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The Awful Killing of Sarah Watts (Kindle)
A Story of Confessions, Acquittals and Jailbreaks
True Crime Social History
By Mick Davis,	David Lassman
Imprint: Pen & Sword True Crime
File Size: 12.6 MB (.mobi)
eBook Released: 14th March 2018
£4.99 Print price £19.99
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Before Road there was Frome . . . before Whicher there was Smith . . . before the heartless slaughter of four year old Saville Kent there was the brutal rape and murder of fourteen year old Sarah Watts.
Taking place nine years earlier than the Road Hill case, made famous by the best-selling book The Suspicions of Mr Whicher and subsequent television adaptation, The Awful Killing of Sarah Watts: A Story of Confessions, Acquittals and Jailbreaks recounts the shocking details of this 1851 murder, on an isolated farm near Frome, and the incredible events that transpired from it.
On Wednesday 24th September 1851, with her parents at market, Sarah Watts was alone at Battle Farm. Sometime during the afternoon, an intruder battered, raped and brutally murdered her.
As the case gripped the nation, a London Detective was sent to investigate. The result was three local men – all notorious felons with previous convictions – were arrested and charged; but with a huge reward on offer, were they really guilty or just hapless victims of others' greed?
When they did stand trial, it set in motion a series of riveting events that culminated a decade later in a sensational confession; but was this confessor's sanity to be questioned and were they even in the country at the time of the murder?
For the very first time, this sensational story is told in full-length book form, with the authors having meticulously researched newspaper accounts, court transcripts, prison records and eyewitness accounts.
David Lassman talk as featured by
Somerset Guardian, 9th January 2020
'Following in the footsteps of Victorian killer'
Frome Standard, 7th November 2019
'Murder Walk will be highlight of festival'
Frome Times, 7th November 2019
Feature 'Frome Times Past' contributed by authors
Frome Times, 17th January 2019
Somerset Guardian/Frome Times, 8th November 2018
As mentioned in article part of promotion for Foul Deeds and Suspicious Deaths in and around Frome
Frome Times, 27th September 2018
On 24 September 1851, 14-year old Sarah Watts was brutally murdered at a farmhouse near Frome in Somerset while her parents were at market. At the time Somerset did not yet have a professional police force, so the magistrates asked Sgt Henry Smith of Scotland Yard, part of the newly formed London Metropolitan Police, to help find the killer.
The Awful Killing of Sarah Watts is a true crime story with a gallery of colourful suspects, courtroom drama, sudden new evidence, gaolbreaks and more. Essentially a piece of local history, meticulously researched by two local historians, it has a wider interest as a detailed case study of law enforcement, criminal justice and the penal system at a formative stage in their development in Britain. The case remains unsolved, and readers are left with a set of scenarios to choose from themselves.
Historical Novels Review
David Lassman appearance as promoted by
Somerset Guardian, 12th July 2018
Frome Times, 5th July 2018
I had never heard of this case until Pen and Sword decided to take it up - Mick Davis and David Lassman turn in a fascinating account of the murder and the subsequent arrest of three men who might not have had anything to do with the crimes against the little girl; this is a cold case that deserves this attention, and the authors have done the little girl proud!
Books Monthly
Frome Times, 24th May 2018
True Crime Library, Bulletin 470
Recommended 'read of the month' - Frome Library
'IN THIS edition of the Frome Times we welcome two local authors and historians, who will become regular contributors through a feature entitled 'Frome Times Past'
Frome Times online
Article: 'When our town was the crime capital of region' by James Wood as featured by
Frome Standard, 12th April 2018
Author talk as featured in
Frome Times, 29th March 2018
Note: set cursor to 24:04 for interview
BBC Radio Somerset
Article: Frome, the 'crime capital of the south west' where an horrific murder took place by James Wood as featured by
Somerset Live, 20th March 2018
Article: 'Frome's most infamous murder - The Awful Killing of Sarah Watts' as featured in
Frome Times, 1st March 2018
About Mick Davis
Mick Davis spent many years working in the criminal law before retiring with his wife Lorraine to Frome in Somerset where he pursues his interest in restoring historic buildings, local history and archaeology. He now spends his time researching and writing full time. His first book was The Historic Inns of Frome and his collaboration with David Lassman has so far produced The Awful Killing of Sarah Watts and Foul Deeds and Suspicious Deaths in and around Frome, both published by Pen and Sword. Current projects include a survey of the prehistoric barrows of North Somerset.
About David Lassman
David Lassman began his writing career freelancing for newspapers and magazines, before studying screenwriting at Bournemouth University. He spent three and a half years on a Greek island writing his first novel, is author of Frome in the Great War and co-created the 'Regency Detective' series with Terence James. His collaborations with Mick Davis include The Awful Killing of Sarah Watts, one of the most infamous crimes of the Victorian period and Visitors' Historic Britain: Somerset.
More titles by Mick Davis
More titles by David Lassman
Other titles in Pen & Sword True Crime...


Can the rise of corporate China unlock its real estate market?
Technology firms and service-based companies are filling up towering glass skyscrapers. Logistics groups are piling into warehouses used to satisfy expanding consumer demand.
For investors, the maturing property market presents a tantalizing opportunity: A new way to access one of the world's fastest-growing economies.
The path is not without hurdles. China's property market still grapples with transparency issues, and foreign investors face stiff domestic competition.
But as the corporate space expands, direct investment into China's commercial real estate market could blossom to US$150 billion a year, from the current US$40 billion, according to JLL's China 12 report.
This level would see China challenging the U.S. as the biggest commercial real estate investment market in the world.
China's burgeoning corporate landscape "is creating new opportunities for investors," said Kelly, who authored JLL's China 12 report, which identifies 12 cities with the greatest potential for growth.
Currently, State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in the finance, manufacturing, and energy sectors dominate office investment in China.
"They are much more efficient, creative and international, while SOEs are struggling to reform," he says.
Private and foreign companies lease most of the Grade A space in Chinese cities, but with next generation companies nipping at their heels, SOEs will be forced to get creative with their space, he says.
"Workplace is a really hot topic here. Millennials care about the space provided and they [SOEs] want talent to help them grow," Zhou says.
Beijing, Shenzhen, and Shanghai, dominate in terms of innovation capabilities. But expanding companies are also targeting smaller cities to get closer to specific talent and policy makers in China's vast provinces.
Huawei already has multiple R&D hubs across China, and Alibaba's HQ in Hangzhou has transformed the fortunes of a one-time silk and tea trade port. Earlier this year, it announced plans to establish its regional headquarters in Xi'an in Western China.
"To increase their market share nationally and internationally they need to expand within China and beyond," said Zhou.
Still relatively unheard of outside China, these companies need new turf to continue their upward trajectory.
Huawei's smart city solutions serve over 120 cities in more than 40 countries while internet giants such as Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent, are beginning their global expansion in earnest. Drone manufacturer DJI and smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi are following in their footsteps.
Outside of the office sector retail real estate is benefiting from China's corporate expansion.
Most of these major Chinese companies specialise in e-commerce and technologies that are transforming retail.
"Five years ago, everyone complained that e-commerce took market share from physical space but now these companies are becoming tenants, mixing online and offline," said Zhou.
Alibaba's Hema supermarket is the ultimate manifestation of this trend. Shoppers use an app to shop and pay in-stores, which house on-site warehouses to enable delivery within as little as 30 minutes.
Foreign investors still view China's real estate market with cautious skepticism and face stiff competition from domestic investors. The returns on offer don't compete at an international level and then there's the issue of transparency. All mainland cities fall into the semi-transparent category although Shanghai and Beijing sit on the cusp.
Kelly says there is a long way to go.
But with President Xi Jinping's pledge to reduce barriers to foreign investors, the market holds promise for overseas institutions and funds whose expertise are sorely needed.
And 2018 could see the introduction of long-awaited residential REITs as part of the government's effort to deal with an urban housing supply shortage and subsequently overheated property market.
Click to read more about whether REITs are the next big thing in China.


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GET A GRIP: Boulds, Dresnok win Grand Haven title in shootout
Diane S. Zeeman Correspondent
The twosome of Dick Boulds and Joe Dresnok won the shootout to become the overall champions of last week's men's member-member tournament at Grand Haven. The duo took the Light Oak Flight 2 title, then won the shootout over all the other flight winners.
Each twosome played five nine-hole matches worth four points per match. Dresnok and Boulds had a total of 13.5 points in winning their flight. And before the start of the tournament, one of the members, playing a practice round, aced the par 3 eighth hole.
Sam Cousino aced the 124-yard island green eighth hole with a nine iron. The hole-in-one was witnessed by playing partners De Anderson, Dennis Emerick and Bob Olsen. Cousino's luck continued: he also won the 50/50 drawing.
Other first-place flight winners in the tournament, in addition to Boulds and Dresnok, included Dennis Emerick and De Anderson in Dark Oak Flight 1 with 12.5 points; Larry Geiser and Bob Malone won the Dark Oak 2 flight with 13.5 points; Bruce Decker and Steve Hartsfeld won White Flight 1 with 13 points; Frank Richter and Dennis Castellari took White 2 with 14 points; Jim Baldini and Dennis Weaver won White Flight 3 with 13.5; and Mike Prior and Brian Edwards won the Light Oak Flight 1 with 12 points. The flights were named for the tees they played from.
Palm Harbor scramble
On April 24, a few days before the Grand Haven tournament, the Palm Harbor Women's Golf Association had its last official tournament of the season, a scramble. The golf was followed by a luncheon at the Green Lion, the new restaurant at Palm Harbor.
Winners of the scramble included the team of Nancy Odell, Roberta Harney and Debra Roggero, who fired a 67, while the group of Mimi Lenio, Norma Kappel, Marilyn Lowe and Mynn Lanphier was second with a 69. The team of Janet Estey, Ann Steele, Judy Smith and M.A. Nickoloff came in third with a 73.
Jags in First Tee tournament
The First Tee golf tournament, with several members of the Jacksonville Jaguars scheduled to play, is coming up in a few days at Grand Haven. The event, a scramble slated for May 7, will benefit the First Tee of North Florida.
Cost for a tournament spot is $50 for a Grand Haven regular member and $80 for associates, afternoon or social members. Call the Grand Haven pro shop at 386-445-23327 for information or to register.
The First Tee organization is also accepting donations of golf equipment for its youths. Ask the pro shop where the equipment can be dropped off.
As the tournament season cools off for the summer, prices go down at most area courses. Palm Harbor has announced that as of May 1, 18-hole rates have decreased. For Palm Coast residents, the cost of play from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. is $35, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., it is now $29, the twilight rate (after 2 p.m.) is $25, and the super twilight rate, after 4, drops to $20.
Florida residents who live outside the city of Palm Coast also get a break on prices; call Palm Harbor at 386-986-GOLF for the new rates.
Diane S. Zeeman is a former newspaper editor and public relations consultant who lives in Palm Coast. Email questions or news items about golf to DZeeman38@gmail.com.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


About this time last year, Activision announced that Sledgehammer's founders Glenn Schofield and Michael Condrey were leaving their roles at the Call of Duty developer to work on bigger picture initiatives within Activision proper. Later last year, Schofield revealed he was leaving Activision, but Condrey had not publicly exited the company. It appears now that both Sledgehammer founders have left Activision, with Condrey specifically heading to Take-Two's development branch 2K Games.
Condrey is going back into development after years at Sledgehammer and Visceral Games with a new studio working on an unannounced project for Take-Two.
"Great games come from the passion of a team driven by the pursuit of quality and the empowerment of an independent studio model. 2K's studios have creative and technical autonomy, backed by a world-class infrastructure of support, and that offers the perfect recipe to build a new studio and craft experiences that will lead the next generation of gaming for fans everywhere," said Condrey.
After shepherding modern Call of Duty, including WWII, in a number of ways, Condrey is likely a top choice to bring together a new studio to make a large new game. I find it interesting that Take-Two refers to it as a new project but did not necessarily say it would be a new IP.
The name for the new Silicon Valley-based studio has yet to be announced officially.


States currently funded by CDC's Enhanced State Opioid Overdose Surveillance (ESOOS) program have been asked to monitor opioid overdose trends in their states. In collaboration with our ESOOS partners, CDC staff developed some lessons learned in querying opioid overdose ED visits in syndromic surveillance systems. Based on this preliminary work, CDC developed an opioid overdose syndrome definition that captured all of the lessons learned from ESOOS states. CDC scientists first started developing the definition using lessons learned from ESOOS states and researching guidance documents from other sources including NCHS, CSTE, and SAMSHA. They then built the query using discharge diagnosis codes and SNOMED codes indicating an acute opioid poisoning were identified. Next, we used a set of "overdose terms" along with identified "drug terms" indicating that an opioid was involved in the overdose. We use both the discharge diagnosis codes/SNOMED and chief complaint free text with exclusions (as necessary). If discharge diagnosis code/SNOMED indicating an opioid poisoning is present, the ED visit is automatically included in the syndrome. If there is no discharge diagnosis code/SNOMED present for opioid poisoning, the visit is only included if the chief complaint text has both an "overdose" and "drug" term. In addition, the list of exclusions are only applied to the chief complaint text when a discharge diagnosis code is not present. CDC identified several non-poisoning ICD-10-CM codes for inclusion in the syndrome definition (e.g., F11 codes when "with intoxication" is indicated). Because the differentiation between poisoning and intoxication is unclear, CDC chose to consider the specific F-codes that include "with intoxication." However, other F11 codes that indicated opioid abuse (without mention of intoxication), may not indicate an overdose. CDC staff explored these codes and determined that the inclusion of those opioid-related F codes were only relevant when the chief complaint text included an "overdose term. The team attempted to identify most drug names used for opioid; however, it's likely that some drug names and slang terms should be added to a revision definition.


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Q: Select the smallest strict positive value from a list of variables in a linear program. I have constraints set up for my Linear Program.
The constraints enforce a certain amount of decision variables $R_{w,h}$ to be either $0$ or $1$ (0-1 variable).
The value to minimise is the difference between the largest and smallest $w*h$ for which $R_{w,h} = 1$.
In my application it holds that $0 \lt w*h$.
An initial attempt is to implement a $min$ and $max$ behaviour in additional linear constraints and subtract the results. This is OK for the $max$ part, as we just have to find the largest $R_{w,h}*w*h$. But for finding the minimum, we can't just find the smallest $R_{w,h}*w*h$ because that'll result in a $0$ if $R_{w,h} = 0$ and that is not the desired result (see above).
The method suggested in an answer here is thus not applicable.
Is there a way to linearise this or is this inherently non-linear?

A: Something like:
\begin{align}
  \min\> & whmax - whmin\\
   & whmax \ge R_{w,h} \cdot w \cdot h & \forall w,h\\
   & whmin \le  w \cdot h + M (1-R_{w,h}) & \forall w,h\\
\end{align}
where $M$ is a large enough number (e.g. $\max(w)\cdot\max(h)+1$).

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


My works are mainly situated in the field of oil painting. Many of my works take on the medium itself or put the medium to the test. My artistic position moves across borders between media, whereby painting and conceptual approaches are fused with performative elements. Among the key starting points of my work are the search for strategies to unveil new ways of image composition, the engagement of the artist as creator, as well as heteronymous influences on the artistic process. The themes in the field of performance and video art revolve around social processes, the integration of urban space as well as its residents, the employment of familiar formulas and their alienation as well as the examination of the self with regard to the observer's reflections. Work on individual series and bodies of works, some of which are created in collaboration with a team, often extends over a long period of time. Almost always, several pieces are worked on simultaneously. I currently live and work near Stuttgart.
I get inspiration from different aspects, the most important spheres are works from other artists, physics, psychology, and mystic. But also my environment inspires me all the time. My intent: Just keep your eyes open and try to stop the all-time- rendition.
I am a conceptual painter. This means that the artistic idea is paramount for me, and ultimately finds its outlet in painting, oftenmingled with text or other media. The idea provides the frame- work, and this in turn affects how I approach the subject. I'm always looking for ways to leave behind traditional approaches to image creation, and to develop and apply new or alternative methods. For the «Favorites» series that I produced between 2013 and 2015, I asked 66 artists to tell me their favorite film andgive an arbitrary series of numbers as a time code. Then I stopped the films at the relevant point and converted the resulting unfore- seeable stills into paintings. This resulted in 66 oil paintings based on the collaboration between me and the other artists who had named their films and guided me towards the images. The final composition was determined at random by the spontaneous identification of the time code numbers.
Mostly I work in the field of oil painting and use special colors for a special glaze method. In other cases I draw on paper, with ink or coal.
My sculptures or installations made with different kinds of materials, as stone, fossils, wax or glass. But I also do video art and performance- the needs are different.
I like to show my artworks, I like good exhibitions- I hate arrogant artists or curators. Ok, that´s not a answer, that´s a stereotype- well, a true stereotype. But what to say? Art fairs, exhibitions, auctions- that´s all a part of art, a part of the game. The art market is diverse, not all art dealers are greedily turbo-capitalists, not every cultural worker is clever as he / she shows and so on. Artists need the market and the market needs artists, mostly everything is alright. People just should stay on the right track : The main thing is always the artwork!
As an artist I have the freedom to work experimentally, and I can change direction if I need to. That´s the freedom of art. So tomorrow I could work with cow dung or nettles, whatever I feel like. Whether the cow dung project would actually work is another matter.
There´s a change at the moment. Galleries close their white cubes and shift to solely art fair showing or online selling. As with all fundamental changes, I think you can make arguments for and against it. If it's handled well there are more pluses than minuses. Another thing is, that big and strong galleries with "trophy artists" dominate more and more the system- and destroy often smaller, but fine galleries- a pity.
The future of art is is a secret, I´m the only one who knows… I will not tell.


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Remembering Sarge, one year on
Posted on November 7, 2018 November 3, 2018 by Leighton Andrews
We lost Carl a year ago today. My Radio Wales tribute that day can be found here.
Once again, I want to thank Felicity Evans for her sensitivity in interviewing.
I won't be posting more on this as I expect to be giving evidence at the Inquest in a couple of weeks time.
Posted in Devolution, Leadership, Mental health and wellbeing, Misgovernance, WalesLeave a comment
Intimidation of witnesses
Posted on February 19, 2018 February 19, 2018 by Leighton Andrews
A few weeks ago, Paul Martin of BBC Wales ran a story saying that some people were reluctant to give evidence to the Inquiry currently underway into whether the First Minister had breached the ministerial code. Separately, last week ITV's Adrian Masters published an article about the concerns expressed by some witnesses that the hearings were being held in Welsh Government buildings. Both stories are true and I have incorporated in my evidence material from some reluctant to have their names used.
But matters are worse than that. There have been several attempts, which I suspect have been coordinated, to undermine people who have spoken up in support of Carl Sargeant. I am aware of a number of public servants whose employers have had malicious or anonymous mail about them.
In my own case, my employer, Cardiff University, has had a series of FoI requests on matters which have nothing to do with my work, clearly intended to damage my reputation or undermine my relationship with the University.
Cardiff University, I am pleased to say, has been robust in my defence, as has the Universities and Colleges Union, UCU.
Here is a selection from the FoI requests. I will publish more in due course.
I would like to know details of any disciplinary investigations and/or sanctions involving Leighton Andrews, details of any complaints made against him and details of all complaints raised formally or informally by him since January 1st 2017.
Could I please request under the freedom of information act, Leighton Andrews's diary since November 5th this year and details and content of any communication – text, emails, calls, WhatsApp messages – between Leighton Andrews and employees of Wales Online/Media Wales/Western Mail, BBC, ITV, Golwg, The Times, The Daily Mail, Guido Fawkes and Skwawkbox since November 3rd 2017.
Please provide any communications relating to Leighton Andrews' behaviour and public comments since November 5th 2017, details of all meetings between Leighton Andrews and his superiors (both departmental and within the wider organisational structure) since November 5th 2017, and all communications relating to either permission or requests to allow Leighton Andrews to conduct non-university business during normal working hours since November 5th 2017.
Please provide (under the Freedom of Information Act), any communications, notes or minutes relating to the commercial, financial or organisational impact on the university of Leighton Andrews' recent public comments since the beginning of November 2017. I would also like copies of any communications between Leighton Andrews and email addresses ending in @assembly.wales, @senedd.cymru, @gov.wales, @wales.gsi.gov.uk, and @parliament.uk.
In my opinion, these FoI requests are malicious, and designed to undermine my reputation and discredit me.
In November, a few days after Carl Sargeant's death, following my blogpost about the toxic atmosphere on the Ministerial Floor in Ty Hywel for much of 2011-16, the First Minister told senior Welsh Labour A.M.s that people were being 'lined up' to attack me. Within days, an anonymous MP was slagging me off to the BBC . The First Minister went on television and attacked me in December. Subsequently, journalists have told me that people close to the First Minister have been making insinuations about me and also about a member of my family. I am aware that another attack on me is currently being prepared. Others, in public service, have suffered worse.
In my opinion, these attacks are designed to intimidate and to discourage people from giving evidence to the inquiries that have been established. Some people feel too exposed to give evidence. These attacks on friends of Carl – who are not elected politicians – are vile and disgusting. Remember, all of this is happening today, in post-devolution Wales, not in Senator McCarthy's time in the USA. It is deeply damaging to devolution, to the reputation of Welsh Labour, and the reputation of the Welsh Government. I have kept the chair of Welsh Labour informed about the attacks on me, and I am grateful for his supportive approach. But the attacks need to stop, and Welsh Labour colleagues need to take action to ensure that they do.
Posted in Devolution, Leadership, Mental health and wellbeing, WalesLeave a comment
Review of Adrian Masters' Nothing has changed.
Posted on January 24, 2018 by Leighton Andrews
I reviewed Adrian Masters' book Nothing has Changed for Wales Arts Review. Here's a longer version of the review:
I've known Adrian Masters since he worked for BBC Radio Wales and came to interview me in my Tonypandy home prior to my election to the National Assembly in 2003. I've forgotten now what the item was about, but I think Adrian had been interviewing people in the Rhondda on the issues that mattered to them and then come to candidates for their views.
Adrian has always been one of the most thorough of interviewers in Welsh broadcasting – fair, but firm. His infamous red notebooks contain many secrets, some of which he shares – without revealing sources where they didn't want to be named – in this volume of his 2017 election diaries. His title of course comes from the statement by the Prime Minister after she reversed her disastrous manifesto pledge on social care during the election campaign. By the early hours of 10 June, however, as Adrian says, 'Everything has changed'.
This was an election where, as Adrian reminded us, the Conservatives started well-ahead of Labour in the polls and senior Labour figures thought that the party would do well to hold 200 seats. ITV Wales's own Yougov poll had the Tories well ahead of Labour at the beginning of the campaign, poised to win 21 seats. I remember this well from a Twitter spat at the time between my friend the late Carl Sargeant and my Cardiff University colleague Roger Scully.
Though the substantive election inquests have yet to be published, this election seemed to one of two halves, reflected in the cross-over in the opinion polls and the dramatic final outcome. For the third General Election in a row I watched an exit poll come in and said 'I don't believe it'. Only unlike the previous two general elections I wasn't sitting in a BBC Wales studio at the time.
Adrian's book takes us back to the days before the election, which genuinely seem like a different electoral world. As he says 'certainties have been lost, rules bent or broken and leaders have risen and fallen.' His account starts with the terrorist incident in Westminster, moves through the death of Rhodri Morgan and the further terrorist outrage in Manchester, and concludes with Labour picking up Welsh seats like Vale of Clwyd, Gower and Cardiff North.
Adrian is in no doubt that the Labour surge can be put down to changing and more positive reactions to Jeremy Corbyn's performance, a strong showing by Welsh Labour under Carwyn Jones' leadership, and argues that 'the tributes to Rhodri Morgan also cemented the view of Welsh Labour being different.'
Where Adrian scores most heavily in these diaries is on background colour. Messages come in from different party representatives, both elected and backroom, which may have surfaced on Adrian's Twitter feed at the time but may not have made it into broadcast reports. Things that Adrian was told then on background now surface – unattributed – in their mistaken glory.
What is written from a Labour perspective reflects conversations I was having with people at the time, but it is interesting to get an all-round view of how Conservative, Plaid and other party insiders were feeling. I can make guesses at some of the sources on the Labour side in particular, but while Adrian quotes them here to give a sense of the contemporary mood, he doesn't embarrass them with personal unmasking. Nor would you expect him to do so.
Where people were willing to be quoted, Adrian makes good use of the material he gathered. 'By any sensible consideration, I'm toast' says Paul Flynn at one point. Later in the campaign he tells Adrian 'More optimistic now. There is a favourable Welsh dimension because of Carwyn and memories of Rhodri.' As late as the last week of the campaign a Conservative AM tells Adrian that they (he doesn't specify gender) now think they will elect 'a rugby team and a few reserves'. They went down to eight.
Adrian's personal account of the ITV Wales debate is fascinating, and gives a good sense of the challenges facing a broadcast journalist trying to both maintain balance and keep the flow of the debate. His account of the behind-the-scenes row within the Conservative Party as to whether Andrew RT Davies or Alun Cairns was to appear for them is entertaining and becomes a sub-plot within the text, as does Adrian's battle to get an interview with the PM. Campaign insider accounts of the use of Facebook and social, media to mobilise young people are interesting and valuable.
Throughout this book, Adrian demonstrates what a good print journalist he could have been. His account has pace, is well-written and thoughtful, with contemplative passages added to the contemporary diary and reconstructed notes. Reading it in the aftermath of Carl Sargeant's tragic death made me reflect on how long ago it all now feels. Yes, everything has changed.
Posted in Britishness, Devolution, Election, Leadership, Misgovernance, WalesLeave a comment
Mental health and politics
Posted on December 15, 2017 December 15, 2017 by Leighton Andrews
I was teaching the final seminar in my module on Ministerial Life yesterday, and it was about Losing Political Office, something about which I am obviously an expert! Aside from looking at the usual kinds of ministerial exits – sackings, forced resignations, principled resignations, defeat at the ballot-box etc, I ended with an examination of the impact on loss of office which Dame Jane Roberts has undertaken. Jane was the former Leader of Camden Council and is a trained child pyschiatrist and has done good work in Wales as well on behalf of the Welsh Government. In her writings, she says:
Political mortality is not a comfortable subject to discuss. We shy away from lingering long over exits of any kind. The nature of political office and its intoxicating allure for many makes contemplating its end deeply painful.
She emphasises that this is in part because
Politics is about the promise of the future.
My summary slide of some of Jane's arguments is here:
In the trauma of the last few weeks, the emotional devastation has obviously been strongest with Carl's immediate and wider family. But I have been struck by how many of his close friends are now themselves receiving counselling, and I am personally grateful to Cardiff University for facilitating that for me. Teaching, itself, has been therapeutic, and my colleagues and my students have been terrific.
I wrote five weeks ago how my mental health had improved after leaving politics. The last five weeks, I have to be honest, have not been great. A crisis like this has shown me who my friends really are. There are people I thought for years I could count on who suddenly became unavailable. There are other people in public life whose behaviour has been shockingly dishonest, and some who have indulged in name-calling, smearing and personal attacks. That has been deeply distressing to see and experience, and has simply compounded the grief at losing Carl. The emotional bullying has continued, in other words, and Welsh Labour needs to deal with it. Whether the hurt and anger will fade, only time will tell. While things continue as they are, there can be no closure, and the wounds will fester. However, truth will out.
On the positive side, there have been people, including in my own party but many in opposing parties or in the media or the civil service, or old friends who have suddenly got back in touch, who have reached out with a kind word or a private message or a hug. They know who they are, and I am deeply grateful to them.
Back in 1999, in my book Wales Says Yes, I wrote the following:
Five years ago, four Assembly Members from four different parties bravely spoke out about their own mental health in a deeply moving debate in the Senedd. I have supported mental health charities in the past, and the Rhondda Labour Party donated some of its receipts from a fundraising dinner with Alastair Campbell to Time to Change Wales. Alastair and I also did a photocall for Time to Change Wales when Cardiff City played Burnley a couple of years ago, as you can see in the featured photo. We were 2-0 up till close to the end, then they equalized in the last minute, in case you wondered.
At the end of the day, mental health and wellbeing in the workplace depend on leadership from the top. If bullying – well-defined here by ACAS – is allowed to continue unabated, it poisons relationships and undermines organisational effectiveness. When I give evidence to the Inquiries coming forward, I will be giving evidence also on behalf of people who were bullied and who witnessed bullying, but in their present roles cannot themselves speak out. And I will not be silenced.
Algorithmic regulation
Posted on September 30, 2017 by Leighton Andrews
I contributed to a seminar in July held jointly by the LSE CARR centre and TELOS at King's College. Our position papers are now available here: Algorithmic-Regulation-Sep-2017
Posted in Data, Digital, Leadership, Public ValueLeave a comment
How not to influence people
Posted on May 29, 2017 by Leighton Andrews
The New European carried my article explaining how there's been a disappointing lack of interest in the British-Irish Council by Prime Ministers since Gordon Brown. I'll post the full text up another day. It's based on an analysis I have done of BIC attendance.
Posted in Britishness, Ireland, Leadership, MisgovernanceLeave a comment


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Home Council news
National Care Day: Council makes positive progress for young people leaving care
15 February 2019 | Follow
Care-experienced young people from the Champions Board have helped shape the programmes
Positive progress is being made in South Ayrshire to support young people leaving care to develop the necessary life skills to live independently, hold down tenancies, avoid homelessness and reach their full potential, Councillors heard this week.
An update on work underway to improve housing outcomes for care-experienced young people was welcomed by South Ayrshire Councillors who have committed to reducing poverty and disadvantage, providing health and care systems that meet people's needs, and leading the way to support people and places across South Ayrshire.
The work underway is focused around four key areas – life skills, person-centred housing options, preventing the need to apply as homeless, and appropriate person-centred support – and ensuring these support the young people involved to achieve the best possible outcomes.
To support improved life skills, the Council is running two dedicated pilot programmes in conjunction with Ayr Housing Aid Centre, young people and carers:
First Home focuses on money management, cooking and healthy eating, living as part of a community, looking after your home and improving and maintaining your home.
Housing Education for Youths is aimed at young people 14-16 years thinking about taking their first steps towards independent living and covers areas such as housing options, the cost of running a household, the realities of moving out and homelessness.
To ensure that suitable and sustainable housing options are available to young people leaving care, a small group of young people are undertaking 'trial' tenancies. The trial includes scheduled reviews that help assess how well the tenancy is going, with the aim of converting it into a permanent secure tenancy.
Alongside this, a Housing First pilot is underway, providing a care-experienced young person with permanent accommodation as well as intensive wraparound support to meet their individual needs. It's hoped this approach will maximise the potential for the young person to successfully integrate into the local community and live a quality life.
To help those who may not be quite ready to live on their own, the Council is also working to expand the number of supported carers available. Supported carers provide young people with a supportive family setting while they prepare for living on their own.
Complementing all of these efforts will be a new specialised intensive support service for young people with complex and challenging behaviours, dedicated housing support for care-experienced young people, and enhanced employability and skills support.
Feedback from the young people benefiting from the Council's approach has been very positive. Arron (21) is taking part in the Housing First pilot – he said: "The programme is absolutely brilliant and has helped me so much over the past few months. If I didn't have the support from the programme, I don't know where I would be."
Councillor Douglas Campbell, Leader of South Ayrshire Council, said: "As we celebrate National Care Day, I'm very pleased with the positive progress that has been made over the last six months to support our young people leaving care, which is now bearing fruit. I want to thank everyone involved for their efforts – especially the young people themselves whose input has been invaluable.
"At the heart of what we're doing is listening and responding to what our young people are saying, which has allowed us to establish an individual and tailored approach that is designed to meet the specific needs of each person, rather than adopting a blanket approach that doesn't take account of individual circumstances which can vary significantly.
"While it's still early days, we can already see that our efforts to increase support for young people leaving care are making a difference and delivering positive outcomes, which is – as a corporate parent – exactly what we want.
"We will continue to maintain a proactive, positive and partnership approach to meeting our young people's needs and ensuring that those who have lived within the care system are not disadvantaged and have the chance to enjoy the same opportunities as their peers, reach their potential and live life to the full."
The Leadership Panel report, Update on Improving Housing Outcomes for Care Experienced Young People, is available here.


When I was diagnosed with cancer right before my 18th birthday, I had no idea just how drastically my life would change. I was thrown into a new world that I knew absolutely nothing about. During those first 30 days in the hospital, there were times when it was really dark. My mantra was simple: "one day at a time." Sometimes it was more like "one hour at a time."
But, for however dark it got, there was always a light at the end of the tunnel. I had to keep going. It's been seven years since I was diagnosed, and cancer is still very present in my life in more ways than one.
While I was sick, I was so fortunate to have such a strong support system. Family, friends, and strangers rallied around us and showed up in big ways. Meals were delivered, groceries were purchased, cards were sent and even my bedroom got a makeover. There was one night, a few days after I was discharged from the hospital, that I will never forget. We were eating dinner at a friend's house when 25 friends snuck into the backyard and sang the song Lean On Me. That simple act of kindness and support still brings tears to my eyes.
Sadly, not every family has this kind of experience. In fact, it became clear to me that the majority of the families experiencing childhood cancer have little to no support. This is why I decided to start Lighthouse For Hope, a non-profit that strives to fight alongside those experiencing the physical, emotional and financial setbacks caused by pediatric cancer. Lighthouse focuses primarily on low-income families by providing them with assistance for day-to-day necessities. Working with social workers to find families that would most benefit from extra support, Lighthouse provides them with meals, gas cards, clothing, supplies and necessities that insurance doesn't cover.
Lighthouse For Hope isn't just about providing families with gas money. While paying for household expenses is important, we're passionate about becoming a support system for children and families that otherwise would not have one. We become a light in the dark by advocating and supporting those experiencing the darkness that is childhood cancer.
When Lighthouse is sponsoring a family, the financial support consists of assistance for household expenses (e.g., gas cards, grocery cards, gift cards, etc.). In addition, we supply each family with a box full of supplies and gifts. The box usually includes clothes, paper towels, toilet paper, laundry detergent, dish soap, shampoo, conditioner, soap, blankets, wash cloths, socks, books, toys, diapers and cleaning supplies. Usually each family has a specific need as well. Lighthouse has provided families with tires, beds, strollers, school supplies and even a Christmas tree!
One of the first families we ever helped was just happy they had visitors! It turned out they had never had a visitor before.
Something that I get asked often is, "How can I help someone going through cancer?" My answer is always this: show up. Don't disappear for fear of inconveniencing them. They want to hear from you! If you are worried about saying the wrong thing, that's ok. Just don't stay silent.
These simple differences in approach can make a huge impact and provide a much needed ray of light in an otherwise dark time. I have found that the best thing we can do for these families is to show up and fight alongside them. We can meet them where they are and be a light in the dark. At Lighthouse, we are determined to let these families know that nobody fights alone.
To find out how you can join the fight and help support the important work Lighthouse for Hope is doing, visit www.lighthouseforhope.org or purchase a Be a Light print from our Shop. 100% of proceeds from sales of this print will be donated to Lighthouse for Hope through November 30, 2018.
Hannah has made it her mission to be a light to others in times of darkness. She is the founder of the non-profit Lighthouse for Hope and a cancer survivor. You can follow along with their important work on Instagram or Facebook @lighthouseforhope.


February 11, 2019 at 8:21 pm PDT May contain affiliate links. Read disclosure.
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Research Coordination Network on the
Digital Economy and the Environment
Growing the field and the funding
Program Director, National Science Foundation; Professor, University of Pittsburgh
Alex Jones is a rotating program officer in the National Science Foundation CISE Directorate; he is on leave from the University of Pittsburgh where he is a Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science (by courtesy). His core program responsibilities are in the Computer and Network Systems Division (CNS) as part of the computer systems research (CSR) cluster. He is the Steering Committee Chair of the IEEE International Green and Sustainable Computing Conference and is the recipient of the Carnegie Science Award and MCSI Faculty Fellowship in Sustainability recognizing his contributions to sustainable computing.
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IUPAC nomenclature. Other areas to be learned are: Techniques of purification, qualitative, quantitative analysis of organic compounds, types of organic reactions & mechanisms, directive influence of substituents and electron displacement effects.
1) Explain a) Wurtz reaction and b) Friedel- Craft's reaction with one example for each.
2) Explain a) Position isomerism and b) Functional isomerism with one example each.
4) Give two methods of preparation of acetylene.
5) Write the structures of a) Trichloro ethanoic acid and b) Neopentane.
6) Complete the following reaction and name the products A, B and C with equations.
7) What is carcinogenicity? Give 2 examples.
8) What is inductive effect?


Hello and welcome back deer peeps!
It's that time again — time for the Spring Coffee Lovers Bloghop! Woo-hoo!
You'll want to click on the Bloghop logo above to go read about how you can join the fun and about all of the wonderful sponsors and prizes!
I tried spreading the gel food coloring mixed with a drop of almond extract real thin on aluminum foil and pressing the stamp into it, then onto the macaroon.
I wish I'd've had a food safe brayer. It was tough to get the right consistency and get good coverage. The black worked better – perhaps because I spread it thinner. (It worked even better after it had set out a while and gotten tacky.) Next came coloring. Any time I accidentally touched the black, the black color immediately bled into it. It was, indeed, a learning experience! The kids who ate these were way more pleased with them than I was!
Don't press too hard or the macaroons will crack. The surface isn't flat, so you do have to 'rock' your stamp… try to do this only once to prevent a double image.
The gold luster dust makes for a TERRIFIC shine. put a little on the foil with a drop of almond extract, mix and pick up with your brush. When mixed with black on a stamped image, it makes a pretty silvery-gold.
On the pink cookie, I tried wiping the gel around, then stamping, then filled in the teapot with gold dust. The wiped areas almost look like they were airbrushed.
I then went on to make a card with the same stamps (and color scheme), adding in the Simon Says Stamp challenges for multiple layers/dies/stamps.
I love how Flower Soft makes great pollen-y stamen centers for these sweet flowers!
I'm happy you could stop by today! I'll have several posts up over the next few days, including some FLOWER stamped macaroons that turned out MUCH better — so do plan on stopping back by. If you don't want to miss any posts, please subscribe! Thanks!!


South Africans who own bed and breakfast establishments, guest houses and lodges are being urged to register as 2010 accommodation service providers with MATCH, the company appointed to provide ticketing and accommodation services during the event.
"There are no financial costs to enter a contract with us," said senior operations manager at MATCH, Mahandra Naidoo.
He said available accommodation would be listed on the www.FIFA.com website as well as in the official accommodation brochure for the world cup.
The official website is used by football fans from around the world to plan their trips, buy tickets and book transport and accommodation. It is one of the world's most visited websites, with 4.2 billion page views in 2006.
Mr Naidoo said MATCH had set a target of 55 000 rooms nationally.
Establishments wishing to register with MATCH must be graded by the Tourism Grading Council of South Africa (TGCSA).


When you think about a college education, classroom learning is probably what comes first to mind. But a student's education is increasingly about learning experiences that take place outside the classroom. Summer internships or work experiences can provide real-world perspective and opportunities to apply what you have learned in the classroom.
Students should start early and begin making contacts with prospective summer employers by February 1. Some students also make initial contacts for summer employment in December during winter break.
The Center for Career Opportunities on Purdue campus can assist students with resumes and cover letters. The CCO also posts internships on their website.
Nutrition Science advisors post announcements about summer work experiences in the weekly email newsletter to students. Watch your emails!
The College of HHS Career Development webpage has links to the CCO as well as a Facebook page dedicated to posts of job opportunities for HHS students.
Dietetics Students: Students who are majoring in Dietetics and want to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) must complete a supervised practice experience after completing a B.S.. The supervised practice experience is called a "Dietetic Internship." These are accredited supervised practice programs that meet certain requirements to provide the experience necessary to become a RDN.
Use of the term "internship" is often confused with "Dietetic Internship." Most students participate in summer "internships" while working towards their B.S.. This is invaluable experience that helps students assure they are in the right major, is critical in obtaining a Dietetic Internship, and provides future references for jobs and a Dietetic Internship. However it does not qualify as a Dietetic Internship.
The majority of successful applicants to Dietetic Internships have had more than 1 year of work experience related to Dietetics. Students are highly encouraged to participate in more than one volunteer and/or paid work experiences while an undergraduate. Jobs that are closely related to traditional dietetics are recommended (e.g. hospital/medical center settings, long-term care, foodservice, and dietetics education (WIC)). Also, gaining experience in more than one setting is beneficial. Volunteer experiences are an additional way to round out a Dietetic Internship application.
Research laboratories. Information about Nutrition Science undergraduate research opportunities can be found at here.


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ROC leaders leave legacy of enthusiasm
Posted by Mike Bullard on Tuesday, June 25 th, 2019
We were shocked and saddened by news of seven motorcyclists killed in a horrific crash Friday night in northern New Hampshire.
But on Sunday evening when news stories identified the victims, we were devastated to learn that two Massachusetts co-op members were among those who died.
Jo-Ann and Ed Corr of Twin Coach Estates in Lakeville, Mass. were part of a large group of Marine Corps veterans and their supporters from all around New England en route to an American Legion event nearby.
Jo-Ann and Ed were active volunteers and leaders in their neighborhood almost since the day they bought their home in late 2016. Jo-Ann was the current Board President at Twin Coach and Ed had served as operations manager.
They worked alongside leaders of Edgeway Homeowners Association, another ROC that abuts Twin Coach, on a $1.4 million infrastructure project. The two communities shared a deteriorated water system that for years had delivered discolored water to homeowners' faucets in both ROCs.
"I'm so thankful for everyone who got this problem fixed," said Jo-Ann Corr in 2017, as she and then-Edgeway Board President Ann McGann celebrated the project's completion with a toast of crystal clear tap water.
Thomas Choate, a Cooperative Development Specialist with Cooperative Development Institute, worked with the Corrs and other leaders at the 64-home Twin Coach.
"It is an understatement to say that Jo-Ann and Ed were passionate and generous members of their community," Choate said. "They were among those rare community leaders who take special pleasure in some of the slower and harder-won challenges of organizations."
The Corrs, both 58, had moved to Twin Coach to downsize. Jo-Ann said the couple weighed other options like building an in-law apartment on the home of a family member, but ultimately preferred the home they found in Twin Coach as it was single-floor living and more affordable.
Jo-Ann's and Ed's enthusiasm was contagious both where they lived and in the larger community. They left a mark on those who met them at the 2017 Community Leadership Institute in Los Angeles.
"I remember Jo-Ann and Ed fondly from our time in L.A. – Ed was a quiet, yet engaged supporter of ROCs and particularly of his wife Jo-Ann," said Gary Faucher, ROC USA® Network National Training Manager. "She was incredibly energetic, engaged and curious. I remember Jo-Ann taking advantage of every learning opportunity, including sitting in on the ROC USA board meeting, and still wanting more."
ROC USA® President Paul Bradley agreed, remembering how eager the Corrs were to make their neighborhood an even better place to live.
"I am heart-broken," he said. "My deepest sympathy goes out to their families, friends and neighbors."
The Boston Herald reported that the Corrs were volunteers at Brockton VA Medical Center. A reporter interviewed other ROC Members who lived near the Corrs' home, which had a flag lowered to half-staff in the yard.
"They were wonderful. She (Jo-Ann) was full of life," said Shirley Stephanian, who lives across the street.
"They were great people," said neighbor Donna Buschere. "We're all devastated."
Choate said he looked forward to a long working relationship with the Corrs.
"Jo-Ann and I spoke often of contributing an article tackling the stigmas of manufactured housing," he said. "This project that we put on the back burner now will never be realized. They always acted as passionate caretakers of family and community, and will be sorely missed."
Faucher said Ed and Jo-Ann embodied and represented good local leadership.
"They were a terrific team and couple and Jo-Ann was simply one of the best and will be tremendously missed." he said.
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Ethan Myers is Toronto-based Music Composer/Sound Designer and an Audio Engineer at Vapor Music. He graduated with a Bachelors of Music and a Certificate for Jazz Performance and Commercial Music from Humber College. However, don't be fooled, his background is anything but ordinary. In the past 10 years, he has gone from touring across North America as a drummer in a bluegrass group, to writing music for indie video games, to being the post audio mixer and sound designer for multiple Drake music videos, to now diving into the world of crypto by creating sonic textural landscapes for NFTs. He hasn't taken the traditional path, and doesn't plan on taking it anytime soon. Also he really likes fettuccine alfredo.
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3-0! Belgium Beats Panama FIFA World Cup Group G
The Red Devils from Belgium beat debutants Panama 3-0 on Monday in their FIFA World Cup Group G preliminary round football (soccer) match at the Fisht Stadium in Sochi.
Dries Mertens opened the scoring for Belgium with a superb volley in the 47th minute. Romelu Lukaku brace in the 69th and 75th minute increased Belgians' advantage.
After a frustrating first half, Dries Mertens unlocked the game with a quite brilliant shot. Kevin de Bruyne then took his turn with a very skilful assist for Romelu Lukaku, while Eden Hazard and Lukaku combined well for the third goal.
Panama had been attempting to go on the attack with the introduction of Gabriel Torres and Ismael Diaz, but Belgium and Lukaku have punished ruthlessly the gaps left in Panama defence.
Lukaku is within a goal of catching Cristiano Ronaldo at the top of the World Cup scoring chart.
The Red Devils have been touted as potential dark horses in this world cup.
The gauntlet has been laid down to England and Tunisia who will be playing later today. Can the Three Lions keep pace with Belgium at the top of Group G, or will the Eagles of Carthage spring a surprise?


"When you are ready, and when you have the courage and are prepared to be bold, me and my people.. we are ready to talk with you about a Treaty.
That was the message to Australian politicians, including newly re-elected Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, from Indigenous education expert Professor Chris Sarra after being named the NAIDOC2016 Person of the Year on Friday.
Sarra's speech is being widely shared and welcomed on social media, as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia enter more unchartered waters under a new Federal Government with little outlined by the Coalition on their Indigenous affairs policies over the next term. During the election Turnbull did endorse the word "invasion" to describe European settlement of Australia, but rejected Opposition Leader Bill Shorten's acknowledgement of the need for a treaty, saying such a debate could jeopardise efforts for consititional recognition.
Sarra dedicated the award to "our ghost children – those Aboriginal girls and boys, dead by their own hand, who no longer believed that the future could be better, or that they had a place in it", to "Indigenous students rotting in classrooms no Minister or millionaire would send their child to', and to Indigenous parents and communities, school and community leaders involved in education.
For tens of thousands of years, our sovereign nations shared borders, trade and travel. Our laws were strong. Our faith deep. And our songs enchanted. Culture enlightened our souls, and dreamings lit the way.
The past 200 years, by contrast, were everything the past 50,000 weren't. In the blink of an historical eye we were banished to the edges of the very worlds we'd governed for eons. There was a disruption to our excellence. Our parents and theirs were stripped of all they loved… their kids, homes, land and culture. Our people weren't called slaves, but laboured as such… Shackled, starved, never paid wages. Black diggers fought and died for a nation that denied them the vote.
The truth is this…… We are stronger than we believe and smarter than we know. For 50,000 history making years, our old people lived like kings in lands where camel die of thirst. They stood as ironbark. Upright, strong, tall standing and unbreakable. Their lessons, their songlines, their legacy and their dreamings. They are our true north. They are the truth not only of who we were, but who we can be again.
This year's #NAIDOC2016 theme was: Songlines – The living narrative of our nation. See this guide from the ABC, that looked at songlines from different parts of Australia.
This post can only give a glimpse of the week's activities.
If you're on Twitter, check back on Croakey contributor and Yorta Yorta woman Summer May Finlay timeline as she covered #NAIDOC2016 for @wepublichealth: you can read her reflections on NAIDOC week here and see some of her tweets here.
ABC TV also had a range of programs on Indigenous issues and made by Indigenous people up at iView,as has SBS On Demand.
Radio National's Inside Sleeve featured many Indigenous musicians through the week, and don't miss this Soundcloud recording of Emma Donovan and her band The Putbacks performing songs from Ruby Hunter's debut album on ABC 774 in Melbourne.
Some of the people celebrating….


Barbalho, M. G. C. (2007). Higher Education: Expansion Trends and Strategies in Latin America and Brazil. In Cabral Neto, A. et al. (Eds.), Points and Counterpoints of Educational Policy: A Contextualized Reading of Government Initiatives (pp. 13-50). Brasília: Líber.


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Former Thai PM and influential royal adviser Prem Tinsulanonda dies at 98
Patpicha Tanakasempipat
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Former Thai prime minister and influential royal adviser General Prem Tinsulanonda, a towering figure over decades of turbulent politics and military interventions, died on Sunday at age 98 of heart failure, the royal palace said.
FILE PHOTO: Thailand's former Prime Minister and President of the Royal Privy Council Prem Tinsulanonda is seen during an official event in Bangkok, Thailand April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer
In a career that spanned decades, Prem most recently played a role in organizing the ornate coronation of King Maha Vajiralongkorn this month. He served briefly as the country's regent shortly after King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the current monarch's father, died in 2016 after a 70-year reign.
As chairman of the prestigious Privy Council of royal advisers, Prem held one of the country's most powerful unelected positions. He also sat as honorary advisor on the board of several of the country's most prominent businesses including its largest bank, Bangkok Bank and its largest conglomeration, Charoen Pokphand Group.
Having served as army chief, he was seen by political analysts as having significant influence with Thailand's powerful royalist military which has staged 13 coups since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932.
His death comes as Thailand prepares to form a new government after the first elections since a 2014 coup, with a pro-military political party expected to keep current junta leader Prayuth Chan-ocha on as prime minister over the objections of opposition parties who say the new junta-written constitution nearly guaranteed army proxies would retain power.
Prem became Thailand's 16th prime minister in 1980, appointed by parliament to replace a predecessor who had been installed by a military coup leader.
Many Thais remember him as the prime minister who served as the bridge between decades of military rule and a period of democratization that came after he handed over power eight years later to an elected leader.
In his first years in government, Prem granted amnesty to students exiled by Thailand's previous military governments and former members of the Communist Party of Thailand who had for years waged a bloody insurgency in the country's rural heartland.
His administration, run by technocrats and specialist advisors, sought to open up the economy to the international markets and modernize a financial sector that had been lagging for years.
"In the 1980s, Prem became for the Bangkok elite the exemplar of an unelected prime minister ruling over corrupt and factious politicians," said David Streckfuss, an independent analyst and scholar of Thai history living in Thailand.
Through his close ties to King Bhumibol, Prem was able to survive two coup attempts by hard line and reactionary members of the military who viewed his circle of civilian advisors and amnesty programs with suspicion.
Those ties were made more apparent when Prem stepped down as prime minister and was almost immediately appointed as a member of Bhumibol's privy council, which he became head of in 1998.
In his later years, Prem was accused by supporters of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra of siding with the royalist military establishment against the populist leader, who was ousted in a 2006 coup and now lives in self-imposed exile. Prem never addressed the accusation publicly.
In a Wikileaks cable detailing a meeting between then U.S. Ambassador Ralph Boyce and Prem after the 2006 coup, Prem was noted by Boyce as being "unapologetic" for the putsch against Thaksin.
Boyce also writes in the cable: "While it does not appear that Prem was part of the coup planning, it seems likely that his blessing was sought a few days before the event."
Prem recently made public statements in favor of coup leader Prayuth, who seized power in 2014 from an elected government loyal to Thaksin.
"I can say with full confidence that the government of the prime minister (Prayuth) is not corrupt, because they truly work for the people in general," Prem was quoted by the Bangkok Post as saying in April when Prayuth visited him during the Thai New Year celebrations.
Additional reporting by Panu Wongcha-um and Panarat Thepgumpanat. Writing by Kay Johnson; Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Edwina Gibbs


Poster designed by Okanagan College Writing and Publishing student Sarah Kloos.
When intelligent, independent Elizabeth Bennet meets Fitzwilliam Darcy, she finds him proud, pompous... and strangely attractive! How can Lizzy have feelings for a man who thinks himself superior to her and her family? How can he possibly have feelings for her? Are Lizzy and Darcy destined to win in the game of love? Find out in the Red Dot Players' production of Pride and Prejudice, Kate Hamill's exuberant, hilarious new adaptation of the classic novel by Jane Austen!
Seating at 5:30; performance at 7:30. Tickets on sale until March 10th.
Tickets available at KelownaTickets.com and the door.
Pride and Prejudice and Dinner at Okanagan College!
It is a truth universally acknowledged that the only thing more fun than a Jane Austen work adapted for the stage is a Jane Austen work adapted for the stage that also includes fine dining.
Such is the message that Okanagan College's own theatre troupe, the Red Dot Players, have for audiences this spring as they present Kate Hamill's adaptation of Jane Austen's beloved novel Pride and Prejudice. The play will run for three evenings, from March 14-16 (curtain goes up at 7:30 p.m.) along with a matinee performance at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 17.
Tickets are $18 for adults and $15 for students and seniors and can be purchased online at kelownatickets.com or at the door.
Pride and Prejudice marks the tenth production for the Red Dot Players, founded in 2011. To celebrate the milestone, the troupe has decided to bring something special to the table: dinner theatre.
On Thursday, March 14 and Friday, March 15 attendees can combine a performance of Pride and Prejudice with a gourmet meal at Infusions Restaurant on the Kelowna campus, which is located just steps from the theatre. The meal will consist of a set appetizer, a choice of three main courses (including a vegetarian option), and a dessert. Seating for dinner will be at 5:30 p.m., giving diners plenty of time to savour their meal and anticipate the performance at 7:30.
The play's Director, Jeremy Beaulne, who is also a professor in the English Department at OC, is excited to bring Hamill's fun and fast-paced adaption to audiences in the Okanagan – with that treat for foodies thrown in.
"It's going to be such a fun show. Kate Hamill – who is a young playwright from New York – really captures the spirit of Jane Austen's novel and presents it in such an exciting and engaging way. There's great comedic characters and a wonderful emotional arc. It's fast-paced, it's energetic, and overall, it's just going to be a really enjoyable experience for the audience, I believe," says Beaulne.
Tickets for dinner theatre are $50 for adults and $47 for students and seniors. Seating is limited so dinner theatre tickets are only available until March 10.
All posters designed by Okanagan College Writing and Publishing students.


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When a hen's egg-laying wanes around the age of two, she is considered "spent" and is brutally killed -- both by the egg industry and backyard flock keepers — usually at around 2 years old. A wild chicken can live over 10 years.
Hatcheries grind up billions of baby roosters alive because they are useless to the egg industry. Backyard chicken-keepers who wind up with roosters abandon them in parks, along roadsides and in animal shelters, where almost all of them perish.
Every spring, people purchase cute ducklings, chicks, and goslings on a whim. Most wind up being dumped at parks or ponds, where —like any domesticated pet — they perish from starvation, exposure to the elements, and predator attacks.


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What is Disorderly Conduct in Texas?
Spring Break season is here, and from South Padre Island to Daytona Beach, you can be sure that arrests for disorderly conduct will be part of the week for some folks. In Texas, "disorderly conduct" is a common criminal charge that covers a relatively broad range of behavior. It can take the form of sights, sounds, smells, and other conduct that tends to offend or is likely to lead to a disturbance. Whether you have been charged with disorderly conduct for allegedly fighting with someone in public or invading someone's privacy, it is critical to contact a criminal defense attorney as soon as possible.
Disorderly Conduct Defined
Texas Penal Code Section 42.01 contains an extensive list of actions and activities that constitute disorderly conduct and can get you charged for that offense. These include:
using abusive, indecent, profane, or vulgar language in a public place that is likely to incite an immediate breach of the peace
making an offensive gesture or display in a public place that is likely to incite an immediate breach of the peace
creating, by chemical means, a noxious and unreasonable odor in a public place
abusing or threatening a person in a public place in an obviously offensive manner
making unreasonable noise in a public place other than a sport shooting range, or in or near a private residence that he has no right to occupy
fighting with another in a public place
discharging a firearm in a public place other than a public road or a sport shooting range
displaying a firearm or other deadly weapon in a public place in a manner calculated to alarm or discharging a firearm on or across a public road
exposing a person's anus or genitals in a public place and being reckless about whether another may be present who will be offended or alarmed by this act
In addition to all the actions in a public place described above, "peeping tom" conduct such as going onto someone's property and looking into their window or doing the same to someone else's hotel room, a restroom, or changing room for lewd or unlawful purposes will get you a disorderly conduct charge.
Most disorderly conduct charges are classified as Class C misdemeanors that are punishable by a fine of up to $500. However, the firearm-related acts described above are Class B misdemeanors which can result in a sentence of up to 180 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $2,000. Keep in mind that disorderly conduct charges are frequently accompanied by other charges, such as assault, public intoxication, or resisting arrest that potentially carry more serious penalties.
There are numerous ways to fight disorderly conduct and related charges. If you have been charged with disorderly conduct, it's important to protect your reputation and your freedom. Contact an experienced Texas criminal defense lawyer at your earliest opportunity.


Tanya Wilson was locking up her tattoo shop on the Danforth, heading out for dinner with a friend.
It was just before 10 p.m.
Because we think that way now in Toronto, at the sound of sharp cracks. Not firecrackers, not a car backfiring. Bullets.
Suddenly, two people outside were banging on the front door, pleading to be let in.
In her panic, Wilson at first feared these individuals might have been allied with the gunman in some way, trying to force themselves into her business, Skin Deep.
Then she saw the blood.
Both the older woman and a younger man had been struck.
Wilson hustled them indoors. Put each in one of her tattoo chairs and set about applying first aid, first fashioning a tourniquet above the bullet holes. Both — a mother and her adult son, she'd learn — had been hit in the leg, below the knee.
She turned off the lights, hoping the shooter would believe the premises were vacant and ushered the victims into the basement. Then all of them huddled for the half-hour until Wilson was able to flag an officer and paramedics were summoned.
Four hours later, with the victims removed by ambulance, Wilson and her friend were still being held in place, waiting to be interviewed by police.
A block away, her tattoo teacher, Trevor Boucher had pulled up in vehicle, trying to talk his way past a police cordon on Logan. But only cops and first responders were being allowed through. Even those who live on the Danforth, trying to make their way home on a Sunday night, were turned away, advised to find somewhere else to sleep on this maddened night.
"It's just so weird," said Wilson, when the Star reached her. "I mean, we're all aware of the shootings that have been happening around the city. But this is the Danforth, you know? It's a beautiful neighbourhood with always lots of people on the street, walking around, going to restaurants, sitting on patios.
Wilson's thoughts were with the little girl rushed to emergency in critical condition. That 10-year-old child, as police Chief Mark Saunders disclosed at a Monday morning press conference, did not survive.
Also killed was an 18-year-old female, identified as Reese Fallon, who hailed from the Beaches area.
And the shooter. Police sources told the Star that 29-year-old Faisal Hussain died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound, although the Special Investigations Unit would not confirm that detail.
After an exchange of gunfire with officers, he fled and his body was discovered on Danforth, the SIU reported. An autopsy was to be conducted Tuesday morning and ballistics conducted on the bullet.
How he died is a critical part of the investigation undertaken by the SIU, which is called in whenever a civilian is killed or seriously injured in an incident involving police. But the larger investigation, involving a crime scene that extends for several blocks, is the responsibility of Toronto police, led by veteran homicide Det. Sgt. Terry Browne.
At Second Cup, on the corner of Danforth and Hampton Aves., the owner pointed out three bullet holes that had punctured the front window.
The small sidewalk patio had been full of patrons, enjoying the mild evening.
Directly in front of the Second Cup, police had placed upturned coffee cups, marking the spots where shell casings had been found — a dozen of them in that chunk of sidewalk alone.
Nobody inside had been injured.
Jessica Young, an employee, told the Star's Wendy Gillis that she'd seen the shooter. "He was probably no taller than me, wearing a black baseball cap, dark clothes ... That's all I could make out," Young said, adding that the man appeared to have a pistol or handgun.
Other witnesses said the man had his shirt sleeves rolled up, had walked back and forth across Danforth, shooting indiscriminately, assuming a shooter's stance, as if he knew how to handle a firearm. It appears to have been a semi-automatic, with a magazine, given the volley of shots — multiple bang-bang-bang — with pauses in between.
The shooter was only some 10 feet away.
Thirteen victims wounded, some with "life-changing" injuries, said Browne. Men, women and children running, ducking, taking cover behind a fountain before bystanders and employees of local business ventured out with towels and rags to staunch bleeding.
On a night of unimaginable horror, there were heroes too.
In the small hours of Monday morning and into the day, video captured on cellphones began surfacing on social media. The shooter is seen firing into storefronts and cafés, walking purposefully westward through Greektown. A man on a mission, it appears.
Police said warrants had been sought to search the shooter's home. If investigators retrieve computer files, those and any social media footprint will be invaluable in uncovering a motive.
Why did he concentrate his fire on some establishments while bypassing others? Why did he tell one man, "I'm not going to shoot you" and stride on by?
Before the sun rose on an eerily depopulated Danforth, usually so vibrant a neighbourhood, dozens of officers and crime scene reconstruction experts worked the area, filming and measuring. The bomb squad also conducted a controlled detonation of a package, which may have been the bag the shooter was carrying, slung over a shoulder.
"We're going to blow up a package now," an officer warned onlookers milling around the Danforth-Broadview intersection.
The thump of that detonation could be heard for blocks around 1 a.m.
Saunders and Mayor John Tory tried to reassure the public. They've done a lot of that over recent weeks and months as blood has been spilled on the streets, in a playground, on the Entertainment District sidewalk, in Yorkville, in Kensington market, at a church fair.
But this mass shooting has more a feel of random terror and malice, bringing to mind the van attack along Yonge St. in North York in April — 10 dead, 16 with non-fatal injuries, some of them grievous.
What in God's name is happening?
Murders, van attack, a lone gunman rampage, in a city that has always boasted of its safeness. Rightly or wrongly, it feels profoundly less safe now, the violence as brazen and senseless one-on-one as one-on-dozens.
Businesses losing out on King St.


North Korea's Nuclear Push The U.S. eases sanctions on North Korea after Pyongyang agrees to hand over an accounting of its nuclear bomb-making abilities. Shortly afterward, the communist country destroys the cooling tower at its main reactor site. At left, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in an October 2005 photo.
February 17, 2007 • North Korea agreed this week to dismantle its nuclear weapons program. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, the lead U.S. negotiator at six-party talks in Beijing, discusses the outcome.
February 13, 2007 • Robert Siegel talks with Ashton Carter, co-director of the Preventive Defense Project at the Kennedy School at Harvard University. Carter served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Policy during President Clinton's first term. During that time, he oversaw negotiations with North Korea over their nuclear program.
February 13, 2007 • After nearly a week of talks in Beijing on North Korea's nuclear program, negotiators announce a breakthrough. U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill, who led the U.S. presence at the six-nation talks, discusses the outcome.
February 12, 2007 • There is a tentative agreement on the first steps toward disarming North Korea's nuclear program, according to U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill. Six-party talks aimed at ending Pyongyang's program have been going on in Beijing.
February 12, 2007 • Six-nation talks aimed at shutting down North Korea's nuclear program may be extended. The countries involved in the negotiations in Beijing say the level of aid North Korea insists upon receiving remains a sticking point.
February 10, 2007 • Six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear program enter a third day in Beijing, with a draft agreement that could lead to the shutdown of the nation's main nuclear reactor. Is any true progress being made?
February 9, 2007 • Six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program, under way in Beijing, yield optimism that North Korea will cooperate. The reclusive regime is hinting that it may accept in principle the initial steps of a Chinese proposal to rein in North Korea's nuclear ambitions.
February 7, 2007 • Six-nation talks aimed at persuading North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program will resume Thursday in Beijing. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, leader of the U.S. delegation, offers his insights.
January 19, 2007 • Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill met secretly with his North Korean counterpart this week for three days of talks in Berlin. Hill said the Bush administration would be willing to sit down with North Korea in an effort to normalize relations, but only if Pyongyang gives up its nuclear program.
December 22, 2006 • How did a semi-successful barbecue guy from New Jersey become an important figure in the tenuous relationship between the United States and North Korea?
December 22, 2006 • The latest negotiations aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear weapons program end in Beijing, producing no agreement, despite added urgency over North Korea's October nuclear test.
December 18, 2006 • The Six Party negotiations aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear weapons program resume, after being stalled for well over a year. During the hiatus, North Korea conducted its first nuclear test. At the start of negotiations, North Korea declared that it is a nuclear power deserving of respect.


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10-Year-Old Makes History As Youngest Solo Act EVER To Earn Golden Buzzer
"The coveted "Golden Buzzer" is the dream for every auditioning contestant on Britain's Got Talent. It is the ultimate expression that a judge believes you have what it takes to win the show. In addition to that, the contestant automatically skips ahead to the live semi-finals. It's a tremendous edge up on the rest of the competition.
Each judge only has only opportunity to use it each season, so judges Simon Cowell, David Walliams, Amanda Holden, and Alesha Dixon only hit their Golden Buzzer if they truly believe in someone. In Episode 4 of the Britain's Got Talent auditions, ten-year-old Giorgia Borg became the youngest solo act to get a Golden Buzzer in the history of the show.
Young Giorgia from Malta sang a song she wrote entitled "Ten." She took the audience and judges by complete surprise with her performance. Giorgia attacked the song and sang her heart out. Her range and soul left everyone with mouths wide open in awe.
The judges began to lavish Giorgia with praise, but Alesha Dixon interrupted and surprised everyone by standing up and slamming the Golden Buzzer. As the crowd went wild with excitement, Giorgia stood smiling in shock as golden confetti fell and covered her and the stage surrounding her.
After using her one opportunity of the season to hit the Golden Buzzer, Alesha excitedly explained her reason for hitting the button for Giorgia. She told the singer, "It takes a lot to really, really move me, and you floored me, like absolutely floored me. Your vocal capability, your lyrical capability, you are 10-years-old! This is unbelievable; you are a star. You have the best personality as well; I love everything about you. Congratulations."
In an interview afterwards, Giorgia described how she felt at the moment she saw Alesha hitting the Golden Buzzer for her: "I felt like I was in a dream. I was very excited and couldn't believe it was actually happening. It's always been a dream of mine to be on Britain's Got Talent. I just can't believe it has come true! It's my favorite show, and I have been watching it since I can remember."
Giorgia's audition will completely wow you. If you don't watch the screen, you probably would even think it was an adult singing – not a ten-year-old. What an amazing voice! There's a lot in store for this extremely talented performer."
Psychic Police Dog Shocks Judges With His Incredible Telepathy Skills
German Shepherd Decides To Go Swimming With Dolphins He Just Met
British Boy Band Earns Golden Buzzer With Rock Power-Ballad
63-Year-Old Shirtless Singer STUNS Judges With 'Love Train'
Mother and Son Bring The House Down with 1986 Aretha Franklin Hit
Dog Out At Sea With His Family Gets A Surprise From A Dolphin That's Truly Magical
13-Year-Year Old Dance Sensation Akshat Singh Earns Golden Buzzer on Britain's Got Talent
18-Year-Old Singer Gets Her 'Susan Boyle Moment' With Mind-Blowing Operatic Performance


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W-479 "A Champion's retirement!"
Mixed wrestling, 150 pictures 1920x1080 (FullHD), no nudity, no blood.
I am the "All American Hero" Geo. I am the current and long standing world champion of the IWF.
That stands for the International Wrestling Federation. I've been champion for over 7 years now and I am retiring at the end of the year. I'm just about ? of the way thru me grand retirement tour. It consists of about 14 matches designed for me to say farewell to all my fans.
The matched are booked because they are against very easy opponents. Most are either very young just starting out of old and over the hill. In either case they are supposed to be easy for me to beat. I don't mean this to say that they don't make a real effort, they do. It's just they are past the time or the time has not yet come when they pose a danger to me winning the match and retaining my title.
At 45 years old I am still a very capable wrestler.
Tonight should be a fairly easy night for me. My opponent is a 19yr old up and comer. She is the daughter of two wrestlers, both former champions. Wresting me is an honor to both her and her parents both of whom will be in the crowd tonight.
Time now to get ready. I slip out of my street clothes and grab my gear bag. First I slid on shiny black pantyhose. My legs look great in them. Then comes shiny satin wrestling trunks. Even at my age I still look good in these trunks. They form my manhood into a large masculine bulge. Next comes shiny white wrestling boots. I love the way they look on me.
Now comes the final piece of my wrestling gear. My pride and joy, my world title belt. I wrap it around my waist were it has been for over seven years now. In all those years no one has come close to taking it away from me.
With both of us in the ring the announcer begins: "Wrestling fans, this is a one fall to a finish pin or submission match. It is for the world wrestling championship!!!? In this corner making her first attempt at Winning a world title. At only 19 years old, she is the current Regional Champion Allison Monarch. And in the opposite corner. He is the long reigning World Champion "The All American Hero" Geo!!!"
This in my 7th match on my retirement tour. I only have 3 more after tonight. It has been grueling and very tiring. Every wrestler I have faced no matter how good gives it everything they have, they all want to beat the champion.
A couple of deep breaths and I'm ready. There's the bell "GONG!!!" the match starts. POW!!! A boot slams into my head just were my neck starts. It is a tremendous kick. I stumble sideways a few steps and drop to the mat face down. My feet are inches from the ropes and my head is pointed to the center of the ring. To say I'm stunned is an understatement. "What happened? I can't get up. What did she do to me?"
The ref comes over to me and looks at me closely. Suddenly she has started counting over me.
"ONE TWO THREE FOUR"
Why is she count me? The bell just rang. I've got to get to my feet!!
"FIVE SIX"
I grab the ropes and pull myself up. I'm dazed and my vision is blurred. I stagger off the ropes and right into a Front Head Lock Almost instantly I'm gasping for air, this is the tightest head lock I have ever been in.
Just outside the ring the announcers are going crazy. "I can' believe this!! Allison has landed a tremendous side kick to the Champion's head!!
"Yes she has Roberta and the Champion is in big trouble. He staggers sideways, HE'S DOWN!! The Champion is down. He has dropped to his knees and appears to be badly dazed."
He's on the mat, he has just toppled over face down on the mat. The ref has started the count, he may not get up."
He's got the ropes and is getting to his feet. He's up but he looks to be in serious trouble."
She HIP-Tosses to the mat still hold me in the head lock. I kick my legs wildly, I twist back and forth trying to escape the hold. I can feel my strength slowly draining away. Releasing the head lock she mounts my back and sits on my buttocks. Grabbing both my arms she pulls them up behind me and then twists them.
I'm writhing in pain as my arms are twisted. I kick my legs trying to dislodge her from my back.
"Oh god this hurts!! She's so strong. She's tearing my arms loose. I've got to get free!!" She stands up still holding my arms and plants one of her boots into the small of my back. In a display of power she pulls me to my knees. She moves her boot up between my shoulder blades and continues pulling on my arms. After only a few seconds she has me screaming in pain. "My arms, oh god my arms!! You're breaking my arms!! AAAAAAH! It hurts!! OOOOOOHHHH!!!"
Allison calls to the ref: "Ask him ref. Is he ready to submit? Go on ask him!!"
The ref kneels down in front of me How bout it champ? You ready to submit? Do you want me to stop it?" I shake my head no then tell her "NO - NOOOO! Not giving up!! Won't submit!!"
From out at the announcers table Roberta and Nicole Baker former world tag team champions as stunned by what is happening in the ring. "Allison has just told the ref to ask the Champion if he wants to submit. This match is only a few minutes old and already Allison is asking for his submission.
Yes she is Nicole and rightfully so. The World Champion is in terrible condition. He is very close to defeat. I can't see how he can last much longer!!"
Allison works her boots down the Champions spine. They now are at the lower part of his back. Still holding his arms tightly she lifts his feet off the mat. The World Champion is trapped in a BACK BREAKER and ARM STRETCH.
With his arms stretched and twisted, with Allison's boots digging into his lower spine and his legs hanging uselessly in the air The World Champion is in serious trouble. "My back, she's going to break my back. I've got to get free, I can't let her beat me. OH god it hurts, I don't want to submit. I can't let her beat me. I've to get free."
The World Champion has a pained expression on his face. Looking closely the fans can see tears forming in his eyes and running down his cheeks. He kicks his legs but the power from earlier in the match is gone. He twists his shoulders and tries to pull his arms free but he no longer has enough strength to break the hold.
"I can't take much more of this. Just too much pain. She's so strong!! I can't get free, she's going to defeat me, I'm going to lose my title. After only a few more seconds The World Champion cries out to the ref:
"HELP ME REF, HELP ME!! I'm done, she's beaten me! I SUBMIT!! I SUBMIT!! LET ME GO ALLISON, PLEASE LET ME GO!!! YOU WIN, YOU'VE BEATEN ME. I GIVE UP!! I GIVE UP!!"
Both the ref and Allison Monarch are both stunned by The All American Hero's quick submission.
Allison has not yet released the now former champion. The ref comes close as asks Geo if he's given up.
"Geo, is that it have you given up? Did you submit?"
The defeated ex-champion again screams his surrender:
"YES, YES I'V GIVEN UP. SHE'S DEFEAT ME, GET HER OFF ME. I SUBMIT-I SUBMIT!! PLEASE,I CAN'T TAKE ANY MORE!! I'M DONE-I'M DONE, SHE WINS!!"
Allison lowers the beaten ex-champ to the mat. He lies in the center of the ring face up staring into the ring lights.
His mind cannot believe what has just happened to him She beat me, How was she able to defeat me so quickly? I've lost my title, what about the rest of my farewell matches. What am I going to do.
Lying on his back in the center of the ring Geo can't move. He can neither get up or roll out of the ring. He must just lie there as the announcer stands over him.
"Wrestling fans, in a stunning up set in only 3minutes and 17 seconds the winner of the match via submission and now THE NEW CHAMPION OF THE WORLD!! ALLISON MONARCH!!!!"
As the announcement is made the former champion breaks down in tears. He covers his face with his hands to hide his humiliation. The ref wraps the world title belt around Allison's waist and buckles it tight. With the title belt around her waist she stands in the center of the ring directly over the beaten former champ. She raises her arms in the air as the fans cheer her.
After a minute or two Allison kneels down beside the the beaten All American Hero. Are you OK champ? Geo looks up at her Not champion any more. You defeated me and took my title. You're the champion now. Allison nods her head at the male wrestler lying at her feet. "Can you get up? I'll help you if you want. All Geo can do is shake his head. No-no I can't get up. It hurts too much. Can't feel my legs. You beat me real bad. Made me submit. No one ever did that before.
After several more minutes Geo is able to get to his feet and slowly limp back to his dressing room.
He staggers over to the wall and leans his head against it. Out wrestled, out powered and defeated. How could she do that to me. I was the world champion. Slowly geo steps out of his trunks. Sitting he removes his boots. Going over to the mirror he stands looking at himself in just his pantyhose. Defeated by a teenager. I lost the match, I lost my title all to a 19yr old girl.
How could she defeat me so easily. Slowly Geo strips out of his shiny black pantyhose and heads to the shower.


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