
Black Six posted a blog entry in blogs_blog_3
In case you were wondering, I never said I was going to post these every Sunday. Mailbag 1. Tough question. I might have to go with Indiana Jones, because he's awesome. 2. Blue. No, yellllllow! 3. 6 (See what I did there?) 1. Yes. 2. Yes. 3. I'm a computer engineer working for the U.S. Army. fishers wins with this outstanding suggestion for a Behind BZP. Want to see your questions answered? PM them to me and put 'Mailbag' in the subject line. Being an Ambassador I had to go back and look it up, but I've been BZPower's Ambassador since June 2008. That's actually shorter than I expected, because it feels like I've been doing this for a while. But since I'm pretty sure that means I've been an Ambassador longer than Kelly was, I guess I'm the best person to talk on the subject. To start I'll answer fisher's questions: Our relationship with LEGO is great. You can tell this because they spend so much time hanging out with us at fan events. At BrickFair Alabama this year I'd estimate we spent at least a third of the convention time hanging out with Jim Foulds and/or Kevin Hinkle. We talked about LEGO and Bionicle, of course, but also life, the universe, and everything. There's a bunch of ways they communicate with us. Obviously there's the fan events. Then there's a set of forums LEGO uses for the Ambassadors and other fan projects. Sometimes Kevin or Jim will just email me too if there's something specific they'd like to know. They definitely listen. They want to know how BZPower is dealing with Bionicle being canceled, what we think of Hero Factory and other lines they're working on, and what we're doing to keep the spirit alive. As far as sets to review - we don't get those because I'm an Ambassador. LEGO sends us those because BZPower is still a large LEGO news and community site with a large reach. They certainly don't think we're crazy for existing. They understand how big of a line Bionicle was and is for many of us. Fun fact: Kevin Hinkle's son still plays Bionicle Heroes, so he's in the know when it comes to our universe. They want to understand what we're doing and how we're reacting and then do what they can to help the community continue to thrive. As far as the Ambassador program as a whole goes, these days it's kind of a nebulous concept. Back in the day (before I was selected) LEGO hand picked people from the community to give feedback and help give input on new LEGO themes. It was all under an NDA and very hush-hush. When I first joined, they were transitioning to a new mode of operations. There were several projects that Ambassadors could sign up for that were designed to help the community. There were also periodic calls for feedback and just general discussions with Ambassadors asking questions of LEGO. The projects idea failed when too few of the Ambassadors were actively participating in them and LEGO was unable to provide the level of support we were expecting. So the program shifted to focus more on the discussion and feedback. A couple of times they've tried to encourage Ambassadors to start their own projects, but that's never really gotten off the ground. All the while LEGO has been letting in more Ambassadors, most of whom rarely post or give off any signs of activity. But with more people come more questions, and the LEGO Community Team doesn't have the time usually to answer everything. As a result, the program has stagnated a bit, which is why you haven't heard anything about it from me of late. LEGO assures us that they're working on things though, so we'll see. And hopefully that was elucidating, even if it wasn't as exciting as you might have thought. Remember, if you have something you'd like to see me talk about, just drop me a PM!
Behind BZP

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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A EU COD2 3v3: Bronze match scheduled for Wednesday 7:30pm January 23rd 2019 .
Submitted that CLICKTRICK 3v3 did not attend the match.
I hope that his is the last time i need to do this, if you find a match, you play it!
If you are not able to play it and don't have a valid reason, you accept a noshow loss.
If u rly dont know why i put 1:0 u must be retarded Forgot about kicking me from server?
Match result has been finalized with only one team submitting the score (2).


The programs of the Viticulture and Winery Technology department are designed to prepare students for careers in the North Coast wine industry. The one-year Certificate and two-year Associate of Science options provide students with the knowledge and skills essential for success. Our wines stand as a measure of success to show our students and community that we "practice what we preach".
This is truly a very sweet sipping wine.
Although smooth and elegant now, this wine will continue to age gracefully. Full Bodied with lasting flavors along with a pleasant hint of Oak.
Presented in our original label design, this wine is a blend of 70% Zinfandel and 30% Petite Sirah. It is a great bargain with a 20% case discount -- affordable everyday.
This wine is deep in color, rich and full bodied with lots of fruit. An excellent wine for long term aging. COMPLEMENTS: Lamb, Heavy Pasta Dishes and Wild Game.
Primitivo is a fairly new Italian varietal and is somwhat simular to a high quality Zinfadel grape.The Primitivo for this wine was grown by cousin James Nichelini in his Chiles Valley Vineyard, we purchest only 2 Tons from this new vineyard to explore the quality of this young vineyard. and found it to be excelent.
This wine comes from the Nichelini Vineyard in Chiles Valley, where some of the Zinfandel vines that were planted by our grandfather in 1929 are still producing and contribute a special old vine quality to the wine.


text:
D&R Greenway Exhibits Family Legacy of Art
EXHIBIT HONORS GALLERY NAMESAKE: D&R Greenway Land Trust presents the artwork of three generations of Kuennes, the family that donated the funds to establish the Olivia Rainbow Gallery when the Johnson Education Center opened its doors as headquarters for D&R Greenway in 2006. The exhibit, on view through January 15, 2016, includes the image seen above, "Lake Champlain" by Peter William and Matthew Kuenne.
D&R Greenway Land Trust presents the artwork of three generations of Kuennes, the family who donated the funds to establish the Olivia Rainbow Gallery when the Johnson Education Center opened its doors as headquarters for D&R Greenway in 2006. The gallery is named in memory of the family's gifted young daughter, Olivia Kuenne. The exhibit, on view through January 15, 2016, includes art by Olivia's grandfather, noted painter Peter Vought; her mother, Leslie Kuenne, of Princeton; and Olivia's brothers, Peter, William and Matthew Kuenne. The family has won prizes, awards, and had gallery displays in many media. Gallery hours are business days through January 15. Free and open to the public at One Preservation Place, Princeton.
Nature and art were paramount to young Olivia. As a student at Princeton Junior School, Olivia painted rainbows, caterpillars, birds, and a frog standing on his head. On one of her landscapes she wrote "I am thankful for the whole world!"
Olivia's grandfather, the late Peter Vought, was internationally renowned, from earliest days as watercolorist and portrait artist, through abstract acrylics of American landscapes. Perspectives in these large-scale works were inspired by the artist's decades as a pilot, beginning in the U.S. Navy. Late in life, Vought would compensate for vision challenges by becoming a sculptor.
Known as "Grandpeter" by Peter, William, and Matthew, Vought was considered a Renaissance man: intellect, pilot, an avid chess player, and athlete. A graduate of Deerfield and Yale, Vought relinquished law school for the paintbrush. His family talks about his hearty laughter, grace on the dance floor, infectious sense of humor and storytelling. He had the "ability to see the humor in the world, and make us all laugh," Kuenne recounts.
The work of Vought's three grandsons, Peter, 21, a junior at Princeton University; William, 16, a junior at the Lawrenceville School; and Matthew, 15, a freshman at Princeton Day School; range from landscape photography and abstract landscape paintings to sculpture. "They have inherited [my father's] curiosity and talent, both for fixing things and for creating sculpture out of found objects," says Kuenne. "Their best was created with 'Grandpeter' and it is still in his garden."
William's monotypes earned honorable mention in the Northern N.J. Regional Scholastics Art and Writing Awards through the Montclair Art Museum. Matthew is a professional actor at Princeton's McCarter Theatre and George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick.
For more information, visit www.drgreenway.org.


text:
Q: Making MTS video file smaller using FFMPEG I have a Sony AVCHD camera that records to MTS video files. I want to be able to change the resolution of the video file from 1440x1080 to 640x480 and make the video file smaller, but retain as much of the quality as possible.
Using the latest FFMPEG/x264 version I've tried the following 2-pass procedure:
ffmpeg -y -i <MTS> -pass 1 -an -vcodec libx264 -vpre slow_firstpass -b 1000k -bt 2000k -s 640x480 -threads 0 -g 25 -f mp4 /dev/null
ffmpeg -y -i <MTS> -pass 2 -acodec libfaac -ab 128k -ac 2 -vcodec libx264 -vpre slow -b 1000k -bt 2000k -s 640x480 -threads 0 -g 25 -f mp4 <MP4>

The result is a file size that's 70% smaller but the video playback seems a bit blurry, or not as sharp as the original video.
Is there anything I can do to maximise the quality while keeping the file as small as possible?

A: You can adjust the quality with CRF

1 is best quality, 23 is default
ffmpeg -i in.mts -crf 10 -s vga out.mp4

source

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
The Sessions Parent Guide
While many movies have been made about teenaged boys trying to lose their virginity, this script takes a slightly different angle. This time the goal belongs to a man in an iron lung. And instead of peer support, he turns to his therapist, a priest and a professional sex surrogate for help.
Why is The Sessions rated R? The MPAA rated The Sessions R for strong sexuality including graphic nudity and frank dialogue.
Why is The Sessions rated R? The Sessions is rated R by the MPAA for strong sexuality including graphic nudity and frank dialogue.
This additional information about the movie's content is taken from the notes of various Canadian Film Classification boards:
- Frequent use of explicit sexual language and descriptive sexual references, often in a clinical context.
- Infrequent portrayals of sexual activity in a therapeutic context (with breast and buttock nudity, and female frontal nudity shown.)
- Implied sexual activity.
- Depictions of nude breasts, buttocks and pubic regions in a sexual situation.
- Full frontal nudity in a sexual situation.
- Simulated sexual activity.
- Sexual references and innuendo.
- One use of the sexual expletive in a non-sexual context.
- Infrequent use of scatological slang and slurs.
- Approximately 61 instances of sexual language.
Drug and Alcohol Use:
- Smoking.
- References to drugs, alcohol or tobacco use.
News About "The Sessions"
For further information about the real Mark O'Brien, check these sources: New York Times article at the time of his death in 1999. An article on Salon.com that speaks about his life including briefly discussing his sexual surrogate.
The Sessions is directed by Ben Lewin and stars John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, William H. Macy, Moon Bloodgood.
The most recent home video release of The Sessions movie is February 11, 2013. Here are some details…
The Sessions releases to home video on February 12, 2013.
This less than mainstream script stars some well-known actors, such as Helen Hunt (Soul Surfer, Pay It Forward) and William H. Macy (Sahara, Seabiscuit).


OK, so this is confusing. Carrefour, a great big French supermarket, has produced two different products called Gaufrettes au Fromage. I have taken the liberty of renaming one we have already tried "squares", and I will name this one footballs.
Because one of them is square, and one of them is ball-shaped.
I just love cheese footballs. I really do. They are one of my absolute favourites. And I was pleased to try this French version which I probably picked up at the big Carrefour outside Reims. And if you too like cheese footballs this cardboard box of snacks will please you.
But.... here are two weird things.
Cliffs of Moher taste tester won't try this crispy snack. She says they (they?) don't have them in Ireland and she's not going to start trying them now. Maybe, she temporised, Lidl or Aldi sell this style of snack, but nobody shops at Lidl or Aldi because the Irish don't trust them. OK then.
And, then we have Architectural taste tester, who we have known for a while, but she doesn't comment much. She tried this globe-shaped snack as though she had never seen it before. She savoured it in a suspicious "I don't know what to expect here" sort of a way. She tells me that she had expected it to be sweet and not cheesy. Weird!
Has she never seen the fabulous British cheese footballs which I first wrote about in 2013? Apparently not. However, she really enjoyed this crispy snack, and ate quite a number of crispy little footballs.
Here's another crisp from the Walkers 2018 Christmas multipack.
I don't really understand why some flavours make a great crisp while others don't. But turkey always seems to work very well. Usually a limited edition crisp available at Christmastime (at least in the UK); I wonder if they have turkey crisps all year round in the United States? Of perhaps for thanksgiving? Or maybe not at all. I must interrogate my American friends.
Anyhow, the reluctant taste testers were grateful to Slightly Red Haired Bristolian for purchasing the two Christmas multipacks, and therefore this packet of crisps. Because it's a rather good crisp. The stuffing part of the flavour works as well as the turkey.
Not bad at all and snacked up speedily before lunch.
We did taste test this crisp in December. It just fell to the bottom of the list of crispy snacks I had to write up.
I wasn't at work on my birthday; the Chef and I went out to lunch in the increasingly wonderful Kings Cross in North London. And while I was enjoying a birthday lunch, the reluctant taste testers purchased a delightful present for me. Yes, a BBQ flavour cricket snack.
Hmmn.... I'm not certain that I am ready for insect snacks. Yes, I know they are packed with protein, and yes, I know that people all around the world eat insects on a regular basis. But I'm not sure I can bring myself to be enthusiastic about eating something that isn't a mammal. I don't restrict myself to farm animals as I have eaten several sorts of deer, but I don't do fish or shellfish (or cephalopods).
Ooh dear. I thought this crispy snack smelled of fish food. And worse.. you know if you move something that's been on a shelf for too long, and you see a dead insect? I really couldn't stop myself thinking that's just what this snack looked like.
So totally not for me. And I don't think for most of the reluctant taste testers. But apparently the boyfriend of taste tester from the New First (and what a nice boy he is) quite enjoyed this snack. And took the remains of the packet home with him.
Still a Student (although not for much longer) taste tester went to Barcelona and brought us this exciting packet of potato crisps. How nice is that? We don't see her very often, but when we do she comes bearing packets of crisps.
And, knowing that the reluctant taste testers and I have tried all manner of exotic crispy snacks Still a Student went out of her way to purchase something interesting. Something she felt sure we would not have tried already. And she succeeded there.
Actually, my favourites are nearly always very simple flavours, but that doesn't stop me encouraging the taste testers to attempt something fancier.
So, what did we think? Well, this is certainly a fabulous crisp. Some of them very large indeed and with a nice crunch. But for me the taste was just plain weird. Fried egg flavour! What?
The saltiness is nice, but the taste of egg is just wrong. And it is a true eggy taste. It's a bit like the lovely bits of black lace around the edge of a properly fried egg (in my view) but this is not right as a crisp flavour.
However, taste tester from the New Forest was very taken. She said she could eat this crisp every day for the rest of her life! It takes all sorts doesn't it? And it's not as though no-one else was snacking up these crisps. Because to be honest, most of us felt this flavour was simply too weird.
Since these crisps come from Barcelona they are named in Spanish and, I suppose, Catalan. "Batatas Fritas con Sabora Ovo Frito".
I nearly didn't pick up this packet of crisps in the Co-op in Switzerland because it does look as though it's aimed at children, and I sometimes find children's crisps not so nice (maybe a bit lacking in flavour). But luckily we did buy the packet (to bring home for the reluctant taste testers to try), took it home to the flat, looked at it.... and then the Chef and I pretty much ate the whole packet all at once. Yum!
So we bought another packet which survived the flight home (handy hint: prick a little hole in the packet so it doesn't burst on the plane and then pack it inside a ziplock bag expelling as much air as possible. I always carry a 3 litre bag in my luggage) and the reluctant taste testers fell upon them enthusiastically.
This crispy snack has the same sort of texture and bite as a Pom Bear, and a slightly weird owl shape. I know owls have been super popular on the design front recently. Well I couldn't avoid noticing all the owl vases and lamps and ornaments and whatnot on sale from every single catalogue and website, many of the owls a similar un-owl-like design as the snack. So perhaps that's the inspiration behind this.
What a great snack though! They don't taste of very much, although there is a bit of curry in the recipe, but you probably already know the "not very much" is no bad thing. Too much taste can be as bad as a taste you don't fancy. But not much taste of nothing in particular (it's hard to describe) can be simply delicious.
Oh dear. Senior taste tester was very unimpressed that these French crisps are called "Lady Chips".
"Where are the man crisps?", he asked grumpily. Well, Senior, I'd like to point out that the world is stuffed full of crisps aimed at men. Lots and lots of great big crinkle cut crisps advertised as going well with beer.... you get the picture. Like Walkers Max Strong Jalapeño and Beer perhaps, or the Real McCoy's crisps.
But here we have a small crisp with a gentle crunch and a pleasant taste of black pepper. Nothing fancy, nothing super exciting, just a pleasant tasty crisp. Not necessarily just for ladies.
Check out this blurb from the back of the packet. Did you learn French at school? I did. It didn't include the phrase "le not so bad" but that's modern French for you.
I'm not sure that I'm mad keen on "Lady Chips" as a name for a crisp brand any more than Senior taste tester; it feels a bit patronising doesn't it? The reluctant taste testers and I tried a Lady Chips flavour before: Melange Thai. We weren't that impressed. Not at all sure about the flavour.
But this crisp? Pretty good actually.
I was a bit surprised to find this peanutty snack from Serbia in our local Turkish deli. Actually I really don't know why because I've discovered all sorts of goodies there in the past.
This snack looks exactly as it does on the packet, which is not always the case, and reminded the reluctant taste testers of Bamba, the popular Israeli peanutty snack, beloved by Jewish families everywhere. Or so we were assured by our dear departed (busy being a mother to two very active little boys) Giraffe Fan taste tester who ought to know.
Living as we do in North London we can buy Bamba any day at a selection of supermarkets and delis, and we have tried a Macedonian version, so maybe a peanuty snack is always a good bet in the former Yugoslavia?
I'm also pretty sure we have tasted and approved a French version, so it's always a bit of a surprise to the reluctant taste testers that there isn't a British version of this tasty snack.
I really don't get broad beans.
I don't like fresh broad beans (with or without the outer shell), fresh or frozen, and I definitely don't like fried or roasted broad beans. It's a Spanish snack, probably enjoyed by millions of Spaniards and visitors to Spain, but I don't know. For me they're just too tough. Too hard a bite. Too... not made of peanuts. Which is probably extremely picky because, thinking about it, there's not a lot of difference between broad beans and peanuts.
That's just me though, and personal preferences are often weird. I know that Noble Friend really likes Habas Fritas, and it seems Tall Elegant taste tester liked them too. Possibly other reluctant taste testers , although I have failed to interrogate them all.
This packet of roasted and salted broad beans seemed to hit the spot for reluctant taste testers who aren't me. So why not try them for yourselves?
Trust Tall Elegant taste tester to come up with yet another crispy snack you never knew existed. She's always going out shopping at lunchtime for lunch (and food for the rabbit which likes fresh garden peas please), and discovering some fancy new crispy snack I never saw before.
Yes, it's a strangely triangular crispy snack made out of popcorn. Who thought of that? The new shape of popcorn eh? Well, who know?
Not us obviously. I didn't try more than one of this crispy snack because I go home at 2 (just after lunchtime), but I did rather wonder why. Why did anyone think to invent this snack? What's wrong with popcorn that it needs to be squashed into a triangular snack?
I don't think this crispy snack was nasty or anything. I just couldn't really work out why you'd want it.
Great design on the bar code though. I always appreciate a good bar code design (or little guy throwing his rubbish away responsibly).
Oh dear. What was Mr Tesco thinking?
Tall Elegant taste tester and I took a snap decision to throw these sweet potato crisps away before the rest of the reluctant taste testers had the chance to try. Noble Friend smelled the overpowering... I really hardly know how to describe it... and didn't try to stop us.
These crisps had a far too strong would-be-cheesy taste, and an aroma that pervaded half the office before we had a chance to stop it. And a frankly horrible taste not far off soap. Let's just say we were very unimpressed. Oh dear.
Tall Elegant taste tester was much more polite than me: she didn't open up the bin and spit hers out.
I've got to say that I had my doubts about this flavour when I saw the packet but I wasn't expecting it to be quite so nasty. Perhaps a lucky escape for all of us that this was a limited edition flavour.
The Chef's brother (not technically my brother-in-law but you get the picture) gave me this packet of crisps for Christmas. Impressive! One of the very nastiest crisps the reluctant taste testers and I have tried.
We spend quite a lot of time in Switzerland (lucky us) and have fondue quite often. It never tastes like this.
Please eat crispy snacks responsibly.
OK, I know it's difficult but let's attempt to eat a little bit healthily and don't scoff one of those sharing packets all by yourself.
And please dispose of your crisp packets carefully. Find a rubbish bin or take them home and use the bin in your kitchen.
The taste tasters often tell me they enjoy a crispy snack, but would they buy another packet? Quite often I suspect the answer is probably not. But here are some crisps for which I think the answer is definitely yes.
Have you tried one of the crispy snacks that we have reviewed?
And why not recommend your favourites so I can share them with the reluctant taste testers and the Chef?
My other blog is My Purple Velvet Box Full of Stuff.
Sometimes I get around to posting lots of things. Sometimes I don't. The crisps come first.
But here are some tasters.
Copyright Badly Made Products. Powered by Blogger.


Considering the fact that we are a full week into September, a discussion of the books I consumed during the month of August is well past due. It will become apparent momentarily that there was no rhyme or reason to my choices last month. I can offer no explanation other than my reading preferences seem to be rather eclectic and haphazard lately. Dragon's Lair and The Heart is a Lonely Hunter were library finds. Artemis Fowl and out of my mind were recommended by my kids. My sister-in-law thought I needed to read The Same Kind of Different as Me (she was right) and loaned me her copy.
It was a good month. I spent some time in the Middle Ages, one of my favorite historical periods. I enjoyed an indirect peek into the brains of Ace and Lovey by reading the books they love. A candid non-fiction account enlightened me and inspired me. And I am still pondering The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, even though I finished it a few weeks ago. Yes, August was definitely a good month for reading.
Dragon's Lair by Sharon Kay Penman. As a lover of historical fiction, I'd heard many good things about Sharon Kay Penman but had never gotten around to reading any of her books. When I saw Dragon's Lair at the library, I scooped it up not realizing it was the third book in a series of mysteries. My enjoyment or understanding of this book was not hindered in the least by my lack of background knowledge. It only whetted my appetite for more of Miss Kay's writing.
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers. Preface: I'm afraid I'm not going to do this book justice, mainly because I'm still trying decide what I think of it. I'm not even sure whose story Miss McCullers is telling. The fact that she wrote such a complicated, layered novel in her early twenties simply blows my mind.
The story takes place in a Georgia mill town in the 1930's and revolves around a deaf-mute named John Singer and the people who use him as a confidante. Some of the best qualities of the book are the unflinching portrayal of the almost universal poverty of that place and time, the blatant prejudice, discrimination, and abuse of the African-American population in the south, and the deep, deep need for humans to be heard, understood, and accepted. If I had to choose a main character, I would pick Mick Kelly, a teenage girl growing up in a dirt poor family that owns a boarding home. In a sense, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, is a coming of age tale that follows Mick's transformation from skinny girl with big dreams of making her own music to a young woman of fifteen who drops out of school to work at Woolworth's because her family desperately needs the money.
In an ideal world, I would be celebrating the accomplishment of thirty-two books read by the end of August. In my real world, I'm celebrating thirty books, which is still a good place to be. I have time to make up the difference before the end of the year. The book borrowing I did in August did nothing to reduce the stack of to-be-read books in my closet that Mr. Whimsey keeps knocking over while he's getting ready for work. The goal for September should be to take a chunk out of that pile. What I really want to do, however, is devour several recently purchased books on my Nook and read Life of Pi and Ender's Game before the movies are released. I suppose Mr. Whimsey is just going to have to fight with that mountain of anticipated reading bliss a little while longer.
Wow! I'm having a hard time just getting to fifty books for the year.
Didn't know ENDER'S GAME was being made into a movie. My husband read it aloud to me and our kids many years ago. We'll have to dust it off and reread before heading to the movie theater.


text:
"""
    Pygments tests with example files
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    :copyright: Copyright 2006-2017 by the Pygments team, see AUTHORS.
    :license: BSD, see LICENSE for details.
"""

from __future__ import print_function

import os
import pprint
import difflib
import pickle

from pygments.lexers import get_lexer_for_filename, get_lexer_by_name
from pygments.token import Error
from pygments.util import ClassNotFound

import support

STORE_OUTPUT = False

STATS = {}

TESTDIR = os.path.dirname(__file__)

# Jython generates a StackOverflowError for repetitions of the form (a|b)+,
# which are commonly used in string patterns, when matching more than about 1000
# chars.  These tests do not complete.  See http://bugs.jython.org/issue1965
BAD_FILES_FOR_JYTHON = ('Object.st', 'all.nit', 'genclass.clj',
                        'ragel-cpp_rlscan')

def test_example_files():
    global STATS
    STATS = {}
    outdir = os.path.join(TESTDIR, 'examplefiles', 'output')
    if STORE_OUTPUT and not os.path.isdir(outdir):
        os.makedirs(outdir)
    for fn in os.listdir(os.path.join(TESTDIR, 'examplefiles')):
        if fn.startswith('.') or fn.endswith('#'):
            continue

        absfn = os.path.join(TESTDIR, 'examplefiles', fn)
        if not os.path.isfile(absfn):
            continue

        extension = os.getenv('TEST_EXT')
        if extension and not absfn.endswith(extension):
            continue

        print(absfn)
        with open(absfn, 'rb') as f:
            code = f.read()
        try:
            code = code.decode('utf-8')
        except UnicodeError:
            code = code.decode('latin1')

        lx = None
        if '_' in fn:
            try:
                lx = get_lexer_by_name(fn.split('_')[0])
            except ClassNotFound:
                pass
        if lx is None:
            try:
                lx = get_lexer_for_filename(absfn, code=code)
            except ClassNotFound:
                raise AssertionError('file %r has no registered extension, '
                                     'nor is of the form <lexer>_filename '
                                     'for overriding, thus no lexer found.'
                                     % fn)
        yield check_lexer, lx, fn

    N = 7
    stats = list(STATS.items())
    stats.sort(key=lambda x: x[1][1])
    print('\nExample files that took longest absolute time:')
    for fn, t in stats[-N:]:
        print('%-30s  %6d chars  %8.2f ms  %7.3f ms/char' % ((fn,) + t))
    print()
    stats.sort(key=lambda x: x[1][2])
    print('\nExample files that took longest relative time:')
    for fn, t in stats[-N:]:
        print('%-30s  %6d chars  %8.2f ms  %7.3f ms/char' % ((fn,) + t))

def check_lexer(lx, fn):
    if os.name == 'java' and fn in BAD_FILES_FOR_JYTHON:
        raise support.SkipTest('%s is a known bad file on Jython' % fn)
    absfn = os.path.join(TESTDIR, 'examplefiles', fn)
    with open(absfn, 'rb') as fp:
        text = fp.read()
    text = text.replace(b'\r\n', b'\n')
    text = text.strip(b'\n') + b'\n'
    try:
        text = text.decode('utf-8')
        if text.startswith(u'\ufeff'):
            text = text[len(u'\ufeff'):]
    except UnicodeError:
        text = text.decode('latin1')
    ntext = []
    tokens = []
    import time
    t1 = time.time()
    for type, val in lx.get_tokens(text):
        ntext.append(val)
        assert type != Error, \
            'lexer %s generated error token for %s: %r at position %d' % \
            (lx, absfn, val, len(u''.join(ntext)))
        tokens.append((type, val))
    t2 = time.time()
    STATS[os.path.basename(absfn)] = (len(text),
                                      1000 * (t2 - t1), 1000 * (t2 - t1) / len(text))
    if u''.join(ntext) != text:
        print('\n'.join(difflib.unified_diff(u''.join(ntext).splitlines(),
                                             text.splitlines())))
        raise AssertionError('round trip failed for ' + absfn)

    # check output against previous run if enabled
    if STORE_OUTPUT:
        # no previous output -- store it
        outfn = os.path.join(TESTDIR, 'examplefiles', 'output', fn)
        if not os.path.isfile(outfn):
            with open(outfn, 'wb') as fp:
                pickle.dump(tokens, fp)
            return
        # otherwise load it and compare
        with open(outfn, 'rb') as fp:
            stored_tokens = pickle.load(fp)
        if stored_tokens != tokens:
            f1 = pprint.pformat(stored_tokens)
            f2 = pprint.pformat(tokens)
            print('\n'.join(difflib.unified_diff(f1.splitlines(),
                                                 f2.splitlines())))
            assert False, absfn


text:
ECONOMIC COOPERATION AND INTEGRATION IN WEST AFRICAN STATES ECOWAS AS A CASE STUDY
Home HISTORY AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS ECONOMIC COOPERATION AND INTEGRATION IN WEST AFRICAN STATES ECOWAS AS A CASE STUDY
ECONOMIC COOPERATION AND INTEGRATION IN WEST AFRICAN STATES ECOWAS AS A CASE STUDY quantity
Name: ECONOMIC COOPERATION AND INTEGRATION IN WEST AFRICAN STATES ECOWAS AS A CASE STUDY
1.1 BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Modern patterns of economic dependence in Africa are product of a profound global transformation that had occurred primarily within the last 2 countries. West Africa participation in an international economy had been significant for over a thousand years. During the fifteenth century innovations in marine technology made it possible for European ships to circumnavigate the Africa continent. The primary objective was the spice trade of the Far East but every opportunity was taken to develop new trading opportunities on the African continent. Portugal retained a virtual monopoly of the Africa seaborne trade during the sixteenth century but was subsequently ousted by the Dutch and British. From the early seventeenth century to the middle of nineteenth century, approximately 12-15 million Africans were successfully removed across the Atlantic and to a lesser extent across the Sahara and Mediterranean. The reduction of population in situation, where agriculture was the dominant economic activity and where labor is generally acknowledged to have been scarce in relation to land would almost certainly have resulted in reduced agriculture output. It is unlikely then that the slave trade made any positive contribution to an improvement in the productive capacities of African economy, there was little significant diffusion of technology into Africa from the rest of the world apart from the introduction of crops like maize and cassava and the nature of trade goods involved- cloth, firearms, liquor etc did not encourage further productive process.
An economic arrangement between different regions marked by the reduction and elimination of trade barriers and the coordination of monetary and fiscal policies. The aim of economic integration is to reduce costs for both consumers and producers, as well as to increase
trade between the countries taking part in the agreement. Economic integration is the unification of economic policies between different states through the partial or full abolition of tariff and non-tariff restrictions on trade taking place among them prior to their integration. This is meant to turn to lead to lower prices for distributors and consumers with the goal of increasing the combined economic productivity of the states.
Economic cooperation could be defined as the coming together of geographically proximate states which share a sense of inadequacy in dealing with the problems of security and welfare. The desire of achieve increase in living standards gave rise to many forms and stages of economic cooperation such as free trade areas, custom unions, common markets and economic unions. The achievements of economic cooperation in developed countries have resulted in increased interest in trying cooperation among developing countries as well. The view of the developing countries is that they could rely upon each other for the supply of goods and services through economic integration, thereby less dependent on developed countries for industrial goods. Similarly, through cooperation, they could combine forces to enhance their bargaining power vis-à-vis the developed countries and ensure a new international economic order that is more favorable to them.
The Economic Community of West African States is a regional group of fifteen West African countries. Founded on 28 may 1975, and signed the treaty providing for the establishment of ECOWAS. Its mission is to promote economic integration across the regional. Considered one of the pillars of the African economic community, the organization was founded in order to achieve "collective self-sufficiency" for its member states by creating a single large trading bloc through an economic and trading union. It also serves as a peacekeeping force in the region. The organization operates officially in three co-equal languages- French, English and Portuguese.
The ECOWAS consists of two institutions to implement policies- the ECOWAS commission and the ECOWAS bank for investments and development, formerly known as the fund for cooperation until it was renamed in 2001. The members ECOWAS are; Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo.
ECOWAS was established in May, 1975 as a regional institutional framework for the coordination and promotion of economic cooperation and sustainable development in West Africa. The challenges of economic development in an underdeveloped and highly unstable environment such as West Africa appear to be enormous and so leave one to ponder on the possibility of success or otherwise in realizing such an ideal. Mr. Nicholas Plessz in his book; problems and prospects of economic integration in West Africa gave general introduction to the problems of West African economic integration. He defines West Africa as the eighteenth independent countries plus Spanish and Portuguese guinea that are enclosed by the territories of former French West Africa and French Equatorial Africa. Plessz"s definition of West Africa is thus much wider than the economic commission for the West Africa"s recently adopted definition which excludes the former French equatorial African territories as well as the Cameroons. Moreover he examined the timely issue of economic integration in West Africa which is somewhat disappointing. However the low level of economy integration and cooperation as affected the growth of West African states which has made them to be underdeveloped.
However, ECOWAS has failed in West African economic cooperation and integration. It has also succeeded in West African States; therefore, the statement of problem of this research is to analyze the problems of ECOWAS as well as its successes in line with the aims and objectives of ECOWAS because the failures and successes of ECOWAS, has a lot to do with the economic integration and cooperation of West African states.
The objectives of study are:
1. To examine the timely issue of economic integration in West Africa.
2. To examine the impact of ECOWAS in West African economic cooperation and integration.
3. To examine the challenges of economic underdeveloped and highly unstable environment such as West Africa.
4. To examine the failures and successes of ECOWAS in west African economic integration and cooperation
5. To examine how the failures and successes of ECOWAS as affected the economic cooperation and integration of West African States.
Though the issue of economic cooperation and integration moves in the same direction and the failures of ECOWAS have eaten deep into the marrows of the West African society, whereas, the successes have also impacted greatly in West African Society. Therefore, if the issue of West Africa"s cooperation and integration is treated, it tends to enhance the economic growth and stability of West African States. The research topic signifies that the reader should know the
impacts of ECOWAS on West Africa"s integration and cooperation. Finally, the study will serve as a reference material for further studies.
1.5 SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF STUDY
TEMPORAL SCOPE: This research, economic integration and cooperation in West Africa in which ECOWAS is the case study, will be studied within the time frame of the West African economic history from the time of slave trade and pre-colonial era till date. This is to show that the issue economic integration and cooperation has started dates back before the colonization of West African States till date.
SPACIAL SCOPE: My area of research would be limited to West African States only that is, member states of ECOWAS.
1.6 ORGANISATION OF STUDY
This research work is divided into five chapters. Chapter one is the introduction which contains: background of study, Statement of the problem, Objectives of the study, research questions, significance of study, scope of study, limitation to the study, prganization of stdy and the definition of terms. Chapter two on the other hand is the literature review and theoretical framework. The third chapter reviews research methodology which includes research design, methods of data analysis and method of data collection. Chapter four spells out the data analysis while chapter five is the conclusion and recommendations.
ECONOMIC COOPERATION: Economic cooperation could be defined as the coming together of geographically proximate states which share a sense of inadequacy in dealing with the problems of security and welfare.
ECONOMIC INTEGRATION: Economic integration is the unification of economic policies between different states through the partial or full abolition of tariff and non-tariff restrictions on trade taking place among them prior to their integration. This is meant to turn to lead to lower prices for distributors and consumers with the goal of increasing the combined economic productivity of the states.
ECOWAS: ECOWAS is the acronym of Economic Community of West African States which was founded 28 May, 1975 for the promotion of economic cooperation across the region. The members ECOWAS are; Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone,
THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN ODO-OWA DURING THE COLONIAL PERIOD
A HISTORY OF AGBOGUGU, EARLIEST TIMES TO 2000
A HISTORY OF EKWE COMMUNITY, EARLIEST TIMES TO 2000
AN ASSESSMENT OF NIGERIA'S RELATIONS WITH HER IMMEDIATE NEIGHBOURS


text:
NSAC Suspends More for UFC 229 Brawl
It looks like more details have emerged from the brawl that happened at UFC 229.
The Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) has suspended three more people on Wednesday.
NSAC has suspended Conor McGregor's training partner Dillon Danis, as well as Khabib Nurmagomedov's younger brother Abubakar and teammate Zubaira Tukhogov.
Danis was involved in the chaos that ensued outside the octagon after the fight, while Tukhogov and the younger Nurmagomedov attacked a recovering McGregor inside.
The hearing for the cases of the three people suspended is on December 10.
The drama
After a lopsided win by Khabib at UFC 229, he then proceeded to start a brawl with Conor's team after the challenger insulted the champion's hometown, family and religion.
Nurmagomedov would then face serious sanctions such as his purse being withheld along with a couple suspensions. He would then accuse the UFC for condoning McGregor's foul antics during the buildup.
The Nevada State Athletic Commission would have a more in-depth review of the incident however as they carefully reviewed the video evidence.
According to the video tape revealed, Danis was trying to provoke Khabib as he motioned with his arm as if he were challenging for a fight.
Abubakar and Zubaira on the other hand were seen blindsiding McGregor as they threw cheap shots.
NSAC chairman Anthony Marnell III has not ruled out the possibility of more complaints to be filed in the future. He explained that they will need more time to gather more evidence on the incident.
Marnell said he expects both UFC competitors (Conor and Khabib) to be present on the December 10 hearing. That is unless they are able to reach a settlement beforehand.
Conor Mcgregor Khabib Nurmagomedov MMA MMA News NSAC UFC UFC News


Christmas is almost here! I cannot believe it! Like last year, I decided to make Christmas gifts for my friends by hand. I firmly believe that home-made gifts are the best as they show how much you care for the people you give them to.
This year, I decided to make 4 different goodies.
I started by making my Almond Cookies – Dolcetti di Mandorle as they are very easy to make and they are always a big hit whenever I bake them!
Then, I saw these amazing looking Exotic Shortbread Cookies over at my friend Reem's site! Aren't they gorgeous? I could not resist the temptation and decided to make these too! I think I cooked mine a couple of minutes longer than Reem's and I also pressed them a little more… so they don't look exactly the same, but these Indian inspired cookies are divine and I will be making them again and again… the saffron and cardamom are so good together!
Then I included a jar of my home-made Dulce de Leche… very easy to make and delicious!
And last, but not least… I added some of my sugar cookies shaped like Christmas tree ornaments.
I then wrapped them all individually and added some tags with the name of each item.
And then made a big parcel with all of them!
Lucky friends to get those gifts from you! I agree, something homemade is always more special. Everything looks delicious!
Here – let me give you my address dear friend! 🙂 What a great gift from the heart and the kitchen! Your friends will love it! I've got those cookies from Reem on my "to make" list. I've now added the almond cookies as well!
I second MJsKit – here's my address! I'd be overjoyed to receive such thoughtful gifts, Manu. Hint, hint 😉 Thanks for all your fabulous recipes through the year.
The shortbread recipe is one of a kind…Gonna make a batch of those! Thanks for sharing! Happy Holidays, Manu!
These all look wonderful! A beautiful, yummy presentation of sweets!


I am originally from UP Etawah, however, I did my schooling, engineering degree and first job in Delhi NCR, my stay here ranged from 1997 to 2015 January. I have been living in Ahmedabad for 2 years now after having switched the job back in Feb 2015. I used to play cricket, like a lot, till the time I stayed in Delhi � which is almost 18 years. I still get nostalgic whenever I encounter similar smells or watch kids play near my apartment, I remember the fresh mornings, the green grass of India Gate lawns, my cricket ball and friends. Nowadays, I go to gym to try and keep myself in shape :) I am a voracious reader and while I was in Delhi, I attended just about every book fair. I read on varied topics such as fiction, non-fiction, religious, spiritual, classic literature, etc. This unfocused reading has made my worldview liberal and has led me to challenge and often change my existing beliefs. Whereas once I was a fan of Vivekananda, now I am a fan of Carl Sagan, Ramachandra Guha & many others whom I just adore. I have a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engg from Delhi College of Engineering (Year of Passing = 2008). For a living, I do work as a power engineer. My total job experience now stands at almost 9 years. My both jobs provided me with opportunity to have new experiences such as talking & negotiating with complete strangers, to be on toes and always ready to tackle unexpected issues and to take decisions as quickly as possible. I like learning new skills not only because the job requires but for the sheer thrill and joy of learning new things. That�s all I can say here. Obviously, it might still be incomplete description but then it is only meant for invoking curiosity and interest in you. Best of luck!
My son is employed in government Sector as a civil service professional with a Bachelor's degree. He currently lives in Ahmedabad. We come from an upper middle class, joint family background with moderate values. People describe him as intelligent, liberal, positive-attitude, social and fun-loving.
My son is a banking service professional with a Master's degree working in government sector. He is currently living in Ahmedabad. We belong to an upper middle class, joint family with liberal values.
I'm successfully running a business. I belong to the singh caste and am looking for a match from the same community. To describe about my family, we are a joint family with strong traditional values. I reside in the beautiful city of Ahmedabad.
My name is Rajneesh. I come from a Upper Middle Class, Joint Family with Moderate Values. I have completed my B.Com. and currently work in the Private Sector as a Manager.
My name is Patel Jay G. I have completed my Higher Secondary School / High School. I grew up in a Upper Middle Class, Nuclear family with Liberal.
I am a designer with a Bachelor's degree currently working in private sector in Ahmedabad. I belong to an upper middle class, joint family with traditional values.
I am a Technician with a Diploma currently working in Private sector in Ahmedabad. I come from a Middle class, Nuclear family background with Liberal values.


text:
The great navy cattle drive of 1862
Two great things that go great together – the mighty United States Navy and…cattle?
As a veteran of the navy and a rancher, I find this a fun bit of history.
I've been fortunate to have been involved in a number of cattle drives in my life, though none of them ever approached the legendary status of old west trail drives. No camping out, no stampedes, no gunfights with bandits, no cow-towns. Not even a river to ford.
The drives I've been on are more properly described as leisurely country excursions, lasting no more than a few hours and covering at most a dozen miles of county road. In fact, since the cattle have usually known where they were going, it would be more accurate to describe them as "cattle follows" rather than cattle drives. Although in the past we've used horses to move cows, it's been more than a decade since we've done so. Our modern horses are pickups and four-wheelers. Our cattle drives are long on comfort and short on romance.
The legendary old west trail drives, the stuff of countless Hollywood productions, mostly took place during a two-decade period between 1865 and 1885. But there were big cattle drives before 1865, and once upon a time, the US Navy had one. With perhaps a bit more excitement than even Hollywood could imagine.
In the early morning hours of April 24, 1862, navy gunboats sailed boldly past a pair of Confederate forts guarding the approaches to New Orleans and captured the Crescent City. It was a bold move, completely unexpected by rebel defenders and an absolute shock to Confederate leadership.
The Federal forces were in a tough position, though. They held New Orleans but were surrounded by teeming hordes of surprised but tough and experienced Confederate soldiers. Federal forces patrolled vigorously, both by foot ashore and with a squadron of steam-powered gunboats up and down the mighty river.
Sketch courtesy US Naval Historical Center, in the public domain. USS Katahdin, one of four Unadilla class gunboats present during the Great Navy Cattle Drive, depicted on the Mississippi near New Orleans in 1862.
During one riverine foray the Union sailors found evidence that cattle were being moved nearby and set an ambush, hoping to deprive rebel troops of their much needed hoof-borne rations.
As a hammering sun chased away the morning fog on Wed., Oct. 1, 1862, lookouts aboard the Yankee gunboats spotted a large herd of cattle approaching the eastern bank of the river. A single musket shot stopped the herd, and a shore party quickly arrested five drovers with Confederate passes to move the beeves through Rebel lines for slaughter at Camp Moore, a large Confederate training camp.
While standard procedure during the war was to destroy anything of benefit to the enemy (this was a common practice for both sides), the navy squadron Commodore hesitated to destroy such a valuable prize. A tally counted more than 1,500 head of genuine Texas Longhorns, estimated at 470 pounds each and worth $13 per hundredweight.
As an aside, my yearling cattle will sell today at the Platte Valley sale barn. They average about 585 pounds, and I'm expecting something closer to $250 per cwt.
In 1862 the value of the captured herd was more than $90,000 dollars. So let's do some pencilin'. According to this inflation calculator, $90,000 in 1862 would be worth $2,093,023 today. And according to current cattle markets, 1,500 head of 475 weight calves would bring $1,999,000 today.
Now isn't that interesting.
Back in 1862, the Commodore wasn't about to destroy those valuable animals, so he ordered the herd escorted to New Orleans. Thus began "The Great Navy Cattle Drive of '62."
Taking the valuable herd away from a handful of Confederate forces was one thing. Moving the herd eighty miles through enemy territory was a far more difficult and risky proposition.
The half-dozen gunboats assigned the task put drover parties ashore and the drive got underway. As sailors chivied the Longhorns along the river path, the gunboats provided artillery support and supplies. The drive took a full week, and while Rebels repeatedly attacked the gunboats from ambush, the herd and drovers managed to slip past most of the Confederate forces without coming under direct attack. The gunboat squadron slipped up and down the river, sniffing out enemy forces and engaging in a half-dozen fierce artillery duels. While the sailors afloat suffered several killed and more than a score wounded, post-war records showed Rebel losses to be in the hundreds. Those extremely heavy losses, caused mostly by the skillful use of superior naval gunfire, may explain how the herd and drovers remained unscathed.
After a week of steady progress, which saw part of the herd loaded on barges for a river passage, the last of the cattle were delivered to a pasture a mile below Carrollton, in Jefferson Parish. The navy drovers turned over responsibility for the herd and returned to more nautical duties, and the great cattle drive was over.
In thinking about this astonishing bit of history, my first reaction is one of wonder and amazement. I can hardly imagine contemporary sailors embarking on such a task. But the sailors of 1862 weren't the sailors of the twenty-first century. Most of them, even the city boys, were raised around livestock. They'd have clearly seen a cattle drive a nothing out of the ordinary. Still, as routine an experience as it may have been at the time, The Great Navy Cattle Drive of '62 must have been a remarkable experience.
Posted by PrairieAdventure at 10:37 AM
juvat April 13, 2015 at 12:13 PM
Again, Fascinating! Lot's of History in the wordsmithers' quiver lately. Did a terrain walk of Vicksburg while I was at ARRRRMYYY Training Sir. It was interesting to see how Grant used the Navy in support of his campaign.
PrairieAdventure April 14, 2015 at 7:21 AM
As it turns out, the Brown Water Navy wasn't invented by John Kerry after all!
OldAFSarge April 14, 2015 at 5:58 AM
A great story Shaun. Especially as I'm in the midst of reading Jeff Shaara's novel on the Vicksburg campaign, Chain of Thunder.
So your story was timely and connected. Well done!
I've got that Shaara fellow on the list.
Interesting coincidence on the timing. I had to shift gears a bit because I'm in the middle of 1940 in my other reading. I should write about the WWII cattle drives. Lots of beef, pork and mutton flowed from all over the world into Europe during the war. Of course it does that anyway, but more during wartime. Hmmm.
Debbie May 6, 2015 at 8:11 PM
Very interesting! What sources did you use? Would like to do some more reading on this subject.
No words, no cheesy music
The four utes
Oddments and endments
Wanker Wednesday!
The master rancher*
"I stood by my oath"
Wanker Wednesday (Thursday Edition)
I don't get no respect
Quote du jour
Nah-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah!
More April Showers!
Easter with the yearlings
Snakes and Snakes
April showers...
Wanker Wednesday


In this special edition of the ICCS Infection Prevention & Control Newsletter, catch up on the some of the biggest news items from the first half of 2018.
Note: The ICCS Newsletter is a free publication from Infection Control Consulting Services. Signing up is fast and easy. Click here!
AORN to Revise Surgical Attire Guideline, Raising Questions — This ICCS special report shares the news of AORN announcing plans to revise its "Guideline for Surgical Attire" following a meeting with the American College of Surgeons and several other organizations and the questions this news raises for healthcare facilities, including ambulatory surgery centers.
FDA Updates Protocols to Reduce Duodenoscope-Associated Infection Risk — The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) announced new voluntary, standardized protocols for duodenoscope surveillance sampling and culturing.
Joint Commission Now Citing Any Hand Hygiene Failure — The Joint Commission announced that as of Jan. 1, 2018, surveyors witnessing any failure of healthcare personnel to perform hand hygiene while providing direct patient care will be cited as a deficiency.
Infection Control Standard is 2017's "Most Challenging" for Joint Commission-Accredited Ambulatory Healthcare Organizations — An infection control standard was the most challenging for Joint Commission-accredited ambulatory healthcare organizations in 2017. Note: An infection control standard was also the most challenging for office-based surgery practices (read report).
ASC Infection Rates Following Colonoscopy and Endoscopy Higher Than Believed — Rates of infection following colonoscopies and upper-GI endoscopies performed at ambulatory surgery centers is much higher than previously expected, according to a study.
SHEA Issues Hospital Guidance on Contact Precautions for Drug-Resistant Infections — The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) issued new guidance for hospitals concerning when they can safely discontinue contact precautions for patients with multi-drug resistant bacteria.
Infection Prevention and Control Programs are Essential to Antibiotic Stewardship Efforts — Infection prevention and control and antibiotic stewardship programs are inextricably linked, according to a joint position paper published by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), SHEA and the Society of Infectious Disease Pharmacists (SIDP).
Joint Commission Issues New Maternal Infectious Disease Requirements — The Joint Commission implemented three new elements of performance (EPs) pertaining to maternal infectious disease identification and prevention.
FDA Warns Against Use of 24-Hour Multi-Patient Use Endoscope Connectors — The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) issued an alert to healthcare providers and facilities advising them against using "24-hour multi-patient use endoscope connectors" because of the risk of cross-contamination.
Study: Nearly Three-Quarters of Commonly Used Medical Scopes Tainted by Bacteria — A study shows that 71% of reusable medical scopes deemed ready for use on patients tested positive for bacteria at three major U.S. hospitals.
Leapfrog: Poorer-Performing Hospitals Struggle with Infection Control — When the Leapfrog Group announced its spring "2018 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades," one of the key takeaways was that infection control is a significant challenge for hospitals receiving lower scores.


Who Can Apply: US citizens or permanent residents enrolled in or planning to enroll in an accredited college or university full-time in 2017. There is no minimum GPA requirement. The basis for awarding the scholarship will be the passion of the applicant, as represented by their writing sample.
Submission: Please share in one page (less than 250 words) your personal understanding of how Applied Behavior Analysis works as a therapy for those with Autism Spectrum Disorder.


A taxi driver who reported a bragging burglar to police has been given a special commendation.
Paul Johnston, 31, picked up a teenager in the Washington area last month and began to casually chat with his passenger.
During the journey, the confident customer boasted he'd just carried out a burglary at Biddick Academy earlier that evening but claimed he "wouldn't get caught" by police.
Mr Johnston, a taxi driver of 13 years, quizzed the passenger further and then contacted his local PC to report the surprising admission.
Two males – aged 16 and 32 – were subsequently arrested on suspicion of burglary.
This week, Chief Superintendent Sarah Pitt invited Mr Johnston into Northumbria Police's headquarters at Middle Engine Lane, Wallsend, to present him with an award in recognition of his role in helping to identify the offenders.
"This isn't an everyday occurrence so we thought it was important to invite Paul in and thank him personally on behalf of the Force," said Chief Supt Pitt said.
"We work very closely with door staff and taxi drivers in order to keep the public safe and tackle crime, and this is an example of the benefits of that strong relationship.
"It would have been easy for Paul to overlook the passenger's claims, but his willingness to do the right thing and inform police has led to a crime being solved that may have otherwise gone undetected.
Police were made aware of a suspected burglary which occurred between 5.23pm and 5.30pm on January 15 at Biddick Academy, in Washington.
Offenders gained access to the school site and stole a quantity of hot chocolate, coffee and sandwiches before making off.
A few hours later, one of the individuals involved in the burglary jumped into Mr Johnston's taxi and spoke openly about his earlier actions.
"A lad got in the car and asked if I was from Washington, which I said yes, and then asked if I'd heard that Biddick Academy had 'got done over'," Mr Johnston said.
"Something seemed suspicious by the way he was going on about it, so I asked whether it was him and he said yes – but claimed he wasn't going to get caught as there wasn't anything on CCTV.
"I've been a taxi driver for a while, and people chat to you about all sorts of things in the back of the cab. Nothing really surprises you – but this job stuck in my memory.
"I have family members who work in schools and children who attend them in the local area, and I know many schools are struggling financially. I thought it wouldn't be very nice if this had happened to their school, so decided to contact police and tell them what I had been told.
A 16-year-old male is to receive a youth conditional caution and be referred to the Youth Offending Team (YOT) as a result of his actions. A 32-year-old man also received a caution.
Anyone who wishes to report a crime should contact 101, Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or by visiting www.northumbria.police.uk. In an emergency, ring 999.


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Definitions of specific terms as used in this plan are listed in Annex U. If not listed, then terms are as defined in normal daily usage.
Disaster Task Force (DTF) - Composed of university administrators from organizations critical to disaster response. They coordinate the university's response to emergency situations (when activated). If the DTF has been activated it will be located in Room 1164 of the Harman Conference Center or in the alternate location under the west stands at Cougar Stadium.
Student Life - Coordination of student volunteers, etc.
The responsibility for emergency preparedness rests first with each individual. BYU personnel and students must ensure they and their families are prepared for disasters both at home and at BYU. Also, individuals will ensure the safety of their families before reporting to BYU to assist in disaster response.
The primary responsibility for emergency preparedness within the College of Life Sciences rests with the Dean, the College Emergency Coordinator, Department Chairs, Directors, full-time faculty and staff and others in the college as designated, and is based upon the assumption that personnel, assets and vital information can be protected.
Extensive damage to your building(s) has occurred.
Telephones (including cellular phones) are inoperable.
Computers and other equipment are inoperable.
The organization's offices are intact, but not accessible.
Files and hard copy records are not accessible.
The College of Life Sciences and its Departments must be prepared to respond to requests from the DTF in providing resources (manpower and materials) for general use by BYU. You may also request available support from the DTF, but be aware that in any disaster situation, resources will be scarce.
Periodic testing of disaster plan effectiveness will be required.
Proper training of College personnel for disaster response will be required.
The successful recovery of essential mission functions will be directly proportional to completion of essential mitigation and preparation efforts.
Automatically when a major incident significantly disrupts the College of Life Sciences' operations.
Automatically when a state of emergency for an area including BYU has been declared by the Governor of the State of Utah.
When the university president, his appointed representative, or the Chair of the DTF directs implementation of the General BYU Emergency Plan.
Essential Functions: The most significant function of the College is education. Classes will be started as soon as approval has been received from the administration, the buildings have been determined to be safe for general use, and a minimum of instructional support equipment has been made operational. Other research and academic functions are listed in Annex F along with the associated actions during an emergency. Annex T contains the Restoration Checklist for the critical functions, responsible individuals, and the recovery priority.
Chain of Command: During an emergency situation, directions will be provided from the University's Disaster Task Force to the Dean and Department Chairs. Department Chairs will work closely with the College Emergency Coordinator to direct the disaster recovery efforts in the College.
Data backup of individual computers is the responsibility of the Faculty or Staff member assigned to that computer.
In the event of an emergency requiring evacuation of classrooms, shops, labs, reading rooms, gyms, studios, etc. (any area which directly supports student academic activities) the instructor is responsible for the safety and evacuation of students (campus visitors/conference participants/university guests) in his class (Annex A). In preparation for this eventuality, evacuation and safety instructions will be presented during the first class period of each semester.
Are provided pertinent information needed to respond to and recover from an incident* (provide copies of annexes K through T).
Personnel: College of Life Science personnel will prepare their families prior to any disaster and follow through after a disaster to insure family members are cared for, and then, if assigned disaster response/recovery responsibilities, report to the university for carrying out disaster response and recovery operations. A list of all College personnel by Department or area and their special skills is included as Annex H.
Equipment and Supplies: Equipment and supplies available within the College of Life Sciences which may be of value during a disaster response are listed by Department or area in Annex I. Immediately after any disaster affecting more than just your College Emergency Coordinator provide one updated copy of this list to the Emergency Preparedness Coordinator.
Mitigation/Preparation Checklist (See Annex J). Departments and other areas in the College of Life Sciences should make periodic reviews to insure the items included in this checklist have been completed and are current. These reviews will be conducted annually during July and August.
Chemical/Hazardous Materials Accidents (Annex P).
Tour Disaster/Emergency Plan (Annex S).
Recovery Checklists (including priorities for recovery) (See Annex T).
Communications are important to maintain during any emergency situation. Often the phone system will be overwhelmed during a disaster and may even be inoperative. To assist with the transmission of vital information, the notification tree at Annex U has been established. The notifications will be made via the telephone/building public address system during routine drills and minor emergencies. If theses systems are down or a major disaster has occurred, then notifications will have to be made by personal contact whenever feasible.
The person at the head of each list is responsible for contacting everyone below them. Information such as personal injuries can be passed up to the Dean by using the tree in reverse order.


text:
Mostly clear. Warm and humid. Low 74F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph..
Mostly clear. Warm and humid. Low 74F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph.
PowerChord entertains the crowd Friday evening at Party on the Patio at Baxter Sports Complex. Pictured (from left) are band members Ella Wright on bass guitar, Ben Ramatowski on drums, Oliver Santiago on guitar, and Jonah Santiago, the band's manager on keyboards. Not pictured is backup guitarist Ike Thacher.
Robin Delaney/editor@dailydem.com
Band strikes a chord with audience
Robin Delaney editor@dailydem.com
Robin Delaney
You'll have to go through Jonah – if you hope to book the up and coming rock band PowerChord for a performance at a birthday party, picnic, dance or any occasion.
Yes, 10-year-old Jonah Santiago is the manager of the group.
"I book the gigs and collect the money," he said prior to the band's performance Friday evening at Fort Madison Partners' Party on the Patio gathering at the Baxters Sports Complex.
And the money he collects usually consists of $20 per band member, or $80 per performance.
Partners Executive Director Tim Gobble said he approached the group about playing Friday's event while at a band concert.
"I was told I had to go through Jonah, who got out his phone, calls up the calendar and say's, 'yes, we're open the 28th,'" Gobble said.
The band is comprised of middle school students Ella Wright, 13, daughter of John and Christine Wright, on bass guitar; Ben Ramatowski, 13, son of Ji and Elaine Ramatowski, on drums; Oliver Santiago, 12, son of Mio and Jane Santiago and older brother of Jonah, on guitar ; and Ike Thacher, 12, son of Troy and Amy Thacher, on backup guitar. At least three out of the four take turns providing vocals.
"We mostly play old rock like Smells Like School Spirit, Green Day. We play a lot of Nirvana," Jonah said. (If that is "old rock," does that move Journey, REO Speedwagon, Styx and Meatloaf to the "oldie but moldy" shelf?)
Friday's gig was the fourth performance for the band that formed just 8 months ago.
"Ben and I put it together and came up with the name, but we all approved it," Oliver Santiago said.
The group rehearses weekly and has a performance at a birthday party in Mediapolis and two gigs at Simple Table in Fort Madison under its belt.
The band arrives with its own sound equipment – and its own crew, which is made up of the fathers of the band members.
"We're the only ones with driver's licenses and that can stay up past 10," joked Mio Santiago as he plugged in equipment Friday and prepared for a sound check.
PowerChord will be performing at Fort Madison Rotary's Picnic in the Park 5-7 p.m. Sunday, July 7, in Central Park. You can try to book the band then or go to the band's Facebook page or contact via Instragam at official_powerchord
But either way, in person or online, you'll have go through Jonah.
Follow Robin Delaney


LOS ANGELES- NAJF Reporter Tyler Jones is the host of the weekly podcast, "The Dr. Report with Tyler Jones." During the 2017 Excellence in Journalism conference, Jones caught up with NFL Network's Steve Wyche at the network's headquarters in Culver City, CA. Wyche gave his thoughts on the start of the new NFL season.
In this podcast, Jones is also joined by Mvskoke Media's Native News Today Host Jason Salsman as a guest co-host.


text:
AMBUSH HOST SOCKERS FRIDAY AND SUNDAY
St. Charles, Missouri (February 24, 2021) – The St. Louis Ambush host the San Diego Sockers in a pair of games this weekend. Action gets underway at 7:35 p.m. CST on Friday at the Axius Field at the Family Arena, with the encore slated for 3:05 p.m. CST on Sunday.
St. Louis and San Diego are two cities with a rich heritage in professional arena soccer. St. Louis' three teams, the Steamers, Storm and Ambush, have brought a combined 32 seasons of exciting action to the St. Louis area. Various incarnations of the Sockers have competed for 43 seasons. With the Ambush and Sockers occupying separate conferences (in normal, non-pandemic seasons) in the Major Arena Soccer League, the two teams infrequently cross paths. The last time the Sockers invaded the Family Arena was over six years ago, so this weekend's matches offer fans a rare chance to see two storied franchises go head to head.
Friday night will be Retro Night, with the Ambush and Sockers paying tribute to the teams and players that have represented their respective cities, as both teams will wear throwback style jerseys for Friday night's contest. The Ambush will sport the popular powder-blue Steamers style kits, while the Sockers will wear corresponding retro kits of their own from the era. Alumni players who have played for previous Steamers, Storm and Ambush professional clubs are also invited to attend this game and will be provided with two complimentary tickets per player by emailing info@stlambush.com.
The Ambush come into the weekend with a 4-6 record on the season and presently occupy fifth place in the standings. Hampered by illnesses and injuries in recent games, the team is looking to get back on a winning track. The Sockers come to town at 3-2 and are in third place in the MASL.
Tickets for upcoming home games are available at the Family Arena box office or online at ticketmaster.com. All Ambush games can also be viewed online at Facebook Live PPV. Fans can stay current on all Ambush news by visiting the team's official website, stlambush.com or on social media outlets.


text:
Hungarian parliamentary election: Easter intrigue for Ukraine
Author : Georgiy Kuhaleyshvili
Victor Orban's uncooperative policy is more acceptable for Kyiv than accession to power of "Jobbik" party, which recognized annexed Crimea as Russian and made claims to Transcarpathia
Read the original text at 112.ua.
On Sunday, April 8, when Ukraine was celebrating Easter, parliamentary elections in neighboring Hungary took place. The ruling conservative Fides Party of Prime Minister Viktor Orban, its younger partner in the coalition Christian Democratic People's Party of Zsolt Semjén, the far right party Jobbik of Gabor Vona, and political forces of the liberal democratic camp (Hungarian Socialist Party of Ferenc Gyurcsány," Democratic coalition "of Gergely Karácsony, Democratic coalition of former Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany, Momentum Movement of András Fekete-Győr, Green Party "Politics Can Be Different" of economist Bernadett Szél) – all these forces were struggling for the seats in the Hungarian parliament.
Related: Parliamentary elections in Hungary: Record election turnout
Opinion polls predict Orban's victory; he intends to become the Hungarian prime minister for the fourth time. At the same time, against the background of the migration crisis, the popularity of the "Jobbik" party, which does not hide the support of Russia's aggression in Ukraine, is growing. The outcome of the parliamentary elections in Hungary is quite important for Ukraine. Relations between our states have been not simple throughout the history and are now complicated by the language issue, the paternalistic policy of Budapest towards the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia, and the territorial claims of the far right radicals, who are seeking to make their way into the Government.
Fidesz: fear among the refugees and George Soros
According to opinion polls, the alliance of the ruling political forces "Fidesz" and "Christian Democratic People's Party" is a favorite in the pre-election race. 49% of voters were ready to vote for them. The key pre-election message of Orban is the opposition to the EU's open door policy. The Hungarian prime minister presents refugees and migrants professing Islam as a threat to the identity of Hungary. A week before the election, Orban intensified criticism of George Soros, an American billionaire of Hungarian descent and founder of the fund of the same name. Orban considers Soros "the number one enemy of Hungary", presents him as a conductor of Brussels influence, and the sponsor of the liberal-democratic opposition. In one of his recent statements, Orban claimed that there were allegedly about 2,000 people in Hungary, who during the election campaign were trying to overthrow the government and to create a favorable regime for Soros. And it could turn Hungary into a country of migrants.
People in Budapest protest against the decision of the authorities to close the Central European University, founded by Soros
It is no coincidence that the leader of the Fidesz Party uses populism, anti-immigrant, and anti-European rhetoric. Most Hungarians really oppose the deployment of 1,294 refugees by quota in accordance with the plan of the European Commission. According to a survey of the Pew research center, 76% of Hungarian respondents believe that sheltering refugees is equivalent to a terrorist threat. In 2015, the territory of Hungary was crossed by 400 thousand descendants from the countries of Asia and Africa, who traveled to Western Europe. Hungarians fear that Muslim refugees will cause the growth of terrorist threat and ethno-religious conflicts. The systematic attacks of Islamic extremists in the UK, France, Germany, the countries of Southern and Northern Europe, and cases of violence by refugees against Europeans produce an oppressive impression on the Hungarians. Hungarians are worried that similar problems might affect their country.
Related: Hungary's statements on education law extremely close to 'red line', - MFA of Ukraine
The attitude of the Hungarian society towards Muslim refugees reflects the case in Ocseny (autumn of 2017). The owner of the local hotel Zoltan Fenyvesi expressed the desire to shelter a group of refugees and thus demonstrate Hungarian hospitality. This aroused the indignation of a significant number of villagers who rallied near his hotel. Fenyvesi received threats and was condemned for his cooperation with the organization "Assistance to Migrants". Regardless of party convictions, a significant number of Hungarians are opposed to the deployment of refugees on their territory and are ready to resist the policy of "open doors". Orban uses anti-immigrant sentiments in society in his favor and develops the image of the defender of the Hungarian people against the arbitrariness of European bureaucrats and the threat of Islamization. During the current cadence, he actually proved that he was ready to take radical measures to prevent the influx of refugees to Hungary. They built special fences along the state border with Serbia and Croatia, staffed with video surveillance, which can withstand the influx of large crowds of refugees. The Hungarian military patrols the border areas for the timely detention of refugees with subsequent deportation.
Related: Ukrainian Hungarians have a right for dual citizenship, - Ernő Keskeny
Orban is supported by a wide range of people, including people with higher than average income. The Hungarian oligarch with a fortune of 327 million euros and the mayor of Felcsut village Lőrinc Mészáros is a member of Fidesz. And this case is not rare. During Orban's rule, economic growth is visible in Hungary. In 2017, Hungary's GDP grew by 4%. During the last two years of Orban's rule, unemployment in Hungary declined from 11.2% in 2010 to 3.8% in 2017. Orban's government introduced a single 16% tax rate on profits, nationalized private pension funds. Fidesz has a lot of loyal media resources, which have become a means of Orban's politicking. About 59% of Hungarian TV channels, Internet resources, and print media belong to businessmen who have close ties with the party of power. For 8 years of uninterrupted stay in power, Fidesz has limited freedom of speech in Hungary. Public news channels M1, M2 DUNA began to broadcast information in a pro-government interpretation, opposition Népszabadság newspaper was closed.
Related: Hungarian Foreign Minister: OSCE mission open in Zakarpattia region
There is an opinion that the Fidesz party uses political levers to reduce the influence of the opposition in Hungarian society: they have their own people in the Constitutional Court, opposition officials are fired, fines are being issued to opposition parties under the pretext of offenses, and the state budget is used to conduct a political campaign. Like President Vladimir Putin and United Russia, Viktor Orban and Fidesz established an authoritarian regime in favor of loyal oligarchs in Hungary. Orban expects to receive the votes of foreign Hungarians who live on the territory of other countries and who have a residence permit in Hungary. This is about 359 thousand people. Two thousand local Hungarians vote in Transcarpathia.
However, the current Hungarian authorities have some weaknesses too. Orban's image is overshadowed by the recent corruption scandal involving his brother-in-law, businessman Sándor Tiborcz. His Elios Innovativ firm won an order for the supply of street lamps in Hungarian cities that were bought for EU money. In some cases, the cost of lamps was 56% higher than the market value. Perhaps it was rent-seeking behaviour. However, the Hungarian police closed the case in 2016 under the pretext of no violation of the law. The oligarchs associated with the Fidesz party took part in the construction of large infrastructure facilities. The contract for the construction of the sports ground in Felcsut, the village, where Orban was born, was signed by 120 firms of Mészáros. The European Commission requires clarification from the Hungarian government about the disappearance of the 283 million euros, allocated for the construction of the new subway line in Budapest (under the project by 1.7 billion euros).
Related: Hungarian autonomy in Transcarpathia is impossible, - MFA of Ukraine
"Jobbik": The far rights are gaining momentum
The most popular and influential opposition political force in these elections is the far right party "Jobbik" ("For Better Hungary"). This political force is supported by 18% of Hungarians. "Jobbik" took third place in terms of the number of seats in the Hungarian parliament (23 seats) in the 2014 parliamentary elections. Judging by the polls, the influence of ultranationalists in Hungarian society has grown, and they have a chance to move Socialist Party of Hungary to a third position. During the 2006 elections, the party "Jobbik" did not have enough votes to go to parliament. For Hungary, this is nonsense, because previously, socialists were the main opponent of Orban.
Supporters of the Hungarian far right party "Jobbik"; march in Budapest, 2014
"Jobbik" party exists since 2003, and it was initially associated with neo-fascism and xenophobia. In 2007-2009, Jobbik had a paramilitary organization called the Hungarian Guard that saw themselves as the main opponents of Jews and Gypsies. Subsequently, the views of the party leadership evolved. Their leader Gabor Vona believes that the "Jobbik" party needs to gain support for all the constructive forces in Hungary, and anti-Semitism and discrimination against the Roma are no longer acceptable. The party opposes the deployment of refugees and supports the tightening of the migration regime, even to the rejection of employment of migrant workers. The leader of the "Jobbik" faction in the Parliament, Zsiga-Kárpát Dániel, is sure that it is necessary to promote the increase in the birth rate of native Hungarians within the country by carrying out programs for the construction of new housing and the development of households. In his opinion, it is necessary to abolish refugee camps in Hungary. "Jobbik" stands for cooperation between the state and business, equalization of salaries, and reduction of emigration of Hungarians.
Related: Jobbik party is organizer of rally for Zakarpattia self-determination
The position of "Jobbik" in relation to European integration has changed too. Initially, the party supported the withdrawal from the EU. If previously burning of the flags of the European Union at rallies of the party was something usual, now Vona calls for deepening Hungary's integration into the EU and joining the Eurozone. The leader of "Jobbik" believes that there is no sense to leave the EU, because, against the backdrop of the migration crisis, it is possible to transform the integration education.
"Jobbik" party is the main opposition to the current authorities in Hungary. The ultra-nationalists criticize Orban for not a strict migration policy, and advocate the fight against corruption. "Jobbik" is trying to discredit Orban in every possible way. In January, there were rumors that the Hungarian government secretly placed 1,300 refugees, so the leader of the "Jobbik" party demanded explanations from Orban. "Jobbik" acts on the same electoral field as Fidesz and seeks to attract the most reactionary strata of Hungarian society, who are concerned about the refugee problem, but are disappointed in Orban's rule (because of corruption scandals among his entourage). If in December-March the ratings of Fidesz fell, the number of supporters of Jobbik on the contrary increased from 16% to 18%.
Related: Orban's gas intrigue: Hungary plays on contradictions between Russia and the US
Shaky positions of the liberals
Judging by the opinion polls, about 30% of Hungarian voters support Hungarian parties of a liberal-democratic nature. If the "Socialist Party of Hungary", the "Democratic Coalition", the "Momentum Movement", the Green Party "Politics Can Be Different," agreed on an alliance and went to the elections with a single list, they could defeat "Jobbik" in the election race. Nevertheless, the Hungarian liberals are divided. The Socialists are in opposition after their defeat at the 2010 parliamentary elections. The positions of the Socialist Party of Hungary weakened after the split in 2011 and the withdrawal of the political force of the Democratic Coalition, Ferenc Gyurcsány, former Socialist leader. "Momentum Movement" of András Fekete-Győr is against an alliance with any of the parties. Fekete-Győr became famous for his successful action in support of the voluntary refusal to host the Summer Olympic Games in Hungary in 2024.
Related: Attack on Hungarian Culture Association office is Russian provocation, - Klimkin
Now the Socialists occupy the third position in the pre-election race. They are supported by 14% of Hungarian voters. Only 7% of voters are ready to vote for the "Democratic coalition" and the Greens ones, and only 2% for the "Momentum Movement" party. Opposition parties are not very popular among voters because they hold a rather liberal position with regard to the refugees. The socialists and the greens do not agree with Fidesz on migration issues.
At the same time, liberal parties that manage to get into parliament could play a decisive role in forming a coalition (if the parties of Fidesz and the Christian Democratic People's Party lack votes to form a parliamentary majority). In this case, Fidesz and the liberals would have to forget about their former hostility and join forces to leave "Jobbik" out of the coalition.
Related: Donbas veterans among detained for attack on Hungarian Culture Association, - Zakarpattia Head
Orban: lesser evil for Ukraine
The "lesser evil" for Ukraine is the preservation of the coalition of the Fidesz party and the Christian Democratic People's in the Hungarian parliament. Lately, Ukrainian-Hungarian relations are going through hard times. Bilateral relations overshadow the language dispute. Last year, the Hungarian authorities criticized Ukraine's law on education, which stipulates teaching in Ukrainian in all educational institutions (including schools of local Hungarians). Fidesz supports the change of the territorial structure of Ukraine and calls for granting of autonomy to the Transcarpathian Hungarians. Despite the existing contradictions, the government of Orban continues to participate in anti-Russian sanctions, adheres to pragmatic relations with Europe and Russia.
Strenthening of Jobbik's positions is undesirable for Ukraine. The Hungarian far right advocates rapprochement with Russia, their observers attended a pseudo-referendum in Crimea. "Jobbik" recognized annexed Crimea as Russian and made claims to Transcarpathia. Radicals believe that all the territories of neighboring countries inhabited by ethnic Hungarians should be part of Hungary. The functionaries of "Jobbik" consider Ukraine an artificial state. In 2010-2014, the representative office of the "Jobbik" party of European MP Bela Kovacs, who visited the pseudo-referendum in Crimea and supported the annexation of the peninsula by Russia, functioned in the Transcarpathian town of Berehovo. Kovacs helped Transcarpathian Hungarians obtain a Hungarian passport, despite the fact that dual citizenship is prohibited by Ukrainian legislation. About 94 thousand Transcarpathian Hungarians have already received Hungarian citizenship under a simplified procedure.
Related: Those who talk about anti-Hungarian attitude in Ukraine should appeal to Kremlin, - Klimkin
Hungarian-Ukrainian relations will deteriorate if "Jobbik" gets into the coalition. This party will lobby for the abolition of anti-Russian sanctions in the EU and stir up territorial disputes with Ukraine. Orban is less evil for Ukraine than the Hungarian ultranationalists. The fact that "Fidesz" and "Jobbik" compete with each other in the struggle for the electorate, and do not go to the elections as a united front, is beneficial for Ukraine. In March, the communities of the Hungarian culture of Transcarpathia, KMKSZ, which lobby the interests of the Fides Party, conducted an information campaign against ultranationalists from Jobbik. The ruling parties in Hungary would not benefit from the fact that the "Jobbik" party has joined the coalition. Otherwise, ultranationalists will promote Russia's influence in Hungary and facilitate external interference in the political processes of the country.
This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or 112.International and its owners.
Related: Law on education contradicts Ukraine's commitments to EU, NATO, - Hungary's Ambassador
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