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Film & Television March 13, 2017 March 13, 2017
Around the Margin – Iron Fist & Whitewashing
by: Douglas Grant, Chris Thompson, and Michael Shields
The editorial staff of Across the Margin weighs in on yet another nerd controversy, the whitewashing of comic book adaptations by Hollywood…
The following discussion is a response to an article in the Washington Post titled: "'Iron Fist' Actor, at Center of Whitewashing Debate, Asks Fans to Wait and See."
MCS: Doug, I wanted to ask you what you thought about this article, and about this controversy in general, and I turn your way specifically as you wrote an article for us two years ago titled "It's 2015 and Hollywood Shamelessly Continues its Whitewashing," so I know that you are truly informed and passionate about the issue at hand. Can you weigh in on this for us?
DG: This issue has gotten so convoluted lately, and I really believe you have to take each one case by case.
First, there's the return of controversy surrounding the "white savior" narrative in Yimou Zhang's latest film, The Great Wall. The white savior has always been tricky for me, because when I think about it the protagonists from Dances With Wolves, Avatar, Great Wall, etc., all come from corrupt, amoral societies, learn the wickedness of their ways through exposure to a foreign culture, turn their backs on their own people and fight back against them alongside their new allies, and are basically adopted by their new, more benevolent families. I've never really seen much evidence to suggest that the foreign cultures in these movies would have failed without the white man as their savior; if anything, all the white savior ever really brings to the table is precious intelligence on how his people think and operate–he's the inside man who helps develop the plan of attack, one who fights side-by-side with his new comrades as an equal, no better or worse. I understand why some people may find it offensive, but it's not something that I've ever taken away from watching movies with this formula.
Then there's Iron Fist. By casting a caucasian to play Danny Rand, Marvel is technically staying true to the source material, but that source material is from an era that relied heavily on tropes. Back then Marvel was trying to cash in on the explosion of the martial arts genre in America, and that wasn't exactly an enlightened time period. The result was Iron Fist, a vapid comic that offered plenty of stereotypes but nothing of real substance from Asian culture.
I also heard someone the other day pointing out something that not many others seem to considering: If you cast an Asian actor to play Iron Fist's Danny Rand, there will most certainly be an outcry accusing Marvel Studios of perpetuating the negative stereotype of Asians as the go-to practitioners of martial arts. I think that's a very legitimate point. Marvel is going to face internet backlash in either case.
The greater issue here is not so cut and dry however. It's annoyingly nuanced.
MCS: That is extremely well said and I couldn't agree more, in that these situations need to be looked at on a case-by-case basis. And in this case, with Iron Fist – I am actually a touch surprised (although I shouldn't be in today's political and sociological climate though) that there is any hubbub at all. Nerds, fanboys and fangirls often have ridiculous demands, but those demands are usually centered on sticking to the script. Canon means everything to true fans – and in this case those who are upset are implying that the creators of the show should deviate from what has been written. Iron Fist, in its most recent incarnation with Netflix, is merely – from what I can tell – sticking to the script, even if as you point out, that script is rife with outdated tropes. I guess if we are to point a finger here, it could be directed at the original author of Iron Fist, Roy Thomas, and artist Gil Kane, who appropriated Asian culture and were capitalizing on the fame of Bruce Lee and kung-fu films at the time. But even then, I don't blame the intent in aggregate, and I applaud the result.
But in terms of those tropes and stereotypes showing up in the upcoming Iron Fist series, I am beginning to truly trust Netflix and Marvel's television unit, and what Finn Jones (who plays Danny Rand) is saying in the interviews leading up to the March 17th release of Season One is that he believes the material was handled and manipulated with care in regards to cultural sensitivity and celebrating diversity. And all he is asking is that fans take a wait-and-see approach to what the showrunners did before claiming that the choice to cast a white man as Danny Rand was incorrect in some manner.
While I do state some surprise with the current outcry of discontent surrounding Iron Fist, part of me surely gets it. There are so few Asian roles of worth (or at all!) in the film and television landscape currently, and I see how people can look at this as a missed opportunity of sorts. But aren't they all missed opportunities when it comes to casting minorities, in general, and more specifically in superhero films? There is no reason at all, regardless of the source material, why Spider-Man, Superman, Batman, Iron Man and others (not Thor though – he must be a hunky white Norse God;)!) couldn't be played by someone who wasn't white. In fact, I'd love to see that happen just as much as I want Idris Elba to play James Bond. I assure you, 20th Century Fox's reboot of The Fantastic Four didn't fail because Michael B. Jordan played Johnny Storm, it failed because it was flat-out terrible movie from top to bottom.
CMT: For me, this issue represents a series of missed opportunities for the American entertainment industry as a whole to embrace the global nature of our current times. There are numerous talented international and domestic actors, and specifically Asian-heritage actors in reference to Ghost in the Shell, that would be more fitting to play these roles. Ghost in the Shell's "whitewashing" is something that is of particular frustration for me and Doug did a fantastic job of calling attention to this in his previous article. For example, Ming-Na Wen is a talented Chinese-American actress who currently plays Melinda May on ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and has had roles in Stargate Universe and the animated series Batman. Bae DooNa is a South Korean actress who has had numerous english-speaking roles and was terrific in Cloud Atlas, and starred in Jupiter Ascending and currently the new Netflix series Sense8. Rinko Kikuchi is the first Japanese actress nominated for an Oscar for her role in Alejandro González Iñárritu's Babel who has also starred in Guillermo Del Toro's fantastic robot fighter Pacific Rim. Chiaki Kuriyama, another talented Japanese actress, who starred as Gogo Yubari in Kill Bill: Volume 1, has proven that she can bring the heat when it comes to sword fighting and fisticuffs. Any one of these women would be far superior to Paramount and Dreamworks decision to cast Scarlett Johansson as Ghost in the Shell's Major Motoko Kusanagi. Hollywood needs to learn to look beyond the obvious for its roles and start embracing the future, global pool of actors and actresses instead of appropriating (or in Ghost in the Shell's case, misappropriating) the world's culture and trying to make it "white." This kind of wanton disregard for preserving cultural identities has real life consequences, more than you could ever imagine. And if you don't believe that this is the case, then watch the Public Service Announcement below and understand that even though movies aren't real, they affect real people.
MCS: It is interesting that in my defense of Iron Fist's decision to not change the race of the main character in order to preserve the integrity of the original story, this fails to take into account that changing a main character's race is not that unusual at all. But – as we are so acutely pointing out – it is routinely done at the expense of Asian roles. Both Chris and I spoke of "missed opportunities," and I'd like to expound on that some – and pardon me if I get a touch political – but fuck it. With this most recent election, and the rise to power of an administration that is helmed by white men (Trump, Bannon, Miller, Sessions) whose racist and anti-semitic viewpoints are well-documented, it is not the time to be missing opportunities to spread truth, understanding, and empathy. It is an apt time for artists (and yes, I consider showrunners, producers, and all who give rise to television series to be artists) to take bigger risks, and to present the world not only as it is, but as it should be. It is the ideal time to create art that represents the diversity that exists in the world and celebrates all that makes us unique, while highlighting the ties that bind us together. I know executives chase the almighty dollar, but if there was ever a moment in recent history where we need to re-prioritize and tell stories that reflect the power and beauty of our differences, and ones that bite back at a system so poised to tear us apart, it is now.
And in this light, I feel it necessary to consider another group of people who have been demonized all too often by how they are portrayed in films and television shows, and that is Muslims and those of Middle Eastern descent. It is no wonder middle America is weary of refugees and immigrants from the Middle East, when they fail to see them as people just like themselves, but rather as terrorists and people that mean them harm. Hollywood has failed to present Muslims as anything but a threat, exemplified in such popular films as American Sniper, True Lies, or even Back to the Future, and in television shows such as Homeland, Sleeper Cell, and 24. So it is in this new era of Muslim bans and increased nationalism worldwide, where it is more important than ever to tell stories that unite rather than divide us, and that help us to empathize and realize how we are all truly in this struggle to achieve unity together.
CMT: The very fact that we are having this conversation means that the work to remedy this continued transgression has already begun. Of course I want to support the talented creatives who are putting their heart and souls into the entertainment that we all so readily consume, but it is difficult to do so when I know that it comes at the expense of others. Be it taking away their heroes, assimilating their culture into our own or just plainly wiping out the fact that it ever existed. I feel like we are getting to that point as a society where those who want our entertainment to better reflect our global community, and our diverse cultures and ways of life, are beginning to gain a foothold and get a voice at the negotiation table. I applaud the power of social media and the eroding of the barriers to communication that our new digital way of life has allowed for allowing this topic of whitewashing to remain a current point of debate. Hopefully the backlash from those enlightened enough to see the effects of these choices by those who contribute to our entertainment will continue to multiply. And hopefully, in a time not to soon from now, Hollywood will wake up and realize that the old way of doing things no longer applies, and the films and television shows that they are putting out have a more wide-ranging, global audience, and affect real people.
Around the Margin, Chris Thompson, Comic Book Adaptations, Doug Grant, Finn Jones, Ghost in the Shell, Iron Fist, Mike Shields, Netflix, Whitewashing
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On April 18, 2018, the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and the University of Arizona, signed an agreement to formally establish the Binational Research Consortium on Migration, Human Security, and Human Rights. The consortium seeks to provide with an infrastructure for binational cooperation and collaboration between the Coordination of Humanities (UNAM) and the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (UA) that will strengthen research in migration, human rights, and human security. By doing this, both institutions recognize the importance of the bilateral exchange of academic staff, researchers, technical specialists, and students associated with CH-UNAM and SBS-UA.
Among the central challenges of the 21st century is the need to strengthen human rights and security globally. Due to the critical threats to human rights and human security inherent in the migration process between Mexico and the United States, it is necessary to conduct social science research and propose joint solutions, including new or amended policies, to ensure protection on human rights and human security. The research carried out thus far by researchers in both countries has greatly increased scientific knowledge around issues of migration, human rights, and human security; however, collaboration in research between the two participating institutions could strengthen dialogue between their respective countries and enhance the search for common solutions from a shared, interdisciplinary, and multidimensional perspective.
Establishing mechanisms and financing to strengthen joint research between UNAM and the UA on issues of migration, human rights, and human security between the United States and Mexico, inclusive of but not limited to their shared border region.
Promoting the mobility between both the universities of academic staff and students for academic or research stays as part of the commitment mentioned above.
Promoting the establishment of collaborations between academic degree programs to allow undergraduate and graduate study opportunities for students at both institutions in areas related to issues the consortium addresses.
Promoting a permanent exchange of bibliographic resources and other teaching and research materials, as well as the co-publication of research products carried out by scholars from both countries.


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Arts & Culture • News
Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox to perform at Smith Opera House Feb. 20 show is part of group's Welcome to the Twenties 2.0 World Tour
The Smith Center for the Arts and DSP Shows welcome Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox to the Smith Opera House on Wednesday, Feb. 20 at 8 p.m. The performance is part of the time-twisting musical collective's Welcome to the Twenties 2.0 World Tour.
The tour is meant to prepare the world for a new decade, one that Postmodern Jukebox creator Scott Bradlee hopes will see a return to the style and craftsmanship that typified the music of past generations.
"Last time around the Twenties gave us Jazz, America's one true art form. Who knows what is possible in the 2020s?" says Bradlee. "One thing that is for sure is that there are a lot of folks that are tired of the clickbait headlines, mindless reality TV, and smartphone addiction that has only served to divide people in the last decade. We're using our small corner of the pop culture space to tell people to forget their troubles, and come join us for a night of celebrating true musical talent and timeless style, live and in real life."
The Postmodern Jukebox, Welcome to the Twenties 2.0 Tour, will host official Twenties 2.0 initiation performance parties in nearly 250 cities, including Geneva.
"When creating a touring version of the Postmodern Jukebox concept, we work on pairing the right talent with the right material and building a unique and amazing experience for Postmodern Jukebox fans," Bradlee says. "Get ready for the most sensational '20s party this side of The Great Gatsby."
Started by Bradlee in 2009, Postmodern Jukebox (PMJ) has gone on to amass over 1 billion YouTube views with 3.5 million subscribers, and have chalked up more than 1.7 million fans on Facebook. For the past half decade, PMJ has toured the world, playing hundreds of shows to sold-out houses on six continents. They've also performed on shows like "Good Morning America," topped iTunes and Billboard charts, and caught the attention of NPR Music, NBC News and a wide array of celebrity fans. You can learn more at http://postmodernjukebox.com/.
Reserved seating tickets for Postmodern Jukebox are on $68.50, $48.50 and $38.50 plus service fees. There are also a limited number of VIP Gold and Silver packages available for $168.50 and $118.50 plus service fees. Both VIP packages include premium seat locations and exclusive tour posters. The Gold package also includes a meet and greet with member of Postmodern Jukebox.
Tickets can be purchased at the Smith Opera House Box Office or online at www.thesmith.org.
The Smith Center for the Arts, stewards of the historic Smith Opera House, provides diverse arts and educational enrichment opportunities year-round for Finger Lakes residents and visitors. The Smith Opera House is at 82 Seneca St. in Geneva, NY. Box Office hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. For more information, call 315-781-5483 during box office hours or visit www.thesmith.org.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Q: Small or Superfluous submodule Suppose $A$ is a summand of an $R$-module $M$ and take any $P \leq M=A \oplus B$ such that $P \nleq A$, $A \nleq P$, $P \nleq B$, $B \nleq P$, $(A+P) \cap B \nleq P$ and $(A+P) \cap B \nleq A$. Is it true that
 $(A+P) \cap B \leq_{S} A+P\ ?$

A: Here $(A+P) \cap B \nleq_{S} A+P$. If $(A+P) \cap B \leq_{S} A+P$ then $ A+P=A$ which implies $P \leq A$.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The most important feature of Maruti Swift Dzire is the engine specification. The model comes with both petrol as well as diesel version. Both these types of cars are into tremendous demand. However diesel version has a larger selling rate as compared to the petrol version. The K series engine compliance with eco-friendly feature always keeps the environment free from pollution. The car produces torque of around 113 nM at 4500-6000 RPM. The model is well known for its fuel efficiency feature and it can produce great power just by using minimal quantity of fuel.
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There is enough space available inside the car for the storage of bags and luggage. Incase you are planning for a long drive with your entire family you can carry all your daily used accessories with you. The leather coated seats provides great comfort and makes the journey more relaxed. The chrome grilles, compact body and attractive theme offer a great look to the vehicle. The audio system with powerful speakers produce crystal clear sound and it can make your journey more pleasant.
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To create interest among the students about cultural activities.
To develop all round personality, leadership qualities, national integration, and patriotism among students.
To maintain physical and mental fitness of the students through cultural activities, Rangoli, Mehandi and Debate.
To motivate the students for the participation in awareness activities like plantation.
Extracurricular activities increase opportunities for social interaction and new relationship development of students.
It increases the student's level of confidence and also teaches them how to co-operate and work with people in different conditions.
While pursuing these activities in college along with education, students learn prioritization and time management skills.
The purpose of bringing the youths together and forming them into clubs is to provide them with an opportunity and the platform to excel in various fields.
Youth club of the College is enabling the youth to utilize their time, skills and energies.
It encourages the extra co-curricular activities that enrich the cultural, physical and social life of the students.
The objective of the Youth Club is to provide a platform for the youth to collectively work towards themselves and society. For accomplishing this aim the club is organizing different activities from time to time.


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Once upon a time there was a worthy man who married for his second wife the haughtiest, proudest woman that had ever been seen. She had two daughters, who possessed their mother's temper and resembled her in everything. Her husband, on the other had, had a young daughter, who was of an exceptionally sweet and gentle nature. She got this from her mother*, who had been the nicest person in the world.
The wedding was no sooner over than the stepmother began to display her bad temper. She could not endure the excellent qualities of this young girl, for they made her own daughters appear more hateful than ever. She thrust upon her all the meanest tasks about the house. It was she who had to clean the plates and the stairs, and sweep out the rooms of the mistress of the house and her daughters. She slept on a wretched mattress in a garret at the top of the house, while the sisters had rooms with parquet flooring, with beds of the most fashionable style, with mirrors in which they could see themselves from top to toe.
The poor girl endured everything patiently, not daring to complain to her father. The latter would have scolded her, because he was entirely ruled by his wife. When she had finished her work she used to sit amongst the cinders in the corner of the chimney, and it was this habit that she came to be known as Cinder-slut*. The younger of the two sisters, who was not quite so spiteful as the elder, called her Cinderella. But her wretched clothes did not prevent Cinderella from being a hundred times more beautiful than her sisters, for all their resplendent garments.
It happened that the king's son gave a ball, and he invited all persons of high degree. The two young ladies were invited amongst others, for they cut a considerable figure in the country. Not a little pleased were they, and the question of what clothes they would wear and what mode of dressing the hair would become them best took up most of their time. And all this made fresh trouble for Cinderella, for it was she who went over her sisters' linen and ironed their ruffles. They could talk of nothing else but the fashions in clothes.
"For my part," said the elder, "I shall wear my dress of red velvet, with the Honiton lace."
"I have only my everyday petticoat," said the younger, "but to make up for it I shall wear my cloak with the golden flowers and my necklace of diamonds, which are not so bad."
They sent for a good hairdresser to arrange their double- frilled caps, and bought patches at the best shop.
They summoned Cinderella and asked her advice, for she had good taste. Cinderella gave them the best possible suggestions, and even offered to dress their hair, to which they gladly agreed.
While she was thus occupied they said:
"Cinderella, would you not like to go to the ball?"
"Ah, but you fine young ladies are laughing at me. It would be no place for me."
"That is very true, people would laugh to see a cinder-slut in the ballroom."
Anyone else but Cinderella would have done their hair amiss, but she was good-natured, and she finished them off to perfection. They were so excited in their glee that for nearly two days they ate nothing. They broke more than a dozen laces drawing their stays tight in order to make their waists more slender, and they were perpetually in front of a mirror.
At last the happy day arrived. Away they went, Cinderella watching them as long as she could keep them in sight. When she could no longer see them she began to cry. Her godmother found her in tears, and asked what was troubling her.
"I should like--I should like--"*
She was crying so bitterly that she could not finish the sentence.
Said her godmother, who was a fairy:
"You would like to go to the ball, would you not?"
"Ah, yes," said Cinderella, sighing.
"Well, well," said her godmother, "promise to be a good girl and I will arrange for you to go."
She took Cinderella into her room and said:
"Go into the garden and bring me a pumpkin."
Cinderella went at once and gathered the finest that she could find. This she brought to her godmother, wondering how a pumpkin could help in taking her to the ball.
Her godmother scooped it out, and when only the rind was left, struck it with her wand. Instantly the pumpkin was changed into a beautiful coach, gilded all over.
Then she went and looked in the mousetrap, where she found six mice all alive. She told Cinderella to life the door of the mousetrap a little, and as each mouse came out she gave it a tap with her wand, whereupon it was transformed into a fine horse. so that there was a fine team of six dappled mouse-gray horses.
But she was puzzled to know how to provide a coachman.
"I will go and see," said Cinderella, "if there is not a rat in the rattrap. We could make a coachman of him."
"Quite right," said her godmother, "go and see."
Cinderella brought in the rattrap, which contained three big rats. The fairy chose one specially on account of his elegant whiskers.
As soon as she had touched* him he turned into a fat coachman with the finest mustachios that were ever seen.
"Now go into the garden and bring me the six lizards which you will find behind the water-butt."
No sooner had they been brought than the godmother turned them into six lackeys, who at once climbed up behind the coach in their braided liveries, and hung on there as if they had never done anything else all their lives.
Then said the fairy godmother:
"Well, there you have the means of going to the ball. Are you satisfied?"
"Oh, yes, but am I to go in my ugly clothes?"
Her godmother merely touched her with her wand, and on the instant her clothes were changed into garments of gold and silver sloth, bedecked with jewels. After that her godmother gave her a pair of glass slippers, the prettiest in the world.
Thus altered, she entered the coach. Her grandmother bade her not to stay beyond midnight whatever happened, warning that if she remained at the ball a moment longer, her coach would again become a pumpkin, her horses mice, and her lackeys lizards, while her old clothes would reappear on her once more.
She promised her godmother that she would not fail to leave the ball before midnight, and away she went, beside herself with delight.
The King's son, when he was told of the arrival of a great princess whom nobody knew, went forth to receive her. He handed her down from the coach, and led her into the hall where the company was assembled. At once there fell a great silence. The dancers stopped, the violins played no more, so rapt was the attention which everybody paid to the superb beauty of the unknown guest. Everywhere could be heard in confused whispers:
"Oh, how beautiful she is!"
The king, old man as he was, could not take his eyes off her, and whispered to the queen that it was many a long day since he had seen anyone so beautiful and charming*.
All the ladies were eager to scrutinize her clothes and the dressing of her hair, being determined to copy them on the morrow, provided they could find materials so fine, and tailors so clever.
The king's son placed her in the seat of honor, and at once begged the privilege of being her partner in a dance. Such was the grace with which she danced that the admiration of all was increased.
A magnificent supper was served, but the young prince could eat nothing, so taken up was he with watching her. She went and sat beside her sisters, and bestowed numberless attentions upon them. She made them share with her the oranges and lemons which the king had given her--greatly to their astonishment, for they did not recognize her.
While they were talking, Cinderella heard the clock strike a quarter to twelve. She at once made a profound curtsy to the company, and departed as quickly as she could.
As soon as she was home again she sought out her godmother, and having thanked her, declared that she wished to go upon the morrow once more to the ball, because the king's son had invited her.
While she was busy telling her godmother all that had happened at the ball, her two sisters knocked at the door. Cinderella let them in.
"What a long time you have been in coming!" she declared, rubbing her eyes and stretching herself as if she had only just awakened. In real truth she had not for a moment wished to sleep since they had left.
"If you had been at the ball," said one of the sisters, "you would not be feeling weary. There came a most beautiful princess, the most beautiful that has ever been seen, and she bestowed numberless attentions upon us, and gave us her oranges and lemons."
Cinderella was overjoyed. She asked them the name of the princess, but they replied that no one knew it, and that the king's son was so distressed that he would give anything in the world to know who she was.
Cinderella smiled, and said that she must have been beautiful indeed.
"Oh, how lucky you are. Could I not manage to see her? Oh, please, Javotte, lend me the yellow dress which you wear every day!"
"Indeed!" said Javotte, "that is a fine idea. Lend my dress to a grubby cinder-slut like you--you must think me mad!"
Cinderella expected this refusal. She was in no way upset, for she would have been greatly embarrassed had her sister been willing to lend the dress.
The next day the two sisters went to the ball, and so did Cinderella, even more splendidly attired than the first time.
The king's son was always at her elbow, and paid her endless compliments.
The young girl enjoyed herself so much that she forgot her godmother's bidding completely, and when the first stroke of midnight fell upon her ears, she thought it was no more than eleven o'clock.
She rose and fled nimbly as a fawn. The prince followed her, but could not catch her. She let fall one of her glass slippers, however, and this the prince picked up with tender care.
When Cinderella reached home she was out of breath, without coach, without lackeys, and in her shabby clothes. Nothing remained of all her splendid clothes save one of the little slippers, the fellow to the one which she had let fall.
Inquiries were made of the palace doorkeepers as to whether they had seen a princess go out, but they declared they had seen no one leave except a young girl, very ill-clad, who looked more like a peasant than a young lady.
When her two sisters returned from the ball, Cinderella asked them if they had again enjoyed themselves, and if the beautiful lady had been there. They told her that she was present, but had fled away when midnight sounded, and in such haste that she let fall one of her little glass slippers, the prettiest thing in the world. They added that the king's son, who picked it up, had done nothing but gaze at it for the rest of the ball, from which it was plain that he was deeply in love with its beautiful owner.
They spoke the truth. A few days later, the king's son caused a proclamation to be made by the trumpeters, that he would take for wife the owner of the foot the slipper would fit,
They tried it first on the princesses, then on the duchesses and the whole of the Court, but in vain. Presently they brought it to the home of the two sisters, who did all they could* to squeeze a foot into the slipper. This, however, they could not manage.
Cinderella was looking on and recognized her slipper:
"Let me see," she cried, laughingly, "if it will not fit me."
Her sisters burst out laughing, and began to gibe at her, but the equerry who was trying on the slipper looked closely at Cinderella. Observing that she was very beautiful he declared that the claim was quite a fair one, and that his orders were to try the slipper on every maiden, He bade Cinderella sit down, and on putting the slipper to her little foot he perceived that the latter slid in without trouble, and was molded to its shape like wax*.
Great was the astonishment of her two sisters at this, and greater still when Cinderella drew from her pocket the other little slipper. This likewise she drew on.
At that very moment her godmother appeared on the scene. She gave a tap with her wand to Cinderella's clothes, and transformed them into a dress even more magnificent than her previous ones.
The two sisters recognized her for the beautiful person whom they had seen at the ball, and threw themselves at her feet, begging her pardon for all the ill-treatment they had suffered at their hands.
Cinderella raised them, and declaring as she embraced them that she pardoned them with all her heart, bade them to love her well in the future.
She was taken to the palace of the young prince in all her new array. He found her more beautiful than ever, and was married to her a few days afterwards.
Cinderella was as good as she was beautiful. She set aside apartments in the palace for her two sisters, and married them the very same day to two gentlemen of high rank about the Court.
Beauty is a treasure rare.
Who complains of being fair?
Yet there's still a something more
That good fairies have in store.
'Tis that little gift called grace,
Weaves a spell round form and face,
Of each word makes magic, too,
Lends a charm to all you do.
This it was--and nothing less--
Cinderella's fairy dress!
And if you would learn the way
How to get that gift today--
How to point the golden dart
That shall pierce the Prince's heart--
Ladies, you have but to be
Just as kind and sweet as she!
Another Moral
Godmothers are useful things
Even when without the wings.
Wisdom may be yours and wit,
Courage, industry, and grit--
What's the use of these at all,
If you lack a friend at call?


At Legacy Insurance, we pride ourselves on helping our customers find the coverage they need at an affordable price. That's why we trust Foremost Insurance to provide our clients with the professional level of service they deserve.
Since our founding, we've helped countless people throughout Massachusetts save money and enjoy the peace of mind that a policy from Foremost Insurance provides. No matter your situation, our independent insurance agency can help you understand your exact insurance needs and find competitively priced options for your next policy.
Legacy Insurance Provides Auto/Car Insurance, Home Insurance, and Business/Commercial Insurance to All of Massachusetts, Including Wareham, Marion, Rochester, Carver, Bourne, South Plymouth, South Coast, Cape Cod, and the Islands.


I'm Chris Fletcher. I've been building websites professionally since 2006, and started working with WordPress in 2009. My ultimate goal with every project is to create a website that works, whatever that means for your business (increasing sales, growing your list, building a community, reducing overhead, etc). Thank you for the opportunity to serve you!
Fast, efficient, clear and concise. Chris was great to work with. Thanks!
Chris built a custom plugin for our site that did exactly what we needed it to. He was a quick worker, very knowledgeable, and answered any questions with outstanding professionalism. Highly recommended!
Chris is an excellent developer, did everything quickly and affordably, and communicates really well, definitely will use again.
Quick, knowledgeable and added in functionality that improved the brief.
Clear communication. East to work with.
Excellent work. Timely and professional.


text:
Class of 1967 Marilyn Hall Jobe Hendricks
The funeral service for former Henry Countian Marilyn Jobe Hendricks of Easley, S.C., was at 2 p.m. Friday at First Baptist Church in Easley, where she was a member.
The Rev. John Adams officiated. Burial followed in Robinson Memorial Gardens in Easley.
Visitation was Friday. Robinson Funeral Home in Easley was in charge.
Hendricks, 62, died Monday, Aug. 8, 2011, at Baptist Easley Hospital.
Born in Paris on June 20, 1949, she was the daughter of the late Ben A. and Mary H. Jobe, who owned Howard & Jobe in Paris.
Her husband, Jack Bennett Hendricks, preceded her in death.
A Furman University graduate, she was a retired teacher, piano teacher and director of the First Baptist Church Development Center in Easley.
She leaves one son, Brian Hendricks of Easley; one daughter, Heather (Bill) Vinson of Carey, N.C.; one brother, Ben Jobe Jr. of Nashville; and two grandchildren, Bennett and Ian Vinson.
Memorials may be made to First Baptist Church, 300 E. First Ave., Easley, SC 29640 or to the American Diabetes Association, 1701 N. Beauregard St., Alexandria, VA 22311.
Reprinted from THE PARIS POST-INTELLIGENCER
Paris, Tennessee
August 15, 2011 Edition ~ Used by Permission
THANKS to SKIP COMPTON for bring this obituary to our attention.
BACK TO CLASS OF 1967 MEMORIAM PAGE
BACK TO ALL CLASSES MEMORIAM INDEX


The Zombie Card is a debit card. Daily limits apply for point of sale and ATM usage. Your ATM limit is $200 per day. Your Point of Sale limit is $500 per day. If you need us to raise these limits for specific time frames, give us a call and we'll set you up.
When I open The Zombie Card, I'll be opening The Zombie Card transaction account as well. This is the account where I will deposit funds for my debit card. When I make purchases or withdrawals with The Zombie Card, these amounts will be deducted from this account.
** No minimum balance to maintain account. $50.00 minimum to open account. Requirements must be met each monthly statement cycle to receive 5.00% APY* on the portion of the balance up to $2,000.00. Amounts over $2,000.00 will earn .10% APY*. If qualifications are not met, the APY* is .01% on the entire balance. The monthly statement cycle is the 1st through the last day of each calendar month. There are no rollover transactions. Qualifying signature debit card transactions include each time you use your Element debit card to make a purchase from a vendor or merchant. These transactions must post and clear your account during the payment cycle. ATM and ACH transactions do not qualify. Limit of one Infinite Checking per individual. You must be enrolled in eStatements to qualify for this account. This is a variable rate account and the interest rate can change. Fees could affect the earnings on this account.


Machine Learning accesses the data and uses it for their learning purpose and gives us a trained data for the complex problems. Machine Learning is closely related to Data mining. The very first language in order to get started with ML is Python.
Python is a language which took the advantage and it is being heavily used but it isn't the only one way to get started with ML but many more languages are coming up that heavily depends on that how much data set we are having with us. Python has evolved as the most preferred Language for Data Analytics and the increasing search trends on python also indicates that Python is the next "Big Thing".


text:
The Fifth Annual Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament, also known as the Crockett Cup, was a scheduled professional wrestling tag team tournament that was to be produced by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). The event was scheduled to take place on April 19, 2020 at the Gateway Center Arena in College Park, Georgia, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic before ultimately being canceled.

In addition to the tournament, the event was booked to have NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis defend the championship against Ring of Honor (ROH) representative Marty Scurll, with the latter agreeing to pay Aldis $500,000 if he lost the match. Due to the pandemic, the championship match never took place and Scurll left ROH in January 2021.

Production

Background
The Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament is a tag team tournament first held in April 1986. National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) member Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), headed by Jim Crockett Jr., hosted the Crockett Cup, held in honor of Crockett's father, JCP founder Jim Crockett Sr. and saw participation of teams from various NWA territories. JCP held the tournament again in 1987 and 1988, before JCP was sold to Ted Turner later that year. In July 2017, the Crockett Foundation, with Classic Pro Wrestling, held the "Crockett Foundation Cup Tag Team Tournament" in New Kent, Virginia, which was not affiliated with the NWA. Bobby Fulton, The Barbarian, and The Rock 'n' Roll Express, all former Crockett Cup participants, took part in the event as a link to the original tournaments.

The original concept of the Crockett Cup was a single elimination tag team tournament, with the storyline prize of $1,000,000.00 given to the winning team along with a large trophy. The 1986 and 1987 tournaments featured 24 teams, while the 1988 version had 22 teams competing. Each tournament was split over two shows to encompass all 23 tournament matches as well as non-tournament matches; in 1986, JCP held a show in the afternoon and another in the evening, while the 1987 and 1988, the tournament was spread out over two days instead.

The Crockett Cup returned in April 2019, after a thirty-one year absence, and was jointly promoted by the NWA and Ring of Honor (ROH). As such, the winning team would also win the vacant NWA World Tag Team Championship. In the end, Villain Enterprises (Brody King and PCO) defeated Royce Issacs and Thomas Lattimer to win the cup and the championship. During the NWA's Hard Times pay-per-view (PPV) in January 2020, it was announced that the Crockett Cup would return for its second consecutive year and would be held in April.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which began in March 2020, many professional wrestling promotions began canceling or postponing their scheduled events, with some holding events behind closed doors. NWA suspended tapings for its upcoming episodes of NWA Power as well as the Crockett Cup. By May, however, the Crockett Cup was canceled, according to PWInsider. The NWA instead streamed the remainder of content that was planned as the "go home" show for the Crockett Cup as a special called "Super Power" on May 12. As the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship match never got to take place, this special saw Strictly Business (NWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Aldis and Thomas Latimer) face ROH's Villain Enterprises (Marty Scurll and Brody King) in the main event.

Storylines
The event would have featured a number professional wrestling matches with different wrestlers involved in pre-existing scripted feuds, plots, and storylines. Wrestlers are portrayed as either heels (those that portray the "bad guys"), faces (the "good guy" characters), or tweeners (characters that are neither clearly a heel or a face) as they follow a series of tension-building events, which culminate in a wrestling match or series of matches as determined by the promotion. The third season of NWA's weekly flagship program, Power, featured storylines that were leading up to the event before its cancellation.

In the main event of 2019's Crockett Cup, Marty Scurll had challenged Nick Aldis for the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship in a losing effort. On December 14, 2019, Scurll made a surprise appearance at NWA's Into the Fire PPV, after Aldis successfully defended the championship against James Storm in the main event. Scurll laid out a challenge to Aldis, which Aldis did not respond to during the show. Over subsequent episodes of NWA Power, Scurll continued to challenge Aldis, leading to Aldis, Royce Issacs, and Thomas Latimer, known together Strictly Business, to make appearances at recent ROH events, where they attacked Scurll and other members of Villain Enterprises. At NWA's Hard Times pay-per-view, Aldis defeated Villain Enterprises stablemate Flip Gordon. In subsequent interviews, Aldis stated that he would not grant Scurll another title match unless Scurll promised to refund everyone's ticket purchases if he lost the match. Scurll later countered the stipulation, stating that he would personally pay Aldis $500,000 if he lost the match.

Aftermath
During the Speaking Out movement in July 2020, Scurll was accused of taking advantage of a 16-year-old girl who was inebriated. Scurll would release two statements in which he did not deny the allegations, but claimed the encounter was consensual. On June 25, Ring of Honor announced that they had launched an investigation concerning the allegations. Scurll was removed from ROH's roster in October and left ROH in January 2021. At UWN Primetime Live, a weekly PPV hosted by United Wrestling Network, Trevor Mudoch defeated Aron Stevens to win the NWA National Championship.

Participants
Mexa Squad (Flamita and Rey Horus)
The Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson)
Villain Enterprises (Brody King and Flip Gordon)
The Wild Cards (Thomas Latimer and Royce Isaacs)

Wild card Battle Royal participants
Tim Storm
Ricky Starks
Zicky Dice

Scheduled matches

See also
2020 in professional wrestling

References

External links

2020 in professional wrestling
2020 in Georgia (U.S. state)
April 2020 events in the United States
Events in Atlanta
Professional wrestling in Atlanta
National Wrestling Alliance pay-per-view events
2020
Sports events cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Increase Sydney Airport Limousine Parking
'A rip-off': Chris Smith slams Sydney airport over car parking price hike
Chris Smith doesn't hold back, slamming Sydney Airport for "ripping off" hire car operators.
Hire car drivers are fuming over a 110% increase in parking fees at the international terminal – to wait in the same place as before.
Craig Norton from Sydney Airport says they have given operators the option of a new, separate area which is cheaper.
But Chris thinks the airport makes enough money from parking as it is.
"In 2015/16, Sydney Airport made $97.8 million profit from car parking fees alone, according to the ACCC.
"You're allowing limo drivers to stay right where they were before if they're prepared to pay 100% more.
"It's a little bit of a rip-off."
AirportFeesParking


text:
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text:
AGTER, une association pour contribuer à Améliorer la Gouvernance de la Terre, de l´Eau et des Ressources Naturelles
URL : http://www.agter.asso.fr/article671_fr.html
Pedagogic factsheet on Land tenure Issues in West Africa
The leaders of peasants and women's organizations, NGOs, technicians, civil servants, decision-makers and donors who work on rural development issues in Africa need resources to guide their actions in the realm of land policy. The project to produce educational resources proposes a series of short texts, written in accessible and easy to understand language. The goal is to share information and knowledge on a large scale, but also to clarify discussions between a variety of users and to allow them to better define their respective positions regarding land issues.
This initiative was developed by the Hub Rural, aGter, the LandNet West Africa, the GRAF and the ROPPA. It was financed by the AFD (Agence Française de Développement), through the French Co-Operation's technical committee "Land and Development (Foncier et Développement)."
The dossier includes 17 documents, which are available in both French and English. We have decided to organize them according to 3 major themes.
A. The Nature of Rights and Legal Claimants
Conceptual Documents
Rights to Land and Natural Resources (M.Merlet)
Women and Land (M.Koné)
Examples from Africa
Diversity of rights holders and rights to land and natural resources in West Africa (M.Merlet et K.A.Yobouet
Land tenure and migration (M.Zongo).
Examples from other Continents
Overlapping of Land Rights in Europe (J.Comby)
B. Policies Promoting Rights Recognition and Security
Myths, deadlocks of land registration and the need for alternative approaches (H.Ouedraogo)
Aspects and Characteristics of State-owned land in West Africa (G.Chouquer)
Point/Counterpoint : Alternatives from other Continents
Creating and securing ownership in Europe (J.Comby)
C. Confronting Change : Resources for Analyzing and Implementing Land Policies
Securing and regulating land tenure : putting the issues before the tools. Some of the obstacles to coherent policies (V.Basserie et P.d'Aquino)
Local authorities and local territories in rural West Africa (E.Idelman)
Land Tax. (J.Comby)
Alternative land tenure conflict management mechanisms: Analytical tools (K.Alinon)
Decentralization or Local Management : A Few Examples
Decentralized vs. local management of land tenure: The Niger case history (A.Kandine)
Decentralization in Mali: a constrained "responsibility transfer" process (C.Coulibali)
Are local conventions effective tools for the joint management of natural resources? (L.Granier)
Our intention is to continuously expand and enhance the dossier as the network's work on this topic progresses.
Translation : Jesse Rafert


text:
Commemorating the Shatila Massacre, 34 years Ago Today
It began on September 16, 1982, thirty-four years ago today. The Phalange, an Israeli-backed militia, entered the Palestinian refugee camp of Shatila and neighboring Sabra, engaging in an orgy of torturing and killing that lasted several days. It is estimated that 3000 people died in this massacre, which has become one of the enduring symbols not only of the Lebanese civil war, but also of the continuing disregard in which Israel holds the Palestinian people.
"There is one scene I will always remember. There was one child. The mother died, but he was trying to take milk from his mother. He was still alive."
Jamili and I spoke in late July of 2015. I had by then been in Shatila almost four weeks, and I had not had the opportunity to talk to anybody about their personal experiences during the massacre. When I first arrived, I was expecting that the tragic events of 1982 would somehow cast an enormous shadow over the camp, that it was something everybody was still dealing with on some level. And so I was hesitant to discuss this topic with anybody for fear that I might bring up some memories that would be best left undisturbed. But when I was introduced to Jamili a few days earlier as part of a visit to Beit Atfal Assamoud, an NGO that provides medical, social and educational services to the residents of the Shatila, she began talking about the massacre immediately. When I asked her if we could discuss the matter in greater detail, she agreed to give me an interview.
Jamili's face betrayed little emotion as she recalled the scene involving the child and his dead mother from so long ago. She had told the story many times, and perhaps it lost some of its power in its retelling.
"The best way to forget about the horrible things that have happened in the past is to work, to help," she told me.
There are currently fifty-nine Palestinian refugee camps scattered throughout the Middle East. When Zionist forces instituted a policy of ethnic cleansing aimed to dispossess the Palestinians of their land in 1947-1948, close to 750,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled from their homes. The camps were built to house the refugees in the short term, but as the problem persisted, so did the camps. It is estimated that there are currently 2.5 million Palestinian refugees living in the camps, which are located in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza.
Jamili was born in 1958, during Lebanon's first civil war, and she moved with her family from Baalbek, site of the spectacular Roman ruins, to Shatila at the age of one. Although she was not alive during the Nakba – the Catastrophe – and the original establishment of the camp that followed it, she has heard countless stories from her relatives about this time. In the fifty-eight years since her move, she has witnessed all of the tragedies that have befallen Shatila. She can associate each event in the history of the camp with an episode in her life. Her history has become intertwined with that of Shatila.
"My house was destroyed seven times," she told me, "and we rebuilt it seven times."
We were sitting in comfortable black chairs in her office. A fan whirred in a corner of the room, making the heat a little less oppressive. There was an enormous, sleek, black desk behind her, at which I never saw her sit. Jamili's work involves connecting with the residents of the camp who come to seek her help, and I suspect she feels a big desk between them would make them feel uncomfortable.
Israel invaded Lebanon on June 6, 1982 in order to rid the country of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), which had fled Jordan during Black September in 1970 and had since established a presence in the refugee camps of Beirut. Israel killed roughly 20,000 people, mostly civilians, during the invasion, and it managed to drive out the PLO.
"During the invasion, 90% of the camp was destroyed. We left Shatila and stayed in Hamra (a Beirut neighborhood a few miles north of Shatila). The people lived in schools and cinemas. My house had five rooms, but when we returned to the camp, we found that only one room was left standing."
In August of that year, Israel pressured the Lebanese parliament to choose Bashir Gemayal, leader of the Israel-allied Maronites, as president. However, Gemayal was assassinated on September 14, and the Maronite Christian community, especially the Phalange, a brutal Maronite militia, blamed the Palestinians for his death. By this time the PLO had already left the camps, and only women, children and old men remained.
"The PLO had left. All of our youths were in prison," said Jamili.
The international force that had overseen the evacuation of the PLO had by now departed, and the residents of Shatila were completely exposed.
Yassir Arafat had foreseen this possibility. In the negotiations for his departure from Beirut, he had expressed concern for the safety of the civilians he would be leaving behind in the camps. The US and the government of Lebanon had given their word that Israel would not be allowed to enter West Beirut and had ensured the safety of the Palestinians remaining in the camps. But these promises proved to be empty.
On the day following Gemayal's murder, Wednesday, September 15, the Israelis seized West Beirut, entrusting to the Phalange, whose hatred for the Palestinians had been inflamed by the assassination of their leader, the task of cleaning up the refugee camps.
On the evening of the following day, Thursday, the Phalange finally entered Sabra and Shatila, and the carnage began almost immediately. David Hirst provides a chilling description in his book Beware of Small States: Lebanon, Battleground of the Middle East:
"They broke into houses and killed their occupants. Sometimes they tortured before they killed, gouging out eyes, skinning alive, disemboweling. Women and small girls were raped, sometimes half a dozen times, before, breasts severed, they were finished off with axes. Babies were torn limb from limb and their heads smashed against walls."
Unaware of the massacre, Jamili and her family sought shelter in a mosque in the center of the camp from the Phalange bombs that were falling on West Beirut.
"The houses, after the Israeli invasion, were not strong. The mosque was strong and standing. All of our neighbors left their houses, because they were weak. And we sat in the mosque. People came from outside and said there will be a massacre. Some people didn't believe them. Where would we go? At the beginning we didn't believe. But when many people came covered with blood and told terrible stories, then we were afraid."
A group of old men decided to try to find a high-ranking Israeli officer and convince him to stop the bloodshed. Jamili's father was among them, but at the last minute he opted to stay behind, a decision that most likely saved his life.
"And these men, until now we don't know where they are. They went to tell they Israelis there are only children in the camp. They went to protect the camp. But they killed them. They were all friends of my father. Until now nobody really knows what happened."
As darkness fell in the evening, the violence continued. The Israelis fired flares over the camp to aid the militia with its grisly work.
"They lit the streets of the camp. The hopeless thing is that the children saw the lights, and it made them feel happy. But we explained to them that it was the Israelis throwing bombs. Many houses burned. One bomb hit a neighbor's house, and my father went to help put the fire out."
Jamili spent that terrifying night in the mosque with her family.
"In the morning, at six o'clock, a group of women, children and old men came and entered the camp and passed by the mosque. They were crying and shouting, and then we believed that a massacre was going to happen."
On Friday many of the residents of Sabra and Shatila escaped and made their way to two nearby hospitals – the Gaza and Akka hospitals.
"We carried our children and didn't take anything. We went to the Gaza hospital."
But even in the hospitals the terrified residents of the camp were not safe from the murderous intentions of the Phalange. In fact, on that day the militia entered the Akka hospital and murdered some of the wounded as they lay in their beds.
"The doctors and the nurses said 'Don't stay here. They will come to get you. Please leave this area.'"
"So we left. At that time I was with my family and all of my relatives. There were hundreds of people in the streets, carrying their children."
Jamili's destination was Hamra, the Beiruti neighborhood where she and her family had spent the bulk of the Israeli invasion. They had lived in a friend's apartment, and they still had the key. That night they spent in an unfinished building on the way to Hamra.
"It had no doors or windows, but at least we had a place. In the morning hundreds of people from the camp came and shouted, and we felt that it was dangerous and that we must leave."
On Saturday morning they were stopped by Israeli soldiers.
"They allowed the women and children to pass, but the young men had to stay. My brothers and uncles had to return back while the women and children continued to Hamra. Our men were not with us, and we were afraid. What would happen to them? We were running away from danger, and they were going to danger."
By now journalists had entered Shatila, and news of the massacre had spread. When Jamili and her family reached Hamra, they went to a supermarket to meet its owner, a man they knew. He was astonished to see them.
"`You are still alive?' he asked us."
By ten o'clock on Saturday morning the last of the Phalange had left Sabra and Shatila. The killing was over.
"I am lucky. I didn't see anybody killed in front of me. But I saw the bodies. The mosque was filled with bodies. You can see the houses that were destroyed and the legs of the children appear from these houses. I saw all this."
When Jamili saw the pictures in a newspaper, she was horrified. She imagined that all the bodies she saw belonged to her relatives, whom she had been forced to abandon outside of Hamra.
"All youths wear sport shoes and jeans and t-shirts. Their bodies were facing down. We felt that all our men had been killed. We decided to return back to the camp. On Monday morning we entered Sabra, and we were afraid to enter the camp. We saw the bodies in the street. I couldn't stand. We couldn't continue. We knew that all our relatives had died. I went to my house. I walked a few meters and then returned back. Because I was afraid to find out what happened."
But it turned out that her male relatives had found shelter in a school outside the camp.
"When I saw them I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. I felt foolish. When I found out that my whole family was safe, it was a perfect day."
Jamili sighed. Her brown eyes glistened. Telling the story brought back memories and emotions.
The massacre was over, but the problems for the residents remained, as the camp was almost entirely destroyed and had to be rebuilt.
"We had a group of about twenty girls. We could stand against the enemy. We were not afraid. What choice did we have? To die? To live or die, it was the same."
And so Jamili and her friends threw themselves into the task of rebuilding the camp, because, among other things, it helped them forget what had happened. But one cannot forget such an event.
Jamili leans closer, her face showing the confusion, the inability to accept what had happened so many years ago. How could one group of human beings do this to another?
"Why did Israel make the massacre? For the children? For the old men? Nobody could imagine that a massacre would happen. Why? For whom? We didn't have any men. Some of them left, and some of them died. Some of them went to prison."
Today, thirty-four years later, Shatila faces a multitude of problems. The camp, originally built for 4000 residents, is contained in an area that is in the shape of a square of side length less than one kilometer. With the recent influx of refugees from the war in Syria, the current population is estimated to be close to 25,000. This high concentration of people makes itself felt in the ubiquitous crowds that fill the narrow alleyways, in the piles of garbage that accumulate too quickly for the trash removal workers to keep up with, in the many buildings that extend skyward to accommodate the residents, and in the lack of open spaces in the camp. Living conditions are horrifying. Electricity is cut for at least twelve hours a day, and the tap water is so salty that it corrodes the faucets. Guns are present throughout the camp, and tensions, already high because of the extreme overcrowdedness, often explode to the point of physical conflict. (One week after my arrival in the camp two people were murdered during a dispute over a motorcycle parking spot.)
Most of the people in the camp dream of going back to their villages in Palestine. And so it is with Jamili.
"Our problems will stop when we return. Why cannot we return to our homeland? My village is empty. It has been destroyed. Until now nobody lives there. Why must we live in this bad situation?"
As Israel moves further and further to the right, it appears as unlikely as ever that Jamili or any of the other millions of Palestinian refugees will ever be able to return to their homes. As their wait continues into its seventh decade, the international community appears to be losing interest even in providing material support for them. In 2015 an UNRWA budget shortfall threatened to close all schools in the refugee camps, an action that would have been a disaster for the residents. Saudi Arabia and a few other nations came up with the funding at the last minute, but the message that the world doesn't care about the refugees was delivered, regardless. These are dangerous times for the Palestinian refugees, and it is crucial that the international community doesn't forget about their plight.
By Richard Hardigan
Source: mondoweiss.net
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US firm WeWork secures 'financial inducement' of £55.7m in Brexit windfall
23rd July 2019 Finance 19390
A US firm run by two billionaire entrepreneurs is being paid €62m (£55.7m) in "financial inducements" as part of the Brexit-enforced relocation of the European Medicines Agency from London to Amsterdam.
WeWork, a $47bn (£37.7bn) property company founded by Adam Neumann and Miguel McKelvey, secured the cash from British and European taxpayers as part of a deal in which it will sublet the agency's former headquarters, EU documents reveal.
All UK-based EU agencies have had to be relocated to other member states as a result of the UK's decision to leave the bloc. The Netherlands won the right to host the EMA while Paris secured the European Banking Authority. But before its move to the Netherlands, the EMA failed in its bid to break its 25-year lease with its landlord, the Canary Wharf Group.
The EU agency had been facing £500m in costs, including an annual rent of €16m, on 26,000 sq metres (280,000 sq ft) of office space at 30 Churchill Place in Canary Wharf in London that it was unable to use.
The subletting deal with WeWork recoups an undisclosed amount of those costs but EU budget documents record that at least €62m has been paid to the US firm in an attempt to make the deal attractive. The sum covers the costs for 2019-20.
The EMA's efforts to sublet the property had faced rising competition in London's commercial subletting market as a result of businesses reducing their footprint in the capital in the light of the Brexit vote.
But the attraction of the Canary Wharf location was made clear by the company when it announced the lease agreement, describing it as a "desirable location for our member businesses who are rapidly scaling as well as the large enterprise companies who now represent 40% of our global membership".
A spokesman for the Department for Exiting the European Union declined to comment on the costs to the Treasury from the relocation of the London-based agencies.
The EU's budget documents for 2020 suggest that the payment to WeWork will add €6.5m to the forecasted outgoings to be met by the 28 member states.
Nine years after co-founding WeWork, Neumann, 40, its chief executive, and 45-year-old McKelvey, as chief culture officer, are reportedly worth $7bn between them. The company leases large office spaces, divides them up and rents them out out in smaller portions to businesses offering perks such as free coffee and beer.
Neumann once said the objective of his company was to "to elevate the world's consciousness".
WeWork, which operates in 27 countries and is preparing for a stock market flotation this year, is second only to the British government as an occupier of London offices, with more than 275,000 sq metres of space in the capital.
The EMA is currently in a temporary building in Amsterdam until completion of the construction of its new premises at the end of the year.
The agency's latest management board meeting heard that that the EMA expected at least one in four of its staff to stop working for it by the time of the final move as a result of the relocation. Of the 776 members of staff, 312 are "teleworking" from London due to "personal circumstances".
A spokesman for the EMA said of the payments: "This is standard practice in the London commercial property market and these inducements are typically used by the tenant to fit out the building to their specifications. EMA received similar financial inducements when we entered into the original lease. The financial inducements are being funded from the EU budget."


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INNOVATION SPACE
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NASA: the Earth oscillated during its rotation, drifting about 10 meters more than the last century
211 Views | 0 Recommend Nov 7, 2018
A team of scientists working at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California discovered that the Earth oscillated during its rotation, drifting about 10 meters more than the last century.
Following changes during the 20th century, NASA created models using observational data to identify the changes that make the Earth oscillate as part of a phenomenon called polar movement.
The Earth drifts and oscillates as it rotates.
NASA has identified three main reasons for the movement of the planet this way:
- Ice retreat: the scientists felt that he was the only one responsible for this oscillation.
This decline occurs when glaciers cover a large area, resulting in pressure on the surface of the planet and a bump at the edge of the ice.
As the glaciers dissolve, the landforms change, redistributing the mass of the Earth. Although the last ice age ended 26,000 years ago, the planet is slowly changing.
- The second factor is what is called "thermal convection of the sheath". This theory, like the melting ice, suggests that the conversion of large rocks in the heart of the Earth could be at the origin of certain fluctuations of the planet. These rocks move like pieces in a soup that heats on the furnace, goes up and down, causing a fundamental displacement of the mass of the planet.
The third and final cause of the Earth's fluctuation is due at least in part to the human impact, due to the rapid warming of the environment caused by climate change.
The melting of the ice caps at Greenland has transformed 7,500 gigatons of ocean ice, which has changed the weight distribution and may have contributed to the tilting of the Earth.
It also means that the Greenland site has a greater impact on the Earth's oscillation following the melting of Antarctic ice.
During the last century, our planet recorded a gap of 10.5 cm per year to the west, which changed the oscillation position by about 10 meters.
Volatility is not a major threat to life, but it creates challenges for navigation.
Source: Mirror
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