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Exclusive Interview (Part IV): Phil Chiricotti Sees MEPs as THE Fiduciary Solution for Small Plans
Here's the third installment of our four-part interview. If you've missed any, click the links below:
Part I: Phil Chiricotti to Retirement Industry: Outsource Fiduciary and combine with HSA or Die!
Part II: Phil Chiricotti says Lobbying to Replace 401k is "Lunacy"
Part III: Phil Chiricotti Offers Surprising Comments on the Fiduciary Standard
Part IV: Phil Chiricotti Sees MEPs as THE Fiduciary Solution for Small Plans
Part IV begins here:
FN: Let's talk about proposed legislation that might actually help 401k plan sponsors and participants, especially those from smaller companies. The DOL currently has a very restricted view, much more restrictive than the IRS, regarding the acceptability of Multiple Employer Plans (MEPs) in the 401k realm. Essentially, the DOL is limiting their use to business associations. There has been some bipartisan effort to push forward the idea to make it easier for groups of unrelated businesses to join MEPs. What is the status of MEPs and their primary advantages?
Chiricotti: As outlined in their 2012 Advisory Opinion, the DOL effectively treats adopting employers in a multiple employer plan where there is no "commonality" or "nexus" among the adopters as individual plan sponsors for reporting and fiduciary purposes. This means that adopters are required to file an individual Form 5500, have an annual plan audit performed if the size of the group warrants it, and maintain an individual ERISA bond. The employer also retains a level of fiduciary responsibility.
Some of the Open MEP providers rebranded around aggregate solutions after the DOL opinion, but as noted in the Fred Reish, Drinker Biddle, release on Open MEPs & DOL Guidance: Where Do We Go From Here, the impact on adopting employers was relatively small. The credible Open MEP providers made the changes to comply with the DOL's guidance while continuing to offer economies of scale and fiduciary protection for adopting employers. Fred has also noted that MEPs have the potential become a coverage solution for the small plan market, but further notes the need for independent trustees or custodians. Marcia Wagner, The Wagner Law Group, played a role in developing the Transamerica program and she is also on record stating that aggregate solutions are coming to the fore as a solution for the lack of broad coverage in the small employer market.
Multiple Employer Plans have been around in one manner or another for over five decades. Their use as a suitable vehicle to help broaden retirement plan coverage as well as to outsource complex compliance and administrative issues is well established. The fact that the DOL ERISA Advisory Council is currently soliciting testimony on "Outsourcing Employee Benefit Plans" is viewed as a positive development.
While there is currently no uniform DOL framework for evaluating outsourced fiduciary services, the council intends to draft recommendations for the Secretary Of Labor to consider. This could result in much needed DOL guidelines. Additionally, it would be helpful if the conflicting IRS and DOL viewpoints fell into lockstep. As proposed by pending legislation, the unnecessary "nexus" requirement being applied to multiple employer plans in much the same manner as MEWAs should also be eliminated.
Terry Power from The Platinum 401k, one of the CFDD '14 panelists on the MEP's, MEAP's & Today's Legislative Environment breakout session, will be testifying before the council. His testimony will be public record as of 8/19/14. Transamerica, also on the CFDD '14 agenda and a leader in this area, will not be testifying, but they will be submitting written testimony. Other CFDD '14 heavyweights are also rumored to be testifying and this should help us communicate a clear vision of how the council feels about fiduciary outsourcing at the CFDD's October 15-17, 2014 Advisor Conference.
FN: When we asked Phyllis Borzi to give us her thoughts about the MEP, she expressed concern about MEP sponsors hiring themselves to manage the plan assets. How would you envision a MEP might protect itself from this apparent conflict-of-interest?
Chiricotti: Given that there are some programs that raise eyebrows in this area, Assistant Secretary Borzi raises a good point and one that the DOL should provide firm guidance on. As with any service provider to any plan, it is important that conflicts-of-interest be avoided at all costs. Even the appearance of one can be a problem. As with single employer plans, problems can develop if parties do not have the best interests of the plan participants as their number one goal. This is one of the reasons why independent committees should be part of MEP programs. Single entities can provide multiple services, but the compensation arrangement and the governance structure need to pass muster. In any event, much needed DOL Regulations that provide service provider guidelines for MEP's – as well as Single Employer Plans – would be welcomed by the industry.
As noted by others, MEPs will need DOL blessing before they are widely embraced as an expanded coverage solution. Given the need for coverage and the bipartisan legislative support in this area, that may happen in the next 1-2 years. Advisors could provide services at the plan, adopter, or participant level. As with any ERISA program, compensation should align with the service model and not be excessive. Advisors who don't assume a 3(38) or 3(21) fiduciary position are unlikely to have an investment role. Those that do provide the fiduciary services may still wish to avoid small MEPs.
FN: Do you miss the 401k program competitive analysis business?
Chiricotti: Real competitive analysis is like investigative journalism and similar to childbirth. It is a time consuming, painful and laborious process. Unlike those who check the box, real analysis requires extensive networking with highly skilled advisors using the programs. There is no short cut and after giving birth a few dozen times, the bounce in your stride diminishes.
Based on trends and growth potential, we are, however, vetting and developing lists of vendors active in the HSA, outsourced 3(16) fiduciary services, MEPs, and aggregated solutions areas. Given that HSAs are expected to contain $40 billion in a few more years, we are particularly interested in vendors that allow advisors to play an investment role. These lists don't exist today and they should be quite valuable to advisors. The vetting is particularly important because these programs vary widely.
The industry is changing fast and while needs and outcomes are being redefined, the industry is behind the evolutionary curve. For example, one of the top independent open architecture recordkeepers in the CFDD's network supports model portfolios, offers a HSA with an investment role for advisors, and cost effective/meaningful outsourced 3(16) fiduciary services. To address coverage needs, the national firm also offers a stripped down 401k program for small employers. To my point, few advisors and DCIO wholesalers are aware of the vendor's capabilities, the expanded sales opportunities or the potential for enhanced margins. The CFDD's analysis will change that. It will also be available to advisors attending CFDD '14 without cost.
FN: Phil, what can we say? You've given the readers of FiduciaryNews.com so much to chew – all great stuff. Your command of these critical issues is overwhelming. We respect and admire your blunt style and look forward to seeing more from you in the future.
Christopher Carosa, author of 401(k) Fiduciary Solutions, will be speaking at CFDD's October 15-17, 2014 Advisor Conference on the subject of "Using Proven Psychological Techniques to Motivate Plan Sponsors & Participants to Implement Your Recommendations." The session will feature an interactive presentation featuring tools mentioned in his new book Hey! What's My Number? – The One Thing Every Retirement Investor Wants and Needs to Know!


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My obsession, if you will, is all Fishs Eddy's fault. I first read about Fishs Eddy from Joy's Hope Blog & I've been crushing hard ever since. It's kind of a restaurant supply store, but instead of your plain, generic steel pieces, you're treated to unique, colorful fun items.
Aren't these too cute?!

subset: commoncrawl


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In today's world it's safe to say we are all bombarded with a ridiculous number of advertisements from sunrise to sunset. One study claims that the average person encounters up to 5,000 marketing messages per day.
While I do question the accuracy of such a wild declaration, it nonetheless successfully demonstrates an obvious (and yet, not so obvious) reality: more than ever, marketers must find innovative ways to elevate their brands above all of the other distractions competing for our attention.
Enter experiential marketing
Most marketing tactics add another message to the cacophony of advertisements that inevitably becomes indistinguishable from the rest of the noise.
Experiential marketing, however, creates a unique, engaging interaction between the audience and the brand. What does that mean for marketers? Television commercials, Facebook ads, and direct mail campaigns with feature-benefit statements simply aren't cutting it.
If you don't believe me, just look at the marketplace. TiVo customers enjoy the benefits of skipping annoying commercials; AdBlocker allows users to surf Facebook ad-free; and a national "Do Not Mail" list gives us the ability to opt out of receiving the direct mailers that serve no other purpose than to fill our trashcans.
Now don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to give these marketing channels a bad rap. In fact, television commercials, Facebook ads, and even direct mailers can all be included in an effective experiential marketing strategy. The point I'm trying to make is that these ad protection services have been created because most marketing messages are nothing more than a nuisance.
Why are they a nuisance? Because they're boring.
Why are they boring? Because they offer the audience facts and figures instead of an experience.
"But the facts and figures about my service are incredible. When people compare my service with others they will surely choose mine. Humans are rational beings after all."
Well now, if that were true then Starbucks would never have been able to steal customers from its less expensive competitors who offered an equally great-tasting cup of joe. If humans truly are rational, then customers would have scoffed at the idea of paying so much more at Starbucks for relatively similar coffee.
So what's the deal here? How did Starbucks grow into the behemoth that it is when any logical consumer would avoid the steeper prices altogether? Consider what Dan Ariely, a professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University, had to say about this phenomenon in his book, Predictably Irrational:
"When Howard Shultz created Starbucks, he was as intuitive a businessman as Salvador Assael. He worked diligently to separate Starbucks from other coffee shops, not through price but through ambience…Starbucks did everything in its power…to make the experience feel different – so different that we would not use the prices at Dunkin' Donuts as an anchor, but instead would be open to the new anchor that Starbucks was preparing for us. And that, to a great extent, is how Starbucks succeeded."
Starbucks created an experience so powerful that patrons willingly threw logic out of the window in favor of this irrational behavior.
Since humans aren't as rational as we originally thought, I hope we can agree that marketing messages that try to convince consumers on the basis of logic won't suffice. So unless you want to sound like Charlie Brown's teacher, start doing what works and launch an experiential marketing campaign.
Nothing Ever Becomes Real till it is Experienced
In 1819, a wise 23-year-old John Keats wrote a letter to his siblings, and hidden inside was a profound statement that still rings true today: nothing ever becomes real till it is experienced.
This proverb concisely sums up exactly why experiential marketing is so successful. Brands won't even be a blip on the radar until they create an engaging experience for their target markets. People only take notice when they experience something unforgettable. As Seth Godin says, "you're either a Purple Cow or you're not."
If standing out is the obvious thing to do, why is mundane marketing so prevalent?
It's safe.
A certain level of comfort accompanies sticking with what's familiar, especially if the existing marketing efforts have produced good enough results. I mean, being mediocre is better than being bad, right?
Here's the thing.
Don't let the fear of making a mistake let you make a mistake. Resolve to make your marketing a memorable and exciting experience that will put your brand on the map.
Experience is the Best Teacher
The following case studies are examples of experiential marketing at its finest, and the results of these campaigns speak for themselves. Let's examine what each company did to pull off their unbelievable success.
Levi's Summer Hotline
The Premise: In an effort to regain market share in a crowded Hong Kong jeans market place, Levi's implemented an experiential campaign to ingratiate itself with its audience. Here's a look at what Levi's did:
The Result: As the video mentions, nearly 500,000 people interacted with the booths in a matter of only 3 days! And the beauty of experiential marketing is the added bonus of generating tons of viral and media buzz. No money was spent on marketing the booths, but word spread nonetheless, and Levi's generated over $250,000 HKD worth of earned media coverage. Plus Levi's efforts garnered thousands of mentions on social media and blogs. The sweetest ROI of all? Next week's sales increased by over 30% compared to a typical week!
It's efforts like these that turn customers into fans. Levi's obviously wants to be seen as more than just a company that sells jeans. Levi's wants to be viewed as a fun, exciting organization that connects with their customers. Levi's wants its customers to pull for the company, to hope for its success.
The Takeaway: Don't waste your time prying open wallets; invest your time in winning hearts. Win hearts, and you'll earn business. In the game of Bridge, Diamonds always follows Hearts.
Tropicana Arctic Sun
The Premise: Tropicana's marketing messages have long associated its brand with brightening mornings. "Your daily ray of sunshine." "100% squeezed sunshine." "We put the good in morning." To show its commitment to this mission, Tropicana brought the sun to a small Canadian community. Literally.
The Results: Initially Tropicana's Arctic Sun project may not appear to be a very good ROI because of its limitations in reach. After all, the small town of Inuvik, Canada only has 3,500 residents. But Tropicana knew if it could create a commercial of the event the video would resonate with viewers. Tropicana broadcasted the commercial on YouTube and in Television ads, directing viewers to Tropicana's Facebook page.
What happened? The Facebook page gained 36,000 fans overnight. The story was featured in over 65 media outlets around the world, providing more than 20 million impressions. And the video has over 500,000 views on YouTube alone (who knows how many additional views the video received on other websites?). If all those results weren't enough, even the Wikipedia page for Inuvik references Tropicana's Arctic Sun event.
Not too shabby, eh?
The Takeaway: The immediate impact of an experiential marketing campaign is only the beginning of its reach. You don't have to pull a stunt in the middle of Times Square in front of thousands of passersby to get the attention of the press.
Speaking of pulling stunts in a square…
TNT Drama Button
The Premise: TNT was launching for the first time in Belgium and wanted to make a splash in this new market. The marketing message focused on the high quality drama TNT has in its TV series, something in which the company apparently finds much pride. Heck, TNT's slogan is "We know drama," and even its URL is drama filled: www.tntdrama.com. But talk is cheap. If TNT really wants to get its point across, it needs to walk the walk.
That's exactly what TNT did.
The Results: TNT's Drama Button has two things in common with Tropicana's Arctic Sun. First is the strategy to create a unique experience for a small audience and distribute the footage of the event to a much broader audience.
Second is success.
In less than 24 hours the video had over 10 million views on YouTube and 1 million shares on Facebook! But the viral video didn't stop there. To date the video has over 48 million views and comments still roll in each day. All major Belgian media ran stories on the publicity stunt. But what really surprised TNT was that prominent international outlets also picked up the story and created buzz for the company in other countries as well. This generated millions of dollars worth of media coverage across the globe!
The Takeaway: The prerequisite for a successful experiential marketing campaign is not to create an experience. It's to create an extraordinary experience.
Unforgettable marketing brings unremitting results.
Spanair Unexpected Luggage
The Premise: 190 people were flying on a Spanair flight on December 24th from Barcelona to Las Palmas. Knowing that their customers would much rather be home on Christmas Eve than flying on an airplane, Spanair took the opportunity to create a very special moment that their passengers will always remember.
The Results: Once again, the power of recorded live events pays PR dividends. Within 48 hours of posting the video, the campaign racked up 100,000 views. In two weeks that number jumped up to 700,000! Viewers who were moved by the video made over 30,000 congratulatory messages and comments on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook.
Unbelievable results for such a simple campaign.
The gifts that Spanair bought were really just a drop in the bucket, but the heartfelt intent was tremendous. In fact, if Spanair had taken the money spent on the gifts and instead given a credit to each passenger of the same amount, the effect would have been completely lost. Giving credits is what companies do for customers. Giving gifts is what friends do for friends.
The Takeaway: Customers are waiting for brands to lay aside the transactional company-customer relationship and start treating them like friends.
Eichborn Flyvertising
The Premise: German boutique publisher Eichborn wanted to distinguish itself as brave and unconventional at the Frankfurt International Book Fair, the biggest book and media fair in the world. Eichborn implemented a truly unique marketing stunt that incorporated the brand's logo: the housefly.
The Results: It probably goes without saying, but the flies brought tons of traffic to the Eichborn booth. And that was only the beginning.
The YouTube video for the Eichborn flies attracted 800,000 viewers within its first month of being posted. Media sources and blogs across the globe covered the story. Perhaps the biggest victory was the 5,000 more clicks per month on Eichborn's homepage.
With all those results you'd never guess how much was spent on the campaign.
A measly 500 Euros!
The Takeaway: Experiential marketing campaigns don't have to break the bank. Go small on expenses and still get big ROI.
Is There Anyone So Wise As To Learn By The Experience Of Others? – Voltaire
These examples serve as great sources of inspiration. Even more, you can take the lessons learned from these successful campaigns and apply them to your own projects. Whatever the scale and budget, experiential marketing can help you reach your audience in a unique and memorable way.
[notification type="alert-info" close="false"]Have an experiential marketing success story of your own? Or know of other campaigns worthy of sharing? Take a moment to add your input to the conversation; we'd love to hear from you![/notification]


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Wearing: Self Portrait 3D shell tee | Self Portrait looped fringed skirt | Faith Chanell white point heels | Pandora jewellery | Dior Rouge Baume in '758 Lys Rouge' | Dior Vernis nail lacquer '494 Junon'
I love when the seasons change and a magical blanket of autumn red begins to line the streets. The 'in between' stage is the most beautiful – when there's a vibrant mix of colour and when I saw an ivy-covered church whilst driving through my neighbourhood, it inspired me to capture this fleeting moment before it was gone. Our leafy exterior of choice was without a doubt the beautiful Victoria Barracks. It's famous for it's enchanting fairytale backdrop and made this shoot such a fun weekend study break. Happy Autumn, everyone!
Photos: Rowena Cao


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Those who have taken the time to watch the television series Firefly, by Joss Whedon, a short lived spaghetti western and science fiction mash up, will tell you that its cancellation was one of the worst choices ever by a network. The premise, characters, story arc, creativity, dry wit, and humor, made Firefly, and its follow up theatrical release Serenity, endearing to new viewers, established fans, and critics alike. His other projects, such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and even the Avengers from Disney and Marvel, all received similar fanfare and critical praise.
Beyond his brilliant storytelling abilities and likable characters, Whedon seems to have a message encoded through many of his projects about a centralized totalitarian state, such as the Alliance in Firefly and Serenity, as well as mind control, in which central crew member River Tam, is a victim of. Joss Whedon would later explore using women as mind control slaves further in his "Dollhouse" television series, where the central mind control slave Echo starts to wake up to her predicament, while being used as a call girl, agent, assassin, and any other role she is conditioned to play. Like Echo, River Tam is an asset of the state/corporation she is controlled by, and has been programmed with special abilities; after all, like Mark Passio states, "it's not that human nature is good or evil, it's that it's programmable" – and some are more programmed than others.
Mind control is not just the stuff of science fiction though, as the CIA was forced to release heavily redacted confidential files back in the 1970's about their super secret mind control techniques and facilities, where Nazi's imported from Operation Paperclip after WWII, helped refine the techniques. This super secret program was called MK Ultra, and its associated program for using women as mind control slaves, for uses such as in the Dollhouse television series, was called Project Monarch. Interestingly enough, one of the two authors of the popular New Age theology "A Course in Miracles" (ACIM), Dr William Thetford, was a psychologist who was heavily involved in the MK Ultra brainwashing project, known as SubProject 130: Personality Theory.
Brutal tortuous experiments, and in some cases fatal ones, were carried out on hundreds of thousands of American citizens (reports of up to 500,000) after WWII, and well into the 1970's. While the program was supposedly shut down after it was revealed to the US Senate, many feel that it was perfected, and just moved further underground to avoid detection. All of this information is easily accessible online if one just Googles it, it is not a conspiracy theory, but a conspiracy fact; see the MK Ultra Wikipedia entry for more details. Our background with the Emotional Freedom Techniques, hypnosis, neuroscience, severe trauma, and working with ritual abuse victims, has allowed us to grasp the scope and depth of what all of this means, and the techniques they use to implement both hard and soft mind control.
Since we live in a free will universe, which means we are allowed the choice to experience anything we "agree" to experience; the Elite and Powers that Be (PTB) are required to gain our consent for anything that might violate our free will, such as being made aware of brutal torture and mind control in our midst. Disclosure of super secret information, technology, alien contact, mind control techniques, etc., often is done through Hollywood and the media, so that they can say "you were warned", or to gain our consent to experience some sort of mass event or lifestyle, even if it is just "unconscious consent". The tactic known as "predictive programming" is used to gain our unconscious consent as a population, where they infuse certain ideas, themes, and psychological patterns into a series, episode, or movie to prepare us with useful programs and tendencies. If MK Ultra and torture is hard programming, then the media's and Hollywood's use of predictive programming is a soft version of mind control, a slick form of social engineering/conditioning.
Knowing the darker side of Hollywood, and that Disney, who owns the movie rights to Marvel's Avengers, is a main abuser and user of Monarch mind control slaves, makes any successful director or producer a suspect in the conspiracy to deceive and entrap the public. Is Joss Whedon, a beloved writer and director, in on the conspiracy, or is he trying to write in messages that exposes the conspiracy of an out of control centralized government, and the horrors of mind control abuse?
I have struggled with cognitive dissonance around Joss Whedon and his lovable characters, especially as they are presented in my favorite television show of all time, Firefly and Serenity, since I do not want to believe that he has any ulterior motives – but my awareness of the industry cannot be ignored either. Since I am not a person to sweep anything under the carpet, and I keep asking questions, even when the answers might be uncomfortable for me to learn, I kept pressing for an answer to my suspicions. Thanks to the book "Existential Joss Whedon: Evil And Human Freedom in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly And Serenity", available to view partially on Google Books, I was able to figure out the common theme in his storylines, and why they are still less than beneficial to the overall human condition.
"Whedon is using Firefly and Serenity, as he did Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, to critique rationalistic systems of ethics, such as utilitarianism, and to support his alternative communitarian love ethics, built on a foundation of existential choice." ~J. Michael Richardson, J. Douglas Rabb, Chapter 10, Existential Joss Whedon: Evil And Human Freedom in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly And Serenity
In short, Joss Whedon is using the predictive programming technique to program communitarianism values into the minds of the masses, which is the next form of global governance that we are being prepared to transition into. Communitarianism may sound like love and light, but it is a very deceptive ideal, as it has the individual serving the community, rather than the community serving the individual. In communitarian society, it is still a top down pyramid structure with centralized leaders, which in both Firefly and Serenity is embodied by the loyal Captain Malcolm Reynolds, where he is shown to be a fair and loving leader, who puts the needs of his community above his own. At the same time, there are worker bees who serve the common purpose of community, and submit to the authority of the central queen bee, each fulfilling the trade or task that they are good at.
- Malcolm Reynolds – Captain
- Zoë – First Officer
- Wash – Pilot
- Jayne – Weapons Expert
- Kaylee – Ship Mechanic
- Inara – Tantric Companion
- Simon – Doctor
- Shepard Book – Religious Chaplain
- River Tam – Intuitive Reader & Mind Control Victim
In the community of the ship Serenity, everyone has their place and function, and serves the community in that role, and there is a sense of loyalty that the Captain has for his crew, and the crew has to him and the other crew members, that is endearing and lovable. We all desire to fit into a group of some sort, to feel loved, connected, like we belong and can contribute, and when things get too dire, a group that we can be rescued by. You see, this type of communitarian belief system, is a way of dodging personal responsibility, as it gives the responsibility of choice to the top of the hierarchy, while the top of the hierarchy must also delegate responsibility for their actions to those under their authority.
After all, it is not realistic that the captain is also the doctor, preacher, pilot, first officer, and mechanic all in one, right? He makes the difficult choices, sometimes with the community's input, and they make his vision a reality. If an action goes wrong with the doctor or the pilot though, the Captain can blame their poor actions, or they can blame his poor decisions; both get to avoid an aspect of personal responsibility, and in a way, avoid their karma. We all have this tendency to avoid aspects of personal responsibility within us, which is why we are susceptible to communitarian rule.
In communitarian belief, and in both Firefly and Serenity, individualism is believed to be selfish and harmful, such as when Jayne makes a deal with the Alliance to turn in River and Simon for a financial reward. In the same way, individualism is being heralded by the media as the reason for our global financial meltdown. They say that it is the evil individualists and capitalists, and their greedy ways, that caused our financial predicament. However, it is anything but individuality that caused our global crisis, as it was a carefully orchestrated and staged crash from the highest levels ABOVE government, from our Elite controllers, and maybe even beyond.
In actuality though, individuality is the psychological state of being individuated from the collective unconscious, having consciously made the unconscious-conscious by shining the light of awareness on the shadow sides of the personality within. Individuation is the state of being whole, intimate, creative, and compassionate, free from emotional wounds, fears, and triggers. It makes people uncontrollable and unpredictable, as they are capable of spontaneous action and creativity from their Source within.
This state of being an individual does not cause a Service to Self (STS) mentality of selfish behavior, but promotes spontaneous creative action that furthers humanity in unpredictable ways, as it is Service to Others (STO). Ironically, it is the communitarian belief set that is Service to Self masquerading as Service to Others, as it enables the selfish need to avoid responsibility over a person's whole life, making it an external person's duty to make up for their own inability to be wholly responsible over their lives. Conversely, when the individuality, free will, and creativity of the individual is nurtured by the community, the individual is able to use their imagination to spontaneously create opportunities that end up serving other individuals within the community – and beyond. Far from being selfish, spontaneous creative actions support and serve others, they do not harm others for selfish gain.
This subtle but dangerous variation between the community serving the individual versus to the individual serving the community is what the actual NWO will be built upon, not the fascist Nazi fall guy that is about to be overthrown worldwide, also called "the Cabal". Communitarianism is the Elite's "Solution" phase of Hegel's Dialectic of "Problem – Reaction – Solution", where Nazi Fascism and the American version of the New World Order are the Problem that must be faced.
The truth bloggers and reporters, the power struggle between the East and the West, maybe a staged WWIII, and mass arrests at the Event, may all be a major part of the Reaction phase. Additionally, near the end of the Reaction phase, and the beginning of the Solution phase, we'll have the "fall of the Cabal", disclosure of alien contact and shadow government activities, and the final crash of the current financial banking system. Finally, the implementation of a new and improved financial system that supports rather than starves the global community, a redistribution of wealth, communitarian governments, and communal living will begin to be implemented, which will finalize the Solution (or Synthesis) phase of the Hegelian Dialectic.
If this is the case, it makes sense that Joss is promoting examples of communitarian living, as well as the fall of the old system through information disclosure, in his work. (Spoiler Alert: at the end of Serenity, Captain Reynolds is able to transmit the true cause of the Reaver epidemic, which was from an Alliance mass experiment on passivity to control the populations through airborne chemical additives. This brings to mind the global chemtrailing of our skies, and the fluoridation of the water systems employed in America and elsewhere.)
Other beloved franchises are programming in similar communitarian themes of community above individuality, such as Star Trek, Friends, and the Big Bang Theory, although a centralized leader may not be present in all instances. For example, Spock's dying words in "Star Trek II, the Wrath of Khan" were "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" – which could very well be the slogan that best encapsulates communitarian thought. Even the Avengers are not immune to communitarian influence, as each of the mega personalities of individual heroes must learn to sacrifice their ego for the greater good of their team, all under the one eyed authority of Nick Fury.
The reason why Joss Whedon's work resonates so strongly with us, is because the need to belong is still a very important desire, but as a service to each individual's needs, not the other way around. We all long to belong to a group, to feel like we matter and are useful, but many desire to do so to avoid an aspect of personal responsibility, rather than fully owning both their decisions and actions from within. It is when we are fully whole and individuated from the collective unconscious that we are truly able belong as a citizen of our greater universal brethren, where we get to use our spontaneous creativity in service and harmony to the mosaic of creation.
It is the carefully engineered communitarian society that will finally steal the last vestiges of human freedom from us, while giving us back a sense of safety that we thought we lost when we left our mother's womb. If we do finally decide to experience the communitarian lifestyle though, we will still have a type of freedom – freedom from the responsibility over our own decisions and actions, and in a way, the illusion that we are free from karmic repercussions that stem from being fully responsible.
For more on creativity and individuality, please see this blog post from Jon Rappaport, "The Coming Revolution", and his audio lectures THE MATRIX REVEALED, EXIT FROM THE MATRIX, and POWER OUTSIDE THE MATRIX.
Check out the following article at the Vigalent Citizen, which tackles another Joss Whedon project that outs mind control, among other things: "'The Cabin in the Woods': A Movie Celebrating the Elite's Ritual Sacrifices"
Niki Raapana and Nordica Friedrich wrote an excellent book on the Communitarian agenda, and how it is to be implemented by 2020, "2020: Our Common Destiny and The Anti Communitarian Manifesto".
You can listen to Niki Raapana and James Corbett discuss communitarianism on the Corbett Report, here:


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|© Creatista | Dreamstime Stock
Photos & Stock Free Images
People are living longer thanks to medical advances and better diets and living conditions. But, is this ageing population keeping up to date with technology and devices that surround us and which are part of everyday life for the majority of the younger population? For these young avid users of technology, life would be impossible – from connecting with friends, and looking up information online to catching up on TV shows or doing shopping online. Their lives revolve around constant use of the internet and they cannot imagine it any other way.
Join Dr Jyoti Choudrie as she presents her research findings at the 5th Social Digital Research Symposium 'Uncovering the Evidence of Digital Impact' being held on Thursday 25 April 2013 in London.
Dr Choudrie leads the Systems Management Research Unit (SyMRU) at the University's Business School. She will present three cases to explain whether older people in the UK are adopting or using innovative internet related products and services. The first showcases a study of older adults and their adoption of e-government websites; the second is based on their use of online social networks; and the third on the use of smart phones.
For more information on the symposium or to book a place please contact the organisers at firstname.lastname@example.com


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A Louth woman has pleaded not guilty to two assault charges - one of which is alleged to have been racially aggravated - against a youth in the town earlier this year.
Elaine Rosalyn Schofield-Beevers Scott, 49, of Dales Way in Louth, appeared at Lincoln Magistrates' Court on December 8, where she faced the two charges.
Scott is charged with committing a racially aggravated assault against a youth on September 9, contrary to the Crime and Disorder Act.
She also faces a separate charge of assaulting the youth by beating on the same date, contrary to the Criminal Justice Act.
Scott pleaded not guilty to both charges, and her case was adjourned at the request of the prosecution. She is due to appear at Lincoln Magistrates' Court again on December 29.
In the meantime, Scott was granted conditional bail and is prohibited from contacting the alleged victim and four other people.
Scott's conditional bail also prohibits her from attending two addresses in Louth , or loitering nearby.


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Consumers were forced into a crash spending diet brought on by last year's financial crisis and vanishing supplies of consumer credit. But like many people who have let their New Year's resolutions fall by the wayside, will consumers return to old spending habits if credit becomes more available?
Personal finance expert Stacy Johnson says there's a good chance it could, even though there also is a case to be made that Americans have permanently altered their spending habits, forever reducing their reliance on credit cards and diminishing consumer irresponsibility.
"I believe that people are justifiably afraid of living in debt," Johnson said. "They didn't do anything wrong and yet they get laid off, they didn't make a mistake and yet their house has gone down in value...I think that's going to change consumer attitudes going forward."
Johnson, author of "Life or Debt 2010: A New Path to Financial Freedom,"has counseled consumers about how to eliminate their debts following the three "M's": Motivation, Method and Money. He likens the process to dieting, as people see both practices as a form of deprivation. Similar to cutting calories, reducing spending won't happen until someone has the proper motivation and methods to do so, he said.
According to the Federal Reserve, consumers borrowed less for the 10th consecutive month in November, instead focusing on saving money and reducing their debt. But they're still drowning in unpaid bills, and it will likely take years for the economy — and similarly the consumer — to recover, Johnson said.
This is because, like dieting, the process of eliminating debts occurs slowly and is best accomplished by eliminating spending that doesn't make a consumer feel too deprived.
Johnson recommends consumers make substitutions they can live with, such as drinking water that has been filtered rather than buying more expensive bottled water, or skipping an appetizer at a restaurant rather than staying home.
Despite the slow process of debt reduction, Johnson does expect that consumer delinquencies — along with the unemployment rate — has hit a point where it will level off, and that this will be reflected in Friday's credit card default reports.
"I do think we'll see delinquencies continue to fall," he said.
Though reduced borrowing has raised worries that consumers will continue to lessen their spending, thus further dampening a recovery, Johnson said only about one-third of the reduction in borrowing can be attributed to smarter spending.
The majority of this decrease is instead a result of banks increasing their reserves and writing off a large amount of their debt, and making it harder for consumers to obtain credit lines, he said. Once these conditions improve, though, borrowing will likely tick higher again.
"While I'd like to think that the whole American public is getting more responsible — and I think they may be, actually — I don't think that's certainly behind the huge drop we're seeing in consumer debt," he said.
Still, Johnson said he expects that once the economy does rebound, a good number of consumers will have trained themselves to use smart spending practices, similar to those who emerged from the Great Depression to become the single wealthiest generation, he said.
More from Consumer Nation:
- Consumers Spending Again Despite Weak Jobs
- Winning Retail Stocks for 2010: Senior Analysts
- What's on Retailers Minds? Jobs, Jobs and More Jobs
- Retail Signs of the Times 2010
- The Face of the New Luxury Consumer: Saks CEO
Questions? Comments? Email us at firstname.lastname@example.com


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Watch Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010) movie online free full putlocker. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010) Scott Pilgrim plays in a band which aspires to success. He dates Knives Chau, a high-school girl five years younger, and he hasn't recovered from being dumped by his former girlfriend, now a success with her own band. When Scott falls for Ramona Flowers, he has trouble breaking up with Knives and tries to romance Ramona. As if juggling two women wasn't enough, Ramona comes with baggage: seven ex-lovers, with each of whom Scott must do battle to the death in order to win Ramona.
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Graphic Standards
This Graphic Standards manual for Lexington Public Schools (LPS) outlines how to project a consistent, positive image of LPS throughout the entire school system. Doing so will build and reinforce the LPS brand as the preferred provider of K-12 education.
To promote a consistent, uniform, and professional image, everyone's participation is necessary. From the Administration Building, throughout each and every school, the LPS brand needs to be presented in a clear and consistent manner.
The guidelines in this manual will help you create a professional image for your school or department while building and maintaining the LPS brand. It is not necessary to dispose of current paper stock before it runs out, but as you reorder, the guidelines are to be followed.
Any questions pertaining to these Graphics Standards should be directed to:
Kerri Dangler
Lexington Public Schools
P.O. Box 890
Lexington, NE 68850
Phone: (308) 324-1207
The Graphics Standard Manual information can be viewed online:
- Identity Design
- Usage (Rules)
- Stationery
- Newsletter
- Miscellaneous: Print or Visual Marketing Communication Tools


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LOS ANGELES, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- Cindy McCain, wife of Republican U.S. Senator John McCain, says she doesn't know if Sarah Palin is capable of running the country should she run for president.
Palin was John McCain's running mate when the senator ran for president in 2008.
When asked Thursday by "The Talk" host Julie Chen if Palin is capable of running the country, Cindy McCain, who appeared on the show with her daughter Meghan, responded: "I don't know, and this is not a criticism of Sarah, because I can only speak from where I came from. I know the body of work that my husband came from and I know where he stood and I know what he believes in. What I want from somebody is what I wanted from my husband, which is the sense to run this country."
McCain added that she thinks Palin has the "sense" and "wherewithal" to hold the country's highest office.
"I just hope she has the ability to understand that we have to include everybody in this party and this country. And again, I am not criticizing Sarah. But I understand that we are going to lose our young people to politics unless we include everybody in the process," McCain said.


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Tour 210
Assembly Room
The Assembly Room is the anchor of 210. This spacious yet intimate setting permits a variety of events on a concert, conference and presentation level.
FEATURES: Concert quality audio system, conference level video system, seating for 175 or 125 with tables.
The century-old brick walls recall the rich history and story of this building and creates an inspirational atmosphere for gathering. Leadership and business trainings, art exhibits, community driven forums, conferences and wedding parties are some of the events for which the Assembly Room has been the backdrop .
Reserve the Assembly Room for your event: >> reserve now <<


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The Mara Mini Skirt oozes modern chic style. It is cut short with a high banded waistline in an A-line silhouette featuring a snap front, contrast stitch detailing, belt loops, and extra large side pockets to fit her smart phone.
see photo
©2017 Patty Young Designs for MODKID, LLC®. All Rights Reserved. Do NOT reproduce without permission. Photography, illustrations and layout by and property of Patty Young.
Note: www.YouCanMakeThis.com provides this copyright & terms of use policy review as a courtesy to our site users and eBook authors. The copyright policy applies to the associated eBook and is specified and owned by the individual eBook author.


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White Plains, New York
As the largest city in Westchester County, the traffic congestion in White Plains can result in many serious injuries, whether rear end collisions or pedestrian injuries. For over 25 years, the law firm of Norman M. Block, P.C. has provided qualified and experienced representation to White Plains residents. We first attempt to get the best possible settlement from the insurance companies. If that doesn't work, we are at the Courthouse with a lawsuit. We aggressively represent our White Plains clients through the court process. Whether the victim of an accident or of the malpractice of a doctor or lawyer, White Plains residents rely on Norman M. Block, P.C. as their lawyers.
If you live in White Plains are injured in a car or bus accident, by falling in a store or restaurant, or because of the negligence of a doctor, call Norman M. Block, P.C. today.


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Whatever cut or style you're looking for, it can be done at Shear Luck Salon & Spa. Whether you bring in a photo of your favorite look, or desire something completely fresh and new, we will create a hairstyle that is flattering to your features and hair type.
At Shear Luck, there are several cut and style options, but these are a few of the most requested:
- – Women's & Men's cuts
- – Children's cuts
- – Conditioning treatments
- – Shampoo & style
- – Beard/ Bang trim
- – Dreadlocks


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Health JIFs
Health JIFs
Across the country, government agencies and municipalities are struggling to cope with rising employee benefit expenses. One of the most efficient ways to confront these increases is through Health Insurance Funds (HIFs). PERMA administers more HIFs than any other manager in the entire country.
HIFs are a successful tactic because individual public entities on their own have little bargaining power. This is especially true in smaller municipalities and government agencies. As part of a joint fund, these public entities wield more influence on the marketplace and therefore are better leveraged to receive more in return.
To read more, view our PERMA Health JIF brochure, or browse our website to learn about:
To find out if a PERMA Health JIF is the right choice for you, contact us at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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"The enemy is not so much ethnic food, but food of poor quality. A bad Tuscan trattoria does more damage than a kebab shop." (Roberto Burdese, president of Slow Food, responding to the Italian town of Lucca--near Florence--and its effort to ban anything but native restaurants within city limits. No French, no Chinese and no Chicago-style pizza. The measure has sparked somewhat intense debate. Many have pointed out that such Italian staples as, say, tomatoes originated elsewhere. Quoted in The Christian Science Monitor.)
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22 October 2013 Infrastructure and Application Experts, IT Manager, Live Maps, news 3 min read
New York, NY – October 22, 2013 – Savision, whose essential add-ons for System Center help companies across the globe by transforming complex IT data into meaningful, well organized and actionable dashboards and reports announced today full compatibility with Microsoft Corp.'s System Center 2012 R2 for its suite of IT management solutions.
"Companies around the world use System Center and Live Maps to run their IT infrastructures," said Diana Krieger, CEO of Savision. "As companies upgrade to System Center 2012 R2 they can be sure that Live Maps for System Center 2012 R2 will work flawlessly."
"System Center provides enterprise-class management solutions, reduces complexity and infrastructure costs, and enables deep application and workload insight," said Brian Hillger, Director of Product Marketing, Microsoft. "With interactive mapping capability powered by Bing Maps, and System Center 2012 R2 Service Manager integration, Live Maps is designed to help administrators determine the health of business services, the associated network components, and the source of IT alerts. In addition Live Maps offers management concise dashboards to understand and manage the business impact."
In addition to System Center 2012 R2 compatibility, Savision recently launched a mobile offering. IT professionals and management can now access Live Map views and be notified of state changes directly on their smart phone or tablet with Live Maps Mobile for System Center, which is available for Windows Phone, iOS and Android. The Live Maps Mobile Console empowers IT professionals to keep track of their critical business applications even if they are away from their desks and lets them filter out unnecessary alert and notification noise.
"Our goal is to create software that adds business value for our customers," said Rob Doucette, VP R&D of Savision. "We do this by providing tools that turn complex IT environments into simple and easy to understand dashboards and reports. With these at-a-glance views, our customers quickly spot IT problems, prioritize them based on the business context we provide, and begin resolving the issues – often before end users even notice. Management is able to quickly assess where IT is performing well and where a resolution is needed."
Savision has integrated Live Maps into many international companies' IT infrastructures, including the Dublin Airport Authority and Idexx Laboratories.
"More and more companies realize that Live Maps is one of the most effective ways to keep their IT systems online so that problems don't affect their end users and business downtime is reduced," Doucette said.
"IT performance and security are priorities for both Savision and Microsoft," said Krieger. "Our collaboration with Microsoft is targeted at reducing unplanned downtime for our joint customers."
Savision is an international company with over 600 customers around the globe. Their products and services accelerate resolution time of IT problems, provide improved organizational efficiency and reduce business down time, allowing customers to realize over 20% cost reduction. Founded in 2006, Savision is headquartered in the Netherlands and has offices in New York and Ottawa. Savision's founders and executives bring years of enterprise systems and application management experience from large IT service companies.


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Healing Sessions in Marbella, Spain
Holistic therapist: Sheerana
Specialities: Soul & Body Healing through conscious tantric touch. Deep Alpha/Theta relaxation state. Return of the Soul to the Body.
What are the benefits?
- Rebalancing the energies in the body
- Release of emotional/past traumas
- Deep healing of your inner child
- Support the body's natural healing process
- Access to one's own vital energy
- Activate all energy centers in the body
- Allow lymphatic drainage and circulation to flow
- Improve love/sex relationships
- Deep state of relaxation and wellbeing
- Find your own Infinite source of Divine power
These Holistic Healing sessions are an opportunity for you to dive deep and experience the Art of Tantra Touch that could have transformational influence for your life. These ancient techniques not only work with the physical body but also with the mental, emotional and spiritual bodies allowing for an expansion of awareness, an improvement of your relationships, your sexuality, communication, all the while accelerating your spiritual growth.
About Sheerana
Sheerana is a Clairsentient being. Her perception of reality extends to channeling very subtle energies. She has a unique gift of being intuitively guided from the very young age, naturally joyful, yet balanced and peacefully present in the present moment. Her 100% presence and her loving touch gives the receiver a sense of a deep trust, serenity and security, which allows you to fall into the arms of the Divine Feminine to heal and nourish you on all levels. Her touch comes from the purest source of unconditional love for humanity, being an empty vessel to channel the purest vibrations for the benefits of all.
She chose the path as a Mystic/Tantra touch healer and a Holistic Counsellor to follow her passion and to help you return your Soul to your body, to release you from fears and desires and to dive deep and anchor into the nourishing frequencies of True Beloved. She feels and knows the healing power of love that honors the Divine Feminine and Masculine in its true essence.
Sheerana has over 10 years of experience in meditation, yoga, qigong, pranic living, holistic healing work, coaching and inspiring others on their path to the Self.
Sheerana was trained with the best teachers from around the world and holds qualifications as a Mystic Massage practitioner from the school of "Tantra Essence" with Mahasatvaa Ma Ananda Sarita, Dharmaraj and Deep Tantra Touch with Robert Silver.
In these massage and counseling sessions Sheerana integrates her developed intuitive healing modalities and vast experience, with a deep Alpha/Theta meditational state to heal past wounds, support your journey into the higher levels of consciousness, re-connect your body, mind and heart with your sexual energy and to activate and experience your own infinite creative vital life force to its full potential.
Sheerana's spiritual background and inspiration:
- Sutras Patanjali
- Anastasia – Riging Cedars of Russia
- Mooji – Advaita Vedanta
- Drunvalo Melchizedek – Sacred Geometry – Merkaba
- Catherine Sheinberg – Dreams and Imagery work
- Jasmuheen – Pranic living, Embassy of Peace
- Oberom
- Victor Truviano
- Matt Khan – revolution of love
- Kryon
- Telos – Lemurian energy
- Bruce Lipton – biology of beliefs
- Gurdjieff dances
- Osho talks and meditations
- Mattias Shwentek, Ma Ananda Sarita, Robert Silber – Shakti awakening, deep tantra touch
- And many others
Sheerana is always open for learning and expansion with much gratitude and surrender to the Flow of Grace.
Languages: English, Russian and Spanish
Session location: Marbella, Spain and worldwide at events.
Worldwide festivals and retreats: Sheerana is available to attend events worldwide. For more information, please email her by clicking the button below.


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Proud Lion Coloring
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Proud Lion Coloring game information:
Play with the king of the forest and suggest unique color
combinations for his proud mane. Try wild ideas and enjoy
your own creativity in the coloring game.
How to play:
Click on the colors and drop them on the picture. Click next
icon to go to the next picture and click finish icon to
complete the game.
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Welcome to our Tips & Hints page. Here you will find helpful hints, tips, and useful links to other websites of interest to you.
Lawn Watering
Catoosa Utility District Authority urges all water consumers to follow the outdoor watering schedule set forth by The Department of Natural Resources as follows:
- Odd numbered addresses – Outdoor water use is allowed on Tuesday, Thursday, & Sunday.
- Even numbered addresses – Outdoor water use is allowed on Monday, Wednesday, & Saturday.
Watering properly will help your lawn grow deep roots that make it stronger and less vulnerable to drought. Most lawns are watered too often but with too little water. It's best to water only when the lawn really needs it, and then to water slowly and deeply. This trains the grass roots down. Frequent shallow watering trains the roots to stay near the surface, making the lawn less able to find moisture during dry periods. Every lawn's watering needs are unique: they depend on local rainfall, the grass and soil type, and the general health of the lawn. But even in very dry areas, no established home lawn should require daily watering. Try to water your lawn in a way that imitates a slow, soaking rain, by using trickle irrigation, soaker hoses, or other water-conserving methods. It's also best to water in the early morning, especially during hot summer months, to reduce evaporation. Apply about an inch of water–enough that it soaks 6-8 inches into the soil. Then let the lawn dry out thoroughly before watering it again. The best rule is to water only when the lawn begins to wilt from dryness–when the color dulls and footprints stay compressed for more than a few seconds.
New Location and New Service
Please download and print the new service tag to let our service technicians know where to add the meter.


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Date: 2 August 2016
Event: 7th University Scholars Leadership Symposium "Inspiring Individuals, Transforming Communities"
Venue: JW Marriot hotel, 8 Do Duc Duc, Tu Liem District, Hanoi
- Mr. Kim Solomon, Secretary-General of Humanitarian Affairs Asia;
- Miss Janice Leong, Regional Director of Humanitarian Affairs Asia;
- Distinguished young and some old delegates from all over the world;
- Good morning!
Let me begin by warmly welcoming you to the beautiful and historical city of Hanoi.
I firstly want to take this opportunity to thank Humanitarian Affairs Asia for organizing this important symposium. I feel honored to be here to discuss the topic of humanitarian leadership and speak in front of an enthusiastic group of young people who want to make a difference in our world.
We live in a remarkable time, full of contradictions, challenges and opportunities. Never before humanity has been united as it is now because of speed of transportation, technology and knowledge but, at the same time, divided by intolerance for any difference and greed for money and power. Today I want to speak about major threats in the world and how Youth can forge solutions, particularly for four major, and inter-related, global problems: human development, climate change, armed conflict and humanitarian crises.
We have never seen as much wealth in the world but also as much inequality as we see now especially inequality in opportunities to live in a dignified life. Since the adoption of MDGs in 2000, income poverty globally has substantially reduced but all forms of inequalities have increased across all countries – rich and poor. There is 45 per cent decline in global maternal mortality rates, but even today, more than 800 women still die every day from causes related to pregnancy.
Enrolment of children in primary education is at present nearly universal. The gender gap has narrowed, but still 60 million girls are denied education all over the world, nearly 15 million girls who are under 18 years are married off. Gender based violence is pervasive. Around one third of women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner or a close relative at some point in their lives. More than 125 million girls and women alive today have been subjected to female genital mutilation and millions are subjected to trafficking and in-human treatment.
Unemployment, particularly for young men and women is at all-time high at 13%. Globally, almost one in 7 youth or nearly 74 million young people are looking for work. Even in wealthy countries nearly half of all young adults are jobless. In addition, inadequate opportunities for skills development, lack of support for entrepreneurship, access to credit and diminishing labour rights have profound impacts not only on youth economic engagement but equally important on the psyche, self-worth and self-esteem.
Climate change represents inter-generational injustice. The older generation has not taken care of the planet that young people will inherit. 2016 has been one of the hottest years on record. Climate change is clearly not a far future anymore and is already breaking records across the world. It is intensifying natural disasters, such as the 2010 Pakistan Floods, the 2013 Super Typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines, Hurricane Sandy in 2012, and the 2003 summer heat wave that caused more than 70,000 deaths across Europe. The UN estimates disasters such as these and others to cause on an average between US$250 and US$300 billion annually.
There are 65 Million refugees or displaced people in the world and an astonishing over 50 per cent of them are children and youth. This means one in every 113 people globally. And thousands of men, women and children die every year searching for what everyone deserves – safety, opportunity and peace.
There are now generations growing up in IDP camps and make-shift refugees' shelter, isolated from the mainstream, dependent on humanitarian assistance and robbed of their identity. Some 600 million young people live in countries that are fragile or war torn, devastated by destruction of economy, morale, injustice and no jobs and no opportunities.
Youth are being targeted by violent extremists – and sometimes blamed for their actions. This completely distorted picture fails to show that the vast majority of young people want peace and opportunity to live a dignified life.
But despite all these global challenges we are facing, I am very optimistic about the future. Partly and very importantly because majority of the young people around the world long for peace and security and are committed to human rights. Young men and women like you are bringing new energy, creativity and dynamism to solving problems and making progress. They are proving to be invaluable partners who can advance meaningful solutions. Youth movements, student groups are challenging traditional power structures, raising voice against injustice and inequalities and advocating for new social contract between States and societies and for global action for all people and the planet.
Inspiration for action is right around the corner, in this room, in your schools, in the towns and cities you are living in, and across the globe. I strongly believe that young people are the driving force behind positive change, by embracing volunteering their time, technological innovations, social entrepreneurship and by demonstrating active solidarity.
Young entrepreneurs are behind some of the most famous innovations of our time, such as: Dropbox, Instagram, Snapchat and many new apps. Through smart use of social media, crowdfunding and other platforms, youth are able to mobilize people and resources in no time, connecting people and making information accessible in the remotest locations and contributing in collecting information and data for need-based planning.
In my various interactions with young men and women in different parts of the world, I find them very different from when my generation was of your age. They are more aware of local and global problems, they desire to improve things not in the form of charity or short-lived sympathy, but as an integral part of their values - who they are, how they work and how they live, making use of technology to connect across the globe and share responsibility. I have met so many young social entrepreneurs who want to go beyond the goal of just making money - to also generate social value, reach out to the less fortunate, build a symbiotic relationship with nature in everything they do, and attain quality of life not just for themselves but also for the people around them. This is happening everywhere.
Let me give you a few examples of inspiring young individuals, of innovators, of eloquent and passionate women and men who are transforming communities, who may not have featured on CNN News. I choose to focus on the unsung heroes, ordinary people with extraordinary initiatives:
- Hoang Duc Minh, a 30 year-old Vietnamese, is cofounder and director of 'Action For the Future', a youth organization working on environmental awareness, climate change and sustainable development in Viet Nam. Last year, he was listed by Forbes Magazine on the first-ever Vietnamese '30 under 30' list to watch in the coming years. His passion and enthusiasm was a driving force behind the 'Green Generation Network', a network of thousands of young Vietnamese who take environmental action across the country.
- Grace Li, 21 years old, born in the United States, is a daughter of a Chinese couple who went to the US to study and built up their lives there. When the Sichuan earthquake killed over more than 10,000 people in 2008, a nerve struck and she said: "This was the first time I had felt such a personal connection to a disaster. My indignant young self-decided that everyone had to know about this, and that, more importantly, we all had to do something." She and her friends created a non-profit organization called 'We Care Act' that since then has helped over 14,000 children recover from natural disasters around the world—from Hurricane Ike to the Haitian earthquake. Grace now wants to focus not just on disaster relief but also education, since that's a subject very close to her heart.
- Jeremiah Kimbugwe, 25 years old living in Uganda, used his degree in social work to bring about health changes in the slums of Kampala. Working with the organization 'Sovhen Uganda', Jeremiah oversees a sanitary napkin-making project as a solution to other dangerous and unsanitary methods that some young women currently use. He also designed a module to help encourage youth to stay in school. He's not afraid of a challenge: "Just as I have always told my friends, opportunities will come and knock on our doors, and if we are not prepared, they will pass us by. The opportunities will knock on the doors of other people until they find someone who is ready for the challenge."
- Luis Fernando Cruz, 19 years old from Honduras, is a natural born innovator. At the age of 16, he developed the first video game system ever built in Honduras. After meeting a fellow student impaired by a spinal cord injury, his perspective on innovative technologies changed dramatically. After extensive research and investing about $1,000, he came up with 'Eyeboard', a type of eye-controlled software to help people with disabilities. To benefit as many people as possible, he released it as an open source, free for everyone to further develop.
Millions of young women and men, from all over the world, are volunteering their time across the globe, working in remotest areas, conflict and war torn countries, communities devastated by natural disasters and in places of epidemic and pandemic outbreaks providing life- saving assistance, psycho- social counselling, teaching displaced and refugee children in make-shift schools, providing health services camps and field hospitals.
They are only a few examples of how youth across the world is on the vanguard of social change and making humanitarian contribution, how they are tapping into their creativity to make a difference, how they are elevating the lives of the less fortunate, how they started a journey that will shape the rest of their and others' lives. These are stories that inspire me, that should inspire all of us in this room today. I strongly believe that you, and, millions of young people out there are not just the leaders of tomorrow, you are the leaders of today. We as responsible senior adults cannot just worry about young people – or work for them. We need to invest in them, in you. Empower you to influence decisions and work with you for the future.
That is why, UN Secretary General has appointed a first ever Youth Envoy at the United Nations to help connect the UN to young people and young people to the UN. In an unprecedented effort, for the first time people were engaged and nearly 4.5 million young people engaged in the "My world survey" and voiced their aspiration for the world they want to see and influenced the Agenda 2030 of SDGs which the world leaders adopted in September 2015 to end poverty, fight inequality and injustice, and tackle climate change, addressing the critical challenges of our time, which are the root cause for many conflicts and crisis in the world.
The 17 SDGs are for all countries in the world- rich and poor. They are a promise by global leaders to leave no one behind. They are a promise to all people, especially youth and they can hold their governments accountable for these promises, and help achieve them.
To address the enormous challenge of humanitarian crisis and funding, the United Nations convened the first World Humanitarian Summit in May of this year.
In preparation of this important summit, young people between 18 and 30 representing 82 countries gathered in Doha last year to discuss input and youth perspectives on humanitarian challenges and solutions.
One of the official sessions at the World Humanitarian Summit focused on the theme of "Transforming Humanitarian Action with and for Youth" and resulted in the launching of the new Compact for Young People in Humanitarian Action as a concrete and transformative result to working with and for young people in the context of humanitarian settings.
The compact is an unprecedented and collective commitment of key actors to ensure that the priorities, needs and rights of young women and young men, girls and boys affected by disaster, conflict, forced displacement and other humanitarian crises, are addressed, and that they are informed, consulted, and meaningfully engaged throughout all stages of humanitarian action.
More than ever, the UN believes in young people. The UN Secretary General has brought young people right at the heart of diplomacy calling for empowering young peacebuilders and help end the pull of violent extremism. Last year in December, the UN Security Council adopted a historic resolution 2250 on youth, peace and security. This is a major breakthrough in how UN promotes peace. Until now, young people were generally seen as good enough to fight wars – but not to negotiate peace. Resolution 2250 has made a commitment to give voice to the young people.
In June this year, a new initiative UN Young Leaders Initiative was launched to showcase the outstanding leadership of young people in putting the world on a more sustainable path. From food to arts, sports and finance, the Young Leaders will come from many different backgrounds, represent every region in the world and help activate millions of young people in support of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The complicated and inter-connected world we live in cannot achieve sustainable development and lasting peace without investing in young and collaborating with them in finding solutions. While the world is 4 billion years old, it is still very young, with half of its global population, almost 1.8 billion people under 25 years old. This is the largest generation of youth in history and our biggest hope and opportunity to ensure human rights and save this planet.
I hope that during the course of this conference you will be inspired with new ideas, you will inspire each other and inspire us to act, create and innovate to make a positive difference in the world.
Thank you!
Tin mới
- Opening remarks by Mr. Youssouf Abdel-Jelil – UN Viet Nam Resident Coordinator a.i. at the CCNDPC-UN-partner meeting on the flood emergency
- Speech by UN Resident Coordinator a.i., Mr. Youssouf Abdel-Jelil Celebration of International Day of Persons with Disabilities
- Speech By Ms. Astrid Bant, UNFPA Representative in Viet Nam at the Launching Ceremony on the National Action Month on Gender Equality and Prevention of Violence against Women and Girls
- Speech by Ms. Louise Chamberlain, on behalf of UN Team at the Consultation Workshop on the Draft National Action Plan for implementing the 2030
- Speech by UN Resident Coordinator a.i., Dr Kristan Schoultz at the Viet Nam Corporate Sustainability Forum 2016
- Speech by Ms. Astrid Bant, UNFPA Representative in Viet Nam at the National Workshop on Child Marriage


text:
Written by John G. Vibes
When a problem occurs or when something is wrong we have traditionally been conditioned to find someone who is "in charge", a final arbiter of decision making who will have all of the answers and know all of the right things to say and do.
Typically, those who have found themselves "in charge" are no more qualified or knowledgeable than those who are not, yet nonetheless these false prophets continue to swindle generation after generation of people.
The worst thing about this whole situation is that these so called "authorities" maintain a monopoly on problem solving, meaning they are really the only ones who are allowed to solve problems. Thus over time people begin to believe that those in authority are the only ones who are actually capable of solving problems, when in reality, they are no more qualified than anyone else.
If we apply this understanding to the realm of government, it is not difficult to see that the current system of electoral politics is not an effective or moral way for people to actually create meaningful change in their communities and the planet as a whole. Year after year, administration after administration the faces change, but the oppression continues to escalate.
Even if your vote is actually counted, which it probably isn't, it still won't matter who wins in the end anyway because they are all going to carry out the exact same policies with just slightly rhetoric behind them. It should be obvious by now that this system is not only inherently corrupt, but is also failing miserably and currently in the process of collapse.
So what do we do? How do we solve these problems? Do we look to authority? Do we put someone else in charge? Of course not! How has that been working out for us all along? Not so well, right?
Yet when I suggest that everyone needs give up on voting and take matters into their own hands in their personal lives, people always seem to get the impression that I am suggesting they "do nothing". In reality the complete opposite is true. I am suggesting that they actually get out and do something to make an impact on the problems that bother them instead of just pushing a button in an election booth, throwing the problem on some politicians lap and thinking that something is actually going to get done.
If anything, that political approach that I just described is the lazy way of going about change, but actually working on solutions yourself is truly meaningful action. There are a ton of ways that you can contribute to helping the global situation without politics. In fact, you will do much better than the politicians at actually achieving the goal. Below is just a few ways that I have recently seen people solving problems in their community by themselves, without the government.
(1) Opt Out in Every Way Possible – Non-Compliance is a long-term strategy and won't achieve overnight results, but this is still a necessary part of this social evolution that I am speaking of. Opting out is a way of pulling your support out of the system, and putting your support in something that will eventually outshine the system and make it obsolete. That is a lot of the idea behind pulling yourself out of the political process and refusing to vote. Voting takes a lot of time and energy, especially if you are donating money to political parties and campaigning for candidates. Opting out will instantly free up that time, energy and money for causes that will be more effective in achieving your goal of improving society.
(2) Be Your Own President – Presidents are not "leaders" as the masquerade to be, they are appointed masters who seek to control the thoughts and actions of large groups of people. You have the choice to disobey any random code or policy that doesn't stand up to the non-aggression principle and natural law. Exercising that choice is a way of finding freedom in a seemingly unfree world. If you break government laws and no one gets hurt in the process, and no property has been damaged or stolen, then you have done nothing wrong. Be your own master instead of letting someone else control your behavior.
(3) Campaign for Philosophy – After watching puppet after puppet go through office we should all know by now that "getting the right guy in there" isn't any kind of possibility, and even it was a possibility, it would be like giving a really nice guy a sledgehammer to repair a complicated supercomputer. What really needs to happen is an advancement of philosophy and a change in the way that this species looks at the world. All of the answers for exactly how the future will be built is not yet known and truly unpredictable, but the problems in our current system are obvious enough that they are easy to identify. The fundamental flaws with our traditional way of life as a species is that it has been acceptable for people to force their will on one another, through both private and political means. As a result violence has plagued our species for ages when we could have easily shed this neurotic tendency just after the stone ages.
For centuries humanity has been trapped in this loop of violence because a philosophical advancement has failed to occur. We have known the path to take for ages, we all talk about it in every culture, in the hypocritical rhetoric of every government. Equal rights and universal standards, peace, freedom and justice. These are the ideals that we all speak of, but many fail to live by. These are the ideals that will change the world if embraced, but it is not going to happen by voting an aristocratic liar into a position of power. It will only happen through intelligent people talking about these ideas and coming up with new ways to actually integrate them into society.
(4) Support or Start Mutual Aid Groups – As an article pointed out this week, mutual aid groups were one of the most popular ways that people ensured the welfare of their families and neighbors before the government created programs to make everyone depend on them for help. Years later we can see the results of this approach, as these programs are in total disarray because their purpose was never actually to help people, and those involved have no real incentive to make these programs productive because they aren't even a part of the community that depends on them. This is what makes mutual aid groups different. First off, these are all programs which are joined by choice and funded voluntarily and they allow people to directly interact with whoever they are helping and with whoever is helping them. These programs are highly efficient and realistic even in today's world. As I pointed out last week a variation of this idea is already becoming popular among jobless people in Spain, who have been using mutual aid organizations called time banks, to help each other weather the tough times.
(5) Support or Create Alternative Currency – There are alternative currencies popping up all over the world, and all over the Internet as well. Bitcoin has been the primary currency used online, but the market is open to competitors so Bitcoin will have to actually continue to satisfy customers, or it will surely give way to a more user friendly currency, something that the Federal Reserve System has never had to do because they monopolize the currency. For close communities and urban markets coupon based, community backed currencies are starting to develop, which allow people to opt out of the Federal Reserve System, and barter with their neighbors using a mutually agreed upon medium of exchange which has no tie to politics at all. In Baltimore many use "Bnotes" to trade amongst themselves, out west they have something called mountain hours that works in much the same way. If there is one of these currencies in your community see what you can do to get involved, if not there are plenty of places online that will tell you how to start this kind of project yourself.
(6) Support or Create a Community Garden – Food prices are getting high and quality is getting lower, making times extremely tough for anyone trying to be healthy. If there is already a garden in your community, try to get involved and support them as much as possible. If there isn't one in your community, think about starting one yourself!
(7) Support or Create Alternative Media – It's no secret that the mainstream media is a dying entity that has totally lost the confidence of the general population. CNN has been reporting an 80% decrease year after year, and the outlets on either side of the aisle aren't doing much better either. They are all losing their audience to the people-powered alternative media which is run by large networks of individual activists, most of which really need and deserve some support from the people who appreciate their media. Cancelling your cable subscription and putting that money towards your favorite alternative media organization is a big step in shifting the control of information back into the hands of free people exchanging ideas, instead of government monopolists.
(8) Act with Kindness and Compassion in Your Own Life – Self-explanatory, be excellent to each other.
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