All traditions holidays and superstitions have an origin. I love playing the detective - researching where they started and why. Why do we celebrate mothers in may?
I went and googled that s#!t.
The American beginning was created by Anna Jarvis in 1908 and became official in 1914. Following her mother's death, Anna wanted to honor the sacrifices mothers made for their children. Eventually, she became disgusted with the commercialization of the holiday. She felt that Mother's Day was not about flowers, candy, or cards and she tried to have it removed from the national calendar to no avail. Alas, here we are commercial or not, giving what we think our Mom's would love.
The question is what do we want?
I watched a video today where women were interviewed and asked what they really wanted for mother's day. The top answers were sleep, a day alone, and to not make any decisions regarding another human other than themselves.
While I adore my children when they were young all of the above would have been a dream come true. Now, as one is off to college and the other about to graduate college, a day with them would be dreamy.
So no matter where you are in the kid spectrum, take the day for yourself or enjoy them. Either way, it will be good.
Home / Habits Happenings / A Mother's day.


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Serious Catholics in Politics
Encouraging political activity by Serious Catholics in Indianapolis, Indiana
Category Archives: Politics
Important Announcement from the Marion County Republican Chairman
Posted on July 5, 2019 by Jerry
Dear Indy Republicans,
On January 8th of this year I was fortunate to have been elected to serve as your Marion County GOP Chairman. As you all know, the Marion County Republican Party is incredibly important to me. The Marion County GOP brought me to Indianapolis – under former Chair Tom John in 2008. Over more than a decade I have worked alongside you and we've built incredible relationships.
On that Tuesday night at Dallara, I envisioned my tenure with Marion County being measured in years, not months. The lobby was filled with hundreds of passionate and dedicated volunteers who represent what is great about organizations – political or otherwise. I was and remain humbled by the support shown by each of you and have always viewed that trust as a blessing.
Fast forward seven months and I am pleased with where we are. We've built a strong and experienced team of candidates poised to reclaim the top offices in our county and return Indianapolis to a city of solutions, not just questions. We have a terrific team of Township Chairmen focused on strengthening each township and supporting candidates at every level. Our new Executive Director brings great knowledge and relationships to our team and is committed to supporting candidates and volunteers. We have incorporated new and more effective technologies to maximize the time of each and every volunteer. Last but not least, we have the support of a generous and diverse donor network that sees the opportunities that lie ahead and believes in our mission and our plan.
As much as I value my role as Chairman, I've been presented with a professional opportunity that will demand more of my time, and will unfortunately leave me less time to focus on my duties to our party. Therefore, with a heavy heart, I will be resigning as Chairman of the Marion County Republican Central Committee effective July 30.
This is not a decision that has been made quickly or easily. This decision does not change my belief in or my commitment to our Party. I am confident that we will elect a new chair who will keep our commitment to strengthening our grassroots network, ensure our candidates represent the people of their districts and will deliver every technological and tactical advantage to our team.
We will be successful this November and will build upon that momentum in 2020.
Bryce Carpenter
Chairman, Marion County GOP
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AFAIN: Alert Dangerous Bill in Senate; IN House Race Update
Let Indiana's Senators Know that Religious Discrimination is Wrong
The US Senate may soon consider a misnamed bill called the "Equality Act." This dangerous legislation has already been passed by the US House. It has 45 co-sponsors in the US Senate. It only needs 51 votes to pass.
My national office has reviewed this legislation and warned that, "The deceptive Equality Act is a religious liberty wrecking ball."
It would be hard to imagine a more anti-freedom bill than this one. This legislation would allow the government to discriminate against people of faith, ignoring the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, and forcing people to violate their consciences or face the full weight of government punishment.
Here are just a few of the many problems the "Equality Act" could cause if enacted:
It would force many faith-based organizations to pay for abortion in their health care plans by creating a right to demand abortion coverage from health care providers.
It could force Christian schools, ministries, and churches to change employment policies that are currently aligned with traditional teachings on sex, gender, marriage and human sexuality.
It would harm faith-based charities, such as adoption agencies, that believe in natural marriage and strive to place foster or adoptive children with a mother and father.
It would embolden those in Indiana who have been attempting to harm our school voucher system by targeting Christian schools that have employment policies consistent with their religious beliefs on sexual morality.
It could threaten the privacy and safety of women and children by forcing genderless bathrooms and showers upon sporting facilities, parks, rest areas and other public amenities.
It could force schools to allow biological males to compete in girls' sports if those males claim gender confusion or have a gender identity disorder.
Indiana Senators Todd Young and Mike Braun need to hear from you. Ask them to protect religious freedom by voting "No" on the so-called "Equality Act."
Senator Todd Young
E-mail: www.young.senate.gov/contact
Senator Mike Braun
E-mail: www.braun.senate.gov/contact-mike
Retirement Announcement Shakes Up Indiana Politics
As you probably know, 5th District Congresswoman Susan Brooks has announced that she will not run for re-election next year. This district covers northern Marion County and includes all of Hamilton, Tipton, Madison and Grant counties, and parts of Blackford, Howard and Boone Counties.
The district, long held by conservative leader Dan Burton, has shifted a lot with the changing demographics of Marion and Hamilton Counties. In terms of voters, the district is about 75% urban or heavily suburban and 25% rural. Rep. Brooks won this district with only 55% in her last run. Democrat Joe Donnelly won this district, though not his race for Senate. It is still a district that though perhaps not ranked "solid Republican" anymore, strongly leans Republican.
I almost never do this, but I am going to list names I have heard considering running, along with my comment, as a descriptor, not an endorsement for or against any candidate. There may be other names yet to emerge and some I mention here may or may not ultimately run. This will be an expensive and heated race.
The only name I have heard mentioned on the Democrat side is speculative. It is former Indiana state representative Christina Hale. She could potentially be a strong candidate for the Democrats.
On the Republican side there are many people reportedly considering a run. In no particular order, here are some of those names.
Former State Senator, and soon to be promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army, Mike Delph, has been a personal friend of mine for two decades going back to when he was Chief of Staff for Dan Burton. Mike would likely have very strong support among the conservative base of the GOP. Mike has state, congressional, and military experience that could appeal to many GOP voters throughout the district.
Current state Senator John Ruckleshaus is another name being mentioned. I've known him for years in the legislature. He would seem to have support among the establishment GOP. I use that term in a positive way. John is a standard, rank and file moderate Republican with what I would consider to be both good and bad votes cast. For many politicians with this description, this would mean that neither the left nor the right would like him, but I don't sense this with Ruckleshaus. He is a very likeable person. I am not sure how to assess his strengths. It may depend upon how he is defined in this race by himself or by his opponents.
I met Micah Beckwith a few weeks ago, before Brooks' announcement. He was considering challenging Brooks due to a series of liberal votes she has accumulated. Micah is an energetic outsider who serves as a worship leader on staff at Northview Church, the largest Church in Hamilton County. He may have the hardest path as a dark horse candidate without any political office in his resume, but he is certainly very capable of making an impact on this race.
Former Indianapolis mayor Greg Ballard would seemingly have a strong base in the Marion County portion of the district and name ID that stretches into Hamilton County. Also, if there is a Susan Collins or Jeff Flake wing of the GOP here, Ballard could own it. The Republican candidates I have mentioned so far all pass the litmus test of being pro-life. Ballard may not meet that criteria. Ideologically, Ballard would seem to appeal to those uncomfortable with Trump and the more liberal wing of the GOP. . . but that doesn't mean that he cannot win in a crowded field in the May primary.
Another name I have heard, but not seen in the news yet, is Kelly Mitchell. She might have a big chunk of the structured party support given her position as the current Indiana State Treasurer. Her position on issues before the US Congress are mostly unknown.
I have also heard that the Congresswoman's Chief of Staff is interested in running. I believe that is still Megan Savage who has served Chief of Staff since 2015 and as a deputy prosecutor in Marion County prior to this position. She would seem to naturally inherit some of Brooks base of support, if she runs.
In Their Own Words:
"You can't have a limited government if the family breaks down." – Former Pennsylvania Senator and Presidential candidate Rick Santorum
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Bishop draws a line for Democrats to wake up and realize they are voting themselves into hell (Paprocki)
Posted on June 8, 2019 by Jerry
http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/bishop-paprocki-communion-prohibited-to-catholic-lawmakers-who-voted-for-il
AFA-IN: New Polling on Religious Freedom, IN Abortion law Ruling
Posted on May 31, 2019 by Jerry
What Do Americans Think of Religious Freedom and the Constitution?
Last week, I mentioned an extensive new poll conducted by the Barna polling firm. I noted the hostility liberals have toward religious freedom and Christianity that was revealed repeatedly in the poll.
Barna's poll involved over 70 questions covering constitutional terms, and phrases, religious terms, and feelings regarding monuments and public displays of religious content.
Every three years I have surveyed AFA of Indiana donors to see how we are doing as a policy organization and advocate. The results have been fairly consistent, but in the last two surveys the top issue of concern switched from abortion to religious freedom. For this reason, Barna's new research is of particular interest to me.
I have been digging into seven components of the study and over 30 pages of results and conclusions. Here are some of the findings of this unique national survey of US adults.
There is some significant ignorance of the U.S. Constitution that mirrors the media and cultural narrative in some ways. (The younger the person, the less knowledge they have.) For example, a high percentage of Americans (38%), did not know that the term "separation of church and state" does not appear anywhere in our founding document.
On a more positive note, nearly eight out of ten (77%) said the following statement is true: "The U.S. Constitution gives American citizens the freedom to experience and express their faith without government interference of any kind."
Seventy-five percent agreed with this statement: "The Founding Fathers never intended for anything in the U.S. Constitution to hinder the free practice, expression, or experience of religion."
Eight out of ten (81%) agreed with: "The sections of the U.S. Constitution regarding religion are meant to promote religious freedom, not to create religious penalties and punishments."
The survey also tested reactions to twenty religious and historic terms. The responses by demographics and ideological differences was often interesting. Four of the terms had very strong positive responses in which ideological differences had the smallest gap.
Liberty 83%
Freedom 80%
Religious Freedom 78%
Free Exercise of Religion 76%
Other terms' responses also received positive reactions such as:
War Heroes 73%
Jesus Christ 72%
Faith 72%
One Nation Under God 72%
In God We Trust 69% (our national motto)
The most ideological polarizing words and phrases were "Christian" which had a 39-point positive response difference between conservatives and liberals, "military" (33-point gap), "faith" (32-point gap), "Jesus Christ" (30-point gap), "Founding Fathers" (28-point gap) and "religion" (26-point gap).
Here are some of those specific wide differences in positive response:
Conservative Liberal
Christian 77% 38%
Religion 67% 41%
In God we trust 83% 49%
Military 83% 50%
Religious Liberty 69% 54%
Founding Fathers 86% 58%
In contrast, the terms "separation of church and state" and "humanist" were embraced by most liberals, but were rejected by a majority of conservatives as well as moderates.
Many cultural observers have noted the lack of faith among Millennials. The words and phrases that particularly bother this young demographic are "atheist" (although they had the most positive rating of any generation for that word), "Christian" (only 48% see this term positively), "constitutional", "military", "Founding Fathers", "humanist", and "in God we trust."
The term "secularism" and "atheist" had the most negative response across all demographic generations, with both terms receiving below 30% positive reactions.
Next week, I will reveal what Americans think of monuments and public displays with religious content, as well as religious speech, behavior and patriotic displays in the public square. I will also include survey results to questions about public controversy and views on legal attempts to remove such things.
Indiana Law Goes Before the U.S. Supreme Court
As you may have heard, yesterday the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a ruling on an Indiana abortion law that AFA-IN supported in 2016. The justices overturned a 7thCircuit ruling blocking a law allowing for the humane disposal, burial or cremation of an aborted child.
Largely unreported in this story was the background testimony before the Indiana General Assembly about local abortion clinics simply pouring the remains of children down drains or throwing them in the trash.
Senator Liz Brown noted, "This law creates rules for how to appropriately dispose of aborted fetal remains. Establishing standards brings respect to the woman, abortion staff and the aborted child. These standards require the facility to dispose of the baby's remains properly, unless the woman chooses to bury her baby."
The law was also passed in response to reports of Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion provider, selling aborted baby parts.
The Court recognized that this law in no way hinders a woman's "right" to abortion, which explains the strong 7-2 ruling.
However, that also explains why the court also let stand a ruling blocking another law (over the strong objection of Justice Clarence Thomas) that AFA-IN also supported. That law prohibited abortion for the reason of a child's race, sex, skin color or fetal abnormality such as Down Syndrome. One analyst described this as "a lethal discrimination."
It seems clear that the court has no interest in chipping away at Roe v. Wade right now. In my view, those hoping that the Supreme Court will overturn Roe when ruling on Alabama's law or several other states are going to be disappointed. I suspect, based upon yesterday's actions, they will let lower court rulings blocking these states stand, thereby punting on the question.
However, it is still possible that the court could revisit this question of discrimination or the use of abortion as a method of eugenics – giving birth only to a specific type of child based upon certain desired characteristics.
"This law and other laws like it promote a State's compelling interest in preventing abortion from becoming a tool of modern-day eugenics . . . Although the Court declines to wade into these issues today, we cannot avoid them forever. Having created the constitutional right to an abortion, this Court is dutybound to address its scope." – Justice Clarence Thomas, Box v. Planned Parenthood, May 28, 2019
AFA-IN Vote on In-Equality, Middle Class Mobility, Divorce & Men
US House Passes Dangerous In-Equality Act
As you know, on Friday the US House of Representatives passed H.R. 5 on a vote of 236 to 173. Every Democrat supported the bill that would punish people of faith who do not bow to the politics of the LGBT movement. Eight Republican members voted for this legislation, including Indiana Congresswoman Susan Brooks.
Among other things, H.R. 5 would undermine many legal precedents and exclusions including the Hobby Lobby decision that protected businesses from having to pay for abortion in their health care plans. H.R. 5 would also force businesses to pay for gender reassignment services in health care plans. It would also impact Christian school and college employment policies regarding human sexuality. It would implement affirmative action policies for those who identify as homosexual or transgender. H.R. 5 would also turn many school sports programs upside down by allowing biological males to compete in women's sporting events and to use their locker rooms and showers.
The bill was so extreme and punitive that even some supporters of the LGBT movement opposed the bill. University of Virginia law professor, Douglas Laycock, a supporter of same-sex marriage, told National Review that H.R. 5 would "crush" conscientious objectors. He explained its sinister nature in this way:
"It goes very far to stamp out religious exemptions. . . It regulates religious non-profits, and then it says that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act does not apply to any claim under the Equality Act. This would be the first time Congress has limited the reach of RFRA. This is not a good faith attempt to reconcile competing interests. It is an attempt by one side to grab all the disputed territory and to crush the other side."
Not a single Democrat anywhere in the US House stood up for religious freedom in this vote. Indiana Congressman Peter Visclosky, a co-sponsor of the legislation, told those who called his office that he supported H.R. 5 because he "is strongly opposed to all forms of discrimination." Of course, that is a total lie since H.R. 5 blatantly discriminates against millions of people of faith and any ministries, charities, non-profits or businesses run by them.
This confirms a new poll from George Barna on religious freedom which finds deep animosity toward faith, particularly toward Christians, among liberals. When asked about 20 different religious terms liberals had the most visceral negative reaction to the term "Christianity" and the one of the most positive reactions to the term "humanist." Only 38% view the term Christian positively, compared to 77% of those identifying as conservative. That was the largest gap (39 points) among the differing worldviews in the "terms perceived as positive by respondent's ideology" segment of the poll.
Hopefully the Senate leadership will reject even considering H.R. 5 as a viable bill. President Trump has expressed his opposition to the bill, but we will need to be ready to contact Indiana Senators Young and Braun about this legislation.
An Underreported Story of Racial Stereotypes
Some recent Census Bureau data may surprise some who have a certain view of African-American males that is often upheld in the media and pop culture. Today, more than one-in-two black males in America (57%) have made it into the middle class or higher as adults. This is up from just 38% in 1960. The share of black men who are poor has fallen from 41% in 1960 to 18% today.
While economic employment is a key to this success, there are other factors that are often overlooked. Marriage is one of those keys. Seventy percent of married black men are in the middle class, compared to only 20% of never-married black men. Church is another factor. Black men who frequently attended church services at a young age are more likely to reach the middle class or higher when they are in their fifties: 53% of those men who attended church as young men made it to that level, compared to 43% who did not. Military service has a positive impact too. Black men who served in the military are more likely to be in the middle class when they reach mid-life (54% vs. 45%) than those who did not serve.
As for the criminal justice system and black males, only 28% of black men who had contact with the criminal justice system when they were young have moved into the middle or upper class, whereas 52% of black men who had no contact with the criminal justice system at a younger age were in the middle class or higher.
In short, a very significant portion of black men in America are realizing the American Dream, most are not in poverty. As with all demographic groups, marriage and faith are positive components.
Divorce Hurts . . . Men Too
Many years ago, I wrote an extensive report on the subject of divorce titled "Shattered Dreams." I can remember after it's release spending several hours with a radio show host named Mike Pence discussing the research included in the nearly 40-page booklet.
Even in the 1990s there was a mountain of research on the societal costs of divorce and the impact of no-fault laws. The impact upon women, men and children has been well documented over the last forty years. Divorce often leads to negative economic harms for women and educational harms for children. We have all heard many of those studies and statistics.
A study from Binghampton University in New York looks at an often overlooked negative outcome for men. The study finds that while many women get hurt and recover, many men get hurt in a divorce and never recover. The study finds that while women may hurt more emotionally at the time of the breakup, men tend to regret divorce more than women do, and they take much longer to recover. Some never fully recover, they simply move on.
Most divorces are filed by women. It is likely that women are more divorce minded and farther down the emotional road than the man who may be surprised by the disruption or the sudden reality of the dissolution of the marriage.
One theory is that divorce is a bigger blow to a man's ego of which his relationship status plays a part as the relationship initiator, breadwinner, etc. Another theory is that women tend to have a larger emotional support group than their husband and thus they may bounce back faster or better because of this.
Obviously, this study involving 5,705 participants in 96 countries is a general finding. Many people, male or female, recover from divorce. Yet, it is hard to argue that in most cases, particularly when there is no physical violence involved, easy divorce has been a good thing for society.
"Turning a blind eye to evil, however, doesn't make it disappear. It allows it to grow. And those who allow evil to grow in order to protect their own convenience will be held accountable for the end results of the evil they facilitate." — Ben Shapiro
Alert: Stop Religious Persecution – Call Your Legislator Today!
URGENT ALERT:
Vice President Pence's Religious Persecution Warning is Already Here!
Hoosiers know that our own Mike Pence is one of the best orators in Washington, DC. It was no surprise to hear the positive reviews the Vice President received from his commencement speech at Liberty University on Saturday. If you have not read about this, you can watch his outstanding address here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XwJ_xgRliE
The Vice President warned the graduates of America's largest Christian university that if they live out their faith in a Biblically consistent manner, persecution is to be expected. This is a truth every discerning Christian should understand today. As Christ said in John 15:20, "A servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you."
Here is one of Pence's comments:
"Some of the loudest voices for tolerance today have little tolerance for traditional Christian beliefs. So, as you go about your daily life, just be ready. Because you're going to be asked not just to tolerate things that violate your faith; you're going to be asked to endorse them. You're going to be asked to bow down to the idols of the popular culture. . ."
His words are prophetic. This week, the US House is expected to vote on H.R. 5, the misnamed "Equality Act."
As my national office has warned, "The deceptive "Equality Act" is a religious liberty wrecking ball."
It would be hard to imagine a more anti-freedom bill than this one. This legislation would allow the government to discriminate against people of faith, bypassing the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and forcing people to violate their consciences or face the full weight of state punishment. I have often said that LGBT stands for "Let's Get Behind Tyranny." H.R. 5 is proof of where the sexual anarchy agenda is going.
Here are just a few of the many problems H.R. 5 could cause if enacted:
H.R. 5 would force Christian schools, ministries and churches to change their employment policies that are aligned with traditional teachings on sex, gender, and human sexuality.
H.R. 5 would force many faith-based organizations to pay for abortion in their health care plans by creating a right to demand abortion coverage from health care providers.
H.R. 5 would harm faith-based charities, such as adoption agencies, that believe in natural marriage and strive to place foster or adoptive children with a mother and father.
H.R. 5 would embolden those in Indiana who have been attempting to destroy our school voucher system by undermining the teachings of Christian schools on sexual behavior that have employment policies consistent with those beliefs.
H.R. 5 threatens the privacy and safety of women and children by forcing genderless bathrooms and showers upon sporting facilities, parks, rest areas and other public amenities.
Your US Representative needs to hear from you today. Here is a list of the Indiana House delegation. Do not assume that your member will vote for or against this dangerous legislation. Please contact them anyway. Ask them to protect religious freedom by voting "No" on H.R. 5.
1st Visclosky, Peter (202) 225-2461
2nd Walorski, Jackie (202) 225-3915
3rd Banks, Jim (202) 225-4436
4th Baird, James (202) 225-5037
5th Brooks, Susan W. (202) 225-2276
6th Pence, Greg (202) 225-3021
7th Carson, André (202) 225-4011
8th Bucshon, Larry (202) 225-4636
9th Hollingsworth, Trey (202) 225-5315
AFA-IN: Mental Health and Church Attendance
Posted on May 6, 2019 by Jerry
Mental Health, Society and Family Breakdown
One of the issues in the recently concluded 2019 Indiana General Assembly surrounded mental health problems in schools. As you may have read in our many email alerts, there was a heavy push to expand mental health exams, surveys, and outside referrals in schools. Some proposals would have required all 330,000 high school students to go through a mental health assessment. Another bill would have set up a massive database, tracking mental health issues and beliefs of all 900,000+ public school students in Indiana from birth through age 22.
AFA of Indiana had concerns with these efforts because the proponents of these measures often seemed to blame the family for all these problems and look to the government for all the solutions. One legislator boldly stated in her presentation of a bill, that "we (teachers) have to be the parents now."
AFA-IN has never denied that there are mental health problems in society. But we questioned the government's ability to fix this problem without involving parents, the very cornerstone of healthy families and children. (The government's track record on fixing any social ill is mediocre, at best.) Blaming parents for children with mental health issues may undermine the foremost, front-line institution that students most need to succeed.
There is an interesting article on mental illness from the Institute for Family Studies that asks a fascinating question. What if modern society is undermining the very institutions such as marriage, faith and community that have long upheld a healthy citizenry?
Researcher David Lapp writes:
"Mental illness is like any other bodily illness" is a common thing we say—and, in many ways, it's true. But what if modern society is also sick, tearing apart organic groups meant to grow and stick together? A mom and dad for a child, an extended family and a community to shelter the nuclear unit, and a web of meaning and support surrounding those core communities. What if there is something about modern life and modern family structures that make our brains more vulnerable to mental illness?
You can see Lapp's research and read his article, "The Mind in a Lonely Age" here:
https://ifstudies.org/blog/the-mind-in-a-lonely-age
Religious Holidays Are Important to Society
AFA-IN supporters are a diverse group in many ways such as age, income, demographic backgrounds, religious and policy beliefs. One thing that I really count as a blessing is that while there are times that I certainly express strong viewpoints, overall, I seldom receive harsh criticism from actual AFA-IN supporters.
There have been many times that I have hit the send button on these weekly emails wondering if I have doomed our future as an organization, worrying that we will lose donors by the droves after something I have written. That has never happened, in fact, it seems that when I am angry with our culture or political leaders, many of you are even more upset and thankful that I wrote what you felt.
I certainly get more than my share of hatred from those who hold a liberal worldview regarding the stands we take. That's just a reflection of our impact and the spiritual battles in which AFA-IN engages. I take those things in stride.
Yet, I always appreciate hearing where I may be mistaken from our supporters. Those who have held me accountable or had concerns about, or disagreements with, things I have said, have always been very gracious. I have learned as much from our supporters as some may have learned from my writings.
I have often told my staff that after years of surveying AFA of Indiana supporters there is only one thing that they all have in common. Almost every Sunday, they are in church.
Two weeks ago, Americans celebrated the Easter holidy. In fact, 80% of Americans celebrated Easter, though not all did so in a religious manner. Recent surveys showed that nearly half of all Americans had planned to attend church on Easter. According to the National Retail Federation, total spending for Easter, including purchases of apparel, decorations, gifts, candy, food, flowers and more, is more than $16 billion a year.
Clearly this religious holiday has a huge economic impact, but what impact does church attendance have? Attending a religious service on Easter or Christmas, the two Holidays when churches see the highest attendance, may not be life or society changing by itself, but it is something important to consider.
I recently put together a fact sheet on the importance of church. I intend to include this resource in a mailing this summer. (If any pastor, church leader or reader would like a copy of this now, feel free to email me.)
If you have ever wondered how important churches are, and maybe you did after seeing the tragic fire at Notre Dame Cathedral, here are just a few interesting research findings. These would also apply to regular attendance at temples, synagogues or mosques:
Couples who attend church regularly together and are more religious have, on average, higher-quality marriages, which can serve as a buffer against societal breakdown and the social ills connected with it.
Individuals who attend church regularly, compared to those who attend only rarely or never, are significantly less likely to engage in violent behavior against their partners.
Youth who participate in religious activity, such as prayer or reading or watching religious content, are less likely to display antisocial behavior.
Active faith matters to a healthy society. It is something to be encouraged rather than denigrated or dismissed.
"Human societies, like human beings, live by faith and die when faith dies." – Whittaker Chambers
Legislature Ends this Week – What Happened for Families?
Posted on April 25, 2019 by Jerry
A Mad Dash to the End
The Indiana General Assembly is rushing to end the 2019 session today. For those who support family values the session was mostly good. We had several positive things happen, but to use a football analogy, there was a painful fumble on the goal line when a touchdown for families seemed eminent at the end of the fourth quarter, as the clock ran out.
We were fighting hard to protect Hoosier families from having their children given psychological exams in school without parental consent. This battle for parental rights started when we began to see various bills heavily pushing mental health screenings, exams, and outside psychological counseling through the schools.
One bill that we did stop would have created a massive mental health data-tracking base of all 900,000+ Hoosier students from birth through age 22. We raised concerns about data security and mislabeling a child for life. Even editorial cartoonist Gary Varvel mocked this in an outstanding cartoon depicting a child on a psychologist's couch in school worried about being mislabeled for life.
The Indiana Senate did an excellent job with the leadership of Senators Jeff Raatz, and Dennis Kruse, the chair and former chair of the Education Committee. Together, they added the best parental rights language I had seen in 20 years into House Bill 1004. It would simply have made sure that parents are consulted and adequately involved in these sensitive non-academic issues. Nothing in their language prevented a teacher or guidance counselor from helping a child in a crisis or safety situation.
However, this language brought out into the open some anti-family and big government attitudes in its opponents. In the final step of passage, the House author and another legislator, both former school administrators, removed this language in what I perceived to be an underhanded, misleading manner. Many of our pro-family House members were actually led to believe that those actions were a positive step for families.
We had no control over what happened to HB 1004 behind closed doors on Monday and Tuesday. In addition to the bill being controlled by a big government House Republican, time was also running out.
This was a huge disappointment, but it did bring to light the intentions that many legislators, state agencies, and lobbyists have for schools becoming an agent of psychological and values transformation under the guise of mental health or school safety. Dozens more legislators now see the need for parental involvement in these efforts.
Social conservative leaders and legislators will come back to this important issue next year. Advance America and the Indiana Liberty Coalition were two of several groups that did an outstanding job educating many, and building a movement for this legislation.
At the bottom of this email is a good video from the Pioneer Institute explaining what we ran into this session in numerous bills, and why we wanted parents aware of and involved in these new mental health and values clarification efforts.
On the plus side, we had many legislative wins in the 2019 session. Although it wasn't needed due to the longstanding ability of Hoosier judges to enhance a sentence for any victim of a hate crime based upon our 2003 bias crime statute and a 2005 state supreme court ruling, we did prevent the legislature from passing a California-style hate crime law harming free speech or religious liberty.
We also saw the passage of two major pro-life bills, one protecting the rights of conscience for nurses, nurse practitioners, and pharmacists regarding abortion. The other bill bans the gruesome second-trimester dismemberment abortion procedure.
We also finally passed a bill requiring Indiana high school students to pass the same basic history and civics test that all new US citizens must pass, affirming the importance of civics education for graduates.
There was also a good welfare bill, which we supported, making it easier for the state to coordinate charity needs with churches wanting to help in this arena.
We also successfully protected the religious freedom of private schools through the defeat of efforts to force Christian schools to hire, (or be unable to fire), people embracing homosexual or transsexual lifestyles that contradict with the religious teachings of the school.
In spite of a growing presence of gun control advocates at the state house in the last few years, (backed by some national left-wing billionaires) there were also multiple pro-2nd Amendment bills passed this session.
Your support of AFA of Indiana had some very positive results this year. Your phone calls and emails to legislators had a huge impact in the passage of many good bills and the blocking of many bad proposals.
As always, if you would like to donate to support the work we do all year long in defense of truth and the principles that support a strong society and a free people, you can see several options for a tax-deductible gift at this link: https://www.afain.net/donation/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=32&v=6RUstt5FAT8
The Democratic Party, Mueller Report and Turning Back to God — Charisma News
Great article from a friend of mine!
https://www.charismanews.com/opinion/heres-the-deal/76041-the-democratic-party-mueller-report-and-turning-back-to-god?utm_source=Here%27s%20the%20Deal&utm_medium=email&utm_content=subscriber_id:818227&utm_campaign=Blogger%20-%20Larry%20Tomczak%20-%202019-04-22

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Friendship Heights, Maryland (U.S.)
Keywords: friendship heights | maryland | montgomery county |
image by Masao Okazaki, 16 April 2022
County and Municipal flags of Maryland
The village of Friendship Heights has informed me that it does not have a flag.
Valentin Poposki, 31 July 2010
Photos taken at Maryland Municipal League meetings show a flag now in use:
2014: https://www.mdmunicipal.org/PhotoGallery/28/MML%20monday63.JPG
2015: https://www.mdmunicipal.org/PhotoGallery/40/Monday325.JPG
The village seal: https://www.friendshipheightsmd.gov/Images/jrWebsiteFHVSeal.jpg
Masao Okazaki, 16 April 2022


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Mexican drug cartel death threatens TV anchor… What is the AMLO administration doing about it?
Azucena Uresti (Milienio)
Masked men claiming to be from Mexico's most powerful drug cartel have threatened to murder a television journalist over her "unfair" coverage of the gang in an extraordinary video message posted online.
The Jalisco New Generation group says that Milenio anchor Azucena Uresti has been biased in her reporting of the ongoing battle between the cartel and so-called "self-defense" vigilante groups in Michoacán and promised to make her "eat her words."
The threat has sent shockwaves through Mexican media. More than 120 journalists have been killed in the last 20 years and it is the most dangerous place in the world to be a reporter outside war zones.
On Tuesday, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said: "We are going to protect Azucena and we are going to protect all Mexicans. It is our responsibility so that they are not intimidated or threatened by anyone."
Uresti is one of Mexico's top television reporters, chairing presidential election debates and hosting an evening news program.
Men claiming to speak for the Jalisco New Generation cartel
The Jalisco New Generation cartel has surpassed 'El Chapo' Guzman's Sinaloa gang to become the most powerful in Mexico. It has blazed a bloody trail, killing judges, congressmen, dozens of police officers, and thousands of civilians. Its members once shot down a military helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade.
In a video shared on social media, a spokesperson for the group is surrounded by heavily armed men and says he is speaking on behalf of their leader, Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as El Mencho.
"I address this message directly to Milenio. I am not against freedom of expression, but I am against whoever attacks me directly,
"Azucena Uresti, wherever you are, I'll get you, and I will make you eat your words, even if they accuse me of femicide because you do not know me: Rubén Oseguera Cervantes.
"I am not a debt collector or extortionist, nor am I a kidnapper."
The cartel spokesperson said that the vigilante groups were drug traffickers, kidnappers, and extortionists and that only a criminal organization could afford the military equipment those forces had at their disposal.
Azucena's recent reporting focused on the astonishing rise of armed vigilante groups who say they have taken up arms to defend themselves against the cartel.
One vigilante told Ms Azucena that the cartel would "kill everyone" in the town if they managed to defeat those defending it.
Images that went viral online appear to show members of the New Generation Jalisco cartel dressed in military-style gear and brandishing arms
Samuel D. Henkin, a professor at the University of Maryland and expert on Mexican cartels, told The Telegraph that the Jalisco group is known for the spectacular.
"It uses the media to its advantage, whether it is posting videos of militarised members to drum up attention or making threats online."
Miss Uresti's report was "a blow to the cartel" because she legitimized the growing number of vigilante self-defense groups, he added, so they had to come out with a strong response.
On the rise of vigilante defenders, Mr Henkin said: "Community policing has been traditional, particularly in southern Mexico, for centuries.
"But we are seeing an increase in the paramilitarisation of these groups.
"There is evidence showing that other criminal groups will supply so-called 'auto-defensas' with weaponry if it is advantageous to their overall positioning and competition in the space."
Source: Telegraph UK
AzucenaAzucena UrestiCartel Jalisco New GenerationCJNGMIlenio TVUresti


The Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU), held their "First year Orientation week" from 26 January 2013 until 23 February 2013.
The orientation programme kicked off with the Welcoming Ceremony and Faculty Meet and Greet on Saturday, 26 January 2013. On the day of Welcoming Ceremony students and their parents were welcomed by the Vice-Chancellor (VC) Professor Derrick Swart via live stream in the North Campus Auditorium. After the VC addressed the students and their parents the Faculty meet and greet commenced where the acting Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Build Environments and Information Technology, Professor Rossouw von Solms addressed the students and their parents. After the acting Dean's address the students and their parents the students and parents were asked to divide into the different department of the Faculty. This would mean that the students and parents went into their chosen department of studies. After everybody has divided into smaller groups the students and their parents could meet the department and their lecturer's one on one.
The Department of Industrial Engineering all came together in M239. Mr Louw addressed the students and their parents (Meet-greet-Industrial-Engineering-(NEW)). Some of the main points of his address dealt with the organisational structure of the department, a map of the campus, different qualifications offered within the department and additional information about Industrial Engineering and wela.


What I can tell you now is that Samaria was remarkably open with me, a total stranger. I am always interested and honored when people I interview feel at ease enough to go off script, to keep going after our allotted time, to share with me some of the more personal details of their stories. In this case, I was bowled over by Samaria's willingness to speak candidly about the death of her son, and about the many kinds of trials she's endured in its wake. I will long remember her adaptability and determination.
As I continue to reflect on my talk with Samaria, I invite you to hear her in her own words in this story I wrote for ioby. Through June 25, Samaria is raising money to renovate the building that will become The Tamir Rice Afrocentric Center, a youth center she's founding in her son's name, as well as to host a Sweet Sixteen party for him at the Cleveland Museum of Art this very evening.
If you appreciate Samaria's work, please consider giving to her campaign.
For the back cover of the Spring 2018 issue of Sarah Lawrence magazine (theme: "democracy & education"), I had the great good fortune of interviewing SLC alumna Lauren Naturale, former Content and Social Media Manager for Merriam-Webster—aka the woman behind all those sassy tweets that helped get you through the beginning of the Trump administration. I'm not on Twitter much myself, but even I followed along.
In person, Lauren was even more incisive than her famous tweets, while also being warm and funny. Our conversation netted way more good material than the cover could contain, so my editor and I put together a fun "web extra" to take some of the spillover.
That would have been enough awesome for me for one issue. But I also got to write about the invincible Polly Hoben Greenberg, a college alumna and one of the brains behind the Child Development Group of Mississippi, which launched that state's Head Start program. Among other brilliant moves, Greenberg helped to recruit local black women with little formal education to lead those Head Start classrooms, and she produced an album of children's music that included many freedom songs and spirituals and was released by Folkways Records (now a part of the Smithsonian).
Definitely an embarrassment of riches now, right? But wait, folks—there's more!
The cover story of this issue is Moises Serrano, an imminent SLC alumnus and rising star activist for both Dreamers and LGBTQ rights. In anticipation of the issue coming out, Arthur and I watched the award-winning documentary Forbidden: Undocumented & Queer in Rural America, which follows Moises through several seasons of his life and work. About 15 minutes in, there's a scene in a small church in North Carolina where Moises is presenting about the lesser-known hardships many immigrant communities face, like depression and teen suicide.
"Hey, is that Zach?" we suddenly asked each other. We ran back the video and yep, there he was: Arthur's uncle Zach sitting in a pew, nodding thoughtfully to Moises' words. What were the chances?! Zach—a former minister, current health care justice advocate, and lifelong civil rights activist—showed up again thirty minutes later, in another clip from the church event. Guess great minds are bound to be in the same place at the same time.
While I think every issue of Sarah Lawrence is worth reading (and I'm not biased at all), this one makes some particularly good connections.
My Bushwick Daily cohort Nathan Wahl put together this cool "friends and strangers"-crowdsourced Medium post about Father's Day and invited us BD'ers to contribute.
Check out some heartwarming and bittersweet tales from people with dads nationwide, including a few lines I dashed off about my old man.
Happy Fathers' Day* to dad-dudes everywhere.
You're still gonna die someday, no matter who's president! Dem's da breaks, folks.
No one can game this system (well, maybe Elon Musk?), but we can go a long way toward making sure we shuffle off this mortal coil gracefully—at least with regard to our worldly stuff.
I recently spoke with an NYC-based estate law and probate attorney who gave me some good end-of-life planning tips that people of any age and economic status can use to help their friends and family avoid painful posthumous guesswork.
For her complete primer, and a few other attempts at making reading about wills and healthcare directives fun, you can peep my article in Bushwick Daily.
Oh, and as for that whole Trump-giving-everyone-suicidal-anxiety thing, here's a bit of a cheerer-upper. Today is The Ides of Trump! Send a postcard and take a deep, life-affirming breath.
When my friend Angela Altus—of Bushwick Daily and Shameless Photography—spread the word that she was looking for volunteers to man up in front of the camera for a project called "This is What a Feminist Looks Like," I was all ears.
"The purpose of the project is to showcase the many faces of feminism, and how shared values span gender, age, race and so much more," she wrote. While my combined characteristics peg me as just about the most predictable feminist in the world, I still wanted to represent! Thankfully, so did my fabulous husband.
The shoot took place at Shameless's awesome space in an old industrial building in Dumbo earlier this month (site of countless body-positive boudoir photo sessions!), and has so far resulted in some gorgeous documentation on the studio's website and Instagram; I wouldn't be surprised to find some of these brilliant shots on billboards soon!
Also: My friend Kaitlin Archambault of Incendiary Designs recently redesigned Angela's website. Wonderful, isn't it?


Written for the wine consumer, Wine Enthusiast magazine emphasizes the pleasures of the good life. Each issue of Wine Enthusiast focuses on travel, fine dining, and new wines.
"Excellent narrative of the best wines to enjoy at any budget level."
Who publishes Wine Enthusiast Magazine?
Wine Enthusiast Magazine is published by Wine Enthusiast Companies.
How often is Wine Enthusiast Magazine mailed?
Wine Enthusiast Magazine is printed and mailed Monthly.
If I order Wine Enthusiast Magazine today, when will my first issue arrive?
What is the Universal Magazine Code for Wine Enthusiast Magazine ?


text:
The biggest European Space Agency missions of the coming decade
ESA is due to play a leading role in exploration of the Moon, Solar System and the deeper Universe over the next 10 years.
By Ezzy Pearson
Published: February 26, 2020 at 6:03 pm
Late November 2019, science and finance ministers from all over Europe converged on Seville, Spain with one topic in mind – the European Space Agency (ESA). Every three years, ESA hosts a ministerial level meeting where government officials from all 22 member nations discuss what direction they believe the agency should be taking and, most importantly, hand over their money.
For Space19+, ESA had some ambitious plans to lay before its member states, and an equally ambitious funding request to make them happen.
ESA wanted around €14.5bn over the next three years, its largest increase in 25 years. With several nations exceeding this request – including the UK, which increased its contribution by 15%, bringing its pledge to £374m per year – the agency easily met its target, meaning all its missions were funded.
Read more about ESA missions:
ESA's Gaia: mapping the Milky Way
ARIEL: ESA's new exoplanet-hunting mission
Tim Peake's Soyuz returns to the Science Museum
These meetings are vital as they give ESA the assurance it needs to make long-term plans, knowing that it will be able to afford missions not just now but in the years and decades it takes to achieve them.
One of the biggest is Copernicus, an Earth observation campaign ESA runs alongside the European Union, which took up almost a third of the funding and actually received €400m more than requested.
"Europe, in a combination of Copernicus and other satellites, has a world leadership in Earth observation. The objective is to monitor the Earth system as a whole so that we can contribute information on how to preserve our planet and keep the damage we do to a minimum," says Josef Aschbacher, director of ESA's Earth observation programmes.
ESA's 22 member states approved record levels of funding for future space missions in November 2019. Credit: ESA/S.Corvaja
The project already has several satellites monitoring our planet but ESA wants to launch 6 more over the coming decade.
These will measure carbon dioxide levels, heat distribution, vegetation coverage, Arctic ice levels and humidity across the globe.
"Europe has a strong climate and green agenda," says Aschbacher. "We're helping politicians to make the best policy decisions to minimise our impact on the planet."
While Europe leads in tackling the climate crisis, there are other areas where it takes a supporting role.
When it comes to human spaceflight, ESA cannot compete with the likes of NASA, which spends more on the endeavour in one month than ESA does in a whole year.
Instead, ESA works with other nations to get European astronauts into space and the agency is keen to expand this role.
An artist's impression of the Orion spacecraft above the Moon. Credit: NASA/ESA/ATG Medialab
One key area ESA wants to get involved in is NASA's plan to build the Lunar Gateway, a permanent station in orbit around the Moon.
ESA already plays a part in the project by building the service modules for the Orion spacecraft that will take astronauts to the Gateway.
However, the agency has a barter agreement with NASA and gives these in exchange for carrying European astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS).
"Up until this ministerial we were just building the hardware and giving it to NASA," says David Parker, director of human and robotic exploration at ESA.
"We had no rights to use it. Now we have a plan to build elements of the Lunar Gateway and in exchange we will have the chance to fly ESA astronauts to the Gateway. It's our first step towards deep space exploration."
Europe will create a refuelling hub for the Gateway, where spacecraft bound for either the lunar surface or the return to Earth will be able to replenish their power and propulsion systems. That's due by 2027.
ESA will also work with JAXA, the Japanese space agency, to build a module where the astronauts will live, sending it to the Gateway in 2025.
In the meantime, ESA will continue sending astronauts to the ISS, learning how to live and work in space.
"Our plan is to make missions to the ISS with all our astronaut corps, including UK astronaut Tim Peake, by 2024, which is the current nominal end of the station," says Parker.
"We fully expect it to continue beyond that date though, so we're investing in modernising the European-built Columbus laboratory."
An artist's impression of the Fetch Rover on Mars. Credit: ESA/ATG Medialab
ESA will also be working with NASA on another long-term project: returning samples from the surface of Mars.
In July 2020, NASA plans on sending the Mars 2020 rover to the Red Planet to collect rock samples.
It will seal these up in tubes that will be left on the surface for a future mission to pick up, which ESA will be a part of.
"We will build a Fetch Rover. This won't have any scientific instruments itself but will have a very sophisticated autonomous navigation and driving facility," says Parker.
The rover will run around the Martian surface collecting the tubes before returning to its base station, where a European-built robot arm will load them into a small rocket. This will then launch its Martian cargo into orbit.
"Having done all that there's an interplanetary pass-the-parcel. The sample container ejects into orbit around Mars, breaking the chain of contamination between the outside of the lander, the rovers and the Mars ascent vehicle. Then we can collect that with a return orbiter which captures the container," says Parker.
This return orbiter will again be built by ESA. Sample collected, it will return to Earth. Once safely on the ground, these rocks will be sent to the world's premier laboratories for study.
"This represents a commitment of about €1.5bn from Europe, the first third has been approved at this ministerial," says Parker.
Asteroid impact
An artist's impression of Hera at asteroid Didymos. Credit: ESA–ScienceOffice.org
As well as these long-term campaigns, the agency is mounting several stand-alone science missions.
One is another joint endeavour with NASA, the Hera mission, which will investigate how we might one day deflect a potentially civilisation-killing space rock.
NASA will start the project by crashing a spacecraft, known as DART, into the moon of asteroid Didymos. Earth observatories will watch the pair to see how the impact affects the Moon's orbit.
In 2024, ESA will send the Hera spacecraft to get a closer look. The initial plan was for the ESA mission to arrive before DART, but the project had to be scaled back after it failed to reach its funding targets at the last ministerial meeting in 2016.
An artist's impression of the Athena spacecraft. Credit: IRAP, CNES, ESA & ACO.
ESA is also mounting two missions that will take a look beyond the Solar System, into the distant Universe.
They are part of the agency's ongoing Cosmic Vision initiative, which aims to scientifically explore all aspects of the cosmos around us.
Due for launch in 2031 is the Athena X-ray telescope. As X-ray light is only produced by extremely hot objects, Athena will be able to see the hot clouds of gas which are thought to contain most of the Universe's ordinary matter.
This gas, known as the intergalactic medium, streams between galaxies. One of Athena's main tasks is to map this out.
The observatory will also look within galaxies, searching out the hot gas which swirls around the supermassive black holes at their heart.
In both cases, Athena will look deep into the Universe. These objects are so far away that we are only now seeing the light they emitted billions of years ago as the galaxies were forming, giving us a window into this critical time in the growth of the cosmos.
LISA will provide astronomers with a space-based gravitational wave observatory. Credit: AEI/Milde Marketing/Exozet
Finally, the ministerial meeting granted funds to develop the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) for launch in 2034.
The goal of the mission is to create a gravitational wave detector made of three separate spacecraft, flying in formation 2.5 million km apart.
LISA will search for passing gravitational waves by using lasers to measure the distance between these probes with a great degree of precision.
When a wave passes through, it will change this distance by a tiny, but measurable, amount allowing astronomers to tell that a wave has passed.
This is the same principal ground observatories used to make the first gravitational wave detection in 2015, but as LISA is in space it will be free of the seismic shaking that muddies the results of Earth-based detectors.
This means LISA will be sensitive to much smaller waves, such as those created by collisions between stellar-sized black holes or those which have been travelling for billions of years.
While these missions are still years away from being realised, the ministerial meeting has shown that ESA and Europe have a firm commitment to becoming one of the major players in all areas of space exploration.
An artist's impression of the JUICE spacecraft exploring Jupiter. Credit: Spacecraft: ESA/ATG medialab; Jupiter: NASA/ESA/J. Nichols (University of Leicester); Ganymede: NASA/JPL; Io: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; Callisto and Europa: NASA/JPL/DLR
ESA: the next 15 years
2020 – Solar Orbiter a Sun orbiter, examining the inner heliosphere – the bubble created by the solar wind. It will be the first mission to explore the Sun's poles.
2020 – Rosalind Franklin a Mars rover with a 2m-long drill to look below the planet's surface, where biomarkers could survive the Sun's radiation.
2022 – Euclid will study cosmic structure from the second Lagrangian point (L2), looking at galaxies and clusters to a distance of 10 billion years.
2022 – Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) a spacecraft that will examine the gas giant and its three largest icy moons; Ganymede, Callisto and Europa.
2023 – Solar Wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer (SMILE) a joint mission with China to explore the connection between Earth and the Sun.
2024 – Hera bound for asteroid Didymos, the spacecraft will investigate how a future mission could one day deflect a civilisation-killing asteroid.
2026 – Planetary Transits and Oscillations of Stars (PLATO) exoplanet-hunting mission based at L2, looking for worlds in the habitable zone of Sun-like stars.
2028 – Atmospheric Remote-sensing Infrared Exoplanet Large-survey (ARIEL) will examine the atmospheres of 1,000 exoplanets from L2.
~2030 – Mars Sample Return a multi-part mission bound for the Red Planet, which will return the rock and dust samples cached by Mars 2020.
2031 – Athena X-ray telescope based at L2 that will map out hot clouds of gas throughout the Universe and around black holes.
2034 – Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) a trio of spacecraft that will trail behind Earth, detecting small and weak gravitational waves.
Elizabeth Pearson is BBC Sky at Night Magazine's News Editor. This article originally appeared in the March 2020 issue of BBC Sky at Night Magazine.
Ezzy Pearson
Ezzy Pearson is the News Editor of BBC Sky at Night Magazine. Her first book about the history of robotic planetary landers is out now from The History Press.


With AMD Ryzen™ Processors on the horizon, the clear question on everyone's minds is this: "Where does that leave AMD FX™ Processors?" After all, Ryzen will be AMD's latest processor, it will change the processor landscape, and offers choice to gamers and prosumers alike. With a strong ecosystem already in place, Ryzen is poised to be one of AMD's most anticipated and successful launches to date.
The AMD FX Processor: What Role Does It Play in Today's Markets?
AMD FX Processors will continue to co-exist with Ryzen in 2017 as the market continues to need DDR3 platforms at the mainstream and performance segment price points.
As modern games transition to low level APIs and use more threads, the AMD strategy of "more cores at the price point" is expected to deliver competitive performance in the latest, greatest, gaming titles. The AMD FX Processor remains a strong and viable product line in AMD's roadmap.
Furthermore, as game developers and programmers adopt multi-core usage, AMD FX Processors become even more potent and relevant, due to their array of multiple cores and high clock speeds.
Lastly, let's consider its position in relation to Ryzen. While it's clear Ryzen processors will offer high frequencies, AMD FX processors are not targeting the same enthusiast gamer and prosumer markets. AMD Ryzen augments the current AMD processor line. At AMD's Path to Zen event, New Horizon event, and at CES, AMD has demonstrated that Ryzen can match or even outperform the competition in gaming, prosumer apps, and gaming with streaming, reaching those enthusiast gamer and prosumer markets.
Who Wants An AMD FX Processor?
While many system integrators and DIYers enjoy building the latest, most spec'd out rig, they're just one segment of the market that requires extreme performance.
Many customers are still looking for reliable, strong, and capable processors at a great price, and in this space, it's hard to beat AMD FX.
As one of AMDs strongest and most reliable processors, AMD FX Processors remain a viable product offering from AMD. Providing powerful performance at very competitive prices, AMD Ryzen™ processors shouldn't be seen as a competitor to AMD FX, but an addition to AMD's roadmap.


Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by red_spork, Jan 31, 2019.
The coin I'm sharing today is from a series I've been watching out for for quite some time and wasn't sure I'd ever be able to add to my collection. I was outbid for another(nicer) example of this type in CNG e-auction 408(by Clio himself if memory serves me right) and didn't expect to see another any time soon, so I was ecstatic when I found this coin on MA-Shops earlier this month. Even though it is worn and with a terribly struck reverse I didn't hesitate to buy it at all one I was certain of what it was.
This type and the series it is from was only relatively recently identified as a separate series from the Apulian spearhead bronzes(Crawford 88) by Roberto Russo in his 1998 paper on unpublished bronzes in Essays Hersh. Russo actually identified 3 different spearhead bronze series which he called 88A(the Apulian series), 88B(this series) and 88C(a later, likely post Second Punic War series). Since then, Andrew McCabe has shown rather convincingly that this "88B" series is linked, along with the bulk of the spearhead quinarii, by style and flan manufacture to the Crawford 63-65 Sardinian Praetor issues with C, MA and AVR mintmarks of circa 211-209 B.C.. Since those series are securely dated to 211-209 B.C., this series should probably be placed either in 212 B.C. or 208 B.C.. McCabe actually suggests it is perhaps related to the Apulian series by way of a common commander who directed armies in both theaters and reused the spearhead symbol.
While the sextantes of the Sardinian Praetor issues are all very common, these related spearhead sextantes are extremely rare with less than ten examples known to me, and only two die pairs. While the related spearhead quinarii are themselves rare, they are considerably more common than the extremely rare Sardinian Praetor quinarii issues. The reasons for this imbalance are a mystery to me but perhaps point to changing coinage needs as the Second Punic War progressed.
Roman Republic Æ Sextans(7.45g, 19mm, 7h). Anonymous, Spearhead series, circa 212-207 B.C., Sardinian mint. Head of Mercury right; above, two pellets / Prow right; above, ROMA; before, spearhead; below, two pellets. Russo, Essays Hersh, 52(same reverse die), Cf. Crawford 88/7. Cf. McCabe "The Roman Struck Bronze Coinage of Apulia in the Second Punic War", INC Taormina 2015, for attribution to Sardinia.
2. Andrew McCabe "The Roman Bronze Coinage struck in Apulia and South East Italy in the Second Punic War," in Proceedings XV International Numismatic Congress Taormina 2015. Paper available here and presentation(with lots of illustrations) here.
Michael Stolt, randygeki, Fugio1 and 18 others like this.
Great website and republican collection !
The most easily spotted differences are the relative size of wings on Mercury's petasos, the style of the bust truncation, the size of the prow stem(note the relatively thin prow stem on the top example) and the overall style of the prow where the top example is largely made of raised lines whereas the bottom example has much more of the design raised from the coin rather than just a few lines if that makes any sense.
dadams, Ryro, Alegandron and 3 others like this.
Great write up red_spork , what is the meaning of the vertical AR , reverse in the right field on the last sextans ?
And it looks like the coin you lost to Clio is tooled imho, especially the petalos.
dadams, Ryro, Alegandron and 2 others like this.
The scratches on the Petasos are a bit strange but I've seen a more updated higher resolution image of the Russo example, a double die match, and while there is some wear and corrosion on the Petasos making it hard to determine if those were possible die artifacts or not, the coin overall is not tooled in my opinion.
That said, I am quite happy with my example as the cost was far lower than what the CNG example would have cost had I won it at my max bid and I managed to win another excellent coin in that sale.
As far as the AVR on my sextans in the later post that stands for Aurunculeius. The "Sardinian Praetor" bronzes are composed of 3 series of similar style and commonly found in Sardinia but with different letters on them: "C", "MA" and "AVR". These almost certainly stand for "Cornelius", "Manlius" and "Aurunculeius" whom are recorded as the Sardinian Praetors for 211, 210 and 209-208 B.C., respectively.
dadams, rrdenarius and Andres2 like this.
Gosh @red_spork , really cool sextans. You know how much I enjoy the Republic...but it is fun to learn from all the research you do! I appreciate all your input!
Andres2, dadams, Ryro and 3 others like this.
Roman Republic Æ Sextans, Anonymous MA series, [probably P. Manlius Vulso]. Sardinia mint. Circa 210 BC.
Johndakerftw, Andres2, Bing and 1 other person like this.
That's a very nice example of that type. Not sure if you're aware but these are all or almost all overstruck on Sardo-Punic bronzes. I can't tell what yours is overstruck on but it definitely has hints of overstriking and might yield the undertype given enough time and squinting.


Any suggestions for optimal soundhole sizes for concerts and tenors. I am currently building a concert and planning on 2 1/4". Sound about right?
I would like to build a tenor next and I was thinking about going with a 2 1/2" soundhole, but I was also considering 2 5/8" or even 2 3/4".
I am not an expert on theory, but my understanding is that if it is too small, the sound can't get out, and if it is too big, the soundboard can't do its job right. Does that make sense?
I would suggest you look at the Martin ukes and study their design. Its a great starting place. I will say this about sound hole size: too small a sound hole lowers the resonance and can muffle the sound, depending on wood and body depth and size. Too large a sound hole seems the brighten the sound and gives a false sense of volume IMO, (many new builders fall into this trap).
Hope this link help you a bit.
You may not only consider about the loudness factor on this situation.
Thank you all for your input. I liked that link with the different dimensions for each size of uke. I have always thought it would be interesting to buy that Left Brain Luthier book. The author seems to be really sharp.
I think I am going to go with 2 1/4" on my concert and 2 1/2" on my tenor. I will keep you posted after I give it a shot. Thanks.
The sound hole diameter on my Martin Tenor is 2-5/8".
Yup. You won the internet today.
It seemed funnier last night.. I should have locked the keyboard up after work. The pain meds I am on right now made it seem funny at the time. I smashed my foot with a heavy board 2 weeks ago, resulting in a couple of broken toes and some other fractures.
This one is easier than the bridge position question. Make a uke with an over-size soundhole, then a set of plugs with various size ports. If there is a difference, permanently mount the one that sounds best. You may never figure out why its best, but you will know the proper size soundhole for that model. Its the curse of some intellects to have to track down every last variable in a project before beginning. The rest of us will just crank out a bunch of ukes and settle on what seems to work best. Neither path is better, we just have to have our own kind of fun.


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Look up, up, up! How do skyscrapers get so tall? Skyscrapers are amazing feats of engineering that kids (and adults!) find fascinating. How do they get so high? How do they stay standing? Who is involved in designing and building these gravity-defying structures?
In Skyscrapers! With 25 Science Projects for Kids,elementary-aged kids learn about the principles of engineering that are used in building skyscrapers, as well as the history of skyscrapers themselves. Readers also explore the kinds of professionals that contribute to the raising of a skyscraper, from engineers to architects to constructions teams. To answer the burning question on every young engineer's mind-how do skyscrapers stay standing?-readers discover the important designs used to build tall buildings, including the tube frame, the bundled tube frame, and x-bracing. And by following the evolution of skyscraper design, STEAM-focused students learn how structures have become more stable and more complex through the introduction of design elements and new materials.
STEAM projects for kids, including experiments with earthquake-resistant materials, testing the relative strength of different shapes, and discovering the effect of vibration on structures, offer a unique, interactive learning experience, while links to primary sources offer ample opportunity for further student-led exploration. Fun facts, engaging illustrations, timeline, glossary, and resources keep kids wanting to learn more about engineering design.
Skyscrapers! is part of a set of four Explore Engineering books. In the Explore Engineering series, readers ages 7 to 10 learn the physics behind the things they build: Why does a tower of blocks eventually fall? Why does a tunnel sometimes cave in? Through a series of focused, science-minded activities that require critical thinking paired with creative trial-and-error attempts at building, readers develop foundational understanding of the physics that guides the building and maintenance of bridges, canals, tunnels, and skyscrapers. Other titles in the Explore Engineering set include Bridges!, Canals and Dams!, and Tunnels!


Republic of Cyprus is an island country in the Eastern Mediterranean and the third largest and third most populous island in the Mediterranean. Cyprus is located in Western Asia, south of Turkey, west of Syria and Lebanon, northwest of Israel, north of Egypt, and southeast of Greece.
Cyprus occupies an important role in Greek mythology being the birthplace of Aphrodite and Adonis.
Cyprus is home to some of the oldest water wells in the world.Cyprus was settled by Mycenaean Greeks in two waves in the 2nd millennium BC. As a strategic location in the Middle East, it was subsequently occupied by several major powers, including the empires of the Assyrians, Egyptians and Persians, from whom the island was seized by Alexander the Great. Subsequent rule by Ptolemaic Egypt, the Classical and Eastern Roman Empire, Arab caliphates for a short period, the French Lusignan dynasty and the Venetians.
* Cyprus has a low living cost.
* IAL Research Grants For Doctoral Studies.
* POGO-SCOR Visiting Fellowships For Developing Countries 2018.
working part-time while you're studying. International students have the right to work while studying in Poland as long as they are enrolled in an Institution. Students who are not nationals of EU member countries must also hold a valid residency permit.
Once a dependent reaches Cyprus, he/she can apply for a full time job. If lucky enough to land a job in Cyprus, dependent can then apply for a temporary residence card (TRC) in Cyprus. It will allow a dependent to stay in Cyprus and work for as long as their spouse is studying in Cyprus on student visa.


Royalty-free vector clipart available for digital download of a stylized line illustration of a male tennis player executing a backhand volley. Inside the ZIP file are royalty-free versions of this design with and without a transparent background in EPS, JPG and PNG formats. Upon purchase you will be shown a link to download the ZIP file. The link will be active for 24 hours after you access the file the first time.