I am in charge of my own perspective. Not my circumstances, my house, children, their actions or anything else. When I come into the dining room and see the "tent" my children have created and the "store " underneath with all the boxes, dishes and whatever else they found; I can think how creative they are and be thankful they have good imaginations or I can see a mess and tell them to quickly clean it up. I have been guilty of the later more than the former more often than I like to remember. It is very easy to see the mess that was just cleaned rather than the memories that were just created.
In the south theirs a saying" If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." And isn't that the truth. We set the tone for our home. We are in charge of our attitudes and the atmosphere in our home. When we have a day when things don't go quite right we can choose to keep our attitude right in the midst of it. You can put on a happy face, a little lipstick won't hurt either. We are an example for our children in this. Do they see you rising above the circumstances of life or blaming them for all the things that aren't quite right. Our children are watching more than listening. Do you set a happy tone?
When I go through our day I need to look at the things and see the blessings that are in my daily life. The many meals I cook are because we have food to eat and dishes to wash. We sweep the floor often because we have a lot of feet rushing through the house. I am thankful I picked out flooring in the back porch to match the dirt color in the yard because although I love spring, in our yard it is also mud season. But it is also the season for my fronr yard to be filled with lovely crocuses.
By changing your own perspective, who knows how many others you will influence?
an ever-present help in a time of trouble.
I spent 4 days in the hospital. Severe asthma, bronchitis, sinusitis, iv steroids. I have had enough steroids to make the Incredible Hulk seem benign. And this is the 2nd time in the hospital in just over 3 months. The hospital was a safe place to be and recuperate, a refuge. But my refuge, Who I run to over and over is not a place but a Person. My God. I have not been strong through this but He is. I struggled simply to breathe. God was my all. When I struggle to breathe, my thoughts are fairly consumed with all God can do. That even though hospitals are a great help, He is my Healer. He is my strength and refuge.
Jehovah Rophi– God Who Heals.
I need to make God present in every thought , not just when sick or in times of trouble, although that is an easy time to think of Him. Didn't we as children run to Mom or Dad when we had a problem? Why is it so easy to just go on with our days without a thought when things are going well? Why do I want to be so self sufficient? Only God is sufficient. When I depend only on myself, I will always fail. Sure, maybe not at first. But I will eventually fall. God alone is my strength and refuge. He never fails. Do you tend to rely on yourself? Is your self worth related to all you can do? I know that I have been there. Right now I am in a wheelchair. I hate being pushed around by other people. I feel like a toddler "I want to do it myself!" Not just because of the embarrassment but because it's hard to be dependent. But I already am, I just have to admit it. Do you struggle with this? How do you keep your reliance on God ?
I am in charge of my own perspective. Not letting my circumstances, my house, children, their actions or anything else take over in how I see and react to things. When I come into the dining room and see the "tent" my children have created and the "store " underneath with all the boxes, dishes and whatever else they found; I can think how creative they are and be thankful they have good imaginations or I can see a mess and tell them to quickly clean it up. I have been guilty of the later more than the former more often than I like to remember. It is very easy to see the mess that was just cleaned rather than the memories that were just created.
In the south their's a saying" If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." And isn't that the truth. We set the tone for our home. We are in charge of our attitudes and the atmosphere in our home. When we have a day when things don't go quite right we can choose to keep our attitude right in the midst of it. You can put on a happy face, a little lipstick won't hurt either. We are an example for our children in this. Do they see you rising above the circumstances of life or blaming them for all the things that aren't quite right. Our children are watching more than listening. Do you set a happy tone?
When I go through our day I need to look at the things and see the blessings that are in my daily life. The many dishes in the kitchen are because we have food to eat . We sweep and vacuum the floor often because we have a lot of feet rushing through the house. I can complain about laundry to fold or appreciate the many clean clothes we have. I can complain about the duck poop in the back or enjoy nature that God created. Which side will you look on?
I had great plans this summer. Print outs of summer Bingo, daily plans, foodie plans and fun field trips. We have done none of these. I first had a cast, that means no trips to the beach, or the pool. It's non weight bearing so no walking trips. I have a knee scooter which will not fit in my car and we borrowed a wheelchair which doesn't roll on grass. That did leave library trips. Then I spent 3 days in the hospital for tests in June unexpectedly, which leaves me with 10 hugs a day minimum from my very now clingy daughter. I went to the doctor Wednesday to find out I was having surgery to amputate 2 toes that had been infected for more than 2 months. More time down. I had all these great plans to make up for the last few summers that I was also down. This is the 4th summer with major health problems that limited what I could do. And I was sure this year was different. I was sure after how terrible the last few summers were this would be the one where I could take my children to the beach, to the pool, on field trips and just plain have fun. God has other plans.
I have great plans for you, plans for hope and a future. While we might not know and understand the plans God has, He knows. He sees the big picture while I can only see this is one more thing I have had to cancel. He sees our hurts and disappointments, He knows the whys we ask. I wish I did. We have still had fun. My older children have made it a point to take my younger children swimming. My children home have been so kind about pushing the wheel chair and bringing me things. They've been gracious about what I can't do. There's a lot they've learned that weren't on any of the plans I'd made. So we're learning to follow plans unmade.


If you've been looking for an area of ELT that offers incredible job security and motivated students, then let's talk about exam prep for TOEFL iBT and IELTS.
Once you've got the relevant experience, your schedule would be full. People think I'm kidding but think seriously: How many ESL students have to take an English test? Almost every single one.
… And how many ESL teachers are willing to lead exams lessons? Very, very few.
There is a huge gap between the number of students who have to take exams (and get high speaking scores in particular), and teachers who are qualified to analyze needs, plan and lead lessons that make a difference in students' scores… and lives.
So what if you knew how to do it "right"? What impact would that have on your students' scores and opportunities?
When I was planning my first TOEFL iBT speaking lesson, the CD's from the book were rolling across the floor. I was completely lost and it took ages before I knew how to navigate the massive test-prep books.
And then because each student seemed so different—with different score targets and different starting levels of English—I rarely reused my early lesson plans.
My lessons didn't always change students' scores and I would get legitimately depressed. When I asked other English teachers how they taught for exams, I was met with a shrug. Since no one seemed to know, I read exam prep books, blogs and searched the internet—but nothing spoke to me or my struggles as a teacher.
Why did it seem like I was all alone?
I'm Jaime Miller and it all started with one student who entrusted her future to me. Since then, I've prepared countless TOEFL iBT students from over 30 countries. I've self-published three self-study programs. But self-study has real limits—especially when it comes to raising speaking exam scores.
After years of practice, observation and tweaking, I systematized the lesson plans that I used to panic over. I discovered how to prioritize and sequence lessons without making students' brains melt. But more amazing was that I was improving students' spontaneous accuracy with grammar, vocabulary and accent features (which led to the coveted TOEFL iBT Speaking score of 26-27 or 8 at IELTS).
By 2013, I had so many success stories and word-of-mouth referrals that I started a waiting list. When a spot opened, students would agree to take lessons in the middle of their nighttime just to fit in my schedule.
I was clearly at full capacity and I needed to make a choice: either share what I know through teacher trainings or keep raising my lesson prices.
If you've been looking for "how to teach for exams" help, you've probably already discovered a barren landscape in ELT. The vast majority of books are written to students and neglect your unique questions and challenges.
Plus, schools are normally run by teams who don't understand the exams they schedule lessons for. They hire you, hoping you're the expert.
As for in-house training… "Well… Let's just follow this random book!" Actually, one-sized-fits-all lesson plans are a major cause of students' scores plateauing.
Unfortunately, there are more misconceptions and less collaboration in this area of ELT than any other—and you're likely to inherit the industry's confusion.
So then, when one of your students inevitably fails (because let's face it, it's a statistical reality), are you going to call it quits or will you rely on solid strategies that will re-energize both your and your student?
I want you to get the most out of my material from the minute you start. So even though you'll have access to the "Digital Reference Book" forever, we'll start with a goal-setting video that shows you exactly how to get the best results for you and your students.
I am soaking up your material like a sponge. It's exactly what I have been looking for the last two years.
We begin in the most professional and effective way possible, by grounding you in assessment theory and the methodological assumptions that underlie everything I teach.
One of the greatest mistakes that exam schools and tutors around the world make is that they assume too much about the student and jump into lessons.
This will not be your problem after you finish this module because you'll know why you're doing what you're doing with your students.
Just from learning how to analyze a diagnostic test, my confidence went from 5 to 7.5 out of 10. Now, when I go into a lesson, I will know what the student needs, so neither of us wastes or time and he doesn't waste his money.
To create the foundation for higher scores in productive areas like speaking and writing, it's critical to make sure learners' receptive skills (reading and listening) are strong. We'll look at how to plan effective lessons, reduce stress, and increase learners' attention.
Many teachers are tempted to highlight and point out every grammar, vocabulary and syntax error their students make—but that often causes more harm than good. Especially when your student needs a change in just a few weeks, prioritizing the errors is essential. We'll look at approaches that boost student confidence, target change and keep you, as a teacher, focused on "the right" things.
Because there is virtually no mentoring for this and no books have been published on this topic, many teachers perceive teaching speaking as the most intimidating of all.
Speaking is undoubtedly the section of TOEFL iBT that makes everyone's knees shake (including most teachers'). That's why we spend so much time on this section. Not only will you explore relevant material in the Digital Reference Book, but you will observe video recordings of lessons where Jaime teaches pronunciation, intonation and "fixes fossilized errors" (which is the topic she shared at the 50th IATEFL conference in Birmingham in April 2016).
This is where you will propel yourself ahead of other colleagues who are too nervous to tackle these topics. When you master these lesson sequences, you'll find your reputation growing as your testimonials become more and more targeted to TOEFL iBT speaking.
With your finger on the pulse of what's happening, it's easy to steer clear of bad news. You can have an idea of whether your students are ready for their test before they go, and you can use a variety of methods to find out! You'll discover eight effective review strategies which you can implement at different phases of a learner's studies. Equipped with these, you will have multiple lesson sequences and activities that you can use to check in on students' progress and wrap things up before the exam.
Remember before we pointed out how there are so many ESL students who need qualified teachers, but so few teachers? A major reason for this is because most teachers aren't aware of the pitfalls, or given models to overcome the frustrations. Unfortunately, it is only a matter of time before disaster strikes one of your students. It may be low scores, too little time, a sense of failure, or other hidden challenges.
We know how important it is for you to remain confident and keep things in perspective—both for yourself and for students. Jaime will share some stories and strategies for handling and responding to stressful situations big and small.
I knew one of my students wasn't going to get her target score but I wasn't sure how to have the conversation without blowing her confidence right before the test… I got the advice and confidence to have the Plan B conversation with her the very next day. It went so well! We both benefited from it.
As you might have already discovered from higher education, a degree doesn't guarantee more respect or money. The thing you've never been shown how to do is position yourself as an authority and influence people. You'll find out Jaime's techniques and clear examples of how she has motivated and inspired hundreds of students to commit to an effective study plan, overcome challenging situations and get results.
If you weave specific communication techniques into lessons, email exchanges and conversations, then your students will be more likely to sign up for lessons with you and follow your recommendations. That directly impacts their chances of completing homework you assign, making measurable improvement, and then referring their friends to you.
It's time to ensure you have lifetime access to lesson plans and the exam-teaching methodology that gets results and brings a steady income.
Enroll in How to Teach Exams, risk-free. If you decide this program isn't for you, then let us know within 30 days for a cheerful refund.
To be reminded about this course again later, sign up below.
I wish I had the How to Teach Exams training course available to me when I first started out, 12 years ago. I noticed many gems of wisdom in the Digital Reference Book that it took me years to figure out, that I now incorporate into my teaching techniques.
Teachers in this course are provided with real activities that work in the classroom or online, ones that I have used myself, and I know they work. With step-by-step, clear outlines, and recommendations of additional online resources, this course has everything that a star of a test-prep teacher would need.
Click here for her peer review.
One of my students called me after her exam and she was on cloud nine because she scored 71 when she only needed 53. She really did get to cross the exam off her list. It's very exciting that she gets to start university in the spring.
Exam prep has a beginning and an end. When my student achieved her goal, it was very rewarding. It made me want to help more people. I feel like I've only just touched the surface of this.
The How to Teach Exams course let me do what I like to do, which is help people!
Click to watch her interview.
Working with Jaime I had an opportunity to help impact a student's life in a major way. After significantly raising her TOEFL iBT score from 86 to 103, my student won a very large scholarship, and had an even larger opportunity to change and impact her country.
I chose Jaime after going through every person I could find, and asking everyone I could for recommendations. She was the most credible because of the congruence of her material with both reality, and with herself. She didn't meet my expectations. She surpassed them in every way.
Click to watch an interview with Valentina, his student.
Over a year ago, I was teaching a regular ESL class when a few students approached me and said they needed help in studying for the TOEFL exam. "Oh sure," I said, thinking that I'm an academically-inclined ESL teacher so that will be a snap. As we waded into the territory which is TOEFL-prep, I quickly realized that it was no snap. The TOEFL was daunting, and finding sane ways of helping the students study for it was yet more daunting. The big name preparation books (Cambridge, Delta, Oxford, Barron's) were not especially helpful. The internet provided resources galore but there was no clear direction for the students.
My students and I watched some videos of Jaime on YouTube, began to explore the website, and eventually bought the Advanced Speaking Guide, then the 24+ Writing, and eventually the Right Notes. We continued to watch videos. The students loved watching Jaime and working with her materials, but I still felt that I didn't know a clear pathway for them, and they didn't know for themselves.
When I received a notice that Jaime was teaching an online TOEFL teacher preparation course, I signed up right away (even though I was extremely busy). The teacher's course was amazing in so many ways that I'm not sure I can do justice in a few words.
Firstly, because Jaime has found her way by making many mistakes which she readily shares, I quickly relaxed my guilt about my own often-fruitless efforts to find the best practices and ways of addressing the needs of each student. But there was so much more. The teacher's course helped put everything into perspective. Now I know how to assess the students, work directly with their areas of weakness while not spending valuable time on areas in which they are already competent, as well as how to guide them through the materials (Jaime's and other sources) based on their needs.
If it ok if I need more than 16 weeks?
You can complete the training as quickly or slowly as you want. Unless something tragic happens, you will have uninterrupted, lifetime access. So, if it takes you longer than 16 weeks to finish, there's no issue with that.
Do I have to be a native-speaker to enroll?
Absolutely not! In fact, English Success Academy is a TEFL Equity Advocate and we welcome all teachers, especially those who learned English as a second (or third!) language.
That said, every teacher who enrolls in How to Teach Exams must have a high level of comfort studying and communicating in English in order to absorb the high-level concepts.
Grammar. Even students who seem quite fluent can make everything from elementary to advanced grammar mistakes. You shouldn't be scared about or unwilling to brush up on concepts like "reduced adjective clauses" and "passive" verb forms.
Vocabulary. In any lesson, you may have to encounter a mysterious phrase your student produces, like "Is important to humans for breathe." To provide valuable lessons, you need to uncover the student's meaning, find a natural-sounding replacement.
The course will cover how to prioritize what order you address mistakes, as well as the process for re-training "fossilized" errors, but you need to know what the mistakes and solutions are.
We recommend having at least 18 months experience and that you enjoy teaching older teens or adult learners.
It's best if you have at least a teaching certificate (CELTA or an equivalent).
How long can I use the Digital Reference Book?
The video below shows the Digital Reference, the learning portal where all of the training content is organized.
You have lifetime access to the Digital Reference where the core concept videos and materials are stored. As long as you pay in full, and remain a good member of our community, you will always have access to it.
If you agree with any of the following statements, they are strong indications that you should not enroll in How to Teach Exams.
If you identify with the following characteristics, they are strong indications that you are in an optimal position to implement the concepts in the training and see a quick return on investment.
You have strong English. You don't have to be a native-speaker teacher, though!
You have an ESL certificate and the ability to explain grammar.
You are motivated by students with clearly-articulated goals.
I recommend you find 5 to 8 hours each week. You should set aside 2 hours a week to attend the webinar. The length of Q&A sessions will vary, but it is safe to budget another 90 minutes to review those.
Then you will need time to implement. Each module will include many activities you can use with your students right away.
In the program, you'll get connected with other ambitious teachers who will form part of your accountability group. Some of the course work is to have focused conversations with these trusted peers. We make the most progress in teaching through collaboration — and you will benefit from the professional relationships you cultivate in this course.
What exams will this help me teach?
The concepts here have been vetted by seasoned teachers who tutor for TOEFL iBT and IELTS. It is widely agreed that these are sound methodologies and practices suitable for a wide variety of exams.
That said, all concrete examples in the program are given for the context of TOEFL iBT so if you are in the position of wondering how to teach TOEFL iBT, this course is very well suited to your situation.
Do I need to buy exam prep books?
This course will show you how to use the test-prep books that you, your school or your library has—or how to create lessons and material that fits your exam students' needs. But yes, it's possible you will need to purchase some extra books.


Few things require more hands-on attention than a young child. And there's little that's more distracting than the constant bleeping of our cells phones.
When these two things compete for our attention, the results can be sobering.
In a new animal-based study published in the journal Translational Psychiatry, scientists show that distracted parental attention may sometimes have detrimental effects on babies' development, especially their ability to process pleasure.
That means that for people, there might be a similar critical time during which babies need to have a mom and dad's reliable and consistent attention in order to form proper emotional processes.
That includes knowing that at a certain time every day, for example, food will come, or that when a toy appears, mom will play.
If mom is distracted by a call or a message alert, and turns to the cell phone instead, then this pattern gets broken and the crucial learning that should occur might not happen.
Other studies have shown that such poor development of the pleasure system could contribute to mood disorders such as depression and anxiety.


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Category: Audley Family Trees
The Baron Audley Families ZA; ZC; ZT & ZW
The Z series of Audley Family Trees contains the details of the various branched of the Audley Family with individuals who have the title of 'Baron Audley' or 'Lord Audley
Audley Family ZA
The Audley Family ZA family tree contains the Family History of those individuals with the Audley surname, including many variant spellings, that became Barons, Lords, Audley of Heleigh in County Staffordshire. Other members of this family became Barons of Stratton Audley; and Earl of Gloucester. One member of this family Sir James Audley was the hero of the Battle of Poitiers, France (on the 19th September 1356) and was a founder member of the Order of the Garter. The line of Audleys holding the title of Baron Audley of Heleigh ceased on 23rd July 1391 with the Death of {ZA16} Nicholas de Aldithley. His Sister {ZA14} Joan de Aldithley had married {ZT18} Sir John Touchet and their Grandson {ZC2} Sir John Touchet became Baron Audley of Heleigh on 21st December 1404. The line of the Barons Audley of Stratton - Audley only survived for a single generation from 1321 to 1326. Similarly the line of an Audley being Earl of Gloucestershire only survived for a single generation from 1337 to 1347. This document contains the details of approcximately 61 individuals
The History of Audley Family ZA
File last updated 29th October 2019
There have been several documents published that contain family trees of the early Barons Audley, i.e prior to 1391, When one reads these document there are significant differences between them. The file below compares the information in these various publications, to highlight the variations.
The Early Barons Audley
last updated 30th October 2019
The seal of Sir James Audley who fought at the battle of Poitiers to published information about the Barons Audley
Audley Family ZC
The Audley Family ZC family tree contains the family tree of those people holding the title Baron Lord Audley from 1405 to 1997, when the 25th Lord Audley of Heleigh died and the title went into 'Abeyance' Within this Family Tree the surname of the person holding the title changes from Touchet to Thickness, to Jesson and finally Souter. The file commences with the marriage of {ZT18} Sir John Touchet to {ZA14} Joan de Aldithley. and terminated with the Death of {ZC97} Richard Michael Thomas Souter in 1997. During the period 1616 to 1777 the Lord Audley also held the titles of Earl of Castlehaven and Baron Orier. This document contains the details of approximately 120 individuals.
The History of Audley Family ZC
Audley Family ZT
The Audley Family ZT family tree contains the Family Tree of those people with the Touchet surname, including many variant spellings, prior to the Touchet family becoming Baron Lord Audley of Heleigh in 1405. The file stops with the marriage of {ZT18} Sir John Touchet to {ZA14} Joan de Aldithley. The combined Touchet/ Audley family Tree is continued in Audley Family ZC. This document contains the details of approximately 43 individuals.
The History of Audley Family ZT
There have been several documents published that contain family trees of the early Touchets, prior to 1391. When one reads these documents there are significant differences between them. The file right compares the information in these various publications, to highlight the variations
The Early Touchets
last updated 31st October 2019
to published information about the Barons Audley
Audley Family ZW
The Audley Family ZW family tree contains the family to the Baron Audley of County Essex, England. This Barony was only in existence for one generation and limited to the period 1538 to 1544. Whilst the title was held by one person he was Lord Chancellor of England for the 11 years prior to his death and was elected a member of the Knights of the Garter. Despite only one person holding the title the Audley ZW document contains details of 49 individuals
The History of Audley Family ZW
Dlu 20200406

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Geografia

Brasile
Monte Santo – località brasiliana dello stato di Minas Gerais

Grecia
Monte Santo (Agios Oros) – nome del territorio greco del Monte Athos

Italia
Montesanto – vecchio nome di Potenza Picena
Montesanto – frazione di Sellano in provincia di Perugia
Montesanto – frazione di Voghiera in provincia di Ferrara
Montesanto – rione di Napoli
Monte Santu – monte (mesa) vicino in territorio di Siligo, in Sardegna
Monte Santo – porzione rocciosa del Gennargentu che dà nome all'omonimo Capo del Golfo di Orosei

Slovenia
Monte Santo di Gorizia (Skalnica o Sveta Gora pri Gorici) – monte dell'altopiano della Bainsizza
Monte Santo di Gorizia (Sveta Gora) – frazione di Nova Gorica
Basilica dell'Assunzione della Vergine del Monte Santo – edificio religioso situato sul monte Santo

Altro
 Stazione di Napoli Montesanto – stazione della linea 2 della metropolitana di Napoli
 Stazione di Montesanto (Napoli) – stazione terminale della ferrovia Cumana e ferrovia Circumflegrea di Napoli

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Taking things too far: why I'm not a gamer anymore
Caleb Hendrich
*Correction* The printed version of The Editor's Corner refers to a developer from Call of Duty: Black Ops receiving death threats. This is incorrect. A developer from Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 was recieving threats in July over the changing of game play. The Collegian regrets its error.
I've been a gamer for most of my life. I started with Pokemon Red when I was 6, and I worked my way up the gaming ladder ever since. I've played almost every genre of game there is: horror/survival, first-person shooter, RPG, MMORPG and real time strategy.
And I'm done. I'm officially done with gaming. I sold my Xbox 360 over the summer, and I haven't touched my PC games in several weeks apart from the occasional foray into Minecraft in my (increasingly rare) spare time. Essentially, I've gone cold turkey on video games.
And there's a very good reason behind this.
I've been a pretty vocal advocate for gamers both on and off the record. I've defended the gaming community against accusations of being the cause of mass shootings. I've defended the gaming community against people who want to censor them as an art form. I've defended gamers who are overly bombastic, misogynistic or for being trolls on the internet.
But recent events have taken things way too far, and well past my tolerance for dealing with the gaming community.
A couple of weeks ago, the company Bioware (the company behind the Mass Effect, Dragon Age and Knights of the Old Republic series) lost a writer over some specific comments on the Internet.
Jennifer Hepler, a writer on Dragon Age 2 and the upcoming Dragon Age Inquisition, was interviewed as part of an investigative piece by gaming magazine Polygon regarding dangerous and derogatory dialogue towards developers.
Hepler had previously been incorrectly blamed for changes to Dragon Age 2's combat system, something that gamers were livid over. According to the Polygon article, Hepler did her best to ignore the bulk of the threats, but decided to leave when death threats were leveled against her children.
"I did my best to avoid actually reading any of it, so I'm not quite certain how bad it got," Hepler said to Polygon. "I was shown a sample of the forum posts by EA security and it included graphic threats to kill my children on their way out of school to show them that they should have been aborted at birth rather than have to have me as a mother."
For me, that was too much. If this is the response to a change in a game, threatening to kill someone's children, then I want nothing more to do with this community. That is the behavior of psychotics, not fans. I don't care that it might just be a small vocal minority, hell it doesn't matter if it's a minority. That behavior paints us all in a horrible light, and I can not and will not be a part of a community that sanctions that behavior.
Threatening to kill someone's kids isn't trolling. It isn't messing around. It's a very real and very serious threat. Period. You do not, ever, go after someone's kids. I don't care how angry you are over something in a fictional universe, that's going too far.
In all honesty, I should have left it much earlier because this isn't the first time that a singular developer has threatened with death.
In July, a developer for the game Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 received death threats over a miniscule change in game play. Were certain weapons removed? Were certain levels added in? Did some character skins change? No. Call of Duty fans were forming a lynch mob over the firing time of one particular gun changing from 0.2 seconds to 0.4 seconds, and the chambering time changing from 1 second to 1.1 seconds.
That's it. That's what all that uproar is about.
Robin Walker, the programmer from gaming giant Valve, said the Nerdist Podcast that despite the vitriol there is often a legitimate point hidden in feedback, even if it is hateful.
I no longer buy that argument, with all due respect for Walker.
This sort of thing isn't about feedback anymore. Death threats are never, ever something that should be resorted to when sending in feedback. Death threats are just never okay period for goodness sake. It evokes the savage days where old playwrights would have their homes burnt down if the crowd didn't like the play they saw.
And what's more, things like this will only serve to hurt the community as a whole — not just because they'll all be portrayed as spiteful, entitled 12-year-olds ranting in forums.
What gamers really crave is something new. They aren't satisfied with the same old game played over and over again, even though they'll cough up hundreds of dollars a year to get them. New, creative games like Minecraft, Portal or Fez are sparkling jewels that are worshiped by gamers. They are absolute gems of the creative process, and their celebrated status is well deserved.
But the thing is, to echo Jim Sterling from the Escapist Magazine, when creative people are met with threats and behavior like this, they probably shouldn't enter industries like gaming. They should instead be taking their talents elsewhere. For the creative process to work, you need to have the opportunity to make mistakes. And if the clientele doesn't give you space to make mistakes; if the stakes are endless accolades or threats of death, you will never have the space to work.
That's not the community I want to throw my support behind. That's not the type of community I want to be a part of. That's not the community that anyone should be a part of.
It's going way too far, and I want nothing to do with it anymore.
Editorial Editor Caleb Hendrich is a senior journalism and political science double major. He was formerly a member of the gaming community. Letters and feedback can be sent to letters@collegian.com.
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Henry: Title IX should educate more on sex-based discrimination
Burke: Title IX is not just about sports, it includes all of us
Stella: Let's look for and celebrate women leaders at CSU
IHateStupidPeople • Nov 3, 2013 at 1:36 am
You dropped gaming because other people were being stupid? I could understand dropping online gaming because you didn't want to deal with stupidity….but to drop it all together? You don't have to have anything to do with the community ya know?
Goddamn, you're saying other people are being stupid but take a look at yourself, this is a pretty stupid decision (because it's based on silly rationale). That's like saying you're not going to go see movies anymore because someone shot up a movie theater. "I can't stand being a part of a community that would shoot up a movie theater". My god, you know how stupid that sounds?
I absolutely HATE how many people act inside the gaming community but I just choose not to have anything to do with them and just enjoy my gaming. Do some actual thinking instead of reacting on knee-jerk emotions (which is what the people you're talking about do).
https://collegian.com/articles/opinion/2013/09/taking-things-too-far-why-im-not-a-gamer-anymore/#comment-162
Superultramegasandwichcannon! • Sep 23, 2013 at 9:21 am
Sometimes, it amazes me that there are still normal people out there in the world who against all odds, go out of their way to make sense, rather than accept the standard PC bull ^%$# that society continues to force feed to us every single day on every news channel in existance.
Thank you for brightening my day.
As a developer, it makes me sad that some people base thier decisions on what everyone else wants them to believe instead of thinking for themselves.
The fact that you are a girl gives me even more hope for the future of gaming.
Thank you! Keep on gaming, and keep on being true to yourself! 🙂


Today we had the pleasure of working once again with one of our corporate clients, Pontypridd Golf Club. Celebration and Party Supplies have a very strong working relationship with PGC supplying them with both venue decor and hog roasts. Here are a few Photos from Valentines day, Keep an eye out for the St Davids Day ones!


This is beautiful - very alive with detail. Now That's a Valentine!
High praise from the King of Romance!
The new kitchen in Chicago is much bigger than what passed for a kitchen in NYC. Are you hungry?
Soup's on Brian! Come on over! Bring your own bib!
I like the onion peels bit especially. Also, the feeling it's maybe best to wear shoes in this kitchen. Here in Toronto we are mostly shoes-off indoors, so there's a guilty pleasure to that thought.
A bit messy indeed, but such a fun time sounds like it is had. Great write.
Thank you my rhyming friend. It's a late start to the day owing to the messy kitchen.
It's ok when there is a reason to wait on those dishes :)...this poem made me smile.
The dishes are now clean and for dessert I sampled some of your sweet poetry.
Beautiful metaphoric love-poem; nicely crafted.


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Google, Disney join growing list of employers mandating COVID-19 vaccines
JHVEPhoto/iStock
(NEW YORK) — As coronavirus cases in the U.S. begin a concerning climb upward and virus variants threaten a return to normalcy, a handful of businesses have announced COVID-19 vaccination mandates as they prepare to welcome workers back to the office.
The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission said employers can legally require COVID-19 vaccinations to re-enter a physical workplace, as long as they follow requirements to find alternative arrangements for employees unable to get vaccinated for medical reasons or because they have religious objections.
Still, the requirements have proven a hot button issue as business leaders mull over office reopening plans, in some cases sparking legal challenges and immense pushback from workers who refuse the shot. President Joe Biden said Tuesday that a mandate to require all federal employees to be vaccinated is now "under consideration."
Here is a roundup of some of the major U.S. employers that have announced COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
Tech giant Google announced a vaccine requirement Wednesday for those returning to its offices. The company has some 135,301 employees, according to SEC filings.
In a memo sent to employees, Google's CEO Sundar Pichai also announced that the company's "voluntary" work-from-home policy had been extended through Oct. 18 after it was initially set to expire on Sept. 1. In addition, Pichai wrote that "anyone coming to work on our campuses will need to be vaccinated."
"We're rolling this policy out in the U.S. in the coming weeks and will expand to other regions in the coming months," the chief executive said. "The implementation will vary according to local conditions and regulations, and will not apply until vaccines are widely available in your area."
He said local leads will share further guidance with employees, including "details on an exceptions process for those who cannot be vaccinated for medical or other protected reasons."
Pichai added that he hopes these steps "will give everyone greater peace of mind as offices reopen."
Hours after Google's announcement, Facebook said Wednesday it will require anyone working at its U.S. campuses to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
Implementation of the new policy will hinge on "local conditions and regulations," Facebook Vice President of People Lori Goler said in a statement to ABC News. There will be a "process" for those who will be exempt from the mandate, such as for medical reasons, Goler said.
ABC News has requested further details on the testing protocols and action for failure to adhere to the requirement.
"We continue to work with experts to ensure our return to office plans prioritize everyone's health and safety," said Goler, who noted that Facebook will be evaluating its approach outside the U.S. "as the situation evolves."
Facebook is headquartered in Menlo Park, California, and has offices in over 80 cities worldwide.
Some staff members at the Washington Post on Tuesday shared on Twitter that the company announced it was mandating vaccines.
In a memo sent to employees and shared with ABC News by the Washington Post, publisher and CEO Frederick J. Ryan, Jr. announced the mandate and said employees must also "demonstrate proof of full COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of employment."
The Post, which employs more than a thousand journalists and is aiming for a mid-September reopening, said accommodations will be provided to people with "genuine medical and religious concerns" and that they will need to document them with the human resources team.
"Even though the overwhelming majority of Post employees have already provided proof of vaccination, I do not take this decision lightly," Ryan said in the memo. "However, in considering the serious health issues and genuine safety concerns of so many Post employees, I believe the plan is the right one."
St. Jude's, Houston Methodist and more hospitals
The health care sector, perhaps unsurprisingly, has been one of the industries with the most vaccination requirements.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday that all patient-facing health care workers in state-run hospitals are required to get vaccinated. "That is a point of contact, that could be a serious spreading event, we want to make sure those workers are vaccinated period," Cuomo said Wednesday.
At St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, staff were informed earlier this month that they had a Sept. 9 deadline to get vaccinated. "By September 10, employees who have refused vaccination or do not have an approved medical or religious exemption will be put on an unpaid administrative leave for two weeks," wrote Dr. James R. Downing, president and CEO of the Memphis hospital. "Those who fail to start the vaccination process will be terminated at the end of the two-week period."
The Houston Methodist hospital system in Texas, which oversees eight hospitals and has more than 26,000 employees, set a June 7 deadline for staffers to get the vaccine or risk suspension and termination. More than 175 staffers at the Houston Methodist hospital were temporarily suspended without pay last month after not complying with a mandate, and a lawsuit was filed against the hospital. A Texas judge sided with the hospital, tossing out the lawsuit filed by 117 employees who were against getting the shot.
Delta Airlines came out ahead of the curve on vaccine mandates. The airliner said in May that it would require all new hires in the U.S. to be vaccinated against COVID-19 unless they qualify for an accommodation.
The Atlanta-headquartered company with some 91,000 full-time workers has said it will not be putting in place a company-wide mandate to require current employees to be vaccinated, though the new hires vaccine requirement kicked in on May 17.
The Walt Disney Company announced Friday that all salaried and non-union hourly employees in the U.S. must be fully vaccinated.
Employees working in-person who aren't already vaccinated have 60 days to do so as of July 30 while most employees working from home must provide proof of vaccination before returning, said Paul Richardson, Disney's senior executive vice president and chief human resources officer.
Richardson said the company is also developing vaccination protocols for employees outside the U.S.
Disney is the parent company of ABC News.
ABC News' Sasha Pezenik contributed to this report.
Categories Business, News Post navigation
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Home >News >News & Events >Exploring the Role of a Responsible Officer
Exploring the Role of a Responsible Officer
In this Q&A, partner Nick Dealy explores the roles, responsibilities and potential liabilities of an SFC-approved Responsible Officer.
Q) What is a Responsible Officer?
A) A Responsible Officer is an individual who is approved by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) under section 126(1) of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (the "SFO") as a Responsible Officer of a licensed corporation. The regime was introduced by the SFC to implement a stronger management accountability principle.
Q) How many Responsible Officers is a licensed corporation required to have?
A) Not less than 2 individuals, at least one of whom must be an executive director (see below), must be approved as responsible officers for each type of regulated activity conducted by the licensed corporation. The requirement of 2 responsible officers was confirmed in Re Uni-Alpha Securities Ltd and Another (unreported, HCMP 714/2006, 27 June 2006), in which one of the two officers had resigned leaving only one responsible officer, necessitating a cessation of business.
Q) What are the requirements of the role of Responsible Officer?
A) The starting point is that only licensed representatives can be Responsible Officers. Therefore, all the usual licensing requirements to be a licensed representative apply. The SFC's Guidelines on Competence include, for example, that it is necessary to satisfy the SFC that the person:
is fit and proper (which has regard to his financial status, educational or other qualifications or experience, his ability to carry on the regulated activity competently, honestly and fairly and his reputation, character, reliability and financial integrity);
has a good understanding of the regulatory framework, including the laws, regulations and associated codes governing his intended industry sectors;
is aware of the ethical standards expected of an individual licensee; and
is knowledgeable of the financial products that he deals in or advises upon and the markets in which he provide services.
In addition to the general requirements of a licensed representative, the SFC states that a Responsible Officer has to fulfil four basic elements which relate to:
academic / industry qualification;
industry experience;
management experience; and
regulatory knowledge.
Accordingly, the experience and qualifications requirements for Responsible Officers are significantly more onerous than for licensed representatives.
Q) Can a person be the Responsible Officer for a number of licensed corporations?
A) The SFC has stated that they are unlikely to be satisfied that a person will be fit and proper to be licensed to act for more than one licensed corporation, unless the licensed corporations are in the same corporate group or owned by the same controlling shareholders. Similarly, there will be conflict of interest concerns if a Responsible Officer also acts as a director of, or an external consultant or compliance advisor to, other licensed corporations.
Q) Can the SFC exercise its disciplinary powers against a Responsible Officer?
A) Under Part IX of the SFO, the SFC may exercise its disciplinary powers to sanction a regulated person if the person is, or was at any time, guilty of misconduct or is considered not fit and proper to be or to remain the same type of regulated person. For these purposes, the term "regulated person" includes a Responsible Officer. Where a licensed corporation is (or was) guilty of misconduct as a result of the commission of any conduct occurring with the consent or connivance of, or attributable to any neglect on the part of a person involved in the management of the business of the licensed corporation (including the Responsible Officer), then that person is also guilty of misconduct (section 193(2) of the SFO).
The SFC has stated that whether they are to discipline a regulated person depends on the specific facts of each case and that they will take into account the individual's apparent or actual authority in relation to the particular business and operations, his or her level of responsibility within the licensed corporation concerned, any supervisory duties he or she may perform, and the level of control or knowledge he or she may have concerning any failure by the corporation or persons under his supervision to follow the SFC's Code of Conduct .
The SFC can impose disciplinary sanctions of a civil nature, for example, licence revocation or suspension, pecuniary fine and reprimand. In addition to these, senior management of licensed corporations (including Responsible Officers) should also be aware of potential criminal liability in certain circumstances.
Q) Can a Responsible Officer rely solely upon the licensed corporation's compliance function in respect of the corporation's compliance with applicable regulatory standards?
A) The SFC has said that, "The RO of a licensed corporation is a person who bears primary responsibility for compliance with all applicable regulatory standards and that where there is a failure in respect of compliance, there is little room for blame shifting." This was said before the Hong Kong's Security and Futures Appeals Tribunal (SFAT) which, in August 2015, affirmed the decision of the SFC to revoke the approval of a Responsible Officer atPing An of China Securities (Hong Kong).The Tribunal found that the Responsible Officer was involved in serious compliance control deficiencies at Ping An, during periods both when a compliance officer was employed in the organisation and a period when the organisation was without a compliance officer and the Responsible Officer had assumed responsibility. The SFAT said that that when disciplinary action for compliance failures are directed at the Responsible Officer, "it is not possible for the RO to shift responsibility either upwards towards more senior management or downwards towards employees who do not stand in the same position or level of the RO."
Q) Can a Responsible Officer be held responsible for the implementation of appropriate anti-money laundering (AML) systems and controls?
A) In short, yes. The SFC has said that the Responsible Officer bears primary responsibility for compliance with all applicable regulatory standards. This is highlighted in a relatively recent matter in which the SFC sanctioned Guosen Securities (HK) Brokerage Company Limited (Guosen) over its failures to comply with AML regulatory requirements when handling third party fund deposits. The SFC found that Guosen's breaches were attributable to its (former) Responsible Officer's failure to discharge his duties as a Responsible Officer and as a member of Guosen's senior management. The SFC determined that as the Responsible Officer was the most senior person overseeing Guosen's retail brokerage business during the relevant time, he failed to ensure that Guosen had:
put in place effective policies to scrutinise and approve third party deposits received by retail clients;
implemented adequate systems and controls to identify and monitor third party deposits made into its bank sub-accounts;
communicated and enforced its internal AML/CFT policies effectively; and
put in place proper procedures for reporting suspicious transactions.
The SFC also found that the Responsible Officer had failed to supervise staff members diligently to ensure that they adhered to Guosen's AML/CFT policies. He was prohibited from re-entering the industry for 10 months from 17 April 2019 to 16 February 2020.
Q) How vigilant must a Responsible Officer be regarding the accuracy of information that is submitted to the SFC?
A) As in all cases when any information is provided to the SFC (indeed, to any regulator), it is imperative that the information being provided is accurate and not misleading. This is the case irrespective of the circumstances for which the information is required by the SFC, for example, in any licensing application or pursuant to any request during the course of an investigation by the SFC. An example of an extreme case where a Responsible Officer failed to comply with his obligations in this regard was when, in June 2017, the Eastern Magistrates' Court convicted QMIS Securities Limited (QMIS) and its former Responsible Officer of making false or misleading representations when submitting licensing information to the SFC. The background to this was that on 3 January 2014, QMIS submitted to the SFC a form concerning the cessation of an employee's status as an SFC-licensed representative. In the form, "job rotation" was given as the reason for the staff member to cease to be an SFC-licensed representative. The Responsible Officer declared that all information provided in the form was complete, true and correct. However, the employee had in fact been terminated due to his misappropriation of client money. QMIS and the Responsible Officer were fined and ordered to pay the SFC's investigation costs.
A Responsible Officer bears the primary responsibility for compliance at a licensed corporation and is involved in supervising the regulated activities of the company. Where there are clear failings of internal controls, the Responsible Officer risks having his/her ability to act as an RO revoked by the SFC.
*This article was first published by Hong Kong Lawyer
Nick Dealy, Partner
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