If you know anything about the prolife movement you know that it's not all based on Catholic doctrine, but leftists like to make it seem like only religious extremists believe in the right for a child in the womb to be born alive.
The questioner tried to corner Marco Rubio but he completely turned the tables on him and showed how the Democrats' views are actually out of line with most Americans' interests and values.
I don't care who you are, but you have to be impressed with Rubio's ability to change the narrative and strike back at Hillary Clinton.
Everyone Agrees THIS Was The Most Devastating Moment Of The GOP Debate!!


Papershow is a presentational tool with a difference - it comprises a big fat ball point pen that doubles as a Bluetooth pointer, a Bluetooth dongle/memory stick and a pad of gridded paper that allows you to motion track as you scrawl.
In principle, Papershow allows you to ditch the whiteboard or flip chart, and digitally save meeting, seminar or presentation notes. Papershow is relatively inexpensive by comparison to electronic smartboards, portable and simple to pick up and use.
Setup is a cinch - the Papershow software runs from the dongle, and in our tests the devices paired immediately. Select the size of paper (A4 or A3) and start to scrawl - your words and doodles appear on the screen in real time.
Import PowerPoint presentations and images, place them into your Papershow virtual whiteboard and they appear on the screen alongside your notes. And you can print out the images on provided gridded paper to act as a guide.
Impressive functionality, but what's Papershow like to use? Options and menu items are intuitive: you won't find yourself scratching around for a format change when presenting to a group. And as a southpaw, we were glad to see that the Papershow pen caters for lefties.
Our only real gripe is endemic with this kind of technology. No matter how hard you press, you can't always get pen strokes to appear in a single complete sweep. After a 20-minute session with Papershow we'd defaulted to going over pen strokes twice, and we had a cramping writing hand. Being able to see your work in ink is a boon, but when the stuff on screen differs from your pad, it's a negative.
Less important is the default writing colour: white. Unless you are of significantly bigger brain than us, you may waste a writing sheet scribbling around before you realise that white on white doesn't really work.
We really like Papershow - it's a neat solution to several presentational problems. And against all odds Papershow is fun to use. It's difficult to judge the value of such a niche product, but compare its £117 price tag to an electronic smartboard, for instance, and Papershow looks like an absolute bargain.


where is some reaction coefficient that accounts for loss of . The terms on the LHS of Eq. (2) are equivalent to the LHS of Eq. (1) and similarly for the right hand sides.
The syntax for MassEigenKernel is simple, taking only its type and the variable that the kernel acts on.
eigen_postprocessor1The name of the postprocessor that provides the eigenvalue.
Description:The name of the postprocessor that provides the eigenvalue.


text:
President Dave Reinker Retires After 40 Years With SGPA
July 29, 2015 By SGPA
After 40 years with SGPA Architecture and Planning, President Dave Reinker is retiring. Over the years, Dave has been a tremendous asset to SGPA and its clients, leading by example with integrity, passion and foresight. SGPA's profound growth can be attributed to Dave's enormous skill set, knowledge of the industry, professionalism, and experience, all of which paved the way for the firm's success. Dave served SGPA as Director of the San Francisco office (1981-1988), Project Principal (1988-1997), and most recently as President for the past eighteen years (1997-2015).
During Dave's tenure he has managed complex architectural projects across the firm's portfolio, including education, senior living, retail, mixed-use, office, and civic clients. A Registered Architect in California, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah, Dave has been a speaker and panel member on retail and mixed-use projects for the International Council of Shopping Centers and is a past member of its program committee. Dave is also a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), and is known for his expertise in the realm of entitlements and governmental processing procedures.
Prompted by an early interest in sketching, building, and the mechanical aspects of design, Dave pursued and received a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Shortly after graduation, he and his wife, Karen, moved to California. In 1975, Dave joined SGPA Architecture and Planning's San Diego office, the only office at the time. Under Dave's leadership, the San Francisco office opened in the 1980s. Dave returned to Southern California as a Project Principal in 1988, and from 1997 to 2015, Dave served as SGPA's President.
A look back at some of Dave's projects over the last 40 years includes the following:
San Diego International Airport appointed SGPA to lead the design team for new construction of Terminal 2 as part of its 1998 Airport Upgrade Project. Incorporating highly technical design elements in a creative design, Dave acted as Principal In Charge on Terminal 2, the largest single component of this mega-project. The 320,000 square foot expansion included eight new gates, a new ticketing concourse, revised baggage system, retail concessions and an award-winning energy management system. Dave and his team were an integral part of this large, successful and challenging project.
Dave led the renovation of the Flower Hill Promenade, located near California's famous Del Mar racetrack. This mixed-use project entailed a full renovation of common spaces, new construction, and landscaping. Flower Hill is a leading example of a successful "retail destination" – under Dave's influence, SGPA integrated hospitality elements in common areas and blended retail with active uses.
The Bay Area's Alameda Marina Village is a project Dave recalls fondly as one of the first challenging and motivating projects early in his career. It left a large impression on Dave and helped to guide work for the firm on future projects.
"For decades, Dave has been a steadfast leader for the firm and his presence will be sorely missed," said Keith Pittsford, Vice President of SGPA. "He bestowed his vision, lessons, and legacy to our staff of 40 dedicated professionals inspired to carry on his standards of excellence."
Up next? He and his wife, Karen, look forward to traveling to Europe, remodeling their home and spending time with family. While Dave will not be involved with day-to-day operations at SGPA, he will continue to sit as a Chairman on the SGPA Board of Directors.
Dave, your SGPA family would like to sincerely thank you for your devotion and service these past 40 years.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
POPCOM intensifies family planning as COVID-19 feared to cause a poverty-worsening 'baby boom'
Taguig City, June 3, 2020 – The Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM) has intensified family planning (FP) and responsible parenthood programs as the COVID 19 crisis is feared to cause poverty-worsening, economy-debilitating population boom.
A historically observed social phenomenon, a population boom has been noted to follow a crisis. Regardless of the reasons behind this trend, POPCOM took measures to strengthen its family planning programs and distribution of contraceptives.
"We saw in the past during the lifetime of our parents or grandparents the significant increase in birth rate after a major adverse event," according to Dr. Juan Antonio Perez III, POPCOM Executive Director. "This is the reason why family planning is even more important during our current COVID-19 crisis."
Dr. Perez stressed the importance of family planning during his participation in a live Facebook session organized by Bayer Philippines. The online channel, Ask Mara PH, intends to provide relevant information to women about reproductive health and contraceptive options.
"While it is more difficult now to provide important information about family planning & reproductive health issues, we appreciate initiatives such as Ask Mara where people can just log on to ask questions about these topics and get answers right away, said Dr. Perez.
According to Dr. Perez, POPCOM gives priority to communities that are vulnerable to further socio-economic deterioration as a result of unplanned pregnancies. "Nearly one-third of a typical Filipino household budget is used up to cover the cost of pregnancy. It leads to many families having to do with less because they have more mouths to feed. This has an aggregate impact in the economy." POPCOM brought its FP programs to their target communities during the lockdown when people were compelled to stay at home.
"The government continues to reach out to families through its dedicated health workers," added Dr. Perez. "Even in this pandemic, health services like family planning should continue because life goes on."
Three out of every 10 pregnancies are unplanned or unintended, according to a Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) survey. The United Nations (UN) Population Fund also reported that even if some 214 million women worldwide want to avoid pregnancy, they risk getting pregnant. This is due to lack of access to FP methods or absence of support from partners and communities. Similarly, the National Demographic and Health Survey shows roughly one in 10 women aged 15-19 have begun childbearing and 17% of women aged 15-49 want to practice FP but do not have access to said FP methods. This hinders women to reach their full potential to contribute more for themselves and their families.
Sustainability in Family Planning
The United Nations through the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Philippines, through POPCOM stress that sexual and reproductve health and rights, including Family Planning is a fundamental right of every human being and that it is a major step toward breaking the cycle of poverty—both for women and their families and for the countries where they live.
In support of the UN's Sustainable Development Goal on good health and well-being, Bayer announced its sustainability target of enabling family planning for 100 million women in low and medium-income countries by 2030. This includes a recent appointment of an independent sustainability council to examine the progress made by Bayer in the implementation of its sustainability targets and oversee the advancement of social innovations.
Priority by Population Density
With the current COVID 19 crisis requires non-pharmaceutical intervention, but instead minimum health standards such as social distancing and proper hygiene, POPCOM gives more attention to areas based on population density.
"Out of 42,000 barangays, we analyze based on population density and availability of facilities, said Dr. Perez. "We work with barangays and mayors, and we share our recommendations on vulnerable areas that should be given more resources to maintain health services."
Even if health services are made available to those in need, Dr. Perez added that it still boils down to responsible parenthood. "Before thinking about raising a family, the couple must think through a lot of considerations. Based on their earning capacity and increasing cost of living, how many children can they provide for? How would they ensure the best for their children—physically, mentally, and spiritually?"
POPCOM has established help lines to provide more support through information sharing and guidance. They have people manning the stations almost 24/7 to answer questions on family planning, adolescent sexuality, COVID-19, and even gender-based violence. They are available in Metro Manila and in POPCOM's regional offices and details are found in their website and Facebook page. Melody Mendoza Aguiba
Posted on June 5, 2020 June 7, 2020 Author malourdesaguibaCategories Bayer Philippines
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Greg Buzek is the Founder and President of IHL Group and one of the Founders of the Retail Orphan Initiative, a charitable foundation that seeks to help the 400 million orphaned and vulnerable children around the world. Greg joins Justin to discuss launching his business and this global charitable organization.
What do you do with an idea? Brian Fried is a product inventor, author, radio host, consultant and Executive Director of the United Inventors Association (UIA). He is the author of Inventing Secrets Revealed, You & Your Big Ideas and Invention Playbook for Inventors with Big Ideas. Brian joins Justin for Part 2 of a conversation centered on bringing product ideas to life.
Lara Hodgson is the Founder and CEO of NOW Corp. NOW's mission is to create "A World without AR" for all businesses that sell to other businesses and governments – essentially redefining how businesses get paid. NOWaccount®, enables businesses to get paid immediately and partners with businesses to free-up cash-flow. Lara is a globally recognized business and entrepreneurship leader and joins Justin to discuss growing the business.
Léon & George, the trendsetter of indoor house plants, is providing the best experience in buying quality greens paired with architectural designer pots. Gorgeous, responsibly-sourced living plants are pre-potted and delivered right to your doorstep—thriving even when shipped across the country.Bring Nature Indoors: Premium plants, potted and delivered. Ron joins Justin to discuss launching the business.
Over the past 40 years, Tom Stanley and his daughter Sarah Stanley Fallaw have been involved in research examining how self-made, economically successful Americans became that way. Sarah Fallaw joins Justin to discuss her new book and strategies for building wealth.
Monique joins Justin to discuss their new line of get-to-know-you conversation card games, the New York Toy Fair, and more!


How can we have peace and clarity when our circumstances are increasingly complex and messy?
Our world of social media and immediate notifications has exposed the anxiousness, conflict and downright messiness. We feel it everywhere.
We see it on an international level. We are experiencing it at a national level. And we have always felt it on a personal level – especially at work. The world is messy and problematic, and it's been that way since one bad turn in the Garden of Eden.
Our typical response is like Adam: to mistrust God, to make short-sighted decisions based only on what we can see and feel, and to inevitably add to the mess instead of bringing peace and clarity.
So what do we do? How can we have peace and clarity in the chaos?
We look to whom the Bible calls the "second Adam," in a different Garden, on the eve of the most important event in all of history.
Mark 14:32-65 details the final hours before Jesus' crucifixion: his prayer in the Garden, arrest and trial. This passage is a fantastic model for how to engage a crazy and messy world.
Jesus' prayer is complete – a perfect model of submission and trust in God's plan and goodness. And it prepares him for what is to come.
What follows the Garden scene is a circus. The mob arrest. The competing and false testimony. The rigged overnight trial. Still, in that agonizing and emotionally wrenching process, Jesus has perfect peace and self-control. How?
He has fully given his situation to God, and he is empowered by God's spirit. He is comfortable in the midst of craziness and confusion to either respond or to not respond, because he is led by the Spirit and characterized with the wisdom, peace and self-control that the Spirit produces. This is the essence of living out our faith!
While we will never endure what Jesus endured, we can apply his method. This could apply to any situation, but especially a really hard situation in which you know you need to endure or really need a specific outcome.
And then move forward and trust Him.
Unlike Jesus, we don't have perfect foreknowledge of what the day will bring – our specific calendars and business ups and downs aren't written in the scriptures.
But God knows. He cares about the details; they are part of his bigger-picture plan. And He will enable you to face the expected or unexpected events of the day according to His plan.
Because like Jesus, we do have His Spirit. Jesus' prayer and arrest is much more than a helpful model. Because Jesus endured the ultimate injustice on the cross, we have the power – His power – to face anything with peace, confidence and hope.
God will give you strength in this sort of prayer. You can move forward, empowered by His Spirit, trusting His goodness, and submitting to His will.
And as a result you will exhibit the fruit of the Spirit — peace and self-control, with wisdom to know how to respond whatever the situation.
The world around you might be a circus, but you'll be steady. You'll be a light. And you'll bring peace and clarity into the crazy.
God knows and cares about every detail of your life. Talk with Him when things get crazy and ask Him to produce the fruit of peace and patience in your heart. His answer to your prayers will be just what you need.
Father, as I sit here at my desk, I lift up to you every detail of my day. Please guide every decision I need to make, bless me with your peace and confidence, and pave the way for me to charge through the craziness of life! I humbly seek your presence in my life and praise you for all your blessings. Amen.
© 2018. Ben Kirksey is the VP, General Manager for Workmatters and Director of Workmatters Institute. He realized a passion for integrating faith and work while at Northstar Partnering Group (now Field Agent™) and subsequently co-founded the Workmatters Institute in 2010, joining Workmatters to lead the Institute full time in 2013.


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Gladue report writer says Saskatchewan lags behind other provinces
Published Thursday, March 1, 2018 10:07AM CST Last Updated Thursday, March 1, 2018 11:14AM CST
This is part one of a two-part series looking at the processes behind Gladue reports in Saskatchewan.
Christine Goodwin says she believes she's the only person in Saskatchewan writing Gladue reports.
The former lawyer said Wednesday the province is lagging behind others in Canada in its treatment of the Gladue principle, which examines the circumstances and upbringings of, and colonialism's effect on, Indigenous offenders.
"The information that I get is just toxic," Goodwin said of interviewing offenders. "It's toxic to the core. These are not people that have lived a rosy life. It's the worst of the worst."
Judges in Canada examine Gladue reports— which originated from two Supreme Court decisions in 1999 and 2012 — when deciding bail or a sentence for Indigenous offenders.
Goodwin does not consider the reports "a get out of jail free card," but says they objectively lay out alternatives to incarceration and may result in a slightly reduced sentence.
"Because you can't blame someone for being raised that way, so their moral culpability is a lower threshold than an average person," she said.
She wants to see more reports written in the province, but said she alone wouldn't be able to keep up if demand increased.
"I'd like to do them all. I just can't physically do them all," she said.
An ideal number of report writers in Saskatchewan would be 10, according to Goodwin.
She also wants more lawyers and offenders to know Indigenous offenders have the right to a Gladue report, and for them to be reflected judges' decisions. Goodwin says she believes only one Gladue report she has wrote was reflected in a sentence.
How Saskatchewan stacks up
Goodwin said she's written about 25 reports — some of which can take about a year — since 2015. The number she wrote last year was fewer than 20.
By contrast, in the last eight months of 2017, 647 Gladue reports were completed in Alberta, according to the Alberta government.
Forty writers work on the reports in Alberta, and, according to Manitoba's justice ministry, staff in Manitoba's probation services department complete most Gladue reports in that province.
No national certification
Saskatchewan's government isn't able to verify how many Gladue report writers are in the province because, it said in a statement, no nationally recognized certification program exists.
The Ministry of Justice fulfills its obligations to the Gladue Provision in the Criminal Code, the statement read.
"Saskatchewan courts primarily rely on information provided through pre-sentencing reports. Aboriginal Court Workers, Legal Aid and Probation Officers often play a part in providing information on potential Gladue factors in court cases."
New probation officers are trained in Indigenous awareness, treaty rights and interviewing and writing pre-sentence reports that include specific Gladue factors, according to the ministry. Additional training is planned for all probation officers who write pre-sentence reports to ensure Gladue factors are addressed in a thorough and consistent way, as well.
Saskatchewan doesn't offer formal training in Gladue report writing, unlike provinces like British Columbia and Ontario.
Defence lawyer wants improvements
Seventy-five per cent of adults incarcerated in Saskatchewan are Indigenous, which is the highest of all provinces, according to 2015-2016 numbers from Statistics Canada.
Goodwin said she'd like Gladue reports to help "reduce the overall incarceration rate of Indigenous people," and Saskatoon defence lawyer Brian Pfefferle said he'd like to see the reports accessed more often.
"I hope that there's more access to Gladue reports," Pfefferle told reporters Tuesday after one of his clients, a teen who killed a baby, was sentenced as an adult. "I think they are very helpful both at the bail stages and at the sentencing stages."
A Gladue report was ordered in the teen's case, and an updated report was filed the evening before the judge delivered his sentence.
Pfefferle said in some instances lawyers forego a Gladue report due to delays, or use a writer from outside of Saskatchewan. He also said lawyers use submissions in place of a report, which, according to him, aren't ideal in providing a complete background of an offender.
Crown prosecutor in the case Jennifer Claxton-Viczo said more report writers would be reasonable, based on the number of Indigenous offenders in Saskatchewan.
"I suspect that the numbers warrant it, whether that will happen or not, I can't comment on that," she said.
Part two of CTV Saskatoon's series on Gladue reports airs Thursday.
Gladue report writer Christine Goodwin says Saskatchewan is behind compared to other provinces. (Angelina Irinici/CTV Saskatoon)
CTV News Saskatoon at Six for Monday, November 14, 2022
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Forensic accountants use A.I tech to search for hidden assets in contentious divorces.
Usually, when you hear about artificial intelligence, it's because you just watched a good (hopefully) sci-fi movie. Or maybe you just read an alarmist article about how the future of the human race is uncertain, due to the development of new robotics technology. What you don't usually think about is divorce. Why? Because A.I. and divorce tend to be chocolate cake to your designer shoes, or houseplants to your BBQ. In other words – two things that have nothing to do with each other. Right? Well, as it turns out, that isn't quite true anymore.
What could A.I. possibly have to do with divorce?
Part of why the idea of A.I. having anything to do with your divorce sounds really weird, is because you probably have the wrong idea about A.I. really is. For starters, it's used everywhere, in everything that has anything to do with modern computing technology. A.I. helps determine what you might like to buy next, based on your previous purchases, or what music you might want to listen based on what you've already listen to. (Think Amazon!) It's also in your phone's GPS, helping you navigate, and in your email account, trying to detect incoming spam. Oh, and remember the last time you asked Alexa about the weather? You were using A.I.
What exactly does a forensic accountant do?
So how is A.I. tech helpful during divorces?
A.I. is now being used in all sorts of fields, including accounting and financial record keeping. As a result, what used to take a forensic accountant weeks, if not months to sort through (depending on the complexity level of the financial records), can now be done in a much shorter period of time! Where before all the data had to be analysed by a person, which is labor intensive and subject to a greater number of errors, it can now be done by a computer in a fraction of the time!
Talk to your divorce attorney about the need for a forensic accountant.
Forensic accountants are not like regular accountants. They specialize in a very specific area of accounting, and therefore don't get used in every divorce. If you and your spouse have a complex or extensive financial portfolio, your divorce lawyer will probably need help from a forensic accountant. If you or a loved one are considering divorce, and you have concerns about the extent of your financial portfolio, or are worried that your spouse has been stashing the cash, call us at 866 766 5245. Our experienced divorce attorneys have access to some of the best forensic accountants in the business. We can help you through this.


text:
Single vision and Newtons sleep debt
Yay for voting! Ain't democracy just peaches!
Jack Grahamcapitalism, class society, democracy, election, george orwell, herbert marcuse, hypocrisy, oligarchy, the 60s, the macra terror, the state, totalitarianism, voting0
Off out to vote today on who runs the civil service… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today on who runs the police… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today on who runs the army… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today on who runs the corporations… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today on who owns and runs the media… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today on who runs the BBC… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today for a non neoliberal party with a chance of winning… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today for a big party staunchly opposed to imperialist warmongering… oh, no, hang about, there aren't any are there?
Off out to vote today for a big party committed to saving us from environmental disaster… oh, no, hang about, there aren't any are there?
Off out to vote today for someone who represents my relation to production… oh, no, hang about, we vote in geographical blocs, don't we?
Off out to vote today on who runs the judiciary… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today on who owns most of the land and property in the UK… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today on who owns and runs the banks… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Off out to vote today on who gets to use economic clout to lobby politicians… oh, no, hang about, we're not allowed to do that are we?
Yay, every four or five years I get to participate – very indirectly, if I'm lucky – in an electoral system rigged against the expression of unified working class interests!
I get a tiny, very occasional say in choosing which team of essentially identical managers cares for neoliberalism under a vastly unaccountable government system hugely influenced by private interests!
I get to slightly influence one lever of power, while almost every other lever of power in the system is nearly entirely undemocratic and unaccountable!
This is what the Chartists fought and died for! [It isn't.]
Yay for democracy!
Remember, if you don't vote, you've got no right to complain.
This Irregularity Has Been Recorded
Jack Graham1984, british empire, capitalism, elliot chapman, eric fromm, george orwell, herbert marcuse, india, second world war, stalinism, the 60s, the macra terror, the prisoner, totalitarianism, vaka rangi, victory of the daleks, winston churchill4
Doctor Who frequently did stories which critiqued capitalism to one degree or another. But there's an interesting dialectical twist to this, which is that it usually cloaked such critiques in the aesthetics of (for want of a better term) 'totalitarianism'.
It begins, arguably, with 'The Macra Terror'… though so much of what that story does 'first' is actually just being done openly and consciously for the first time. Other examples include (most graphically) 'The Sun Makers', 'Vengeance on Varos', and 'The Happiness Patrol'. I'd argue for a few others to go on the list, but these are the most obvious examples. 'The Beast Below' carried on the tradition, as did 'Gridlock' before it (albeit mutedly). Yet many of these stories have been subject to readings which interpret them as right-wing and/or libertarian attacks on aspects of socialism and/or statism (often assumed to be synonymous). I might even (overall) support such a reading in some cases. 'The Beast Below', for example, is a story which critiques aspects of the capitalist world, but which (to my mind) ends up supplying more alibis than indictments – partially through its use of totalitarian/statist tropes. I think the thing that leaves them open to such readings is their 'totalitarian' aesthetic. The (myopic, ideologically-distorted) view of socialism which sees it as inherently coercive and statist can grab hold of the aesthetically magnified symbols of statism which litter these stories.
I think this tendency to wrap critiques of capitalism in totalitarian aesthetics comes from the influence of the Nigel Kneale / Rudolph Cartier TV version of Nineteen Eighty-Four, which starred Peter Cushing.
Stylistically, this production appears to have been deeply influential to the rising generation of programme-makers who would write and design Doctor Who in the 60s. The totalitarian affect pioneered visually in that production gets embedded in Doctor Who's internal semiotic repertoire as a stock way of expressing worries about social freedom.
This isn't surprising at all, since the aesthetics of totalitarianism have proven a popular and enduring way of expressing such worries in the wider culture, as the proliferation of SF dystopias has shown. They're now almost a basic, fallback position for YA books and films.
But we need to do more than just gesture to a particularly influential production. That's not enough. It's not an explanation. You can't just say 'this production here was influential'. That's just begging the question. The real question is: why was it influential? What was it about it that made its aesthetics stick so hard?
I think the answer actually lies back in the book. Much of the horror of the book is the everyday horror of squalor – whether it be the squalor of coldness and dirt and forced 'healthiness', or the moral squalor of everyday ideological management. Orwell gets the former from his experiences of public school (which he wrote about elsewhere with loathing) and the latter from his experiences of working within the BBC. Even Newspeak is derived from work he did for the BBC World Service in India. …
Damp Little Ideas
Jack Grahambritish empire, capitalism, empty child, george orwell, ideology, imperialism, patriotism, steven moffat7
Phwoar, look at the imperialist symbolism on that!
That bit in 'The Empty Child' when the Doctor talks about the "damp little island" standing alone against Hitler… when I first saw that I hurled a coat-hanger I happened to be holding at my television.
Okay, so: patriotism as progressive, yeah? "Don't forget the Welfare State" or whatever he says.
Hmm. You will unsurprised to learn that I have doubts.
There is sometimes an unwarranted elision of the idea of 'patriotism' with the idea of 'loving one's home'. This is an elision that many left-wingers have been guilty of, from Orwell to Billy Bragg. But it confuses distinct concepts. Moreover, it acquiesces in the ideological project of confusing these concepts, a project of immense utility to ruling classes going back to the very birth of the state. Patriotism isn't just a cynical scheme of the rulers… though it is that, amongst other things. The point here is that it is an ideological construction and a form of social practice which cannot be simplistically overlaid upon personal affection for one's origins and surroundings.
I love London. In order to get sentimentally misty-eyed about this, I'd have to forget that the city is a concentrated site of racial discrimination, police repression, social cleansing, centralised state bureaucracy, drastic inequality; that it's the hub of the organisation and enforcement (physical and ideological) of a neoliberal and neo-imperialist power, strewn with monuments to one of the most savagely aggressive colonial empires in modern history. And on and on and on.
The love of one's home is one thing. 'Patriotism' and 'nationalism' are both, finally, ideological notions mapped-onto it. They both immediately elide the flexible and contextual concept of 'home' with the political category of 'country'. Even the term 'homeland' starts to do this. We should never let ourselves become deaf to the shades of meaning imported by extra syllables.
The idea that patriotism can be a 'way in' to a larger feeling of social involvement is similarly dubious. To the extent that patriotism makes the individual feel connected to something larger than him-or-herself, the connection is a masochistic one. It is the sublimation of oneself into a dominating framework, not the integration of oneself into a genuinely collective endeavour, whatever the rhetoric.
Besides, this sublime idea of ecstatic sublimation is not only unduly R/romantic, but is also so vague, and so applicable as a description of so many varied and mutually-exclusive things, that it loses all substantive content. It can refer to mysticism, chauvinism, trade union activity, identity politics, family, etc. Richard Dawkins feels 'part of something greater than himself'; so does the Pope. For the idea of personal integration into wider structures to be meaningful, it must be individuated… whereupon we start to see patriotism as a distinct phenomenon, quite separate from, say, social work or progressive activism. The mooted connection collapses.
Ideas of 'national community' are largely ideological constructions which artificially smooth-out hugely contradictory social arrangements riddled with class antagonisms. The idea that 'the nation' is a space where we can work for 'the public good' is similarly panglossian.…
Homage to the Future
Jack Grahambourgeois ideology, capitalism, george orwell, homage to catalonia, ideology, neoliberalism, socialism, state capitalism7
I'm currently re-reading George Orwell's best book Homage to Catalonia. It's one of those books I re-read every few years.
I came across this lovely, compact, resonant passage:
I am well aware that it is now the fashion to deny that Socialism has anything to do with equality. In every country in the world a huge tribe of party-hacks and sleek little professors are busy 'proving' that Socialism means no more than a planned state-capitalism with the grab-motive left intact. But fortunately there also exists a vision of Socialism quite different from this. The thing that attracts ordinary men to Socialism and makes them willing to risk their skins for it, the 'mystique' of Socialism, is the idea of equality; to the vast majority of people Socialism means a classless society, or it means nothing at all.
Orwell saw the essential nature of Stalin's Russia better even than Trotsky. A state-capitalist bureaucracy, with the role of private capitalists taken instead by an equally-exploitative class of managers. He also saw that Stalin's Russia was not socialist, since the essence of socialism is the abolition of an exploiting class, not its replacement by a new set of exploiters.
However, what I love most about this quote is that Orwell is writing in 1937 about Stalinists, but it applies today to the ideological commissars of capitalism. Fox News, Thomas Friedman, etc, etc, et-bloody-c. All the corporate goons and mainstream ideologues (all of them far more reminiscent of old-style Stalinist hacks, apologists and party-men than they'd ever dream possible) endlessly telling us that Socialism is the religion of state ownership, state control, state regimentation of the individual, etc.
They tell us this to scare us away – not away from socialism, of which they affect to live in fear but which they secretly regard (wrongly, as history will hopefully show) as a busted flush – but away from ANY criticism, even the mildest bit of reformism, of corporate neoliberalism.
Their bogey is the authoritarianism of old Russia or China… and yet their world of corporate-rule is eerily like such tyrannies. Corporations are utter tyrannies; pyramidal command structures with little or no internal democracy, scarce accountability, no levers by which the public may control them, the ability and willingness to use violence to defend themselves, etc.
Just as the Stalinized Soviet Union wanted its acolytes and fellow travellers and useful idiots to believe that socialism meant state control, so do today's ultra-capitalist thinkpriests… and for exactly the same reason, only in moral photo-negative. The Stalinist argument was: if state control is socialism, then Stalinism is socialism, ergo Stalinism is good. The neoliberal argument is: if state control is socialism, and socialism was Stalinism, then any state control over capital is Stalinism, ergo state control of any kind of evil.
These arguments are clones of each other, wearing different suits. And both are the purest cant, invented by tyrannies for the justification of tyranny. …


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Topic: Dungeons & Dragons... Discuss!
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Author Topic: Dungeons & Dragons... Discuss! (Read 11677 times)
TheGlyphstone
Aspiring Tyromancer
Re: Dungeons & Dragons... Discuss!
Quote from: Callie Del Noire on December 02, 2012, 10:30:56 AM
That is the complaint I kept hearing here. A LOT of folks recall the amount of feedback the felt their input on the Pathfinder beta was given. That feedback isn't there in DnDNext. Not saying that there isn't, just that it wasn't SEEN.
We must be talking to very different groups of people - what I'd heard was that the PF designers were very hostile towards feedback of anything besides 'this is great', to the point where permanent forum bans were issued to anyone who claimed something was over/underpowered.
Slywyn
Resident friendly silly shark
Location: South US
Sink your teeth into a good tale.
That seems excessive.
I'm not guaranteeing what I've heard is 100% accurate, but I have been told that the PF beta-test was very hostile towards people who were actively looking for problems, loopholes, and broken combos that needed to be fixed, rather than perpetuating positive feedback loops.
(With awareness that said people would have a vested interest in painting themselves in a better light, hence why I'm phrasing everything in a secondhand fashion.)
Still, I'd rather fix a game than have a broken game that people say is good.
You were made innocent so you could be corrupted.
Quote from: Callie Del Noire on December 01, 2012, 09:08:48 PM
Actually tis not that baseless. Look at the way they addressed the classes. blaster, tank, crowd control and so on. It WAS built to be based off a MMO.
I picked up the books.. looked them thru and between they initial way they did multiclassing, the 'enchanting rules' which smacked a LOT of what I was grinding thru in wow at the time (magic powers you get from 'disenchanting' magic items?)
It should be noted, though, that tank/damage dealer/healer/controller existed in D&D long before there even were such things as MMOs. Groups that were heavily into the combat aspects of D&D have been dividing up responsibilities like that since the '70s. The only thing 4e did there that previous editions didn't was to actually label the classes as to which roles they were meant to fill, and add the concept of tanks "marking" foes.
MMOs got the idea from D&D - the only thing D&D got about it from MMOs was the idea of actually letting new players know how the classes were meant to act in group combat.
I've been playing D&D a long, long time now. I first got it for Christmas back in 1980 - I was already a fan of fantasy and SF, and when I saw the ads for it in Boys' Life and various comics, I wanted to get whatever this game was that let you play out fantasy stories.
Over the years, I've played every edition of AD&D, and a lot of other RPGs besides. 4e is my favorite so far, for reasons that I've already explained over in another thread here on Elliquiy. If I had to take a second choice, though, Pathfinder would be it right now. I can't say that I like what I've seen of Next so far - it seems like an attempt to regress back to 2e, with a few things brought in from 3 and 4e.
As far as worlds go, I started off using Greyhawk, then migrated to my own fantasy world of Tathir, which I developed when 2e came out. I made a lot of conscious changes from the "typical" D&D worlds in it - for example, the main halfling nation is based off of late Imperial Rome mixed with Renaissance Venice, for halflings who love their creature comforts... and their orgies and slaves.
Similarly, having seen far too many worlds where there was 'the' elven nation, 'the' dwarven nation, etc., I had multiple ones of each, with past histories of wars and struggles between them. Thus, the oldest elven nation was ruled by high and grey elves, with wood and wild elves being a peasant underclass, while another elven nation had been founded by wood and wild elves who had fled from there, and did not get along at all with the other. I also strongly dislike the idea of 'evil races', so negotiation and accepting surrenders was often a fruitful tactic - and still is, in the games I run.
After running games in Tathir for around seven years, I got tired of it. Around that time I was growing tired of AD&D as well (this was in 2e days), and for the next several years, I didn't run D&D at all. A player from my Tathir campaign who had moved away started his own D&D campaign up, and I mailed off all my Tathir notes, maps, etc. to him. He's still running his campaigns in it today.
As far as characters go... I have a special fondness for my first character, Victor Ironwolf (and yes, 'Ironwolf' was a steal from Morgan Ironwolf, the example of character creation in 'pink box' Basic D&D. I was 10). He was a ranger, but back then, I hadn't read any Tolkein yet, so I didn't really know what a ranger was supposed to be, and the campaign he was in was very much a Monty Haul game, so he wound up with plate armor, a sword based on Blackrazor from White Plume Mountain, and a pegasus for a mount. In 4e, I finally recreated him - but this time as a warlord, since I really love the concept of that class.
Another favorite of mine is Efindel, a grey elven mage from second edition, who I ran in a high-level campaign, carrying him from 5th level up to 16th. He became an NPC fixture in Tathir as the royal mage of the main elven kingdom, and a guardian of the Gate that was there.
I returned to D&D with 3rd edition, but while I liked most of the concepts behind it, I found the implementation to be lacking, and never developed any characters that really stuck with me. In 4e, favorites of mine have been Victor Ironwolf 2.0, a female paladin multiclassed into warlord named Thornele, and a female mage named Maribelle, who was designed to test how much utility could be gotten out of a mage who specialized in spells that moved enemies around and inflicted conditions on them while doing minimal damage.
Since I've spent most of my time as a GM, though, most of my best stories are about other people's characters and about adventures. Sparran, human paladin of the Protector, and Baal, dwarven priest of the god of Vengeance, who several times nearly came to blows over how to treat defeated foes - even though they were both Lawful Good. The time I told everyone to get out the characters they had that had gotten too high level and which no one would let them play any more (within reason - no characters from people's munchkin days), and ran a campaign that had them roving the D&D multiverse while searching for parts of a gem that was the soul of a primordial god.
Another time, around Christmas one year, when pretty much everyone who had ever been a member of my first gaming group showed up in town, and my friend Craig and I decided to co-GM a party vs. party dungeon. The time when someone in the party made the mistake of saying "Demogorgon", and the GM rolled the appearance chance... and he actually appeared. To a group of seventh-level characters. Efindel only survived that one because I'd been lucky enough to get psionics, and he was able to Dimension Door out of there while the big D slaughtered the rest of the party. And then, of course, Efindel wound up having to go back once he judged it safe, gather up the pieces of their bodies he could find, and go try to find some way to get them resurrected.
I could probably literally go on for hours, and some of my stories would be from this last year - there were some great moments with Victor 2.0 and his cohort, and the players in my current online 4e game have done some very unexpected things, like choosing to kill an Earl's son they got into a bar fight with... but that's really the fun of D&D, and of all RPGs - the unexpected moments, that make you bust out laughing, go "WTF?", or want to pound your head against the table because of how the players are either missing what should be obvious... or have just smashed what you spent hours planning in two minutes with a strategy you never could have imagined.
And at the heart of it, that's why I still play, 22 years later. Because the system or the edition matters a hell of a lot less than the imagination - both your own, and that of the people you play with.
Our Lady of Optimism, Mistress of the Comma, Babe of the Bounteous Bosom, Saint of Submission, Patroness of Breast Men, Lady Lamia, Captive Princess, Tender-Heart, Cuddle-Dove, Sex Kitten, Sweet Devil, Birdy-Bells, Nubile Nerd, and One Wordy Wench
Location: Singing in your heart.
"They're real, and they're spectacular!"
Thank you so much for sharing your story, tsc! It sounds like you've had a wild and wonderful ride! I love hearing about how each person has experienced D&D in a different way. That's what is so amazing about this game; the only limit is your own imagination.
I first got into Dungeons & Dragons by finding the 3rd Edition Core Books in Borders. I absolutely loved them, and knew that I needed to play this game. I didn't get an actually group until 2 years later, and I eagerly played almost every week for years on end.
In recent years I've been pursuing other kinds of Table-Top games, but I keep heading back to D&D. I've also bought a few retroclones, most notably Hackmaster Basic. I still love 3rd Editon and Pathfinder, but I was thinking of branching out to other Editions sometime.
I don't really have a favorite setting, but I really enjoy Eberron and Forgotten Realms. Eberron is an interesting take on a pseudo-industrial society with advanced magic and pulp-themed adventures, while Forgotten Realms is a flavorful mix of all sorts of fantasy tropes. I really like the frontier setting of the North in Faerun as well.
I pretty much discarded the new FR books for this along with a myriad other reasons. What they did to the Realms was.. hideous.
You should check out Ed Greenwood Presents Elminster's Forgotten Realms. It's a new book comprised of Greenwood's personal notes about the society and culture of the Realms. It doesn't contain Edition-specific material or hard game mechanics, but it's a great read for adding variety and flavor to your FR games to make it feel like a vibrant, living world.
« Last Edit: December 04, 2012, 08:28:23 PM by Skynet »
Quote from: Skynet on December 04, 2012, 08:25:19 PM
Thank you for sharing, Skynet!
Ah, Borders... How I loved to check out the roleplaying section, hoping to find a D&D book I didn't have. I've felt like kicking myself for not getting some of them when I had the chance!
I liked Eberron for its more industrial, almost steam-punkish flavor, as well as for doing away with Lolth (she scares me), but a few hang-ups kept me from wholly embracing it. I didn't like the idea of my character being sent to a dull, gloomy place for all eternity if she died. I like Greyhawk's system of characters being sent to the plane which best matches their alignment (CE goes to Abyss, LG goes to Celestia, etc.), and Forgotten Realms' system of them being sent to their chosen deity's realms. It just seems more satisfying and rewarding to me. Also, I wasn't sure what to think about the Warforged. On one hand, the idea is really, really cool! A sentient construct race! What took them so long? On the other hand, I wondered if having a player race which was much less "mortal" was quite fair to the other players. Elves have long lives, but even they die eventually. Providing a Warforged keeps itself in good repair, it could potentially live forever. That being said, the thought of a Warforged ascending to become a deity is really cool!
I haven't read Ed Greenwood Presents Elminster's Forgotten Realms yet, but it sounds like a good resource! Thank you for the recommendation!
Eberron reminds me a lot of the Beyond the Blue Moon setting, with Hawke and Fisher and all that.
Callie Del Noire
Location: Somewhere South o' the Mason/Dixon Line
Change is the spice of life.
Quote from: Slywyn on December 05, 2012, 12:31:35 AM
I didn't see it at first..though I can see bits of it. That is definite fodder for thought.
Just seems similar to me, is all.
WindVoyager
Why do you wear that stupid man suit
Ever made an NPC you and the players just love to hate?
I had one named Osborn Applebottom and was the bane of my PCs. He was a halfing that ran a lot of small petty scams in his younger years and traveled around with a small band of merchants until they arrived in a small town in a swampy area called Oakvale. He meet a half orc there that I can' remember the name of at the moment and they went into business together. They bought out most the land around Oakvale and built a saw mill and pulping plant and started to clear cut entire sections of the forest. Needless to say this made the resident druid, Driddle, very unhappy.
Driddle demeaned the clear cutting stop, Osborn of course refused since it was generating considerable amount of money and the towns folk didn't want to stop either because the timber gave them a much needed economic boost and supplied desperately needed jobs
In retaliation, Driddle has his animal companion, a half fen dragon, half Deinosuchus, simply known as Swamp Phantom, kill any one who ventured too far into the swamps. The attacks started to get more and more brazen and a little girl who was an orphan at the Delfont Orphanage was eaten when she got too close to the water.
The towns folk lured the beast into a trap and killed it and latter killed the druid and things went on as usual. Until they started to notice an alarming amount of dead fish and small animals that started to show up near the pulping plant. Animals and people both started to get sick. Turned out that Osborn had taken countless short cuts to save money and was dumping toxic chemicals into the water killing the wild life and making the water undrinkable. Not he never bothered to properly maintain any of the equipment so workers were stating to be routinely injured or killed by malfunctioning equipment.
By this time Osborn has taken all the profits and skipped town.
(When the adventure took place it was several years latter and Oakvale is pretty much abandoned, the mill rotting away and the Swamp Phantom has returned from the dead and some of the townsfolk had turned cannibal. )
Osborn had taken up residence in another small town called Bear Den Hollows, taken it over and was slowly draining the swamps and selling the highly futile land to farmers and selling off land to cranberry frames as well. Needless to say the resident lizardfolk clan didn't take too kindly to having some one drain their swamp and cause water levels to fall through out the swamp.
So he hires a band of mercenaries and a pair of rouge lizardfolks to take care of the little problem and has the leaders daughter kidnapped knowing they won't make any move on him while he has her and let his mercenaries do what ever they wanted to her which got hinted at to the group when the adventures ventured out of the swamps once they found out what was really happening and confronted Osbone and rescue her. They are all adults and all their quicks and triggers where made clear well before hand
The PCs chased him all over the damn mansion and Osborn nearly gets away but a joint effort from the were griffen PC and the lizard fold druid NPC makes sure he doenst get far
And that's just the stuff that I can remember at the moment
Wow! That's amazing work, WindVoyager! An awesome plot, and a very original villain! Keep up the good work!
And that is only what I can remember him doing
I'd have to find my DM notes to find the rest of the things Osborn did. I recall him hiring the Dugan brothers, three halfing mercenaries, two rouges and one ranger, and had them do things like steal an inn keepers pet dire boar, stick leather barding on it that had spikes and stuff on it and used Tiby to terrorized the local community. The PC followed the Dugan brothers back to their lair, only to watch them escape and face down a very angry Tiby.
Turns out the Tiby is a very dead piggy. Has been for a very long time.
For you see dear ol Barcus the inn keeper is not quite right in the head. Never has been since he contracted very nasty case of Swamp Fever. His pet dire boar was accidentally killed by a hunter who thought it was a wild one. Distraught, Bracus buried his beloved pet behind the inn. Whether it was his prays being answered or some darker force, Tiby came back. Bracus of course doesn't mind that Tiby is among the undead. He's just happy to have her back.
They latter learned it was Osborn who had hired the Dugan brothers which lead them to the swamps in pursuit of the brothers only to find they were one step ahead of them and went after Osborn instead.
Ooo! I just thought of a neat idea for a new monster!
It would be a fey, an offshoot of the nymph or dryad, but which inhabits cultivated grain fields. It would appear to be a human or elf maiden with golden hair, sun-kissed skin, and freckles, who is often seen wandering through fields of grain. I think I'll call her a "Grain Maiden." Unlike most fey, who tend to be reclusive and dislike man's tampering with nature, a Grain Maiden protects the fields and teaches farmers how to live in harmony with nature, and how to work the land without exhausting it. Communities often honor Grain Maidens by leaving a small portion of each field unharvested. Grain Maidens are non-violent by nature, but will fight if the crop or farmers are threatened. They are especially protective of children, and it is said that Grain Maidens often take mortal lovers and produce half-fey offspring, perhaps even other Grain Maidens. A field in which a Grain Maiden has been slain becomes barren and worthless within hours.
That's all I've come up with so far. What do you guys think?
Lumi's Soulmate and True Love
Standing with Lumi...my soulmate and true love
Birdy...couldn't that also be a druid or ranger maiden? Maybe your fey person is exactly that. An offspring of or an actual druid or ranger person living in the fields. Not that I want to dampen your creation, just seems to me that the same could be done with either of those character classes.
Or maybe she is the avatar or a worshipper of the older Goddess Chauntea...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chauntea
Quote from: Falstaff on December 29, 2012, 05:02:47 PM
Hmmm... possibly! I like the idea of there being a more mortal-friendly nymph of grain fields though. Making her a mortal takes away some of her mystique. I definitely imagine Grain Maidens revering the more mortal-friendly nature deities, so Chauntea or Pelor would be perfect!
Koyume
Little Dream
Just out of curiosity, anyone ever used the Swiftblade 3.5 prestige class on the Wizards site? I always thought it looked really cool, but haven't had the chance to play one.
Swiftblades are good gish classes, and vicious as the passive half of a gestalt build. Losing 4 caster levels is incredibly harsh, though, so dedicated full spellcasters won't touch it, and the need to take 5+ levels of a casting class means most warrior-types won't want to invest in it either. Like most gishes, it's most practical in higher-level games.
Quote from: TheGlyphstone on December 29, 2012, 07:14:49 PM
I hope this isn't a stupid question, but what does "gish" mean? You've gotten me curious!
Dhi
In the snow with Rosebud
ดี้
Quote from: Songbird on December 28, 2012, 11:02:40 PM
I think that's a better monster idea than most of what I've seen under WotC's run. Something that fuels encounter ideas that aren't just tactical situations. This is what excites me about monster books, and what's inspired my incurable love of monsters.
Gish is a warrior/mage. It comes from the name for githyanki warrior/mages way back in 1E.
Yeah, 'Gish' is player-slang for a character who can cast spells and fight in melee with near-equal proficiency.
Quote from: Dhi on December 29, 2012, 07:58:28 PM
Thank you, Dhi! Both for liking my idea and explaining what a gish was. Yes, I like creating monsters that encourage interaction over just killing and looting it. Only a really evil character or NPC would want to kill a Grain Maiden. Or perhaps a druid who is against farming? Lots of ideas for Grain Maiden encounters!
Ohhh, okay! I dunno... Part of me thinks that would be really cool, but the DM in me wonders whether or not such a character would be fair for the other players. I think I'd like to stay safe and focus on either melee or magic. Being proficient with both seems almost too good to be true!
It's more fair than you think, because 'equally proficient' doesn't mean 'full power' except for very specific builds. Because warrior-class levels don't add to your spellcasting, and spellcaster levels don't add to your melee ability (to any significant level), most gishes end up at around 50-75% effectiveness in either field compared to a dedicated character of that level. Particularly for Spellcasters, because of Linear Warriors Quadratic Wizards - every level they aren't spending getting better in spellcasting means less power gained, and gives them a bit of flexibility.
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HomeOPINIONCOLUMNSHUNT: If Nate Diaz wins his next fight against Conor McGregor at UFC 202, what will he do next?
HUNT: If Nate Diaz wins his next fight against Conor McGregor at UFC 202, what will he do next?
Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz (photo credit J. Rebilas © USA Today Sports)
With Monday's article looking at what Conor McGregor might do should he win his match against Nate Diaz, today I'll look at what the younger Diaz brother might look to do should he go 2-0 against "The Notorious One."
It seems fairly easy to predict what should happen if Nate Diaz were to lose. I'm sure with a clean, legitimate submission win already in his account against McGregor, he would have to be on the end of a 5 round beat down to not ask for the rubber match in the future.
Both will make a ton of money from UFC 202 and Conor will be under pressure to defend his Featherweight Title. Diaz, however, has no such concerns. He could take a hiatus from the sport, spend some money, and then have a long camp in preparation to see who the better fighter is in the final bout of their trilogy.
While both Nate and Nick Diaz, rightly or wrongly, believing that they are as big of a PPV draw as McGregor, should Nate win, you can expect Dana White to have both his hands full with the Stockton native. Already upset with the promotion after he felt they had not given him the promotional push the way they do to other stars after beating McGregor in the first place, Diaz is out for compliments, paydays, and plaudits.
"I swear to God, the UFC thinks it was an accident or something," Diaz said. "They think it was an accident, and now they're saying, 'Let's get Nate back in there and take him out before he gets any bigger.' I don't think so. I've fought everyone in the UFC, and they better give me some motherf–king compliments if I win this fight."
– Nate Diaz per Brett Okamato ESPN.com
So who could Diaz fight if he wins? A match against his brother is off the table. Nate does not even like to be on the same fight card as anyone who he trains with, and a prolonged stay at 170 lbs. seems unlikely. While he has fought there before, his smaller frame against the likes of Dong Hyun Kim and Rory MacDonald who defeated him soundly already will surely force him back down to the Lightweight division.
He could conceivably ask for a title shot immediately against Eddie Alvarez. However, below that, there are few options that seem favorable to him. Not only from a lucrative stand point, but also due to the extreme high level competition at that weight class and most of the division have already got their next fights lined up.
Eddie Alvarez is expected to fight the No. 1 ranked Khabib Nurmagomedov, although no announcement has been made yet. No. 2 Rafael Dos Anjos will fight no. 3 Tony Ferguson after a season on Ultimate Fighter: Latin America 3. Below Nate, who is ranked at 4, only a rematch with Donald Cerrone who is currently fighting at Welterweight or Anthony Pettis who has just lost three in a row seem anything like viable options.
If Nate Diaz wants to stay fighting and get a big payday, then he needs to win against McGregor and call out Alvarez, preferably in the cage, in order to jump ahead of Khabib Nurmagomedov. If he pulls off two wins in a row against McGregor, the UFC will have another star on its hands and would be foolish to not insert him into the biggest fights possible, even if that is a little unfair on some of the others. But that has never stopped the UFC in the past and I doubt it will change, even under new ownership.
I previously examined what is next if Conor McGregor wins. Here is a link to that column:
HUNT: If Conor McGregor wins his next fight against Nate Diaz at UFC 202, what will he do next?
(Chris Hunt of Arundel, England is a new MMATorch contributor. He got hooked on MMA after watching UFC 114 featuring "Rampage" Jackson vs. Rashad Evans and from there, he says, "I spent a ridiculous amount of money and time watching every event from UFC 1 up to the present so I could understand the history of the sport, the fighters, the weight divisions and everything else in between. It was the style of fighting that drew me in, in order to see what martial art was the most effective, and from there, the fighters themselves, their story, their training and the sacrifices that they go through.")
eddie alvarez
rory macdonald
THURSDAY NEWS DIGEST 12/15: Lesnar & Jones suspensions, Liddell concerned about Rousey, Bellator weigh-ins, CageSport (w/Hiscoe's Analysis)
ROUNDTABLE: What Georges St-Pierre fight do you wish we could have seen?
2018 YEAR IN REVIEW: April sees Conor McGregor throw a dolly at Khabib's bus, and more


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Two nonprofit FinTech programs join forces as Fintech Cadence acquires Innovate Financial Health
By Isabelle Kirkwood Canadian Startup News June 6, 2019
On the heels of $42 million raise, Koho launches Premium cashback account
Toronto-based FinTech Koho is now offering Koho Premium, a new cashback program for Canadians through its pre-paid card. Koho called the program the first of its kind for a pre-paid card in Canada.
"Premium is an evolving offering that will continue to provide more value for Koho users as they adopt it."
– Daniel Eberhard
The pre-paid card offers two percent cashback on groceries, transportation, and dining out with a full-service account. The program has no foreign exchange fees, free financial coaching in the app, higher balance limits, and price-matching. As part of the Premium account, which runs for $9 a month or $84 per year, users can buy their groceries at any store and can earn on transportation from Uber, gas stations, and transit. For all purchases outside of groceries, transportation, and dining out, users will earn 0.5 percent cashback.
"Just like the company itself, Premium is an evolving offering that will continue to provide more value for Koho users as they adopt it," shared Daniel Eberhard, founder and CEO of Koho. "We're constantly adapting our products to fit the lives of Canadians, to add value and help contribute to a more financially balanced future."
This launch comes several weeks after the company announced the close of a $42 million Series B round, led by Power Financial's Portag3 Ventures, which put the company's post-money valuation north of $100 million.
RELATED: Power Financial now claims 89 percent stake in Wealthsimple following $30 million investment
Koho launched to the public in 2017, positioning itself as a millennial-centred alternative to traditional banking in Canada. The company does not operate with a Canadian banking licence, but does have partnerships with Visa and Peoples Trust Company to provide very similar services, such as e-transfers, ATM, insights on spending habits, and financial coaching. In May, the company said it had over 120,000 accounts and reached $500 million in annualized transactions.
The company has been rolling out new services and features over the last year, with a joint account feature being launched in February. What the Fee, a new feature and website to help Canadians uncover hidden bank fees, was made available in April.
The company is offering a free 30-day trial of the Premium account so users can see if the program is a good fit. Koho's original 0.5 percent cashback app will remain free to use. Koho said more launches are expected to take place later this summer, including the arrival of metal cards.
Image courtesy Koho
FinTechtoronto
Isabelle Kirkwood
Writer, globetrotter, drone pilot & David Attenborough enthusiast
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Toronto's DMZ at Ryerson University has been named the number one university-based incubator in the world by UBI Global, a Stockholm-based firm that gathers…


Don't you hate when you're roasting marshmallows by the campfire and you notice that your butler forgot to provide pure organic dark chocolate for your s'mores?
Now, you might be thinking – butler?
Because glamping is the "glamorous" way to go camping.
You might remember, a few years ago people started mentioning this concept – taking the elements that people enjoy about camping and just making it a bit more luxurious.
Sounds awesome, right? Well, get your designer backpack ready because glamping is making another appearance.
Anyone else wondering if these conversations happened at Coachella? Yeah, me too.
And so, glamping was born! Basically, there were many people – like you and me – who wanted to see camping get a makeover.
At the Hyatt, they offer you a room with a terrace and a fully equipped camping pack to participate in the fun parts of camping, while being only a few steps away from your king size Hyatt bed. Love it!
By the way, have you seen the Bubble Tree Hotel? I'll let you think about this one.
So. What are you waiting for? It's the perfect way to get outdoors for some quality hiking and adventures, while enjoying a more comfortable spin on a classic pastime.


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Barro Alto är en kommun i Brasilien.   Den ligger i delstaten Goiás, i den centrala delen av landet,  km nordväst om huvudstaden Brasília. Antalet invånare är . Arean är  kvadratkilometer.

Terrängen i Barro Alto är huvudsakligen kuperad, men österut är den platt.

Följande samhällen finns i Barro Alto:

 Barro Alto

Omgivningarna runt Barro Alto är huvudsakligen savann. Runt Barro Alto är det mycket glesbefolkat, med  invånare per kvadratkilometer.  Savannklimat råder i trakten. Årsmedeltemperaturen i trakten är  °C. Den varmaste månaden är september, då medeltemperaturen är  °C, och den kallaste är mars, med  °C. Genomsnittlig årsnederbörd är  millimeter. Den regnigaste månaden är januari, med i genomsnitt  mm nederbörd, och den torraste är augusti, med  mm nederbörd.

Kommentarer

Källor

Externa länkar

Indelningar i Goiás

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Peter Frampton Joins Keith Urban for 'Sweet Home Alabama' Cover [Watch]
Annie Reuter Published: January 2, 2019
Keith Urban headlined Nashville's New Year's Eve concert for the third consecutive year and brought the star power — and not just his own. During his set, the country star was joined by rock icon Peter Frampton for a guitar-heavy collaboration of "Sweet Home Alabama."
The two guitar pros paid tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Ed King, who died in August 2018. Trading licks on the massive Skynyrd hit — which was co-written by King — Urban and Frampton put their unique reinterpretation on "Sweet Home Alabama."
Keith Urban's Daughters Joined Him Onstage, Too:
Urban's band kicked off the song with the familiar first lick. Once he was a verse in, the 2018 CMA Entertainer of the Year invited Frampton to join him onstage. The rock god put his flavor on the Southern rock standard while Urban continued to jam.
Urban wasn't the only country artist on the bill for Nashville's New Year's Eve festivities at Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park. He was joined by a diverse lineup that included Brett Young and Caitlyn Smith as well as Frampton, Judah & the Lion, Devon Gilfillian and the Fisk Jubilee Singers.
Urban also brought out Chris Janson and Lindsay Ell to assist during his set. Ell, also a massively talented guitarist, traded licks with her former tourmate.
"What a way to ring in the New Year.... thank you @keithurban for letting me be a part of last night!" she captions a video clip of their performance on Instagram. "#Nashville, y'all were 100k people strong, and that was quite the start to #2019."
Country Music's All-Time Best Guitarists:
Source: Peter Frampton Joins Keith Urban for 'Sweet Home Alabama' Cover [Watch]
Filed Under: Keith Urban
Keith Urban Sells Master Recordings, Including 10 Studio Albums + a Greatest Hits Package, to Litmus
Will Keith Urban Lead the Top Country Music Videos of the Week?
Keith Urban Shares Sweet Moment With Young Fan Born With Brain Condition [Watch]
Keith Urban Brings Out His Banjo for His Loretta Lynn Tribute at Her Memorial [Watch]
Keith Urban Lets Luke Combs Steal His Stage During Nashville Concert [Watch]
Keith Urban, Chris Stapleton, Ronnie Dunn and More Sign on for Fifth-Annual Heal the Music Day
Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman Visit Vanderbilt Children's Hospital [Pictures]
Keith Urban's Ambition Still Gets the Best of Him [Interview]
Keith Urban + Nicole Kidman Remember Olivia Newton-John: 'The Most Divine Light'


Sadly, that was the Best Picture of a Jack O Lantern I could find… I like mine much better. When I would do Jack O Lanterns for Halloween it would look a bit more… Shall we say, Soul Hungry, lol. You know the type, Evil Grin, lots of Sharp Teeth. Also, I would put one of those Mexican Restaurant Candles Surrounded by Red Glass, inside, so the Light would Glow Red. It's been a few years since I carved one I think. I have to admit I thought of doing this Post on Halloween as a way to Waylay myself from doing one on Christmas, lol. My Favorite Holiday. But it's a bit early for that. Besides, Halloween is a Kick A#$! Holiday.
When I was Young my Brother and I lived with my Mom in a lovely Canyon Nook/Valley, and she would drive us around 2 or 3 Miles an Hour, and we'd sit on the Hood of her Big Chevy Nova. Our friends would sit in the Trunk of the Car, which was left wide open. On occasion one of our friends would have to sit inside the car with my Mom, because his parents wouldn't permit him on the Car. But Mom was very very careful, and drove very slow. I remember this one house we'd go to that created a Maze that you'd go in that lead to a Jacuzzi that they'd turned into a Giant Cauldron, with Floating Rubber Heads in it etc., and the Owner of the House was Dressed Like a Witch stirring it.
Very Cool. I think they gave out Carmel Apples, something that went away on Halloween sadly, due to Sick People putting Razor Blades in them. Fricken just about Ruined Halloween for us. Yes there was the occasional Egger out there, but I don't think I ever got hit. The other cool thing we'd do with our friends was when we'd get home with our Pillow Case full of Candy, we'd play Poker for Candy, lol.
My Favorites were Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Snickers and Three Musketeers. I don't care for Three Musketeers anymore, but I love love love Baby Ruths, lol. Sadly as Parents began to fear for their Children, Trick or Treating slowly Evolved to people going to Track Homes, as opposed to Remote Canyon Areas. And Beyond that, people started to go to Malls to Trick or Treat. This was beyond my Time, but I was still saddened by it.
Though I do admit, I did like the very first "Twilight". I don't remember the 2nd, and I'm not sure if I saw the Third. But Pdy Pretty Much Covered that here Simple Observations – Vampires.
She used to talk about "Paul… My Pet Tarantula", a line from one with her in it, though I wasn't able to find that actual Episode.
Jack, from Tim Burton's "Nightmare Before Christmas". I didn't actually like that film when I first saw it in the Theater. But now I think it's great. Part of that may be that it has a bit of Christmas in it, hee hee.
These days, I don't really go to Halloween Party's, though I've been to Several, and no Kids show up for Candy, though I always have a Full Bowl wherever I am. But I still think Halloween is a Great Holiday. The Spirit of it that I adopted as a youth, has never left me, and some part of me always hopes that a Kid or Three will show up at my Door.
If I forget to say it at the time, Happy Halloween.


Tipsy Dragon Bar Wants You! Looking to hire bartenders. Hours vary. Come on in and introduce yourself!
Previous PostPrevious 歡樂聖誕趴 Christmas Party!
Proudly serving beers from various breweries across Taiwan.
Come in for a taste of real Taiwan Flavor.


Mrs. Bloodmilk, who makes jewelry I covet, linked me in this picture & I had to share. I love seeing a peek into her space and where the piece I embroidered for her now lives. I spy with my little eye some Charmaine Oliva & Ellen von Unwerth too.
Thanks so much for sharing Jess!
Now seriously you must, really right now, check out the BloodMilk blog- it's full of the best finds, surreal photographs, and great writing... go!


GIRLS ARE PRETTY: Everywhere All Over The World There's One Woman Outside Who Is Screaming And You're Not Going To Go To The Window To Find Out Why Day!
Everywhere All Over The World There's One Woman Outside Who Is Screaming And You're Not Going To Go To The Window To Find Out Why Day!
But let's face it, is your bloody mary sitting on the windowsill? No, your bloody mary is sitting on the end table just within arm's reach of your spot on the couch from where you have a perfect view of the 14th hour of A&E's 36 hour Memorial Day Weekend "The Commish" marathon. She's probably just laughing anyway. That could be a laugh. Like some people kind of scream when they laugh. There, that was definitely-- Okay that's a scream. But it sounds like she's further away now anyway.
Happy Everywhere All Over The World There's One Woman Outside Who Is Screaming And You're Not Going To Go To The Window To Find Out Why Day!


text:
Due to the provincial announcement on January 3, 2022 the gallery will be closed until January 26.
Hazel: 100 Years of Memories at Erin Mills Town Centre will be closed until January 26.
The AGM continues to host online virtual Zoom workshops. For more information and to sign up visit our Workshops page using the link below.
past exhibitions 2021
2021 Past Exhibitions
Quarks, Elephants & Pierogi
The award-winning book introducing Polish culture to English
language readers has been transformed into a vivid and whimsical
exhibition.
"Quarks, Elephants & Pierogi" is an original and glamourous exhibition
of illustrations taken from the English-language book "Quarks,
Elephants & Pierogi: Poland in 100 Words".
Please join us for an informal gallery talk with Fausta Facciponte. Fausta, one of the jurors for the AGM juried show, will walk through the exhibition and highlight some key elements that make the works successful. She will also discuss the jury process and answer questions about how works are selected.
"The Art Gallery of Mississauga is pleased to present its First Annual Juried Show of Fine Arts. This prestigious exhibition will showcase an eclectic mix of traditional and contemporary visual artworks. 312 artist submissions were reviewed by the jurors on their artistic merit, with no artists identified. 44 selected works will be on display at the AGM from September 28th, 2021 to November 6th, 2021 during our regular business hours. The winners will be announced at an opening reception on Thursday October 7th, 2021.
Noni Kaur | ANTIDOTE
Noni Kaur welcomes guests with an antidote of sweetness. She holds the viewer through a sensory experience by asking "how do we navigate these spaces?" Her work is a living piece formulated through a process of sensual expression and a rich fluidity of domestic rituals. As the work grows roots, patterns organically form while the artist straightens her spine to expand her reach. Embracing life, Kaur holds up a bright light for an opportunity to be present in a time of change.
Paul Shilling (Dazaunggee) & Ted Fullerton | Darkness Does Not Belong in the Shadows
"Darkness Does Not Belong in the Shadows" is a conversation – "dialogue in image" between two artists, Paul Shilling (Dazaunggee) and Ted Fullerton. Both artists were open to hear the other, they were willing to ask hard questions in order to build a friendship through trust, respect, emotional support, and admiration. As they sat beneath the trees, side by side on a warm sunny day they agreed that "the painted conversation should also be said in words and in public no matter how difficult the social situation presents itself in life. "The final works are a visual dialogue of their risk, as well as a difficult conversation translated onto the canvas.
Through the eyes of Visual Artist Pepe Bratanov and Luxury Artist Max Jamali, we see the shining lights, we want those shining lights, we want to be known, we want the "likes".
All I's On Me follows the naïve journey from hopeful star struck ingenue to the circus that is the fame game. As we grapple with growing attention- our likes increase from 100 to 1000, to 10,000, to 100,000 to 1,000,000 followers. What is the price we pay? – Security, Ego, Integrity, Privacy and sometimes the life as we know it.
Pepe Bratanov blends digital and physical mediums with his brilliant depiction of the eye-catching lure of fame. Bright fun colours, aptly displayed through the eyes "Peppy Colours" says it all. Lining the Centre of the Exhibition is his newest work 'Emotional Baggage'. As we enter the exhibition, we see that there is nothing clear, shining, unused or ripe that fills the baggage we collect along the way.
'…everyone's watching YOU, every move YOU make, every word YOU say' in conversation with Max Jamali and AGM Curator Dev Ramsumair. Max Jamali takes on 4 legendary artists and the effects of constant media attention and scrutiny of all I's being always on you. Digital print, combined with acrylic and oil paint, topped off with his signature butterfly covering the eyes of each artist as a symbol of how we as people can mask our likenesses albeit through a thinly veiled cover. Our hopeless attempt at anonymity after years of struggle to become ever present.
Max Jamali
Max Jamali is a Luxury Artist based in Toronto, with an award-winning background in fashion photography, with his artwork showcased in Toronto, Miami, L.A. and Dubai.
He is a mixed-media Artist famous for the use of Luxurious items to create his art. In contrast with other artists, Max's work focuses on Luxury itself as a medium. Diamond Dust, Exotic Leather, 24K Gold, Genuine Silver, Crystals; he uses them all to create pieces that scream opulence. Every piece is created with his "M" logo that symbolizes Luxury, handcrafted from snakeskin.
In this series Max uses digital print combined with 24K Gold, Sterling Silver, Exotic Skin and Acrylic Paint to take on four legendary artists, Prince, Michael Jackson, David Bowie and Freddie Mercury. He masks their likenesses through a thinly veiled cover of anonymity and his signature crystal and diamond dust encrusted epoxy.
Pepe Bratanov
Peppy Colours, by Pepe Bratanov, is a pop art exploration that uncovers the extraordinary in the ordinary objects and living things around us. At its core, as the name suggests, is colour and simplicity. In this exhibition, Pepe experiments with digital and physical mediums to capture our constant hunger for fame.
The subjects are things people are often familiar with, from toiletries and food items to movie characters and famous artworks. This sense of familiarity allows Pepe to take these common subjects and turn them on their head to create something new and fresh and challenge the viewer to see the unexpected in it. Basically, take the familiar and make it "unfamiliar" in a fun and playful, yet thought provoking way.
"I hope you LOVE the pieces you see here; I hope you draw ENERGY from them and most of all, I hope they put a SMILE on your face. Now, more than ever. So, let's see that smile. Enjoy!"
Xiaojing Yan | Qi of Water | material energy | lifeforce of water
Born in 1978 in Jiangsu, China, Xiaojing Yan is truly a transnational artist, combining her Chinese roots and education at Nanjing Arts Institute (B.F.A., 2000) and an M.F.A. in sculpture at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (2007.)
Settling permanently in Markham, her work reflects her journey through these various cultures, arriving at her own personal vocabulary.
LAURA BEATON | Invincible (L) Bliss (R)
Born in Toronto, Laura is an award winning Visual Fine Art Artist. She began as a faux finishing (special effects) wall painter, but a health issue at the time led her to a life-long study of Chinese Brush Painting and acrylics.
Laura studied Asian art under Ontario-based Master Artists Baoxing ZHANG, William HO and Hiroshi YAMAMOTO. She has studied acrylics/mixed media under Halina Wyluda-Kazmierczak, Mila Duric and Mark Cope.
Laura's pieces are two-dimensional works that are a fusion of ancient painting techniques and her own creations on rice paper using traditional inks on rice paper, which are then wet-mounted and mounted onto canvas.
Huan Chen | Lotus IV
When I was young, I enjoyed drawing, calligraphy and Chinese ink painting but never dreamed of becoming a painter. My long path of discovery began after I immigrated to Canada from Beijing as a teenager. I received my formal training from McGill University with a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Chemical Engineering. My research was in the environmental engineering field. In 2003, I started painting lessons, which began as a way of expressing myself and ended as a true passion. Then, in 2010 I switched to working full time as a painter and art instructor, and couldn't be more content!
My formal training has deepened my concerns for the environment. A nature lover, and also fond of figure painting, I often portray the two subjects together as a harmonious yet transitory scene. I am currently exploring the combination of the Asian ink painting technique of Po Mo (splash ink) and Western oil, which offers both the realistic and abstract elements that I enjoy.
FRANCES FERDINANDS | 26
NOVEMBER 7 – JANUARY 7, 2021
The installation 26 emanated from the artists 3-month stay in 2015 in her homeland of Sri Lanka.
Under the auspices of an Ontario Arts Council Grant she studied and conducted research under two mentors who are masters in the field of traditional fine art and craft which are culturally at risk. Ferdinands' vision became a reality through examining these old traditions and revitalising them through re-interpretation within a contemporary context.
BORDER CROSSINGS SHOWCASE
Listen and view the stories that have impacted and changed the lives of Artists and our community, told through various forms of art. Come ready to experience emotions, beauty and resilience. Leave with a new understanding of the borders we all face daily and a better sense of community and connection. We all have a border crossing story to tell. The Border Crossings Project is generously funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation ( @ontrillium) through the Grow Grant, the Ontario Arts Council ( @ontarioartscouncil ) and The City of Mississauga's Cultural Division ( @citymississauga ).
DEBBIE MILLER - Artist Statement
"The #IHAVENOWORDS project was born out of my commitment to be a part of a call to action. I needed to harness and channel the rage, anger, disgust and profound sadness that I was feeling as a result of the unjustified killing of George Floyd on May 25th, 2020 by a Minneapolis police officer. As a black woman, mother, daughter, sister, wife and police officer, I could no longer remain silent. I needed to stand up and be a part of this call to action. A call for the acknowledgement that "black" people are facing systemic discrimination, unconscious bias and anti-black racism every single day. Action that would result in needed and lasting change. I began to have deep conversations, particularly, with black men in the community, black police officers and mothers of black sons. During these conversations, I asked them to share their thoughts and experiences on cue cards. I sought their permission to photograph them as we spoke. The conversations were deeply emotional and introspective.
This collection of emotionally charged conversations allowed me to understand their feelings and capture images of the acute pain, suffering and profound sadness and frustrations that has beset our community.
In this tapestry of photographs and community quotes, I tell their stories. This photo-essay offers a view into the impact of inter-generational racism on black families and gives voice to their cry "… I can't breathe…". It is also a call to have courage; a call to pursue this shared path of resistance; a call to do the hard work to build a more equal, equitable and inclusive society.
Black people continue to be impacted by systemic racism. As a society, we need to stand together to ignite a movement against racism and discrimination. This requires all of us to continue the conversations, to listen, learn and act to invoke real and sustainable change."
KWESI MILLINGTON
My name is Kwesi Sekou Millington. Speaking is what I do now, but it's not where I started. I'm a Speaker and Certified Speech Coach, but my background is in Policing. It wasn't my lifelong dream to be a Police Officer, but have you ever ended up somewhere as a result of just "going with the flow" instead of purposefully planning your life?
In 2004, I left my hometown of Toronto, Canada and headed off to Regina, Saskatchewan, eventually to end up in Richmond, a city just outside of Vancouver, British Columbia. I made it! I was a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Officer.
Speaking was still not on my radar…I had no clue then where I'd be today…but life has strange ways.
They tell you as a police officer that it is highly likely that you will see death while on the job, and that it may even happen on your watch. But you still think, "maybe I'll be lucky enough to avoid that happening…" I wasn't.
On October 14, 2007, I attended a 911 call with my fellow officers and we got into a physical altercation with a man that had to be arrested. Unfortunately and tragically, he died shortly after being arrested.
The saga continued…
March 2009: Although the whole incident was video recorded, I was called to testify in court (broadcasted Nationally) at a Public Inquiry as to what I did on that fateful night.
The Stop Sign
The date – May 2011: Though I have never lied in my career as a Police Officer and was cleared of any wrongdoing by 3 different independent investigations, a Special Prosecutor was hired and I was charged with Perjury (lying under oath) for what I said in 2009.
THE HIDDEN BEAST – PTSD & DEPRESSION
There's an old saying that says "the greatest trick the devil ever played is convincing the world that he doesn't exist." I was lost. Facing a criminal charge and the possibility of losing my career, I finally started opening up more to my psychologist (whom I'd been seeing since 2009). I'm a tough nut to crack, but through therapy, I was able to get some answers….leading to diagnoses of PTSD and Depression. I'm not a big fan of labels, but exposing what I was struggling with and giving it a name finally started to allow me to figure out who I was.
Still figuring that out by the way!
Why do I tell you all of that? Because life is about speed bumps and stop signs. Often we confuse one with the other. Most people let speed bumps BECOME their stop signs. And between 2011 and 2013, I suffered through bouts of Depression and PTSD that left me wanting to stop permanently, many times.
JESSE LOUTTIT - Artist Statement
I grew up in the suburbs, Brampton to be specific. I was born in Toronto before my parents decided they needed more space for our family. When I finished high school I left Brampton as fast I could. I wanted to get out and see more of the world. Since moving away, I have always felt that I could never move back to a suburb. Being recently married, I've thought about where I would want to live if my own family starts to grow. With the rising cost of houses in the city I have begun to question that feeling. Thinking back to growing up, I remember times of fun hanging out with my friends skateboarding, enjoying our summers and trying not to get into too much trouble. With this nostalgic and romantic mindset, I headed back to the suburb that I grew up in to re-create some of these memories with a new generation of kids who are wondering how fast they can leave.
BHAVNA BHATNAGAR | RHYTHM
Rhythm is a unique collection of art pieces presented by Artist Bhavna Bhatnagar which is inspired by Nature, Philosophy, and ethnic cultural background. Her ceramic works also exhibit her artistic views developed during her Canadian journey, and thus creating a modern-western and classical Indian fusion
JAMES FOWLER | BEING ALONE TOGETHER
Being Alone Together is equal parts performative painting and community engagement. I have recreated elements of my art studio and am working diligently on a new painting, Anthem, taking breaks to reach out and talk with friends who are part of the art and culture community. Using video technology and social media, I discuss diverse topics that impact various communities. Finding common ground through casual conversation, I am connecting with makers in Mississauga, across the country, and internationally, using these technologies to bridge geographic barriers.
In these strange times of isolation as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, maintaining our mental health and wellbeing is so important. Artists often already spend so much time isolated in their studios and this can create feelings of loneliness. Being tucked away from the world to create can take its toll on a person. Often our social experiences are through art openings, art talks and panel discussions. Many of these have moved online which cut out the small bits of social interrelations we can have before and after these events. By bringing an active art studio into the museum environment and broadcasting these conversations, I hope to share what happens behind the scenes for an artist, recreate the intimacy of these experiences and provide opportunity for sharing, connection and togetherness, crossing the borders between our personal and public lives.
ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE | RAHEEL PATEL
Extended:
Patel's art practice began in Ahmedabad, the capital city of Gujarat, India. In Gujarat, natural dyes and Lippan mud are used to decorate traditional Kutch homes. By upcycling mirrors and objects Patel's work reflects folk art history while exploring new cultural narratives to promote environmental social change.
Here at the AGM, Patel uses his residency to inform and celebrate sustainable art practises, while transforming the space to engage visitors. Patel is an artist and cultural worker who lives in Mississauga and works at his studio in Port Credit. We are delighted to have him here at the AGM and to introduce him to visitors of all ages.


With Google AdWords, Facebook and other digital marketing platforms, business owners can spend their marketing dollars to target people who they know are interested in their product or service. Targeting a single ZIP code with Google or Zillow, you can advertise to most potential consumers for around $500 to $1,000 a month.
So what about direct mail marketing? Should business owners be abandoning a proven marketing strategy that has worked for decades?
The reasons that direct mail worked in the past still applies today — it's just that there is a more effective and efficient way to do it with precision. Why spend thousands of dollars to reach 5,000 people when the data shows that, at most, only a few hundred of those people will be in need of your product or service this year?
By taking advantage of predictive marketing, it is possible to pinpoint consumers who have a high probability of purchasing from your business and save thousands on a direct mail campaign.
Individual data points, such as occupation, income, marital status and age, might not tell you much about the probability that someone will make a purchase, but when you combine these data points together to get a sense of the bigger picture, suddenly the ability to predict target consumers becomes increasingly accurate.
In the ever-changing landscape of online marketing, one thing is certain: as data becomes more and more openly available, predictive analytics will become more powerful, commonplace and increasingly accurate. Business owners need to be taking a close look at this new class of targeted marketing to achieve the most cost-effective results. With every consumer mailing list campaign, getting the most out of your marketing spend always makes sense.


text:
Q: set PHP value before submit i am trying to integrate a transaction form that uses a set amount. for this project, i really need to make the transaction amount flexible - editable by the user. here's the code i need to tweak (i trimmed it down a bit to show the key parts)
<?php
require_once 'anet_php_sdk/AuthorizeNet.php';
$amount = "5.99";
?>

<form method='post' action="https://secure.authorize.net/gateway/transact.dll">
<input type='hidden' name="x_amount" value="<?php echo $amount?>" />
<input type='submit' value="Click here for the secure payment form">
</form>

i basically would like to make that "x_amount" variable a text input instead of hidden; i need code which would edit the $amount in PHP to match the one the user types into the form input field, then submits the form as normal...
i think this might be possible with an ajax / JS onbeforesubmit hook, but not clear how to code that? or maybe there's a more elegant way?

A: You need a script that posts to another script that sets the $amount value.
setamount.php
<form method='post' action="confirm.php">
<input type='text' name="amount" value="" />
<input type='submit' value="Click here for the secure payment form">
</form>

confirm.php
<?php
require_once 'anet_php_sdk/AuthorizeNet.php';
$amount = $_POST['amount'];
?>

<form method='post' action="https://secure.authorize.net/gateway/transact.dll">
<input type='hidden' name="x_amount" value="<?php echo $_POST['amount']; ?>" />
<input type='submit' value="Click here for the secure payment form">
</form>

This appears to solve the issue you have identified, but I am not sure that the API you are using was intended to be used this way and there is probably a better solution.

A: you need at least a text file. JS file could be used
// js file
var amount = "5.99";
window.onload=function() {
  document.forms[0].x_amount.value=amount; // assuming first form on page
}

<script src='amount.js"></script>
<form method='post' action="https://secure.authorize.net/gateway/transact.dll">
<input type='hidden' name="x_amount" value="" />
<input type='submit' value="Click here for the secure payment form">
</form>

A: I've done this and after declaring a variable and giving it a value as soon as the page is loaded then I can use that value anywhere else I've needed to.
<?php
   //use some sort of escape for security reasons but thats another issue aside..
   $amount = mysql_escape_string($_POST['amount']);
?>
<html>
<head>
</head>
<body>
 <form action="" method="post">
  <input type="text" value="<?php $amount ?>"/>
 </form>
</body>
</html>

and that should work..

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Be sure to join the WESTERN RIDAZZ we will get bacc at this again on Friday!!
I know we are a small ride but don't be affraid the more we ride the more our ride will get known so come out and join the WESTERN RIDAZZ!! We are just out here trying to party and enjoy the night. Ohh yea bring some lights suckazz!!


A vintage plum color 4.3 oz., 50/25/25 polyester/combed ring-spun cotton/rayon looser fitting dolman style tee. Featuring "Wild Ride" text surrounded by a lucky horseshoe and roses. The official PRCA swoosh logo is represented in the bottom right corner. Cute & Comfy!