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Uncategorized Allen Vs. Ellison
Allen Vs. Ellison
Two of America's richest men keep building bigger and bigger yachts in the race to have the largest of them all.
By Barry Pickthall
They may not be blood brothers, but Paul G. Allen, the cofounder of Microsoft, and Larry J. Ellison, the CEO of Oracle Corp, the world's second largest software company, are the Cain and Abel of the silicon set. Their rivalry knows no bounds. They compete with the same intensity as the characters in the Jeffery Archer novel, at every level in business, sport and pleasure-particularly in the yachts they own. Lastly, and most ironically for two titans whose head-butting contests have raised such a heavy wake, both men are obsessed with secrecy.
When Allen ordered his latest superyacht, the 416-foot Octopus from the Lürsson yard in Germany, Ellison was soon to follow with an order for the monster 452-foot Rising Sun, which became the second-largest private yacht when he had the hull extended from 387 feet during construction. Naturally some amateur psychologists say the extension was done simply to steal Allen's thunder.
If so, lightning may have struck twice, from an unexpected quarter. Rising Sun was launched from the same German yard as Octopus last autumn, but surprisingly, Ellison, a dropout from the University of Illinois, has yet to accept delivery-the sort of pouty ploy practiced by billionaires who've learned to throw their weight around. The latest word suggests that he has now lost interest in her since the $270 million vessel has been superseded in the size league by the 525-foot Platinum, launched for engine trials in April and currently being completed in Dubai for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. The Crown Prince of Dubai makes a most worthy foil, being the owner of the Emirates airline-which just placed a $28 billion order for the new Airbus.
Allen, 51, is known for indulging his enthusiasms with more zest than sensibility. He owns both of the Northwest's underperforming professional teams, the football Seattle Seahawks and basketball's Portland Trailblazers, and bankrolled the Experience Music Project-a Frank Gehry-designed museum-cum-technological marvel that includes a giant walk-through of Jimi Hendrix's guitar and a Sky Church for rockers. He plays electric guitar (when not smashing it, a la Jimi), sometimes on board his 199-foot Feadship Meduse, which has an onboard recording studio. He's ranked seventh in the latest Forbes 400, two places ahead of the 60-year-old Ellison, whose stock took a tumble when the IT bubble burst and who has also had to navigate through the choppy waters that surrounded his third divorce. Ellison, whose abiding ambition is to drive Oracle above Microsoft as well as springboard ahead of Allen in the Forbes list, did have the consolation of bettering his rival in the 2003 America's Cup in New Zealand.
Ellison and Oracle mounted a traditional syndicate approach to the Cup. Allen, however, came to the world's most exclusive competition by accident-stepping in to support the Seattle-based OneWorld group when founder Craig McCaw found himself overextended. Along with the Cup team, Allen inherited the McCaw-commissioned 301-foot Tatoosh. For Allen, the Cup experience proved to be a familiar fizzle-first with accusations of design espionage prior to his takeover, followed by a humiliating defeat at the hands of Ellison's Oracle BMW in the semifinals of the Louis Vuitton Challenger series.
But though Allen has since dropped out of the America's Cup scene, he did find his bliss-and a winner-backing Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne, which won the $10 million Ansari X prize last October for the first privately funded spacecraft to reach 330,000 feet and return to land. Ellison, meanwhile, has been busy reconfiguring his San Francisco-based America's Cup team for a second tilt at the trophy, to be sailed off Valencia in 2007.
Ellison also owns the maxi Sayonara, which won the infamous 1998 Sydney-Hobart race that cost the lives of six sailors from other yachts. Sayonara was in such another league that it literally outran a storm of epochal brutality across the Tasman Sea-further proof, if needed, that the rich do indeed lead different lives and play under different rules. And sail on different yachts.
Such as Octopus. The fifth largest private yacht in the world is Paul Allen's flagship. Launched late in 2003, Octopus was built under a shroud of secrecy by a consortium of two yards in Bremen, and then took off immediately for a winter cruise around the Caribbean. She has a permanent berth at the International Yacht Club Marina in Antibes, in the South of France, which Allen only acquired by purchasing the sitting tenant-the 162-foot Hanse, which he quickly sold. So great is the shore power required when Octopus is in dock that Allen had to install his own three-phase electrical substation alongside to avoid tripping the fuses for the whole harbor.
Like Allen's second yacht Meduse, Octopus is lavishly equipped for extended cruising, including an ice-classed hull that will give him the opportunity to also explore both the Arctic and Antarctic regions. The ship's own helicopter is housed on the aft deck and guests are encouraged to land their aircraft on a separate helipad situated on the foredeck. She also has a canal within the bowels of the hull with lock doors at the stern to allow a 60-foot submarine-which reportedly carries eight and can run submerged for two weeks-as well as a powerboat and other water toys to embark and dock. When the vessels are safely inboard and resting on their chocks, the water is then pumped out to provide a drydock facility.
Allen's third yacht,Tatoosh, named after an island in the San Juans, has to be one of the most attractive throw-ins on a deal in history. When fellow American billionaire Craig McCaw handed the keys to Allen, along with his America's Cup syndicate, he was delivering quality. On this HDW-Nobiskrg 301-footer, Allen and his family have the entire top deck to themselves. The owner's suite includes a full-width bedroom, two other staterooms, a communal family room, an office, gymnasium and an observation lounge above. Six guest staterooms, panoramic lounge and dining saloons and a cinema are positioned on the lower decks.
Toys include a McDonnell Douglas MD500 helicopter (and a second helipad for guests to drop in on); a 40-foot German Frers all-carbon daysailer that, given the right winds, will outperform its mothership; a 37-foot speedboat to starboard and a swimming pool. A tender, PWCs and other watersports equipment are stored in the stern garage where there is also a diving room and decompression chamber.
Then there's Meduse, which may be Number 90 in the list of top 100 superyachts but remains a favorite within Paul Allen's fleet. Built in 1996, and named rather ominously after the opera Le Naufrage de la Méduse ("The Wreck of the Medusa," written in 1839 by the German-born French composer Baron von Friedrich Flotow), the yacht has served the Microsoft cofounder on cruises up the Amazon River and many other undisturbed areas of the globe. A keen student of music who has broken his share of Fender Stratocasters, Allen had her fitted out with a full digital recording studio with the reported assistance of Peter Gabriel, who has cut tracks on board, as have other stars, including the Eurythmics. The vessel also boasts a 12-seater acoustically optimized cinema. This Feadship has the owner's and principal guest suites on the main deck and four other staterooms below, together with a gymnasium for guests to work off the five-star a la carte fare. Essential toys include a helicopter and a garage full of tenders, PWCs and scuba equipment. Meduse has a maximum speed of only 16 knots, but a range of more than 5,000 miles that allows her to "disappear" from the prying lenses of the paparazzi for long periods, reappearing almost anywhere in the world.
Larry Ellison also retires to his yachts to avoid prying eyes-but also uses them to enjoy the limelight. Dubbed "the Playboy Philanthropist," he's endowed medical research, and hosted wild parties-though he seems to have settled down with fourth wife Melanie Craft, a romance novelist. As befits a man whose biography is titled The Difference Between God and Larry Ellison, his yachts are impressive. The Rising Sun, christened like all of Larry Ellison's yachts with names linked to Japan, was extended during her building from 387 to 452 feet to include an internal canal to carry a personal submarine and other toys. The owner's personal quarters take up the entire top deck and have suites for 16 guests on other decks, all styled by Jon Bannenberg Ltd. She also boasts a basketball court, a billiard room (suitably gimbled we presume) and a theatre. Considering that she produces 48,000 hp, her top speed, said to be 28 knots, seems reasonable. She was launched last autumn but at the time of going to press, she had still to be handed over to her owner.
Where is Rising Sun today? Track her by AIS:
Before the Rising Sun there was a striking Martin Francis design was built in 1991 for the late Mexican media mogul Emilio Azcarraga. When he died, the 32-knot vessel, originally named Eco, was snapped up by Larry Ellison to act as a fast mothership for his racing maxi Sayonara and the Oracle America's Cup campaign in New Zealand. Ellison replaced the flying boat on the stern for a more fitness-orientated basketball court and changed her name to Katana, a type of Japanese sword. During the America's Cup he held frequent "Silicon Valley All-Star" basketball games to stay fit and hypercompetitive. Her twin diesels are used for slow-speed running and to help her get on the plane, which is where the gas turbine takes over to push her speed up to 32 knots.
Ellison used her to shadow Sayonara in the 2002 Newport-Bermuda Race. On arrival in St. George's Harbor, she was refueled by two aircraft-fuel bowsers driven over from the nearby airport in preparation for a high-speed hop across the Atlantic to the South of France. She covered the 3,000-mile distance in little over three days, but not without stopping midway across to refuel. Where do you find a filling station in mid-Atlantic? You send your own fuel barge out for a little rendezvous. One can only guess the number of frequent-flyer miles Ellison pocketed with each fill-up.
Katana has since been sold to the Barclay brothers, two British entrepreneurs who own several national newspapers and hotels and live on a secluded Channel Island castle; they have renamed her Enigma.
Built in 1995, Larry Ellison's maxi racer Sayonara won four consecutive ILC Maxi Boat World Championships and also took line honors in the storm-ridden 1998 Sydney-Hobart Race and the 2001 Chicago-Mackinaw Race. A well-known campaigner, she has given Ellison a well-respected reputation in an uncompromising field of endeavor-and an area where he trumps Allen resoundingly…for now.
The Spoiler: The man with the Golden Star
While Paul Allen and Larry Ellison were busy duking it out, metaphorically speaking, over whose yachts are bigger, the world's largest yacht quietly took its place on the throne over in Dubai. The 525-footer began taking shape in the shipyards of Lürssen and Blohm + Voss under the name of Platinum, for Prince Jefri of Brunei. When bankruptcy overtook Prince Jefri in 1998-he was accused of diverting $14 billion of his father's sultanate's oil money into his own accounts-another prince was waiting in the wings.
But Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum is not just another prince. The de facto ruler of Dubai because his brother prefers to spend his time in the UK, Sheikh Maktoum is an ambitious businessman and national visionary who has put Dubai on the map with bold construction projects and newsworthy plans. Chairman of the Emirates Group, which owns Emirates airline, he has led a recent $28 billion purchase of airplanes, including 45 new Airbus A380s. Emirates will likely cut the seating aboard the new 850-seat jumbojets in half, and devote the space to individualized luxury onboard "suites."
When you live on such a scale, buying an unfinished super-yacht probably qualifies as bargain hunting. In any event, the yacht was barged to Dubai to be completed and launched in early April under a new name: Golden Star. Interior design is said to be by Philippe Starck, who made his name creating trendy hotels; like most of the new breed of superyachts, she is expected to carry a submarine, a helicopter or two, multiple tenders and a landing craft to ferry a complement of cars to distant shores.
Whether Maktoum knew he was spoiling the Allen-Ellison rivalry or not, he certainly must have known his choice of a name could be seen as a tweak of another royal's cheek. For years Prince Khaled of Saudi Arabia has carried on a tradition of "golden yachts." Besides his 265-foot Blohm + Voss Golden Odyssey, he acquired a "toy caddy," Golden Shadow, which carries among its complement of toys a nine-passenger Cessna turboprop Caravan.
But like Sheikh Maktoum, Prince Khaled isn't all about excess. In addition to being minister of defense, Prince Khaled is president of a foundation that works for the protection of coral reefs, and Golden Odyssey is a veteran of several expeditions with scientific overtones. To remind himself and others of his charge, there is a living reef in an aquarium beneath the swimming pool.
The Golden Shadow is a 219-foot Campbell. To assist in the expeditioning of its larger sibling, it carries a decompression chamber for those coral reef divers and a medical suite that also caters to the underwater set-with staff.
Will Prince Khaled respond to Sheikh Maktoum's throwing of the gauntlet? Only the oil cartel at OPEC may know for sure, but odds are that somewhere at this moment an even bigger yacht than Golden Star is on somebody's drawing board. And with the way gas prices are rising, it will be a whopper.
, Yachting Life
BoatUS Launches Online Advocacy Tool
Dock Danger
A Dream Fulfilled
3 America's Cup Hashtags to Follow


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Q: Setup the application in CodeDeploy with Load balancer While following this tutorial, under Setup the application in CodeDeploy, it reads

*Under Load balancer uncheck Enable load balancing.

*Click Create deployment group.

Thing is, when I click Create deployment group

it shows a warning that "Choose a target group" is required

The documentation doesn't refer the need to create such target group but apparently is a must do. Note that atm I don't have any options in there.
If I switch from "Application Load Balancer or Network Load Balancer" to "Classic Load Balancer" I then have to choose a load balancer but also no ptions in the dropdown.

Considering I just want to create this deployment group, how to create the ( target group OR load balancer )  and how it should look like?

A:
How to create the target group and how it should look like?

Target group (TG) and your ALB must exist before you attempt to use them in deployments.
To create TG you have to go to EC2 Console -> Target groups. How it should look like depends on your application. What port it is running, what kind of heath check it should be using and so on. There is no setup that will fit all possible use-cases.
But if you don't have per-exisitng TG, then probably you don't have ALB as well. Thus, maybe you don't need them at all. They are not required for CodeDeploy to work.

Edit
Tick it off the "Enable Load Balancer" then you won't be required to use one.

If you read carefully what is mentioned there in step 7, it says

Under Load balancer uncheck Enable load balancing.

So just uncheck it and you're good to click the "Create deployment group" button

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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DP Architects designFUTURE Conference 2018
Designing in an age of uncertainty, the only constant for architecture is change.
Organised by DP Architects', the designFUTURE Conference 2018 is in its second year running. This year, the conference featured four distinguished speakers from architecture and its related specialist fields, to share ideas about design and technology, and their relation to designing for the future.
Starting off the conference, Dr Hossein Rezai, Founder-Director of Web Structures, addressed the various issues that the world and our built environment face today. He emphasised the role that design can play and its responsibility in considering the world and its environment. In light of a climate-conscious and technological advanced future, Dr Rezai puts forth that architects, urban planners and engineers alike must harness the power of technology, and drive design processes from lateral to more dynamic platforms of collaboration.
Director of the multidisciplinary Centre for AI Research (CAiRE) at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Prof Pascale Fung shared further insights on the advancements in science and technology within the field of Artificial Intelligence. As AI becomes increasingly intuitive, it has achieved milestones over the last few decades such that it has been applied in industries such as healthcare, security, education, governance and even creative arts. For AI to progress further, it's scientific research must tap into alternative areas including social psychology, behavioural science and design. The working relationship should be mutually beneficial where AI will mimic human behaviour with greater accuracy, and man breaks away from conventional perspectives.
Prof Oscar Carracedo, Director at Designing Resilience in Asia International Research Programme, took to stage after; sharing insights on urbanisation and urban design in the face of climate change. Encouraging architects and planners to grow beyond their traditional roles, it is important to consider designs that address the needs of the continually increasing rate of urbanisation and climate change.
Rounding up the presentations, Ms Angelene Chan, DP Architects' Chief Executive Officer shared about the necessary evolution of the craft of architecture amid the rise of various disruptors and new trends. Her presentation provided insights on DPA's strategy to drive and adapt architecture, design processes and methodology so as to meet the needs of today. She also highlighted that for a professional craft such as architecture to remain relevant and to thrive, its evolution must be constant and progressive.
The conference ended with a lively panel discussion. Members of the audience raised questions related to AI and its practical application in future design, technology and how it can advance the design process in architecture and across related industries while the panel debated the paradox between a science-driven field such as AI and technology, and a human-centric craft such as architecture. Held at the NUS University Cultural Centre, the annual designFUTURE Conference was attended by staff, industry partners, students and media guests.
Dr Hossein Rezai, Founder-Director of Web Structures
Prof Oscar Carracedo, Director at Designing Resilience in Asia International Research Programme
Prof Pascale Fung, Director of the multidisciplinary Centre for AI Research (CAiRE) at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Ian McKellen on Stage - Theatr Clwyd (18/03/2019)
Sir Ian McKellen...with an 'E'...is a legend of stage and screen. I thought I was blessed to be able to see him in London (on my birthday!) playing the titular role of King Lear, but that wouldn't compare to seeing him treading the boards of my local theatre in Mold.
It's Sir Ian's 80th birthday year and he's celebrating in style, visiting 80 theatres up and down the country which have a particular meaning to him. As soon as I received the email that he was coming to Theatr Clwyd I told my hairdresser to get a move on so I could rush home and book a couple of tickets. By the time I got home I'd missed the front row seats, but I managed to purchase two seats on row BB, and the way the seats were arranged, technically you were kind of on the front row view-wise!!
Later that evening I told my other half I was seeing Sir Ian and that my friend Nikki would be joining me. Now everyone on here has probably gathered that my OH isn't a theatre goer, but I had committed the cardinal sin. "But, but, but, that's Gandolf he exclaimed!" Oh dear God, there would be no end to it if I couldn't get him a ticket, so back online I went. I was stunned, the tickets were not on general sale and within 12 hours were practically sold out on both evenings. I found a seat on row A for him which he was happy with...and so he should have been, it cost nearly three times as much as my ticket (a £10 bargain!)
"You shall not pass."
So the evening I'd been waiting ages for arrived. Nikki, OH and I went to the Glasfryn for dinner and Nikki and I got tipsy on a bottle of Prosecco! We excitedly sat down. All we could see on stage was a large box...how funny it would be if he burst out of the box we giggled. Suddenly the lights went off, we were sat in a pitch-black auditorium, and the sound of Sir Ian's voice boomed through the darkness…"You shall not pass"…Gandolf was suddenly in the room with an enraptured audience. He held the great tome aloft as he quoted its contents. I was stunned…remembering lines for a play was one thing, but remembering great swathes of text? I sat feeling a little ashamed that I have never read the Lord of the Rings, or indeed The Hobbit. It turns out I'm in good company…neither has he!
We were then regaled with tales from filming Lord of the Rings. All the people that have told him they religiously read the text every year; including Christopher Lee, and just how fond he was of Legolas when he saw him. Ahhh Legolas...the only reason I watched the entire franchise!!
"Being an actor was never the plan, I just fell in love with the magic of the theatre. I had to be around it and the rest just followed."
And so we progressed onto Sir Ian's life. His childhood, his dream of becoming an actor after watching the magic of Peter Pan come to life on stage. His early days of acting up in his hometown of Wigan. How back in the day you had a touring box, hence the box on stage, which would contain all you needed...props, costumes etc to go on stage. And that of course was why he couldn't jump out of the box...it was too full of what he required for the evening's entertainment. I smirked at how well he knew the minds of his audience.
I thought he had chosen Theatr Clwyd as he must have performed there, but no, that night was the first night he had trod the boards of the Sir Anthony Hopkins Theatr. So why choose Mold...a theatre in the middle of nowhere, in a town no-one has heard of. Well it turns out that as a child he remembered holidays down the road in Conwy, and his father walking the nearby Snowdonia Range. He had spent the day reminiscing in Conwy...and I think that set him up for an excellent evening of storytelling.
"Has anyone here been to Buckingham Palace?"
A cheeky glisten is in his eyes as he good-naturedly enquires of the achievements of the audience. He's not showing off; he's sharing an intimate moment of when he received his knighthood. There is no pretentiousness in his tale, he is still the down to earth person he was growing up in Lancashire, but he is someone who has stories most of us can only dream about, and here he is, in his armchair recounting tales that are very personal to him.
Sir Ian launches into a rendition of Gus the Theatre Cat by T S Eliot while sitting in his foldaway chair. It always chokes me when I read it, ever since I was a child and I got Andrew Lloyd Webbers stage play on Vinyl! Sir Ian is playing the voice of Gus in the new film version of Cats which is set to grace the cinema screens in 2019. His ability to recite poetry is sublime, this is continued with his reading of Sir Edward Manley-Hopkins' The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo – the lament for lost beauty and youth which brings the first half of the show to a close. (Whilst it was wonderful to listen to, I must be honest and say I still prefer listening to Richard Burton's rendition!)
"Go to Flint Castle; there I'll pine away"
After the interval it was time to bed down with Shakespeare. Sir Ian has had an extraordinary career as a Shakespearean actor. He invited us to shout out the names of all of Shakespeare's plays, curious to know if we could remember them all, including the obscure ones. He did note there were some members of the audience who having directed Shakespeare and should know them all...and were therefore not supposed to shout out!!! Just to illustrate how many plays Shakespeare wrote, he rummaged in his box and brought out copies of each text! As a title was shouted out, he would pick up the relevant book and give an insight into a story whilst he had performed the play, or indeed at times he'd put the book down, give a withering look and say "I have nothing to say about that one!"
I was sat wearing my Macbeth t-shirt...hmm should I shout that out? Maybe if I did the theatre would fall down...you know what theatrical folk are like...maybe I'd be better shouting the Scottish play...but then what if he's not superstitious? By the time I'd finished deliberating someone had beaten me to it (the Scottish play they called out)...and his anecdotal response made me realise that it turns out not all the acting fraternity are particularly superstitious after all!!!!
I then started thinking obscure plays... Troilus and Cressida...yes I'll shout that. But then I thought...did Shakespeare write it?? Deep down I knew he did...but what if he didn't...hmm maybe I shouldn't have had that Prosecco. So I remained tight-lipped, and as we got further through the plays I couldn't remember everything that had already been shouted out...I didn't want to duplicate an answer...so I left it to the folk sitting near the director to continue shouting out! Self-doubt...a terrible affliction, but then I don't pretend to be a master of Shakespeare, or indeed any playwright. I also know that I have a terrible memory for names...so best to shut up, enjoy the evening and indulge in watching others have fun. (You don't always have to be the gobshite to be part of an evening's entertainment!)
I thought that Sir Ian would restrict his local anecdotes to the earlier part of the show, but as he picked up a copy of The Tragedy of King Richard II, he said, "you know this has particular relevance to this theatre?"
He then started to recite from the end Act III, Scene II.
By heaven I'll hate him everlastingly
That bids me be of comfort anymore.
Go to Flint Castle: there I'll pine away;
A king, woe's slave, shall kingly woe obey.
That power I have, discharge; and let them go…
Act III, Scene III – Wales, before Flint Castle
So that by this intelligence we learn
The Welshmen are dispers'd and Salisbury
Is gone to meet the King…
Flint Castle is just down the road from the theatre in Mold. This was a master at work. A man with a long life in the theatre, but with no heirs and graces, just a great memory, and the ability to share the most pertinent pieces of literature with his audience.
And then the evening drew to a close...Sir Ian stood on stage with his big yellow collecting bucket. "The money you have paid for your programme will go to this theatre, and the money you put in this bucket will go to the theatre too." How amazing of him...each performance would benefit the theatre he was playing at. An extraordinary gentleman was standing in front of us. He had entertained us with tales of his youth, his career, his sexuality for two and a half hours. It was hard to believe that this man standing in front of us was in his 80th year.
As I walked towards the bar I could see a great crowd surrounding him. I could have barged through all those camera phones to have a word with him, but was it really necessary? People were wanting selfies… (I'm not a huge selfie queen as you all know) and his hands were full with a collecting bucket so making him put it down to sign a programme would be rude. If I introduced myself would it really matter? He won't remember me, he can already see the delight in everyone's faces so he knows he's entertained everyone. If I gushed at him "Oh I loved your rendition of Gus, it made me shed a tear" it would be more for my benefit than his…a sense of entitlement almost. So instead I sat at the bar with Nikki and my OH and we watched the crowd, and we watched Sir Ian, and we were content. There is a time and a place for chatting to an actor, and for me, this wasn't it.
"An Invitation to Dinner"
I don't know if you have ever played the game "who would you invite to dinner?" I have, and unsurprisingly most of the people I would like around my table are actors! Sir Ian is on my list, obviously Tom Burke (and his parents as I imagine they have some great tales to tell), David Suchet, and the late, great, Alan Rickman (who Sir Ian paid homage to in tonight' show.) I think they get a seat around my table because they lead extraordinarily fascinating lives, (although I suspect most of them think their lives very dull and normal.) Couple this with the fact that they know how to deliver a tale so that is highly entertaining, it makes sense to invite them round your table…no-one wants a dull dinner party! Whilst the spirit of the game is just a bit of fun, I have been blessed to listen to Tom telling hilarious anecdotes and after an evening of Sir Ian McKellen on stage, I felt that I had spent an intimate evening amongst friends, and Sir Ian was at the head of the table!
Labels: Home, Shakespeare, Sir Ian McKellen, Theatr Clwyd, Theatre Reviews, Tom Burke
Orpheus Descending – Tennessee Williams - Theatr C...
Kiss Me Quickstep - Theatr Clwyd


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Will Juno make the leap?
Kevin Keegan may rescue Juninho from his reserve team hell at Celtic.
Manchester City have been strongly linked with interest in the former Boro legend, and a move to the City of Manchester Stadium would suit the Brazilian down to the ground.
First of all, Juninho is hoping to have showdown talks with Celtic manager Martin O'Neill to assess his prospects of breaking back into the side.
But if he discovers he has no part to play in O'Neill's long-term plans, then a return to England with Manchester City would fit the bill.
City's fans, who are reeling from an embarrassing FA Cup exit at the hands of Oldham, would be boosted by the arrival of the mercurial World Cup winner.
Agent Brian Hassall said: "Juninho is a fan of Kevin Keegan's style of play. It would not be a bad move for him."
Hassall stressed that no official contact had been made by City but he revealed that Juninho, who only moved to Celtic from Boro in August, had already earmarked them as a possible destination.
He said: "It was a thought at one stage. If you are not going to get a game under one manager you look for another whose style of play suits you."
A return to Brazil is another option available to the 30-year-old, with Botafogo keen to sign him.
But Hassall insisted: "Juninho doesn't want to go there. He wants to stay in Britain."
Juninho has started just 12 matches for Celtic.
He started in the first two Old Firm derbies but was left out for the next two, and remained on the bench during Sunday's 2-1 Tennent's Scottish Cup victory over Rangers at Parkhead.
Juninho has questioned the reasons why O'Neill brought him to the club after seeing his chances limited, and believes the transfer window is the ideal time for him to leave.
He said: "The manager has had a lot of chances to put me in his team but it hasn't happened. That's why I feel out of his plans.
"If that is the case, then this is the opportunity for me to go.
"That would be good for the club and good for me because, if I have no part in his plans, there is no point in remaining here, waiting for a chance that never comes."
Juninho also claims he has not had the backing of O'Neill since his move to Glasgow.
"I can't understand why I am in this situation. When a manager brings a new player to the club, he gives that player support.
"That's what disappoints me most. Since I came here, I have never had his support - that's the way I see it.
"It's a bit strange and, to be honest, I don't know why I'm here at all.
"He put me in the team at the beginning but he didn't give me any time.
"I was very excited when I came here. The supporters were excited as well. That's why I don't understand what has happened - there are a lot of questions without answers."


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The Suzanne Venker Show
Suzanne Venker
TIRED OF THE LIES AND THE SPIN perpetuated in the media, in our universities and in Hollywood? Does today's relentless gender propaganda make you feel as if you're going mad? If so, get ready to hear hard-hitting truths about men, women, sex, dating, marriage and family that will make you cry out "Yes! Finally someone tells the truth!"
In her signature no-nonsense style, author and columnist Suzanne Venker goes where few dare to tread: into shark-infested feminist waters, where left-wing women drown in victimhood and try to get other women to do the same by insisting they're oppressed by the so-called patriarchy. Enough! says Venker. It's time for Americans to have the voice they need to reject the propaganda and to help keep their relationships and families strong.
The Suzanne Venker Show brings a wealth of wisdom from authors, educators, psychologists and others who aren't afraid to admit what the culture won't. We have one main goal: to help you and the people you love feel secure in your beliefs about what you know is right and confident in your desire to speak your mind.
Find out more at www.SuzanneVenker.com
Dr. Laura Schlessinger is the author of 13 New York Times bestsellers and is one of the most popular talk show hosts in radio history. She offers no-nonsense advice infused with a strong sense of ethics, accountability, and personal responsibility. In 2018 Dr. Laura was named to the National Radio Hall of Fame. We live at a time where people are no longer free to tell truths that anyone with common sense knows, yet at the same time America's values and priorities are completely out of whack. That's where Dr. Laura comes in. There are very few high-profile people who have the courage, the chutzpah and the moral fortitude to encourage people to "do the right thing." There are very few high-profile people in who will say, without backing down later, what needs to said about men and women, sex and love, children and families. Things that are profoundly true but considered blasphemous to admit. Dr. Laura fills that void. We'll talk with Dr. Laura about her 40-year career helping marriages and families stay on track.
Coming July 13th, 2019: The Suzanne Venker Show!
Get ready for The Suzanne Venker Show! TIRED OF THE LIES AND THE SPIN perpetuated in the media, in our universities and in Hollywood? Does today's relentless gender propaganda make you feel as if you're going mad? If so, get ready to hear hard-hitting truths about men, women, sex, dating, marriage and family that will make you cry out "Yes! Finally someone tells the truth!" Find out more at SuzanneVenker.com Stream the show live every Saturday at noonCT at TheAnswerSTL.com


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Q: How to switch tabs in a browser Web Extension As title states ^
In these docs, there's a lot of support for working with tabs.
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Add-ons/WebExtensions/API/tabs
Including moving tabs around, deleting them, duplicating, reloading, executing javascript in the tab, etc. But I don't see anything that allows me to focus a given a tab.
Am I missing something?

A: tabs.update(tabId, {highlighted:true})


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Sanofi ejects chief executive Viehbacher
Andrew McConaghie
Chris Viehbacher has departed from his role as chief executive of Sanofi after the company's board voted to remove him.
Having taken over at the Paris-based company six years ago, German-Canadian Viehbacher represented a break from tradition of French, Euro-centric leaders at Sanofi, and helped lift it out of the doldrums.
Viehbacher successfully steered the firm through a period where big-earning blockbusters such as Plavix went off patent, nurtured new pipeline drugs and strengthened its diversified business model, which included the purchase of rare disease specialists Genzyme in 2011 for more than $20 billion.
But problems have risen to the surface in recent weeks, and personality clashes in the boardroom is understood to play a significant role in his departure. His decision to relocate to Boston in the US – where his son is at university – is said to have gone down badly.
Viehbacher wrote a letter to the Sanofi board last month in which he made the case for letting him stay on, which was then leaked to French business newspaper Les Echos.
Chris Viehbacher
"Changing the CEO would be against a backdrop of a company and a leader perceived to be succeeding strongly," he wrote. "Such a change would be difficult to understand."
The company has a number of promising new treatments nearing the market, including a breakthrough vaccine for Dengue fever, and alirocumab, a competitor in the promising PCSK9 inhibitor class of cholesterol treatments.
However, the company has growth problems in its existing portfolio. Yesterday saw Sanofi's shares plunge 10 per cent following the firm's warning earlier this week that its diabetes franchise – including blockbuster insulin product Lantus – would see sales level off next year because of price pressures.
Sanofi's board convened in a dawn meeting this morning to make its decision, and said Viehbacher resigned after the board decided unanimously to remove him.
Chairman Serge Weinberg will act as interim chief executive while the company searches for a replacement for Mr Viehbacher.
Chairman Serge Weinberg
The company said that would not affect this year's outlook, which forecast earnings per share growth of between 6 per cent and 8 per cent. However analysts say the revenue warning is likely to affect the firm's 2015 performance.


The Jax & Bones Standard Wool Blend Donut Bed will give your dog the feeling of warmth and security needed for a good rest. Stylish, functional, and quality-driven, this deep circular bed is recommended for dogs that like to burrow or curl up to rest. Constructed using top-of-the-line, heavyweight, textured fabric that looks and feels like wool, but is made from a durable blend of polyester, it is filled with a high-loft fiber that will give your dog plenty of cushioning. The color is a great compliment to any décor.
Wash in cold water. No bleach. Tumble dry low.
Great bed. Excellent support and fabric. My 15 year old dog was just unable to get in or out of it. She has very short legs. How I wish she could access it. She loves to snuggle. Dog.com is a great company and we were very pleased with the service and product. We are not giving up, will continue to try to find her the perfect bed.


An asymmetrical design can look stunning and this which we made for one of our brides from Chicago, Illinois, USA, is a perfect example of what can be achieved when buying a wedding dress online. As you can see in the attached pictures, beautiful hand made beaded flowers adorn the dress from the shoulder across the bodice and down to the opposite hip. Underneath is a beautiful soft lace bodice with matching lace applique on the tulle skirt. Some of the photographs here show close up detail the quality of the lace and the skill of our workers in crafting such beautiful high quality gowns.


Industrial themed adjustable floor lamp with ivory shade.
Inspired by the visualisation of an electrical pylon in an industrial landscape, the Pylon Floor Lamp represents the distinctive urban signature of the Diesel lifestyle.
Taking inspiration from both fashion and popular culture, the Pylon Floor Lamp has been created by a collaboration between Diesel and the luxurious Italian lighting brand Foscarini.
A stylihs pure linen fabric adorns the Pylon's distinct pendant lampshade.
Dyed and protected against fraying, the raw and distorted linen shade is decorated with hand-pleated folds which mould beautifully onto the body of the lamp diffuser creating a striking silhouette reminiscent of an industrial turbine.
Flexible and adaptable, the Pylon Floor Lamp is perfect for injecting style and definition into your interior.
Characterised by its earnest and indulgent luminosity, the Pylon Floor Lamp is perfect for introducing a radiant ambience with industrial edge into your interior.
Requires 1x 116W E27 bulb (not included).


The lesson of Bob Torricelli's exit.
If you don't want an election to be about you, get out.
Late Monday afternoon, Sen. Robert Torricelli, D-N.J., pulled the plug on his re-election campaign. It was a merciful end. Torricelli's career had been brain-dead ever since the Senate Ethics Committee admonished him for accepting expensive gifts from a campaign contributor and trying to cover it up. For weeks, Torricelli had insisted that his campaign wasn't about Bob Torricelli. But there was only one way to make that statement true: by getting rid of Bob Torricelli. Eventually, that conclusion was so clear that even Torricelli got it.
In the contest between Torricelli and his Republican challenger, Doug Forrester, there was frequent debate about the Torricelli Principle, an obscure rule (named after the then-congressman) having to do with the recruitment of shady characters by U.S. intelligence agencies. But in the wake of Torricelli's withdrawal, the principle for which he might more suitably be remembered is the one he illustrated in his final campaign: When you're reduced to pleading that the election isn't about you, it's time to get out.
The latest reports had Torricelli trailing Forrester, a virtual unknown, by 13 points in public polls and by 20 points in Torricelli's internal campaign surveys. In New Jersey, a state that hasn't elected a Republican senator in 30 years, that's hard to do. How did Torricelli manage it? By combining the worst of Bill Clinton, Al Gore, and Al D'Amato.
Maybe Torricelli's offenses weren't inherently fatal. Maybe if Clinton had been in Torricelli's shoes, he could have survived. But Torricelli didn't have Clinton's personality. He had Gore's. He accused Forrester of "risky schemes" and talked endlessly about fighting. "So many years and so many fights," he recalled fondly at Monday's press conference. Like Gore, Torricelli spoke like a caricature of a senator, arranging pauses and facial expressions to milk every line for effect. Like Gore, he seemed relentlessly scripted. Like Gore, he looked as though he was lying even when he was telling the truth.
Torricelli is an accomplished talker. He loves the sound of his own voice. For weeks, he tried to talk his way around the problem, insisting that the election wasn't about him. The election wasn't really between Bob Torricelli and Doug Forrester, he argued; it was between Forrester and everybody else. As talking goes, it was good spin. But sometimes talking isn't enough. Sometimes you have to make your spin true by doing something real and costly.
In the weeks before he bowed out, Torricelli talked a lot about current or recent New Jersey senators. Bill Bradley, Frank Lautenberg, Jon Corzine—they were all suitably liberal on abortion, guns, and the environment, said Torricelli. It was one of those campaign lines that come into existence for reasons that belie their advertised meaning. Torricelli was trying to say that Bradley and Lautenberg were like him. But the reason he had to talk about them was that they weren't. Unlike Torricelli, they were clean. Unlike Torricelli, they could beat Forrester. Now maybe one of them will.


The Folding Basket is Curbside essential and redesigned for 2016. It is a minimalist, open-top accessory perfect for running errands around town. Durable construction and simple black canvas is all you get, and let's face it, all you really need for most scenarios. In particular, the basket excels as a grocery-getter.
NOTE: Can only be used with a Brompton Front Carrier Block. (Sold separately).


Enes Kanter is a Turkish basketball player currently playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder team of NBA. He plays at center position, and stands at 2.11 m height. He is one of the most successful, and highest paid players in the NBA.
While Enes started his professional basketball career with Fenerbahçe Ülker team of Turkey, he has played for a number of NBA teams, including Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder.
Born in Switzerland, Kanter's mother, Mehmet is a histology professor at the Trakya University. Before coming to the US in 2009, he used to play basketball for his school. He has also played approximately nine games for Euro League and Turkish Basketball League. He was offered professional contracts by both, Olympiacos and Fenerbahce, but he refused because he wanted to play college basketball in the United States.
Enes kanter's stint with basketball started when he was just 14 years old. While was studying in Stoneridge Preparatory School, California, Enes played for the school's basketball team, and recorded 13 rebounds and 34 points in the Nike Hoop Summit. In 2009, he declared that he would play for Washington Huskies, but later signed a contract with the Kentucky Wildcats.
Less than 25 years of age, and he is one of the most successful basketball players in the history of NBA. Both Scout.com and Rivals.com have ranked him as a 5-star talent, at the top center in 2010 recruiting class. Enes' excellent on-field skills and performance has earned him much popularity.
After starting his professional basketball career in Turkey, Enes Kanter moved to the US, where Utah Jazz selected him in the first found third pick overall, of the NBA Draft 2011. As a rookie in 2011–12, he became just the 10th Jazz rookie in franchise history to appear in every regular season game. He also recorded the most rebounds for a Jazz rookie on debut with 11 against the Los Angeles.
In 2015, he was traded to Oklahoma City Thunder in a three-team deal including Detroit Pistons. In his debut for the Thunder, Enes recorded a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds in a 110-103 win over the Charlotte Hornets. After the season of 2014-15, he became a restricted free agent.
Enes Kanter's is popularly known as 'Underkanter'. He likes watching wrestling, and Spongebob Squarepants is his favourite TV Show. He plays ping pong, and loves eating salmon. His hobbies include dining out, playing video games and hanging out with his teammates. Enes says that if he was not a basketball player, he would probably have been an astronaut. He has a cheerful nature, and always meets people with a smile on his face.
Enes Kanter won a Bronze medal in U16 Division at European Championships in the year 2008. In 2009, he was named the Best player and Centre for European Championships, and also achieved the FIBA Europe Under 18 Championship MVP.


In a recent list that highlighted 25 of the best budget-friendly acoustic guitars out there, MusicRadar featured the Guild M-120 prominently.
The all-mahogany gem is noted as a great instrument for either pickers or strummers.
"An affordable Guild with a compact body and small neck, it sounds as good as it looks – and it looks good enough to eat. Double thumbs up from us for this little beaut," wrote MusicRadar.
See what else is on the list here.
The Guild Webstore is Live!


Those crafty Snowdonnas. Since we last visited them, our favorite shoegazers were getting a lot of well-deserved press attention from as far away as L.A. and Europe for their sterling debut full-length, Over Now, and their ultra-pro live shows. This weekend, they�re bringing their icy sound to Rubber Gloves as part of a Texas dream-pop extravaganza that also features Denton�s static-y Mission Giant (celebrating the release of their third full-length, Brotherhood of the Plug), Big D�s Bring In the Satellites, San Antonio�s One Version Aversion, and some local outfit called Destination Venus.
But wait a minute. Turns out that Destination Venus is none other than � ta-dah! � the Snowdonnas� �other� band. Here�s how it works: First, Snowdonnas frontman Tim White takes a seat on the bench and bassist Otto Bahn (gee whiz � think he�s a Kraftwerk fan?) steps up front to handle guitar and vocal duties. Then a second guitarist is added to the mix, and the goofily named Q. Bysshe Mourningstar trades in his keyboards for a bass, all while Niki Saukam continues manning the traps.
Snowdonnas and Destination Venus with Mission Giant, Bring In the Satellites, and One Version Aversion. 5pm Sat at Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studio, 411 E Sycamore St, Denton. $7. 940-387-7781.


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Here at Bust-A-Gut we're an ambitious bunch. Our company is fuelled by a desire to tell great stories. Stories that are unique, authentic and above all entertaining. We believe in our own ideas and would love nothing more than to make them reality – win commissions left right and centre and grab an armful of Baftas along the way. But beyond this lust for glory lies an ambition yet greater still. We want to build a business that inspires change within our industry. A business where cultural diversity is more than just a nice idea.
Founded by rapper turned comedian Ben-Bailey-Smith, Bust-A-Gut is a company with credibility at its core. Since bursting onto the scene as underground MC Doc Brown, Ben's career has encompassed a multitude of successful incarnations –
from stand-up and straight acting, to creating Bafta winning TV series Four O'Clock Club. In January 2016 Ben welcomed the arrival of Creative Director Charlie Anderson to the Bust-A-Gut family, a television producer with over 18 years of experience across the film & TV industry. The company also boasts the considerable talents of Lajaune Lincoln – a writer and director who recently completed production of his first feature, Otherside of the Game.
By combining our array of existing contacts and industry know-how we firmly believe Busta can achieve great things. Originally established to produce music videos, shorts and online content, the company is now preparing to take a bold step forward, with an extensive slate of documentaries, dramas and features already in development. Our long-term vision also includes an aspiration to create a web-based TV channel designed to provide an outlet for voices often woefully under-represented in the visual arts.
@WriterDuet - Hey there. I'm trying to log on using my Google account but the pop up box appears blank. I have trie… https://t.co/5eFPcDP5n3
© Bust-A-Gut Productions ltd 2020. Crafted by Rapidz


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Casanova (2005) short review
By Kendra on April 29, 2005 in Eighteenth Century
David Tennant stars as the famous lover Casanova in this BBC miniseries while Peter O'Toole plays his older self, Laura Fraser plays Casanova's love interest Henriette, and Rose Byrne is the chambermaid to whom the O'Toole Casanova tells his life story. Whew! Although it's a period film (set in 18th c. Venice, Paris, London and Naples), it's very modernized, both in its script, shooting style, and particularly the costumes — which range from relatively period (altho they appear to have had a small budget — Henriette wears the same red gown for years) to completely not-based-in-reality goth-ified costumes (if you're shocked when they arrive in Paris, just wait until they get to Naples!).
Tags1740s1750sCasanovaCasanova (2005) with David TennantDavid TennantMichele ClaptonPeter O'TooleRose Byrne
The Virgin Queen (2005) short review


In the run up to Christmas, people start thinking about the big Christmas Day meal and drinks to go with it and specifically special wines.
This year we thought it would great to try and use local food and drinks as much as possible and I recently discovered there are lots of wine producers in Herefordshire, far more than I realised.
Some of them are too tiny to have their own websites, so a lot of the stuff I am sharing with you comes from various blogs and articles about wine in the county.
The UK wine industry is recognised as a premium wine-producing region, with English and Welsh wines winning many prestigious international awards. There are over 400 vineyards in England and Wales with 20 of those catalogued by the English Wine Producers marketing body based in Herefordshire!
Herefordshire's south facing hills where clay soil sits on top of well draining sandstone provides great conditions for hybrid varieties of grape.
And amazingly, the National Vine Collection is based in Herefordshire! Sunnybank Vine Nursery in Rowlestone is where this collection is housed and they have an open day annually in September – make a date to come and stay with us to coincide with that if you are at all interested in heritage plants, vines and wine!
Not all the Herefordshire vineyards are open to the public and many of the ones that are, need to be contacted first to make an appointment. Listed are Beeches Vineyard, Castle Brook Vineyard, Frome Valley Vineyard, Lulham Court Vineyard, Pengethly Manor Hotel & Vineyard, Sparchall Vineyard and Wythall Estate.
Not listed by the English Wine Producers is Broadfield Court, which is about 10 miles from Brinsop Court and I think is probably the biggest in Herefordshire. It is apparently one of the UK's oldest vineyards, although it only dates back to 1971. You can buy their wines at Broadfield Court.
Probably the best places to buy the Herefordshire wines are either at the Hop Pocket Wine Company which stocks a full range of Herefordshire wines and there is an opportunity to try before you buy. Alternatively, head to Tanners in Hereford City Centre or head out of town along the Brecon Road to Oakchurch Farm Shop – great for a trip out from Brinsop Court.
With thanks for the inspiration to Herefordshire Life's interesting article "A tasting tour of Hereford's Vineyards", which when reading will make your taste buds tingle!


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Review: The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley
Genre: science fiction: space opera / military sci fi mix
Pairings: f/f, f/m
Queer Representation: cis bisexual
I would like to tell you I knew what I was going to do, before that. But I had not seen the true measure of the destruction that the corporations were willing to wreak to consolidate their power.
I wanted to be brave. To be a hero. To carry out orders like a paladin would. I did those things even knowing what the outcome was going to be. I wanted so badly to be the good guy.
But it truly was not until that moment, after I had destroyed everything still good in this world, that I realized I wasn't a hero…I was just another villain for the empire.
Who needs FTL drives when you can just become light? Humans have gone and destroyed Earth (of course) and a handful of mega corporations control the remaining population. Citizenship must be earned, so the poor remain poor unless they earn citizenship, usually through military service to their corporation. Early colonization of Mars went horribly wrong, and now the Martians have returned, and are threatening the tenuous corporate control of Earth.
Dietz is a fresh new recruit in the battle against Mars. Her 'drops' don't take her to new places so much as new times, and she quickly finds herself seeing the war in different locations, with different squads, and across different parts of her own (somewhat fluid) timeline. The book focuses on her emotional journey of understanding, from complete devotion to her corporation (driven by extreme poverty and no other options), to discovering the truth of Mars, to taking control of her drops and movement in time, to saving humanity.
Out of all of Hurley's books, THE LIGHT BRIGADE is probably the easiest to follow despite the time travel. With only one POV character (and first person!) the narrative is fairly easy to follow. Dietz is a surly character, but the political climate of the book closely mirrors the current situation in the real world, making it very easy to empathize with her views.
"They aren't our people," Andria said, but her heart wasn't in it. "Most are paid protestors. We're doing a job, just like they are. They were told to disperse or face force. They know what's coming."
"They aren't even armed," Omalas said.
"Some may be," Andria said.
In Hurley fashion, Dietz has a primary interest in women, though she does hook up with a man as well during the course of the book (also in Hurley fashion, genders outside the binary are completely absent). She mostly moves through the book alone, watching most of her friends and colleagues die gruesome deaths from drop accidents, artillery, etc.
The strength of the book is really in Dietz's journey to understanding the 'sides' of the war, and who is really fighting whom.
I wanted to punch him. Scream at him. Because in that moment I had no idea who "us" was.
"I'm here to fight the bad guys," I said.
"Then you're with us," he said, and marched me to the cafeteria with the others.
And of course, there are some great one-liners:
"You know you'll have to fight the aliens," I said, before Frankie could get a word out, "not just fuck them."
Muñoz perked up. "You have a girlfriend, Dietz?"
"Not anymore."
"Does she know that?" Muñoz said.
THE LIGHT BRIGADE is pretty quintessential space opera/military sci fi. Much stronger on the political messaging than other Hurley books, this one is also a lot easier to follow. Good solid sci fi, though heavy handed enough in places that it likely won't be a reread classic.
You can try your own drop and see if you can join the Light Brigade here.
Filed Under: book review Tagged With: bisexual, military SF, reviews, sci fi, space opera
Review: Lucky 7 by Rae D Magdon
Genre: science fiction: dystopian
Pairings: f/f (could also be classed as f/nonbinary, the character in question hasn't quite decided)
Queer Representation: cis bisexual, asexuality, trans, nonbinary
There's nothing in the world as good as making a beautiful girl come.
Jacker Elena is on the run from AxysGen after the death of her crew during some 'illegal' activity.
Handler Sasha, an operative team leader, just lost her jacker and the rest of her crew in a botched operation. She can't find a crew without a new jacker, and Elena needs a place to hide, STAT. AxysGen has a hit out on Sasha, too. If any of them are going to survive, they need to be deleted from AxysGen's databases. And they can't do that without a jacker. Or Sasha's crew.
Elena and Sasha must work together to find Sasha's crew and prevent AxysGen from finding Elena. The deeper they get into the the virtual world, however, the more layers of AxysGen peel away and the more Sasha's past, including her ex-girlfriend, come back to haunt them.
LUCKY 7 is a fast paced dystopian sci-fi novel that starts with action on page one and does not let up. Unfortunately the action comes at the steep cost of stakes and character buy-in, and the first third of the book is entirely skimmable. The gems of attraction between Sasha and Elena are well done, but do little to progress the narrative forward. Elena's character is poorly developed, as is her motivation, and Sasha's ice queen attitude leaves her functionally emotionless.
The book takes a hard right turn at the one third point, with a steamy shower sex scene that breaks through our ice queen's exterior and gives the reader some much needed emotional interplay. There's consensual power play here, too, and it is hot as fuck. The book is worth buying for the sex scenes alone (there are three!).
But something in me wants to fight. To push back against her dominance, to show her I'm not just some warm body she can bruise because she hates me. I need her to fuck me, but she doesn't get to unless I fuck her back.
Somehow, I know I'll never tire of bringing her over the edge. "Come for me," I growl into the dip of her collarbone, close enough for her to feel my lips on her skin. "I want you to come for me."
Halfway through the book changes POVs from Elena to Sasha, and it is at this point that the narrative takes off. Sasha's POV is rich and complex, and the reader cannot help but be fascinated as she learns about her forgotten past, her relationship with her ex, Megan, and the secrets behind the ship's AI. With an emotional hook, the storyline and plot pack a punch. The stakes raise, the crew becomes more three-dimensional. You care about Sasha. You root for Sasha. Sasha is the ideal unreliable narrator.
The A plot, of Elena running from the evil corporation, takes a quick backseat to the B plot of Sasha's origins and the motivations of Megan. The B plot is by far the stronger of the two. Megan is the perfect villain–delightfully self absorbed with just enough humanity to make her relatable. The clone situation is excellent, the AI a delight, and Sasha, again, steals the show.
Another bonus: the representation in the book is phenomenal. Elena is Mexican (with brown skin), Sasha is black, and the richness of Elena's background comes through in so many fantastic phrases and snippets of history. There is no white default in this book-white people are described via skin tone upon first introduction as much as the numerous people of color.
"If anyone tries to speak to you, let me do the talking," Rami mutters from the corner of their mouth. "Just give them a white people smile."
"The close-lipped 'I acknowledged you, now please go away' gringo smile?"
The trans rep, in particular, really struck a chord with me. One of the crew is trans, but it is the exploration of Sasha's gender identity that was the most compelling. It is rare to see a true exploration of the nonbinary experience in queer fiction. So much is either a nonbinary person just being a person and having adventures, or being a side character. Sasha's explanation of her gender, and Elena's intuitive understanding, cemented their relationship as one of the best I've read in lesbian fiction. In a culture where the butch identity was long used as a dumping ground for both gender and gender identity, having one branch explored at length, and with deep sensitivity, was absolutely amazing.
I know from her smile that she's joking, but my confidence falters. I know what Elena wants, but I'm not sure I'll be ante to give it to her. I've got baggage around sex, around trust, around my body, and although I feel good in my skin tonight, I can't guarantee she'll get the results she wants, no matter how hard she tries.
My face heats up. I've tried thinking about it that way sometimes, more often before I bought my first prosthetic. Once in a while, it works. Usually it doesn't. There are aspects of womanhood I still connect and identify with, but my parents aren't one of them. And even thought I know all too well that body parts don't make a woman, being touched that way feels…vulnerable. In a good way, on some occasions, but more often in a not-good way.
Once my hands are dry, I consider what to do about my swimsuit. The decision to pull down my trunks is an easy one, but my top is more difficult. It bares my midriff, but keeps my chest fairly flat. The look of hunger that takes over Elena's face is enough to tempt me out of it. Her dark eyes have zeroed in as I pull it off, and her tongue leaves a glistening line on her lips as she wets them. I'm naked, but thanks to her admiration, I don't feel overexposed.
It's a feeling of freedom, of knowing I can fly without the fear of falling. It has everything to do with the face that it's Elena between my legs.
She's memorized more of me in a few weeks than other people have bothered to learn in years, and I actually feel comfortable enough to teach her. It's different. Powerful. A little scary. Bit it's also all kinds of good, and I know I'd be a fool to give it up. I'm not even sure I can.
You can find your own curvy hacker in paperback here and ebook here. Consider supporting an independent bookstore by buying it here.
Double bonus: this scene
"You blew up the front door," Rami yells back, taking the steps two at a time.
"Because I love you," Cherry hollers. "Even though you left me in Brazil!"
"How do you run so fast in heels?" I gasp as I stagger down the front steps. I don't know how Sasha finds all these magical bitches who can run ops in perfect makeup and designer shoes, but if I wasn't terrified of dying, I'd be jealous.
And the best description of this particular flavor of bisexuality to date:
"Not my type, kid. I like pretty boys with long eyelashes and girls who look like they could step on my windpipe with their jackboot and make me thank them for it."
Filed Under: book review Tagged With: asexual, bisexual, dystopian, lesbian, nonbinary, reviews, sci fi, trans
Review: Crier's War by Nina Varela
Genre: fantasy: dark (YA)
Queer Representation: cis lesbian (potentially bi or pan, not explicitly stated)
Warnings: some potentially problematic interpretations of asexuality and aromanticism
Once upon a time there was a queen so desperate for a child that she had one Made. As with all things involving royalty, Made people became all the rage, and soon the continent was filled with Automae.
Like any good sci fi tale, the Automae were treated as servants/pets and of course, rebelled. Automae won the war and now rule over humankind, occupying the latter's former palaces and social structures.
Enter Ayla. Orphaned by Automae slaughter (including her twin brother…maybe), her only goal in life is to bring down the Made and cut off their source of power–a special mineral that must be mined from specific source. More immediately, she can best hurt the Made by killing Princess Crier, and very early on in the book she is conveniently hired as the princess' handmaiden.
Of course, feelings get felt. Ayla's never had much interest in romance (only REVENGE) and Crier is an automae (who are canon asexual and aromantic… in theory). Turns out that Crier may have the Flaw of Passion inside her, which her fiancé', Kinok, has no problem holding against her.
While Crier struggles to identify friends and enemies at court and understand her (lack of) place in the monarchy, Alya's narrow view of the Made is threatened by Crier's attempts at friendship. A human rebellion is also brewing, and Crier and Ayla must decide which side they are on before the truth about Ayla's past is revealed and the balance of power is forever changed.
CRIER'S WAR is an f/f enemies to 'lovers' tale, and very much a setup book for a longer series. The worldbuilding is fun if not a little generic, and the pacing distinctly YA in that an inordinate amount of time is spent mentally rehashing events and feeling feelings, which drags down the pacing. For a YA book, the pacing moves at a strong clip. For an adult book (which it isn't, so it shouldn't be judged as such) it is slow.
The two POVs, Ayla and Crier, are distinct and easy to empathize with. Crier has many android stereotypes, including lack of sexuality/passion, problems with emotion, super strength, etc. Ayla is all hot-blooded passion, most directed at the kill side of things (yay! stabby lesbians!). They're a natural pairing, and Varela does a nice job of slowly ramping up the tension between the two and then backing it down with real problems, such as, how do you kiss a girl whose family killed yours?
The worldbuilding takes an interesting look at the Automae and humanity. While recent fiction has driven stories of androids wanting to improve upon human tech and dwellings and such (and certainly never retaining human rituals), CRIER'S WAR shows the POV of androids who actually embrace and retain all the silly little bits of human culture, like marriage and birthdays. It's a very strong showcase of the book's central theme, that the Automae, despite being Made, are human.
The only real issue in the book comes from how it interprets what makes us 'human.' Crier believes for a good part of the book that she is Flawed with Passion. This 'allows' her to fall in love with Ayla and become, as the book presents it, more human. The Automae are described, functionally, as Data from Star Trek, complete with 'going crazy if your emotions go into overdrive' trope. They're beautiful, but heartless.
A few have bucked that stereotype and are presented as more compassionate and more human–by taking lovers. Crier is also presented in a similar light, where it is her love for Ayla and budding sexuality that turn her away from the ways of her android people and help her better understand humanity, and empathy. And, yes this sort of development is a fairly common trope in sci fi and fantasy, it still comes at the expense of an often trampled part of the queer spectrum. Sex, attraction, desire, romance, these aren't things that make us human. For many they are an important part of self, but for others they aren't. Asexual and aromantic people are still human. They don't need to fall in love to have empathy, much as atheists don't need to find religion to be good people.
Representation gripes aside, CRIER'S WAR is exceptionally well written, with an almost lyrical prose reminiscent of THE TIGER'S DAUGHTER (which was not without its own representation issues as well). The book does not stand alone, in that no plot arcs are resolved and the reader must continue to the next book to continue the narrative, but the character development is well worth it.
The cover is gorgeous, and well worth having in hardback for the embossing and delicate bronze imagery. The plot is complex enough that teens would likely be deeply engrossed (It's not a trope if its your first exposure to it!), and the tandem coming-of-age stories of Ayla and Crier should resonate with many younger readers.
It's not a book I would have on my own bookshelf, but it's one I would hold for my kid, for sure.
You can mine some Iron Heart and make your own android in paperback here, ebook here, and audiobook here.
Filed Under: book review Tagged With: aromantic, asexual, lesbian, problematic tropes, reviews
Review: Peacemaker by E.M. Hamill
This is a review for the second book in a series. You can read the review for the first book here.
Genre: science fiction: space opera
Pairings: nonbinary/f, nonbinary/m
Queer Representation: nonbinary
Warnings: violence, gore
The attack did not stop at nightfall. The sunset truce lay shattered, the hour of the goddess defiled.
Dalí is once again tapped to play negotiator in this action-packed sequel to DALÍ. Recalled from their undercover op by the Remoliad security council, Dalí is asked to look into events related to Ursetu's emergency petition to join the Reoliad. Their crown princess has died, leaving only the queen and grandson alive. Her death is deemed an attack by the Shontavians–genetically engineered mercenaries considered nonsentient by their creators.
Was it a directed killing or a botched group assignation? Was the Shontavian breeding and engineering facility attacked as well, or did the creatures plan their own escape? Either way, Shontavians are on the loose, a monarchy's line of ascension is in trouble, and Dalí seems to the only negotiator anyone can agree on.
Dalí, unfortunately, is still battling personal demons. They're back on their addictive vape, which almost cost a friend their life. They're still haunted by the murder of their husband and wife. Rage comes so, so easily to them, as does passion. But compassion, both to themself and those around them, is a skill Dalí must learn if they are to negotiate for the royal line and the Shontavian, who are much, much more than they seem.
Fans of sci-fi action, bio-engineering morality questions, and fast pacing will enjoy PEACEMAKER. Readers are thrust directly into the action that does not let up until the end, journeying from mines to addition, to violent fights, to passionate alley sex.
Although technically a space opera, the book paces more as military sci fi, with little time spent on character development (relying on book one's work) and focusing almost solely on plot. It is for this reason that I failed to connect as deeply with PEACEMAKER as I did with DALÍ. There's action, yes, and politics, yes, but the heart seemed to be missing that had so entranced me in book one. Dalí doesn't connect so much as they fight–everything–which is plot relevant but also not a strong way to hook readers looking for sympathetic protagonists.
The biggest emotional connections come from the Shontavians and the complexity of their bioengineering. Their development, history, and mythology are breathtaking both in simplicity and effect. Their training will crush you. Their dreams will destroy you. How Dalí negotiates for them, and their eventual solution, is both perfect and deeply moving.
E.M. Hamill's trademark humor is still present in PEACEMAKER, though somewhat more buried:
"You get off on this, don't you?" I accused her.
"I want your body. For experiments, anyway. Shut up and close your eyes."
And of course, the representation presented by Dalí, of a blend between intersex and nonbinary (Dalí can change their sexual anatomy and hormone profile at will, which drags their gender along with it. This makes them both gender fluid and sex fluid, though Dalí identifies as third gender, and defaults to a sexless state when among friends) is very well done:
In the warmth and vibration, I shuddered as the last of the physical characteristics I'd adapted to pass as male shifted back into my neutral, sexless state. My crewmates didn't expect me to assume a gender, something for which I remained grateful. Without hormone stimulation to drive the change, the process was more painful, and my shoulders complained against the grind of bone and muscle.
As an intersex person with hormone fluctuations that physically impact how my body showcases my secondary (and sometimes primary) sex characteristics, I found Dalí's explanations of the hormone surges and accompanying body changes very relatable (though of course extended out for sci fi), and appreciated how the mental gender moved but didn't necessarily change as a result. For that reason alone, this book is an excellent read. Representation matters, and there is too little in the intersex world, especially at the intersection of intersex and nonbinary.
You can pick yourself a nice genital set and decide some intergalactic ethics in paperback here or ebook here.
Filed Under: book review Tagged With: nonbinary, sci fi, space opera
Review: Space Unicorn Blues by T.J. Berry
Queer Representation: cis lesbian, trans woman, asexuality
Warnings: murder unicorns
There was also a healthy contingent of planet bound xenophobes who had never made peaces with the fact that the first aliens humans had encountered were an envoy of talking unicorns who offered to teach them farming.
Survey a thousand cultures from throughout the universe and each would have terrifying stories about thin grey aliens with huge black eyes who visited their planet to poke at them. The Pymmie were only a meter tall, but able to control space, time, and matter with alarming proficiency. You could see the intelligence behind their murky eyes, but also a horrifying indifference. They simply went about their grand experiment without concerning themselves with trivial matters like suffering. The Pymmie were not particularly clandestine with their experiments, the same way that an entomologist would not bother to conceal her presence from an ant.
It's been one hundred years since the god-like Pymmie brokered a peace between humanity and the Bala–a wide array of fantasy creatures that turned out (surprise!) to be real. The Pymmie promised to return and check in on things right at the one hundred year mark.
That's only a few days away, and humanity has really, really screwed things up.
Gary is a half unicorn man (unicorns are magical and born in stars. Don't get gross) fresh out of prison. Jenny is a decorated Reason officer who once held Gary captive and dug into his skull to harvest his horn to power her spaceship. Her wife is also a dryad. It's complicated.
Unfortunately for all of them, the Sisters of the Supersymmetrical Axiom have had a vision that involves Jenny, Garry, Cowboy Jim (lover of grilled cheese sandwiches and deeply morally grey), and Ricky Tang (morally grey but in a different way, hunter of fortune, trans woman with a killer sense for suckers). Together they have to get a stoneship to the Summit to meet the Pymmie at exactly the appointed date and time, while being chased by Reason officers who want to harvest Gary for parts and trying to rescue Jenny's wife. In order to engage the FTL, however, they need unicorn horn, and Gary isn't too keen on letting Jenny back at his skull.
SPACE UNICORN BLUES is the perfect space opera, blending fantasy elements (literally–the Bala are all mythological creatures from Earth's history, like hippogryphs, angels, unicorns, fauns, etc.) and future tech into a fantastic colonial comeuppance story. In some places grim, in many places hilarious (elf sperm is a natural glamor if you rub it all over your body!), every word packs a punch.
In an interesting style, many parts of the book function like a recap from a previous book (this is, in fact, book one), recounting the history of Jenny and Gary that the reader never gets to see. However, this recap pushes the plot faster than an FTL drive, allowing for sufficient backstory for the character to grow and evolve from the first page.
SPACE UNICORN BLUES shines in the representation department, too: no white default with skin tones, a disabled lead who is not cured (and is fine with it), and queer representation all over the place:
"If you mean Miss Tang, then she's hosting the game table,"…
"The last time I was here, Ricky was a-"
"A charming host who you will find at the game table," finished the bartender firmly.
Ricky's face froze. "Oh. Are the legends really true? Unicorns are asexual? My apologies."
It also gives a soldi study to male privilege, hilarious showcased in an example below:
Ondre launched into a detailed explanation of stoneship control mechanisms. Jenny had learned that while blasting your way out of situations worked middlingly well, the best way to extract yourself from under a man's control was to pretend you needed his expertise. You could stall for hours with a few well-timed uniformed questions.
White privilege is also called out:
It was interesting to Gary that though the three nations that had come together to form the Reason were ostensibly equal, the officers were almost always pink people.
And, of course, there are quality sex jokes:
"Hey, since you mentioned weather forecasters, what do you call oral sex with a meteorologist who has a vagina?"
"What?" Cheryl Ann looked genuinely curious.
"Cumulolingus," said Jenny.
and puns! (the one below is a Sister yelling at a birch dryad)
"Move it, birch, or I'll weave a basket from your limbs," said one Sister.
There is no reason to not buy this book. None. Adventure, romance, lesbians, unicorns, elf semen… there really is nothing else a reader could want. Grab a piece of unicorn horn and watch humanity get spanked in paperback here and ebook here. Also available in audio!
Filed Under: book review Tagged With: lesbian, sci fi, space opera
ARDULUM: THE FIRST DON …is a masterful blend of space opera tropes and hard science fiction concepts, written by a scientist working at the top of their field. This is a glorious love letter of a book, pushing the idea of what space opera can be and who it's written for, utilizing a complex web of science facts and science fiction concepts to ask questions about truth and history and who benefits. -- Seanan McGuire
SPALTED WOOD
This book is a must for those with an interest in the history of marquetry or for those looking for a way to get that perfect piece of wood for a specific purpose.
The American Marquetarian
ARDULUM FIRST DON
The author's ability to keep the reigns of a complex plot, packed full of technical detail and vulnerable, believable characters, is testament to how much skill she has.
WROTE Podcast
ARDULUM SECOND DON
I...enjoyed the use of gender-neutral pronouns in the case of species that were either officially gender-neutral or separated gender into three different categories.
Scattered Thoughts and Rouge Words Review
Ardulum is an epic science fiction tale that invokes many different themes and ideas in a dramatic journey readers can't help but be enthralled with.
Crystal's Many Reviwers
Books by J.S. Fields


A rare specimen of a comparatively large Apatite crystal for Great Wheal Vor, Carleen, Cornwall, at one time pumped by a massive 100" cylinder Beam Engine (1854). The single crystal of Apatite measuring to 1.4cm, standing edge on the matrix. Showing opaque creamy pinacoid terminations with a more translucent-gemmy central zone. Crystals of black Cassiterite with Muscovite-Chlorite forms the matrix for the Apatite. Scattered micro-crystals of purple Fluorite are also in association. A neat rare specimen from the mine.


text:
You Should Know … Talia Jordan
Shira Kramer - December 10, 2021 0
Talia Jordan, 31, moved to Baltimore this year from New Jersey to act as Beth Tfiloh Congregation's new director of programming and engagement. Before...
Ian Rashkin makes music
By Bob Jacobson As a musician, Ian Rashkin draws on a diverse palette of genres. When he lived in California, he played Cuban and Puerto...
Kelly Meltzer supports healers
Jesse Berman - December 2, 2021 1
Though she was raised Catholic in Potomac, Kelly Meltzer, the director of Central Services at LifeBridge Health, has since become a proud member of...
You Should Know … Eli Creeger
Shira Kramer - December 1, 2021 0
By Shira Kramer Eli Creeger, 36, started working at Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School as an assistant to the athletic department and is now the...
You Should Know … Tamir Goodman
Shira Kramer - November 24, 2021 0
Years ago, the Jewish Jordan — what Sports Illustrated nicknamed Tamir Goodman when he was just 17 years old — shocked Baltimore with his...
Gene Drubetskoy's journey for the American dream
Jesse Berman - November 23, 2021 0
When Gene Drubetskoy was 8 years old, his parents told him they were moving from the Ukrainian city of Kyiv to the local village...
You Should Know … Samantha Kahan Strakes
As a teenager in Baltimore, Samantha Kahan Strakes grappled with her Jewish identity. When she traveled to Israel during the summer after her junior...
Allen Abend documents Baltimore's art history
By Bob Jacobson Allen Abend's passion for art and art history has led him to start his own business and to writing several books. A retired...
Sandie Nagel feeds hungry families
In December of 2014, Sandie Nagel was delivering hats, gloves and scarves to children at Baltimore's Tench Tilghman Elementary/Middle School, when she asked a...
You Should Know … Alison Kowitz Kaplan
Alison Kowitz Kaplan sold insurance until she realized she could make a living from her own kitchen. Now known as Mom the Baker on...


text:
Q: Facing assertion error when trying to add row inside a column I am trying to make a login page which looks like this

But whenever I try to add row which has another column iside it for textinput field and text It shows assertion error. I also tried removing sized box before text row still it is showing the same error
My flutter code:
 Widget build(BuildContext context) {
   return Scaffold(
     backgroundColor: color,
     body: SafeArea(
      child: Center(
        child: Padding(
        padding: EdgeInsets.symmetric(horizontal: 20.0),
        child: Column(
          crossAxisAlignment: CrossAxisAlignment.center,
          children: [
            SizedBox(
              height: 20.0,

            ),
            Text('Life Drop',
            style: TextStyle(fontSize: 40, color: Colors.white)),
            SizedBox(
              height: 10.0,

            ),
           Text("your blood can save lives",
                 style: TextStyle(fontSize: 12, color: Colors.white)),

          SizedBox(
            height:20.0
          ),

          Row(
            children: [
              Column(children: [
                Text('Login'),
                TextFormField(
                 controller: emailController,
                 decoration: const InputDecoration(
                   border: UnderlineInputBorder(),
                   labelText: 'Email',
                 ),
               ),
               SizedBox(width: 20),
              ],)
            ],
          )

          ],
        ),
     ),

      )

   )
  );

 }

A: edit your row like below code:
            Expanded(
            child: Row(
          children: [
            Expanded(
                child: Column(
              children: [
                const Text('Login'),
                TextFormField(
                  decoration: const InputDecoration(
                    border: UnderlineInputBorder(),
                    labelText: 'Email',
                  ),
                ),
                const SizedBox(width: 20),
              ],
            )),
          ],
        ))


text:
dispatchesfrombrian
Being Set Free
Posted by brianstiller on October 16, 2013 · Leave a Comment
It wasn't an unexpected visit, so when the secret police arrived asking for Paul Negrut, he knew his time had come. Others of his Christian friends had been swept up in the nets of Ceaușescu's minions. Paul knew that for him it was just a matter of time.
It was in the 1980s, when the harsh heel of communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu held its ruthless rule over the people of Romania. Rising to power in 1965, he modeled his regime after Stalin, creating the infamous Securitate, imposing control, surveillance and dominance from 1965 to 1989. It was considered the most repressive regime in Europe. Finally during the revolutionary days of 1989, after he ordered his troops to fire on crowds gathered in Timisoara, they revolted, and he and his wife were shot as they tried to flee.
Since Paul served as a pastor, it wouldn't be long before the police would pick him up. He was sent to a concentration camp rather than a prison so officials could avoid the annoyance of having to lay charges and completing his documents.
Paul, previously a clinical psychologist, had spent six years working in the local hospital but in time decided his real love was to serve as a pastor. In time he left the hospital and became minister of a Baptist church in Oradea.
What he didn't know at the time was that scores of people, even among the closest of his colleagues and friends, were linked into the surveillance network of the Securitate, looking for reasons to draw him into their net of control. When sent to camp, the only reason they gave for his imprisonment was that he was considered a fanatic.
After six months a senior official of the concentration camp showed up: "Who do you have higher up?" he abruptly asked. Not knowing why the question Paul responded: "I have God." Dismissively, the official retorted, "Don't give me any of that. Who do you have on your side in Bucharest?" Again Paul simply said "God."
"Well, get your things, you are leaving." And with that as Paul walked from the camp to a waiting car, he kept looking over his shoulder, convinced this was a hoax and they would change their minds and haul him back into camp. But no one did. He arrived home and in the arms of his beloved wife, simply embraced their newly found freedom. But the "why?" was left unanswered.
What had happened was that some time after his arrest, a Canadian working in Romania heard of Paul's arrest and went to their apartment asking Paul's wife for a photo of Paul. Composing a letter describing the stifling oppression and lack of religious freedom, he wrote to Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, not sure if it would ever reach the Prime Minister's desk.
Canada, producer of the Candu nuclear reactor being built in Romania in the 1980s, was linked to the economic life of this eastern European nation requiring many professionals who moved back and forth from Canada to Romania.
Bilateral talks necessitated President Ceaușescu visiting Canada. On one occasion, after official niceties, the Prime Minister sat down with the Romania President for a private conversation. After asking him about the state of religious liberties in Romania and getting the usual song and dance of how wonderful, peaceful and free was his nation, the Prime Minister had a surprise.
Reaching into his briefing file, he pulled out a picture of Paul Negrut and asked, "Then why is this Baptist minister in prison?" Buffaloed by this unexpected confrontation, within hours Ceaușescu sent a curt message to Bucharest. "Get Negrut out."
What is not surprising is that Negrut's freedom would have interested the Prime Minister. His track record of standing with Mandela, doing his best to strong arm Margaret Thatcher in getting her to pull the Commonwealth on side of a South African anti-apartheid strategy is part of his legacy.
In 1989 the wall of repressive communism tumbled and the country found itself in a liberated eastern European world: the Soviet world was reduced to Russia; Yugoslavia came unraveled; the failed experiment of Albania in building walls harboring atheism manifested its shallow and bankrupt ideology. And Romania, a people and nation pushed and pulled over the centuries by Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian and Russian powers and more recently by Communism, now was unglued from the political constraints of its past.
In Romania, a mainly Orthodox country. Evangelical Protestants have emerged as a small but potent voice of faith and political fairness. Felt marginalized by the dominant Christian community they instead have chosen to go public in their concern for public issues.
Ironically, the government, making up for the decades of political oppression, now provides – according to the BBC – annually over 100 million Euros to the Orthodox Church. Evangelicals as well receive funds based per capita, primarily used for building amenities.
Paul Negrut completed a PhD and is now president of Emanuel University in Oradea. Besides his role as president, he moves about, challenging people worldwide to engage in the issues of life, never taking for granted one's freedom.
It took the unheralded and critical initiative of one and the simple yet precisely timed question of a Prime Minister to sponsor freedom.
Brian C. Stiller
Global Ambassador, The World Evangelical Alliance
Filed under Dispatches from the Global Village
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A welcome example of pushback
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dispatchesfrombrian ·


text:
Epstein May Have Gamed the System From Beyond the Grave
Associated Press Published: August 22, 2019
Stephanie Keith, Getty Images
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The will that Jeffrey Epstein signed just two days before his jailhouse suicide puts more than $577 million in assets into a trust fund that could make it more difficult for his dozens of accusers to collect damages.
Estate lawyers and other experts say prying open the trust and dividing up the financier's riches is not going to be easy and could take years.
"This is the last act of Epstein's manipulation of the system, even in death," said attorney Jennifer Freeman, who represents child sex abuse victims.
Epstein, 66, killed himself Aug. 10 in New York while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. The discovery of the will with its newly created 1953 Trust, named after the year of his birth, instantly raised suspicions he did it to hide money from the many women who say he sexually abused them when they were teenagers.
By putting his fortune in a trust, he shrouded from public view the identities of the beneficiaries, whether they be individuals, organizations or other entities. For the women trying to collect from his estate, the first order of business will be persuading a judge to pierce that veil and release the details.
From there, the women will have to follow the course they would have had to pursue even if Epstein had not created a trust: convince the judge that they are entitled to compensation as victims of sex crimes. The judge would have to decide how much they should get and whether to reduce the amounts given to Epstein's named beneficiaries, who would also be given their say in court.
"Wealthy people typically attempt to hide assets in trusts or other legal schemes. I believe the court and his administrators will want to do right by Epstein's victims, and if not, we will fight for the justice that is long overdue to them," attorney Lisa Bloom, who represents several Epstein accusers, said in an email.
She said attorneys for the women will go after Epstein's estate in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where the will was filed and where he owned two islands.
Bloom said it was "gross negligence" on the part of Epstein's lawyers and jail personnel to allow him to sign a new will, given that he had apparently attempted suicide a short time before. Bloom called a will "a classic sign of impending suicide for a prisoner."
The lawyers who handled the will have not returned calls for comment.
The assets listed in the 20-page document include more than $56 million in cash; properties in New York, Florida, Paris, New Mexico and the Virgin Islands; $18.5 million in vehicles, aircraft and boats; and art and collectibles that will have to be appraised.
Typically in any case, trust or not, there is a pecking order of entities that line up to get a share of an estate, said Stephen K. Urice, a law professor at the University of Miami. First in line would be the government — in Epstein's case, several governments — which will collect any taxes owed on his properties and on his estate itself.
Next would be any other creditor to whom Epstein owed money, such as a bank or mortgage company.
Lawsuits against the estate by victims would come into play somewhere after that.
Epstein's only known relative is a brother, Mark Epstein, who has not responded to requests for comment. It is unclear whether he was named a beneficiary.
One other possibility is that the U.S. government will seek civil forfeiture of Epstein's properties or other assets on the grounds that they were used for criminal purposes. Government lawyers would have to produce strong evidence of that at a trial-like proceeding.
If they prevailed, they would be able to seize the properties, sell them and distribute the proceeds to victims.
"The fact that there is a will should not stop them," said Cheryl Bader, a professor at the Fordham University School of Law.
Federal prosecutors declined to comment on the possibility of a forfeiture action.
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Filed Under: Jeffrey Epstein, Sexual Abuse, trust
Categories: Associated Press
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Feds Accuse Wyoming Man Of Soliciting Sex Acts With Teens
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Wyoming Authorities Investigate Alleged Sexual Abuse of Horses
Attorney Defending Jeffrey Epstein's Girlfriend Represented Former Casper Businessman Cercy
Epstein Death Shifts Federal Focus to Possible Conspirators
Officials: Jeffrey Epstein Dies by Suicide in Jail Cell
Wyoming Bishop Names Clergy Who Allegedly Abused Children, Adult


What do you think of when you think of a negotiation? Buying or selling something? Settling a lawsuit or a divorce? Brokering a multinational treaty?
These certainly are examples of negotiations, but I prefer to define negotiation as any time two or more parties communicate with the intention of reaching a certain goal. If you accept that definition, a negotiation could involve deciding with a friend or loved one which movie to see, where to have dinner or where to vacation. Looked at this way, it is clear that we spend a lot of time negotiating.
Another commonly held perception about negotiating is that there must be a winner or loser, or more accurately, each time I make progress toward my goal, you lose progress toward your goal. A better approach to negotiating is to follow the maxim "outcome and relationship." Negotiating from a win-lose perspective can impair important relationships.
I would go further to suggest that even if you are negotiating with someone you will never see again, you are still in a relationship. That is, you need this person to reach your goal, and if you negotiate to win, that relationship becomes strained and the possibility of reaching a solution becomes less likely.
So how does one negotiate to reach a goal but avoid impairing relationships? The answer is to negotiate not over your position, but over your needs and interests. That is, don't say what you want (your position); say why you want it (your need and interest). If you negotiate over positions, you and your negotiating partner have only two conflicting choices, and those choices will pull you apart. On the other hand, if you negotiate over interests, there may be many solutions.
For example, let's look at a movie negotiation. If one person wants to see an action film and the other person wants to see a romance, it is still possible to find common ground. There are action films that also have a romantic story line. In fact, there might be many options! By approaching the negotiation in this fashion, not only might the parties reach an agreement, but also they are collaborating instead of competing. Even if they don't reach an agreement, their relationship is enhanced, or at least not impaired.
has arbitrated and mediated countless labor-management and employment disputes, and has published on the subject of alternative dispute resolution in several academic journals.