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Senator Bernie Sanders finds himself in a new role: front-runner
DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) - Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is quieting critics who questioned whether he could recapture the energy of his upstart 2016 campaign, surpassing his rivals in early fundraising and establishing himself as an indisputable front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Less than two months into his second White House bid, no other declared candidate in the crowded Democratic field currently has amassed so many advantages: a $28 million war chest, a loyal and enthusiastic voter base and a set of clearly defined policy objectives.
That puts Sanders on markedly different footing than during his first White House run, creating new challenges for a candidate whose supporters relish his role as an underdog and an outsider. He now carries the weight of high expectations and will face heightened scrutiny over everything from the cost and feasibility of his government-funded policy proposals to his tax returns, which he has not yet released. He initially blamed "mechanical issues" for the delay, and his campaign now says he wants to wait until after the April 15 tax filing deadline to fulfill his promise to release a decade worth of returns.
Sanders has largely embraced his new front-runner status. More than any other candidate, he draws explicit comparisons with President Donald Trump in his campaign remarks, previewing his approach to a general election faceoff with the incumbent Republican. Behind the scenes, Sanders is also building out a larger, more diverse campaign operation, responding to criticism that his 2016 organization skewed too heavily white and male. Campaign officials say the 2020 campaign staff - roughly 100 people and growing - is majority female and 40 percent people of color.
RELATED: Bernie Sanders calls Trump a racist before Apollo event
Still, Sanders' message and style hasn't changed from 2016, when he stunned many Democrats by mounting a formidable challenge to Hillary Clinton and besting her in more than 20 primary contests.
After briefly acquiescing to his advisers' suggestions that he reveal more about his upbringing and personal history, Sanders has returned to his comfort zone: delivering lengthy campaign speeches chockablock with the same policy prescriptions he campaigned on during the 2016 campaign. In Davenport, Iowa, on Friday night, Sanders spent 63 minutes outlining his views on health care, criminal justice reform and economic inequality.
"With your help, we are going to complete what we started here," Sanders told the 1,200-person crowd, referring to his virtual tie with Clinton in the 2016 Iowa caucuses.
RELATED: Bernie Sanders says he's raised $18.2 million in 41 days
Sanders' approach underscores his belief that his success in 2016 was not a fluke or simply a function of being the next best alternative to Clinton. His advisers argue the populist economic message Sanders has espoused for years, often in obscurity, has now been embraced not only by a slew of his Democratic rivals, but also Trump.
"Donald Trump campaigned on economic terms as faux Bernie Sanders. It was taking his language and selling it to the American people," said Faiz Shakir, Sanders' campaign manager. "And now how do you defeat faux Bernie Sanders? You defeat him with real Bernie Sanders."
Sanders owes some of his fast start to the fact that he never really stopped running for president after the 2016 campaign. Our Revolution, the political group Sanders launched after the campaign, has collected information on voters and held events in early voting states since the last election. Sanders was also active in the 2018 midterms, throwing his support behind progressive Democratic candidates across the country, though many were defeated.
RELATED: Poll: Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders are top Democratic preference
"He spent 2018 lifting up progressives all over the country," said Rebecca Katz, a progressive Democratic consultant. "Even though many of them did not win, it was appreciated, it was movement building and it was a different calculation than most politicians make."
Despite his strong launch, Sanders' current standing atop the Democratic field is not entirely enviable. Presidential primaries are long and turbulent, and past elections underscore how many early front-runners have been tossed aside before the first votes are cast. Former Vice President Joe Biden has signaled his expected presidential campaign would serve as a centrist check on Sanders' brand of progressive politics.
And though Sanders' $18 million first-quarter fundraising haul far outpaced the rest of the Democratic field, some rival campaigns breathed a sigh of relief, having anticipated the Vermont senator would clear $20 million or more.
RELATED: Sanders returns to roots, says he can defeat Trump
"He did very well. He could have done better," said Mo Elleithee, who advised Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign and now runs the Georgetown University Institute of Politics and Public Service.
Sanders also still has to prove that he can overcome some of the same vulnerabilities that contributed to his defeat in 2016.
Chief among them will be bolstering his standing with black voters, one of the most important constituencies in Democratic politics. Black voters overwhelmingly sided with Clinton in 2016, halting Sanders' momentum when the contest moved into more diverse states. He lost the South Carolina primary by a staggering 48 points.
Some of Sanders' top advisers dismiss the notion that he'll face similar problems in 2020, noting that he has spent time building relationships with black leaders in South Carolina and other Southern states. He's also sharpened his campaign message on criminal justice issues and racial inequality.
"I understand that a lot of people took a lot of things out of the South Carolina results," Shakir said. "We are going to continue to court and address these issues directly, but we are operating with a great deal of confidence that this is going to be a particular demographic that supports Bernie Sanders at the end of the day."
Perhaps Sanders' biggest challenge is overcoming skepticism among voters who may be partial to his focus on economic inequality but fear that nominating a 77-year-old self-described democratic socialist would put Democrats in a weak position against Trump in the general election.
"That's a thing that scares me about him," said Gwen Hobson, a 70-year-old Democratic voter, who attended Sanders' rally on Friday in Davenport.
Yet some of Sanders' longtime supporters say their enthusiasm for him is unshakable. In Davenport on Friday, several voters donned faded t-shirts from Sanders' 2016 campaign. Melita Tunnicliff, 57, wore a button she bought during that campaign with Sanders' photo and the phrase "Not For Sale."
Asked if she was open to other Democratic candidates this time around, Tunnicliff shook her head no.
"I've been waiting for Bernie," she said.
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Wealth Inequality in the United States
The United States exhibits wider disparities of wealth between rich and poor than any other major developed nation.
Inequality & the Care Economy
We equate wealth with "net worth," the sum total of your assets minus liabilities. Assets can include everything from an owned personal residence and cash in savings accounts to investments in stocks and bonds, real estate, and retirement accounts. Liabilities cover what a household owes: a car loan, credit card balance, student loan, mortgage, or any other bill yet to be paid. In the United States, wealth inequality runs even more pronounced than income inequality.
The Forbes 400 Richest Americans
Household Wealth
The Racial Wealth Divide
The most visible indicator of wealth inequality in America today may be the Forbes magazine list of the nation's 400 richest. In 2018, the three men at the top of that list — Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, and investor Warren Buffett — held combined fortunes worth more than the total wealth of the poorest half of Americans. You can find more background on these numbers in our report, Billionaire Bonanza 2020.
In 1982, the "poorest" American listed on the first annual Forbes magazine list of America's richest 400 had a net worth of $210 million in today's dollars. The average member of that first list had a net worth of $600 million. In 2019, rich Americans needed net worth of $2.1 billion to enter the Forbes 400, and the average member held a net $7.4 billion, over 12 times the 1982 average after adjusting for inflation.
Inequality is skyrocketing even within the Forbes 400 list of America's richest. As of 2019, the net worth of the richest member of this group was 21 times larger than the net worth of the richest member in 1982 (in today's dollars). Since 1982, just seven men have held this spot: shipping magnate Daniel Ludwig (1982), oil executive Gordon Getty (1983-1984), Walmart founder Sam Walton (1985-1988), media company owner John Kluge (1989-1991), Microsoft founder Bill Gates (1992-2017, except 1993), investor Warren Buffett (1993), and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (2018-2019).
Over the past three decades, America's most affluent families have added to their net worth, while those on the bottom have dipped into "negative wealth," meaning the value of their debts exceeds the value of their assets, according to National Bureau of Economic Research data.
Over the past century, the National Bureau of Economic Research has found that the share of America's wealth held by the nation's wealthiest has changed markedly. That share peaked in the late 1920s, right before the Great Depression, then fell by more than half over the next three decades. But the equalizing trends of the mid 20th century have now been almost completely undone. At the top of the American economic summit, the richest of the nation's rich now hold as large a wealth share as they did in the 1920s.
The rich don't just have more wealth than everyone else. The bulk of their wealth comes from different — and more lucrative — asset sources, as the Federal Reserve's Distributional Financial Accounts data shows. America's top 1 percent, for instance, holds more than half the national wealth invested in stocks and mutual funds. Most of the wealth of Americans in the bottom 90 percent comes from their homes — the asset category that took the biggest hit during the Great Recession. These Americans also hold more than three-quarters of America's debt.
The median Black family, with just over $3,500, owns just 2 percent of the wealth of the nearly $147,000 the median White family owns, according to our "Racial Wealth Divide" report. The median Latino family, with just over $6,500, owns just 4 percent of the wealth of the median White family. Put differently, the median White family has 41 times more wealth than the median Black family and 22 times more wealth than the median Latino family.
The Institute for Policy Studies "Racial Wealth Divide" report also shows that families that have zero or even "negative" wealth (meaning the value of their debts exceeds the value of their assets) live on the edge, just one minor economic setback away from tragedy. Black and Latino families are much more likely to be in this precarious situation. The proportion of Black families with zero or negative wealth rose by 8.5 percent to 37 percent between 1983 and 2016. The proportion of Latino families with zero or negative net worth declined by 19 percent over the past 30 years but is still more than twice as high as the rate for Whites.
As with total wealth, our report shows homeownership is heavily skewed towards White families. In 2016, 72 percent of White families owned their home, compared to just 44 percent of Black families. Between 1983 and 2016, Latino homeownership increased by a dramatic nearly 40 percent, but it remains far below the rate for Whites, at just 45 percent.
Read our Ten Solutions to Bridge the Racial Wealth Divide

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


A couple of years ago, well-known photographer Jay P. Morgan asked me to shoot some behind-the-scenes video footage for his instructional photography series called The Slanted Lens. I had mostly forgotten about these projects until I stumbled upon one of them today and then proceeded to dig up a few of the other ones I shot for him. They're a great series on lighting and you should check them out for the instruction content as the stuff I shot is mostly utilitarian… with a dash of style ;) Here they are. And yes, that is me hanging in a suspension rig pretending to be a soccer player.


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Gaylord Perry to Tom Brady: 'Be a little smarter about it'
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Gaylord Perry, two-time Cy Young winner, dies at 84
GAFFNEY, S.C. (AP) — Baseball Hall of Famer and two-time Cy Young Award winner Gaylord Perry, a master of the spitball and telling stories about the pitch, died Thursday. He was 84. Perry died ...
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Topic: Gaylord Perry
Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry, who won two Cy Young Awards and was famous for his spitball, died Thursday in Gaffney, S.C., Cherokee County Coroner Dennis Fowler said. He was 84.
UPI10y
Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry, spitball master, dies at 84 Baseball Hall of Famer and two-time Cy Young winner Gaylord Perry, a master of the spitball, died Thursday. He was 84. Remembering ...
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Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry, spitball master, dies at 84 Baseball Hall of Famer and two-time Cy Young winner Gaylord Perry, a master of the spitball, died Thursday. He was 84. Hot stove ...
abc7NY2y
This Day in Braves History: Atlanta signs Gaylord Perry
1981 - The Atlanta Braves sign future Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry to a free agent contract. The 42-year-old Perry will be joining his sixth major league team, after splitting the 1980 ...
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Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry, spitball master, dies at 84 Hot stove survey: Where will deGrom and Judge sign? Who will get tr... Astros give out $516,347 shares as part of record postseason ...
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A disabled man is calling for double yellow lines to be painted outside a school after he says he was verbally abused by two mothers picking their children up.
Dave Laud, 58, of east Hull, was dropping a friend's daughter off at Oldfleet Primary school earlier this week when he went down "heavily congested" nearby Bradford Avenue.
But he says he got blocked in by the volume of cars, and was then confronted by two other drivers.
He said: "I only live around the corner so I was only nipping but a car pulled up behind me and the woman in front kept shouting at me to reverse back but I couldn't, I was completely blocked in.
"There was another woman who was in front of her and she came and started giving me abuse. She said to me, 'get out the car I'll knock your head off' but I couldn't even get out the car because I can't walk.
Dave, who says he cannot walk without crutches, is waiting on a hip replacement.
He said: "I struggle to walk far with my crutches and was shocked at how aggressive the woman was. Something needs to be done.
"This road isn't a dead end but people just park all over the place and on both sides of the road so you can't even get through or you get stuck there like I did.
Dave, who says he will be asking the council to implement his idea, says painting double yellow lines is the way forward so people think about where they park.
He said: "It's ridiculous and something needs to be done. I don't go there every day, it was just the once. They need double yellow lines there for the kids, there's no need to get aggressive over the traffic.


1st of May is the international Workers' Day.
In Denmark it is a tradition to meet up in i Fælledparken to hear speeches from politicians, watch concerts etc.
HK is the second largest trade union in Denmark and they had a poster competition for my class, which I won. So my poster was used at their tent with the program for their morning.
Above you see my original piece and below the one with a few adjustments for their liking.
I've chosen to tell the story about the union's core values, but the focal point being 1st of May.
You see a woman helping a man up, it represents one of the messages. It symbolises that HK will care for you and help you. They will lift you when you are in trouble.
To show it is the 1st of may I've chosen the classic icon of the red flag. The flag surrounds the earth and the people, it shows that there is a strong bond in HK, but also between everyone at this day. The globe shows the international aspect of the day.
The man who holds the flag is standing strong and immovable, he is the front figure for HK, who must be persistent for the sake of their members.


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U.S. fascists debate the conflict in Ukraine
The blog Three Way Fight takes a look at how American fascists are responding to the situation in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian fascists who helped seize power in Kiev three weeks ago have gotten a strikingly mixed response from U.S. far rightists. Like others across the political spectrum, U.S. fascists are struggling to understand and respond to the complex situation in Ukraine, and their discussions reveal some important fault lines and contradictions. Anti-fascists -- take note.
As discussed in my previous post, the two main Ukrainian fascist groups are Svoboda party, whose electoral support surged in 2012 from less than 1 percent to 10.45%, and Right Sector, a paramilitary coalition of far-right groups that regards Svoboda as too moderate. Svoboda and Right Sector are descendants of the Ukrainian fascist groups that collaborated with the Nazis and murdered tens of thousands of Jews and Poles. Both Svoboda and Right Sector played an important role in the western-backed "Euromaidan" movement that toppled Ukraine's pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych in a political revolution with real popular support, and they've been rewarded with key posts in the new government.
So you might expect that American fascists would be cheering on their comrades in Kiev. After all, when the Greek neo-nazi party Golden Dawn won 7 percent of the parliamentary vote in 2012 and ramped up its violent attacks on immigrants, LGBT people, and political opponents, U.S. far rightists were enthusiastic. But for the most part, their responses to the Ukrainian upheaval have ranged from ambivalent to hostile, for several reasons. Some American far rightists are unhappy about the prospect of another war between Europeans. Some of them consider the Ukrainian fascists politically suspect because of their involvement in a movement backed by the U.S. and European Union governments. And some of them support the Russian government and its vision of a greater Eurasian Union including at least part of the Ukraine.
The Ukraine conflict is in some ways a throwback to the Cold War, when many fascists -- including the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists -- joined forces with the CIA against the Soviet Union, despite their misgivings about the U.S. and western Europe's liberal political systems. But even in the 1950s, there were some far rightists -- such as Francis Parker Yockey -- who advocated an alliance with Russian communism against the "decadent" West. This position was known as national bolshevism.
Since the 1980s, and especially since the collapse of the Soviet bloc in 1989-1991, the old Cold War alliances have unraveled. To most western fascists, the main enemy is not Russia (or China) but rather the "Zionist Occupation Government" (ZOG) in Washington or western-based "globalist elites" bent on destroying European civilization. Today the main geopolitical debate among western fascists seems to be whether to stake out a "third position" between West and East or to ally themselves with the new post-communist Russian state.
Some fascists outside Ukraine have turned out in support of Svoboda or Right Sector. The Daily Beast reported on March 2 about a Swedish fascist group's initiative to send people and supplies to "support the Ukrainian revolution." But the article's headline, "Neo-Nazis Pour into Kiev," was absurdly alarmist. The lead organizer for Swedish Ukrainian Volunteers admitted, "If we get 50, all in all, I will be very proud."
On Stormfront, the largest neo-nazi bulletin board in the U.S., one contributor announced that he was heading to Ukraine to volunteer his services to Right Sector, and urged other westerners, especially those with military experience, to "come to the aid of fellow nationalists in Ukraine and help found the first nationalist state in Europe, since 1945." But on the discussion thread that followed, nobody else offered to join him, and only some of the comments were supportive. Criticisms included, "If you help Ukrainian Nationalists invade Russian parts of Ukraine, you will put yourself on the wrong side of history" and "This so called 'Ukrainian revolution' is nothing more than the U.S. and the U.K. stirring up trouble AGAIN, in another country."
Other Stormfront threads took a more neutral approach. A second contributor lamented, "Why do White people kill more White people??! Can't they see that ZOG is manipulating them like sheep going to the slaughterhouse?!" while another urged far rightists to brainstorm ways to prevent war and "loss of white life" in Ukraine, such as the idea that Russia could buy Crimea from Ukraine. "This would prevent Ukraine from going to the International (Jewish) Usury Fund and allow also the ejection of some large section of Tartars [sic] (non-white muslims [sic]) from Ukraine."
On the Traditionalist Youth Network website, Matt Parrott of Hoosier Nation called the Ukrainian conflict "ideologically ambiguous" and said he wouldn't pick a side until "one faction or another may unambiguously align with the global identitarian vision." On The Occidental Observer site, Kevin MacDonald, a prominent white nationalist intellectual, wrote that "Ukraine is a textbook case of the costs of multiculturalism, a story of competing nationalisms," but warned Ukraine against allying with the European Union, since EU anti-nationalism leads to "the obliteration of all traditional European national cultures." "A better solution," he suggested," would be to break up states like Ukraine with large ethnic divisions into ethnically homogeneous societies..."
Many American fascists are suspicious of Ukrainian fascists' right-wing credentials. Aryanism.net declared "Authentic National Socialists do not collaborate with a regime as corrupt as that of the USA, that supports Israel and is controlled by Jews, and do not allow themselves to be used as geopolitical pawns." On the other hand, the same author wrote that Right Sector "seems to represent authentic National Socialism (I really hope I am right about this)," and praised Right Sector's commitment to vigilante justice. But Michael McGregor of Radix (successor to AlternativeRight.com) argued that even Right Sector isn't fascist enough, claiming that the group is "dedicated to a type of civic nationalism where the interests of preserving a state...is more important than that of preserving their race or even that of their own ethnic group."
Writing about the Euromaidan protests before Yanukovych had fled Kiev, Vanguard News Network (VNN) wrote that "the Jews and the internationalists (this of course includes America) are angry because the Ukraine won't 'play ball' with the globalist agenda of free trade, global government, non-white immigration, massive debt via [International Monetary Fund] loans, hate-crime laws, and other horrible things." In a follow-up article, VNN added that "Western governments want to bring the Ukraine under Western influence so they can use it as a possible 'weapon' or at least as a 'watchdog' against Russia [which] too often goes against NWO [New World Order] or Jewish interests, e.g., selling sophisticated missiles to Arab countries like Syria."
Unlike the openly pro-nazi VNN, the Lyndon LaRouche network presents itself as progressive and anti-fascist, and when the Yanukovych government fell, LaRouche's Executive Intelligence Review proclaimed "U.S.A. and EU, With Ukrainian Terrorists, Establish Nazi Regime." This is essentially the Russian government line, although the LaRouchites combine it with their own elaborate conspiracy theories, notably that both the EU and the U.S. government are really controlled by the British empire. From this perspective, Ukraine's upheaval was simply a putsch carried out by western government operatives, in which popular forces exercised no agency of their own. The LaRouchites give no credence to the Yanukovych government's corruption and repressive brutality as factors that outraged many Ukrainians and led them to revolt.
A related analysis was offered by U.S. supporters of Aleksandr Dugin, such as Global Revolutionary Alliance. Dugin is the Russian far right's leading intellectual, former theoretician of the National Bolshevik Party, and one of the main figures in the European New Right, which offers a sanitized fascism as a project to defend "difference" and "ethnopluralism." He has close ties with the Russian state and is the founder of the modern Eurasianist movement, which envisions Russia as the center of a new authoritarian "empire." Dugin addressed the Ukraine crisis in a recent interview on the Counter-Currents Publishing website, which blends white nationalism, antisemitism, and European New Right ideology. He argued that members of the anti-Yanukovych movement were united not by a desire for political change or closer ties to the EU, but simply by "their pure hatred of Russia." He also found a way to criticize the Euromaidan movement both for including neo-nazis and for including progressive groups:
"The left wing liberal groups are not less extremist than the neo-Nazi groups.... We find especially in Eastern Europe and Russia very often that the Homosexual-Lobby and the ultranationalist and neo-Nazi groups are allies. Also the Homosexual lobby has very extremist ideas about how to deform, re-educate and influence the society.... The gay and lesbian lobby is not less dangerous for any society than neo-Nazis."
Dugin also argued that the hope any Ukrainian fascists might have of pursuing a course independent of major global powers is an illusion:
"There is no 'third position,' no possibility of that.... The same ugly truth hits the Ukrainian 'nationalist' and the Arab salafi fighter: They are Western proxies. It is hard to accept for them because nobody likes the idea to be the useful idiot of Washington....
"There is land power and sea power in geopolitics. Land power is represented today by Russia, sea power by Washington. During World War II Germany tried to impose a third position.... The end was the complete destruction of Germany. So when even the strong and powerful Germany of that time wasn't strong enough to impose the third position how [can] the much smaller and weaker groups want to do this today? It is impossible, it is a ridiculous illusion."
However, Counter-Currents also published a sharply different argument by Greg Johnson, who referred to Dugin as the Russian regime's "apostle and apologist...whose credibility with ethnonationalists should be reduced to zero by now." Johnson offered the most sophisticated far right analysis of the Ukraine crisis that I have seen so far. He argued that "The strife in the Ukraine is not, at root, caused by Russian or 'Western' intervention, for these would find no purchase if Ukraine were not already an ethnically divided nation," and that "even in the absence of outside influence, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych had to go [because he] is a crook who plundered his country and was essentially selling its geopolitical alignment to the highest bidder in order to retain his grip on power."
Johnson noted that the far right groups Svoboda and Right Sector had played a remarkably prominent role in the Ukrainian revolution, but as part of a coalition "which also included centrists, Leftists, feminists, gay rights advocates, and ethnic minority agitators, including Jews, Tatars, and Armenians." He argued (echoing Michael McGregor's point quoted above) that Right Sector "falls far short of National Socialism," and that "of all European nationalist parties, Svoboda is probably the most radical and consistent, yet it is also one of the most successful.... Unfortunately, despite an admirable political platform, Svoboda is at present committed to maintaining the artificial Ukrainian state." And unlike Dugin (or LaRouche), Johnson refused to embrace the Russian government:
"Like many White Nationalists, I admire Vladimir Putin because he is an important geopolitical counter-weight to the United States and Israel..., he has sought to address Russia's demographic crisis, and he looks and acts like a real-life James Bond. But Putin is not an ethnonationalist. Indeed, he imprisons Russian nationalists and is committed to maintaining Russia's current borders, which include millions of restive Muslims in the Caucasus."
Johnson conceded that if "Putin were to take back the Crimea, virtually ridding Ukraine of its Russian and Tatar minorities and leaving Ukraine smaller but more racially and culturally homogeneous, it might be a case of doing the right thing for the wrong reason." And he hoped that Svoboda and other ultranationalists would eventually bring about "national autonomy for all peoples within the current Ukrainian borders."
These debates highlight the complexity of the Ukrainian upheaval. A popular uprising has replaced a corrupt, repressive government (representing a pro-Russian capitalist faction) with a coalition of "austerity"-promoting neoliberals and fascists (representing a pro-EU capitalist faction), which now faces military intervention in the Crimea by Vladimir Putin's Russian government. None of these regimes is on the side of Ukraine's ordinary people. As a coalition of internationalists from Ukraine, Russia, and elsewhere has declared, this is a "power struggle between oligarchic clans [that] threatens to escalate into an international armed conflict."
In dealing with this conflict, fascists are all over the map -- some lined up with (or in) the new Ukrainian government, some backing Russia, and some (many in the U.S.) conflicted or wavering in between. This means that calls to support the Russian government in the name of "anti-fascism" are just as misinformed or dishonest as calls to support Ukraine's "democratic revolution."
Juan Conatz
Three Way Fight
Euromaidan
It should be noted that Right Sector also holds officially a 'neither moscow nor washington' position.
"The Right Sector has not supported and does not support Ukraine's accession to the EU. We believe that Ukraine should be a subject, rather than an object of geopolitics. We call for the country's neutral status. Like miners from the Donbas, we are opposed to the deployment of NATO bases in Ukraine, i.e. we are against Ukraine's membership of NATO. We will talk to the people who support [Ukraine's membership of] the European Union and those who back a union with Russia. I emphasize that we propose the option of Ukraine's non-aligned status," [Right Sector movement leader Dmytro Yarosh] said on the Events program on the Ukraina television channel.
When asked what kind of a move the Right Sector expects in Donetsk, Yarosh said: "Donetsk region is our Ukrainian land, so we expect normal communication with people. And we will go there, in fact, to answer those questions facing citizens."
Yarosh also noted that the Right Sector would not go to Donetsk with weapons.
"We have no problems in our dialogue with miners. I'm from Dnipropetrovsk region. Moreover, for example, in Vuhledar, not far from Donetsk, there is a trade union of miners that are Bandera followers, and it has been operating there for many years. As far as I can see, not everything is unambiguous in Donetsk region. Those miners in 1989 and 1990 played an important role in the collapse of the Soviet Union and Ukraine's becoming an independent state," he said.
That's all really interesting, if quite scary, thanks for posting it.
Mutu: rethinking our radical media
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Office worker's survival guide
The modern office is fraught with dangers. From the risk of getting fired, to stress, repetitive strain injury (RSI), mindnumbing boredom and more. This helpful guide from libcom.org will help...
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City Hall & Fire Headquarters, Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City's City Hall and Fire Headquarters, also frequently known as Old City Hall and the Main Fire Station, are recognized for their local historical significance. The building was designed by local architects William Rose and David Peterson of the architectural firm Rose & Peterson in a classical Renaissance Revival style. Due to financial constraints, the building was completed in two phases. The south and west portions of the City Hall was completed in 1911. The north annex and the Fire Headquarters portion were completed in 1929.
City Hall & Fire Headquarters
Old City Hall Main Entrance
Possibly the original intended design of the City Hall, which had to be pared down for financial reasons
William Warren Rose, architect with Rose & Peterson
Early photograph of City Hall, taken in the 1920s
A postcard of City Hall in the 1920s
View of the arcaded windows on the south side
1985 View of the City Hall & Fire Headquarters
Fire Headquarters with firefighters and trucks
The tower, originally used for training exercises and for drying hoses
Close-up view of the carved 1920s fire truck over the main entrance
The north side of the Fire Headquarters
Architects William Warren Rose (1864-1931) and David Burton Peterson (1875–1937) formed a partnership in Kansas City, Kansas in 1909. Rose had been the Board of Education architect since 1889, and he also briefly served as Kansas City Mayor from 1905 to 1906. Rose & Peterson would design over sixty projects around the city in the 16 years that they were partners. The pair were particularly prolific in school designs, but also worked on the Soldier and Sailors Monument and the Argentine Carnegie Library.
In 1910, a $200,000 public bond was issued for the construction of a City Hall. However, this would not be enough to cover Rose & Peterson's original elaborate design. Some substitutions in materials were made to compensate. The first stage of the City Hall's construction, the southern section and 6th Street entrance, was completed in 1911. City officials had difficulty raising the funds necessary to finish the project. It wasn't until 1926 that another bond was passed allowing for $70,000 to complete the City Hall and $280,000 to construct the adjacent Fire Department Headquarters.
The five-floor City Hall is constructed in the Renaissance Revival style. On the west front entrance, the lower two stories have a limestone façade and the upper three stories are made of brick. The basement, which once contained the jail, has windows are at street level, although most of that floor extends below street level. On the south façade, the fourth story windows have an arched arcade above, which was the original plan for the entire building.
The Fire Headquarters, completed in 1930, has three floors, again with basement windows at street level and made of limestone. The main entrance on 6th Street has a carved 1920s fire tank with hoses and fire plugs above the door. The north side has six garage doors and large bronze letters spelling out "FIRE HEADQUARTERS." A five-story tower to the east was once used for training purposes and for drying hoses. [2] The building as City Hall until 1973, when a new municipal building was constructed. It was then used as storage. The Fire Headquarters has remained in use. The buildings were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
1. Millstein, Cydney. Westheight Manor Historic Inventory – Phase 3 Survey. Kansas City, Kansas: The City of Kansas City, Kansas, 1990. Accessed October 20, 2019. https://www.historicwestheight.org/history-app-5.html.
2. Hagedorn, Martha Gray. "Register of Historic Kansas Places – Registration Form: Kansas City Kansas City Hall and Fire Headquarters." Kansas State Historical Society Website. Form prepared January 7, 1986. Accessed October 20, 2019. https://www.kshs.org/resource/national_register/nominationsNRDB/Wyandotte_CityHallandFireHeadquartersNR.pdf.
Image Sources(Click to expand)
https://www.kshs.org/natreg/natreg_listings/search/page:1/county:WY/records:all
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kansas_City,_Kansas_City_Hall_and_Fire_Headquarters#/media/File:Kansas_City_Hall.JPG
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12525003/william-warren-rose
Larry Hancks: https://www.kshs.org/natreg/natreg_listings/search/page:1/county:WY/records:all
Martha Hagedorn: https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NRHP/86000857_photos
KCK Fire Department: https://www.facebook.com/pg/KCKSFD/photos/?ref=page_internal
Kansas Historical Society: National and State Registers of Historic Places
About Architects Rose & Peterson
Official Website of the KCK Fire Department, with a virtual tour of the building
805 N. Sixth St
Created by Jamie Nickel on October 20th 2019, 9:46:08 pm.
Last updated by Clio Admin on October 21st 2019, 2:29:05 am.
Tours that feature this entry
Kansas City Kansas Walking Tour
This walking tour starts at the Strawberry Hill Museum and includes a dozen Kansas City landmarks including the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall, Judge Cordell Meeks Plaza, the Huron Indian Cemetery, Granada Cemetery, and Sumner High School.


I don't know if it's just me or the area I am in, but it sure seems like the Geo Pro is a super-popular travel trailer. I am seeing more and more of them every day — it seems like it is the travel trailer that everybody is buying right now.
Did Forest River nail it on this RV? Why are they so popular?
I'm guessing the name itself is appealing to Millennials.
But do you agree that they seem to be appearing everywhere lately?
We bought one a year ago. In our case it was the trailer that slept 4 (16BH), fit on a slab next to the driveway and had a full dry bathroom.
In our first year of travels we saw one other model at an RV park. More sightings each season I'm sure.
I am not a millennial nor does the name attract me.
I bought an E-Pro due to all the features within the size and weight, and price.
On the other hand, Avengers like we have are rare... have only seen 2 "in the wild" so far.
When we were shopping last September, yes the Geo was the hottest thing since sliced bread, they could not keep them in stock, nor would the move much on price. So we did the bait and switch to a 2109S.
I've been seeing more and more Grand Designs in my area in the past couple of years.
1) It was not much heavier than the pop up, and no risk of roof raising failure or leaks. The more moving parts, the more likely something will fail. Also did not get slides for this reason. No set up/breakdown time other than the stabilizers.
5)We had a good salesman. But he doesn't return calls now that the sale is complete.
6)I thought I would be able to tow mine with a mid sized SUV we were about to buy. Glad I got on this forum before I made that foolish mistake.


In contrast to first generation wireless networks of internal access points, G-Force employs a superior architecture that is better tuned to campus, business and warehouse applications. Rather than building out armies of internal access points 5G Wireless uses an 'outside/in' approach. You get indoor and outdoor coverage without the complications and unreliability that can be associated with mesh networks.
Whatever your application, G-Force from 5G Wireless is a powerful and convenient broadband solution that can be integrated easily into your existing infrastructure.


A cruise ship that went missing back in January was spotted drifting toward the coast of Ireland late last week. The M/V Lyubov Orlova was on its way to the scrapyard when it broke away from a Canadian tug in international waters last month and hadn't been seen since. It has been floating aimlessly across the Northern Atlantic and is now reportedly within 1200 nautical miles of the Irish coast.
The Russian-built cruise liner was seized in St. John's, Newfoundland, back in 2010 because its owners were in debt to the tune of $250,000 and hadn't paid the crew in over five months. In February of last year, the ship was bought by Neptune International Shipping and was scheduled to be scrapped in the Dominican Republic. That's where it was headed when the ship broke free from the tug charged with delivering it to its final destination. When the crew of the tug failed to recapture it due to high winds and extremely choppy seas the Orlova was left to drift across the open ocean. Canadian authorities refused to mount a salvage operation because the vessel was adrift in international waters.
While in operation, the Orlova was designed to serve as an expedition ship, carrying passengers to both the Arctic and Antarctic. The past few years haven't been kind to it, however, and while it sat empty in the St. John's Harbor it has fallen into a state of disrepair. At the time of its departure it was also said to be overrun with rats.
The current owner of the vessel, Reza Shoeybi, is now scrambling to reclaim the ship. He says that he is working with salvage companies in Ireland to try to retrieve the vessel. Bad weather in the North Atlantic is hampering those efforts, however, and it may be some time before it can be captured and towed into shore.
In the meantime, the ship is open to rights of salvage as long as it remains in international waters. If you've ever dreamed of owning your own cruise ship, now is your chance.
Life on board stricken cruise ship Carnival Triumph is far from the travel brochure promise of sandy beaches and warm Caribbean nights. As the ship is being towed to shore after an engine room fire knocked out the ship's propulsion, passengers have had quite a different experience than what they bargained for. Still, experienced travelers know that not everything goes as planned and making the best of a bad situation often depends on how we choose to react when bad things happen along the way.
"I do want to commend our guests on board the Carnival Triumph … for doing a great job dealing with a difficult situation. I happen to believe that is the nature of the Carnival guests who happen to be very optimistic people (who) enjoy life," said Carnival President and CEO Gerry Cahill at a press conference held Tuesday night at Carnival's Miami headquarters.
Operating with limited services (although the bars are open and drinks are free), 102,000-ton Carnival Triumph is expected to arrive in Mobile, Alabama, on Thursday. Once there, the ship's passengers will be disembarked quickly, given hot food and a night in one of 1,500 hotel rooms being held by the cruise line. That will no doubt be a welcome change to cold sandwiches and showers along with hot, unventilated cabins.
While reports from passengers on board via Twitter and Facebook vary from describing the situation as a "cruise from hell" to a more positive "we'll sure remember this one," odds are everyone will be happy when the sailing is over."Generally speaking, the mood on board is good under the circumstances and most guests are making the most of it," Carnival spokesman Vance Gulliksen told Travel Pulse.
On Friday, 20 charter flights will take passengers back to Houston where arrangements have been made to get them back home. Those on the ship right now will receive a full refund of what they paid for the cruise along with any non-refundable travel services and a complimentary cruise in the future.
The U.S. Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board have launched an investigation into the incident.
Here is that press conference from Carnival's Miami headquarters last night.
The holiday gifts have all been opened and some of Santa's "nice" kids received exactly what they wanted. Others, leaning a bit towards the "naughty" side, not so much. If a cruise vacation was on that gift list for you, all hope is not lost. It is indeed possible to actually buy a cruise and get it for a price that adds up to a great travel value.
We are right around the corner from what travel agents call "wave season." That's the January through March flurry of sales that travel agencies see as many cruise travelers plan a cruise for 2013 or beyond.
Getting the best value depends on which cruise line, ship, sailing date, or itinerary you choose. Still, universal among most major cruise lines, some common-sense tips can bring home the best offer.
Holidays are popular- Christmas Eve/Day and New Year's Eve/Day are the four most popular days to sail and command a premium price, year-round, with few exceptions.
Cruise lines commonly discount the third/fourth or more passengers in a cabin, making cramming kids a popular sport, subject to cruise line rules.
Be realistic about cabin size- A decade ago, I booked four large adults in a cabin for four people, and those four people called/screamed at me from the ship after boarding. Apparently, the discounted upper berths that looked so attractive when buying were only about half the width needed for our fluffy cruise traveler friends.
Be aware of the cruise line rules for traveling with kids- There is a minimum age. There are a limited number of cabins that will accommodate three, four or more people.
Book as far in advance as possible, especially if traveling with kids and/or your needs require cabins in a specific location (like next to each other), cabins that connect (like a door between them), or any cabins that have three or more guests in them, as these are in limited supply.
Book at the last minute- I had to force my fingers to type that. After decades of suggesting "buying far in advance is a good idea," cruise lines may be changing their tune, awarding those who book at the last minute (30 days or so prior to sailing) some of the best values.
Frankly, the way cruise fare pricing is going right now, one of the best suggestions might very well be to book a flexible fare now and then lock in to a lower, restricted fare later. That action now would get travelers the cabin location they want with an opportunity for a better price down the road. Your travel agent can help with that. Not ready for a travel agent yet? Leave your questions here.


Indeed now we shall find out what cold is; no matter how much carbon dioxide in atmosphere increases. And carbon dioxide will increase, if eco-history is any indication. But who cares about eco-history? It's harder to make a profit from eco-history. Our government is not interested in eco-history. Carbon dioxide is a much richer fraud. Now, as punishment, we enter the Al Gore Minimum; God help us; and God help our children.
Nothing has been done to improve cold-weather farming! Nothing.
That's right – Fox News's Rupert Murdoch has found a NEW ROCK STAR to replace Obama; just in the nick of time!
I am sure there have many turning points in the subversion of the US Constitution in California. There have been far too many to even make notice. But surely here is a turning point of great, if not final, significance.
California has fired a long-tenured professor for the content of his work; because his work is not acceptable in California's blossoming socialist agenda. There is a review of the case on April 4, 2011.
Will a UCLA Prof Lose His Job For Sticking to Science Over Politics?
The perfect Obama-caused storm is here, now.


Back in August, the Crystal Ball took a comprehensive look 2 at the Virginia House of Delegates districts that could potentially be competitive on Nov. 5. With Election Day in Virginia just five days away, it seems like an appropriate time to provide a short update.
To refresh, there is still no chance that Democrats will win a majority of the chamber's 100 seats. Republicans presently hold a 68-32 edge (counting one independent caucusing with the GOP), giving them an impregnable advantage in the House. Even more helpful to Republicans is the fact that the only sure-fire pick-up in the House is going to be a Republican one in HD-4, an ancestrally Democratic district in southwest Virginia currently held by retiring Del. Joe Johnson (D). The GOP is the only party fielding a candidate there.
However, as it has become increasingly apparent that ex-DNC chairman Terry McAuliffe (D) is going to win the governorship, the final result in the House of Delegates will probably depend on McAuliffe's margin of victory on Election Night. With essentially no public polling to rely on in these districts, most analysis has to come from conversations with both sides. And both sides are saying this: margin matters.
Based on HuffPost Pollster's tracking model 3, McAuliffe has a roughly eight-point lead at the moment. If that grows further, as perhaps indicated by the latest poll 4 from The Washington Post (where McAuliffe was leading by 12 points), there are some marginal seats that Republicans may have a difficult time hanging onto. If McAuliffe's lead contracts -- as indicated by a Wednesday Quinnipiac poll 5 that showed him only leading by four -- Republicans could limit Democratic gains. As it stands, there are 12 Republican-held seats that could reasonably be considered in play on Nov. 5 (not counting the aforementioned GOP pick-up in HD-4).
Given the nature of these races, it's very hard to predict just where the McAuliffe-led Democratic wave may crest. It may be a very small breaker, carrying only one or two of these seats on election night. Or it could be a tidal wave, taking as many as seven or eight of them. Most interestingly, none of these races could be rated at least Leans Democratic, despite McAuliffe's lead and the fact that many of these districts have been relatively Democratic in recent presidential years. That is to say, there are no likely Democratic pick-ups even though the current atmosphere is favorable to Democrats. Instead, many of the seats listed above can be called Toss-ups, and it's hard to make an educated guess which way the coin flips will fall on Election Night.
Of the many seats listed here, perhaps a good one to watch to get an early read on how the election is going is HD-93. Incumbent Del. Mike Watson (R) occupies a 56% Obama district that he narrowly won in 2011, defeating a one-term incumbent. If the early returns indicate Watson is positioned to possibly survive, it may signal that House Republicans are, for the most part, holding their ground around the state. But if those early returns show Watson in trouble, it might be a sign Democrats are positioned to win a number of seats.
Overall, to borrow gambling parlance, the over/under for the House of Delegates battle should probably be set at a Democratic net gain of 3.5 seats. Republicans will take the under, Democrats the over.


A Drop In The Ocean was the breakthrough hit of American pop and rock singer-songwriter Ron Pope (Ronand Michael Pope). He wrote the song with Zach Berkman in 2005, and it became popular on the internet. Its success led Pope to pursue a solo career.
PLEASE!! THE SHEETS! ARE YOU INSANE?


text:
Aged Care Quality Bulletin #30 – June 2021
Commissioner's message
Just as this edition of the Bulletin is going to press, National Cabinet has decided that COVID-19 vaccination will be mandatory for residential aged care workers, with staff required to have at least the first of 2 doses by mid-September. To facilitate this process, the Commonwealth Government will establish a fund to assist aged care providers to financially support casual workers to access the vaccination. Additional information about these provisions will be provided shortly by the Department of Health.
The additional COVID-19-related restrictions that have been introduced in a number of states and territories in recent days and weeks is a timely reminder for providers of the importance of refreshing and rehearsing your outbreak management plan.
An outbreak management plan is invaluable not just in the event of a COVID-19 outbreak, but equally importantly, at times of emerging or heightened risk of community transmission. Increasing vaccination coverage of staff, aged care residents and consumers receiving home care will significantly reduce, but not eliminate, the risks of potential viral transmission. There are also risks to consumers' well-being from lockdown provisions that prevent some family members from visiting in person. It is vital that all providers understand and make suitable provisions to mitigate all these risks.
To assist you in addressing your obligations in this regard, it is strongly recommended that providers refer to the Commission's 'Outbreak management in aged care' guide. In this edition, we focus particularly on the importance of ensuring that your outbreak communication plan is up to date.
Other issues addressed in this Bulletin include the ongoing work the Commission is doing with the sector to support the implementation of the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS), and also the legislative amendments to come into effect from 1 July to clarify and strengthen providers' obligations to minimise restrictive practices. These latter measures will include additional powers for the Commission to address inappropriate use of restrictive practices in residential care and short-term restorative care in a residential care setting.
Also effective from 1 July are the changes to the National Aged Care Mandatory Quality Indicator Program, which include the introduction of 2 new indicators about which residential aged care providers will need to collect data and report.
The SIRS, new restrictive practices measures and additional quality indicators are all part of the Government's response to the findings and recommendations of the Royal Commission, which identified an urgent need to lift the quality, safety and outcomes of care across the aged care sector. All of us have an important role to play in contributing to the achievement of this worthwhile goal.
Is your outbreak communication plan up to date?
As part of your outbreak management planning, it is essential for residential aged care providers to have a communication plan in place that provides effective, consistent and timely information to all relevant parties at times of heightened risk and also during an outbreak – including with residents and their families/representatives, as well as staff, external support providers and government agencies.
From our 2020 'Lessons learned' interviews, we found that when an outbreak occurs, having a team to communicate important information to residents and family members/ representatives was very effective. This allowed providers to be proactive and keep residents and others well informed, which tended to result in fewer complaints.
It was noted that families/representatives most often preferred:
a single point of contact and, where possible, for this to be a clinical member of staff
to speak with someone who could provide details about how the outbreak was being managed at the service
transparent and honest information sharing, especially when there was bad news or events leading to deviations from the outbreak management plan.
As a provider, it is essential that you communicate consistently and transparently with your staff as well – not just in an outbreak but also in situations of emerging risk. You must clearly define roles, responsibilities and expectations for everyone in the service in the case of a lockdown that may or may not be accompanied by an outbreak at the service. It's also important to stay connected with external service providers who support your service, such as general practitioners, allied health professionals, and lifestyle and community support services.
To ensure effective communication with your staff and other service providers, you should:
regularly provide information to, and respond to questions and feedback from your staff
undertake test runs of the communication plan
prepare communication templates to advise residents and their families/ representatives, staff and external service providers
review and update your contact lists for residents' families/representatives, staff and external service providers
make sure your service has devices and resources to manage communication on and off-site.
It is also strongly recommended that you make external service providers and government agencies aware of, and even include them in, your outbreak management plan. This gives you an opportunity to test your plan and receive essential feedback to identify any gaps and scope for improvement.
There are a range of COVID-19 resources available on our website for providers and for consumers, in addition to the COVID-19 information provided by the Department of Health. You should also routinely monitor advice from your local state or territory health department.
SIRS insights – valuable provider roundtable feedback and first Commission report
Early experiences of the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) have been shared by residential aged care providers at a virtual roundtable with the Commission.
Ten providers drawn from regional and metropolitan Australia participated in a roundtable convened by the Commission on 9 June. They shared their feedback about SIRS implementation challenges, ideas for improvement, and early benefits from the scheme. Provider peak organisations were also represented.
Notwithstanding the acknowledged hurdles associated with implementing any new scheme, many providers agreed that the SIRS is a positive step in improving the provision of quality and safe care. One provider commented, 'SIRS has encouraged us to review our own systems. Our own investigations are improving, and we are taking more effort to understand why incidents have occurred.'
The feedback from the roundtable is helping us to further improve our resources to support to the sector. We will also host a follow-up roundtable later in the year to gain further valuable provider insights. You can read the summary report of the SIRS provider roundtable on our website.
The Commission has also published its first SIRS insight report based on notifications submitted during the initial 6 weeks of the scheme. This analysis aims to help inform the sector about SIRS reporting and the regulatory treatment of notifications. We encourage providers to examine their own reporting patterns and arrangements in comparison with sector averages. The first report in our new SIRS insight series is available on SIRS reports page of our website.
Additionally, in the coming weeks, providers will notice a new feature on the My Aged Care SIRS portal. Providers will receive an email alert if there are draft (incomplete) notifications sitting in the portal with no action for more than 7 days. There will also be a new 'follow-ups' tile so providers can review copies of all email alerts sent.
All the early lessons learned from the introduction of the SIRS in residential aged care will be invaluable as work gets underway to plan the expansion of the SIRS into home and community care from 1 July 2022. Providers of home services for aged care consumers are already required to have an effective incident management system in place in accordance with Standard 8 of the Aged Care Quality Standards. Extending that requirement to include reporting of particular serious incidents to the Commission will be an important step in further protecting home service recipients from harm and strengthening provider accountability. We'll keep you updated on this expansion of the SIRS in future editions of this bulletin.
New SIRS modules now available in Alis
Two more modules focusing on incident management obligations that are an important part of the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) are now available in Alis, our Aged Care Learning Information Solution.
The new 'SIRS: Moments that matter – Your role in incident management' and 'SIRS: Recognising and responding to incidents' modules provide information about how to recognise and respond to incidents within residential aged care services.
The content of both modules is tailored for those directly involved in the provision of care and support to residents. It will help ensure that staff understand the actions they should take if they witness an incident, or if they believe that an incident or near miss may have occurred.
These modules bring the suite of SIRS modules in Alis to 3, following the release of the first module, 'Being aware: Introduction to the SIRS', in March. More modules will be added soon.
To help you access all the modules on Alis, all Commonwealth-funded aged care services can obtain up to 4 free registrations to our online learning platform until 31 October 2021. You can also purchase additional registrations, if needed.
To access the new SIRS modules or to register for Alis, go to learning.agedcarequality.gov.au.
Amendments to restrictive practices legislation
In response to the final report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, and the findings of the independent review of legislative provisions governing the use of restraint in residential aged care, the Australian Government has introduced measures to clarify and strengthen the regulation around the use of restrictive practices in residential aged care and short-term restorative care in a residential care setting.
These measures are contained in legislative amendments to the Aged Care Act 1997 and Quality of Care Principles 2014 which commence from 1 July 2021, and which clarify the limited circumstances in which restrictive practices can be used in relation to a consumer, including for use in an emergency.
In addition, the amendments:
introduce the term 'restrictive practices' to describe all forms of 'restraint'
make changes to the types and definitions of restrictive practices that may be used or applied and align these with those used in the disability sector under the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2018 and National Disability Insurance Scheme (Restrictive Practices and Behaviour Support) Rules 2018. These definitions include chemical restraint, environmental restraint, mechanical restraint, physical restraint, and seclusion
clarify existing provider requirements regarding consent, monitoring and evaluation, and that any restrictive practice is used as a last resort
include provisions for strengthening regulation of use of restrictive practices to enable the Commission to issue a regulatory notice when non-compliance with the amended Quality of Care Principles is identified.
From 1 September 2021, the amended Aged Care Act and Quality of Care Principles require providers to comply with responsibilities relating to behaviour support plans. This includes a requirement for providers to have a behaviour support plan in place for each consumer who requires, or may require, the use of restrictive practices. The amended Quality of Care Principles outline the requirements of the behaviour support plan and include information on assessment, monitoring, review, evaluation and provision of consent. The behaviour support plan will build on existing strategies that a provider has in place to support person-centred care for each of their consumers.
The amendments also introduce additional powers for the Commission to respond to the inappropriate use of restrictive practices. From 1 July 2021, the Commission may issue a Restrictive Practices Compliance Notice where a provider may not be complying with its responsibilities in relation to the use of restrictive practices. The Commission continues to take a risk-based approach to all compliance actions. For more information on the Commission's approach to compliance and enforcement, including use of regulatory powers, refer to our Compliance and enforcement policy.
The Commission has issued a Regulatory Bulletin which outlines the new regulatory requirements. We will also be holding a number of webinars during July and August to support providers to build on and improve their current practice.
The Commission has a number of resources available to assist providers with their requirements regarding appropriate use of restrictive practices. The Commission is also developing and/or revising additional resources including the restrictive practices scenarios, the decision-making tool and guidance around consent. These resources will be available on the Commission website shortly.
Aged Care Quality Standards guidance resources, including those to support provision of consent, minimising restrictive practices and behaviour support planning, are already available on our website.
The Commission is also working with the Department of Health, alongside Dementia Support Australia, to provide specific resources for behaviour support planning. These resources will be made available once finalised.
Further information on the legislative reforms is available on the Department of Health website.
Guidance materials available for upcoming Quality Indicator Program changes
In just a few days' time, the updated and expanded National Aged Care Mandatory Quality Indicator Program (QI Program) will commence.
From 1 July, approved providers of residential aged care are required to report quarterly on new or revised quality indicators across 5 crucial clinical areas. From this date, you must start collecting the following data, as detailed in the Department of Health's National Aged Care Mandatory Quality Indicator Program Manual – 2.0 – Part A – Final draft:
Quality indicator
Data required
Pressure injuries (revised)
Percentage of care recipients with pressure injuries, reported against 6 pressure injury stages
Physical restraint (revised)
Percentage of care recipients who were physically restrained
Unplanned weight loss (revised)
Percentage of care recipients who experienced significant unplanned weight loss (5% or more)
Percentage of care recipients who experienced consecutive unplanned weight loss
Falls and major injury (new)
Percentage of care recipients who experienced one or more falls
Percentage of care recipients who experienced one or more falls resulting in major injury
Medication management (new)
Percentage of care recipients who were prescribed 9 or more medications
Percentage of care recipients who received antipsychotic medications
A suite of guidance materials is now available on the Department of Health website to help you understand and prepare for the changes to the QI Program, including:
Part C of the QI Program Manual
data recording templates
a poster.
If you have any questions about the QI Program expansion, contact the My Aged Care service provider and assessor helpline on 1800 836 799.
Updates from the Chief Clinical Advisor
Heater burns
The Commission continues to receive reports of serious burns to residents from hydronic heaters which are commonly used in residential aged care. These heaters can pose significant risks to consumers in certain circumstances, resulting in severe pain, disfigurement and worse. Providers are strongly urged to revisit the alert we issued in our August 2019 Quality Bulletin. Please review the risks associated with these heaters within your services, because heating temperatures, furniture placement, room layouts and resident vulnerabilities may have changed since your last review.
Antimicrobial stewardship and urinary tract infections
A healthy person's urinary tract can be host to a variety of micro-organisms which can be detected using tests such as urine culture or dipsticks. Asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) – where bacteria is detected in the urine of a person who does not have any symptoms or signs of urinary tract infection (UTI) – is very common in people living in aged care homes. In fact, it is reported in up to 50% of all residents and in almost 100% of residents with a urinary catheter.
It is important for clinicians working in aged care to understand that treating ASB in older people (typically with an antibiotic) does not reduce their future risk of developing a UTI with symptoms, and may increase risk by disrupting the bladder microbiome. Further, antibiotics can have unwanted side effects and their unnecessary use can contribute to development of antibiotic resistance.
A key take-away message here is that routine or regular use of urine dipstick tests (or urine cultures) with aged care residents (especially where there is no clinical indication of infection) is known to contribute to overdiagnosis of UTIs.
Urine dipsticks do not diagnose UTI – this is best done by clinical assessment. The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care has developed a fact sheet presenting the clinical guidelines for approaching suspected UTIs in aged care facility residents.
Recent aged care and NDIS worker screening requirements changes
Residential aged care providers (and multi-purpose services) providing permanent residential aged care who also support participants in the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) have responsibilities under both the Aged Care Act 1997 and the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013.
One provider responsibility addressed by both Acts relates to worker screening checks. Under aged care legislation, an approved provider has to comply with police certificate requirements, while under NDIS legislation, a registered provider has to comply with the NDIS Worker Screening Check requirements for workers in risk-assessed roles. A risk-assessed role is a worker or volunteer who provides direct delivery of care to an NDIS participant.
Recognising that there was unnecessary duplication in these responsibilities, Federal Parliament has amended aged care legislation effective from 16 June 2021 to enable an aged care provider to accept a clearance obtained through the NDIS Worker Screening Check process as an alternative to the police certificate requirements for a particular worker.
This means that staff and volunteers in a risk-assessed role who are supporting NDIS participants in a residential aged care service do not require an NDIS worker screening clearance if they hold a current aged care police certificate issued prior to 1 February 2021. These workers will require an NDIS worker screening clearance when their police certificate expires.
These changes are aimed at reducing the regulatory burden for aged care providers who are also registered NDIS providers by reducing the need to maintain 2 worker screening arrangements, without reducing the protection for consumers.
Further information on NDIS worker screening requirements is available on the Department of Health website.
Further information on risk-assessed roles and NDIS Worker Screening Check requirements is available on the NDIS Commission website.
New online education workshops now open for registrations
In response to sector feedback, the Commission has developed 3 online education workshops which are now open for registrations.
The 'Monitor and assess the performance of your service: aged care home services' and 'Monitor and assess the performance of your service: aged care residential services' workshops are designed to support aged care providers in developing their knowledge, skills and practical understanding of monitoring and assessing their own performance, to ensure that the services they deliver are in line with the Aged Care Quality Standards. These workshops have been developed as new, condensed versions of the 'Assessing the Standards' workshops. They've also been tailored for each intended audience, with some of the content relating to risk areas, relevant guidance, examples and discussion points being specific to home services and residential services.
The 'Getting to know the Standards – information session' provides an overview of the Aged Care Quality Standards, relevant guidance material and helpful templates. This education session has been redeveloped based on the 'Getting to know the Standards' and 'Preparing for the Standards' workshops previously delivered by the Commission and the former Australian Aged Care Quality Agency.
More information about these workshops and how to register is available on the Workshops page of our website.
New and updated Commission resources
New Regulatory Bulletin: Regulation of restrictive practices and the role of the Senior Practitioner, Restrictive Practices (RB 2021-13)
New report: Serious Incident Response Scheme insight report (May 2021)
New report: Sector performance report (1 January–31 March 2021)
New report: Serious Incident Response Scheme provider roundtable summary (June 2021)
New guidance: Serious Incident Response Scheme reportable incidents workflow
New Regulatory Bulletin: Reconsideration of reviewable decisions (RB 2021-12)
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Love craft: homosexuality, misogyny and being locked in with pigs and cows.
This is going to be a bit icky...
Quite the most revolting thing I've read in a long time was this article by Patrick Strudwick in the Guardian on misogyny amongst gay males. Alongside the admission of a tendency among gay men to describe women's bodies in breathtakingly vile ways, it also does that very typical, nauseating male progressive thing of explaining why they're better feminists than everyone else...
Well, I'm not a progressive, not a feminist, and I'm not even going to bother pretending to be writing this blogpost as a white knight to protect women, something, certainly in this case, women can do better for themselves. (Strudwick's article really ought to be entitled: 'Shut up, Rose McGowan: as a gay man, I know more about women than you do.') This is purely going to be about men and their need for purification.
Although it's very common these days to be advised to 'check your privilege' (a task which numerous, privately schooled, Oxbridge educated successful media types have managed to do with the surprising result they've discovered they're actually more oppressed than plantation slaves), very few people these days bother to check their motivations. That's something that Catholics need to do before confession, and something that really ought to be built into our daily lives. (I've rather got out of the formal habit, but the practice of a daily examen is highly advisable.) On a more secular level, the abandonment of Freudian or Jungian psychotherapy as a major cultural influence in the West has also led to the forgetting that our motivations and indeed character of our actions (and indeed ourselves) is not something that lies on the surface but something that requires careful, constant exploration. Instead, we focus on the externals: the political structure of privilege. Do I have power? Am I part of an elite group? Even setting aside the omnipresence of delusion in answering these questions as illustrated by Strudwick's article, it leaves out the individual and the subjective: what am I doing? Why do I feel so strongly about this? What lies deep in my unconscious that I am denying? These are not easy questions and indeed they are probably not completable in our lifetimes. That, from a Catholic perspective is fine: it is the process of sanctification, probably completed only after our deaths and only by God's grace. But even putting aside the theology, it ought to be perfectly comprehensible to the most secular mindset that the rooting out of delusions, spotting, and then struggling to articulate ourselves are tasks that are essential and yet exist on the cusp of impossibility.
The relationship between women and men and, more particularly for present purposes, how men see women is probably one of the trickiest aspects of this tricky area of self-exploration. (I would emphasize that in my experience women are just as prone to difficulties here as men, but I'll leave that for them to sort out.) It was perhaps unfortunate that reading Strudwick's article occurred for me at the time I have been in a bit of a Lovecraftian binge, but the combination of Strudwick's piscine fetish with Lovecraft's obsession with hidden horror and marine creatures has made for troubling insights. (Is Lovecraft all really just about fear of women and their cavities?) Male adolescents really don't quite know what to do with/about women (although they spend all their time trying to pretend to themselves and others they do). Frankly, I'm not willing -even under a veneer of anonymity- to go into all the details of my own inadequacies -past and present- in this area. But one that is both true and relatively funny is that I remember that while it seemed quite clear from the (massive) amount of biologically oriented sex education we had received that some sort of penetration was involved in intercourse, such a manoeuvre was clearly so utterly absurd that I concluded I had simply misunderstood and settled on the view that, whatever the precise physical details, the process was clearly more akin to target shooting from a distance.
This sort of physical unease is never entirely separable from a sort of moral queasiness. Old jokes about mother-in-law or wives as 'her indoors', 'the ball and chain' and so on, testify to a widespread male fear of loss of autonomy in domesticity. (And its recovery in the midlife crisis of new cars and running off with a woman marked as less threatening to autonomy economically and by her youth.) Perhaps this all comes together symbolically at least in the vagina dentata: a physical and a moral threat from the space within.
And so back to Strudwick and misogyny. His is a well worn tale: 99% of violence against women is by heterosexuals so they're the problem and we (the good gay men) are part of the solution. But here's the other way of putting it. What do you (me) really think about women? Why do you (and this time it is you) find them sexually unattractive? (And what is it to find someone sexually unattractive: some deep combination of the physical and the moral in my experience...) Why as a culture do we (majority heterosexuals) privilege that sort of camp male aggressiveness against women? What is really going on when we pretend (say) that Conchita Wurst is unproblematically a good, funny thing? (No question at all that he might be, oh, I don't know, taking the p*** out of women? Really? Sure? And the Freudian thing with the name?) Fishiness isn't simply a bizarre manifestation of a gay subculture: that mix of physical and moral queasiness towards women is typical of maleness in general, of which gay maleness is merely an aspect -and one peculiarly isolated from corrective female critical engagement.
Miss Sausage....
I don't pretend to know what individual gay men would find on pursuing this sort of internal questioning. I say that because, as I've said, what all men will find isn't exactly clear. (But if you've defined yourself as someone who -in some major, life structuring way- doesn't like women, I'd expect some interesting observations over a lifetime, wouldn't you?) But as far as a culture which celebrates precisely the sort of bitchy queenness that produces the vile physical attitudes he remarks on, why do we give it a free pass rather than seeing it as a typical part of a male difficulty in dealing virtuously with women? (And to which the major (albeit not only) solution is the lifetime commitment of matrimony -which is, of course, yet another victim of our culture's unreflective celebration of homosexuality and, unconsciously, the locking into the trench warfare of gender against gender.)
'O what was I doing when the procession passed?
Where was I looking? Young women and men
And I might have joined them.
Who bent the coin of my destiny
That it stuck in the slot?
I remember a night we walked
Through the moon of Donaghmoyne,
Four of us seeking adventure,
It was midsummer forty years ago.
Now I know
The moment that gave the turn to my life.
O Christ! I am locked in a stable with pigs and cows for ever.
[Kavanagh: The Great Hunger.]
Labels: books, homosexuality, marriage, Popular culture, Queer theory
Stoic week and God
Blooming buzzing confusion
Love craft: homosexuality, misogyny and being lock...


text:
shani alexis
A Collection of Fitness, Beauty, and Fashion for the Trendy Woman Next Door
Posted on November 17, 2017 November 19, 2017 by shanialexis
Taylor Swift "Reputation"- A Review from an OG Fan
There is a clear disclaimer in the title. I am an OG Tswift fan. A Swiftie. I will obviously be a little biased when reviewing this album. If Taylor recorded her farting in a melodic rhythm for 15 tracks, I would probably still buy the album and tell everyone that it's a real piece of work.
I fell in love with Taylor when she debuted her first single, Tim McGraw. You really can't get anymore OG fan than that. I can remember the first time I saw the music video. I was sitting in my grandma's living room watching CMT. I still get goosebumps every time I hear that song. My sister burned me the "Taylor Swift" CD for Christmas that year. Still to date the best Christmas present I've ever received. (Taylor Swift concert tickets from mom coming in a close second!) I feel like no one remembers that album. SO many good songs!! Tim McGraw, Picture to Burn, Teardrops on my Guitar, Should've Said No, and Our Song.
I get annoyed when people say "I miss the old Taylor Swift." or "I used to hate her, but she's got some good songs now." I'm obviously a protective mama bear when it comes to my girl, TSwizzle. I love her music in all forms. It has helped me get through plenty of heart breaks and her music always make me feel like a powerful woman. There is something about her poetic lines and metaphors that explain how I feel in a way I've never been able to put in words. It's really rare that an artist can encompass my feelings. Most songs I like these days are hip hop songs, where I don't know what half of the words even mean. Taylor's music is a nice escape from that.
Her new album is definitely different than anything she has done before, but it's Taylor breathed. It is still poetic, classy, and catchy.
1. Ready For It?
Is Taylor Swift rapping? Close to it. This song is a sexy, dark love song.
My favorite lyrics: "Some boys are tryin' too hard, he don't try at all though. Younger than my exes, but he act like such a man, so I see nothing better, I keep him forever."
What the song means to me: This song shows the honey moon stage. The excitement of meeting someone that isn't boring for once. Are you ready for the games?
2. End Game (feat. Ed Sheeran & Future)
This isn't one one of the songs on the album that I find myself playing a lot. (Yet…) I do like that it focuses on forgetting about their reputation and being together forever. Not a lot of hip hop songs portray that.
My favorite lyrics: " I don't wanna touch you. I don't wanna be just another ex-love, you don't wanna see. I don't wanna miss you. Like the other girls do."
What the song means to me: When you meet someone and you want to be their next and last kiss. When you see your power couple potential.
3. I Did Something Bad
I do find myself playing this song often. I like that Taylor is bringing out her dark side in this song. I think this song proves to Taylor haters, she is no longer singing "whiny break up songs".
My favorite lyrics: "I never trust a narcissist, but they love me. So I play 'em like a violin and I make it look oh-so-easy. 'Cause for every lie I tell them, they tell me three. This is how the world works. Now all he thinks about is me."
What the song means to me: I think this song shows a girl who attracts narcissists and has got really good at playing their games. She begins to not feel bad for stooping to their levels. She realizes she doesn't owe anyone anything.
4. Don't Blame Me
Another favorite I have on replay. This track fully dives into electopop, but there is a soulful undertone, almost like a haunting church hymn.
My favorite lyrics: "Don't blame me, love made me crazy. If it doesn't, you ain't doin' it right. Lord, save me, my drug is my baby. I'll be usin' for the rest of my life."
What this song means to me: This song explains the addicting, make me crazy kind of love. No matter how bad it is for you, there is no walking away from it.
5. Delicate
AHHHH. Yet another, I have on replay! This song is more laid back. A nice refresher from some of these heavy, "got me in my feels" songs.
My favorite lyrics: "Is it cool that I said all that? Is it chill that you're in my head? 'Cause I know that it's delicate (delicate) Is it cool that I said all that?Is it too soon to do this yet? 'Cause I know that it's delicate."
What this song means to me: When you're in that beginning part of the relationship and you are both starting to like each other, but you don't know if it's too soon to tell them how you feel. You don't want to ruin what you have.
6. Look What You Made Me Do
Okay when this song dropped, I could not stop listening to it. It made me so psyched for the Reputation album. I really love a good revenge track. It's haunting, sexy, and triggering.
My favorite lyrics: "I don't trust nobody and nobody trusts me. I'll be the actress starring in your bad dreams."
What this song means to me: When someone does you wrong so many times that you finally crack. They bit the hand that fed them and now their dead to you. The old caring, nice you is dead and you'll never be quite the same. They've done you so wrong that you know, you will haunt their conscience forever.
7. So it Goes…
This song is definitely a sexy one for Taylor. Dark and steamy. Something I could hear in a 50 Shades of Grey movie. She has a great way at hinting at sexy thoughts without really saying them because Taylor is a classy b****.
My favorite lyrics: "I'm yours to keep (oh) And I'm yours to lose. (baby) You know I'm not a bad girl, but I do bad things with you. So it goes…"
What this song means to me: When someone has that magical effect on you where they can get you to do just about anything.. Someone that gives you a dangerous high. When their skin is pressed against yours, you feel complete. Something you've never felt. Your bodies are like two puzzle pieces that fit perfectly together.
8. Gorgeous
I feel like next time I see a gorgeous intoxicating face in a crowd, this song is going to be playing in my head. Once it is in your head, it is hard to get out.
My favorite lyrics: "You make me so happy it turns back to sad. There's nothing I hate more than what I can't have. And you are so gorgeous it makes me so mad."
What this song means to me: It takes me back to that child-like flirting when the more you liked someone, the more you acted like you didn't. When you meet someone so gorgeous that you know there's not a chance for the two of you, but you will still daydream about it.
9. Getaway Car
This synth-pop song is breathtaking and exhilarating. It takes you on a roller-coaster full of emotions.
My favorite lyrics: "Don't pretend it's such a mystery. Think about the place where you first met me. Ridin' in a getaway car. There were sirens in the beat of your heart. I shoulda known I'd be the first to leave."
What this song means to me: When you start a romance with someone, but you know it's doomed from the start. You know you're going to be the one looking for a reason to get out.
10. King of My Heart
This song isn't my favorite. Probably because I don't relate to it. I haven't found the "king of my heart", but I'm glad Taylor has!
My favorite lyrics: "And all at once, you are the one I have been waiting for King of my heart, body, and soul, ooh whoa. And all at once, you're all I want I'll never let you go"
What this song means to me: When you think you're going to die alone then you meet someone that makes you feel like you never have. You find the one you've been waiting for all this time.
11. Dancing With Our Hands Tied
I try not to listen to this song too much because it's really dreary. It makes me feel like I'm looking out a window of a dark, cold room on a rainy, gloomy day. It's depressing to say the least.
Favorite lyrics: "Could've spent forever with your hands in my pockets. Picture of your face in an invisible locket. You said there was nothing in the world that could stop it. I had a bad feeling."
What this song means to me: When you fall in love with someone and they say they won't let anything get in the way of forever with you. Yet, everything gets in the way of forever with them. You would do anything to be able to dance with them again.
12. Dress
A sonically slow and sultry love ballad. This song is the most lustful song on the album.
My favorite lyrics: "Say my name and everything just stops. I don't want you like a best friend. Only bought this dress so you could take it off."
What this song means to me: All you think about is being next to the person you love in bed. All you want is them and you don't care about the risk of heart break. They are always on your mind. They've left their mark on you.
13. This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things
An upbeat, playful song calling out the backstabbers. An anthem to laugh at all the ridiculous rumors.
My favorite lyrics: "Here's a toast to my real friends. They don't care about the he-said-she-said."
What this song means to me: When people enjoy spending their time talking about you and figuring out ways to ruin your reputation, but would never say those things to your face. Well, those fake friends ruin nice things and good people.
14. Call It What You Want
My personal favorite on the album. Catchy, beautiful, a pop master piece.
My favorite lyrics: "My castle crumbled overnight. I brought a knife to a gunfight. They took the crown, but it's alright. All the liars are calling me one. Nobody's heard from me for months. I'm doin' better than I ever was."
What the song means to me: You can be going through some real shit and at the end of the day, it doesn't matter what people think of you. It shows how love conquers all the drama. Your reputation doesn't matter. Love matters.
15. New Year's Day
This song reminds me of Taylor's older music. I love it. The simple guitar and piano backing doesn't distract from the beautiful lyrics.
My favorite lyrics: "Please don't ever become a stranger, whose laugh I could recognize anywhere."
What this song means to me: You want the good times with someone, but you're willing to endure all the bad times for the good times. Hold on to the memories, whether they're good or bad because the memories and each other are all we really have in this world.
Reputation is a concept album. It has an overall theme of well, reputation. It's the perfect mix of hip hop, trap, and electro-pop production styles. I had to listen to the songs on this album a few times to really fall in love. Like 1989, it is very sonically cohesive. I do sort of miss days where an album was more like a playlist of random, great songs. Although, I love that a concept album better portrays an artistic story.
I have loved watching Taylor's music grow. I grew with it. I'm a born and raised country girl that moved to a city. My music choices have evolved as well. I love that Taylor can write and perform any type of music. She truly is an incredible artist.
CategoriesLifestyle Tagsalbum review, Album review blog, blogger, Call it what you want, Dancing with our hands tied, delicate, Don't blame me, End Game, Getaway Car, Gorgeous, I did something bad, King of my heart, lifestyle blog, music blog, New year's day, OG Fan, Ready for It, reputation, reputation album, reputation album review, So it Goes, Swiftie, taylor swift, Taylor Swift 2017, Taylor Swift Album, Taylor Swift fan, Taylor Swift music, This is why we can't have nice things
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This file photo taken on November 15, 2016 shows Iraqi soldiers standing amid destruction caused by the Islamic State (IS) group at the archaeological site of Nimrud, some 30 kilometres south of Mosul in the Nineveh province, a few days after Iraqi forces retook the ancient city from IS jihadists. The UN's cultural agency called for emergency measures on December 15, 2016 to prevent further looting at the historic Iraqi city of Nimrud which has been wrecked by Islamic State militants. Nimrud, founded in the 13th century BC on the Tigris river about 30 kilometres (18 miles) southeast of Mosul, was retaken by Iraqi forces on November 13 after it was overrrun by IS in 2014. SAFIN HAMED / AFP.
PARIS (AFP).- The UN's cultural agency called for emergency measures on Thursday to prevent further looting at the historic Iraqi city of Nimrud which has been wrecked by Islamic State militants.
Nimrud, founded in the 13th century BC on the Tigris river about 30 kilometres (18 miles) southeast of Mosul, was retaken by Iraqi forces on November 13 after it was overrrun by IS in 2014.
Journalists who visited immediately afterwards found shattered statues, wrecked ancient palaces and bulldozed structures in one of the region's most important archaeological sites.
A fact-finding mission sent by the UNESCO agency this week confirmed "large-scale, systematic" destruction and recommended greater protection for what remains of the site.
"Emergency measures will entail the immediate physical protection of the site in order to allow for detailed documentation and preventing potential looting of remaining fragments," said a statement.
UNESCO, which works to safeguard world heritage and culture, will liaise with Iraqi authorities to help document and then rebuild the site which it called "important for the history of humanity."
A conference to discuss reconstruction will take place on February 27 in Paris.
The Islamic State group has carried out a campaign of "cultural cleansing" in territory under its control in Iraq and Syria, razing many ancient relics and looting others to sell on the black market.
In April 2015, the group released a video of its fighters destroying monuments in Nimrud before planting explosives around a site and blowing it up.
In the video, militants with sledgehammers and power tools broke artefacts before rigging the site with large barrels of what appeared to be explosives.