I don't know how many times I heard some variation of that basic idea, from lots of different co-workers. Sometimes I started the conversation, sometimes I just listened.
It wasn't just colleagues, either. Friends often started the same kind of conversation, about their dreams of leaving a job to hang out a shingle.
For every 10 people I heard talk about starting a business, I'd estimate only 1 ended up doing anything about it. 9 out of 10 did nothing but dream.
When I was still in a job, I can't say I felt entirely certain I would eventually run my own business. I spent a lot of time thinking about it, but it didn't seem as though I had any more conviction than those friends and co-workers.
Which makes me wonder, what separates the "someday" people from the people who actually do something about their dreams of starting a business?
Do the someday people know all along they're not going to take action, or does life just get in the way?
Will your intentions lead to something, or will they just wither away?


Can the 2018 Kawasaki KX450F keep up with the 2019 model? With attention in the right spots, it can do more than that!
The Honda everybody wants to own!
USA's Taylor Robert and team lost ground to Australia but were able to extend their lead over third place Italy.
In World Trophy class Australia put on an impressive ride by taking the lead over USA by 1:31.
After the dust settled on day one, it was USA's Taylor Roberts who emerged as the early individual overall leader.


text:
package utils

import (
	"fmt"
	"regexp"
	"strings"
)

var parseURLRegex = regexp.MustCompile(`^([a-z]+)://([-a-z0-9]+/)?([^][/: ]+)(:[-a-z0-9]+)?(/[^"' ]*)?$`)

// ParseURL ...
func ParseURL(url string) (urlProto, urlHost, urlPort, urlPath string, err error) {
	urlParse := parseURLRegex.FindStringSubmatch(url)
	if len(urlParse) < 6 {
		err = fmt.Errorf("invalid URL syntax: %s", url)
		return
	}
	urlProto = urlParse[1]
	namespace := urlParse[2]
	name := urlParse[3]
	urlPort = strings.TrimLeft(urlParse[4], ":")
	urlPath = urlParse[5]
	if namespace != "" {
		// <proto>://<namespace/><name>[:<urlPort>][<urlPath>]`
		if urlPort != "" {
			// port is mandatory on svc proto
			// a matching namespace and a declared port
			// ensures that we have a namespaced service name
			urlHost = namespace + name
		} else {
			// otherwise namespace is the host and name is the start of the path
			urlHost = strings.TrimSuffix(namespace, "/")
			urlPath = "/" + name + urlPath
		}
	} else {
		// <proto>://<name>[:<urlPort>][<urlPath>]`
		urlHost = name
	}
	return
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


And on this -55 below day, I like to look back on a warm August evening with an expecting family to be. Laura and Ryan had their maternity shoot all the way back in August and now their sweet little Kacey Lee is 4 months old, needless to say, I'm behind on blogging…however I've made a few updates and am excited about the new look below, so take a look at this sweet little family on their own sweet farm. Ah, so much love!


Of all the freelancing platforms available, iFreelance stands out for two key reasons: they charge zero commissions, and they offer freelancers unlimited bids for projects. Their primary mission is to be a network that connects employers to talents, which means that after connecting the two parties, they try to remove themselves from the process as much as possible (which is why they don't charge commissions or transaction fees). This does have its downsides, however: if you run into a dishonest individual, you're on your own.
Of all the freelancing platforms available, iFreelance stands out for two key reasons: they charge zero commissions, and they offer freelancers unlimited bids for projects. In lieu of commissions, iFreelance charges a reasonably low monthly membership fee with a few tiers available. The higher tiers allow you to showcase more of your work and bid for jobs in more category listings.
iFreelance's primary pitch is that you can hire expert freelancers while cutting out the middleman. This sounds great in theory – zero commissions, zero transaction fees, and a sizable platform on which to source for work or workers – but it does come with a few catches. For instance, there's no Escrow payment available, which means you run the risk of not getting paid for your work. iFreelance also does not maintain any official record of your communications, so you're on your own if you come across a dishonest individual.
Wondering if iFreelance is the best option for getting your project done?
On the hunt for top-notch coders, graphic designers or creative writers? iFreelance will showcase them for you. Their specialties focus predominantly on artistic professionals, such as illustrations, web designers, creative writers and so forth.
The motto behind iFreelance is to showcase the best professional freelancers to companies that are willing to pay for good quality. So, essentially, if you are working on a tight budget, iFreelance is not for you.
iFreelance's monthly fees (starting from $6.25) sift away numerous but inefficient freelancers advertised in other giant freelance websites. The requirement to issue payments during the registration process insures that freelancers have a valid credit card for international transactions and can honor payment for the services on the site. Monthly fees constitute the only charges in exchange for services. Once you become a legit iFreelance member, you are free to interact with the other members. However, just bear in mind your account is limited to the specific work category pointed out during registration. Access to other areas binds you to open an additional basic account. Censorship concerning posts' content on the site is meant to ensure your work's safety through iFreelance. There are more than 1,500 freelancers registered on the site, which advertises 20-30 work projects per day. This doesn't mean that the things are slow on iFreelance. You are welcome to browse through the freelancers' profiles and invite them to bid on your specific project.
The classic scheme of the more you pay, the more you get is alive and well at iFreelance. The basic account entitles you to access limited features. This will allow you to more or less survive as an active member of the site. However, it is unlikely to land you any substantial bids. The moment you register, you are asked to define the category you'll be dealing with and to add an option, let's say you have writing and translation skills. Otherwise, you will have to pay and maintain two+ accounts if you strive to showcase multiple areas of expertise.
iFreelance doesn't act as a go-between employers and freelancers. It's method is based on monthly fees, as opposed to calculating commissions on every monetary transaction. When all is said and done, you are on your own to close a deal and make payment procedures.
Compared to its competition, iFreelance website lacks in design, particularly on mobile devices, which gives the feel of an outdated platform.
Posting a project requires you to fill-in a long and detailed application form. You'll be asked numerous relevant questions and if you merit the privilege of being accepted, you will be required to give your credit card information right away. No money, no deal. You will not even be allowed to browse around in "read-only" mode until you pay at least the basic monthly fee. This deters many new freelancers.
The navigation on the site is rather tricky despite its seemingly user-friendly looks. The moment you find a freelancer that complies with your project, you are forbidden to PM him/ her. Your only option is to invite your prospective freelancer to bid on your job posting.
Given iFreelance charges monthly fees, it would be natural to assume that they would feature top-notch tech support, but it doesn't.
iFreelance e-mail support is easily accessible through every page of the site, by pressing the "contact" icon. Get your time zone calculator handy, as the tech support will only process your tickets 6 am – 5 pm Pacific time, Monday to Friday. You can expect an answer within one business day, though it can take a little longer.
Fees charged at iFreelance are related to freelancer monthly accounts. Some freelancers have complained that iFreelance is charging too much for every additional section a freelancer adds to his/her working fields. However, the prices are reasonable, going from $6.25 to $12 per month. iFreelance claims its services to employers are entirely free. However, in certain instances, they charge a fee to post content or for other features, products, services or licenses. It's not clear whether the above apply exclusively to freelancers or to employers as well.
iFreelance doesn't conduct payment through the site. This is very convenient as it extricates you from the requirement to transfer and withdraw funds. No payment system means no Escrow either. This is convenient for people who prefer using their own payment options, but lack in security.
This site is ideal for seasoned freelancers, who have gained previous experience from other freelance sites and who are familiar with the inner workings of freelancing. This definitely justifies the monthly fees charged by iFreelance. The site's structure and functions are somewhat rigid. But you can work your way to the top lists of freelancers by purchasing a premium account, with additional paid features on offer. iFreelance is an adequate choice for employers seeking pro artists and writers with impressive portfolios. Novices to the freelancing world are recommended to gain some experience through other platforms before opting for iFreelance. Otherwise, they will feel disappointed and ripped off.


"What's this?? Have never seen anything like this before but it seems REALLY cool!!" Audiences are expected to make such comment at the first sight of this A-HO! exhibition. The A-HO! art is a ground-breaking new art genre advocated by broadcast writer Kuramoto Mitsuru to showcase the whimsical, peculiar yet always amusing and inspiring art works created by the latest generation of Japanese artists. Although some of them pay tribute to the traditions while others incorporate futuristic elements, both of their works turn out to be edgy and stimulating and definitely won't let you down.
Below are four art pieces of this exhibition, from which hopefully you could get a good idea of what "A-HO! Art" actually is. Visit here for more information. Enjoy!
消して出すアーホ!The Fool of Disappearance and Reappearance!
童心のアーホ!The Fool of Child's Mind!
いたかも?!のアーホ!The Fool of "It could have been there?"!


Thursday, April 26, 1- 7 p.m.; Friday, April 27, 9a.m. -7p.m. Saturday, April 28, 9a.m. -Noon.
They always need workers, baked goods, and items. If you could help set up on Wednesday, April 25 or work during the sale, please call Myra Boehnlein at 628-2532. If you have baked goods or items to donate, you can take them to the Union Hall after 1 p.m. on Wednesday, April 25 or after 9 a.m. on Thursday, April 26.
The Preferred Insurance team donated some items to the Minster- New Bremen Right to Life garage sale. Kathy Riethman dropped the items off and helped hang clothes and get organized before the sale starts. She said they have a full room of items so be sure to stop by and help a great cause!


text:
Teen Movie Madness FPJ Deathmatch: The Outsiders vs. Say Anything
By: Alix West | March 18, 2013
Here at FYA, we appreciate all that is scientific and fair. Which is why, against our better judgment, we bring you the Freddie Prinze, Jr. Overtime Deathmatch: Say Anything (13) vs. The Outsiders (5). Why is this happening? Lord knows, really. For some reason 50% of you seem to think that Say Anything deserves to remain in this tournament, and now we are at an impasse. There is only one way to solve this: violent, bloodthirsty battle royale calm and reasoned argument.
Normally, we'd have one person argue for each side, but given the hasty assembly of this post and the overwhelming preference at FYA HQ for Movies That Are Not Say Anything, things got a little messy this time around. Sarah is the sole primary champion of Say Anything, whereas Jenny was the most eloquent when expressing the good points of The Outsiders and not just slamming Lloyd Dobbler. The rest of us have filled in arguments where necessary, and I even tried to defend Say Anything in places for the sake of science. (It… didn't go well.)
And now, without further ado: the deathmatch shall begin.
Opening Arguments
Okay, how about the fact that The Outsiders is an ACTUALLY GOOD MOVIE? One that stands the test of time? We watched it recently, and it was just gorgeous. The shots, the story, and the acting. I got chills when I heard Ponyboy Curtis utter the opening lines: "When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman and a ride home."
As the lone Say Anything lover here at FYA HQ, I have thrown myself into careful research in order to give this 1989 gem the defense it most certainly deserves. I now present to you my opening argument:
This movie is adapted from an actual YA novel. In fact, one of THE YA novels, and it's an adaptation that stays true to the book.
Alix:
This film was written and directed by Cameron Crowe, which means that the source material is probably Cameron Crowe. I could argue that this is not as cool as basing your movie on a seminal novel that pretty much every American school kid has to read at some point, but I won't. Instead, I will give Cameron Crowe props for realism—how many hapless teens have identified with Lloyd over the years, just like Cameron before them?
Launched the careers of pretty much EVERYONE: Patrick Swayze, Tommy Howell, Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, Rob Lowe, Tom Cruise, Emilio Estevez, DIANE LANE, and Leif Garrett! And it ALSO features a cameo of none other than Tom Waits!!!! But there's more! What other cameos are in this film? Why, a very young Sofia Coppola, and the author herself, Ms. S.E. Hinton.
Lili Taylor. Being awesome. Per usual.
John and Joan Cusack, playing siblings in a movie.
Ione Skye, being beautiful.
Jeremy Piven, being drunk.
Eric Stoltz wearing a rooster costume.
It's one of the most beautiful love stories of ALL TIME, because that's what it's about — a bunch of boys who love each other. Stay gold.
Admittedly, Jenny, that is not the most convincing argument (although I, for one, am CONVINCED. But I was convinced long before we got here, soooo). Since I am incapable of saying good things about the "romance" in this movie, I will instead sample from one of our commenters last week:
"Say Anything is maybe the greatest love story ever committed to film."
That… is not so much an argument as a statement, the veracity of which is highly debatable. But it's all I've got, folks.
Honestly, I don't even want to defend The Outsiders, which I haven't seen since 7th grade English class. The real problem I have is the bizarre celebration of averageness that's happening with Say Anything. Coming into this tournament, I didn't have much of an opinion on Say Anything other than I thought it was a bit overhyped and really boring. But now, because of all of the inexplicable adulation for this mediocrefest of a movie, my apathy has turned to this:
Any movie left in the tournament (and most of them that are no longer with us) should be able to defeat this awful turdfest of a film, including The Outsiders, which, from what I remember, is pretty decent and has lots of pretty dudes. Why are we even having this conversation right now?!
Mandy W.:
Alix, I'm in the same boat as you re: Outsiders (haven't seen it since Grade 7 Language Arts). But how can you go wrong with a bunch of dudes with hearts of gold from the wrong side of the tracks? Just bro-ing out, them against the world. And it's one of the few teen movies that the most important relationships aren't about kissy-face.
I also haven't seen the Outsiders since 7th grade English! So I can't help with that one, but I can help with the shitting on Say Anything if we need it. But we might have enough of that already. So for now, I'll just say that a guy in high school told me I was just like Diane Court, which is insane, because she has no personality and high school me was BRIMMING with personality (good, bad or otherwise) and it remains to this day one of the most baffling and insulting compliments I've ever received. (And yes, he DID mean it as a compliment!)
Erin:
Say Anything has spawned a generation of Nice Guys who think that if they Just.Keep.Trying, that girl they like will go out with them. Who cares that the girl has declined, numerous times, and has too much shit going on in her life to even deal with some pissant kickboxer with delusions of awesomeness.
ALSO. If ANYONE showed up at my house, uninvited, and blared fucking Peter Gabriel outside my window to wake me up, I'd be waking their ass up with my shotgun.
Has anyone watched Say Anything SINCE they saw it when they were 13? Because it was on one day, and let me tell you, I preferred my memory of it.
Meghan:
I KNOW. I honestly can't remember anything about the movie, other than Lloyd and the girl driving around in a car a lot and me being SUPER DUPER BORED.
Okay, as much fun as we're having trashing Say Anything, we should probably bring it back to The Outsiders. I want folks to vote for The Outsiders based on merit, not just because the alternative is terrible. And if the following argument doesn't Swayze you, as Mandy would say, I don't know what will. Francis Ford Coppola directed The Outsiders! As commenter katherinelynn pointed out last week, Francis Ford Coppola also brought Champ Cans to the world. Ergo, a vote for Say Anything is a VOTE AGAINST CHAMP CANS. Choose wisely, good people.
In Say Anything, Cameron Crowe gave us a character who still resonates with teenagers (and adults). Lloyd Dobler isn't hot, and he isn't cool (have you seen that trench coat?), but he's dedicated to following his heart, and that's why he inspires hope in regular guys and girls everywhere. In this film, he learns how to go from being "just a guy" to being a man, and his journey is universal in its obstacles and victories. Also, he's really into kickboxing, which we all know is the sport of the future.
In closing, here are the other reasons why Say Anything is a cinematic classic.
This song.
"I gave her my heart, she gave me a pen."
Lloyd horsing around with his nephew, aka the cutest kid ever.
I know y'all could say anything about this movie, but when it comes to the polls, I hope you'll say YES.
What'll it be, FYA?
Polls close at Midnight CST tonight.
march madness,
About:Alix West
Alix is a writer and illustrator who spends way too much time reading Jane Austen retellings of varying quality.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Snails or Gastropods, are soft bodied animals enclosed in a hard protective coiled shell. They are very common animals, and have diversified to fill wide range of estuarine environments. Snails can be found from the weeds and algae in shallow waters, from soft muddy sediments in flowing waters, attached to plant material, rocks or pebbles of slow flowing waters and amongst leaves and debris in ponds and lakes. Snails have a unique feeding structure called a radula, which is a belt of chitinous teeth stretched over a cartilage base. This is scraped over the surface of rocks and plants to collect food. Some Freshwater snails have gills inside the shell, while others obtain oxygen from an air filled space within the body. More strangely, some species are thought to use a triangular shaped surface for breathing. Snails secrete their own shell, and it grows with age, so that the edge represents the youngest part of the shell. Freshwater snails play an important role in the breakdown of detritus, which is dead plant and animal material. Freshwater snails are generally very tolerant to water pollution.


text:
Joint Forces Staff College
Search Joint Forces Staff College: Search
A Message from Commandant
JFSC Faculty
Chapel Program
Joint Advanced Warfighting School (JAWS)
Prerequisites: JAWS
Joint and Combined Warfighting School (JCWS)
JCWS Prerequisites
JCWS: Preparing for Arrival
Joint C2 & Information Operations School (JC2IOS)
C4I Division
Information Operations Division
Joint Continuing and Distance Education School
Joint Transition Course (JTC)
International Fellows
Campaigning Journals
LTC Leamond "BO" Stuart
Military Faculty
LTC Stuart is currently serving as an Instructor at the Joint and Combined Warfighting School of the National Defense University's Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Virginia. The mission of the Joint Forces Staff College is to educate national security professionals to plan and execute operational-level joint, multinational, and interagency operations to instill a primary commitment to joint, multinational, and interagency teamwork, attitudes, and perspectives. He has over 21 years of military service predominantly the tactical level; however, his duty assignments include over three years of operational level experience as a planner at the Combatant Command designated Joint Task Forces. An Army brat growing up, the United States Army commissioned LTC Stuart a Second Lieutenant in the Infantry from North Georgia College in 1993. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from North Georgia and a Masters of Administration (Leadership) from Central Michigan University. LTC Stuart's assignments include duty as a Platoon Leader, Company Executive Officer and Air Operations Officer with 1-32nd Infantry (Light), Ft. Drum, NY. After completion of the Infantry officers Advanced Course LTC Stuart attended Special Forces Assessment and Selection course and subsequently, the Special Forces Detachment Officer Qualification Course, graduating in 1999. He served as the Commander of Operational Detachment Alpha's 762 and 766 from 1999-2001. He was then selected for command of a Recruiting Company in Mission Viejo, California and then as the Operations Officer and Executive Officer of the United States Army Parachute Team (Golden Knights) at Ft Bragg, NC. In 2005, he attended the Command and General Staff College, followed by attendance at the Civil Affairs Officer Qualification Course. He served as a Civil Affairs Detachment Commander during the Iraq surge in 2007, after his Iraq tour he took command of Bravo Company 98th Civil Affairs Bn during a 9-month South American deployment. He was then assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team in Vicenza, Italy, where he served as the Civil Military Affairs Officer during a deployment to Afghanistan's Logar and Wardak provinces. After his first Afghan tour he was assigned to US Army Africa as the Army component G-9(Civil-Military Operations). His next assignment was to the Joint Enabling Capabilities Command (JECC), where he served as an operational planner for multiple Combatant Command designated JTF's including his second Afghan tour.
LTC Stuart's military schooling includes: the Infantry Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, Airborne School, Air Assault School, Ranger School, Special Forces Detachment Officer Qualification Course, Civil Affairs Officer Qualification Course, Special Forces Advanced Urban Combat Course, High Altitude Parachutist Course, the Command and General Staff College, United Kingdom Joint Operational Planners Course, NATO Planners Course, Joint Enabling Capabilities Planners Course and the Joint and Combined Warfighting School. His awards include the Bronze Star Medal (2), Meritorious Service Medal (4), Army Commendation Medal (2), Army Achievement Medal (4), Meritorious Unit Citation (1), National Defense Service Ribbon (2), Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Campaign Star, Iraqi Campaign Medal with Campaign Star, Global War on Terror Service Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon (5), Combat Action Badge, Parachutist badge, HALO badge, Expert Infantryman's badge, Air Assault Badge, Ranger Tab and El Salvadoran, Chilean, Argentine, and Colombian Airborne wings.
Back to JFSC Faculty
National Defense University
Fort Lesley J. McNair
Email: Contact NDU
Contacts, JFSC
DoD No FEAR Act
DoD Inspector General
Military/DoD Websites


Good morning!! I hope everyone is doing well!! You've probably noticed that I've been doing a few less posts since Lillian has been born and a few people have texted and emailed to see if we are okay! Thanks every for checking in- we are GREAT!! We are having the best time with our family of three. I will share more later about tips I've learned, products I love, and more about our Little Miss Lillian at a later date.
I had to update everyone on an AMAZING sale going on at my favorite store Target!! When Lillian was a week old we had our first outing to Target because I had to stock up on the essential things for baby! I thought I was prepared, but boy was I wrong. There were so many things I needed (more travel size wipes, lots of hand sanitizer, bigger onesies, and some more Honest products). I swear, every time Claire would call me I was at Target! But seriously, every time.
So, I'm obviously thrilled to share that in addition to their great every day low prices, Target is currently having an amazing promotion which I am sure will delight parents!! Lots of baby items are on sale, and even better-- the more you spend, the more you get!
"What are you talking about, Caroline? Sleep deprivation has gotten to you!" Wrong! I'm actually sleeping great and I'm not kidding about this great sale. Spend money on baby products and you earn Target gift cards!!
Honest Liquid Detergent // Honest Dryer Cloths // Honest Baby Wipes // Honest Hand Sanitizer // Pampers Swaddlers // Graco Pack n Play (since we travel so much) // and more!! I also picked up a few things for around the house and some candy for me!
A special thank you to Target for partnering on this post. I couldn't imagine getting through these first weeks of parenthood without Target!!


I love a pair of white denim, I have had these for years and am currently on the hunt for a new pair. Unfortunately, now is not the season to shop for white denim since most stores near the end of summer pull them off the shelves. In the spring, when they are back on the shelves, I plan on trying a couple of stores like Old Navy and Express. Old Navy has recently been my go-to for jeans, I absolutely love their fit, styles, and price. In the meantime, I will be living in oversized sweaters!


How To Export the Text of an Answer Instead of the Code?
When exporting the data you can either the export with code (Default) or export the Text of the answers.
'Check All' - If you would like to change this setting to all questions or click on the questions that you would like to apply this on.
These configurations can also be done after data collection was completed.
I think this is a very poor design if a user has to set the option of "Export Answers as Text" for every Single Survey question. This will be a nightmare if the Survey has 100+ questions.
The export functionality should have an option to display "Text" instead of codes.
Thank you for reviewing this and the comment.
We will update this HowTo to reflect this as well.
I am looking exactly for this option in order to export to Excel, however is it possible to return to the original format so I can export to SPSS?


There is a specific way to cancel your subscription, depending on where you purchased it.
On your iPhone go to Settings > [your name] > iTunes & App Store.
Tap View Apple ID. You might need to sign in or use Touch /Face ID.
Did you purchase elsewhere, or need more assistance?
Reach out to us at human@paperkarma.com!


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Our recipes are 100% natural. The ingredients used are on the peak of botanology. We collect only the best herbs and plants on the proper time and day as it is indispensable to preserve all the benefits of each herb.
Due to a constant dispatch of more than 500 products in Greece and abroad (Germany; France; Ukraine; Romania; Sweden and Cyprus) we show the continuous effort we make to improve and evolve our services in order to offer high-quality natural products while showing respect to nature as to your needs too.


Come and see the Dazzlin' Dorrells – On Sunday evening, February 17 at 6 :00 p.m. we will have the Dorrell family as our guests. Nathan (known as the Crazy Tie Guy) and Kathy Dorrell and their family present the gospel through entertainment. They perform juggling acts and other tricks while sharing God's Word with the audience. Invite your friends and family to this exciting service.
"Parent's Night Out" – Friday, February 15, from 6 p.m. to 8.p.m. See Chrystal Bates for more information and to pre-register. Games, pizza, and crafts will be furnished at no cost.
Continue to put your change in your "Rice Bowl." Bring it back to church on Sunday, February 24. All the funds collected will be distributed to Christian orphanages throughout the world.
Easter Fest will be Wednesday, March 27 at 6 p.m.. We will need volunteers to help with games, registration, hiding eggs, cake walk, and monitoring the inflatables. Prayerfully consider how you can help with this event. You will be given the opportunity to sign up soon.
VBS Volunteers – Vacation Bible School will be the week of June 17-21 from 9 a.m. to noon. We are taking volunteers now for teachers and helpers. If you would like to participate in this ministry, please indicate this on the registration form.
120 Prayer Warriors Wanted! Dr. Jay would like to have 120 volunteers to pray for the ministries of NCBC this Spring. If you are willing to commit to this ministry, sign up on the registration form.
New Men's Bible Study – Dave Olson will be leading a study series on James called "Growing Up In Christ" beginning Thursday, February 21 from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. The cost for this 8-week session is $8.00. Please sign up on the registration form by Sunday, February 17 if you are interested in attending.
Sam and Patsy Bettis on the recent death of her father, Leon Lewis.
David and Jackie McCoy in the recent death of her mother, Inez Davis.
The family of Jim Hurst who recently passed away.
David and Cheri Ellis and family on the recent death of his sister, Barbara "Dee" Couch.
Don and Sherri' Littrell and family on the recent death of his step-grandmother, Myrtle Johnson in Kentucky.
Ann Duggan and family on the recent death of her father-in-law, Herman Duggan. He was also the grandfather of Penny Howell and Sherri Maxfield.


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We work to your brief, using the latest technology to make enquiries, follow 'the target', do research, analyse information and check facts to gather information for you to answer your questions and give you peace of mind. Our experienced investigators are based in Oxford, but work throughout the UK and Northern Ireland to gather information and evidence to investigate and answer your questions.
APW are Private Investigators in Oxford who work throughout the UK with most of our work coming from local areas including Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Reading, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Alyesbury.
Our surveillance and private investigations gather evidence to find answers for clients for all kinds of reason which may include divorce, evidence of infidelity, finances and finding missing people.
We have the skills and experience to carry out mobile or static surveillance with the utmost discretion and in the most sensitive of circumstances. Such investigations include finding evidence of misconduct, theft (of intellectual property also) and fraud.
We carry out work for solicitors including serving legal documents, obtaining forensic evidence, investigating accidents and finding a missing person.
Our team of ex-Police Officers have an excellent knowledge of the law, plus the confidence and experience that is second to none!


The Chernobyl exclusion zone consists not only of the well-known city of Prypiat and the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. It encompasses an area with 30Km of radius with the center being the power plant. This totalizes an area of 2600 square kilometers which covers more than a 120 settlements, farms and cities in both territories of Ukraine and Belarus. All of them had to be evacuated after the disaster and some even destroyed as for example the village of Kopachi, which was completely put down with exception of its Kindergarten that still remains. In this first part we cover the village of Zhalyssia, an abandoned farm, a bit of Chernobyl village and Kopachi's kindergarten. In 2015 an old lady self-settler who refused to abandon her house in Zhalyssia died of old-age with almost 90 years of age. To visit these places feels like a time-travel back to April 1986. Nature has taken over everything.
Chernobyl village - Chernobyl Exclusion Zone - Reference to angel's playing trumpet on Matthew's revelation in the bible.


Now the sun has begun to reappear in the skies we headed back on April 25th 2016 to Soho to experience what claims to be London's first beach bar, Myki Sand Bar. This time the Archers Street team have teamed up with Cîroc vodka brand and will be around until late 2016 (usually each popup lasts 6 months). The bar features an exclusive bespoke menu of cocktails curated by Cîroc, featuring a selection of its most popular vodkas including Cîroc Blue Stone, Cîroc Pineapple and the exclusive new Cîroc Pink Grapefruit to name a few.
A beach ball in real sand inside!
The bar allows you to experience the warmth of a summer holiday in the heart of Soho, inside you will find tropical palms, ceiling sails, glistening golden sand (yes real sand!) and panoramic shots of the world's most glamorous beaches, recreating the ultimate luxury of European beach clubs. be furnished with clean white and blue interiors, tropical palms, ceiling sails, glistening golden sand and panoramic shots of the world's most glamorous beaches, encapsulating the ultimate luxury of European beach clubs. Myki Sand Bar is the place to escape the sweltering City this summer without stepping a foot out of Soho.
Alcohol Emporium review: Great tasting and well-presented all the flavours come through nicely. Very sweet tasting. Our favourite of the two cocktails we tried on the night.
Ingredients: Ciroc vodka, Salted watermelon, Pistachio, Lime Mint all topped off with soda.
Alcohol Emporium Review: Our opinion is that it would be better served in a smaller glass as the watermelon overpowers the drink and for us made it difficult to drink more than a quarter of the glass.
The launch was on 24th April 2016 and the bar will be open to the public from Thursday to Saturday (4pm-1am) and VIP booths are available to book throughout the weekend. The bar can be used for private hire, should you wish to add a bit of summer warmth to a Birthday or corporate event and has a capacity of 220.
The Archer Street team will offer guests live entertainment sporadically throughout the evenings, with favourite summer hits from various decades. The team also promise a 'closing party' to rival those seen in Ibiza later in the year, so keep your eye out!
You may even see an X Factor contestant like we did! (Mason Noise for those who didn't know).
This entry was posted in Bars & Popups, Blog. Bookmark the permalink.


text:
[Orion's Daily Ramblings] Go Doo-shim Becomes the Titular Fairy of "Mama Fairy and the Woodcutter"
After the element of shapeshifting was teased during the drama's early casting stages, we didn't really read much about it, but "Mama Fairy and the Woodcutter" has now confirmed it by casting actress Go Doo-shim as an alternative form of its heroine.
Go Doo-shim joins Moon Chae-won in playing Seon Ok-nam, the titular fairy who lost her wings and is now working as a barista in the modern day while waiting for her husband to be reincarnated. Until this reincarnation happens, she can't go back to heaven, which makes that guy sound like the absolute worst deadbeat of a husband one could get.
Be that as it may, the romance is happening, and Ok-nam has a complicated life to tackle alongside it. Ok-nam's appearance depends on the relationships she has with people. Go Doo-shim plays the kind-looking grandmother, which is the form most humans can see.
In addition, Ok-nam's clashing with and adaptation to the modern world after ending her seclusion in the mountains will be presented in a comical manner, and is expected to bring refreshing energy to the drama. Good luck to her in this quest for finding love and going home.
"[Orion's Daily Ramblings] Go Doo-shim Becomes the Titular Fairy of "Mama Fairy and the Woodcutter""
Mama Fairy and the Woodcutter
(계룡선녀전 - 2018)
[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Switch - Change the World" Episodes 29-30
Mr. Kim (played by Song Won-seok) is Tae-woong's right-hand man, and can usually be counted on to ,...More
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No, this news isn't about Oz, but it is about dramaland. The munchkins behind the scenes have been,...More
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text:
Opening of new Kendriya Vidyalayas
DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1945
ANSWERED ON 19.12.2022
SETTING UP NEW KENDRIYA VIDYALAYAS
1945. SHRI SANJAY KAKA PATIL:
Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Government has taken any steps to open new Kendriya Vidyalayas;
(b) if so, the details thereof, State-wise, particularly in the Western Maharashtra;
(c) whether the Government has taken any steps to promote Indian culture, educational tradition, and value-based education along with job creation for the students;
(d) the steps taken by the Government to counter the competition of private school in the booming education sector; and
(e) the steps taken by the Government to target the economical weaker sections of society to take advantage of good education?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
(SMT. ANNPURNA DEVI)
(a) & (b) Opening of new Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) is a continuous process. KVs are opened primarily to cater to the educational needs of the wards of transferable Central Government Employees including Defence & Para-military personnel, Central Autonomous Bodies, Central Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and Central Institute of Higher Learning (IHL) by providing a common programme of education throughout the country. Proposals for opening of new KVs may be sponsored by Ministries or Departments of the Government of India / State Governments / Union Territories (UTs) Administrations, with commitment to provide requisite resources for setting up a new KV as per norms. The proposals are subject to approval of the competent authority.
Proposals / requests for opening of new KVs at various parts of the country have been received by Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) from various sponsoring authorities / public representatives. Ministry of Home Affairs has submitted a proposal for setting up of new KV at NDRF Sudumbare (Western Maharashtra).
(c) KVS has taken following initiatives to promote Indian culture, educational tradition and valued based education along with job creation to its students;
Activities under Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat, Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, Bhasha Sangam.
Awakened Citizen programme in collaboration with Ram Krishna Mission.
Pre-vocational skill educations being taught in Classes VI to VIII.
Vocational Courses like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Information Technology (IT) are offered as optional skill subject in Classes IX & X.
(d) Central Government Schools namely KVs and Jawahar Nvodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) are under the Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education. KVs and JNVs have been constantly giving excellent results, which are above the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) average. The pass percentages of KVs and JNVs students in the X and XII board examinations conducted by CBSE are much better as compared to the results of CBSE affiliated private schools.
(e) Education is in the Concurrent List of the Constitution and majority of schools are under the jurisdiction of the respective State Government and Union Territory Administration which are the appropriate Government for implementation of the provision of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009. The RTE Act, 2009, mandates the appropriate Government to provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age 6 to 14 years in a neighbourhood school. The RTE Act is applicable throughout the country.
Section 12(1)(c) of the RTE Act, 2009 provides for admission of children belonging to weaker sections and disadvantaged groups in the schools specified in sub-clauses (iii) and (iv) of clause (n) of section 2 in Class I (or below) to the extent of at least 25 percent of the strength of that class.
State/ UT Government is required to notify the disadvantaged groups and weaker sections, per child cost and start admissions as per the laid down procedure and have a grievance redressal mechanism in place. The Central Government is supporting States and UTs for re-imbursement of expenditure incurred towards payment made to private schools for admission of children under Section 12(1)(c) from 2014-15.
The Department of School Education and Literacy with effect from 2018-19 has launched an Integrated Centrally Sponsored Scheme for School Education- Samagra Shiksha. The scheme has now been aligned with the recommendations of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 to ensure that all children have access to quality education with an equitable and inclusive classroom environment which should take care of their diverse background, multilingual needs, different academic abilities and make them active participants in the learning process.
Under the Scheme, financial assistance is provided to States and UTs for undertaking various activities for universalisation of school education including opening/strengthening of new schools upto senior secondary level, construction of school buildings & additional classrooms, setting up, up-gradation and running of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas, setting up of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Avasiya Vidyalayas, free uniforms, free text books, transport allowance and undertaking enrolment & retention drives. Further, special training for age appropriate admission of out of school children and residential as well as non-residential training for older children, seasonal hostels / residential camps, special training centres at worksites, transport/ escort facility are also supported to bring out of school children to the formal schooling system. Further, under the student oriented component for the children with special needs, financial assistance is provided for identification and assessment of children with special needs, aids and appliances, braille kits and books, appropriate teaching learning material and stipend to girl students with disability etc.
From 2021-22, financial assistance upto Rs. 2000 per annum has been envisioned for supporting Out of School Children of age group of 16-19 years, belonging to socio economically disadvantaged groups, for completing their education through National Institute of Open Schooling / State Institute of Open Schooling, for accessing course materials and certification.
Tags Education KVS School


Queen Futon Bed Home And Furniture | Chrisadamczykphotography nashville queen size futon bed frame. queen futon platform bed. queen futon bed base.
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text:
---
id: automationProtocols
title: Automation Protocols
---

import Tabs from '@theme/Tabs';
import TabItem from '@theme/TabItem';

With WebdriverIO, you can choose between multiple automation technologies when running your E2E tests locally or in the cloud. By default WebdriverIO will always check for a browser driver that is compliant to the WebDriver protocol on `localhost:4444`. If it can't find such driver it falls back to use Chrome DevTools using Puppeteer under the hood.

Nearly all modern browsers that support [WebDriver](https://w3c.github.io/webdriver/) also support another native interface called [DevTools](https://chromedevtools.github.io/devtools-protocol/) that can be used for automation purposes.

Both have advantages and disadvantages, depending on your use case and environment.

## WebDriver Protocol

> [WebDriver](https://w3c.github.io/webdriver/) is a remote control interface that enables introspection and control of user agents. It provides a platform- and language-neutral wire protocol as a way for out-of-process programs to remotely instruct the behavior of web browsers.

The WebDriver protocol was designed to automate a browser from the user perspective, meaning that everything a user is able to do, you can do with the browser. It provides a set of commands that abstract away common interactions with an application (e.g., navigating, clicking, or reading the state of an element). Since it is a web standard, it is well supported across all major browser vendors, and also is being used as underlying protocol for mobile automation using [Appium](http://appium.io).

To use this automation protocol, you need a proxy server that translates all commands and executes them in the target environment (i.e. the browser or the mobile app).

For browser automation, the proxy server is usually the browser driver. There are drivers  available for all browsers:

- Chrome – [ChromeDriver](http://chromedriver.chromium.org/downloads)
- Firefox – [Geckodriver](https://github.com/mozilla/geckodriver/releases)
- Microsoft Edge – [Edge Driver](https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/tools/webdriver/)
- Internet Explorer – [InternetExplorerDriver](https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/wiki/InternetExplorerDriver)
- Safari – [SafariDriver](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/webkit/testing_with_webdriver_in_safari)

For any kind of mobile automation, you'll need to install and setup [Appium](http://appium.io). It will allow you to automate mobile (iOS/Android) or even desktop (macOS/Windows) applications using the same WebdriverIO setup.

There are also plenty of services that allow you to run your automation test in the cloud at high scale. Instead of having to setup all these drivers locally, you can just talk to these services (e.g. [Sauce Labs](https://saucelabs.com)) in the cloud and inspect the results on their platform. The communication between test script and automation environment will look as follows:

![WebDriver Setup](/img/webdriver.png)

### Advantages

- Official W3C web standard, supported by all major browsers
- Simplified protocol that covers common user interactions
- Support for mobile automation (and even native desktop apps)
- Can be used locally as well as in the cloud through services like [Sauce Labs](https://saucelabs.com)

### Disadvantages

- Not designed for in-depth browser analysis (e.g., tracing or intercepting network events)
- Limited set of automation capabilities (e.g., no support to throttle CPU or network)
- Additional effort to set up browser driver with selenium-standalone/chromedriver/etc

## DevTools Protocol

The DevTools interface is a native browser interface that is usually being used to debug the browser from a remote application (e.g., [Chrome DevTools](https://developers.google.com/web/tools/chrome-devtools/)). Next to its capabilities to inspect the browser in nearly all possible forms, it can also be used to control it.

While every browser used to have its own internal DevTools interface that was not really exposed to the user, more and more browsers are now adopting the [Chrome DevTools Protocol](https://chromedevtools.github.io/devtools-protocol/). It is used to either debug a web application using Chrome DevTools or control Chrome using tools like [Puppeteer](https://pptr.dev).

The communication happens without any proxy, directly to the browser using WebSockets:

![DevTools Setup](/img/devtools.png)

WebdriverIO allows you to use the DevTools capabilities as an alternative automation technology for WebDriver if you have special requirements to automate the browser. With the [`devtools`](https://www.npmjs.com/package/devtools) NPM package, you can use the same commands that WebDriver provides, which then can be used by WebdriverIO and the WDIO testrunner to run its useful commands on top of that protocol. It uses Puppeteer to under the hood and allows you to run a sequence of commands with Puppeteer if needed.

To use DevTools as your automation protocol switch the `automationProtocol` flag to `devtools` in your configurations or just run WebdriverIO without a browser driver run in the background.

<Tabs
  defaultValue="testrunner"
  values={[
    {label: 'Testrunner', value: 'testrunner'},
    {label: 'Standalone', value: 'standalone'},
  ]
}>
<TabItem value="testrunner">

```js title="wdio.conf.js"
export const config = {
    // ...
    automationProtocol: 'devtools'
    // ...
}
```
```js title="devtools.e2e.js"
describe('my test', () => {
    it('can use Puppeteer as automation fallback', async () => {
        // WebDriver command
        await browser.url('https://webdriver.io')

        // get <Puppeteer.Browser> instance (https://pptr.dev/#?product=Puppeteer&version=v5.2.1&show=api-class-browser)
        const puppeteer = await browser.getPuppeteer()

        // use Puppeteer interfaces
        const page = (await puppeteer.pages())[0]
        await page.setRequestInterception(true)
        page.on('request', interceptedRequest => {
            if (interceptedRequest.url().endsWith('webdriverio.png')) {
                return interceptedRequest.continue({
                    url: 'https://webdriver.io/img/puppeteer.png'
                })
            }

            interceptedRequest.continue()
        })

        // continue with WebDriver commands
        await browser.url('https://webdriver.io')

        /**
         * WebdriverIO logo is no replaced with the Puppeteer logo
         */
    })
})
```

__Note:__ there is no need to have either `selenium-standalone` or `chromedriver` services installed.

We recommend wrapping your Puppeteer calls within the `call` command, so that all calls are executed before WebdriverIO continues with the next WebDriver command.

</TabItem>
<TabItem value="standalone">

```js
import { remote } from 'webdriverio'

const browser = await remote({
    automationProtocol: 'devtools',
    capabilities: {
        browserName: 'chrome'
    }
})

// WebDriver command
await browser.url('https://webdriver.io')

// get <Puppeteer.Browser> instance (https://pptr.dev/#?product=Puppeteer&version=v5.2.1&show=api-class-browser)
const puppeteer = await browser.getPuppeteer()

// switch to Puppeteer to intercept requests
const page = (await puppeteer.pages())[0]
await page.setRequestInterception(true)
page.on('request', interceptedRequest => {
    if (interceptedRequest.url().endsWith('webdriverio.png')) {
        return interceptedRequest.continue({
            url: 'https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/10379601/29446482-04f7036a-841f-11e7-9872-91d1fc2ea683.png'
        })
    }

    interceptedRequest.continue()
})

// continue with WebDriver commands
await browser.refresh()
await browser.pause(2000)

await browser.deleteSession()
```

</TabItem>
</Tabs>

By accessing the Puppeteer interface, you have access to a variety of new capabilities to automate or inspect the browser and your application, e.g. intercepting network requests (see above), tracing the browser, throttle CPU or network capabilities, and much more.

### `wdio:devtoolsOptions` Capability

If you run WebdriverIO tests through the DevTools package, you can apply [custom Puppeteer options](https://pptr.dev/#?product=Puppeteer&version=v8.0.0&show=api-puppeteerlaunchoptions). These options will be directly passed into the [`launch`](https://pptr.dev/#?product=Puppeteer&version=v8.0.0&show=api-puppeteerlaunchoptions) or [`connect`](https://pptr.dev/#?product=Puppeteer&version=v8.0.0&show=api-puppeteerconnectoptions) methods of Puppeteer. Other custom devtools options are the following:

#### customPort
Start Chrome on a custom port.

Type: `number`<br />
Default: `9222` (default of Puppeteer)

Note: if you pass in `goog:chromeOptions/debuggerAddress`, `wdio:devtoolsOptions/browserWSEndpoint` or `wdio:devtoolsOptions/browserURL` options, WebdriverIO will try to connect with given connection details rather than starting a browser. For example you can connect to Testingbots cloud via:

```js
import { format } from 'util'
import { remote } from 'webdriverio'

(async () => {
    const browser = await remote({
        capabilities: {
            'wdio:devtoolsOptions': {
                browserWSEndpoint: format(
                    `wss://cloud.testingbot.com?key=%s&secret=%s&browserName=chrome&browserVersion=latest`,
                    process.env.TESTINGBOT_KEY,
                    process.env.TESTINGBOT_SECRET
                )
            }
        }
    })

    await browser.url('https://webdriver.io')

    const title = await browser.getTitle()
    console.log(title) // returns "should return "WebdriverIO - click""

    await browser.deleteSession()
})()
```

### Advantages

- Access to more automation capabilities (e.g. network interception, tracing etc.)
- No need to manage browser drivers

### Disadvantages

- Only supports Chromium based browser (e.g. Chrome, Chromium Edge) and (partially) Firefox
- Does __not__ support execution on cloud vendors such as Sauce Labs, BrowserStack etc.


text:
Duck Amuck Daffy Duck Production Cel (Warner Brothers, 1953)....
Duck Amuck Daffy Duck Production Cel (Warner Brothers, 1953). "Under a spreading chestnut tree..." spouts a dazed Daffy Duck after a torturous time at the hands of an unseen mischievous animator, in this rare original hand-inked, hand-painted production cel. Duck Amuck is regarded as one of Chuck Jones' Merrie Melodies masterpieces, a cartoon so funny it has been chosen by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry. Here, the anvil Daffy has been hitting with a big hammer is about to become a live artillery shell and... well, you know what happens next (if not, you have some serious cartoon watching ahead of you). The short is online; this scene occurs at the 6:20 mark. The full image size of Daffy Duck and his hammer measures approximately 3" x 5.75". A Warner Brothers Cartoons Inc. copyright notice has been attached to the cel in the lower right. The background is a print, added for presentation purposes. The cel is matted with an opening of 11" x 8.75", it's been framed with Plexiglas for an overall size of 15.75" x 13.5". Frame is sold as-is.
Far as I'm concerned, the real superheroes are those great guys at Heritage.


NewTown Immigration Inc. offers recruiting services to help employers fill gaps in their labour force.
We can find qualified candidates to join your organization and help your business grow.
We are committed to helping foreign workers settle properly in their new environment.
Find out how we can use our global network to help you source the skilled workers you need.


text:
Q: How to use Unsupported Locales in java.text.DateFormat I am trying to get the date format for Pakistan locale "en_PK" which is ""dd/MM/yy"
Locale localePK = new Locale("en", "PK");
DateFormat df = DateFormat.getDateInstance(DateFormat.SHORT, localePK);

The above snippet returns "MM/dd/yy"
But the locale seems to be unsupported and not available in the DateFormat.getAvailableLocales() List.
Please suggest an ideal way to resolve this. Thanks in advance.

A: Search for the country name using the Locale object while navigating DateFormat.getAvailableLocales() and break the loop once you've found it.
import java.text.DateFormat;
import java.time.LocalDate;
import java.time.chrono.IsoChronology;
import java.time.format.DateTimeFormatter;
import java.time.format.DateTimeFormatterBuilder;
import java.time.format.FormatStyle;
import java.util.Locale;

public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Locale localePk = null;
        for (Locale locale : DateFormat.getAvailableLocales()) {
            if (locale.getDisplayCountry().equals("Pakistan")) {
                localePk = locale;
                break;
            }
        }
        if (localePk != null) {
            String datePattern = DateTimeFormatterBuilder.getLocalizedDateTimePattern(FormatStyle.SHORT, null,
                    IsoChronology.INSTANCE, localePk);
            System.out.println(LocalDate.now().format(DateTimeFormatter.ofPattern(datePattern, localePk)));
        }
    }
}

Output:
10/10/2020

Note that DateTimeFormatterBuilder is part of the modern date-time API.
If you are doing it for your Android project and your Android API level is still not compliant with Java-8, check Java 8+ APIs available through desugaring and How to use ThreeTenABP in Android Project.
java.util date-time classes are outdated and error-prone and so is their formatting API, DateFormat. However, if you are still looking for a solution using these legacy APIs, given below is one:
import java.text.DateFormat;
import java.util.Date;
import java.util.Locale;

public class Main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Locale localePk = null;
        for (Locale locale : DateFormat.getAvailableLocales()) {
            if (locale.getDisplayCountry().equals("Pakistan")) {
                localePk = locale;
                break;
            }
        }
        if (localePk != null) {
            DateFormat df = DateFormat.getDateInstance(DateFormat.SHORT, localePk);
            System.out.println(df.format(new Date()));
        }
    }
}

Output:
10/10/2020

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Jefferson voters take first pass at budget, decide on dam purchase Tuesday
Jefferson rresidents on Tuesday will consider approval of the school budget that will appear on the June ballot and whether to take ownership of the contentious Clary Lake dam.
By Paul KoenigStaff Writer
2013 Town Meetings
JEFFERSON — Residents will vote on two unrelated issues Tuesday night: approval of the school budget that will appear on the June ballot and whether to take ownership of Clary Lake dam, a source of much contention.
The annual Town Meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. in the Jefferson Village School gymnasium.
The $5,137,521 proposed budget for kindergarten-through-grade 12 education will request $3,412,474 in town money.
Reduced state funding caused the local contribution to rise by $216,000, which is 6.7 percent higher the year before, despite the overall budget going down by $91,000, according to Robert Westrich, chairman of the School Committee.
He said the increase represents a tax increase of $62 per $100,000 of assessed value.
Residents will be able to discuss and vote on individual budget items at Tuesday night's meeting. The budget approved at the meeting then will be put to secret-ballot vote on June 4.
Unlike in previous years, the Budget and School committees agreed on all of the budget items, Westrich said.
"We did what the state and federal government is not doing," Westrich said. "We talked to one another, and we worked together to get to a budget that we thought the town could afford."
He said proposed cuts to the budget include the elimination of a part-time guidance counselor and a part-time teacher of gifted and talented students.
Westrich said the instruction gap will be covered by other teachers certified for gifted and talented students. The part-time guidance councilor duties will be taken over by a social worker and the principal, he said.
Westrich said he expects the proposed budget will be approved Tuesday night, but the question is whether residents who go to the polls in June will sign off on it.
"Of course, there are a lot of things in the Legislature that could have an impact on us," Westrich said. "We always run the risk of having curtailments, like we did this year; so we're always cautious about our budget, not padding it, but hoping things work out."
The status of the other issue on the meeting agenda — the ownership of Clary Lake dam — might be even less certain than the state budget.
Pleasant Pond Mill LLC, owner of the Whitefield dam, filed a petition last month with the state Department of Environmental Protection to release ownership of the century-old dam.
The process of releasing ownership includes consulting with various local and state stakeholders to see whether another owner can be found.
The dam owner and the lake association also are involved in an ongoing DEP water-level petition for Clary Lake.
State law requires towns around the lake to hold a town meeting to vote on the issue within 60 days of a dam ownership-release petition being filed.
Jefferson and Whitefield must hold meetings by the end of May, but the department has yet to accept the petition.
The petition came under review after Paul Kelley, the manager of Pleasant Pond Mill LLC, had to submit additional ownership evidence showing his company access to the dam and flowage rights.
Hydropower coordinator for the DEP, Kathy Howatt, said she's reviewing the additional clarifications Kelley submitted last week.
Whitefield plans to hold its meeting May 30, so that meeting could be canceled if the department decides to not accept the position before the end of the month.
Jefferson Town Clerk Lynne Barnikow said she's not sure how the residents would feel about the idea of owning the dam.
"We have no feelings on it whatsoever because we just don't have enough information as far as where it stands with DEP," she said.
Paul Koenig — 621-5663


Indigenous people in Guatemala have been "criminalised" for opposing a hydroelectric dam financed through the UN's Clean Development Mechanism, European Union lawmakers heard on Tuesday.
Local activist Maximo Ba Tiul said his people were not consulted on the construction of the Santa Rita plant.
Three people were killed, 50 injured and 30 arrested in a police crackdown on peaceful protest last year, according to Carbon Market Watch.
At an event in the European Parliament, human rights groups urged MEPs to make sure future climate finance comes with safeguards against such abuses.
Protesters of Barro Branco dam in Panama faced similarly violent repression, she reported, while CDM-backed "clean" coal projects in India threatened the health of local people.
While the CDM was not responsible for the alleged abuses, Carbon Market Watch argues it should withdraw credits from any project associated with violence against protesters.
The CDM was conceived as a way for developed countries to "offset" some of their obligations under the Kyoto Protocol by funding low carbon projects overseas.
As developing countries are increasingly expected to shoulder some share of responsibility for emissions cuts, carbon offsetting has given way to climate finance.
Developed countries have promised to mobilise US$100 billion a year by 2020 to help the world's poor with low carbon development and adapting to climate change.
The Green Climate Fund has raised US$10 billion from governments and its board meets this week to discuss ways to leverage more from the private sector.
Comment: What next for the Green Climate Fund?
Meera Ghani of CIDSE, an international alliance of Catholic development agencies, raised concerns about accountability.
"There is little accountability, there is little transparency and little ability to see how it impacts people on the ground," she said.
Countries meet for a development finance this July, to set sustainable development goals in September and strike a climate deal in December.
"All these occasions can be used to stress that it is urgent and vital to introduce a human rights-based approach to mitigation and adaptation to climate change," she said.
Four European countries – France, Ireland, Sweden and Germany – have signed up to last month's Geneva Pledge, promising to promote human rights in a global climate deal.
Antonis Alexandridis, an official in the European External Action Service, said the EU was developing an action plan to "connect a rights-based approach with a global agenda".
Human rights are already embedded in the EU's approach to development cooperation, he said. They are planning extend that to other issues in a way that will "answer the Geneva Pledge".


Three years ago, my mother, Hazel Johnson, widely regarded as the "mother of the environmental justice movement," made her transition from this world she so loved. As her daughter, I knew firsthand what an extraordinary woman she was and understood there was a guiding force behind the struggles she endured for her fellow man.
As I reflect on her life's work, I now see she was a woman truly ahead of her time, a true visionary who forecasted the negative outcomes from failing to address blighted environmental and social justice conditions. It turns out that my mom was nearly correct in many of her predictions. If you ever had the opportunity to have been around Hazel Johnson or even heard her speak at one of the many environmental venues she graced, you too would have been witness to her foresight into the harmful effects of high levels of pollution in our air, water, and land.
She was talking about environmental justice before anyone knew what to call it. She also had the foresight to understand the impacts of climate change very early on, especially as it would impact our low income and minority communities. This February 2014 marks the 20th anniversary of President Clinton's signing of the Environmental Justice Executive Order 12898. My mother had the honor of playing an instrumental role in its creation with her fellow EJ advocates, and leading up to the Order's signing on February 11, 1994, Hazel did not describe the harmful impacts on the environment using the familiar term "climate change," but she did express alarm about the "changes in our weather patterns." The global citizens of the 21st century are all witness to the extremes in our weather from terrifying floods to severe cold systems.
My mother didn't know the term "brownfields" before it was coined in 1992, but she constantly spoke out about the growing plague of abandoned industrial facilities and lands which she know would become environmental graveyards for "black and brown communities" that now infect the landscape of our urban meccas. She labeled our own community, the Altgeld Gardens, as 'the toxic doughnut' (video link), a symbol that describes a place where people's lives are engulfed in environmental degradation from environmental exposures and hazards.
Most important of all, Hazel M. Johnson inspired hundreds of people around the country, if not thousands to seek environmental justice. Her actions inspired people to pursue environmental career opportunities with the purpose of preserving our rights and basic need for survival on this great Earth. She was the North Star that brought attention to urban environmental pollution issues in her own backyard and grew into the moniker "Mama Johnson" to legions who shared the fervent passion for environmental justice in their communities across the country.
As we mark the 20th Year Anniversary of the Environmental Justice Executive Order 12898, pause to reflect on the significance of the legacy she and her fellow justice fighters have left for us as a continual reminder to fight for equal environmental protection for every community that suffers with mother earth.
Thirty five years ago, People for Community Recovery was formed to bring about environmental awareness not only for impacted communities, but to challenge government and businesses to become creative and innovative to protect our environment. Today, I am stepping in her shoes to fulfill the dream of making Altgeld Gardens an environmentally sustainable village where community, government, universities and businesses can come to the table to create environmental solutions that will save the existence of the human species. I love you mom, and thank you again for all that you left for me and for our country.
About the author: Cheryl Johnson is the executive director of People for Community Recovery, founded in 1979 by her mother to address urban environmental pollution. Today, the organization continues to address that issue, as well as housing rights, youth issues and employment services.


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Tag Archives: Jerusalem
Matthew 24, Josephus and the Preterist Apocalypse – February 5, 2016
In Jesus' Olivet Discourse, that is, His foretelling to the Apostles while on the Mount of Olives about the destruction of Jerusalem and His Second Coming, He said, "Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place." (Mt. 24:34) Jesus was predicting to them that Jerusalem and the Temple were going to be destroyed in their lifetimes. He spoke of "the desolating abomination" in the Temple, prophesied by Daniel, a time of great tribulation, false prophets, rumors of wars, famines, earthquakes, persecutions, and signs in the sky. Many regard that these prophecies concern the Second Coming of Christ. These are also all markedly similar to the prophecies found throughout the Book of Revelation. So, that raises the question, was Jesus wrong? Did He wrongly predict that these apocalyptic events were going to happen to His Apostles in the first century? Certainly, the first century Christians, the Apostles and disciples were expecting an imminent return of Christ. The Book of Revelation opens with John describing, "what must happen soon." (Rev. 1:1) Yet, we know Christ did not return in His Second Coming in that generation, and even now, 2,000 years later Christ has not yet returned. So, again, was Jesus incorrect?
The definitive answer is no. As Jesus Himself said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away." (Mt. 24:35) Jesus' words were initially fulfilled in 70 A.D. when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. The Jewish world, as they knew it in 70 A.D., did, in fact, come to an end. It was an apocalyptic end, as executed by the Roman Empire, against Jerusalem, Israel and Jewish Temple life. This is the Preterist interpretation (Latin praeter meaning "past") of Christ's prophecy, and the Book of Revelation. These eschatological prophecies were fulfilled in the devastations of the first century. The Catholic Church holds that these were a microcosm of the events, a type and foreshadowing, of what will happen at the end of the world, just preceding the Second Coming of Christ. The ultimate fulfillment of these prophecies will happen at the end of time, but were initially fulfilled here. The future fulfillment is called the Futurist interpretation. The Catholic Church holds the prophetic words of Christ are to be interpreted together, on multiple levels, and with multiple fulfillments, in both a Preterist interpretation and a Futurist interpretation. The Roman Empire of 70 A.D. and the Roman Caesars, foreshadow as a type, the yet-to-be, future empire of the Antichrist and the final Antichrist himself before the climax of history. As the Catechism teaches, "Before Christ's second coming the Church must pass through a final trial that will shake the faith of many believers." (CCC 675)
Jesus was predicting the end of the Old Covenant and the removal of the central symbol of that Mosaic Covenant, the Temple. It was to be replaced by the Church, God's New Covenant, and the New Jerusalem, made in the spiritual temples of Christian believers themselves. Christians, and the Church, the Body of Christ, is the New Temple, where the Holy Spirit dwells. Yet, Christ did not want the desolation of the Jews or Israel. He longed for them to believe in Him. As Jesus lamented over them, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate." (Mt. 23:37-38) It is not hard to imagine the anguish Jesus felt with His foreknowledge of the destruction that lay ahead for Jerusalem. Jesus longed to save them, but many of them were unwilling to accept Him and His message. This rejection by the Jewish authorities, namely the Pharisees and Sadducees, reaches its climax when Jesus went on trial before the Sanhedrin and was condemned to death. As the Gospel plays out, the false prophets of the Jewish hierarchy, in collusion with the pagan Roman authorities, crucify and kill the Messiah. These are the same themes repeated throughout Scripture, especially in eschatology, concerning the false prophet, the pagan beast or empire, and the persecution of God's people.
What we are interested in here now, however, is the initial fulfillment, not the final, of these prophecies, the Preterist apocalypse. Fortunately, history has been blessed with firsthand accounts and witnesses to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Flavius Josephus, was a first century Roman, Jewish historian. He wrote extensive, detailed books from the time period called The War of the Jews. It is fairly amazing that any of the passages he wrote offer historical confirmation, sometimes in excruciating detail, of Jesus' predictions concerning the fall of Jerusalem. For example, Jesus begins His Olivet Discourse by pointing to the Temple saying, "Amen, I say to you, there will not be left here a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down." (Mt. 24:2) Josephus affirms the fulfillment of this prophecy writing, "Caesar gave orders that they should now demolish the entire city and temple…. it was so thoroughly laid even with the ground by those that dug it up to the foundation, that there was left nothing to make those that came thither believe it had ever been inhabited." (Bk 7.1.1) In fact, the Roman army, three legions, surrounded the walled city and lay siege to it for many months, while the Jews were trapped inside.
Many more parallel confirmations abound. St. Matthew writes that Jesus warns His Apostles to not be deceived by false Messiahs. He says, "See that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying 'I am the Messiah,' and they will deceive many.'" (Mt. 24:4-5) In the time period before the destruction of Jerusalem, in fact, many zealots and false prophets popped up misleading the people. Josephus records this too. He states, "Now, there was then a great number of false prophets suborned by the tyrants to impose upon the people, who denounced this to them, that they should wait for deliverance from God: and this was in order to keep them from deserting…. Thus were the miserable people persuaded by these deceivers.." (Bk 6.5.2-3) Josephus wrote more about them saying "These were such men as deceived and deluded the people under pretense of divine inspiration… and these prevailed with the multitude to act like madmen, and went before them into the wilderness, as pretending that God would there show them the signals of liberty.." (Bk.2.13.4) Moreover, Josephus spoke about a certain "Egyptian false prophet" that "got together thirty thousand men that were deluded by him; these he led round about from the wilderness to the mount which was called the Mount of Olives, and was ready to break into Jerusalem by force from that place.." Eventually, the Romans confronted them, and "the greatest part of those that were with him were either destroyed or taken alive." (Bk.2.13.5) The false prophets are related to what Josephus termed the "seditious, "robbers" and "zealots." These are the ones that took over the city in 66 A.D. provoking the Roman siege. These are the ones that mislead Jerusalem at its fateful hour. Jesus similarly spoke about the false prophets telling them they will hear of "wars and insurrections," but that will not yet immediately be the end.
After this, St. Luke wrote that Jesus tells His Apostles "There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place;" (Lk. 21:11) Similarly, the Book of Revelation records, "A loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, "It is done." Then there were lightning flashes, rumblings, and peals of thunder, and a great earthquake." (Rev. 16:17-18) Josephus confirms massive storms and earthquakes so large that they interpreted them as portending imminent disaster. Josephus writes, "..for there broke out a prodigious storm in the night, with the utmost violence, and very strong winds, with the largest showers of rain, with continued lightnings, terrible thunderings, and amazing concussions and bellowings of the earth, that was in an earthquake. These things were a manifest indication that some destruction was coming upon men, when the system of the world was put into this disorder; and any one would guess that these wonders foreshowed some grand calamities that were coming." (Bk.4.4.5) The Book of Revelation also speaks about a plague of "large hailstones." It says, "and huge hailstones, each weighing about one talent (or, a hundred pounds), dropped from heaven on people, until they cursed God for the plague of the hail, so fearful was that plague." (Rev.16:21) Josephus offers a curiously matching description in his eyewitness account. He says, "Now the stones that were cast were of the weight of a talent, and were carried two furlongs and further. The blow they gave was no way to be sustained, not only by those that stood first in the way, but by those that were beyond them for a great space. As for the Jews, they at first watched the coming of the stone, for it was of a white color, and could therefore not only be perceived by the great noise it made, but could be seen also before it came by its brightness; accordingly the watchmen that sat upon the towers gave them notice when the engine was let go, and the stone came from it, and cried out aloud, in their own country language, 'The Son Cometh:' so those that were in its way stood off, and threw themselves down upon the ground; by which means, and by their thus guarding themselves, the stone fell down and did them no harm. But the Romans contrived how to prevent that by blacking the stone, who then could aim at them with success, when the stone was not discerned beforehand, as it had been till then; and so they destroyed many of them at one blow." (Bk.5.6.3)
Famine and Pestilence
The miseries were piled one upon another as the Jews were trapped behind the walls of the city, as the Roman soldiers encamped outside. For one thing, their food supply was running out. In fact, at one point their supply of corn, a major staple, was destroyed. (Bk.5.10.2) The robbers and the zealots had risen up against their fellow Jews, stealing their food, and leaving them to die. Josephus describes that the encampment around the city and the siege led to a famine so bad "that it obliged them to chew everything, while they gathered such things as the most sordid animals would not touch, and endured to eat them; nor did they at length abstain from girdles and shoes; and the very leather which belonged to their shields they pulled off and gnawed: the very wisps of old hay became food to some;" (Bk.6.3.4) The famine was so terrible that, as Josephus bitterly reports, some turned to cannibalism. He tells the story of one desperate woman who ends up killing, cooking and eating her own baby. He reports the men who witnessed this horrible act, along with all of Jerusalem, "trembled." Josephus states as a matter of fact that, "So those that were thus distressed by the famine were very desirous to die; and those already dead were esteemed happy, because they had not live long enough either to hear or see such miseries." (Bk.6.3.4) The living envied the dead! Similarly, disease and pestilence spread through the city as it was held under siege. Josephus says, "And indeed the multitude of carcasses that lay in heaps one upon another, was a horrible sight, and produced a pestilential stench.." (Bk.6.1.1)
Mighty Signs from the Sky
Jesus said there would also be "awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky." (Lk. 21:11) An incredulous Josephus wrote down what was witnessed in regard to miraculous phenomenon in Jerusalem before its destruction. Here Josephus tells of an ominous star, resembling a sword, that stood over the city; similarly, a comet continued in the sky for a whole year. He mentions a great light shone in the Temple making it as bright as daytime. Moreover, a massive brass and iron door, that required twenty men to open and shut it, swung opened by its own accord. One of the more incredible things witnessed was a heavenly display of chariots and armored soldiers running amidst the clouds. Also, a great noise was heard that sounded like "a great multitude," saying "Let us remove hence." As way of speculation, this may have been the voice of God declaring to all He would no longer remain in the Temple, and thus, the end of the Old Covenant. With the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem and the scattering of the Jews, the Great Diaspora, the Old Covenant ended and the New Covenant began, officially with the establishment of the Church in Rome. Josephus' writings on these incredible phenomena are worth quoting at length:
"..while they did not attend, nor give credit, to the signs that were so evident, and did so plainly foretell their future desolation; but, like men infatuated, without either eyes to see or minds to consider, did not regard the denunciations that God made to them . Thus there was a star resembling a sword, which stood over the city, and a comet, that continued a whole year. Thus also, before the Jews' rebellion, and before those commotions which preceded the war, when the people were come in great crowds to the feast of unleavened bread, on the eight day of the month Xanthicus, [Nisan,] and at the ninth hour of the night, so great a light shone round the altar and the holy house, that it appeared to be bright day-time; which light lasted for half an hour. This light seemed to be a good sign to the unskillful, but was so interpreted by the sacred scribes as to portend those events that followed immediately upon it.
Moreover, the eastern gate of the inner, [court of the temple,] which was of brass, and vastly heavy, and had been with difficulty shut by twenty men, and rested upon a basis armed with iron, and had bolts fastened very deep into the firm floor, which was there made of one entire stone, was seen to be opened of its own accord about the sixth hour of the night. Now, those that kept watch in the temple came thereupon running to the captain of the temple, and told him of it; who then came up thither, and not without great difficulty was able to shut the gate again. This also appeared to the vulgar to be a very happy prodigy, as if God did thereby open them the gate of happiness. But the men of learning understood it, that the security of their holy house was dissolved of its own accord, and that the gate was opened for the advantage of their enemies. So these publicly declared, that this signal forshewed the desolation that was coming upon them.
Besides these, a few days after that feast, on the one-and-twentieth day of the month Artemisius, [Jyar,] a certain prodigious and incredible phenomenon appeared; I suppose the account of it would seem to be a fable, were it not related by those that saw it, and were not the events that followed it of so considerable a nature as to deserve such signals; for, before sun-setting, chariots and troops of soldiers in their armor were seen running about among the clouds, and surrounding of cities. Moreover, at that feast which we call Pentecost, as the priests were going by night into the inner [court of the] temple, as their custom was, to perform their sacred ministrations, they said that, in the first place, they felt a quaking, and heard a great noise, and after that they heard a sound as of a great multitude, saying, "Let us remove hence." (Bk.6.5.3)
The Abomination of Desolation
Returning to the Olivet Discourse, Jesus spoke about the "desolating abomination" of the Temple. He said, "When you see the desolating abomination spoken through Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains.." (Mt. 24:15-16) Here, Jesus is referring to the prophecies that Daniel made in the Old Testament concerning the desolation of the Temple, and the end of the world. Daniel prophesied, "From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the horrible abomination is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days." (Dn.12:11) This prophecy, as with other prophecies from the Bible, has multiple fulfillments over time. The initial fulfillment, and again a foreshadowing type of the Antichrist, the tyrannical Seleucid king, Antioches IV Epiphanes, who set up a statue of Zeus in the Temple in 167 B.C., thus desecrating it. Yet, Jesus refers to the prophecy again, applying it to the coming desecration of the Temple by the Romans. Even in the time of Jesus, the Temple had become a meeting place for evildoers, as Jesus had to drive them out of the Temple, saying they are making it a den of thieves. (Mt. 21:13) By the time 70 A.D. came around, Josephus makes a similar observation that the Temple had become filled with abominations. He wrote, "And now, when the multitude were gotten together to an assembly, and every one was in indignation at these men's seizing upon the sanctuary, at their rapine and murders but had not yet begun their attacks upon them Agnus stood in the midst of them, and casting his eyes frequently at the temple, and having a flood of tears in his eyes he said, 'Certainly, it had been good for me to die before I had seen the house of God full of so many abominations, or these sacred places that ought not to be trodden upon at random, filled with the feet of these bloodshedding villains.'" (Bk.4.3.10) And, just as Antiochus Epiphanes had erected the idol Zeus in the Temple, so did he put an end to the "daily sacrifice" (these were the lambs offered twice a day as proscribed in the Mosaic Law: Num. 28:3-4) in the Temple. Josephus records the same cessation with the Roman siege. He said, "..the sacrifice called 'the Daily Sacrifice' had failed, and had not been offered to God for want of men to offer it, and that the people were grievously troubled at it.." (Bk.6.2.1)
Now, a large part of the problems for Jews and Christians in the Roman Empire was its polytheism and imperial cult of emperor worship. Nero Caesar, who's name in Hebrew adds up to 666, the mark of the beast from Revelation, reigned from 54 – 68 A.D., was a great persecutor of Christians, and is seen as a forerunner to and a type of the Antichrist. He also claimed to be divine. The refusal of Christians to participate in this imperial cult, of emperor worship of various Caesars, led to many of the early martyrdoms. St. Jerome, in his Commentary on the Book of Daniel, expressed this idea, "And so there are many of our viewpoint who think that Domitius Nero was the Antichrist because of his outstanding savagery and depravity." This was no less true for the Roman soldiers, who participated in the imperial cultus, and even worshipped their own ensigns with the eagle. In the Jewish and Christian mind, this is all idolatry and blasphemy. Yet, Josephus wrote that the Roman soldiers brought their ensigns, especially the eagle emblem, and their idolatrous religion to Jerusalem. Then, upon entering and conquering the city, they set up their ensigns in the Temple and worshiped them, another fulfillment of the desolating abomination. Josephus wrote, "And now the Romans, upon the flight of the seditious into the city, and upon the burning of the holy house itself, and of all the buildings round about it, brought their ensigns to the temple and set them over against its eastern gate; and there did they offer sacrifices to them, and there did they make Titus imperator with the greatest acclamations of joy." (Bk.6.6.1)
Now, in the corresponding passage in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus says, "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, know that its desolation is at hand. Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains. Let those within the city escape from it, and let those in the countryside not enter the city, for these days are the time of punishment when all scriptures are fulfilled… They will fall by the edge of the sword and be taken as captives to all the Gentiles; and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled." (Lk.21:20-24) Firstly, Josephus records that Vespasian had surrounded the city with his armies. He says, "And now Vespasian had fortified all the places round about Jerusalem.." (Bk.4.9.1) He says they camped initially at the Mount of Olives, and then, they built in three days, a wall in that "encompassed the city." (Bk.5.12.3) Yet, we know that the Christians actually took heed to the warning of Christ, as there are no recorded deaths of Christians, miraculously perhaps, within the city. They saw the armies of Vespasian and Titus in Judea and fled towards Jordan. Similarly, when there was a break in the siege of Jerusalem, upon hearing of Nero's death, they took that opportunity to escape the city. The early Christian scholar Eusebius recorded it this way, "The whole body, however, of the church at Jerusalem, having been commanded by a divine revelation, given to men of approved piety there before the war, removed from the city, and dwelt at a certain town beyond the Jordan, called Pella. To Pella those who believed in Christ migrated from Jerusalem; and as if holy men had utterly abandoned the royal metropolis of the Jews and the entire Jewish land, the judgment of God at last overtook them for their abominable crimes against Christ and His apostles, completely blotting out that wicked generation from among men." (Bk.3.5) The Christians had taken Jesus' advice and fled to the mountains!
The death and destruction visited upon Jerusalem in 70 A.D. is nearly unimaginable. Jesus Himself prophesied, "..for at that time there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will be. And if those days had not been shortened, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect they will be shortened." (Mt. 24:21-22) Josephus, as an eyewitness to these calamities, was able to confirm Jesus' prophecy. Josephus wrote, "Whereas the war which the Jews made with the Romans hath been the greatest of all those, not only that have been in our times, but in a manner, of those that ever were heard of; both of those wherein cities have fought against cities, or nations against nations." (Preface.1) He continued, "Accordingly it appears to me, that the misfortunes of all men, from the beginning of the world, if they be compared to these of the Jews, are not so considerable as they were.." (Preface.4) Josephus related that the siege began during the feast of unleavened bread, or Passover, meaning Jews from all over Israel and beyond would have been visiting Jerusalem, swelling the number of people in the city. (Bk.5.3.1) Josephus speculated that the number of people killed during the siege is at least 1,100,000, and the number taken captive at 97,000. What a massive calamity! Over a million people killed and nearly a hundred thousand taken into bondage. He wrote, "Now the number of those that were carried captive during this whole war was collected to be ninety-seven thousand; as was the number of those that perished during the whole siege eleven hundred thousand, the greater part of whom were indeed of the same nation [with the citizens of Jerusalem], but not belonging to the city itself; for they were come up from all the country to the feast of unleavened bread, and were on a sudden shut up by an army, which, at the very first, occasioned so great a straitness among them that there came a pestilential destruction upon them, and soon afterward such a famine, as destroyed them more suddenly." (Bk.6.9.3) With that, the seven year tribulation from 63 A.D. to 70 A.D. came to an end, as Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed, and the Jewish people slaughtered and cast into a diaspora among the Gentile nations for the next two millennia. Therefore, Jesus' warnings about the coming apocalypse, for that generation, were most definitely fulfilled. For its part, the early Church continued to suffer persecution and martyrdom under the Roman Empire, as Christians steadfastly refused to participate in imperial cults, emperor worship or sacrifice. This, just as Jesus had predicted, "you will be hated by all nations because of My name," (Mt. 24:9) and a foreshadowing of the final fulfillment of Christ's words.
This entry was posted in Eschatology, Josephus and tagged 70 A.D., abominating desolation, abomination of desolation, Antichrist, Antiochus Epiphanes, apocalypse, Caesar, Catechism, Catholic, Christ, daily sacrifice, diaspora, emperor, End Times, Eschatology, famine, Flavius Josephus, Jerusalem, Jesus, Jewish, Josephus, Matthew 24, Messiahs, mighty signs, Nero, Olivet Discourse, preterist, Roman Empire, signs, the Great Tribulation, the Temple, The Wars of the Jews, tribulation, zealots, zealouts on March 11, 2016 by Brian.