text:
Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston 'Starting Over' After He Apologizes For Betraying Her With Angelina Jolie?
By Hugh Scott | 7:30 pm, January 13, 2020
Hugh Jackman is not getting "hot and heavy" with co-star Rebecca Ferguson on the set of his latest movie. The phony tabloid report simply isn't true. Gossip Cop can debunk it.
A ridiculous article in Woman's Day is alleging the Wolverine star is "risking the wrath of his wife," Deborra-Lee Furness, because "for the second time in as many weeks" he was supposedly caught on camera getting "up close and personal" with a co-star. The whole story is false, he wasn't getting up close and persona – the actor was filming a scene with Ferguson for the upcoming film Reminiscence.
Last week, photos were leaked that showed the two kissing on set, but it was clearly as they filmed a scene for the movie. After the shoot, the actors were seen embracing, but it was nothing more than a hug, despite the inaccurate claims by the tabloid. The questionable outlet quotes an unnamed and anonymous source as saying, "They were laughing together and leaning in close. It's unusual – love scenes are often pretty uncomfortable for the actors, so they need a little time to regroup when the cameras are off. Not Hugh and Rebecca!"
The story is baffling. The tabloid has no idea what was happening on the set aside from a couple of photos. The publication has invented an entire scenario that clearly never occurred. Jackman and his wife have been married for almost 24 years, and Furness is also in the film business. She's certainly familiar with her husband kissing other women for the roles he has played. This hasn't been any sort of issue over the past two decades. Beyond that, there is no evidence presented that it was anything more than a scene. Because that is all it was.
Finally, Gossip Cop checked with Jackman's official spokesperson, not an unnamed insider. The actor's rep denied the story strongly, telling us on the record that the story was a "funny one," before adding, "Woman's Day is shameless with their made-up stories." The tabloid has zero insight into Jackman's personal life. Something it has proven in the past.
Just last week, Gossip Cop busted the tabloid for a phony report alleging Jackman was flirting with Brooke Shields on the street in New York City. Like this one, it insisted Furness was upset and jealous when she found out. The article followed the same pattern as this current phony report. Jackman is spotted with a famous woman, they're photographed doing something completely innocent, and Woman's Day concocts a fake narrative to sell papers.
Hugh Jackman Woman's Day
Scott, Hugh. "Hugh Jackman's Wife Upset About Him 'Getting Flirty' With Brooke Shields?" Gossip Cop, 9 Jan. 2020.
Michele Schweitzer, Spokesperson for Hugh Jackman, 13 Jan. 2020.
What Happened To Brad Pitt And Julia Roberts' Romance?
Top Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner Rumor Of 2019: Getting Married Again And Having Another Baby
Renee Zellweger And Colin Firth Romance Developing?
Brad Pitt Spending Christmas With Jennifer Aniston And His Kids?
Brad Pitt's Mom Has 'Showdown' With Angelina Jolie?


text:
Q: PhoneGap application built with "PhoneGap Build" submission to App Store Is it possible to generate a binary via https://build.phonegap.com/ which will be ready for submission in the App Store?
I don't want to do it through Xcode but only via "PhoneGap Build". The FAQ and press release state that it is possible:
Quickly and easily get back app-store ready apps for multiple platforms,
including: *Apple iOS*, Google Android, ...

So, I have successfuly built and tested my app on both android and ios. In addition I have successfuly built a release ready version for android store (google play) and submitted.
My problem is that I cannot seem to be able to do the same for App Store. While trying to submit with the Application Loader I get:
Application failed codesign verification. The signature was invalid,
contains disallowed entitlements, or it was not signed with an iPhone
Distribution Certificate

Unable to extract entitlements from application:
/var/folders/vr/ghc8p.../T/APPNAME.ipa/Payload/APPNAME.app/APPNAME

Note that I did use the distribution certificates for building the .ipa from PhoneGap Build
Any idea where I should look next?

A: It turns out that it was a PhoneGap Build bug. The old certificates seem to have been cached. I deleted the application (in PhoneGap Build) and all my certificate configurations. I created a new application and a new certificate configuration with the last good distribution certificates that I had previously used when I posted the question.
The build was successfuly accepted from the Application Loader.
So this was a PhoneGap Build bug.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Home » summerkitchenresale's booth » Ford Racing-"Future Ford Stock Car Driver"-Child's T-Shirt Size 14-16!!!
Ford Racing-"Future Ford Stock Car Driver"-Child's T-Shirt Size 14-16!!!
Ford Racing - "Future Stock Car Driver" - T-Shirt Childs Size 14-16!!! If you haven't read the Condition Description yet please do so now. This T-Shirt is Licensed by Ford Motor Company and was originally sold through Ford/Lincoln/Mercury Dealers! No longer available from those dealers unfortunately but here is a Rare Opportunity for you to outfit your upcoming Ford Stock Car Driver! Don't miss out! Only one available! Save time, money and fuel by purchasing this Ford Racing - "Future Stock Car Driver" - T-Shirt online from us. We'll ship it to your door. Free shipping in the Continental USA, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. We ship Worldwide your cost is calculated by your location. Any questions feel free to email us. Thanks and Have a Great Day!!!


Along with other morning journaling, I added more color to my life by revisiting old doodles in one of my art journals.
A little bit of whimsy and color makes for "Good Medicine," methinks.
I just adore all your creations! I agree very inspirational! Thank you for sharing all that you do with us! Many blessings!
Hey Dabanga ~ your jewelry rOcKs!
And TizJu … I miss ya. And am thankful the ways we are able to keep in touch. ::BEEP!:: and blessings back atcha!
Hi Rose -i've found that color and whimsy are great things to keep mr inspired...love the journals.
Lovely! And indeed so colorful!
Fabulous pages! The very first is my favourite but they are all so lovley.
THe lamp with doilies is SO cool. How did you do that?
you are so talented, love the paintings in your journal!
I love the look and feel of these journal pages. The background print makes them look so antique and yet the bright colors make them just 'pop.' I especially love the sunflower on one page. I presume you are using acrylics on these pages? It is soft enough to be water colors.
these are wonderful Rose. I love how you have many styles and ways with your art!
Am loving each page of your journals - happy work!
The sun is shining,daffodils are in bloom,and the birds are signing!
I like these, very much.


If you cannot sleep in complete darkness, you can keep a small light in the corner of your room. The Plug-In Night Light LED Lamp has an automatic light sensor which produces the right amount of light depending on the dimness of the room. No need for a switch as it will automatically turn on and off during night and day.
All you have to do is plug this in your power outlet and it will automatically work on its own. There is no switch included as this LED lamp has a light sensor which automatically switches the lights off as soon as it senses that it is already bright in the room. And when the night comes and the room gets dimmer, this lamp automatically turns on too. The brightness of the light is produced depends on how dark your room is.
This is perfect if you do not want to sleep in total darkness. It only makes a very soft light and you will still be able to fall asleep comfortably. This is great too if you are co-sleeping with your kids. You can still see around the room if you need to change nappies or need to feed your baby. The perfect night light which you can put in your kids' nursery room or bedroom too! It has a frosted light-emitting surface which makes the light soft and just perfect for a sleeping environment.
No worries even if you do not take this out from the power outlet as this lamp only consumes a very little amount of energy. It is made with an outer plastic material which is very safe to use and durable enough to last for a very long time. It is portable and lightweight and you can carry it around too in your travels.
cute small flashlight. really. uniquely recommend. not отслеживался track, дошел новгорода to bottom within 28 days. thank you very much store.
Order is 3 time lights excellent. Around the house are.
For the money great product! Yalta reached 18 days, it was reported that posting at the post office. Recommend product and store!
Does the job just fine. Turns on automatically when the room is dark. Arrived with a little crack on it, but I don't mind.
Shipping to MSK for 10 days with tracking. Night Light small, neat, hold in the hands. Lights Up automatically in low light. All super. Thank you, and only the best advice.
Very fast order has been delivered. 7 Aug ordered 18 already taken to address (Adygeya). Thank You very much for a quality product. All match the description.
Very fast shipping! Bright light, small size.
Good small night light, goes out when the light comes on when it gets dark, starting with soft light. Parcel not monitored, but quickly came. Generally recommended.
Like lamps, to respond to the darkness, light is quite well, took two pieces, two workers. To SF were 21 day. Upon arrival in Russia ceased to be tracked. I began to write, he said that customs clearance may take a long time. IN the end came, the terms specified in the sending missed.
Thank You very much! Order description, shipping fast!!
Thank you very much. Fast shipping, high quality goods!
Great stuff!!! We have the baby, we zamedlitelno tested in fact, night light, all super! IN the dark it flares is much stronger and light enough, that would all see! Thank You very much!!!
Shipping 2 weeks. Seller recommend to everyone and goods. Very convenient and easy. Insert light bulb socket and everything! No effort must!) Is Recommended. Order Tracking of it separately, thank you store.
Work. Shipping 1 month Saratov region.
Super fast delivery, excellent product, respect!
Night Light very much-small, light, light is good enough for a lamp, not blinding, not hot, inside have photocell which adjusts the brightness and turns off the night light during the day. Delivery Time ukrainu only 17 days to track all the way. Thank You for the store to send parcels and quality products. Seller and recommend items.
Тавка super. Very much. Will заказыкать yet. Delivery one month.
Good product, to Makhachkala reached within 40 days.
Wonderful night light. My Daughter without light sleep afraid, that's just for her. not very bright, soft light. what you need. thank You Very Much! Sending to Minsk was just over 2 weeks.
Night Light good, worth Those switches the light. He even light in different ways (the darker, the brighter). Came quickly in the month in PE.
Flashlight driving me three weeks. Working properly.
Product appearance is of good quality. Night Light in the dark light is good. As always in outlet does not hold, then after a few days notice, that light sensor is not working. The 3 photo comparison with other lamp when the lights in the room. The store has contacted. Fits the description of goods on the site. Seller sent the goods. Shipping in Belarus 14 days.
Thank You Very Much! Product quality!
It for 2 weeks, excellent nochnichek for room with a baby, all you can see and had no one beats. it 'S the second purchase, first lasted 1,5 years, broke the pin.
Very, very cool, thanks for product quality and fast delivery!
Cool light, responding to the lighting instantly.
Excellent small night light, thank you store, recommend!
Good lighting, They with sensor light when dark, they are depressed.
High Quality night light. Bright.
Shipping to Mos. region. 10 days. Made to look good. Though small, but is bright. And here the sensor in charge of on-off the ice, sensitivity, a little dark, night in the room-Once triggered, though more light, T. e. Light will almost always disconnect only in bright light.
Lamp working. Match the description. But the delivery 60 days. Thought he could not come.
Items come in Russia in the region 60 for 60 days terribly long. Measured power of 0.18 Watts. Instead declared in 0.7. Light Sensor works fine.
Very good light, small, not very bright, what you need!
It works, lovely svetilnichek. Light only in the dark, in daylight does not work. Long Service, 2 months, but it is the fault of our mail. To Russia came within a month. The Seller is very good, responsive, answer all emails, extended protection. Generally recommended.
Works well. Motion sensor, only light sensor. That is in the dark on continuously.
Star for delivery-Peter almost 2 months, not tracked. And it works.
The product is completely satisfied. It fits the description. The store did not communicate. Delivery very fast. Seller recommend!
Chudova shop, обирав shop for tsіnoyu product, and otrimav Shte nd Chudova SERVIS. Shvydko сконтактували th place your order. Priyshov Shvydko povnіstyu vіdpovіdav zamovlennyu. Chudove vrazhennya, Dyakuyu Bike.
Small and light fine!!! All night light today! Class! Delivery two weeks.
Good night light, brightness is adjustable according to the light.
Was two months. It is small. It works.
Shipping 3 weeks. The quality is excellent! Take the fireflies many times–So, relatives, friends. Satisfied all! Definitely recommend!
Accurate description. when it gets dark night light begins, turns on the light night light turns off. would be good if was with motion sensor.
All GOOD! THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
Cool! More order, if everything is OK with it will be.
It has come. Work. Light as a lamp is the best!
Night Light works fine. IN THE dark, turn on, the light turns off, the darker, the brighter the light. I am very happy. But there is one negative. I bought a from other store, there lamp sold in original packaging, here just in a plastic bag, e. Not suitable for gift. Took over 87,6 rubles. Shipping in Peter about two months.
Delivery 2 month to Kaluga, not a track. Cool. All works. Thank You Very Much!
Good night light, small, light enough.
All the description. WITH THE talk was not necessary. But judging because there were no problems and complaints, so put five stars. Checked by including in the socket. Everything works. Sensor responds to light and darkness. In use then write more, that's what.
Great night light. When the light goes out. Small, but the light in the dark well.
Nearly two months before Volgograd. Wonderful Night light, placed in the toilet, night lights.
THE whole night light is not bad, but for me the lighting in the room is not enough. Acquired in order to follow the newborn baby. As a result of the lamp will not use. Will Put to the back burner. In addition, service was well oooooochen. Ordered 28 Aug, received only 03 Nov. To those who is going to buy this product in the nursery, do not recommend.
Good. I wait too long for this order. But I got it.
Very comfortable night light, drove for 2 weeks before pitera.
Shipping almost 48 days. Just like in the description. All works. Thank you.
Lamp small light 0,7 Watts., It is very dull, but sometimes need a light. Sensor is triggered only in very bright light. Thanks to the product recommend.
Excellent nochnichok. Works fixed, no complaints. Shipping 2 weeks. Thank you for the goods.
Thank you very much! Fits the description of goods, works! Very happy and son happy!
I liked the night light, light just for a lamp, light nice, my warm white! Recommend!!! Buy a section's friends cheaper "for 83 rate!
Cool night light, is certainly not enough to switch, and a great thing. Thank you so much!!!
Night light good, but does not react to light. Still shines, need very bright, so went out. And, all the rules, thank you!
Ordered 20.09 received 16.12. Otslezhka bad, only kitayu. Small light. Lights in the dark, light зажигаешь turns off.
Get faster. In good condition. Very small night light. Lit, do not shut down.
Tiny lamp, turn on the When it gets dark, the light is bright, but looks like a toy) generally happy!! Thank you very much!
Nearly two months before the county. region. Working. When very light in the room is turned off. Put in the box. Thank You.
Mail is delivered nearly two months. The Mailman gave up. Fits the description and photos. IN the hallway allows to focus, to illuminate the room is not enough. As night light is ideal. Power takes little. Light nice. Working in the dark and the shadows, when turn on the light it is turned off. Recommend. Thank you.
For a long time to order. Even a dispute, but behold the next day the package received. Seller negative would himself to extend the protection order. Seller is not recommended.
Goods went last month. All works. The light sensor is, but certainly not a fountain. The photo included in socket night, but the light is bright enough, the problem is, the sensor is in the top of the housing and when night light outlet, light on it falls ill. In the dark room, seems to me to be constantly work at any time. The second photo the finger, the brighter. Here we have to think, for the money is not bad, include only at night, during the day to take out.
A neat little nochnichok. The Sensor works. Shipping, that's true, two months, and no complaints. Thank You Very Much.
The Led Night are perfect. Gives enough light for a room.
Received order neat night light. Turns On automatically at night. Very clearly responds sensor. Recommend this store.
Night Light went to Mari El 58 days. Do not think that is so small. Reserved for a child to be seen at night.
Order came earlier than expected. Thank You all in working condition.
Damn! Thought this lamp is not enough ever, and he still had.
Goods come quickly, within a month, good light, small night light.
Shipping to SF less than a month. Off only in bright light, so that day has to remove from sockets, as. No switch. For Room 16 sq. m. Light bright, subjective. Night is not turned off, their work). Thank you.
Waiting for the order of 4 months, but the premise is not come☹ Therefore appreciate the night light is not possible ((( The dispute store returned the money does not come goods.
Goods not come for some reason, but the store immediately returned the money. Re-ordered.
Great night light, working in the dark, the light turns off.
Delivery on time, working perfectly!
Good night lamp sensor work. Thank you!
Very satisfied with the purchase and service shop. Great thing. Thank you for the excellent job! Happy New Year, happiness and good luck! Recommend.
Vlazit in the socket, too wide. Sensor responds quickly, but the light is not very bright.
Buy a second time. First worked fine, But it ate dog))) a good product. Recommend.


The tables below show you the components of each test panel, and allow you to compare the included items in each mini, medium, or expanded panel. You can also see the discount you'll receive if you purchase through these links - in some cases, you'll save hundreds! The purchase links will add your selections to your shopping cart on our special portal on Direct Labs. You'll need to sign up for an account to purchase through Direct Labs (if you don't have one already).
Purchase of laboratory tests implies the understanding that: The tests ordered via this website and Direct Labs are NOT reviewed by any physician or healthcare providers, thus it is essential to share results with your medical provider(s) to ensure accurate and timely interpretation. Consult your physician regarding any symptoms or medical condition. We specifically disclaim any expressed or implied warranties or merchantability of fitness for any particular usage, application or purpose. We do not recommend self-diagnosis or self-medication, and no information within this web site or presented may be construed or interpreted as recommending self-diagnosis or self-medication.


In 1904 the British geographer Halford Mackinder addressed the Royal Geographical Society in London. (1) He advanced a geopolitical theory that is now known as the "Heartland Theory". Mackinder divided the world into three major regions: the "World Island" comprising the continents of Africa, Asia and Europe; the "Offshore Islands", which included the UK and Japan; and the "Outlying Islands" which included the North and South American continents and Australia.
Who rules East Europe commands the Heartland.
Who rules the World Island commands the world (2).
The world was a very different place in 1904. Russia was a feudal monarchy; China was weakened by colonial occupation and exploitation; most of Africa was ruled by European colonial powers; and the US was yet to emerge as a significant military and geopolitical force.
The hundred years following Mackinder's presentation to the Royal Society saw unprecedented change in the world's geopolitical structure. Two world wars, the Bolshevik Revolution, the decolonization of Africa and Asia, the relative collapse of European colonial imperial power and the rise of an aggressively expansionist United States saw a fundamental shift of power in the period from 1914 to 1990. Yet, as will be argued, the explanatory power of Mackinder's vision is a powerful tool to understanding the contemporary geopolitical structures and the likely course of future events.
The seeds of US foreign policy that has dominated the past several decades were planted in the 19th century. In 1853 a US naval convoy under the command of Commodore Matthew Perry sailed into Tokyo Harbour. On behalf of the US government Perry demanded a treaty with Japan that would allow trade between Japan and the United States. Japan had no navy and was forced to acquiesce to the American demands and a treaty was duly signed permitting trade and opening Japanese ports to US merchant shipping.
The Second World War wrought devastating losses on the two powers that might have been able to challenge American post World War 2 hegemony, Russia and China. They each lost between 25 and 30 million people fighting off the German and Japanese invasions respectively.
The scale of these losses is scarcely acknowledged in the western popular media. Countless films, books and TV programs inculcated images of an heroic British empire fighting alone until Pearl Harbor in December 1941 brought the Americans into the war. The British element of the war was then fought in a long slog across North Africa, Italy and then with the Americans in Italy and the D Day landings of June 1944. The Americans fought the Japanese across the Pacific, island by island.
Total British casualties in World War 2 (civilian and military) were 451,000. American losses, primarily military, were 419,000. Total Canadian, Australian and New Zealand casualties were 106,000. To put those numbers into perspective, Russia had 1.1 million casualties in the Battle of Stalingrad (July 1942 to January 1943) alone.
China's war with Japan began in 1937 and continued until August 1945. Accurate statistics are harder to come by, but the number of civilian deaths is variously placed at between 10 and 25 million, and up to four million military deaths (4). Clearly once again these deaths dwarf western allied casualties, but there is even less acknowledgment in the western media than is the case with Russia.
These figures are mentioned because the scale of those casualties has exerted a dominant influence over Russian and Chinese strategic thinking ever since, and it is impossible to understand modern geopolitical structures without appreciating how both governments are driven to avoiding being placed in that position again.
The end of World War 2 did not see the end of military action by the west. The US in particular has sought to exercise a level of control over nations around the world that is best encapsulated in the doctrine of full spectrum dominance. (5) By this, it was intended that the US would be without military parallel at sea, on the land, in the air, and in cyberspace.
Its troops currently occupy or are fighting in, either directly or through proxies, Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. None of these wars have any legitimacy in international law, the defiance of which is a dominant characteristic of US foreign policy. (7) In addition to direct military intervention the US is a major sponsor of hybrid warfare on every continent (8).
The agreement between Presidents Gorbachev and Bush the Elder that allowed the reunification of the two parts of Germany had been accompanied by a pledge by the Americans that NATO would "not advance one inch further east". (10) The subsequent history of Eastern Europe is a perfect illustration of why American assurances are not to be trusted.
Despite there now being foreign troops stationed on Russia's borders, the installation of missile systems directed at Russia, and the regular carrying out of large scale military exercises, again clearly aimed at Russia, it is Russia that is portrayed in the western media as being the aggressive one. It is this capacity for hypocrisy and doublethink that again is a prominent feature of western policy.
China's post war history was also disruptive. After the Japanese had been defeated the civil war resumed, concluding with victory under Mao in 1949. The Korean War commenced the following year and it was US General McArthur's threat to cross the Yalu River that brought China into that war. We now know that the Americans seriously considered the use nuclear weapons on China (13).
That war was barely concluded when Mao embarked on his Great Leap Forward (da yue jin) program (1958-1962). Although intended to transform China from an agrarian to an industrial society it was in many respects a disaster. Widespread famine was one consequence. Internal party criticism of Mao by people such as Deng Xiaoping led to Mao's marginalization within the Party. The Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) was aimed at restoring Mao's control, but it had disastrous consequences on China's economy and society. It was Deng Xiaoping, who led China from 1978 until 1989 with his "four Modernizations" first proposed by Zhou Enlai in 1963 that began the transformation of China into its current status. Those four pillars of modernization were agriculture, industry, defence and science and technology.
Ever since, China has sustained a level of development unparalleled anywhere in the world. More than half a billion people have been lifted out of poverty into the middle class. Huge infrastructure developments including more high speed rail than the rest of the world combined, and the development of centres of technological excellence as in the transformation of Shenzhen from a small fishing village to a world class centre of excellence in less than 40 years. Shenzhen is one of China's Special Economic Zones where investment strategies owe more to entrepreneurial capitalism than they do to the outmoded depiction of China as a communist nation.
On the basis of parity purchasing power, China's economy is now larger than that of the United States and the disparity grows wider every day. The United States did not have anything as dramatic as the collapse of the Soviet Union or the transformation of China, but it did have a geopolitical event, the consequences of which have profoundly affected the direction of US policy, and contributed to a rebalancing of the world's geopolitical structure.
What has transpired, especially in the past 16 years, is a geopolitical realignment that has given fresh impetus to Mackinder's prescient view of the emergence of the "Heartland," that is, Eurasia, as the focus and dynamic centre for the 21st century.
To facilitate this development a number of organisations and agreements were established. Most of these, until very recently, have flown under the radar of the western media. The first, chronologically was the Eurasian Economic Community, a grouping of six former members of the Soviet Union, with Russia the largest and most economically and politically important member. This evolved into the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) in 2010 and currently incorporates the six original members. Its focus is on interregional trade and investment and moving toward a common currency zone.
More recently, the EAEU has begun forming links outside the original six with other trading groups and also individual countries. Of these the most significant is Turkey, which in 2017 began negotiating a free trade deal with the EAEU and talking about possible future membership. This is significant as it marks the final disenchantment of Turkey with the European Union with whom it has been holding negotiations for the past 30 years without obvious progress.
Turkey is also a member of NATO and its reorientation to the East has further ramifications. Turkey has recently signed a multi billion-dollar deal with Russia to be supplied with the Russian S400 anti missile defence system, much to the consternation of the Americans whose own missile defence system is inferior to the Russian version, but who have always seen NATO as providing a captive market for its own military sales.
In March 2017 the prime ministers of Iran and the six EAEU member states signed cooperation agreements and further integration is anticipated by the end of 2017. Russia has also sold its S400 system to Iran and Iran has provided an airbase for the Russian military at Hamadan, located 47 km from the city of the same name.
Iran is also a key link in the North South Transportation corridor (NSTC) that links India with Russia via Iran and Azerbaijan. To facilitate the NSTC and the other developments discussed below, Iran is investing in major infrastructure projects with the financial and technical assistance of Russia and China. This notably includes upgraded rail linkages.
Iran also made a recent agreement with Qatar to jointly develop the huge natural gas resources in the Persian Gulf, known as the South Pars field in Iran and the North Dome field in Qatar. This agreement was a major factor in the recent threats, demands and economic moves against Qatar made by Saudi Arabia, from which the Saudis have largely resiled.
Another important factor in the Saudi-Qatar dispute was the decision by Qatar to sell $50 billion of natural gas to China, the key fact being that the deal was not denominated in US dollars. It was an important milestone in the disappearance of the petrodollar (22) a fact of more significance to the US on whose behalf Saudi Arabia was undoubtedly acting.
Another grouping is BRICS, an acronym coined in 2001 by Jim O'Neill chairman of Goldman Sacks with the initials representing the (original) four countries of Brazil, Russia, India and China. The 'S' represents South Africa that did not join until 2010. The first meeting of the BRIC nations was in 2006 at Foreign Minister level with the first full-scale conference in Yekaterinburg, Russia, in June 2009.
BRICS is significant not only for its membership, representing as it does a significant percentage of the world's population and GDP, and not only its geographical spread, but also that it is taking increasing steps to separate itself from the US and European dominated World Bank and IMF by setting up its own development bank. It is also instrumental in setting up CHIPS, an alternative to SWIFT, the interbank trading system that has been used as a tool in imposing financial sanctions on, among others, Iran and Russia. Those sanctions have been a form of financial imperialism.
Arguably the most important grouping however is the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the details and significance of which is almost entirely absent from most western media analysis. The SCO was formed in 2001 and initially comprised China and Russia, plus Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It had six Observer States, and six Dialogue Partners.
Iran is an Observer State and has applied for full membership, with the strong backing of Russia. It is likely to become a full member either late 2017 or early 2018.
Two other Observer States that achieved full membership in July this year were India and Pakistan. Egypt and Syria have applied for Observer State status, and another Observer State, Turkey, has applied for full membership as well. Afghanistan is another Observer State, although its attempts to have a fuller level of cooperation with other SCO members, and benefit from infrastructure investment have been blocked by the US. President Trump has openly stated that Afghanistan's significant natural resources, estimated by the US Geological survey in 2012 at up to $3 trillion, should be exploited by the US. (23) Significantly, that resource includes more than one million tonnes of rare earth elements, a key component of modern technology (24).
The US is unlikely to relinquish its role in Afghanistan any time soon as, apart from its mineral wealth, it provides 93% of the world's heroin (25) of which the US is a significant beneficiary (26), and has military bases designed to form part of its containment policy of China.
Perhaps needless to add, none of these facts form part of the western narrative with regard to Afghanistan, particularly in Australia, that prefers to perpetuate its myth of being there in a "training and advisory role". (28) A role that after 16 years has been spectacularly unsuccessful in achieving anything approaching positive results.
Since 2004 the SCO has also had a security cooperation component (CSTO) aimed at coordinating responses by SCO members to security (including terrorist) threats to member states. Other areas of focus include combatting drug trafficking, organized crime and religious extremism. Unlike NATO, SCO dos not need an external enemy to justify its existence. Covering a quarter of the world's population and three fifths of the Eurasian landmass it again provides an alternative model for tackling common problems, many of which are generated outside its borders.
The reader will have noted that BRICS, the EAEU, the NSTC and the SCO have considerable overlapping memberships. While that is not without its problems, as with the recent confrontation of India and China over the Donglang region of the China-Bhutan border and elsewhere on their common frontier, these problems have thus far been resolved without resort to war. Dialogue has been the key, a factor notably lacking with the US in for example, Afghanistan and Korea (29).
Towering over all these developments however, is a project that is transforming Eurasia in its scope and ambition. It is the world's largest infrastructure project by a significant margin. Publicly announced by China's President Xi Jinping in 2014 its has been variously described as the New Silk Roads, One Belt One Road (Yi dai Yi lu) (Xi's original description) and its current nomenclature, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). I have previously discussed this project in New Dawn (30) and will not repeat that here.
As may be seen from the various graphic representations the BRI has both land and maritime components, linking Eurasia with Africa and South America. Its land component is a combination of road, high-speed rail and fibre optic communications. One illustration is the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), itself a $50 billion project linking China with the Pakistan port of Gwador.
Looked at from a broader perspective, American military misadventures since the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan may be seen as symptomatic of the disintegration and collapse of the American empire. Ironically, this has been recognised by the Pentagon itself, as detailed in a recent study (32). Their proposed "solution" however, is more of the same policies that led to America's decline in the first place: more surveillance; more strategic manipulation of perception (i.e. propaganda); and more military interventions. The contrast with President Xi's "win-win" philosophy and his geopolitical analysis outlined in Switzerland earlier this year (33) could not be greater.
How likely is it however, that the US empire will collapse and be replaced by, at the very least, a multi-polar alternative world? The American historian Alfred McCoy in his latest book (34) sees the decline in the US's ability to retain global hegemony as attributable to a number of factors. One important factor is the decline in US educational standards resulting from years of underinvestment as crucial spending was subsumed to the needs of an ever more bloated military establishment. The F35 debacle is a classic metaphor for all that is wrong with military investment and an inability to produce a quality product.
Another factor that McCoy identifies is the dollar's disappearance as the world's sole reserve currency; a status that has enabled the US to live beyond its means for decades. The de-dollarization of the world is growing rapidly, not least as noted above in the Eurasian trading blocs and separate deals (eg Qatar) done outside those blocs. Trading is increasingly done in local currencies, through the Ruble or Yuan or through constructs such as Special Drawing Rights or gold based convertible notes. (35) China's increasing economic dominance will accelerate that trend.
The Swedish sociologist Johan Galtung has developed a different predictive model, and one with an impressive record of accurately forecasting major geopolitical changes (36).
Galtung's model is one he describes as "synchronizing and mutually reinforcing contradictions". The more the contradictions deepen, the greater the likelihood they could upend the existing social order. His model was first set out in 1996 and refined and expanded in his 2009 book (37).
The book sets out 15 "synchronizing and mutually reinforcing contradictions" that will lead to the end of the US empire by 2020. This is a ten-year shorter time frame than McCoy's thesis referred to above.
The increasing costs of climate change and a failure to address these in a timely fashion. Trump for example, recently withdrew from the Paris Climate Accord. Australia signed up to it but has done nothing since and its emission levels have actually increased (38).
Military contradictions including rising tensions between the US and its NATO allies (see Trump's statements on this) and the increasing unsustainability of simultaneously fighting multiple wars. This must especially be the case when those wars are never won and never look like reaching a satisfactory conclusion.
Political contradictions including the conflict between the EU and the US. The most recent manifestation of this are the arbitrary sanctions applied on Russia and Iran. The former hurt the US's allies who depend on Russia for meeting its energy requirements. The new Iran sanctions are manifestly an attempt to abdicate the US's responsibilities under the JCPOA deal completed in 2015 and approved by the UN Security Council. As with the Bush-Gorbachev deal referred to above, this is yet further evidence that the US is not trustworthy on any agreements that might be reached.
The Trump presidency, with its incoherent policy proposals, is more chaotic and dysfunctional than might have been the case with a Clinton presidency, but it would be wrong to attach the problems to any one individual person. The problems that are manifest are really symptomatic of much deeper structural problems within the United States. There is no evidence that those problems are likely to be addressed in any meaningful way, much less have measurable improvement within a realistic time frame.
Irrespective of whether one accepts Galtung's or McCoy's time frames the end result is the same: a collapse of the American empire and a fundamental realignment of the world's geopolitical structure.
The new world order that is emerging is fulfilling Mackinder's vision of 113 years ago. For the reasons set out above, Russia and China are central to that realignment. Ironically, the Russophobia of America's Deep State and their fundamental inability to grasp the nature and the consequences of the re-emergence of Chinese power has expedited the strategic relationship between these two powers.
The US will undoubtedly continue to strive to undermine the Eurasian partnership through a range of maneuvers. Its provocative conduct in the South China Sea; its bellicosity to North Korea; its trouble making between China and India; its conduct in Ukraine and elsewhere in Eastern Europe; and its continuing addiction to hybrid warfare show no signs of abating.
The fundamental fact of the 21st century however, is that the US no longer has the power to impose its will as it was largely able to do from 1945 to 2000. A new model, centred on the World Island Heartland is taking shape, with China and Russia as its major drivers. The world is a safer place as a consequence.
O'Neill Trump and Afghanistan: A Hidden Agenda www.journal-neo.org 25 August 2017.
Scott Drugs, Oil and War: The US in Afghanistan, Colombia and Indochina. Rowman & Littlefield (2004).
US Skips Out on Afghan-Taliban Conference in Moscow. dw.com 14 April 2017.
O'Neill The New Silk Roads: the Quiet Revolution www.newdawnmagazine.com March-April 2016.
President Xi's Opening Plenary Speech at Davos weforum.org 17 January 2017.
Galtung The Fall of the US Empire – and then what? Transcend University Press (2009).


Megan Hilty Megan Hilty recently starred alongside Sean Hayes in NBC's comedy Sean Saves the World. Prior to that, she portrayed the seasoned triple threat, Ivy Lynn, in NBC's musical drama Smash for two seasons. In March 2013, Hilty released her debut solo album, It Happens All The Time, which included fresh interpretations of compositions by contemporary songwriters and producers.
Last summer, Hilty participated in a reading of a new Broadway-bound production of Cole Porter's Can-Can. She previously starred as Lorelei Lee, the diamond-loving blonde made famous by Carol Channing, in the Encores! production of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, of which she earned rave reviews. Additionally, her voice was featured as Rosetta in Disney's Tinker Bell: Secret of the Wings. She has recorded vocals for Disney'sThe Secret Life of Magic Gourd; Phineas and Ferb; Glenn Martin, DDS; American Dad; Tinker Bell and the Pixie Hollow Games; and Robot and Monster, as well as singing as Snow White in the film Shrek the Third. Hilty will next be seen in Summertime Entertainment's animated film Dorothy of Oz with Kelsey Grammer, Hugh Dancy and Lea Michele, slated for release in 2014. She can also be heard alongside Placido Domingo on the opera star's duet album.
A native of Seattle, Hilty moved to New York City after graduating from the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University, and quickly made her Broadway debut as Glinda in Wicked. She went on to perform the role in both the national tour and Los Angeles.
After receiving critical acclaim for her portrayal of Doralee Rhodes in Broadway's 9 to 5: The Musical, Hilty was honored with nominations for lead actress in a musical at the Drama Desk Awards, Outer Critics Circle Awards, Drama League Awards, and L.A. Stage Alliance Ovation Awards. Hilty has previously performed with the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center, the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center, and the Cincinnati Symphony. She was featured on TNT's Christmas in Washington in 2012 and has continued to perform at prestigious venues nationwide.
Her television credits include guest-starring roles in Melissa and Joey, Bones, The Closer, Desperate Housewives, CSI, Shark, Ugly Betty, Eli Stone and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody.
Among Hilty's film credits are The Bitter Feast and the short film The Happiest Man Alive, opposite Justin Chambers.


The August 4-5 matches will be held at the Central Broward oval in Lauderhill, south Florida.
"Both matches are scheduled for the weekend and will be played under the lights," CWI chief executive Johnny Grave said.
"Our intention is to work with ICC Americas members, USA Cricket & Cricket Canada in partnership to establish cricket as a popular sport from North to South America."
Ireland batsman Kevin O'Brien's brilliant 158 during his side's debut Test against Pakistan has placed him at the 66th spot in the latest ICC Test Player Rankings.
The 34-year-old all-rounder produced a knock of 40 in the first innings and a valiant 118 in the second to help Ireland fight back after they were asked to follow-on, eventually losing their maiden Test match by five wickets against Pakistan at Malahide in Dublin.
As a result, he is now standing with a total of 440 points in the ICC Test Player Rankings released on Wednesday.
Opener Charles Bannerman of Australia has the best rating of 447 points in a team's debut Test, scoring 165 not out and four in the first ever cricket Test played between Australia and England in Melbourne in March 1877.
Aminul Islam of Bangladesh (432 in 2001) and David Houghton of Zimbabwe (431 in 1992) are third and fourth in the list.
Fast bowler Tim Murtagh has also made a fine start, entering in 67th position among bowlers after a match haul of six for 100, while all-rounder Stuart Thompson has made notable starts in both lists, ranked 125th among batsmen and 88th among bowlers.
As for Pakistan's debutants, all-rounder Faheem Ashraf and left-handed opener Imam-Ul-Haq entered the rankings at 81st and 113th positions, respectively, in the list for batsmen.
Faheem scored 83 in the first innings at Malahide while Imam had scores of seven and 74 not out.
Pace bowlers Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Amir have moved up the ladder with Abbas gaining eight slots to reach a career-best 29th position and Amir advancing two places to 37th position.
Abbas finished with nine for 110 in the match while Amir took five for 72.
In the ICC Test Team Rankings, Pakistan have gained one point after victory in the one-off Test.
They remain in seventh position with 87 points while Ireland, who will get a proper ranking only after eight Test matches, have yet to take their first points.


text:
Erik Seidel
Erik Seidel player profile
First seen:
Erik Seidel is an American poker professional born in New York City. He currently resides in Las Vegas where he moved in 1995. He has been playing poker full time ever since.
Seidel (just like Gus Hansen) started out as a professional backgammon player, he played that game with real poker legends such as Chip Reese, Stu Unger and Puggy Pearson. Seidel was truly impressed by them and one thing led to another. He decided to try $1/2 at the Dunes. He won the first session, even though he didn't have any real knowledge about poker, Erik was hooked.
Seidel's is a member of Team Full Tilt, his cash game numbers on the site is in the red, but Erik probably couldn't care less, since he tops the All Time Money List for Live Tournaments, with nearly $17 Million in winnings. In his first major tournament, the 1988 WSOP main event, Erik finished runner-up to Johnny Chan (the last hand of the tournament).
In 2010 Erik got voted in to the Poker Hall of Fame. He has eight WSOP bracelets, one WPT title and 14 other titles.
View more less
Erik Seidel's high stakes results
Last 4h Last 8h Last 24h Last 48h 7 days 30 days Since ftp relaunch Since black friday 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 This year All Results Profit per game All nicknames
Win/hand:
$-119.63
Most played game:
Mixed HA
Erik Seidel's latest opponents
Follow The Hawk Unknown $908,400
meetpete18 Unknown -$10,846
eddinho87 Unknown $223,944
Gus Hansen Gustav Hansen -$20,737,007
Seb86 Sebastien Sabic $1,507,847
More players
Erik Seidel's biggest pots
Pot size
NLHE (500/1k) $137,085
PLO (500/1k) $134,692
PLO (500/1k) $91,162
PLO (200/400) $85,598
NLHE (500/1k) $84,995
More hands
Erik Seidel's latest news
Brandon Adams in Pole Position as $50k Final Fifty Reaches Final Table
https://www.highstakesdb.com/9713-brandon-adams-in-pole-position-as-50k-final-fifty-reaches-final-table.aspx
Adams will come back to the $50k Final Fifty tournament with a massive chip lead
Holz and Negreanu Make it Through $50k Final Fifty Opening Day
https://www.highstakesdb.com/9709-holz-and-negreanu-make-it-through-50k-final-fifty-opening-day.aspx
The WSOP took player feedback to heart and last month added a 90th event to the schedule
Tuesday 7:29 PM
Sam Trickett Survives MILLIONS Vegas Opening Day
https://www.highstakesdb.com/9669-sam-trickett-survives-millions-vegas-opening-day.aspx
The second opening day saw 221 entries forking out $10k apiece to chase the trophy
Anthony Zinno Wins 2nd WSOP Title and $279,920 in PLO8
https://www.highstakesdb.com/9662-anthony-zinno-wins-2nd-wsop-title-and-279920-in-plo8.aspx
The victory puts Zinno less than $150K away from $9 million in lifetime earnings
More Erik Seidel news
MOST POPULAR PLAYERS LAST 24h
PokerStars 1266
Ilari FIN
PokerStars 493
Sauce123
MrSweets28
RaiseOnce
Full Tilt Poker 258
Lrslzk
w00ki3z.
BiggestFish
Jeans89
More popular players
MOST WINNING PLAYERS THIS MONTH
More winning players

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


At Brio, we believe that facts and numbers are an essential aspect of success in business. And science shows that enhancing employee engagement drives hard results - ultimately increasing productivity, performance and profit.
Let's logic this out. Based on the numbers above, if your company has 50 employees, approximately 35 (70%) are disengaged at work. If the average salary per employee is around $50,000, you lose $17,000/year per employee -- due to lost productivity driven by disengagement. That equates to $595,000 for all 35 disengaged employees. Say about 5 of those 35 employees quit within the same year, turnover will cost you around $25,000.00 per employee, totaling $125,000. Combining the cost of lost productivity with the cost of turnover, disengagement costs your company around $720,000 per year. Worse, companies with low employee engagement scores earn 32.7% lower than companies with highly engaged employees (International Survey Research, 2006).
The good news: employee engagement programs can mitigate disengagement-driven costs and even increase profits by an average of $2400 per employee per year (Wang, 2015).
Outperform low-engaged companies by 202% (Dale Carnegie, 2017).
Additionally, organizations that have over 50% employee engagement retain over 80% of their customers (Demand Metric, 2013).
Your ROI: Based on the same numbers as above, if your 35 disengaged employees go through engagement training, that's an increase of $84,000 in profits. Now, being realistic, not every employee is going to convert from disengaged to engaged. Let's say, based on this, nearly half of those 35 employees become engaged as a result of implementing a customized employee engagement program. That saves you nearly $300,000 in lost productivity and yields additional profit earnings at about $42,000, totaling $342,000 in savings and additional profit.
Managers account for a minimum of 70% of the variance in employee engagement scores (Gallup, 2014).
Leaders who focus on strengths drastically lower employees' rate of disengagement - down to less than 1% (Gallup, 2009).
Belief in senior leadership is the strongest engagement driver; growth & development is the second (Modern Survey).
Coors Brewing Company is committed to employee engagement and development, conducting an annual employee engagement survey. In 2010, Coors found that 87% of the company's employees were engaged -- an astonishing result compared to much the 30% average across most American companies (Gallup, 2017). When it comes to their bottom line, Coors estimates that their employees are five times less likely to have safety incidents due to such high employee engagement, reporting saving $1,721,760 in safety incidents in 2002. Additionally, Coors tracks the performance differences among low-engagement and high-engagement teams, finding low-engagement versus high-engagement teams to yield a difference in performance-related costs of $2,104,823 (McLean & Company staff, 2012).
Contact us to find out how we can partner with your organization to enhance employee engagement and well-being.


Rayagada: Padmapur Police seized around four quintals of ganja from a pickup van during night patrolling at Padmapur area on Saturday and arrested a person in this connection.
The arrested has been identified as Mitu Majhi of Guibandha village under this police limits.
According to sources, a night patrolling team was deployed in the area when they intercepted the vehicle on suspicion and conducted a search.
During the search, a number of sacks were found stashed with the contraband. While police arrested Majhi during the raid, other two managed to escape.
The market value of the seized contraband is estimated to worth over Rs four crore, a police official said, adding that a manhunt has been launched to nab the absconding duo.


In 48 hours the following occured: Laura (a great friend from college) heard about flooding in LA and knew some people looking for help on their houses. She asked me if I could go with her to assist. I asked permission from the Seminary to go and they granted it. I was free after work Friday and had to be back by morning prayer Sunday morning.
Laura knew Rebecca who was asking for help on Facebook. Rachel knew Kim who lives in east BR. Kim was keeping track of neighbors needing help and coordinating volunteers. We contacted Kim, who gave us the addresses of people to work with. Kim also knew Olga, who graciously let us stay in her house.
Laura received donations from some friends, so we loaded up on supplies we could donate – work tools, food, water, cleaning stuff, etc – and headed off. Armed with a cell phones full of addresses and phone numbers for strangers, we set off to do what we could.
My goal for the trip was to ensure that the people I ran into would know they are known and cared for by people outside their community and do as much as I possibly could to assist their physical needs.
We stayed Friday night at the house of Olga and Alan. She is the DRE at a Catholic parish in town and has become a coordiator of relief efforts in the area. Their house wasn't hit, so their whole family has spent the week helping tear up houses. We were prepped to sleep in sleeping bags on the ground, so their hospitality was above and beyond. The first of many genuine, good hearted people we met.
Saturday morning we went to the addresses provided and found out that while technically still in Baton Rouge, we were about 30 minutes east in towns called Central and Denham Springs. For reference, this video shows an arial of many affected areas. DS appears at 0:37.
House debris lined miles of road. Many houses were entirely gutted, all belongings thrown away. Look at these roads and imagine multiple feet of standing water. Most people were evacuated from their houses on boats. This is not a flood plain. The closest major river was 3 miles away. The water peaked last weekend but lingered a few days. By the time we got there, most land was "dry", but houses were starting to show mold.
We were originally sent to the home of Jesse Jr. After our first "how the heck did a seminarian and a chemical engineer from Houston end up here?" spiel (we had the script down by the end of the day), he said his house was mostly finished and directed us a few doors down to his parent's house. Our first of many audibles for the day. We arrived there and met a whole crew of extended family beginning work.
The house been in standing water of 4-5 feet. Everything inside was already cleared out and trashed. According to the project lead at the house, the goal for the day was simple, "We aren't leaving the house today until all the drywall is gone." So we got to work.
All day long, people were driving down the streets yelling and offering water to workers. At lunch time, they came by and dropped off lunch. After lunch we had finished our assigned room, so we decided to head out and go the the next assigned house.
Lisa has 2 kids under 5 and is visibly pregnant with a third. Their house had about a foot of water. They had taken our 4 feet of drywall/insulation and were working to salvage the clothes/furniture that could be saved. We helped move furniture, throw out insulation, and packed bags of clothes.
We also had some fun interactions. I was greeted by a 'Gig em!' from a guy that went to SFA. We met a girl from Nickel state who is about to enter the Little Sisters of the Poor religious community. Laura met a senior chemical engineer who spent 10 minutes telling her how he oversees engineers similar to her and they're all worthless. Great fun.
Their house was raised 3 feet off the ground and they had about 18 inches of water in the house. At the peak of the flood, Grandpa (75 years-old) put Granny (85 years-old) in a boat and, with the assistance of his son, pushed her half a mile in waist deep water to dry land. Our goal at the house was to tear our baseboards, carpet tack-strips, walls and insulation. We worked with the grandsons for a few hours.
Granny was in total shock, not sure what to do with herself in the middle of a wrecked house she's lived in her entire life. She kept trying to sweep the floor, looking for any way to maintain a semblance of normalcy and cleanliness among the mess. She also repeatedly broke down in tears, thanking us for coming. Her house was destroyed and she was trying to give us gifts. She ultimately wouldn't let us leave until we each took a quilt that she had knitted herself. Heart of an angel. I'll be keeping this for years to come and praying for her every time I use it.
When it was time to go, we went to the parish Olga (our temporary host mom) works at. The church was operating as a disaster relief center, so we dropped off all our extra supplies, helped sort clothes, and distributed goods to families needing assistance. The Knights of the parish provided dinner it for all the affected families and volunteers.


text:
La Supercoupe du Liban de football est une compétition de football créée en 1996 opposant le champion du Liban au vainqueur de la coupe du Liban, disputée en un match unique.

Histoire

Palmarès

Source

 RSSSF

Compétition de football au Liban
Liban

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


English flowerpots manufacturer, Whichford Pottery, has unveiled its new RHS Wildflower Collection.
Developed to mark Whichford's 40th anniversary, the line features seven modelled decorations that showcase the beauty of British flowers.
Each flowerpot has been designed by master potter Jim Keeling, who used the resources of the RHS Lindley Library.
All of Whichford's pots are also handmade and boast a 10-year frost-proof guarantee.
Cathy Snow, licensing manager of the RHS, added: "The highly accomplished team at Whichford have developed something that is truly special.


text:
 "BREAK THROUGH" ON CANVAS, BOARD, AND ALUMINUM
Painting this series exposed the essence of where I was and how far I have come.
When it came time to name this series, I first chose Serenity because that's how it felt to paint them...
"The Way Of Water" 60x48-in acrylic on aluminum
"Coast" 20x20-in acrylic on board; @ PHILZ Dec-Mar
"Blue Joy" 12x12-in acrylic on board; @ PHILZ Dec-Mar
"Tranquility" 36x36-in acrylic on board;
"Sunrise Canyon" 48x36-in acrylic on aluminum;
"Raspberry Foam" 8x10-in acrylic on board;
"Cloud Hidden" 40x30-in acrylic on aluminum;
"Blue, Brown and White" 16x20-in acrylic on board; SOLD
"Corral and Sea Foam" 12x12-in acrylic on board; @ PHILZ Dec-Mar
 "Red Rock Latte" 10x14-in acrylic on board;
"Study in Mauve" 10x14-in acrylic on board;
"Time Is An Ocean"  acrylic on board; SOLD
"Study in Purple and Blue" 24x18-in acrylic on board;
"Sands of Time" 18 x 11-in acrylic on board;
I developed a distinctive new technique, I named the Intentional Flow method. I paint every piece with multiple glazings to get the illusion of depth and distance. Each layer has a different translucency made of thick and thin strands of paint.
When it was happening, it was like an out of body experience that lasted over a period of six months. I didn't stop to analyze or question; I just gave myself to my muse and followed my intuition. If any technical problem showed up, the answer appeared the next morning. In that sense, it was serene because I didn't have to work at it. I just got into the river and let go. However, the path leading me there was anything but serene. This series has a nice, smooth surface. You can touch the painting without hurting the it, as it's fairly durable. I can make it innately with a satin finish or a super glossy reflective finish without adding a final coat. All of these intentionally poured pieces are composed of many layers or glazings.
I re-named my first series, Break Through (see below) because just before I started painting the pieces for the exhibition, I had a broke-through-it was like an invisible barrier dissolved and I saw more. It was only after I healed from a serious health problem that demanded heavy pain meds and a seemingly endless search for an answer; was it something I could physically heal, or was it emotional, or was it part of my spiritual path (many seekers are faced with horrible physical setbacks on the way to clarity and compassion).
All my life I've worked to understand how this world works and where I fit in. All of a sudden, the instrument I used to do that wasn't working the way it had been. The prescriptions dulled the pain but thickened the fog around my brain and all but crushed my spirit. My way of life came to a screeching halt. When you are stripped of all that you do, all that you learned, even when it's temporary because at the time you don't know how long it will last and only have the now, it just becomes life. You are left gazing at the core of who you are. What makes you, you. Until it changes and you no longer have a weekly doctor's visit and loose touch with your neighborhood pharmacist. You emerge a slightly different version than who you were before, before the trauma. Now you are free and lighter. When you are an artist, the story is best told in the studio, through your art, like you've always done.
The Break Through series was debuted at a winter/spring 2019 exhibition at "The Main Gallery" in Redwood City, CA


text:
HomeNewsImproving public health surveillance and response
Improving public health surveillance and response
Timely information and appropriate response are vital for preventing and effective control of public health events, outbreaks, and pandemics. As a core requirement of the international health regulations (IHR (2005), countries continue to invest in building and maintaining robust surveillance systems to enable timely detection and public health response for enhanced national and international public health security.
The South Sudan Ministry of Health, with support from WHO and partners has since 2006 invested in the implementation of integrated disease surveillance and response (IDSR) strategy to control and prevent priority diseases and attain the other IHR (2005) core capacity requirements.
As part of these efforts, the Ministry of Health supported by WHO and partners has completed a 5-day training of trainer's workshop that trained a pool of 40 national master trainers on the updated IDSR third edition technical guidelines and training materials. The master trainers will then facilitate the cascade rollout of the third edition IDSR to the county level. The trainings are expected to enhance the implementation of IDSR core functions at the community, health facility, county, state, and national level.
"Late and incomplete reporting limits the amount of actionable public health data available to the Ministry of Health", said Dr John Rumunu, Director General for Preventive Health Services at the Ministry of Health. "The rollout of the IDSR Third Edition to the counties will enable health facilities and counties to collect data and report for identifying public health events and facilitate required follow up by the Ministry of Health to easily analyze which health facilities are reporting and identify public health events and facilities requiring follow-up."
Farmers donate maize seeds to refugees in Pagirinya
A motorist attempted to set fire on his bike


text:
How AI is Being Used in Law
HomeAI
By Devin Partida
Courtesy Adobe.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is not merely a field of technical innovation and academic study. It's also becoming indispensable in practicing law.
AI in the legal industry is rife with controversy as well as promise. The fundamental need that AI fills is having access to volumes of legal data at once without the means to efficiently study it and render actionable insights with the available time and resources.
Artificial intelligence, like its applications in medicine and other industries, can make practicing law faster. AI can quickly sort through mass legal data, make sense of any patterns, and recommend the next steps to take.
AI in law today
When it comes to practicing law, data takes the form of historical and current case files, contracts, proposals, and more.
AI applications are set to disrupt the entirety of the legal services market, which is valued at $750 billion worldwide, according to Statista. Artificial intelligence could dramatically expand the value and usefulness of this field, while helping it better use the mass data available to its practitioners.
Study of this burgeoning technology suggests the legal AI market could grow more than 35% per year until 2026 to $37.8 billion, according to Zion Market Research. What are the implications of this AI growth for legal professionals?
5 ways AI is changing law
1. Legal discovery and document analysis
Document analysis is a major part of the discovery phase of litigation. Discovery is when the attorneys involved in a case collect and draw insights into the situation. During this stage, lawyers determine whether existing legal precedent is on their side and what kind of language or previous cases might sharpen their arguments.
ROSS Intelligence, Kira Systems, Casetext, and others all want their research platforms to be the go-to AI tool in this area. Analyzing documents is time-consuming work for attorneys, paralegals, and legal clerks. However, this task is ideal for AI and its natural language processing (NLP) abilities. Having AI pore over troves of documents and isolating relevant sections ensures no effort goes to waste and frees legal professionals to focus on the humanistic parts of their jobs.
2. Divorce proceedings and settlements
Nobody wants to think about the dissolution of their marriage, but divorce is a core area of civil law. The word itself is enough to cause couples to wince at the thought of months- or years-long proceedings where both parties argue over the details.
AI plays a role in helping couples navigate divorce in a straightforward, streamlined, and easy-to-understand way. This AI application involves a couple filling out a questionnaire and providing other details about their circumstances. AI products from companies like Amica, Penda, and Wevorce then call on databases of previous divorce cases to recommend amicable solutions.
Typical divorce cases chew up court time and are expensive for couples. Many cases might benefit from the expediency and impartiality offered by machine learning (ML)-driven resolution.
See more: Artificial Intelligence: Current and Future Trends
3. Fraud detection and prevention
Protecting against fraud is a top priority for organizations. For instance, it's not uncommon for the U.S. federal government to recover more than $2 billion per year in fraud damages through whistleblowers. The global pandemic also resulted in an uptick in cyber attacks, including phishing, ransomware, and various types of fraud.
In PwC's 2020 "Economic Crime and Fraud Survey," 80% of fraud experts said they expect AI to reduce instances of financial fraud. Of the respondents, 64% expressed confidence that AI would eventually prevent fraud entirely.
Most banks complain about fraud investigations taking too long or delivering false-positives, which is why AI is a promising addition to this area of law. Detecting fraudulent activity often comes down to comparing events with past transactions, patterns, or records. AI can do this quickly.
Financial institutions holding $100 billion or more in assets commonly invest in such tools. However, a day is quickly approaching when banks and organizations of all sizes begin adopting AI-backed fraud platforms designed for fast responses and preventive measures.
4. Drafting and reviewing contracts
Business agreements, mergers, and other high-stakes business moves are usually outlined on paper. Drawing up contracts between individuals or businesses is time-consuming. It's also not a process that doesn't allow for errors or oversights.
Choosing the wrong language or entity classification, not providing proper documentation, and failing to properly protect intellectual property (IP) rank among the most expensive mistakes to make when drawing up a contract. AI helps here as well.
Companies like Lawgeex, LexCheck, Leverton, Clearlaw, and others are applying AI to contract creation and vetting. Human legal experts could take days or weeks to look over a dense contract for errors or improvements. These AI tools can do the same work in a fraction of the time.
5. Predicting outcomes
This application of AI in law is controversial.
Lawmakers in France set up the nation for a showdown in 2019 when they moved to ban "judicial analytics." This technology uses machine learning to attempt to predict criminal behavior or judicial outcomes. Whereas French lawmakers worry over the implications of predicting suspects' and judges' behavior, their counterparts in China are facilitating the exchange of data in the form of millions of public domain legal texts to make such AI platforms even smarter.
Some intentions may be benign, such as using mass data to study how the detention of suspects before trials impacts their success during plea bargaining.
Others, like predicting the behavior of suspects and defendants, are already under fire for demonstrable bias. For example, one AI assigned higher risk scores to Black defendants than it did to whites.
Predictive analytics is full of the potential for both good and misuse. Moving forward, technologists and lawyers alike will need new kinds of thinking, development, and training to ensure these algorithms don't reproduce human biases.
See more: Top Performing Artificial Intelligence Companies
Quantum AI: Are We Ready?
How the Automotive Industry is Using AI
Yahoo Selects AWS Public Cloud for Ad Division
10 Best Dashboard Software and Tools for 2023
Data Science Q&A With Aakanksha Joshi of IBM


Amidst the vibrant colors of early fall in the Pacific Northwest, a group of talented wedding artists came together to stage a celebration that is brimming with rustic, romantic details! Forest and Field did a gorgeous job capturing the feel of the season with arrangements overflowing with fall's best blooms, vines + foliage decorating the ceremony site, reception table + dessert bar. Bird is the Word crafted some super yummy looking eats + treats from local + seasonal produce and we love how Nakalan McKay Photography was able to perfectly capture the moody, early autumn sunlight in the photos! We're sure those of you who are planning a fall wedding will find ways to incorporate some of these inspiring details into your day!
This just might be the sweetest fall boutonniere ever!
And the lovely dress + headpieces are modern, with a faint notion of The Great Gatsby. Such a pretty look!
The apples atop the candlesticks is a really cute way to easily incorporate seasonal decor into your tablescape. Definitely a DIY idea for all of you fall brides-to-be to remember!
Thanks so much to the below creatives from Oregon for sharing this romantic, autumn wedding inspiration with us today!
I love the pictures showing both fruit on the trees and fruit used throughout as decorations and yummy food. The rustic backdrop is lush and helps frame the bride's lovely dress, and the muted light with sun peeking through highlights the setting and the bride and groom. I like it!
Great idea with the candied pears. A tasty twist on a fall classic!
In love with everything about today's wedding inspiration, especially the dessert table display.
I can't get over her dress! What a fabulous shoot!


A position is available for a Service/ Product Engineer based at our Ballinrobe plant for initial training and during off-peak periods. The candidate will be involved in working with our sales force and dealer network. The candidate needs to be highly self motivated with good enthusiasm for agricultural machinery.
Experience within this sector is essential, in the operation and maintenance of farm equipment.
Knowledge in the baling wrapping area is beneficial, but not compulsory as training for the position will be supplied.
An excellent remuneration package is available for the right candidate.


text:
CCI Dismisses Unfair Business Practices Plea Against Telecom Operators
The Competition Commission has dismissed a complaint against Vodafone Idea Ltd., Reliance Jio Infocomm, Bharti Airtel Ltd. and Sify Technologies which alleged that they were charging higher rates for overseas inbound calls as compared to the ceiling fixed by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.
The order came on a complaint filed by Canada-based Teleclub (Alberta Ltd.), which is an international telecom carrier.
The complainant alleged that the Indian telecom operators together decided to charge a standard rate of $0.0053 for inbound calls terminating on their network in India, instead of the rates fixed by TRAI.
As per Interconnection Usage Charges Regulations, 2018, the telecom regulator prescribes international termination charges of Rs 0.30 per minute for international incoming calls to wireline and wireless networks, it said.
It added that the telecom operators further increased the rate of inbound calls to $0.0115 per minute after another meeting in February 2018.
Besides, they allegedly harassed the firm by choking its ports used for sending traffic. Subsequently, the Competition Commission of India sought the opinion of the TRAI on the matter.
CCI, from the submission of TRAI, noted that as per IUC Regulations, the regulator has prescribed the international termination charges for international incoming calls but international settlement charge is not regulated under the norms and has to be decided based on mutual negotiations between the Indian long-distance operators and foreign service providers.
The complainant has "mistaken International Termination Charges i.e. ITC as International Settlement Charge i.e. ISC", CCI noted.
"The Commission has prima facie not found any evidence to indicate that OPs have fixed the rates through any concerted action amongst themselves, so as to warrant an investigation," CCI, while disposing of the complaint, said.―Bloomberg Quint
India Can Benefit From AI, Machine Learning: N Chandrasekaran
Where India's Mobile Internet Speed Ranks Globally, Which Operator Offers


Just rip them! Reuse of surgical cloves is strictly prohibited and yet we see many indulge in this malpractice. The only way to ensure that the gloves don't get reused is to tear them. The Safe Cut Surgical Glove's design has a provision to tear them from the palm-side. A tab cuts through the latex when the gloves are removed. This will prevent both unintentional and intentional reuse of the gloves.
Safe Cut Surgical Glove is a 2012 red dot award: design concept winner.
Unique concept and very practical.
Interesting idea. One of the things I feel this design doesn't address is the need to keep the hands clean of the offending material while removing them. The currently used method of removing gloves (by turning them inside out during removal) by its very nature keeps the hazardous material contained, and therefore ensures the protection of the wearer. I can't envision removing these and keeping my hands clean of the hazardous materials clinging to the outside of the gloves.
And this would not stop intentional re-use. There's nothing keeping a wearing from not using the tab.


text:
Home College and Campus Science Engineering Health Business
Researchers constructing world's largest 3D-printed bridge reach milestone
by Claudia Cannon 13 April 2018
Researchers working on the world's largest 3D-printed steel bridge celebrate another landmark.
Since last summer researchers from The Alan Turing Institute-Lloyd's Register Foundation programme in data-centric engineering have collaborated with Imperial College London and MX3D, an Amsterdam-based start-up, on plans to design, build and install the world's largest 3D printed structure – a 12 metre-long bridge – across a canal in Amsterdam.
A crucial next step in the project will be developing the sensor network which enables engineers to measure the bridge's health in real time and monitor how it changes over its lifespan Professor Mark Girolami Department of Mathematics
The project recently reached a major milestone with the 3D robotically printed span of the bridge complete and revealed to the public.
The Turing Institute brings together a team of structural engineers, mathematicians, computer scientists and statisticians to undertake this innovative project. Scientists from the Steel Structures Research Group at Imperial are leading the research to undertake structural testing on the 3D printed steel, building a vast sensor network on the bridge to monitor its health both during the preliminary tests, and after its final placement.
Professor Mark Girolami, from Imperial's Department of Mathematics and Director of the Turing-Lloyd's Register Foundation Programme for Data-Centric Engineering, said:
"This project represents a world-first in engineering and we are delighted to play a role in ensuring the bridge's success. This recent load testing undertaken by the team at Imperial is a major milestone for celebration.
"A crucial next step in the project will be developing the sensor network which enables engineers to measure the bridge's health in real time and monitor how it changes over its lifespan.
"This 'digital twin' of the bridge will ensure it remains safe to cross in all conditions, and will provide valuable insights to inform designs for future 3D printed metallic structures."
Model showing stress analysis on the bridge (image from Arup)
Professor Leroy Gardner, from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, commented on the team's recent successful testing:
"In the absence of structural design provisions for 3D printed steel, physical testing is an important part of ensuring the safety of the structure. The recent testing confirmed not only that the bridge could withstand the applied load, but also that the numerical simulation of the bridge developed by the Steel Structures Research Group provided an accurate representation of the behaviour observed in practice."
Group Leader in the data-centric engineering programme Dr Craig Buchanan added: "With the 3D printing of the main structure now complete, we look forward to returning to Amsterdam and proving that the bridge can resist the full design loading it is anticipated to experience when opened to the public in 2019."
The bridge has been 3D printed using robotic technology. Image: Olivier de Gruijter
MX3D anticipate that the bridge will be installed before the end of 2019.
Find out more about the project and view images of the bridge being built on the MX3D website.
For more information about data-centric engineering, visit the Turing Institute website.
Find out more about Imperial College's Steel Structures Research Group.
See the press release of this article
Article text (excluding photos or graphics) © Imperial College London.
Photos and graphics subject to third party copyright used with permission or © Imperial College London.
Claudia Cannon
The Grantham Institute for Climate Change
The world's first 3D printed steel bridge will be a 'living laboratory'
MX3D Printed Bridge Update 2018
Dr Craig G J Buchanan
Professor Mark A Girolami FRSE
See press release
I-X tackles security
Imperial's I-X to work with RAF for enhanced defence and security in UK
Indian alumni stars
Indian entrepreneurs recognised as top 75 young achievers
Outer origins
Meteorites reveal likely origin of Earth's volatile chemicals
1 Psychedelic treatment:
Magic mushroom compound increases brain connectivity in people with depression
2 Infection study:
COVID-19 – how long am I infectious and when can I safely leave isolation?
3 I-X tackles security:
4 Indian alumni stars:
Comment on Using 'shade balls' in reservoirs may use up more water than they save: The first reason for black balls ….is to prevent the Chlorination/ Sunlight reaction called Bromat…
Comment on Alexei Kornyshev wins International Society of Electrochemistry Gold Medal: Congratulations to Prof Kornyshev. I remember him as an outstanding speaker at our inaugural Sensor…
Comment on Imperial and BASF partner to advance innovative form of chemical manufacturing: Fascinating. I am currently taking a sustainability leadership course with Imperial Business School,…
About Imperial's News site
More news and events
Imperial Magazine
Daily news digest (internal only)
Events bulletin
Imperial Today delivered directly to your inbox every weekday morning.
Main campus address:
Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, tel: +44 (0)20 7589 5111
Campus maps and information | About this site | This site uses cookies | Report incorrect content | Log in


9-11-01, Al Qaeda, counterterrorism, Homeland Security, Barack Obama and terrorism, terrors, terror plots, terrorism surveillance, terrorists, war on terror.
Caption: Show your real ID. It's what Google's got on me.
Caption: ISIS. Human activity leading to (political) climate change.
Caption: Geography. But when will we ever need to know where Niger is? Africa. Today. Army recruiters. 3pm. Cafeteria.
Caption: Good luck blowing them out! Afghan War Sweet Sixteen! Next gen.
Caption: Why not ban laptops from airplanes? They can't fit anyway!
Caption: You export terrorism. Saudi Arabia. Qatar. Pot. Kettle.
Caption: Race for the Cure for Terror. 234.
Caption: The Jihadist Next Door. Taking out infidels - Britain. Taking out students, co-workers, movie-goers - U.S.
Caption: We need thousands more computer geniuses to fight cyber terrorists. We'll get right on it! U.S. Education. Hello, China?
Caption: Congress unleashes America's most-feared weapon! Lawyers. Saudi Arabia.
Caption: Homeland Security. Speaking of terrorists!... Inner city murders.
Caption: And get me my ISIS strategy in 30 days! Generals-Are-Rubble Pit.


Dear Mr. Bradshaw --We are going to New York and Boston to visit Columbia, Harvard, and MIT this fall while classes are in session. We have already visited Notre Dame, Purdue, Ball State and Butler.
Dear Busy Parent -- Before you start the pilgrimage, I have some suggestions that will save you time and money.
First, do your homework. Forget the walking tour and go online and take a virtual tour of the campus to see the buildings and the physical layout of the university.
Next, log on to the campus student newspaper. They usually have the crime figures on campus and other information that you won't find in the admissions office. The student newspaper is also one of the best places to get a feel for the nuts and bolts of campus life -- social, cultural, political and job recruiting.
Once you've done your pre-campus research, you might want to pare down that list of colleges.
Forget about visiting more than two colleges in any one day. Unless the colleges are within a short driving distance of each other, it is almost impossible to glean much useful information on a blitzkrieg tour.
I would start by contacting a current student -- preferably one from your hometown. Tell him you would like to visit the campus and have him give you a guided tour. Inform him that a swanky steak dinner awaits the lucky guide. (Students are always hungry.) Ask him to bring along a friend for company. That way you get an added point of view. They will tell you all you need to know, plus a few things parents never heard about.
If you visit the admissions office, lay it on them hard. Ask them about the quality of science programs, grad school prospects, percentages of graduates who go on to professional schools -- law, business, medical -- and have them name those schools. If they don't have the numbers, that will tell you something in itself -- that they don't track the most important data on their graduates.
Set up a meeting with a noted professor in your field of interest. Call the department secretary for assistance.
You can also get a feel for his biases by the information on his vita and a list of papers and books he has published. That will be on the biography page of the university website. The more you know about the professor, the greater your chances are of getting a better grade.
Smart kids from rich prep schools already know how to game the system and arrive on campus with an edge. Public school kids need to start thinking about the politics of education in addition to their normal studies. Doing your homework before starting your tour means you will know what to look for when visiting the campus.
Doing your follow-up homework when you return home means that no matter where you decide to attend college, you will have the advantage.


text:
‹ Key Industries: Information Technology
Economic Change: From Traditional Industries to the 21st Century Economy ›
The textile and apparel industries have traditionally held a fundamental role in North Carolina's economy, providing thousands of jobs and revenue for local economies. In one sense, the industry is easy to define -- the creation of fabric or cloth out of original fibers, using mechanical or chemical processes. Traditionally, most people think of textile products as feeding directly into apparel. Yet textiles & apparel is an expansive industry, with textile products showing up in a variety of places, from construction materials to air filters, from automotive fabrics to upholstered furniture.
North Carolina's textile industry is at a crossroads. In order to maintain their leadership as a provider of textiles in the global economy, the industry is facing several key decisions in a new structurally changed economy and business environment. Although they enjoyed for decades the status as a leading manufacturing state, producing textile materials for international and domestic markets, increased competition, technological advancement, and the United States' shift to a service-based economy have all left an indelible impact on the industry. Technological innovations, labor relations, and policy changes are mapping the future of the industry.
Textiles in North Carolina
Decline in North Carolina textiles and apparel industries since 1996
Fieldcrest-Cannon textile mill in Kannapolis, NC. The company went bankrupt in 2003, and its buildings were demolished in 2005 and 2006.
The overall decline of the industry is witnessed by the precipitous drop in factories and jobs that was brought on by structural changes in the global economy. In 1996, there were 2,153 textile and apparel plants in North Carolina employing 233,715 people. By 2006, there had been a 40% decline in the number of plants, to 1,282 plants, and a 65% decrease in employment to 80,232 workers.
As the second-largest textile state and the third-largest apparel state in the United States in terms of employment, North Carolina has been the hardest hit in terms of job losses and plant closings. Over a twelve month period ending in May 2006 the state lost close to 7,000 jobs, more than double from the next most comparable state in textiles, Alabama, with 2,800 job losses.
Although we have seen a drastic decline in the textile industry, the apparel industry has fared much worse, experiencing a 70% decline in jobs and 55% of plants from 1996 to 2006. The textile industry by comparison has only lost 63% of jobs and 32% of plants from 1996. However, the textile industry is almost three times bigger than the apparel industry in North Carolina, and employs more than 59,000 workers, accounting for 10.7% of all manufacturing employment. Apparel jobs number just over 20,000 in comparison.
With the decline in the bulk numbers of factories operating in the state, one segment of the industry that is growing is North Carolina firms exporting intermediate goods that overseas firms are turning into final products. 14% of North Carolina exports fall within the textile and apparel industry. These exports include both finished goods that are being sold abroad and intermediate goods that firms' plants in other countries will work on. For example, the percentage of North Carolina exports made up of yarn & fabric products is on the rise, while the share of apparel products is on the decline. This change is partly explained by the rising skill levels of global suppliers who can do more and more finishing work, meaning that companies will export more fabric products that suppliers will then turn into apparel. This is shown through the form of foreign direct investment (FDI) into lower-wage and lower skill countries that are nonetheless moving into higher-valued activities within the industry. This is witnessed through these countries receiving the majority of both yarn and fabric exports from the United States. Instead of sending almost finished jeans to, for example, such countries as Honduras or Costa Rica where only final stitching is required, now companies are starting to send them unfinished denim.
Global competition
While import competition has been blamed for much of the job losses in the industry, domestic factors, including local competition, industry consolidation and productivity gains from improved machinery and manufacturing processes, have had a similar impact on textile and apparel employment. In order to understand the new trajectory of the global reach of the textile industry we locate in this section the challenges North Carolina firms face by highlighting the role of domestic firm decisions, transnational agreements, and the future potential for a growth of North Carolina firms via the export of technically-advanced products.
U.S. and North Carolina textile firms used to base their success on a fundamental strategy of modernization by labor-saving technology, gain superior cost efficiencies as a result, charge lower prices and earn a small profit while inducing losses by competitors, buy up weakened domestic competitors, and then modernize their plants in similar fashion. For some companies, such as Pillowtex, their demise was partially self-inflicted as a result of their overly aggressive acquisition strategies. Pillowtex generated enormous debt obligations to complete its acquisition of Fieldcrest-Cannon in 1997, which ultimately robbed it of its cost competitiveness. The challenge now is for North Carolina firms to avoid those mistakes and gain better access to financing that will allow them to fund any number of product innovation, capital investment or offshoring strategies.
The passage of such transnational agreements as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the ending of other trade agreements has caused numerous impacts to firms in North Carolina. The passage of NAFTA accelerated the rise of maquiladora firms in Mexico and Central America doing assembly and other labor-intensive work for US apparel companies, as well as a captive export market for US textile firms to send their fabrics and yarns. The emergence of East and South Asia as textile powerhouses has directly affected US textile and apparel firms as retailers and branded marketers turned to these new, cheaper sources instead of US firms. Open trade has led to global competition, but it also has had benefits for US firms, such as cheaper raw material prices. For example, huge investments by Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese, and European fiber manufacturers increased global capacity and led to lower prices for man-made materials, such as polyester, rayon and nylon.
Plants and Employment in North Carolina's Textile and Apparel Industries, 1996-2006
Type of industry
Number of Plants
Annual Average Employment
change 96 - 01
change 01 - œ06
Source: Employment Security Commission of North Carolina
Textile Mills: Apparel
Fiber Yarn and Thread Mills
Broadwoven Fabric Mills
Narrow Fabric Mills/Schiffli Embroidery
Nonwoven Fabric Mills
Knit Fabric Mills
Textile and Fabric Finishing Mills
Fabric Coating Mills
Textile Mills: Non-apparel
Carpet and Rug Mills
Curtain and Linen Mills
Textile Bag and Canvas Mills
All Other Textile Product Mills
Hosiery and Sock Mills
Other Apparel Knitting Mills
Cut and Sew Apparel Contractors
Mens Cut and Sew Apparel Mfg
Womens Cut and Sew Apparel Mfg
Other Cut and Sew Apparel Mfg
Accessories and Other Apparel Mfg
Home Furnishing Wholesalers
Piece Goods, Notions, and Other Dry Goods Wholesalers
Men's and Boys' Clothing and Furnishings Wholesalers
Women's, Children's, and Infants' Clothing and Accessories Wholesalers
Adapted from "North Carolina in the Global Economy," a publication of the Duke University Department of Sociology.
The textile and apparel industries have traditionally held a fundamental role in North Carolina's economy, providing thousands of jobs and revenue for local economies. In one sense, the industry is easy to define -- the creation of fabric or cloth out of original fibers, using mechanical or chemical processes. Traditionally, most people think of textile products as feeding directly into apparel. Yet textiles & apparel is an expansive industry, with textile products showing up in a variety of places, from construction materials to air filters, from automotive fabrics to upholstered furniture." data-share-imageurl="">
Textile and Apparel Job Loss Map
Jobs lost in North Carolina's textile & apparel industry between 1996 and 2006.