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Home » Economy » The freedom from hunger that is not realy free
The freedom from hunger that is not realy free
EconomyGeneralHuman Rights
By John Riaga
Article 43 (C) of the Kenyan constitution guarantees every citizen the freedom from hunger and a right to adequate and acceptable quality food. As a part of the Bill of Rights, this is, therefore, a constitutional right just as is the right to shelter, freedom of association and the other freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights.
Successive governments in Kenya and across the region have deliberately ignored this right to food by failing to provide policies that would operationalise it in law and consequently, ensure that everyone has access to quality food.
According to former President of the East Africa Law Society, James Mwamu, citizens should take Government to task and demand that the provision of these laws be fully met. He argues that the Kenyan Government should be pushed to put in place policies that respect the legislation. 'Citizens have the right to go to court through public interest litigation and sue the government for breaking the law, [forcing government] to institute policies that guarantee the right to adequate and quality food,' he commented.
However, this has never been achieved because the Kenyan Government's perspective is that it is a matter for the judiciary. A test case brought by the Consumer Federation of Kenya (COFEK) in 2011 against the Kenyan Government over a rise in fuel prices which increased the price of food as well, failed in the vagaries of how the Kenyan Government was to fulfil its constitutional obligations.
Mwamu says, locals in Kenya should consider urgently taking their government to task since the state has never taken any measures to ensure that even the farming population is educated on good agricultural practices to ensure the country's food security.
He said that in a country and a region that is prone to extreme weather conditions, it should be incumbent upon policymakers to reach out to farmers and educate them on what food crops to grow in what seasons and on how to deal with climate and weather problems. Kenyan farmers especially, as well as the wider populace, face hardships when it rains heavily and also when the sun shines too much and there is drought, causing huge losses that impact subsistence and small-scale farmers. The sum total is that most people in Kenya go hungry on a daily basis.
Mwamu says that though Uganda and Tanzania are doing slightly better than their neighbour Kenya, they too have their fair share of the blame when it comes to their citizens' access to sustainable, quality and available food.
Uganda is ahead of Kenya in terms of food security because it has simplified agricultural policies that have made it easy for small scale farmers to produce food. Farmers in Uganda have access to cheap farm inputs and the Government assists those who produce for the export markets by cushioning them from exorbitant rates. The Ugandan nation produces ground nuts and other major food crops in large quantities.
Tanzania on the other hand is slowly improving its agricultural production having been adversely affected by the famous Ujamaa system of farming. The system advocated for a 'brotherhood' approach to farming, where land belonged to a community that tilled and grew the food. The country has since abandoned the system. The Ujamaa system encouraged collective ownership of farmland, but this led to poor management since there was no direct responsibility bestowed upon any individual to oversee and ensure the production of crops.
The issues around the right to food have also been picked up by child rights defenders. Caroline Awuor who works for Lwala Community Alliance under its Early Child Development Program says that a lot of children have their development compromised due to poor diet in their formative years.
She says, "In a country where many are not able to access adequate nutritional foods, it is even bleaker to get infants on a diet that would ensure their proper growth."
Caroline agrees with assertions that if the government carefully considered Article 43 of the constitution, early child development would be boosted further because the question of proper diet for children will have been resolved.
Along with the issues in Kenya and the other factors across the region, Mwamu says, 'Corruption is the other monster that has ensured people are perennially hungry and in need of relief food. Corruption is manifested in different ways including illegally importing food that is produced locally, inflating the price of fertiliser, farm inputs and seeds making it basically impossible for a simple farmer to feed even a nuclear family.'
Unfair trade competitions among the countries resulting in non-tariff barriers have also been cited as a reason for poor food security in the region. Food items cannot be freely moved from one country to another because the countries have each imposed exorbitant levies that target imports from its neighbours. For example, if Tanzania produces bananas in bulk in the regions around Mt. Meru, it should supply Kenya while Kenya supplies it with sweet potato for instance. The fair exchange of commodities between neighbours does not happen as it should. This has been attributed to the long-standing boundary and political disputes that have never been resolved like the Migingo Island dispute between Kenya and Uganda.
The other factor that cannot be wished away when talking about the quality of food is its safety. Most of Africa has served as either a dumping ground or a testing laboratory for foods and commodities with questionable safety standards.
Recently in Kenya, a group of activists drawn from organizations advocating for food safety petitioned the country's National Biosafety Authority to stop an impending ?allowance for the cultivation of a variety of cassava said to be resistant to the Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) a viral disease that only exists in East Africa.
They blamed the country's leaders for taking advantage of a dire need for food rations in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic to introduce foods that would end up harming the very people, they purport to be protecting from lack of adequate and quality food. According to them, the quality of the GMO cassava had not been declared and if not safe, would harm many people.
The activists, drawn from a number of local non-governmental organizations, were reacting to an application by Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) for environmental release and commercialization of brown streak disease (CBSD) resistant cassava line 4046 submitted to the National Biosafety Authority.
Apart from the public litigation that Mwamu suggested, the media has been brought on board by local and international organisations and encouraged tell stories in ways that farmers understand.
The Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (MESHA) is an association that brings together journalists from mostly rural Kenya with collaborations in East, Central and West Africa. The association promotes journalism that would benefit farmers as well as target policymakers in government.
Allan Obiero, the MESHA National Vice Chairman says that the association brings together journalists who specialise in all the four spheres of health, environment, science and agriculture. He said that each thematic area has a team of specialized reporters and that agriculture is not left behind.
'We only write articles on farming and food production. At MESHA, we consider this our small way of contributing to the society to ensure that people in the region are able to farm and have enough food for consumption and even for sale, in case of surplus production,' Obiero says.
MESHA has been able to link agricultural organizations, seed companies and other stakeholders with journalists who then break down their complex agricultural science into simple language that rural farmers can understand and use to improve their farming. This could be information about new crop varieties and seeds, improved technology in farming and new practices.
Obiero said suggests that lack of adequate and quality food could be attributed to most farmers still relying on old farming methods, even as things have really changed over the years.
He said, 'We are also cognizant of the fact that our governments in the region are not very good with observing their own constitutions and policies and hence some of us engage in activism journalism even as we push them to ensure such provisions of the law is upheld.'
With such a multifaceted approach, Mwamu believes that East Africa has the capacity to change its course when it comes to food security. He singled out civilian activism, the media and other arms of government coming together to ensure the right to food is accorded to everyone.
'I would want to see people going to court to challenge the government on this matter. The media should also sustain what they are doing in empowering local farmers while at the same time putting pressure on governments to at least respect the laws and policies as they are already put in black and white,' he states.
Governments should make deliberate efforts to ensure that their people are not deprived of the basic human right of access to food. It is the highest level of indignity to watch a section of the populace starving in one corner of the country yet in another surplus food goes to waste. For instance, when milk producers in Central Kenya have excess milk to the point of pouring out the excess, while Kenyans in the Northern part suffer acute hunger because there is no food, it portrays the picture of a government that has not prioritized the right to food for all citizens.
Cover Photo by David Cashbaugh on Unsplash


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Q: For loops exercise in matlab i am a beginner in MATLAB and i am asked to do an exercise to learn for loops. I have 5 numbers , 1 till 5 ( 1 , 2 ,3 ,4 ,5) and each of this number will exhibit a transformation process that consists of four stages such that for example  for 5  ( 5 will be --> 5( at the end of first stage) 4 ( at the end of second stage  3( third stage ) 2( second stage) 1 ( first stage)) , for 4 ( 4 ,4 ,3,2 ) , for 3 ( 3 , 3 ,3 ,2) , for 2 ( 2 ,2 ,2 ,1 ) and for 1 ( 1 1 1 1) . I need to output ( for each number ) the result at each iteration ( for example for 5 --> 5 ( iteration 1) , 4 (iteration 2 ) and so on ) , so can any one help me in this exercise ? Its confusing for me as a beginner . Thank you

A: Check out the for loop on mathworks.
It isn't particularly clear what you are asking, I suggest editing your question to make it clear what you want to do and what the problem you are having in doing that.
It seems like you should use just one for loop. You could subtract 1 from each element on each loop, but put a restriction in so the element won't go to zero. To help with that, you could use the find function to get the index of each element then inside the for loop you'd include a restriction if the element goes <1 set the element =1. That way you'll end up with all elements equal to 1 at the end of the iteration if run for 5 steps.
To output the iteration number each time, simply just put whichever variable you are iterating over inside the loop.
for n=5:-1:1 %decrements from 5 to 1
     A-1;    %A is the vector you started with
     n    %by not suppressing the output with a semicolon will show the                          value of n in the command window. You could also use disp(n)
     indZeroEl = find(A==0);    %the index of any element equal to zero
     A(indZeroEL) = 1;
end
I haven't got access to matlab right now to check this, but this should at least get you on the right lines.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


"Where am I?" I'd wonder, once again awakening cold and shivering. It was then, looking up, I'd see the specter of my nightmares – the Picket Range looming overhead, beguiling me with her contours of ridge and arcs of slope. Answering my own question, sprinkled with obscenities, I'd try to fall back asleep, sporadically waking over and again, each time grasping that I was indeed in the Pickets and scared as hell they'd keep me there forever entombed in those moonlit fingers of snow and ice.
For six days, Forest and I would cross Stetattle Ridge, down into McMillan Cirque, over Mount Fury, down into Luna Cirque, over Mount Challenger, down Perfect Pass, then out via the Mineral High Route to Hannegan Pass Road. We would complete a high traverse of the Picket Range in the middle of winter, crossing perhaps 50 miles of some of the most wild and remote mountains in the lower 48.
Monday morning, before the trip, I'm staring at an e-mail from a guy I don't know. It says, "I'm headed to the Pickets for a ski traverse during the approaching high pressure system, and I'm looking for a partner." Forest McBrian turns out to be a single test away from becoming a fully certified AMGA guide; he will be one of a handful in the entire country to receive all three certifications. Having completed his alpine and rock climbing disciplines, he has one remaining – ski mountaineering. I can attest that he won't have much difficulty passing, and I couldn't have asked for a better partner for a journey such as this.
In May, 1985 Jens Kieler along with brothers Carl and Lowell Skoog pioneered a ski traverse through the esoteric Picket Range. They would be the inspiration for our trip. In the quarter century since, to their knowledge, no one has repeated this impressive feat. You can read more about their adventure in the 1986 article Lowell wrote for Rock and Ice Magazine (see link). Lowell says near the conclusion of his article, "…as we plodded slowly down the steep trail to Diablo, our legs were wobbly, our hands and faces sunburned, and our feet aching. But our mountain souls were soaring. We had skied the Pickets, and in so doing had found the climax of the North Cascade high routes." My hope was that our mountain souls would also soar and stay aloft through any number of failures that could beset us and force an early retreat.
Leaving Diablo Lake at the 900-ft elevation with skis and boots, overnight gear, and a healthy dose of optimism, Forest and I, joined by Kyle, would begin our climb through thick woods along a steeply winding trail up to Stetattle Ridge, near where beat poet Gary Snyder spent the summer of 1953 as a fire lookout. His story among others is featured in the book, Poets on the Peaks. As we raise high enough to put on our skins, and higher still where we could peer over ridge top, I could understand why vistas such as these would inspire poetry. Their fire and brimstone, brick and mortar gathers up your breath and steals it away, sheltering you with only their shadows.
I often become lost on my hike forward, up and down ridge, ever nearing the heart of the range. There are times I look deep into mountains such as these, noticing not just a peak, but arms and legs, torsos and heads; where one mountain begins another peeks out, so much so that within this tightly bound range there are at least 21 summits over 7500 feet high. I can imagine there ahead of me, then, the convolution of alpine seductiveness! So far I've seen no place more promiscuous than the Picket Range. As I carve out my bed from the snow and set up my bivy, I could only think about getting closer … much closer.
In the following day and a half feet and skis reach forward, and then pull back … forward and back, over and again. Terrain rolls away before eyes. Overhead, up beneath McMillan Spires, a spine of rock and snow bristle with trees. It's amazing where a tree will gain purchase. There is no better example of this tenacity than in the depths of the North Cascades where avalanches, icefall, and glaciers encroach on every aspect. Where life has a will, there is a way.
Night grows out of shadows like ninjas crawling up from the valleys, cornering us to our bivies, or as I joke to Kyle, "…our ice coffins." Stoves roar and cooking persists for an hour. Stars tumble from the moon's glow as the night goes on and on and on – too much for a man to sleep.
Early morning on our third day brings warmth as our bodies begin to move. A few hours work and we look down into McMillan Creek Cirque, our three brains firing off – dismantling confidence with the same ire of a bomb specialist in the midst of disarming a potentially destructive device. Each thought of ours rings with a similar note. "Oh my God, I go down there, I am committed!" This is the bomb in the closet: red or green wire? Five, four, three, two and CUT. Then the countdown shutters to a stop. Kyle finds his splitboard the wrong tool for the job – it is like riding a mountain bike alongside a road bike on the highway. Each section of hard snow, ice, avy debris has him stymied. This traverse is not a place for a boarder, and he knows it. Our ski edges gain purchase where his simply can't. So Forest and I bid farewell to him as he turns back the way we came. It only takes a moment. I look around and he is gone. Up ahead I still think, "I must get closer!" So close now, I can feel the cold breath of wind sucking me in.
The edge of McMillan Creek Cirque, where we perch, is dominated by cornices. They reach over the shadowed confines of this massive valley. Their unknown challenges sprinkled throughout. Forest drops in with a push and I follow. Negative thoughts of being stranded by foul weather and days of retreat through jungle corridors rankle our self-assurance. Yet, uncertainty is the great mediator. It unclogs the moment and asserts her presence with each turn downward from the untenable slurry of responsibility.
With the north cirque walls an hour behind us, all looming and domineering, the sun breaks out from behind Mount Terror and splashes the few precious hours of daily light this valley receives per day. On warming rocks next to a gurgling stream our gear scatters, boots come off and not much is said. Continuing on warming south faces will wait until tomorrow. With satisfaction I pull up another bottle of clean, crisp water and watch light roll in like ocean waves. Bathing in it, all worries scatter.
The descent and climb up to Luna-Fury Col looks perfect. Between cornices, we drop into powder laced with wind board. To us, this is un-bottled perfection all the way down to the bottom to where I follow Forest on a high traverse. After skins are attached, we continue our climbing until we both look down into Luna Creek Cirque all covered in snow and sprinkles of trees that climb up valley walls like lines of ants from their nest.
Before we leave, Forest, between bites of cheese, predicts matter-of-factly, "These will be the best turns of my life." As we glide over the top and descend, I can't help but think how right he is.
Deep in the bowels, beneath the North Face of Mount Fury, we climb over avalanche debris for hours before finding escape on the Challenger Glacier. Ahead is camp at which we arrive after an 8000-foot day of climbing. Spent legs push me the final bit to where an overlook of the area has my eyes casting about for photo opportunities. As I flatten out a small bivy spot, I make sure I have excellent views of the NE Face of Mount Fury. Along with excellent friends, 7 years ago I had skied it in very poor spring conditions; it had been one of the scariest descents of my life. As night blossomed, I flattened out an area for my camera and with numb fingers I spend an hour trying to get that one shot just the way I wanted it – a mountains restless night – and I believe I succeeded.
A fifth morning reminds me that it's winter. In my bag, between shivers I laugh, "How can I be warm and freezing at the same time?" Awfully long nights I could do without! But, as in everything, there is a price. To be here, a spectator to such a place, some discomfort is required.
An hour later we climb over Mount Challenger's broad glacier shoulder, and the core of the Picket Range recedes from view. I pause as "wild and untamed" gaze squarely back into my eyes; how cultivated and tame I am compared to this place! Creaking, my skis continue their journey, forward.
Beyond crevasses and terrible snow, we arrive at Perfect Pass. How these names of the Pickets suit the terrain so well that beyond here little explanation is needed. We finagle our way beyond Imperfect Impasse to the laidback contours of Easy Ridge. Further along, a choice, we could drop to the Chilliwack Trail or continue on the Mineral Mountain High Route. Since staying high had purified us, any drop to the lowlands would be because clouds had infected our all-encompassing blue skies. Not a germ of white puffiness in sight! To the Mineral Mountain High Route we go.
The next 1800 foot climb takes an hour and ten minutes while our descent takes more than that. Like so many Cascade Mountains, the challenges lay hidden deep in the valleys, nestled as a viper in the grass, waiting to strike. Fangs of cliff on Mineral Mountain's northwest face force us to side step treacherous terrain, each turn committing us. "Forest, have you found a way?" I croak to him, seeing nothing myself. He returns confirmation, "Stay high!" In front of me, a small couloir, as wide as my skis, grants passage to the slopes below, and to Chilliwack Pass. Here is where we decide to spend our final night.
Day six brings us up from the trees onto the upper slopes of Ruth Mountain. A sun's greeting comes upon us as we climb out from the shady, powder filled slopes onto the sunlit landscapes rolling away ahead. Eventually the traversing ends as we round Ruth's west face. In the cold breeze we eat the scraps of food we have remaining. Neither of us seems in a hurry, both knowing that this was it; soon our journey will be over. Submitting to it, I mumble, "We should go." How soon, I know, we'll be back to cars, roads, cities, towns, beds, warmth, and food – the easy life. I didn't need a mirror to know we look haggard, sunburn and beat. While it's good to not have these creature comforts all the time, you certainly need them some of the time.
An hour later, my skis shudder to a stop on rock strewn trail lost under a canopy of forest, bereft of snow, and in feet slice free into open fields of white, outlined by the swift waters of Ruth Creek. They soon lay on weary shoulders as I hike dry patches of road. They are no longer racing uninhibited from the firm grip of the unforgiving Picket Range. And unlike Forest and I, they are unafraid. No matter how often I visit, I will always awaken fearful of these mountains. To me that's what makes them so extraordinary. THANKS for reading!!!! ~Jason Hummel More photos: see Alpine State OF Mind. Or CONTACT ME. If you enjoyed your visit, tell us about it, go to the GUESTBOOK.


We cannulate on a daily basis and administer IV drugs and insert IV lines. We have challenging patients that from time to time we need assistance from anaesthetics to put the lines in. This is a skill that the nurses can do with the purchase of an ultrasound machine. Therefore not needing the ITU machine or anaesthetist to come to our department. We do find that the machine is not readily available and anaesthetists can be in theatre or at other emergencies.This can lead to delays in our patients receiving their treatment. We also can provide the service for all the other wards that have similar problems. All our staff had had training in this device.


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WIPO Media Center
Francis Gurry led WIPO as Director General from October 1, 2008 to September 30, 2020.
Tunisia Joins the International Trademark System
Geneva, October 21, 2013
PR/2013/747
(Photo: WIPO/E.Berrod)
Tunisia's Minister of Industry Mehdi Jomâa and WIPO Director General Francis Gurry today hailed the entry into force of the Madrid Protocol in Tunisia, while reviewing bilateral cooperation and discussing WIPO's future technical assistance to Tunisia.
Tunisia deposited its instrument of accession to the Madrid Protocol for the International Registration of Marks on July 16, 2013 and the treaty entered into force for Tunisia on October 16, 2013. The Madrid System for the International Registration of Marks (Madrid system), now with 92 members, offers trademark owners a cost effective, user friendly and streamlined means of protecting and managing their trademark portfolio internationally.
Mr. Gurry welcomed Tunisia's accession, noting that "Tunisia's accession further broadens the global reach of the Madrid system." The Director General said: "Brand owners from all Madrid system members will now be able to extend their protection to the important Tunisian market, through a single, simplified and cost-effective procedure."
Mr. Jomâa noted that Tunisia's participation in the Madrid system is a welcome development for Tunisian businesses, in particular small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as international businesses wishing to acquire brand protection in Tunisia.
The Madrid system has experienced exceptional expansion recently. In the last 18 months, the Colombia, India, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines and Rwanda have each acceded, resulting in a significant geographical expansion of the system.
Despite the uncertain global economic condition, the Madrid system has shown signs of strength: 2012 saw the highest number of international trademark applications ever filed under the Madrid system, with 44,018 applications, or a 4.1 % increase compared to 2011. Furthermore, a record number of 41,954 international registrations were recorded.
Under the WIPO-administered Madrid system, a trademark owner may protect a mark in up to 90 countries plus the European Union with its Community Trade Mark (CTM) by filing one application, in one language (English, French or Spanish), with one set of fees, in one currency (Swiss Francs). Applicants wishing to use the Madrid system must apply for trademark protection in a relevant national or regional trademark office before seeking international protection. An international registration under the Madrid system produces the same effects as an application for registration of the mark in each of the contracting parties designated by the applicant.
If protection is not refused by the trademark office of a designated Contracting Party, the status of the mark is the same as if it had been registered by that Office. Thereafter, the international registration can be maintained and renewed through a single procedure. Thus, the system provides a cost-effective and efficient way for trademark holders to secure and maintain protection for their marks in multiple countries.
Trademarks are a key component of any successful business marketing strategy as they allow companies to identify, promote and license their goods or services in the marketplace and to distinguish them from those of their competitors, and cement customer loyalty. A trademark symbolizes the promise of a quality product and in today's global and increasingly electronic marketplace, a trademark is often the only way for customers to identify a company's products and services. Trademark protection hinders moves to "free ride" on the goodwill of a company by using similar distinctive signs to market inferior or similar products or services. Loss, dilution or infringement of a high-value trademark could prove devastating to a business.
The international trademark system is governed by two treaties, namely, the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks (1891) and the Madrid Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks (1989).
For more information, please contact the News and Media Division at WIPO:
Tel: (+41 22) 338 81 61 / 338 72 24

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Amendment Proposes Non-Executive Chairman for Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe's cabinet has approved an amendment to the Reserve Bank Act proposed by Finance Minister Tendai Biti which provides for a non-executive director to chair the board of the central bank, supplanting RBZ Governor Gideon Gono in that post, sources said.
Biti has argued that the amendment will make the Reserve Bank more accountable and credible, and is consistent with advice from the International Monetary Fund.
Gono has dismissed the proposed amendment as part of a personal vendetta by the finance minister, maintaining that his replacement as chairman of the central bank board runs contrary to the best practice in financial institutions worldwide. But experts say most countries are moving toward central bank governance by committee.
Biti is expected to present the amendment to parliament next month for passage.
The Movement for Democratic Change formation led by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Biti as the party's secretary general is pressing for Gono to be replaced at the central bank, but President Robert Mugabe has insisted that Gono must continue as governor.
The top job at the Reserve Bank has become a major point of contention within the national unity government along with the office of attorney general, and the MDC has asked the Southern African Development Community and African Union to mediate in the matter.
Specialist Lance Mambondiani of British-based Coronation Financial told reporter Blessing Zulu of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that reforms at the central bank are overdue.
Interview With Lance Mambondiani


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Alex Nowrasteh, Contributor
Immigration policy analyst at Cato Institute's Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity
Immigration Tariff: Reforming a Broken System
08/27/2011 10:55 am ET Updated Oct 26, 2011
America's immigration system is broken. Years of overregulation aimed at micromanaging the system has produced nearly 100 different types of visas, each with its own complex rules, regulations, and requirements. These rules and regulations hold back American economic growth by discouraging the hardworking and entrepreneurial to come to this country. With unemployment persisting above 9 percent and escalating government deficits, an immigration tariff to replace the current regulatory labyrinth is both sensible and pragmatic.
The immigration tariff is a fee levied on every work visa or green card issued. The tariff approach would streamline immigration procedures, increase federal revenue, and remove most of the cumbersome, economy-killing immigration restrictions now on the books. Ideally, the government immigration services would just interdict criminals, suspected terrorists, and those with deadly transmittable diseases. All others would be eligible for work visas or green cards, for which they would pay the tariff.
Our immigration laws are crammed with silly requirements and anachronistic rules that prevent entrepreneurial immigrants from setting up shop here. For example, EB-5 visas, which are issued to entrepreneurs, require that applicants invest between $500,000 and $1 million in a new U.S. commercial enterprise depending on the region of the country, directly create 10 new jobs within two years, or significantly expand an existing U.S. business. No wonder EB-5 visas are underused.
These problems are compounded by quotas, which create a massive backlog in the migration process. Quotas are rigid in the face of an increasingly dynamic economic reality. Replacing visas like the EB-5 visa with a background check and a tariff of, say, $10,000 makes things a lot easier on American business and foreign investors. For example, if the wages for computer programmers were to skyrocket because American firms are expanding, current quotas do not adjust to accommodate the increased demand. But if a computer programmer had merely to comply with a background check and pay an immigration tariff, he would be able to fill the spot in no time.
A tariff makes the process more predictable and timely because it focuses on one factor -- money. Instead of relying upon the arbitrary decisions of bureaucrats or lotteries, immigrants have a benchmark they can reach. They can save, borrow money, or have their employers pay the tariff with the certainty that, unless they are criminals or very ill, they will be able to enter the U.S. to work, start a business, and build a life.
The immigration tariff is pushed by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary Becker, but its central concept dates back to the birth of modern economics. In The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith endorsed a tax on wool exports. It's not that he supported the tax, but rather saw it as an improvement over Britain's outright ban on the export of wool that existed at the time. He was right. A tariff, while surely imperfect, is a great big step toward stimulating economic growth and raising revenue.
An immigration tariff would remove the need for people to hire immigration lawyers and improve a process riddled with administrative barriers, rent-seeking, corruption, and lotteries that determine who gets visas. Under this new system, people who have the most to gain from immigration will pay the price to immigrate.
The visa issuing authority -- the U.S. government -- has market power when it comes to visas. This means that the quantity of visas it decides to sell has a big impact on the price of those visas. Because of that, the price of visas should be controlled by the state but without a numerical limit on their issuance.
If 3 million immigrants entered the U.S. under an immigration tariff system similar to the one described here, the government could raise as much as $30 billion in revenue -- more than enough to cover the costs of the three major immigration regulation and enforcement agencies. If those agencies were downsized to deal with just enforcing a tariff and background checks then the net tariff revenue would be even greater, and the tariff could even be reduced.
A recent paper by economist Michael Clemens in the Journal of Economic Perspectives indicates just how pressing immigration reform is. According to Clemens's estimates, unlimited immigration would increase worldwide GDP by 50 to 150 percent. That's a whopping increase of $32.5 to $97.5 trillion in global yearly production which is sorely needed. Even slightly lessening American immigration barriers will boost American GDP by a lot. Every day we delay reform costs the economy.
Latinos & Hispanics Immigrants Immigration Immigration Reform Arizona


The Los Angeles Police Department's SWAT team has deployed a drone for the first time, as part of an operation into an ongoing armed robbery.
The team, wanting to go into the second floor apartment to apprehend the criminal, were not sure if the culprit would be waiting to ambush them behind the door.
To solve the problem and prevent putting officers lives in danger, the LAPD sent a drone up to look inside the window of the property to find that they were clear to enter.
According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, the standoff on January 9 in Koreatown, was the first time the Los Angeles Police Department has used a drone, joining hundreds of law enforcement agencies across the country in doing so.
The report went on to describe how the LAPD's drones are part of a pilot program from 2018 by the Police Commission over the protests of residents and privacy activists concerned that the devices would be used to spy on them.
As part of the ongoing debate into drone use, LAPD officials will submit reports documenting each drone operation to the Police Commission, which will, in turn, evaluate the pilot program and decide on the future of drones within the force in six months' time.


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Shazam! writer shares un-filmed script pages to encourage Black Lives Matter donations
June 5, 2020, 10:56 AM ET
Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures/DC Entertainment
Screenwriter Henry Gayden is helping drive donations to social justice organizations (i.e. Black Lives Matter, the NAACP) that combat racism and bigotry by posting un-filmed pages from last year's Shazam! His decision to do so comes in the wake of protests held all around the world as people call for justice and police reform after the in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
"A Feat of Strength for a Feat of Strength. For 7 days, I will post never-shot feats from Shazam and ask you to donate — any amount helps! — to the true heroes out there making change happen in real time," he wrote on Twitter, using the hashtags #blacklivesmatter #featofstrength.
The two script pages posted thus far follow Billy Batson (Asher Angel) and Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer) as they test out the various superpowers of the titular hero (Zachary Levi). Gayden later added that his tweets have been approved by Warner Bros. and DC.
Scene #1 is meant to represent Shazam's ability to jump high (like Superman), but the character ends up crashing into an office building, where he comedically scares a group of people in a conference room. He snatches up some free M&Ms and makes light of his appearance by comparing it to how the Kool-Aid man busts through walls all the time. Scene #2 exemplifies Shazam's super-strength as he lifts a bulldozer with one hand at an empty construction site.
A Feat of Strength for a Feat of Strength.
For 7 days, I will post never-shot feats from Shazam and ask you to donate – any amount helps! - to the true heroes out there making change happen in real time. 1/7 #blacklivesmatter #featofstrength
DONATE: https://t.co/5LkBWX7fkJ pic.twitter.com/fXm7lvvkDy
— Henry Gayden (@HenryGayden) June 4, 2020
A Feat of Strength for a Feat of Strength, Part 2/7
A scripted, never-shot feat from Shazam! (cut b/c budget, timing, good taste?😉) in exchange for a feat from you: a donation pls - any amount helps - to the NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE FUND: https://t.co/1gryu8eBVL#BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/T7E78KJPrr
WB/DC approved ♥⚡
Gayden has been tapped to write the movie's untitled sequel, which is scheduled to hit theaters Nov. 4, 2022 (a date chosen amid WB's pandemic-era release shuffle). David F. Sandberg is returning to direct.
Henry Gayden
Jack Dylan Grazer


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FORTNITE GAME REVIEW
It seems that all paid online games this year were half-finished or fundamentally broken. However, this is not a problem nowadays, because there are many free analogues available on the market. They have evolved over the years and only get better.
Today we decided to pay attention to the winner in our nomination of the best game-service – Fortnite.
What is Fortnite?
But let's remember what Fortnite is all about. This is a free-to-play 100-man battle royale where players alone or in squads of up to four allies jump onto the island and survive. Globally, the task is the same: to remain the only survivor (or survivors, if in a detachment). Everything is very simple.
What distinguishes Fortnite from other similar games is its vibrant animation style, the emphasis on construction, and an absolutely unique approach to new content. Developers not only release new seasons from time to time, where they change the map and add new skins, but often hold full-fledged events.
In a season with Marvel heroes, for example, the villain Galactus threatened the battle royale island. At the end of the three-month event, all players simultaneously began to confront him, resulting in a 15-minute story episode. Gameplay-wise, such events do not give anything special, but it's still a whole show. What can we say about virtual concerts: what other game did Ariana Grande or Travis Scott perform in?
Fortnite has a lot of skins
Recently I caught myself on an interesting thought: I want to buy some beautiful figurines of my favorite characters. Spiderman, Geralt or Snake. But where to put them? And why, because they will just gather dust (but you want to!). And Fortnite solves this problem in a very interesting way. At least for me.
Fortnite has an endless variety of characters, with many of them coming from partners like Marvel, DC, PlayStation, Xbox, Square Enix and many more. All kinds of heroes in the royal battle now can not be counted. There are about three dozen of them from Marvel alone: a couple of variants of Venom and Spider-Man, as well as Iron Man, Thor, Thanos, Ghost Rider. With DC, Fortnite even had a comic book series with its own Batman.
And after all, you can still play for everyone, and to discover the unique features of the appearance of some, you will also have to work hard. Then there will be no opportunity.
Some characters only appear ONCE. First of all, those related to the battle pass. For example, Mandalorian, Carnage and Iron Man in their current form can no longer be obtained. Only those who fussed in time will be able to play for them. The value of such characters increases many times over. It remains to be hoped that they will make alternative options, which they still decide to sell separately in the store. But the chances of this are small.
It's all?
In general, yes. The peculiarity of the battle royale genre lies precisely in the fact that everything here is insanely simple and clear. All around you are enemies, but you just need to survive. That being said, you don't have to kill anyone at all, as Fortnite gives you enough opportunities to win without shooting – or at least with a minimum. You can just hide and build.
In addition, with the advent of creative mode, there is even more entertainment outside of the usual battle royal. If you want – try yourself in an obstacle course, in a trap with a falling floor, in a gungame with changing weapons, and so on. You can actually create something yourself.
Although, as practice shows, the vast majority still prefer the standard royal battle.
New battle pass
The most notable change in the past 12 months has been a brand new Battle Pass. Now all rewards are divided into pages, and you can open them in a relatively random order. Something you don't like? You can not take it, focusing on more important rewards.
The general line of progress has somehow been preserved. The main pass is divided into ten pages of ten rewards each. To open the next page, you must either pump ten levels, or open a certain number of rewards. At first, you try to quickly get to the next prizes, but by the second half of the pass, I began to beat my hands in order to save up more currency for the necessary purchases later.
As before, it's easy to win back the purchase of the battle pass – you need to get about 70 levels and choose V-bucks as rewards. Since the summer of 2020, by the way, the subscription has fallen in price and now costs about 400 rubles (it used to be about 700 rubles). In addition, a Fortnite Squad subscription has appeared, which for 719 rubles includes the current battle pass (400 rubles), 1000 V-bucks (500 rubles), a unique character and a few more nice bonuses. A tempting offer for active players.
Completely new map
At the beginning of December 2021, the third chapter of the royal battle started, with which the developers presented a completely new map. The plot explanation for this is simple – during the battle with aliens, the heroes simply turned the island over. Known locations are now under water, but there are already hints of the appearance of older levels – like urban skyscrapers.
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class Return < Statement
  child :expression, Expression
end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


This is my point of view... what's yours?
MR.KL Production was founded in 2012 by Kevin H.Y. Lam. Working from fine art, editorial, sport, fashion to lifestyle imagery. Alongside his dedication to personal projects, he is a regular contributor to the Analogue Film Community. His work had been published on City Magazine as well as Instant Photo Exhibition by Polab.


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Lockout Recap: A Pair Of Un-Modest Proposals
How owners keep recycling the same tired PR and negotiation tactics
Zach Hayes
Across The Seams 12/14/2021
Baseball is perpetually in an existential crisis.
Fans and journalists have been angsting about the future of baseball almost since the time where baseball didn't even have a past. Baseball is always dying, according to some. Whether it's attendance, television, free agency, style of play, pace of play, or whatever other issue you can recall, it will beg some to ask the question: how can this continue? Is baseball in danger of simply evaporating?
It's been a pretty slow news week as far as negotiations go, so let's go look at some history. The advent of free agency seems particularly relevant at the moment. 1969 is a pretty long time ago, but it's quite simple and easy to dive into some newspaper archives and see what was being said at the time. Why 1969? Because the moment that we occupy right now has perhaps its primary genesis in that year, when Curt Flood came to the decision to file a one million dollar anti-trust lawsuit against Major League Baseball in what was to that point the most pointed attempt to strike down the infamous Reserve Clause.
New York Times, January 4th, 1970
Flood is much more relevant in contemporary conversations than he ever seems to get credit for, but he ought to be particularly relevant at this time. The state of affairs that led to Flood's challenge has a few similarities to our contemporary status quo even without the analogs between years of historically significant social re-orderings and upheavals that precipitated both 1970 and 2021. In the baseball sphere, there was unprecedented growth. Eight games were added to the schedule in 1961, and by the end of the decade, eight expansion teams had entered the league. Baseball on television and all related financial benefits was in its infancy; and by 1970, 20 years of stable attendance after World War II had begun to give way to a slow but steady forty-year upward trend.
Baseball's success was undeniable. But just like in the present day, where multi-billionaires operating companies also valued in the billions try to convince us that they aren't making much money, league executives at the time contended that Major League Baseball would literally cease to exist if the old methods were not preserved:
New York Times, January 16th, 1970
Plot twist: professional baseball did not cease to exist without the reserve clause. Even five years later, when it was clear that the reserve clause was on its last legs after Peter Seitz's now-famous arbitration decision, the league side of the equation didn't ease up on the hysteria at the prospect of being forced to reduce their levels of exploitation:
New York Times, December 24th, 1975
The vocabulary and excuse-making used by the league and ownership sides have hardly changed in a half-century. Neither have their negotiating tactics. In spite of the binding nature of the Seitz decision — that is, quite literally, the definition of arbitration — the league wasted no time filing a lawsuit in a last-ditch effort to stem the tide of free agency and blatantly renege on the deal they had made with the nascent MLB Players' Association:
This is all meant as a reminder that as long as labor fights have existed in baseball, the owners have never given an inch: the players have had to fight for everything they've gotten. The owners have never played fair because the idea of fairness is anathema to an economic philosophy predicated on an endless quest to find (and appropriate) surplus value. One could also cite plenty of newspaper examples with similar sentiments to the above from the 1994 and 1981 strikes, or the late-1980s collusion scandal, the latter two of which generated plenty of support for the players and their union.
So as much as we've become used to the word "unprecedented" over the past two years, the owners are slinging the same mud they've been picking up since day one. This is just a new battle in an old fight. Why are we seeing history repeat itself so distressingly?
Since the upheavals of the 1960s and 1970s, ownership's primary (broad) strategy of pushing back on progress has been to make mountains out of molehills and refuse to give an inch unless dragged to the edge. Unfortunately, it has been an almost universally successful strategy, building tremendous amounts of inertia within the current system while simultaneously demonizing players who advocate for radical change — how many words have been written about the negative perception of players that developed during and following the 1994 strike? That double-edged sword helped set the table for the current lockout through its contribution to a series of increasingly disadvantageous post-strike CBAs that have consolidated ownership gains to the point that the disparity simply cannot be ignored any longer.
Media Check-In
We're seeing in real-time one of the primary ways that owners were able to keep this historical cycle churning for so long. Last week, I wrote at length on how owners and league executives use high-exposure media figures to subtly sway the public to their side and point of view under the guise of neutrality. The rise of this trend helps explain how we got to where we are today. One major difference between now and the 1970s is that owners are (mostly) smart enough to stop spouting off in ways that make them look as malevolently miserly as they actually are. Now, through the internet-age phenomenon of access journalism and the scoop economy, they've successfully leveraged fans' hunger for information as a way to quietly insert their agenda and narratives into mainstream public discourse.
Take the 2014 Jeff Passan column that resurfaced recently opining quite negatively on the effort of a group led by White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf to block Manfred's election as commissioner in favor of former Red Sox executive Tom Werner:
There's being wrong, and there's being wrong. Those two paragraphs don't reflect the entirety of the story, and it's been accurately pointed out that a Reinsdorf-backed commissioner would have been equally as destructive, if not more so. Still, the takeaway is that Passan badly misread the nature of Manfred's character — his sources clearly misled him, and it was to Manfred's benefit. Full stop. Much of the lead-in to today involves a broad failure by writers and analysts to speak the truth about Manfred and the ownership class until it was too late. Passan himself has deferred to another 2016 column as evidence of his critical foresight on the matter, but it still misses the point. The terms of this relationship were always clear. As the article demonstrates, the exploitative conditions that finally began to boil over in 2020 were evident from the moment the 2016 CBA (which Passan termed "fascinating") was signed. There's no excuse for not sounding alarm bells before the tumult of 2020 forced the issue.
Plenty of good journalists spending time on the player side have been raising red flags for years. This lockout was not inevitable, but it became a fait accompli in some part because the media figures with the widest reach have been too indebted to their sources to bring critical attention to how the league has ceaselessly operated with bad faith in recent years. The league has indicated time and time again that its bargaining strategy involves making barely-serious, sometimes not-even-formal offers in an effort to stall and ultimately push the players' backs against the wall. Only the owners benefit by refusing to turn up the pressure until the last possible moment, and it's worth considering how the dynamic between scoop merchants and league sources helps facilitate that lack of accountability.
The same forces behind the docility that got us here are continuing to use those channels in an attempt to sway public opinion and pressure the players into taking a subpar deal before games are set to be canceled. It's already well in progress. You may have already seen the proposal for new CBA terms that Jayson Stark put out into the world. No matter what you think of the idea, it does at the very least appear (on the surface) to be original:
ICYMI: If MLB really wants to stop tanking I can help. Here's the plan:
Reverse the draft order
So teams with best records that miss the playoffs would pick first
How to pick the next Griffey: Try
How not to pick the next Griffey: Tank
Here's more https://t.co/gAEaecyNwN
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) December 11, 2021
Inside the article (subscription required), Stark insists that this idea is fully his own. Let's take him at his word. It still doesn't make the way he presents his idea any less tainted by pro-ownership bias. But as he would probably point out, the article begins with a quotation from MLPBA executive subcommittee member Andrew Miller! He also recently hosted Miller on his podcast!
That seems fair enough. In all likelihood, Stark thinks he's writing from a position of neutrality. But the sources he uses in the article tell a different story. Following the introductory quote from Miller, the people quoted or paraphrased are:
A player agent
"People in front offices"
A league executive
Athletic reporter Evan Drellich
"Sources briefed on negotiations"
The MLPBA
There is no argument here. Even if Stark presents his piece in a blissfully ignorant state of unbias, the feedback and information being given to the public is heavily slanted towards management perspectives by definition of league sources outnumbering player sources at least seven to two (at minimum). It might not be anything conscious on Stark's part, but it sure is reflective of where most of his information is coming from. In that same vein, it's also reflective of how seriously we should take his suggestions.
Stark wasn't even the first writer at the Athletic to lob a haughty set of suggestions to the mob. Let's check in on Ken Rosenthal, who as we referenced last week has some history of dubiously claiming ownership of the proposals made in his columns:
Won't somebody please think of the low-revenue clubs?
Reminder: there is no such thing as a low-revenue club. There are low-payroll clubs, but a low-payroll is not the same thing as low-revenue. The latter is a reality, the former is a choice. The reality we inhabit is not one in which a sub-$80 million payroll can be justified by low revenue. This is settled math. Next question.
Rosenthal's article is quite lengthy, and this article is already quite lengthy, so we can get the substance of it in some bullet points. Under the so-called Rosenthal plan:
The revenue-sharing formula remains the same, but with a mandate that the money must be spent on the major league payroll. This is presented mere words after clarifying that he is not proposing a salary floor. There's a brief mention that the union may have some issues with the fact that ancillary income (i.e., money from other things around the stadium owned by the team) isn't accounted for in the revenue sharing formula. That might seem fine, but "neighborhood development" has been repeatedly demonstrated to be a financial mechanism for diverting funds from the players to ownership pockets. Seems like an issue worth exploring more! Instead, we have a masterclass in buried ledes.
We see a modified version of the union's age-based free agency proposal, but with the added bonus of implementing a franchise tag-lite — excuse me, a franchise icon subsidy — to help those seemingly abundant low-revenue clubs keep their star players. Let's pretend for just a moment that the idea of league subsidizing extensions for teams too cheap to give them out themselves isn't the entirely asinine suggestion that it is. We must also point out that never in the history of baseball has allowing the league to dictate "fair market value" worked out to the benefit of the players. After the way the last five offseasons have played out, we're supposed to believe that giving teams more free money will incentivize them to start spending? I was born at night, but it wasn't last night. Being spoon-fed ideas by league sources would almost be less embarrassing than putting this out on one's own accord.
The minimum salary is increased by roughly $200,000, and Super Two eligibility is expanded. Otherwise, arbitration remains the same. Truly revolutionary stuff.
Beyond the absurdity of the First-Year Draft being presented as the most important issue for improving competitive balance, the only comment I have on the proposal therein is that I hope to someday love someone as much as Rosenthal seems to love the words "low-revenue." The phrase appears no fewer than twelve times throughout the column.
Expanded playoffs: "pretty much the owners' plan." I like it when he saves me the trouble.
These are the opinions that are being presented to us as reasonable before even the slightest inkling of negotiation content has begun to leak. When more concrete details of proposals and counter-proposals begin to see the sun, these same familiar names will be the ones taking it upon themselves to make both sides seem equally reasonable and unreasonable. But history has shown time and time again that ownership definitions of reasonable are nowhere close to ours. Perhaps more importantly, we don't have to take Jayson Stark or Ken Rosenthal's ideas of reasonable as ours, either.
I'll conclude this the same way we wrapped up last week: owners are relying on people like you on me to turn on players once the going gets tough. Nonetheless, what's true at the beginning of the lockout will still be true at the moment games begin to be canceled: the only way the game gets better is for the players to make a lot of meaningful gains. Staying strong in their support in spite of what ESPN might be spitting at you is the only way we all win.
Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire | Design by Michael Packard (@designsbypack on Twitter @ IG)
Zach is based in Chicago and contributes analysis and coverage for Pitcher List and South Side Sox. He also co-hosts the Shaggin' Flies podcast with Ben Palmer, and enjoys reading, Justin Fields highlights, and people-watching on the CTA.
"I'll conclude this the same way we wrapped up last week: owners are relying on people like you on me to turn on players once the going gets tough."
They've succeeded. I hope the reserve clause comes back.


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text:
Local non profit Matthew 25 looks to serve the hungry in…
Vigil scheduled to honor slain Duke graduate student
WWAY News
DURHAM (AP) — An evening memorial service will be held for a Duke University graduate student who was fatally shot in his apartment earlier this year. Abhijit Mahato will be remembered at 6 p.m. Monday in front of the Anderson Street Apartments. Originally from Tatangar, India, Mahato was studying for a doctorate in computational mechanics at Duke's Pratt School of Engineering. He died Jan. 18. The vigil is coordinated by the Religious Coalition for a Nonviolent Durham, Parents of Murdered Children and Durham Congregations in Action. A grand jury has indicted two teenagers is Mahato's death: 17-year-old Laurence Lovette and 19-year-old Stephen Oates, both of Durham. Lovette also is charged in the murder of the student body president at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. (Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Abhijit Mahato
Laurence Lovette
Stephen Oates
North Carolina mom says son's special education teacher 'assaulted' him
Local non profit Matthew 25 looks to serve the hungry in...


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Residents rallied to make sure none forgotten on Christmas
Dec 31, 2020 10:15 AM By: Bianca Mazziotti
1 / 1 Back row (Left to right): Danny Stevens (Lac La Biche Elkes, Exalted Ruler), Bruce Adolf (Lac La Biche Kinsmen Club), Blair Norton (Community Connections Group/Lac La Biche Kinsmen Club), Loren Tchchuk (Lac La Biche Kinsmen Club, President), Jim Piquette (Lac La Biche Kinsmen Club), Trish Leduc (LLB County FCSS, Community Outreach Worker), Al Bertchi (Lac La Biche Kinsmen Club), Charlyn Moore (Community Connections Group, Lac La Biche County Councillor), Glynton Brittain (Lac La Biche County Peace Officer) Front row (Left to right): Cidra Kaufman (JAWS Interact Club), Danyelle Bouvier (Plamondon Volleyball Club), Sierra Cloutier (Plamondon Volleyball Club), Chenoa Kaufman (JAWS Interact Club, 2019 Junior Citizen of the Year) Missing from photo: Lenora LeMay (Community Connections Group), Tammy Tarrabain (Community Connections Group), Mysoon Tarrabain (Community Connections Group), Heather Stromquist (Community Connections Group)
LAC LA BICHE - Many people throughout the Lac La Biche community came together - in a socially distanced way - through the holiday season, to make sure that as many people as possible are able to experience some joy this holiday season.
The Community Connections Group, community members from the region, the Kinsmen Club of Lac La Biche, County Peace Officers, Northern Lights Public Schools officials, local media and more, have helped to put together gift bags, Christmas stockings, and letters for the homeless population, seniors, and other residents who might be alone over the holidays this year.
Homeless shelters, food banks, youth groups, church organizations, and community members from all walks of life have been active over the holidays trying to put some normal back into the new-norm created by the COVID-19 pandemic.
It's a Thursday afternoon in the week before Christmas, and the inside the NLPS division office in downtown Lac La Biche, and it looks like Christmas in overdrive. There is a large COVID-19 cautious Santa wearing a mask at the front door, gift bags all lined up ready to be sent, letters lined up in a row addressed to the elders they will be going to, and lots of donated items from the public. Representatives from the Lakeland Out of the Elements Shelter Society are getting gift bags filled with essential items like toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant, combs, and brushes so that the homeless population is not forgotten on Christmas day.
"It's really important to look out for one another. People need to know that they are not alone, and so giving back is important, especially this time of year and with COVID-19," said Heather Stromquist, the director of community partnerships and engagement at NLPS, and just one of the Community Connector Group members who worked at get everything organized so all of the gift bags were ready by Christmas.
All of the seniors in the retirement homes in Lac La Biche and Plamondon received multiple letters from students and community members from across the region with words of encouragement to help get them through the holidays.
"We didn't want to buy anything that wouldn't benefit the seniors, so we asked the staff at the Greater North Foundation what would be the most useful thing for them," said Stromquist.
There are also six senior residents that do not have any active family members or friends in their lives, so Stromquist says those people would benefit from a full Christmas stocking of goodies this year.
The Kinsmen Club of Lac La Biche partnered up with PetSmart in Edmonton to work on the Teddy Bear project to make sure that all of the children from preschool to Grade 3 receives a stuffed teddy bear for Christmas. Through this project, they were able to give 800 teddy bears to local kids.
Stromquist says that it truly has been a community effort when it comes to giving back this year. So many people from the region have come together to make sure that no one is forgotten this holiday season.
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Do you have plans for air travel in 2021? Yes. Hopeful about vaccines and countries opening up again sometime this year. No. The virus has to be under control around the world before I take a plane trip again. I would, but there are restrictions around testing before coming home that make it an unappealing option right now.
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A pair of radar-equipped helium blimps tethered to the ground will give personnel the ability to see further away than with ground-based radar.
Blimps are experiencing a bit of a renaissance. Recently Montabello, Calif.-based Aeros said it was working on a rigid airship that could fly like a plane and float like a balloon. And now Raytheon has just finished testing a military aerostat of that, starting next year, will be a first line of defense for Washington, D.C.
It's called JLENS, for Joint Land Attack Cruise Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensor, and it's a pair of radar-equipped helium blimps tethered to the ground that give personnel the ability to see further away than with ground-based radar. The two blimps work together with one using radar to "see" an enemy target and the other guiding a missile to destroy it.
A microlight aircraft, powered by a Yamaha 150cc engine, spanning 17 ft long, with a wingspan of 24 ft, and weighing 100 kg, has been conceptualised by four enterprising students of HKBK College of Engineering.
Appropriately christened — MAQH13, with the letters derived from the foursome creators — Mohammed Muzakir sharieff, Mohammed Quamer Tawheed, Mohammed Akhib and Mohammed Hussain, the aircraft has been developed at a cost of Rs 50,000 and will run on high octane fuel, with the propeller, that will pull the aircraft, measuring 52 inch diameter.
The microlight, which is expected to take wing shortly, is awaiting the nod of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), according to Muzakkir Sharieff, one of the ideators of the prestigious final year engineering project.
To motivate the visitors and inspire young minds, the students' team is planning to gift the plane to Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum (VITM), Kasturba Road, after the completion of the project and its airworthiness is proved and necessary certificate received.
The students were effusive in their praise for the support and guidance from Dr J Fazlur Rahman (IIT, Madras) and Principal, HKBK College of Engineering, Dr T C Manjunath, which helped them realise their dream.
via Students give wing to microlight aircraft.
Inflatable spacecraft: Blown up in orbit | The Economist.


text:
Collaborators-in-waiting
May 29, 2009 | Sun May 28, 2009
Religious women see bright future with new bishop
By Claudia Mathis
SUN staff writer
The Syracuse Diocese religious have been eagerly anticipating Bishop Robert Cunningham's arrival.
Sister Patricia Burkard, OSF, general minister of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities, is certain from her past experience with Bishop Cunningham that his presence in the Syracuse Diocese will be a very positive one. "He truly values the role of women religious in the church," said Sister Patricia.
"Each religious order has its own special charism. He understands the charisms and encourages the sisters to live them out. He is interested in and encourages the work that the sisters do," she said. Sister Patricia said that when the bishop visited Blessed Mother Marianne Cope's shrine last month, he thanked the sisters for their role in the church.
Sister Patricia worked with Bishop Cunningham when she served as diocesan superintendent for Catholic schools in the Ogdensburg Diocese. "He was very interested in Catholic education," said Sister Patricia. "I remember that he worked in a collaborative way — that brings the best energy and blessings of people's work."
Sister Patricia was acquainted with Bishop Cunningham as a young woman because he was a good friend of her brother, Msgr. Paul Burkard, pastor at Our Lady of Victory Basilica and National Shrine in Lackawanna, N.Y. Msgr. Burkard also serves as president of Baker Victory Services, vice president of Our Lady of Victory Home of Charity and vice postulator for the canonization cause of Father Nelson Baker.
Msgr. Burkard remembers completing his homework with Bishop Cunningham after school when they attended high school. Later, they attended Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora, N.Y. They also worked for a few summers at St. Nicholas Church in Buffalo. "We enjoyed our time together," said Msgr. Burkard. "He's a very easy-going, friendly and caring person — that is what characterizes him."
"I join many others who are very pleased with his appointment to the diocese," said Sister Patricia. "He brings lots of experience and knowledge about the church in New York State because he's served in all different parts of the state. He brings a great breadth of understanding of the church."
"Hopefully, Bishop Cunningham will further the cause of Mother Marianne, like Bishop Moyniham did," said Sister Catherine Hoefer, OSF, coordinator of St. Anthony Convent/Motherhouse and business manager at St. John the Evangelist Parish in Syracuse. Sister Catherine is also hopeful that the bishop will be supportive of her community's work in the diocese. The sisters serve in such places as St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center, Gingerbread House, Franciscan Northside Ministries, Bishop Ludden Junior/Senior High School, Bishop Grimes Junior/Senior High School and Christian Brothers Academy.
Sister Eloise Emm, OSF, is pleased with the appointment of Bishop Cunningham because she said that he seems like a "good man."
"He's going to meet with all religious in June," said Sister Eloise. "I've heard that he's making a tremendous effort to meet the people in the diocese — that's a good sign." The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet also serve in the Syracuse Diocese. Sister Katie Eiffe, CSJ, director of the diocesan Religious Education Office, is looking forward to working with Bishop Cunningham. "We want to work with him to further our mission," said Sister Katie. "It's bittersweet, though. It's a new beginning, but we love Bishop Moynihan — he's a wonderful man. We're grateful for his work."
Sister Maureen D'Onofrio, CSJ, pastoral associate at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Syracuse, said that she is excited about the bishop's arrival. "As a Sister of St. Joseph, I know my community is happy to welcome Bishop Cunningham to our diocese," said Sister Maureen. "Sister Eloise Emm, who was our vicar for religious, is now retired. I'm looking forward to the future, when a vicar for religious will be appointed."
The Franciscan Friars are also looking forward to seeing a renewal within the diocese. Father John Ruffo, OFM, Conv., rector at Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Syracuse, reacted very positively when he heard Bishop Cunningham had been appointed as bishop. "I've heard that the diocese will be lifted up," Father Ruffo said." I think his coming will be a good thing for the religious — I know he has a kind spot in his heart for them. I think it will be a good relationship."
"I was delighted to hear about it," concurred Friar Philip Kelly, OFM, Conv. "I believe the impact will bring a new spark and energy to the diocese — I look forward to his coming. I'll be present at his installation. I've presented mission talks at a number of parishes in the Ogdensburg Diocese and I am impressed with the high regard that the pastors had for him."
Our new shepherd
Pope: Heaven is an encounter with Jesus, not a boring waiting room


As the Gaza war rages, international media has made a point of reporting that most Palestinians in Gaza continue to support Hamas, despite the fact that the terror group and its allies sparked the current conflict.
The picture painted by most media is that Palestinians may not be 100 percent happy with Hamas rule, but Israel's purportedly indiscriminate bombing of Gaza continues to drive most Arabs into the terror group's arms.
Last year a Palestinian Arab Christian created a YouTube video that clearly shows the real reason most Palestinians in Gaza support Hamas: Fear. Fear and indoctrination.
Those Palestinians old enough to think for themselves are too afraid to not support Hamas. And those too young to take their own stand are quickly taught that there is no way but the Hamas way.


I feel like I've written a lot lately about the need for cybersecurity training for employees (for example, here, here, and here). Yet, as long as employees keep opening unknown emails and clicking on strange links, we need reminders of why this training is necessary. And, just this past week, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District offered a great teachable moment.
WEWS reports that CMSD teachers were victims of an email spoofing scam resulting in their direct-deposit compensation being sent to an unknown third party. The scam affected 61 employees and resulted in the diversion of more than $100,000 in payroll.
This morning we became aware of an incident that affected the financial information of a small number of our employees in that some of our employees were the victims of an email spoofing scam that resulted in their direct- deposit compensation being directed to an unknown third party. We have already taken steps to prevent additional malicious activity, reported this incident to law enforcement, and have called in experts to help resolve this problem now and for future pays. Meanwhile, paper checks have been printed for those who were affected and we are in the process of delivering those checks now.
I want to remind all employees of ways to keep your CMSD account and your personal information safe. First, please remember that CMSD will never ask you to change your network password via email. The only way your password can be changed is by logging directly into the "login dialogue box" when you first turn on your computer. Also, please always use a network password that is specific and unique to your CMSD account. Do not use a password that you may also use on other accounts such as your online banking or any other financial accounts. Finally, if you ever have a reason to question whether you should follow a link received in your email, please call the Help Desk and speak to a person who can validate the request.
I will be updating everyone about this issue as soon as more information is available. In the meantime, if you have a question about your individual payroll, please contact the Help Desk by phone at 216-838-0440 or by email at WDPayroll@clevelandmetroschools.org. Support will be available between 8 am and 3 pm on Saturday and Sunday, and 6 am to 8 pm on Monday to assist.
My apologies for the difficulties some of our employees experienced today. I deeply regret that today's event occurred.
A mass email to your employees is not a quality substitute for comprehensive and meaningful cybersecurity training. It only takes one employee to click on one unknown link in an email to compromise your entire network and all of its stored information. CMSD got lucky. This breach only impacted 61 employees and only cost $100,000. It could have been a whole lot worse. Indeed, according to the latest IBM Cost of Data Breach study, the average data breach costs an U.S. employer a staggering $7.01 million.
"The cyber" is the biggest threat facing employers in 2017 and beyond. Call your attorney and make sure that your employees are equipped with the knowledge to protect your network from cyber attacks. Ignoring this issue is simply a risk your business cannot afford to take.