Our political system is based on the idea that we can elect good men who will do altruistic things to guide the country in a direction that is successful for the majority.
There will be an open debate, all issues will be discussed publicly, then an educated electorate will carefully consider the issues and come to an informed decision.
The electorate will ignore anything but objective, rational, factual arguments and vote for the person they feel best represents their views overall.
The person elected will always keep the Greater Good of his constituents in mind when passing legislation.
What makes that a pipe dream is the fact that Human Nature is Human Nature. Yes, we can expect our legislators to be paying attention more to the "Better Angels of our Nature", but they are – after all – just human.
The Framers of the Constitution understood this. The real purpose of the Constitution – and the Bill of Rights – is to act as an inviolable brake on the normal human desire to acquire power. Fortunately they built a mechanism into it to allow it to evolve into the future. Unfortunately the world has evolved to the point where that mechanism is hard to use.
Our nation is based on the premise that we are a government "of the people, by the people", with an expectation that our representatives will hold the interests of the people first and foremost.
The overriding principle has always been that the popular vote is the way we enforce the idea that our legislators will hold the majority of their constituent's best interests in mind and act accordingly.
That has always been a challenge. We are not a hive of bees, all in sync and agreeing on both the nature of our problems as well as the best solution. We're a community of independent-minded individuals. Even on issues that seem very clear cut to the majority there are always those that disagree. And issues that are not so clear cut are often split very close to the middle.
Our legislators represent us in that, not only in their variations and disagreements but in their own viewpoints, which may agree with their constituents most of the time but not all.
Unfortunately, (or perhaps fortunately), our legislators are also human. Humans are far from perfect and often influenced in different ways by different incentives. One person may hold to views they feel are "right" regardless of the impact that may have to their chances for re-election, another may change with the wind if he feels it will keep him in office.
Add to this immense pressure from the normal human tendency to do what rewards them the most. Those rewards can take different forms, but in politics the most common reward is re-election. Not only does this provide psychic rewards in that the legislator feels his constituents approve of the job he's doing, but it also provides monetary rewards in that he continues to have a job and reap the benefits and perquisites that come with that job.
Often a long and successful career as a legislator may result in even greater financial rewards when out of office – being awarded a very well paying position with a private company, as a lobbyist, or perhaps as a media commentator or author.
The pressure to do what keeps you in office is huge and often somewhat irresistible.
Now, we throw in the money needed to do that.
As more money becomes available for campaigns, campaigning becomes more expensive. Although of course the office-holder may want to squeeze the most bang out of each buck they get, there's no incentive to not spend every dollar they're given. That creates a never-ending racheting up of the entire process, as one candidate spends more to keep up with the other, who then spends more to keep up with the first, etc.
This is a trend that has been in existence since the beginning, but recent developments have accelerated the process. Particularly the Citizens United ruling and the effect massive infusions of cash as a result, have had disastrous impact on the cost of campaigning.
In an era when there are more media outlets to buy time on than you can imagine, it required Barack Obama to spend $730 million in 2008, and the current 2012 election is on track to break $1 billion.
Obama will spend 357 times what Lincoln spent in equivalent dollars, or 1000 times as much in actual dollars. That's a lot of money.
Do you really think that's being done just for the altruistic reason of "promoting good government", or do you think the companies and people who fund that may expect something in return?
Getting that money has become the over-riding concern of our politicians.
A representative can take office with the most altruistic of goals, intending to hold his course and do the right thing regardless of outside forces, but if he does that at the expense of being re-elected then he may as well have never run.
Add to this the fact that it requires a consensus to pass laws, and the people he needs to build that consensus with are under the same pressures.
Unless we somehow put 535 of the most highly principled humans alive into the federal government, and our own representative was able to get a majority to agree with him, and they were all willing to lose the next election if necessary to vote on what they felt was right, our representative would never pass anything.
If the legislation they were advancing had a majority of the moneyed interests aligned against them, even if this coalition held together for one election cycle, in the next election they would undoubtedly find their ranks reduced as special interests backed their opponents.
The current system cannot – by design – product an objective legislative body. At least, not without completely re-engineering human beings or developing super robots and allowing them to govern us. And I'm not down with either of those.
Do you seriously think that if a congressman is given a million dollars for re-election by Company A and is then asked to vote on legislation that may negative impact Company A's business, he's going to vote in favor of it? Seriously?
To follow this to the root, what causes that pressure to raise money? The need to advertise.
What if we did one simple thing, and banned any paid political advertising?
Yes, I know, I know – first amendment issues…. Maybe it would take a Constitutional Amendment.
If so, is there any issue that is more vital to keeping America "the America we want" than this?
The original Bill of Rights was put in place for the sole reason of restricting the power of our politicians, this seems just as important.
We've already established that paid advertising can be regulated. When was the last time you saw an ad for cigarettes or liquor on TV?
It's certainly a slippery slope, but if we used the rule above to limit the amount of advertising that can be done, we'd certainly limit the effectiveness of political donations.
We would not, of course, restrict the ability of politicians to express their views in any way – except that they can't pay someone for publishing those views.
Remember an era when we got politicians like Lincoln, Teddy and Franklin Roosevelt, JFK…? They all "made their case" – in long form, in detail, to the people. Certainly they advertised – slogans have been around forever – but the majority of their policies were put out in the form of speeches or quotes in newspaper articles, all of which provided far more detail than what the public sees today.
Speeches? Nothing would restrict the candidates from making them.
Newspaper and magazine articles, websites, social media postings? Nope, no restrictions.
Interviews with the press? No restrictions at all.
Anything that involves the candidate themselves "making their case", without paying anyone to publish that case, would be fine.
Now…. if we want to give up on reducing the cost of elections (via the advertising ban above) we could go the route that I first heard Dan Carlin propose, in his "Common Sense" podcast.
What if we said that politicians are welcome to raise as much money as they want, but for every dollar every politician raised, all opponents who qualify for the ballot (a separate issue, see my page on "Real Democracy") would automatically receive an equal amount of matching funds from the government.
In other words, Jim Smith and Joe Jones are running. Jim Smith raises $100M from donors. Joe Jones raises $50M.
Joe is then automatically given another $50M from the government….
Now… this one would certainly greatly reduce the value of "working hard to get contributions", since you're effectively working for your competition.
There are still many ways a politician can be influenced by money.
Some of those are already outright illegal – bribery, for instance. But those are already illegal and we'll never avoid having criminals out there.
Some of those are more tenuous connections that are harder to define.
For example, suppose a politician owns ABC Corp stock as part of a market index fund in their retirement account, and some vote on a bill might result in that stock going up?
Or, how about a politician's brother works for ABC Corp? To take that to an extreme, what if ABC Corp gave that employee a "merit raise" based on the fact that they got some new government contract… And what if 'bro was a generous guy and used some of his new money to buy a nice vacation home that he could share with his family…?
Or, how about when the politician leaves office, and finds a nice, cushy "spokesperson" job available at ABC Corp, for a nice half-mil a year….?
You can't stop every form of influence, all these suggestions would do is stop the one that is currently responsible for the majority of our political spending.


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Lutherdomen () är en undergrupp av kristendomsinriktningar inom protestantismen och uppkom vid reformationen som följd av Martin Luthers och hans efterföljares (däribland Philipp Melanchthons) tankar och verksamhet. Luthers lära och lutherdomen är en reaktion på problem som fanns inom romersk-katolska kyrkan under 1500-talet, sett ur Luthers och de andra reformatorernas perspektiv. Kyrkor och samfund inom dessa riktningar kallas lutherska eller evangelisk-lutherska och anhängarna lutheraner. För dessa kyrkor är Martin Luthers reformation i Wittenberg och de lutherska bekännelseskrifterna konstituerande.

Lutherska samfund
Lutherska samfund finns över hela världen, varav många samarbetar inom Lutherska världsförbundet. I Nordeuropa finns lutherska stats- och folkkyrkor, bland annat i Danmark (Danska folkkyrkan), Estland, Finland (Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan i Finland), Island (Isländska kyrkan), Lettland, Norge (Norska kyrkan), Sverige (Svenska kyrkan) och Tyskland (Tysklands evangeliska kyrka). I Nordamerika finns flera lutherska samfund, däribland Evangelical Lutheran Church in America och Missourisynoden. På andra ställen i världen är de lutherska kyrkorna i de flesta fall före detta lutherska missionsfält.

Nyevangeliska rörelser såsom Evangeliska Fosterlandsstiftelsen (EFS) har en stark luthersk bekännelsetradition och utgör en del av Svenska kyrkan med starkare luthersk profil än kyrkan centralt. Svenska Missionskyrkan har sina rötter i den lutherska traditionen, men har sedermera utvecklats åt annat håll och centralt anslutit sig till Reformerta kyrkornas världsallians. Inomkyrkliga väckelserörelser såsom pietism och læstadianism räknas såsom lutherska. Vad gäller frikyrkorörelser har vissa lokala missionsförsamlingar haft tydliga lutherska inslag. Notera att evangelikala samfund såsom Evangeliska Frikyrkan och övriga protestantiska frikyrkliga samfund i Sverige inte tillhör lutherdomen.

Efter 1951, då det blev lagligt i Sverige att ha fria lutherska kyrkor, har det vuxit fram ett antal så kallade konfessionella lutherska kyrkor. De söker hålla fast vid Konkordiebokens innehåll och Luthers lära, ofta i motsats till folkkyrkorna som blivit mer liberala och där många i reformationen främst ser en historisk bakgrund.

Historisk bakgrund

1500-talet
Martin Luther är en central gestalt för lutherdomen och hela reformationen och brukar ses som dess grundare på 1500-talet. Den ursprungliga orsaken till Luthers verksamhet var att han ansåg att romersk-katolska kyrkan lärde fel vad gällde rättfärdiggörelseläran, då den accepterade penningdonationer som botgöringslättnader ("avlat"), vilket kunde misstolkas som att "köpa syndernas förlåtelse". Luther framhöll att den kristne blir frälst "genom tro allena, av nåd allena". Luther motsatte sig starkt all form av lära som hävdade att goda gärningar skulle kunna frambringa frälsning åt människan. Denna punkt i den lutherska läran hade alltsedan dess en central roll i luthersk teologi.

Som startpunkt för reformationen och lutherdomen anses vara år 1517, då Luther presenterade sina 95 teser i vilka han kritiserade katolska kyrkan för dess avlatshandel. Efter detta kom gapet mellan Luther och den katolska kyrkan att bli allt bredare och djupare. Vid riksdagen i Worms år 1521 fick Luther försvara sin lära inför kejsaren för det Tysk-romerska riket. Luther var exkommunicerad och förklarades fredlös i riket.

Martin Luther översatte Nya testamentet till tyska 1522 och hela bibeln 1534. Senare kom en del delstater i det Tysk-romerska riket att omfatta Luthers lärosatser. Lutherdomen fick en säkrare ställning i samhället. I Kurfurstendömet Sachsen erhöll Luther furstligt skydd, och gudstjänstlivet i Sachsen bearbetades: En första mässordning, Formula Missae utfärdades 1523, och en andra, Deutsche Messe, 1526. När andra furstendömen och kungariken senare skulle få lutherska majoritetskyrkor, kopierade de inte den sachsiska kyrkoordningen och mässordningarna i obearbetat skick, utan författade självständiga kyrkoordningar och mässordningar, som därför kunde variera ganska kraftigt mellan Europas olika regioner. Under 1500-talets lopp växte gudstjänstsånger på folkspråken fram inom de lutherska kyrkorna. Till skillnad från de reformert kristna hade lutheraner ingenting emot att sjunga nydiktade psalmer (psalmer i den vidare bemärkelsen), medan de reformerta endast kunde tänka sig att sjunga psalmer ur bibelboken Psaltaren (egentliga psalmer).

Inledningsvis fördes trevande samtal mellan lutheraner och företrädare för den reformerta kristendomstypen, men sedan det visat sig att Huldrych Zwingli företrädde en symbolisk nattvardssyn, bröt lutheranerna, som trodde på Kristi kropps och blods verkliga närvaro i nattvarden, vid samtalen i Marburg 1529 med de reformerta. Klyftan fördjupades efter 1536 över frågan om Jesus dött för alla människor (som lutheranerna hävdade), eller om Jesus endast dött för ett fåtal förutbestämda personer (som de reformerta hävdade). Medan lutheraner var benägna att bevara medeltida kyrkokonst, ville reformert kristna tömma kyrkorna på konstverk (ikonoklasm).

För att klargöra vad lutheranerna (även om de inte kallade sig så vid den här tiden) stod för utarbetade lutherska teologer med Philipp Melanchthon i spetsen den Augsburgska bekännelsen 1530 och Augsburgska bekännelsens apologi 1531. På detta följde att Luther och lutherdomen blev fördömda av påven. Monarken i Danmark-Norge (som även härskade över Island) bröt med heliga stolen 1526, medan monarken av Sverige och Finland slutgiltigt bröt med heliga stolen först 1536. Dock var Gustav Vasa och Sveriges riksdag sedan 1521  bannlysta som kättare av politiska skäl av påven Leo X genom sin ärkebiskop och interdikt (kyrkostrejk) var utlyst, Sverige saknade en fungerande kyrka. Gustav Vasa återskapade aldrig en relation till Vatikanen, påbörjade reformationen i Sverige och införde Lutherska protestantismen i Sverige. Under 1530-talets lopp tog båda länderna intryck av lutherdomen i Sachsen, men i båda länderna var reformationen en långvarig process i många steg. Ordningar för dop, vigsel, de sjukas smörjelse och begravning på svenska utkom 1529. En luthersk kyrkoordning antogs i Danmark 1537, i Sverige först 1572. Mässa på svenska infördes 1536, mässa på danska först 1556. Bibeln på svenska publicerades 1541 (Nya testamentet redan 1526), på danska 1550. Augsburgska bekännelsen antogs i Sverige 1593, i Danmark först 1665.

Vid religionsfreden i Augsburg 1555 beslutades principen Cuius regio, eius religio, det vill säga att statsledarens religion i en region ska anses som folkets religion. Därmed förlorade påven definitivt sin paneuropeiska makt. Det var samtidigt en förutsättning för att krigiska uppgörelser mellan katoliker och reformationsanhängare skulle upphöra.

Vid slutet av 1500-talet hade lutherdomen blivit erkänd statsreligion i ett flertal tyska och nordiska stater (se tabell). Dessa länder blev lutherska, men förvandlingsprocessen var långsam och kyrkorna hade under hela 1500-talet på sina håll ännu många drag från det medeltida kyrkolivet. Reformationen i England från och med kung Henrik VIII påverkades inte nämnvärt av Luthers tankar, däremot av Erasmus av Rotterdams, Philipp Melanchthons, Martin Bucers, Jacobus Arminius och Georg Calixtus.

1600-talet
1600-talet brukar kallas för ortodoxins tid inom luthersk teologihistoria. Under denna tidsperiod framhölls framför allt lärans renhet i de lutherska kyrkorna. Ett flertal av ortodoxitidens teologer har satt sitt spår i lutherdomen, däribland tyskarna Johann Gerhard, Abraham Calovius och Johann Andreas Quenstedt.

En luthersk mystik växte fram under 1610- och 1620-talet under inflytande av Johann Arndt och Jacob Böhme.

Religionskrigen kulminerade med det trettioåriga kriget, som utkämpades mellan den katolska Habsburgska monarkin och företrädesvis protestantiska furstar och kungar (de senare med stöd av det katolska Frankrike). Initialt hade kriget utmålats som ett religionskrig, men kom med tiden att handla allt mer om världsliga frågor såsom maktfördelningen mellan Frankrike och Habsburg.

För tyskt vidkommande avslutades reformationen 1648 med Westfaliska freden, men en mer än 130-årig period av Europeiska religionskrig slutade inte förrän 1651, när det engelska inbördeskriget tog slut. Den engelska reformationen, som tog andra vägar än den lutherska, skulle inte nå sin slutfas förrän 1662 när den engelska restaurationens religiösa utformning fixerades.

Under 1650- och 1660-talet pågick stridigheter mellan lutherska konfessionalister som önskade en läromässig enhet än mer detaljerad än vad Konkordieboken ensam kunde erbjuda, och så kallade synkretister som önskade återförening med både den romersk-katolska kyrkan, de reformerta kyrkorna och de anglikanska kyrkorna. En känd tysk synkretist var Georg Calixtus, och i Sverige företräddes samma hållning av  Johannes Matthiæ Gothus.

Luthersk kyrkomusik kom, åtminstone i Tyskland, att präglas av bland andra Paul Gerhardt och Johann Sebastian Bach.

1700-talet
1700-talet brukar beskrivas som en pietismens tid i luthersk kyrkohistoria, även om pietismen började växa fram i Frankfurt redan 1675 och i Halle 1695. Speciellt i Tyskland, men också i Norden, betonades den enskilda kristnes vaknande till tro. Olika väckelserörelser växte fram. Herrnhutismen (i Sverige företrädd av Evangeliska brödraförsamlingen i Norden) var en väckelserörelse, som bestått ända till idag. Denna rörelse har sina rötter i byn Herrnhut i östra Tyskland. En framträdande gestalt inom rörelsen var greve Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf. En annan strömning under 1700-talet var neologin, som ifrågasatte sådana delar av den kristna tron som ansågs stå i strid med förnuftet, exempelvis underverksberättelserna och treenighetsläran. Tidiga pionjärer för textkritisk bibelforskning var de lutherska pietisterna Johann Albrecht Bengel och Johann Salomo Semler.

1800-talet
Under 1800-talet växte den klassiska liberalteologin (inte att förväxla med det som i dag kallas liberalteologi) fram bland lutheranerna i främst Tyskland. Universitetsteologin präglades av textkritik i bibelforskningen och exegetiken. Bibelns texter och tillkomstsätt ifrågasattes. Som kända teologer från den här tiden kan nämnas bland annat Adolf von Harnack och Albrecht Ritschl. Man kunde säga att bibelkritiken i viss mån var resultat av darwinismens påverkan på teologin.

I Tyskland splittrades lutheranerna mellan sådana som villigt ville ingå i kyrkogemenskap med reformerta kristna inom den s.k. "Preussiska unionen" (och kompromissa i lärofrågor) och sådana som betonade sådana exklusivt lutherska läror som att Jesus dött för alla människor, att Kristi kropp och blod anses vara verkligt närvarande i nattvarden, och att Jesu mänskliga natur erhöll gudomliga egenskaper av Jesu gudomliga natur.

Också nationalismen påverkade starkt de lutherska statskyrkorna i Nordeuropa under 1800-talet. En del röster inom kyrkorna framhöll att kyrkan var till för just det folket och att till exempel Danmarks folk skulle vara ett "gudsfolk". I Danmark försökte Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig lösa tvisten mellan olika bibeltolkningar och mellan motsägelsefulla delar av bibeln genom att sätta "det levande ordet" högst, det vill säga Guds verksamma ord i dopformuleringen hämtad ur Matt. 28:19, nattvardens instiftelseord i 1Kor. 1:23-25 och Guds ords sammanfattning i den apostoliska trosbekännelsen bekänd av menigheten. En annan viktig gestalt inom Danska folkkyrkan på 1800-talet, var kyrkokritikern och existentialisten Søren Kierkegaard.

Också väckelsefromheten var stark i speciellt de nordiska länderna under 1800-talets senare hälft. Till exempel har den evangeliska väckelsen i Finland och Sverige sina rötter här. Också missionen prioriterades starkt under den här tiden, med flera missionsorganisationer från de lutherska kyrkorna som sände sina missionärer främst till Afrika.

I kritik mot det de upplevde som väckelserörelsernas polarisering mellan kyrkomedlemmar i omvända "sanna" kristna och oomvända kristna (trots att de senare var döpta nattvardsgäster), betonade de lutherska "högkyrkliga" konfessionalisterna (exempelvis Ebbe Gustaf Bring och Gottfrid Billing i Sverige, och Wilhelm Löhe i Tyskland) alla kyrkomedlemmars enhet inom en kyrkoinstitution skapad av Gud själv genom dopet, nattvarden, avlösningen, bibelläsningen och bönen. Denna konfessionella högkyrklighet återinförde diakonatet i de lutherska kyrkorna – inledningsvis i form av så kallad moderhusdiakoni.

1900-talet
Det är svårt att ge en enhetlig bild av hur lutherdomen sett ut under 1900-talet. 1800-talets religionskritik, bibelkritik, vetenskap och humanism präglade prästutbildningen, och ledde till utbredd liberal teologi, och i vissa församlingar även liberalteologi. Inom Svenska kyrkan har det pågått en kyrklig förnyelse vilket man kan iaktta även i andra länder. Uddo Lechard Ullman (1837–1930), biskop i Strängnäs stift 1889–1927 arbetade för gudstjänstlivets förnyelse och främst med inflytande genom sin bok Evangelisk-luthersk liturgik. Århundradet präglades av en stark sekularisering och upplösningen av det starka band som funnits mellan stat och kyrka under de tidigare seklen. Även om flera länder fortsättningsvis har en luthersk stats- eller folkkyrka, fungerar dessa i stort sett som separata enheter skilda från staten. Missionen har i likhet med vad som var fallet under 1800-talet haft en central roll framför allt i de lutherska väckelserörelserna.

Under inflytande av bland annat Nathan Söderblom och Friedrich Heiler växte i början av 1900-talet fram en ny typ av evangelisk-luthersk högkyrklighet i Tyskland, Sverige och USA, som, till skillnad från sin föregångare på 1800-talet, snarare var ekumeniskt inriktad än konfessionell. I mitten av 1900-talet splittrades emellertid strömningen i flera delar, på grund av inbördes skilda åsikter om bland annat bibelsyn och prästvigning av kvinnor.

I slutet av första världskriget (1918) avskaffades statskyrkosystemet i alla tyska delstater.

För de evangelisk-lutherska kyrkorna i Tyskland utgjorde den nazityska tidsperioden en djup kris, som föranledde en omprövning av den tidigare oproblematiskt positiva synen på statsmakten. Lutherska och reformerta teologer samarbetade 1934 med att författa Barmendeklarationen, som tog avstånd från nazismen, och både de evangelisk-lutherska och reformerta kyrkorna i Tyskland splittrades i den anti-nazistiska Bekännelsekyrkan och den nazivänliga Deutsche Christen. De evangelisk-lutherska kyrkorna hade under hela sin tidigare historia saknat något samordnande internationellt organ, men under Europas återuppbyggnad efter kriget, 1947, grundades Lutherska världsförbundet – inledningsvis under starkt norskt och svenskt inflytande. Vid bildandet av Kyrkornas världsråd 1948, inträdde många evangelisk-lutherska kyrkor i detta.

Under 1900-talets lopp började några lutherska kyrkor att prästviga kvinnor, med början i Danmark 1948. I mitten av 1900-talet började klosterlivet återinföras i lutherska kyrkor i Sverige, Tyskland och USA. Ekumeniska samtal med den romersk-katolska kyrkan blev möjliga efter Andra Vatikankonciliet och upptogs 1964. Ett gemensamt dokument om samsyn i rättfärdiggörelseläran antogs 1999, men accepteras inte av konfessionella evangelisk-lutherska trossamfund utanför Lutherska världsförbundet. Lutherska kyrkor är sinsemellan inte eniga om synen på diakonatet. Medan exempelvis Svenska kyrkan numera betraktar diakonatet som en del av det treledade apostoliska ämbetet, är diakonatet i somliga andra evangelisk-lutherska kyrkor ännu moderhusorganiserat på 1800-talets vis.

De evangelisk-lutherska kyrkorna i norra Europa trädde stegvis (Svenska kyrkan redan 1922, övriga först på 1990-talet) i gemenskap med de anglikanska kyrkorna på brittiska öarna och på iberiska halvön, den så kallade Borgågemenskapen. Centraleuropeiska lutherska kyrkor, som ofta saknar apostolisk succession, står utanför Borgågemenskapen. De sista decennierna under 1900-talet såg framväxten av bland annat kontextuell teologi och karismatiska väckelser inom evangelisk-lutherska trossamfund.

2000-talet
Om 2000-talet är det kanske för tidigt att ännu säga någonting. Utvecklingen är fortsättning på 1900-talets sekulariseringsprocess i folkkyrkorna. Också den pluralism och postmodernism som orsakats av bland annat globaliseringen har gjort att splittringen bland lutheranerna blivit allt större.

Under 2000-talet har dock även traditionellt lutherska rörelser växt fram i Norden genom att konservativa grupper mer eller mindre lämnat de liberala folkkyrkorna och bildat Missionsprovinsen i Sverige, Evangelisk-lutherska missionsstiftet i Finland och Det evangelisk-lutherske stift i Norge.

Viktiga lutherska läropunkter
Som vi ser i historiken ovan, är den lutherska läran ingalunda fullständigt enhetlig. Också skillnaden mellan luthersk och Luthers lära bör poängteras. Till exempel är inte den lutherska bekännelseskriften Augsburgska bekännelsen ett verk av Luther. Man kunde säga att idén till en reformation kom från Martin Luther, men efter det har den lutherska läran utvecklats som en egen enhet, dock under stark påverkan från denne.

Här några centrala lutherska läropunkter, som omfattas i olika grad av lutherska kyrkosamfund (de liberala har stor frihet i tolkningen, de konservativa mindre frihet och de konfessionella följer dem utan att tillåta avvikelser):

Auktoritet och bibelsyn

Som Martin Luther hävdar, är Bibeln det enda rättesnöret för luthersk lära och lutherskt liv. Lutherdomen bröt sig ur (eller som vissa hävdar: bröts ur) den romersk-katolska kyrkan och accepterar således inte traditionen eller påven som någon auktoritet. Förhållandet till kyrkans tradition är dock olika i olika lutherska grupperingar och en del håller den för att vara nästintill bindande.

Enligt luthersk lära är alltså Bibeln enda rättesnöre, men det hävdas att bekännelseskrifterna (ofta samlade i Konkordieboken) tolkar Bibelns lära rätt. Till de bekännelseskrifter som återfinns i Konkordieboken hör:
 Apostoliska trosbekännelsen
 Nicaenska trosbekännelsen
 Athanasianska trosbekännelsen
 Augsburgska bekännelsen
 Augsburgska bekännelsens apologi
 Schmalkaldiska artiklarna
 Om påvens makt och överhöghet
 Martin Luthers stora katekes
 Martin Luthers lilla katekes
 Konkordieformeln

Konkordiebokens skrifter äger inte samma ställning i alla evangelisk-lutherska kyrkor. Danska folkkyrkan använder sig bara av de tre tidiga trosbekännelserna, Augsburgska bekännelsen och Luthers lilla katekes, men inte de övriga skrifterna i Konkordieboken. Inom Svenska kyrkan har de tre tidiga trosbekännelserna och Augsburgska bekännelsen ställning som "sammanfattningar" av tro, bekännelse och lära, medan Konkordiebokens övriga skrifter – inte ensamma, utan tillsammans med ett antal övriga, nyare, dokument – "förklarar och kommenterar" denna. Huria Kristen Batak Protestant är ett evangeliskt-lutherskt trossamfund i Indonesien, som inte har antagit någon av Konkordiebokens skrifter. Däremot använder denna kyrka de gamla trosbekännelserna i gudstjänstlivet, och använder Luthers lilla katekes i undervisningen.

Rättfärdiggörelseläran
Martin Luther motsatte sig starkt all form av gärningslära och det att människan skulle kunna köpa åt sig frälsningen. Detta är en central punkt, kanske den mest centrala, i luthersk kristendom. Den kristne blir frälst genom tro, av nåd allena. Jesu Kristi död på korset är försoningen för mänsklighetens synd och den som tror på Jesus blir frälst. De goda gärningarna ses inte som ett medel för frälsningen, utan som en följd av den.

Sakramentslära
Den romersk-katolska kyrkan har sju sakrament. Ett av Luthers kriterier för vad ett sakrament är var att det skall ha ett yttre tecken (vattnet vid dopet, brödet och vinet vid nattvarden) och vara instiftat av Jesus själv. Med denna definition är dopet och nattvarden sakrament, men i den Augsburgska bekännelsens apologi (1531) finner man ett antal alternativa sakramentsdefinitioner, som möjliggör synsätten att sakramenten är tre (inklusive bikten), fem (inklusive ordinationen till predikoämbetet och äktenskapet), sju (i likhet med romersk-katolskt synsätt) eller tio (inklusive bönen, överheten och prövningarna).

Om nattvarden lär lutheranerna att Kristi kropp och blod är fysiskt närvarande i nattvardselementen. Augsburgska bekännelsens Apologi kallar det som sker i mässan för en "förvandling". Detta utesluter inte att kroppen och blodet samexisterar med bröd och vin, i motsats till katolska kyrkans lära (den så kallade transsubstantiationsläran) som innebär att brödet och vinet upphör att existera vid förvandlingen till Jesu kropp och blod. Både lutheraner och katoliker är överens om att brödet och vinet behåller sina förutvarande sinnliga egenskaper vid förvandlingen. Nattvarden är inte heller blott en symbolisk minnesmåltid, som reformatorn Huldrych Zwingli hävdar.

Prästadömet
Emedan den lutherska läran framhåller det allmänna prästadömet, är förhållningssättet till ett särskilt prästämbete olika i olika kyrkor. I Augsburgska bekännelsen talas om ett "Ordets och sakramentsförvaltningens ämbete" men detta har tolkats på olika sätt. Alla lutherska kyrkosamfund har till exempel inte biskopar som skulle viga präster åt kyrkan. Den apostoliska successionen eftersträvas inte i alla samfund. De europeiska stats- och folkkyrkorna har dock i stort sett alla en organisation med biskopar och präster.

Lutherska kyrkor och samfund
I dag finns det många lutherska kyrkor och samfund runtom i världen. Ett gemensamt samarbetsorgan finns för en del (främst liberala) lutherska kyrkor, nämligen Lutherska världsförbundet. Några nordeuropeiska lutherska kyrkor är också i förbund med några anglikanska kyrkor i Borgågemenskapen. Drygt trettio konservativa lutherska kyrkor samarbetar i International Lutheran Council. Ett tjugotal konfessionella lutherska kyrkor har slutit sig samman till Konfessionella evangelisk-lutherska konferensen.

Nordamerika
I Nordamerika kan nämnas framför allt två stora lutherska samfund, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) och Missourisynoden. ELCA är med i Lutherska världsförbundet, medan Missourisynoden tillhör International Lutheran Council. De lutheraner som bor i USA och Kanada är till största delen avkomlingar till immigranter från Tyskland och Norden.

Europa
I Europa återfinns till medlemsantalet relativt stora lutherska stats- och folkkyrkor. Dessa kyrkor finns i Tyskland, Norden och Baltikum. Inom en del kyrkor förekommer stor splittring i olika grupperingar inom kyrkan. Bland annat frågorna om kvinnliga präster, förhållandet till homosexualitet och förhållandet till andra kristna samt främmande religioner och kulturer orsakar stora stridigheter inom kyrkorna. Också samhällets starka sekularisering och det låga deltagandet i församlingarnas aktiviteter är kännetecknande för de lutherska kyrkorna i Europa.

Några lutherska kyrkor i Europa:
 Danska folkkyrkan
 Estniska evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan
 Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan i Finland
 Färöarnas folkkyrka
 Isländska kyrkan
 Lettlands evangelisk-lutherska kyrka
 Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan i Litauen
 Norska kyrkan
 Svenska kyrkan

Afrika
I Afrika är de lutherska kyrkosamfunden i huvudsak samfund som grundats vid före detta eller ännu aktiva missionsfält. Stora lutherska kyrkor finns bland annat i Etiopien, Madagaskar, Namibia, Kenya och Tanzania.

Se även
 Evangelikalism
 Evangelisk
 Kristendom
 Martin Luther
 Nyevangelism
 Protestantism
 Romersk-katolska kyrkan
 Augsburgska bekännelsen
 Reformationen i Sverige

Källor

 Augsburgska bekännelsen på logosmappen.net
 Konkordieboken på logosmappen.net
 Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkans i Finland webbplats
 Religionslexikonet, Bokförlaget Forum, 1996

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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FOLLOWING MONEY IN ARIZONA'S POLITICS: Gabrielle Giffords, Ben Quayle Raising Money Fast Out of Gate; Five Of AZ's Eight Reps' Reports Are Up
Not sure how the FEC places candidates' reports up on its website - but only five of Arizona's eight Representatives have their 1st quarter campaign finance reports posted so far. The biggie is not yet up - Jeff Flake's $1 million plus gathered in the six weeks after he announced his candidacy for the Senate seat currently held by Sen. Jon Kyl.
Of the ones that are up, Reps. Gabrielle Giffords (D-CD8) and Ben Quayle (R-CD3) are far out-pacing their colleagues. Rep. Ed Pastor (D-CD4) has the most cash in the bank. Here are the thumbnails.
Giffords - who has been recovering from the January 8 attempted assassination - received $357,737.69 in contributions, spent $87,025.79, and has $556,013.14 in the bank (as of March 31, 2011). Approximately $240,000 of the contributions are from PACs and from colleagues in the House.
Quayle may be the biggest surprise. The freshman has raised $210,447.43, spent only $29,413.84, and has $188,865.73 cash on hand.
Rep. Paul Gosar (R-CD1) has gathered $84,575.00, spent $26,083.23, and has $65,069.11 in the bank. He defeated Ann Kirkpatrick last Fall, and she recently announced her intent to try to win the seat back. Her statement of candidacy was filed with the FEC on April 1, 2011, so she did not have to file a quarterly report.
Pastor received $47,683.63 in contributions and spent $33,576.26. That $14,000 net swells his bank balance to $1,376.490.15.
Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-CD7) doubled his cash on hand during the quarter, to $54,722.23. He spent $27,717.76 and raised $53,402.22.
Besides Flake, the reports for Reps. Trent Franks (R-CD2) and David Schweikert (R-CD5) are not yet posted.
By the way, if you spot anything noteworthy in these reports, please do not hesitate to either post a comment or shoot me an e-mail (info@arizonaspolitics.com). Thanks!
Tags: Ben Quayle, Ed Pastor, Gabrielle Giffords, Paul Gosar, Raul Grijalva
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Trump says he'd 'love to see a shutdown' if Congress can't pass border-security measures
Michelle Mark
Win McNamee/Getty Images
President Donald Trump said he would welcome another government shutdown if Congress fails to reach a solution on immigration and border security.
Trump said lawmakers must close "loopholes" that allow gang members to enter the country.
President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he'd "love to see a shutdown" of the federal government over immigration legislation if Congress cannot close what Trump called "loopholes" in immigration laws that allow alleged gang members to enter the country and evade deportation.
"If we don't change the legislation, if we don't get rid of these loopholes where killers are allowed to come into our country and continue to kill. … If we don't change it, let's have a shutdown," Trump said. "We'll do a shutdown. And it's worth it for our country. I'd love to see a shutdown if we don't get this stuff taken care of."
Trump made the comments at a roundtable with Homeland Security officials and lawmakers over the street gang MS-13. Among the top concerns that immigration officials sought to underscore in the meeting were immigration benefits granted to those who seek entry into the US as unaccompanied minors.
Officials told Trump that the Department of Homeland Security has no authority to refuse entry to immigrants with gang affiliations, based on those gang affiliations alone. Nor does the department have the authority to deport gang members — they must first have committed a violent crime, the officials said.
"We're going to get it stopped," Trump said. "And if we have to shut it down because the Democrats don't want safety — and unrelated but still related, they don't want to take care of our military — then shut it down. We'll go with another shutdown."
Trump's comments came amid congressional negotiations over the fate of "Dreamers," young unauthorized immigrants whose protections under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program are being phased out. Lawmakers are attempting to craft bipartisan deals that address DACA, along with Trump's other three so-called "pillars" of immigration reform: border security funding, terminating the diversity visa lottery, and ending certain family-sponsored immigration categories.
Trump's shutdown threat received some pushback during the meeting, with Republican Rep. Barbara Comstock chastising Trump and noting that neither party wants a shutdown and both are in favor of cracking down on MS-13.
"We don't need a government shutdown on this," Comstock said.
"You can say what you want, we are not getting the support of the Democrats," Trump said, interrupting her.
The current funding agreement runs out Thursday. The House has put legislation on the table to keep the government from shutting down, but it does not address the future of the DACA program.
SEE ALSO: John Kelly just drew a line in the sand over congressional negotiations on 'Dreamers'
More: Donald Trump ms 13 Immigration Congress


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Managers who look beyond the initial investment of mowers are likely to find safe, reliable, long-term performers. One specification strategy managers can use when selecting grounds care equipment is to base the purchasing decision on the total cost of ownership, as opposed to the amount of the monthly payments. Learn more in Mike Fitzpatrick's article, published in FacilitiesNet Magazine.


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Flipboard CEO McCue Likely to Step Down From Twitter Board Over Potential Future Conflicts (Or Closer Cooperation)
May 7, 2012 at 1:37 pm PT
According to sources close to the situation, Flipboard co-founder and CEO Mike McCue has approached Twitter CEO Dick Costolo and co-founder Jack Dorsey about moving off the board of Twitter.
It is not clear when McCue — who became a director of the San Francisco social communications company in late 2010 — will step down, but it could come soon.
The reason, sources said, is McCue's growing feeling that the companies are on a product collision course, with a possible troubled or perhaps more attractive result.
In other words, Flipboard will either face increasing rivalry from Twitter or will end up as a possible acquisition target for it or other companies.
"How users consume and use Twitter is a key part of its future, and that is what Flipboard does well already," said one person with knowledge of the situation. "There is going to be an inevitable crossroads for the two companies."
Indeed, Twitter has bought several companies that help users read and discover, such as Summify.
The goal has been to better make sense of the massive amount of data that the service produces daily; to that end, Twitter has pushed to improve its user interface design on a number of devices.
And Twitter is a big part of Flipboard's app, which is very dependent on the tweet feed and accounts for 70 percent of its links, sources said.
Flipboard is also more of a "mobile first" company, which is where Twitter is also headed even more aggressively.
Already popular on the Apple iPad, Flipboard launched its iPhone app late last year and it is prepping a version for Google Android soon.
That's why, in addition to being a rival, it is also an obvious acquisition target for Twitter, as well as others such as Yahoo and Microsoft.
In fact, Google already tried to buy it last year, before Flipboard did a massive $50 million fundraising round that valued it at $200 million.
Its investors include Insight Venture Partners, Comcast's venture arm, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Index Ventures and a spate of well known angels, such as Dorsey, Facebook co-founder and Asana dude Dustin Moskovitz, Ron Conway, actor Ashton Kutcher and the investment company of former News Corp. exec Peter Chernin.
Co-founded by longtime entrepreneur McCue (Netscape, Tellme) and former Apple iPhone engineer Evan Doll, Flipboard launched to much attention in mid 2010.
Its innovative social magazine concept is attempting to make the social networking universe more accessible, consumable and, perhaps most importantly, visually arresting via its rich app.
Essentially, Flipboard pulls information from media RSS feeds and sites such as Twitter and Facebook data streams and then reassembles it in an easy-to-navigate personalized format.
Google has mounted a competitor, called Currents, as has Yahoo with its Livestand offering, neither of which have gotten much traction. In fact, sources said, Yahoo is likely to shut Livestand down completely.
There have also been a spate of other similar readers, such as Pulse and Zite.
Spokespersons for both Flipboard and Twitter politely declined comment.
Tagged with: acquisition, Android, app, Apple, Asana, Ashton Kutcher, board, California, Comcast, communications, Currents, data, design, device, Dick Costolo, director, Dustin Moskovitz, engineer, Evan Doll, Feed, Flipboard, format, fundraising, Google, Index Ventures Facebook, information, Insight Venture Partners, interface, investor, iPad, iPhone, Jack Dorsey, Kleiner Perkins, link, Livestand, magazine, Microsoft, Mike McCue, News Corp., Peter Chernin, product, Pulse, Ron Conway, round, RSS, San Francisco, service, social networking, stream, Summify, Target, tweet, Twitter, user, Yahoo, Zite
When AllThingsD began, we told readers we were aiming to present a fusion of new-media timeliness and energy with old-media standards for quality and ethics. And we hope you agree that we've done that.
— Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg, in their farewell D post


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Home | In-depth | Resource efficiency | Reuse and recovery
Heat networks
Reuse and recovery
Below you will find the latest clinical articles covering . Primary care nurses are at the forefront of and need to stay abreast of all the latest practice and treatment updates as their interaction with patients continuously evolves.
first prev 3 4 5 6 7 last
Turning low-grade plastic waste into maintenance-free lumber
When Keith Browning, head of Braeside Education Centre in Devizes, an established learning and events venue run by Wiltshire Council, was looking to replace some of the timber-based infrastructure used in its outside activities, he was inspired to try a new approach.
What can England and Scotland learn from deposit return schemes overseas?
There is no doubting that the UK government has at last declared its war on plastic. In the most recent move, Prime Minister Theresa May announced an intention to ban the sale of plastic items such as straws, drink stirrers and plastic cotton buds.
The Recycling Association's Quality First Conference
Change was in the air last month, and not just because we were finally blessed with some seasonal sunshine.
Why waste companies are still fighting for the latest weighing technologies
Weight is among the most vital data streams for any company involved in waste.
How smart materials can help in the battle against pollution
The ban on mixed plastic export to China is adding a much-needed dose of realism to the sometimes fantasy world of recycling.
How Viridor is using training, apprenticeships and education programmes to invest in the industry's future
People are the lifeblood of any sector but, with the circular economy and low carbon goals of our industry, we need the best and the brightest to drive aspirations for future development.
What's on the horizon for refuse-derived fuel as Brexit looms and production evolves?
Refuse-derived fuel (RDF) has come a long way over the past decade.
Rethinking waste: ASPRG seminar review
Last year proved to be something of a showstopper when it came to environmental policy.
How AI robots could revolutionise MRF operations
Recycling processes must improve, now more than ever.
How the new Urban Mine Platform can benefit the UK's WEEE recycling industry
The new Urban Mine Platform provides a useful data tool for the UK WEEE recycling industry.
Plogging: the new Scandi trend which promises to clean up the environment and get you fit
Scandinavian lifestyle crazes have been very popular in the UK over the past few years.
What's in store for this year's IFAT
Anyone who's anyone in the industry knows the benefits of visiting the IFAT exhibition.
Why district heating is becoming more popular across the UK
District heating is currently experiencing a resurgence of interest in the UK.
Will government's 25 Year Environment Plan offer more than just promises?
January marked a huge milestone for our wonderful little planet. Or, more precisely, the UK's attitude towards it.
The Westminster Energy, Environment & Transport Forum looks like Defra is moving in the right direction
It was a whirlwind end to 2017, and 2018 has already started with a bang.
Waste collection in the Greek municipality of Piraeus
The municipality of Piraeus is in the Attica region of Greece, close to the city of Athens and is a busy city, its main industry being its port.
Solving the UK's plastic problem
The UK has a problem when it comes to plastic, thanks to China's tougher stance on importing it, the high cost of processing it and growing concern around issues such as marine litter.
How new soil treatment is helping to divert excavated soil from landfill
New soil treatment and stabilisation technology means excavated spoil can be recycled and diverted from landfill. Andy Bareham, technical manager at SMRUK, explains.
Why upcycling is more than just a fad
Karin Holzknecht at Groundwork London examines how reuse project The Loop is changing attitudes in the capital, cutting waste and bringing other social benefits too.
Is China's ban on low-grade plastic waste a headache or opportunity for those in the UK who currently export to the Far East?
China's restriction on secondary material imports means the UK's recycling and waste industry faces an urgent challenge next year.
O Come, All Ye Wasteful- preventing excess packaging at Christmas
More than any other time of the year, Christmas is when excess packaging gets noticed – and the problem seems to be getting worse. So what can industry and consumers do about it?
What's on the industry's Christmas list in 2017?
Whether they've been naughty or nice this year, RWW spoke to key industry figures to find out what's topping their Christmas lists.
How FoodCycle is tackling waste and helping those most in need this Christmas
Every year the charity FoodCycle successfully saves hundreds of tonnes of surplus food by diverting it away from retailers' grocery bins and into the capable hands of volunteers.
The new generation of Energy from Waste plants
Paul Gouland, marketing director at Clugston Construction, examines trends in waste disposal and explains how a number of the UK's new EfW plants could contribute to future energy production


We introduce three places, where you can experience farm village in Sokcho.
At Eunggol Strawberry Village, you can harvest strawberries for yourself and has various events such as Christmas Strawberry Festival in winter and Spring Strawberry Festival that is hosted in green May, hen acacia flowers blossom.
You can visit Vegetable Festival at Hadomun Vegetable Village, which is hosted in time of cherry blossom. You can buy various vegetables for SSam, tomato and strawberry in cheap price. Also, many programs such as vegetable collection, strawberry and tomato harvest and going around the village in cart will attract more visitors.
Cheoksan Hot Spring Village provides education programs that any groups or families come and participate. It is a typical farm village that allows you to get away from your busy life and find treasures of nature and share joys of abundant harvest. Also visitors can visit the Footbath Park located near the village for more memories.


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What You Need to Know About Las Vegas Closing Costs
Post author: Don Cramer
Post category:Real Estate
Image Source: Viator
Discover the Good News About Closing Costs in Las Vegas
Closing costs in Las Vegas (and everywhere else, too) are an inevitable but often overlooked part of any real estate transaction. These costs must be factored in on top of the down payment and other obvious upfront costs.
The good news is that they aren't necessarily set in stone. Closing costs can vary depending on the location, companies used, and selling price of the property. And some aspects of these costs are open to negotiation.
So whether you're a buyer or seller, it will behoove you to know a little about Las Vegas closing costs.
Overview of Closing Costs
Image Source: ballenvegas.com
"Closing costs are the expenses, over and above the property's price, that buyers and sellers usually incur to complete a real estate transaction. . . . Homebuyers typically pay between 2% to 5% of the purchase price, but closing costs may be paid by either the seller or the buyer."
Typically, these costs include such things as "loan origination fees, discount points, appraisal fees, title searches, title insurance, surveys, taxes, deed recording fees, and credit report charges. And, usually, there are some prepaid costs for those expenses that "recur over time, such as property taxes and homeowners' insurance."
It is only at the final stage of the transaction – when money changes hands, dotted lines are signed, and the title is transferred from seller to buyer – that closing costs actually kick in. The two primary determining factors for these costs are location and the property's assigned value.
Still, you don't have to wait till the last minute when the transaction is being finalized to know exactly what these costs will be. For "[t]he lender is required by law to state these costs in a 'good faith estimate' within three days of a home loan application."
Now that we've got that out of the way, let's move on to an in-depth examination of closing costs in Las Vegas.
Nevada Closing Costs
Image Source: The Balance
First, though, we'll consider these costs in Nevada as a whole to get a better handle on what they'll be for Las Vegas.
Besides the mortgage-related costs borne by the buyer, the typical major components of closing costs in Nevada are the costs for . . .
Property Survey
Escrow Fees
Agent commission
With the average home selling for between $300,000 and $400,000, Nevada closing costs typically run in the range of $4,160 to $7,395.
The average total for closing costs, then, is $5,546. And on average in Nevada, these costs are 1.39% to 1.85% of a home's sale price.
Las Vegas Closing Costs
Image Source: Stewart Title
There are, of course, those costs the buyer must pay her mortgage lender for originating and processing the mortgage. But we want to take a look at all the other costs for closing a real estate transaction in Las Vegas.
The ones of primary concern are . . .
Real Estate Agent Commission
The most often quoted figure for agent commissions is about 6% of the sale price. This fee for service rendered is typically paid by the seller and is then split between the seller's agent and the buyer's agent.
But keep in mind that this fee is always negotiable. It could, in fact, be as low as 1% for a discount broker. (More on this in a bit.)
The cost for recording a new deed, usually split between buyer and seller – $75
Escrow Fee
Paid to the escrow company (or attorney or title company) for service rendered, primarily holding the earnest money and overseeing the closing – around $275
Tax-service Fee
A one-time fee charged by the lender for arranging tax payments – $100
Title-insurance Fee
Also including title search to ensure that the seller actually owns the property and can in fact sell it – that is, has a clear title – $500 to $600
State Transfer Tax
A state-specific tax paid by the seller for transference of title – in Nevada, $5.10 per $1,000 of loan value
Re-conveyance Fee
A fee paid by the seller in order to clear the title of any liens or other encumbrances (if applicable) – $156
Home-warranty Costs
An optional fee paid by the seller (if applicable) for a one-year warranty on the home – basic plan in Nevada averaging $400
Form 1099 Charge
A form required by the IRS as a means to report sale of a property – $50
Pest-inspection Fee
An inspection to determine the presence of damaging pests such as termites (may be requested or required and may be included in inspection costs – ranges from $50 to $225
Courier Fees
Charged to cover the costs of transporting necessary documents (of which there are many) between concerned parties – $50 to $250
And there may be other fees. So, as you can see, just these of the Las Vegas closing costs can add up to a mighty hefty chunk of cash.
But it's not really as bad as it seems on the face of it.
Some Good News
Image Source: EmergingEdTech
The first bit of good news is that closing costs have been trending downward in Las Vegas and are now more transparent.
"The average closing costs . . . in Nevada dropped to $3,414 [in 2012], seventh-lowest in the nation and down 20 percent from a year ago . . . Last year, Nevada had the 15th-highest closing cost of $4,244."
In addition, this marked the third year in a row when lenders were "required to estimate third-party fees within 10 percent of the final cost."
This is an important shift because previously "people would go to closing and be surprised – unpleasantly surprised – that the costs were significantly higher than the good-faith estimate . . . HUD (Housing and Urban Development) actually has the authority to make this change, so they made a requirement that the final cost could not exceed 10 percent of the good-faith estimate."
And there's yet more good news . . .
Closing costs can be negotiated. "It's not just the 'Services You Can Shop For' section of the Loan Estimate; you can substantially whittle down the charges you pay by asking questions — and most importantly, by comparing fees and service charges from more than one lender."
So you can, especially if you're a buyer, potentially reduce these costs quite a bit by:
Knowing where the savings are
Comparing lenders' Loan Estimate forms
Pushing back on lender fees
Shopping for title and settlement services
Asking the seller to contribute
Considering a 'no-closing costs' mortgage
Signing loan papers near the end of the month
Asking your bank about discounts and rebates
Why You Need a Good Local Las Vegas Agent
Las Vegas closing costs can indeed add up to a lot of money, but, as we've just shown, there are several strategies to whittle down those costs. It takes, though, a good bit of industry knowledge, plenty of experience in local markets, and honed skills.
And that's precisely why you need an experienced Las Vegas real estate agent in your corner.
Really, you shouldn't pay more than you have to by trying to go it alone.
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by DariusBlue USER (7 Reviews)
October 9th, 2007 | 76 replies
Review Summary: A post-punk masterpiece of tribal funk-rock and grinding heavy metal with suitably doom-mongering lyrics and splenetic vocals.
Produced by Killing Joke
UK chart: 39
US chart: Unreleased in USA
AAAAARRRGGGHHHH! IT'S THE APOCALYPSE AND WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!!!!
Sorry about that but I couldn't help it after three solid hours of listening to Killing Joke [1980].
The debut album by Notting Hill band Killing Joke is a key album in the rise of thrash, funk and industrial based metal music. Jaz Coleman and his bandmates crossed punk rock with Black Sabbath for a nihilistic, bludgeoning but inspired and exciting noise and of their early albums, this is their best. The songs describe scenes of violence, war, alienation and death. And so would you be if the headlines featured Thatcher, the Cold War and riots.
The original album comprises of eight tracks. The three key songs are the opening grind Requiem, famously covered by Foo Fighters, the anthemic The Wait, famously covered by Metallica and the tribalistic Wardance, famously covered by...umm...wait, it'll come to me.
Requiem opens with air raid siren-like bass from Youth, then a heavy-but-tuneful guitar riff, then a funeral march-tempo drum pound building up to Jaz Coleman's voice, authorital, booming, fearful and repulsed as he shouts "Man watching video, the bomb keeps on ticking. He doesn't know why, he's just cattle for slaughter." with meticulous enunciation and painstaking coherence. Coleman howls in horror "argh!" just before the pummeling chorus of "RE-QUI-EM" and the drums roll back into the verse. It's sludgy, circular but funky and catchy, a terrific opener, but it gets better.
The Wait is the most well-known Killing Joke song, the dissonant noise at the beginning followed by a choppy funk riff and two-thump, forboding drum, Coleman's voice is higher and distinctly London as he decribes the horrors he sees before the chorus, a just-audible holler of realisation and defiance of "THE WAIT!" complete with hissing high-hat like a spit of venom at those about to be nuked.
Wardance begins with a distorted wheezing and coughing, the song bursts into life with a varispeed mix into a crunching, circular riff and time-bomb synth triplet. A staccato riff sets up more distorted voices, this time a disgusted glance at the malevolence and jingoism of the British male, ("This is music to march to, to a war dance") before the entire band chant in unision "A WARDANCE". Coleman recognises that "you got something nasty in your mind, trying to get out, to a war dance" before warning "Look out for a nationalist command". The music shudders to a halt, complete with Wheel Of Fortune-like drum and guitar screech.
The three songs are key in understanding Killing Joke's influence and the direction of the band themselves. Requiem made industrial, a previously hideously misanthropic and pointless sub-genre economically viable for future metal bands taking their cue from it and set up Killing Joke's themes for the next quarter of a century. The Wait gave heavy rock bands a chance to incorporate funk in their music without imitating funk and gave a clue to the stadium-goth anthems Killing Joke would make on post-Youth albums Fire Dances and Night Time. Wardance is the flipside of shoutalong working class OI! music and made use of distortion and tribal rhythms, opening a door for the synthetic metal of future dance producers and percussion-heavy drums for the more primitive (in a good way) sounds of metal.
The rest of the album stands up well, Tomorrow's World is a desolate soundscape complete with eerie and sparse synth drops and pounding drums, the guitar thrashes and after a minute Coleman howls a formless lament of being called up to army service, "carry us, face the music, called up for your country, never, no I won't go". The synth bloops and ragged guitar riff leap out of the dark before the droning finish. Bloodsport is a instrumental funk-metal thrash complete with sweeping percussion and boomerang synth lines to recreate the Coliseum orgy of slaughter from ancient times. The ending, a "wooo!" from Coleman and cheering and whooping from a crowd like a victory celebration with horrible drone that literally dies before setting up The Wait. Complications is a song more in common with the three key tracks above than the previous doom-laden songs, Coleman's voice returns to high-register, London-accented yelp of despair as he describes a weird occult-like descent-into-madness tale. It's the shortest song on the album and probably the most accessible with the coherent lyrics and excellent vocal delivery with the band playing more funk-based hard rock. $0.36 is an experimental dirge (nearly seven minutes) over some snippets of a bloke speaking German and Coleman's indecipherable lyrics, but they're deep in the mix anyway. Primitive has an excellent drum/bass intro, the sweeping synth and chainsaw guitar come in at the right time and Coleman sings about the temptation/righteousness tangle with surprising lyrical insight despite the weird quasi-marching grunts being more disturbing than they should be. Even Goths get the urges.
Killing Joke 1980 was re-issued in 2005 with five bonus tracks, rough mixes of Primitive and Bloodsport and the single mix of Requiem are fine, but the gem is early single Change. Simply the best disco-metal song ever, the lyrics are a wake-up call to Go For It!! before it's too late and react against all the evil around you.
It's empowering stuff. The choppy rhythm, the prowling guitar music and awesome pound of the drums before the chorus are excellent backing for Coleman's army drill sergeant voice shouting "You're waiting!" and sarcastic laughter. And you can dance to it! There's even a dub version for good measure.
If you like Metallica, Soundgarden, Nirvana, Ministry or Sepultura, to name the most obviously influenced, you'll find plenty to - er - "enjoy" on this album, finally complete.
Killing Joke 1980 is the best album made in fear of the Cold War because of its unflinching misanthropy, genuine fear and innovative sound. The ironic thing is the bomb didn't actually drop and if you take a look at the chart positions you'll see it was unreleased in the USA. That's a Killing Joke alright.
Key tracks
Wardance
Wire Chairs Missing INXS Kick
Ramones Too Tough to Die David Bowie Scary Monsters
The Rolling Stones Some Girls Morrissey Bona Drag
MMXII
Brighter Than a Thousand
Talking Heads Remain In Light
Gang Of Four Entertainment!
On 36 Music Lists
samthebassman
I need this, I love their other s/t album...
Meatplow
Interesting stuff, i might have to investigate this group. I do remember having a few mp3s a long time ago.
The album is just called "Killing Joke" not "1980". Also, you should add the art work to it if you're going to take the time to review it.
Link to the album art:
http://www.killingjoke.com/images/disco/album/killingjoke_small.jpgThis Message Edited On 10.10.07
DariusBlue
Yes, I know the album is titled "Killing Joke", I didn't add the album so I called it by the name given on the website and besides that's what they get for being so awkward as to have two self-titled albums.
I'd add the album art gladly if I knew how.
Kaleid
Go to "My Profile", then "Edit My Reviews". Click this album and on the next page you'll see there's an Upload album image box. Once you've saved the picture to your computer, click 'Browse' and upload it from your computerThis Message Edited On 10.10.07
You can change the title the same way you added the artwork... My Profile > Edit My Reviews > then click this album, and the album name should be something you can adjust... although I see your point about the two self-titled albums... whatever, just for future reference I guess if you ever want to fix an album title you didn't add but you did review.This Message Edited On 10.10.07
burton.and.gas
brilliant review, except i'm fairly sure jaz coleman is manchester-accented not london-accented. I've only heard a few tracks from this, but they are all killer, I love KJ.
Definately London.
Quite fun and intense at the same time, though.
jefflebowski
didn't Jaz study at the royal college of music for a while, or something to that effect?
Goatlord
I know he does composing work outside of Killing Joke. And yes, this album is a classic, though their finest moment is What's This For? in my opinion.
jamepic699
one of the greatest albums EVER made! learn from the underground kings that influenced so many bands for decades to come! you can thank these guys for Nirvana, mofo.
A WAR DANCE
fsharptrit0ne
only met one other person in rl who knew this album, wtf
yea people are gay
yea its all about veil of maya and mephis may fire
war dance all over their faces
linguist2011
This was certainly a significant album within killing joke's career, as it set the standard for one of the most insane yet talented band's in british history. This album is just that good.
Digging: Garganjua - Toward the Sun


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Home » Blogs » World Bank » IDA
Infrastructure and IDA19: A Priority or Not?
The grim picture for SDG-related infrastructure finance in low-income countries (LICs) is by now familiar. Nancy Lee examines salient evidence about the state of funding for infrastructure in LMICs.
What's in a World Bank Income Classification?
Every July 1, the World Bank releases updated income classifications for the new fiscal year, often resulting in headlines about various countries' graduations to "middle income" status. But despite the global attention to these classifications and graduations, there is still widespread confusion about their meaning and significance. Let's explore three myths that could be leading you astray.
Lindsay Dolan
As the World Bank's Capital Goes, So Goes the Bank… or So Say Two New CGD Papers
What are the chances that you would have not one, but two opportunities to contemplate the World Bank's capital constraint here on CGD's website? Better yet, what are the chances you would want to?
Shaking Up the Donor Shakedown at the World Bank
The World Bank just successfully raised $52 billion for the International Development Association (IDA). What better way to build on that success than to declare IDA fundraising dead?
The World Bank's Got Talent! (Or Why to Read the Fine Print on IDA's $52 Billion Record)
Not for the first time, the World Bank has reminded me of NBC's America's Got Talent, the hit TV show where judges Mel B, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel, and Howard Stern rate amateur singers, jugglers, and comedians.
Todd Moss
Goals Are Good (Whether You're Running a Marathon or the World Bank), But It's the Strategy That Really Matters
I have a goal of running a faster marathon at 47 than I did at 27. It helps that I wasn't exactly a world class runner twenty years ago, and I still have a few years to reach my goal. But if you wanted to place a bet on me, you would probably want to know what my plan is for getting there.
World Bank Study Explores Options on Global Public Goods
Many obstacles to development transcend national borders and therefore cannot be adequately addressed within a single country. These include issues such as drug resistance and other cross-border health risks, financial crises contagion, money laundering, water scarcity, fisheries collapse and, of course, climate change. Economists call efforts to address these problems Global Public Goods (GPGs). Like other public goods, funding for GPGs is chronically in short supply: of $125 billion in annual official development assistance (ODA ) only about $3 billion goes to GPGs.
In Tokyo, Kim Should Signal Why IDA Needs to Be Better, Not Bigger
This is a joint post with Stephanie Majerowicz
World Bank presidents have often defined their success in part via ever-larger replenishments for IDA, the Bank's soft loan window. But at his first ever Bank-Fund annual meetings this weekend in Tokyo, Jim Yong Kim should explain to the gathered illuminati why this is no longer an appropriate metric.
The Future of IDA
After 52 years, IDA is facing a watershed moment. Drastic changes in both the supply and demand for the World Bank's cheap long-term loans to governments of poor countries requires rethinking IDA's purpose, tools, and broad role. In Tokyo, Kim should be sure that shareholders understand that the future of IDA depends, not on its size, but on adapting its mandate and business model to certain new realities:
It's Not an IDA World Anymore
This is a joint post with Christian Meyer.
One of the pressing questions for Jim Kim in the years ahead as the World Bank's new president is what to do as many countries graduate out of IDA, the bank's fund for grants and concessional loans to the poorest countries. To generate ideas and possible directions for IDA's business model, CGD has convened a Future of IDA Working Group. The group's final report with recommendations is due out in early summer, in time for ample discussion prior to the IDA 16 Mid-Term Review this fall.
What Should Happen to IDA after It Loses Most of Its Clients? We'll Explore the Options
Earlier this year, Ben Leo (who recently joined our friends at the One Campaign as their new Global Policy Director) and I projected IDA graduations out to 2025 as an exercise to think through what the World Bank's soft loan window might look like in the near future (full working paper is here).
(-) Remove IDA filter IDA
IBRD (3) Apply IBRD filter
African Development Bank (1) Apply African Development Bank filter
Cash on Delivery (1) Apply Cash on Delivery filter
Nancy Lee (1) Apply Nancy Lee filter
Scott Morris (3) Apply Scott Morris filter


Wash and dry lamb. Cut into serving portions. Heat pan; add butter and brown lamb. Salt and pepper meat after it is partially browned. When nicely brown, add lemon juice. Immediately cover for one minute. Add 2 cups of water and cover again. Lower heat to a simmer and allow meat to stew slowly.
While lamb is stewing, peel (optional) and wash potatoes. Fry them in plenty of oil. When the lamb is tender, add the potatoes to the pan. Add more salt and a bit more water, if necessary, and allow to simmer for 10 more minutes. Serve with freshly ground black pepper.


"I just upgraded to iOS 11 for my iPhone X, but the new iPhone photo change to HEIC now. What is the HEIC format? Can I use the HEIC photo on my Windows? Anyone knows the trick about HEIC? Thanks!"
When you change to a new iPhone, you will find your image photo has been changed from PNG to HEIC.
What is worse, you find HEIC is not supported by Windows computer and rejected by your friends who are using iPhone.
How to open HEIC image files on Android or Windows computer?
Use HEIC to JPG/PNG converters to make the conversion.
This page shares the 5 simple ways to help you convert HEIC to JPG/PNG online, on Windows/Mac, and on smart phone via apps.
What you need to do is to keep reading and make the HEIC conversion.
HEIC is a new iPhone photo format on iPhone XS/XS Max/XR/X/8/7 running iOS 11 and later.
The new iPhone photo format uses HEIF standard, or High Efficiency Image Format. It is a more streamlined way to store image files with advanced compression method by saving more than 50% on storage when taking photos.
HEIC is much like a container for image and audio, which works particularly well with Live Photos. The advantage for the HEIC image over JPG is the compatibility with 16-bits deep color images, which comes as a blessed relief for photographers uses ugly banding of 8 bits previously.
Can I open HEIC on PC?
Actually no. Windows computer is lacking in the HEIC photo viewer to open it directly. You need to convert HEIC to Windows compatible JPG or PNG firstly for viewing.
How to view HEIC on Mac?
Only macOS High Sierra and above can open HEIC photos directly. For other versions, you still cannot view HEIC on Mac directly.
Can I open HEIC on Android?
Android phone dies not support HEIC image files. The only way you can open HEIC file is to transfer HEIC to PNG/JPG.
Can I convert HEIC to JPG/PNG?
Actually, you can change the settings to set JPG/PNG as the default photo format by go to "Settings" on your iPhone > "Camera" > "Format" and choose "Most Compatible" to save photos you will take as PNG.
However, for those saved HEIC photos, you have to convert them to JPG/PNG for opening on Windows, Mac and Android phone.
Keep reading the next part to access the 5 ways to convert HEIC to JPG/PNG.
The easiest way to convert HEIC to JPG/PNG is using Apeaksoft HEIC Converter.
Convert HEIC to JPG/PNG in one click.
Keep Exif data of original HEIC photos.
Convert batch HEIC images to save your time.
Follow the steps to convert photos with good quality in batch.
Just download and install the latest version of Apeaksoft HEIC Converter from the official website first. And then follow the process to install the program on your PC or Mac. After that you can get HEIC images to the computer from iPhone X first.
Click "Add HEIC" button or simply drag and drop HEIC files into the program. If you need to change HEIC to JPG in batch, you can also select a whole folder for the HEIC images. Just take the screenshot as a reference for converting HEIC photos to JPG in batch.
Whether you need to change HEIC to JPG or HEIC to PNG, you can find the options in conversion settings. You can also adjust the Quality option to get a suitable quality for Windows, Mac or Android. Choose the destination as the Android device if you need to open HEIC on Android directly.
And now you can click the "Convert" button to turn HEIC to JPG now. It only takes a few seconds to get all the select HEIC images into JPG or other formats. Just click the "Open folder" option to check the images with any photo viewers in the original quality.
The simplest method to convert HEIC to JPG on iPhone is using the Camera Settings. But what should you do if you have already taken photos in HEIC? As for the case, Microsoft OneDrive should be best HEIC converter for iPhone.
Step 1. Download Microsoft OneDrive for both devices. You can search for OneDrive on your iPhone X as well as Windows, Mac or Android Phone. Now you can launch the program on your devices.
Step 2. Go to "Settings" > "Advanced" and turn on the Upload Most Compatible feature on OneDrive. After that OneDrive will automatically upload HEIC to JPG to Windows 10 or other devices.
Step 3. When you click the "Photos and Video" option to get the HEIC photos, you can find the program automatically convert HEIC photos to JPG format. But the photos will be renamed after conversion.
If you do not want to install extra programs to convert HEIC to JPG format, heictojpg.com might be a nice online solution for you. In the way, you can open HEIC on any device with Internet Connection.
Step 1. Send HEIC to Device. If you need to convert HEIC on PC /Mac /Android /iPhone, you should transfer HEIC files to PC, Mac or Android devices first.
Step 2. And then click the "Upload" button to add the HEIC files to the online HEIC to JPG converter. It only allows you to add 50 HEIC photos at a time. It will convert to JPG files directly.
Step 3. After that you need to download converted photos to computer or other devices one by one. Just check the image quality when you get download the files.
Email should be another solution to transform HEIC to JPG. You can send the HEIC photos as attachment in your email, after that iPhone photo format will be converted to JPG automatically.
Step 1. Tap "Photos" from the home page of your iPhone, which you can choose the desired HEIC photos you want to share to Email.
Step 2. Choose the "Share" option, which you can find the "Mail" option that launches the Email on iPhone. If you have not set up an account, you can choose the Email server first.
Step 3. After that you can enter the email address, theme and other information to send the HEIC photos. Once upload the HEIC to email server, it will convert HEIC to JPG automatically.
By Emai, you are able to share attachments between Android and iPhone, like send videos from Android to iPhone, transfer msuci from iPhone to Android, etc.
If you need to send multiple HEIC images to your friends, you can use Dropbox as the HEIC converter. Make sure you have the latest version of Dropbox, which will automatically change HEIC to JPG during uploading the files.
Step 1. Open Dropbox application on your iPhone, and then you can upload the HEIC photos to the program.
Step 2. Tap the "Gear" icon on the upper right corner to choose "Camera Upload", make sure the feature is "On".
Step 3. Choose "Save HEIC Photos" as and choose "JPG" as the upload format. Now you can upload HEIC to Dropbox as JPG now.
Drop box is very useful to share data, like transfer photos from iPhone to computer, send videos from Android to Android, etc.
Throughout the article, you can find all the related information about the latest iPhone photo format HEIC, and 5 ways to convert HEIC to JPG/PNG for opening on Windows, Mac and Android phone directly. You can convert HEIC online, share HEIC images via Dropbox/Email/OneDrive one by one, or use the easiest way to convert HHEIC with Apeasoft HEIC Converter. Get the easiest one to convert HEIC right now.


Just wanted to write up a quick post (I do all of my blogging on a Kindle Fire because my kids offer me no access to our desktop computers) about how these two products are helping me cope much better with my fibromyalgia pain and frequent headaches.
I started using the cream from Sundance Cosmetics and it is really good for muscle and joint pain. I also sleep like a log when I rub this on before bedtime. It still didn't help my headaches unfortunately.
So I tried Rawsome's performance strength CBD Oil (in fractionated coconut oil) orally and wow, it makes a difference! It seems to work better on an emptier stomach. The taste isn't bad; not like a tincture. I just dropper it into the back of my tongue and drink a sip of water. More effective than NSAIDS, and without the stomach destroying sensation.
No, these products aren't intoxicating, and yes, they are worth every penny.
I don't sell or benefit at all from telling you about these - just excited to find some real help for my pain!
Marisa, I just purchased the same CBD oil. I have severe pain from Fibro also. What dosage are you taking? I took a half dropper earlier and another half not long ago. I am wondering if I need more because I am not noticing a change in the pain level. I need this stuff to work....OUCH!
I tend to do a full dropper and then more a couple hours later. I'm sorry its not helping!! The frustrating thing about chronic pain is that what works one day might not work the next time. Hope you find relief soon!
I am glad to found your blog posts. Your article is very helpful for those who are suffering from chronic pain. CBD oil is really good for muscle and joint pain. You have shared such wonderful post. Thank you!!!


Marine radiocarbon reservoir age simulations for the past 50,000 years.
Radiocarbon (14C) dating calibration for the last glacial period largely relies on cross‐dated marine 14C records. However, marine reservoirs are isotopically depleted with respect to the atmosphere and therefore have to be corrected by the Marine Radiocarbon Ages of surface waters (MRAs), whose temporal variabilities are largely unknown. Here we present simulations of the spatial and temporal variability in MRAs using a three‐dimensional ocean circulation model covering the past 50,000 years. Our simulations are compared to reconstructions of past surface ocean Δ14C. Running the model with different climatic boundary conditions, we find that low‐latitude to midlatitude MRAs have varied between 400 and 1200 14C years, with values of about 780 14C years at the Last Glacial Maximum. Reservoir ages exceeding 2000 14C years are simulated in the polar oceans. Our simulation results can be used as first‐order approximation of the MRA variability in future radiocarbon calibration efforts.


For small Draymen, finding time to attract new customers is hard, but growth is essential to survival. the old adage is true – if you're not growin', you're dyin'.
You need to get your quotes in front of more prospective brokers and freight forwarders. But finding the prospects, getting your foot in the door, and making them remember to contact you for quotes is tough. That's where many small guys struggle.
Participating the in DrayMaster rate management and quoting system is the solution to getting your quotes in front of new prospective customers every day.
DrayMaster is like the airline system you may have used on your last vacation which displays choices of flights and prices within seconds. DrayMaster does the same thing for drayage shipments.
Customers, brokers and forwarders use DrayMaster to get instant quotes from multiple carriers. They aren't going to bother to call or email you and wait for a response when they can get multiple quotes from competitors in seconds right from their computers.
Here's a short video that shows how DrayMaster helps Carrier Companies find new customers.
Brokers and forwarders rely on DrayMaster to find new dray partners If your company isn't listed, then you are missing out on opportunities.
When carriers sign up and put their rates in DrayMaster, they are instantly in the running with other carriers for real jobs from new customers.
Instead of laboring to produce a few quotes per day, DrayMaster automatically generates dozens of quotes from your company on-demand. The more quotes you have out, the more you will win. Just makes sense.
DrayMaster makes small truck lines look just as professional as the big guys with a quote template that provides a polished, consistent look including your company logo. it rates the quote request accurately including all known charges, shows the route that the truck is going to take, lists out all other possible accessorials and any disclaimers that you want.
In DrayMaster, brokers can't tell whether you have 4 trucks or 400. You are on an even playing field and given a chance to win!
Carriers that are not participating with DrayMaster are out of the race and left wondering how other small guys grow. DrayMaster is the secret to fast growth.
See how we can grow your business. Schedule a FREE 30-minute demo or visit us at www.DrayMaster.com.


text:
San Francisco Real Estate News
CRE Turns Bearish On Office Sector As Remote Work Gains
San Francisco View count:
July 29, 2020 Dean Boerner, Bisnow San Francisco Bay Area
California office developers and financiers have worsening outlooks on the state's office sector after a coronavirus-induced recession and concerns about remote work, Allen Matkins and UCLA Anderson Forecast said in a new report.
Courtesy of Droneshot
In their latest California Commercial Real Estate survey, the law firm and forecasting group recorded worsening sentiments across property types, calling remote work's effect on the office sector in particular "an open question."
The biannual survey asks California developers and financiers in the office, retail, industrial and multifamily sectors about how well they predict their respective property types will fare in six of the state's biggest markets three years into the future.
The duo's report shows sentiments for office rental and vacancy rates in three years' time having been cut in almost half for markets like the East Bay Area, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Orange County compared to December.
Even so, about half of Bay Area and Southern California panelists said their plans for the coming 12 months were unaffected by the pandemic. One-third will decrease development by more than 15%, while one-third plan on engaging in some new development, citing the belief that land, building materials and labor costs would decrease, the report shows.
Conducted in June, the survey arrives as remote work continues for much of the country, and many of the country's thousands of office buildings remain largely empty.
California-based corporate giants like Facebook and Google have embraced remote work. The former said in May that it could have up to half of its workforce working remotely in the next five to 10 years; the latter said just this week it would keep its employees out of offices until at least July 2021.
In an analysis of the latest Allen Matkins and UCLA Anderson Forecast survey results, Newmark Knight Frank co-Head of U.S. Capital Markets Kevin Shannon said there is a clear tension between the potential for office de-densification adding to office demand and remote work taking away from it.
"Very early feedback from our leasing teams show a net neutral effect although it's way too early to say this is the trend," Shannon wrote.
Likewise, John M. Tipton, a partner in Allen Matkins' real estate division, said sentiments could change drastically with more certainty.
"We've got to get another data point," Tipton said of the need for another survey in six months to determine what trends last. "Stuff is still going to get built, but the spec buildings — no, they're not."
Compared to experts in the office sector, industrial and multifamily developers and financiers revealed relatively modest drops in sentiment. Most Southern California industrial panelists, for instance, don't expect excess supply in 2023 despite their worsened outlooks for rent and vacancies for the sector.
Similarly, almost three-fourths of SoCal panelists and two-thirds of Bay Area panelists stated that the pandemic has either not changed their plans for multifamily development or that it has increased it.
For retail, "the current view is that retail properties will be generating significantly lower, if any, returns in 2023 compared to the middle of 2020," according to the report. Two-thirds of retail panelists will not develop any new properties in the next 12 months, and about the same percentage "expect plummeting property values," according to the report.
"Across these spaces, with the exception of retail, there is certainly some optimism about opportunities that may exist," UCLA Anderson Forecast Director and Senior Economist Jerry Nickelsburg said.
Contact Dean Boerner at dean.boerner@bisnow.com.
Contact Dean Boerner at dean.boerner@bisnow.com
Related Topics: Allen Matkins, Jerry Nickelsburg, Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, UCLA Anderson, Kevin Shannon, John M. Tipton
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London U.K. A surprising number of employees work from one pay check to the next. They rely on this steady stream of reliable income in order to make ends meet. The problem, however, is that a lot of British workers are finding that their personal finances are suffering lately because their employers are paying late.
22% of British workers are paid late, causing personal finances to suffer.
When 2,000 employees in the UK were surveyed by Cascade HR, it was found that over a fifth, or, more specifically, 22 per cent, of all British workers claimed that their employers did not pay them on time. Even though they had put in the work hours and had earned their wages, these people had to go without their pay checks and suffer financial losses.
What's worse, however, is that, for many of these British workers, the late payments were not a one-time thing. Instead, many of them stated that they were paid late more than once. Of all of the people who stated that they were paid late for the work that they had put in, almost half, or 49 per cent, stated that it occurred multiple times.
When employees are paid late, they suffer great losses with regards to their personal finances, and it puts a lot of strain on them to be able to live comfortably and keep their families happy.
According to the survey, 61 per cent of people who got paid late were forced to borrow the money that they needed from a variety of sources. This translates to just under a whopping two-thirds of workers.
On top of that, 33 per cent of UK workers were unable to pay their bills or their direct debits on time. And over a quarter, or 27 per cent, of people who received their wages late had to deal with late payment charges from banks, while 21 per cent weren't able to cover even the basic costs of living, such as travel expenses and food.
It's no surprise that getting paid late has such a terrible impact upon workers' families, home life, and personal finances. Employers who have been unable to pay their staff on time, however, can take steps to make sure that it won't happen again.
Many times, employers don't pay their employees on time because they simply can't afford to do so. By decreasing other costs throughout an organisation, however, business owners can focus on paying their workers first.
A great first step involves investing in new technology that can make staff members more efficient. Cloud based technology, such as XCD HR, is one way to allow employees to access the information they need from wherever they are, thereby increasing their productivity and getting things done even when they aren't in the office.
By boosting productivity and efficiency, employers can start lowering their expenses so that they have more money left over to pay their employees on time every time. Hopefully the next survey that's conducted on the same topic will show that progress has been made.