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Bachmann Branchline MK2F TSO in Scotrail Saltire livery
British Rail's second generation of Standard Coach design is known as the Mark 2. Design and construction followed on from the universal and ubiquitous Mk1 family of coaching stock, with the prototype example built in 1963. Series production continued until 1975 at Derby Carriage Works. They were of steel construction, and of a more monocoque design than the Mk1, which added to their safety and integrity in event of collision or mishap.
As passenger expectations and railway operations had moved on since the vast Mk1 range was conceived, and because there was still much life left in the Mk1s by the mid-sixties, a much reduced number of vehicle types were built. The basic Mk2 types included First and Second class accommodation, with corridors and compartments only available to First Class passengers, all Second Class coaches were conceived as open saloons. First and Second class Brake coaches were built, but no full brakes, catering cars, restaurants, buffets or sleeping cars were included, Mark 1 coaches fulfilling these needs until Mark 3s came along in the late seventies.
The Mark 2 family underwent a number of tweaks and improvements during the 12 years construction period. The principal visual differences included air braking from Mk2A, removal of the central bodyside doors and vestibule (Mk2B), introduction of wrap-around corner doors and provision of one WC at each end in lieu of two at one end (Mk2B), air conditioning – so no opening windows in the saloon area (Mk2D), no side corridor First Class compartment vehicles (from Mk2E onwards), varying style and colours of end gangway doors.
Bachmann has produced early and late types of Mk2 vehicles, Mk2A with the characteristic early features of this widely-travelled type, and the final evolution of the Mk2, the Mk2F, including the popular Mk2F DBSO that was converted from the standard BSO for push-pull operation between Edinburgh and Glasgow in the late 1970s, with the dedicated Class 47/7 'shove duff' fleet, converted from members of Class 47/4. The Mk2Fs are available with DCC operated lighting, and the DBSO itself has DCC controlled cab and interior lighting. Bachmann also produces the Class 47 and Class 90 that have operated with the DBSO Mk2F.
Mk2s have carried a wide range of liveries including BR Blue & Grey, Inter-City, Swallow, Regional Railways, ScotRail, Virgin Trains, Anglia, Network SouthEast, Virgin CrossCountry, Arriva, and many current liveries with railtour and heritage operators including Locomotive Services Limited (LSL), West Coast Railway Company and more.
Mk2s have during their 50+ operating life formed many of the famous named trains including The Flying Scotsman, hauled by Class 55 Deltics, the Royal Scot, Caledonian, the Electric Scot, and many more. Regional Railways Class 37s were a long time favourite of enthusiasts, working with Mk2 coaching stock on rural routes especially in Scotland, Wales and more recently the Cumbrian Coast and Norfolk, and older enthusiasts will remember early Mk2s operating alongside steam in the North West during the well-liked and rich in modelling inspiration 'Transition Era' 1965-68.


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While climate change threatens livelihoods and security across the board, women and girls commonly face higher risks and greater burdens from climate change, particularly when they are living in poverty. Climate-related disasters also hit women hard, often due to restrictions on their mobility and access to information. Women's unequal participation in decision-making and access to resources and information compound other inequalities and often prevent them from fully contributing to climate-related planning, policy-making and implementation.
That's why it is so important to make sure that when countries determine how they are going to implement their commitments under the Paris Agreement on climate change, gender equality concerns are considered and integrated from the very beginning.
The cost of not recognizing the persistent and structural gender inequalities that undermine progress for women and sustainable development is steep. Despite their substantial role in agriculture, for example, women across regions have less access than men to productive resources and opportunities – from land and livestock to education, agricultural extension, financial services, and technology.
Despite their substantial role in agriculture, women across regions have less access than men to productive resources and opportunities – from land and livestock to education, agricultural extension, financial services, and technology.
Leveling this playing field would have a dramatic impact on agricultural production and food security and build community resilience to climate change. According to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization, simply giving women the same access as men to agricultural resources could increase production on women's farms in developing countries by 20 to 30 percent, raise total agricultural production in developing countries by 2.5 to 4 percent, and reduce the number of hungry people in the world by 12 to 17 percent, or 100 to 150 million people.
Unfortunately, most national contributions for meeting the Paris Agreement commitments have yet to consider gender issues. An analysis developed by UNDP found that out of 161 Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) outlining how countries expect to meet their climate change targets, only 65 countries (40 percent) made even a single reference to gender equality or women. Thirty-five countries referred to the role of women in adaptation, but without specific mention of key sectors or women's roles. Only 18 countries recognized the role of women in climate change mitigation, primarily in relation to energy emissions, sustainable or biomass energy, and livestock. This insufficient, non-specific inclusion of gender equality underscores the need to support countries to translate gender equality intentions into concrete action and policies.
Most national contributions for meeting the Paris Agreement commitments have yet to consider gender issues.
For this reason, UNDP and the Government of Germany have included in their joint NDC support activities a specific component to help countries ensure that women both benefit from and participate equally in climate change mitigation. The 10-country initiative, which recognizes women as real solution providers and not just marginalized victims, will identify gender gaps and barriers through national analyses and consultations on gender trends and the different circumstances of women and men in key climate sectors.
It will build capacities of decision-makers and ensure that institutional frameworks and coordination mechanisms integrate gender considerations into climate planning. It will also support the integration of gender equality in policy and planning, including through gender disaggregated data and indicators for monitoring and reporting, in instruments such as Low Emissions Development Strategies (LEDs) and National Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs).
By addressing the interlinked processes of climate change and gender equality, and integrating them into implementation plans and policies, we can ensure that the good intent of the Paris Agreement is translated into actions that lead to successful results and sustainable development that benefits all.
This post appeared on the UNDP blog, and is republished with permission. The original post can be found here.

subset: commoncrawl


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How long did the openness and transparency of the blockchain become its own pain point? The blockchain technology that changes the world combines distributed ledgers, peer-to-peer networks, and consensus mechanisms. It has the characteristics of decentralization, anonymity, non-tamperability, and encrypted operations. However, the current mainstream blockchain adopts an open and transparent ledger. Anyone can query the total amount of funds and fund relevance of each address, which is extremely easy to be monitored, and there are programs on the market to monitor specific addresses and transactions, although the addresses have Anonymity, but most digital currency exchanges need to complete real-name verification, so as long as the digital currency enters a centralized exchange or wallet, there is a high probability that the private information of the digital asset owner can be found.
There are hundreds of billions of dollars of digital currency circulating in the market every day, and these transactions are recorded on an open and transparent blockchain ledger. Any user can find it on it, whether it is account balance, transaction records, and capital flow. under the sun. The application of digital currency is an inevitable trend. Imagine that you use digital currency to buy goods in the store in the future. When you pay to the store, the store will know how much money is in your wallet, where the money comes from, and where the money will go in the future. Although the characteristics of openness and transparency help regulatory agencies to conduct supervision, it is a big challenge for user privacy and security. As the number of users and the utilization rate of digital assets continue to increase, the demand for asset security, privacy and stability has formed a market. The pain point is that it needs to be reformed by new technology.
The current "hidden coins" are all built on their own blockchains, and their own digital currency transactions must be used to achieve the effect of concealment, which does not meet market needs. Such as DASH Dash, XMR Monero and ZEC, the market for these hidden coins is not very hot. Most users still use Bitcoin BTC, Ethereum ETH, TEDA USDT or issued based on ERC-20 specifications. Digital currency.
Red Capital and PAP Labs have developed a solution that can be applied to mainstream digital currencies and can achieve decentralization, security and concealment-the "decentralized electronic cashier's check system", which is expected to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars. The asset trading market occupies a place and contributes to the implementation of digital currency to solve the privacy and security pain points of future physical transactions.
The decentralized electronic cashier's check system PAP SYSTEM , named after privacy and protection , is a set of decentralized "electronic cashier's check protocol", built on Ethereum In the smart contract, the code is completely open, and the "indefinite bearer electronic promissory note" that does not require a third-party trust basis, adopts the "zero-knowledge concise non-interactive knowledge argumentation" (zk-SNARK) and a mixed data structure, and at the same time guarantees the holding of the promissory note Some of the anonymity, privacy of message transmission, and privacy of data structure provide the most secure hidden transactions to ensure that the platform's core data information is safe and correct. Even big data trackers cannot track transactions.
Using Zero Knowledge Proof Technology Zero Knowledge Proof Zero Knowledge Proof
is an encryption protocol that allows the prover to confirm the authenticity of the statement to the verifier without revealing any information about the proven message to the verifier. The simplified non-interactive proof of knowledge (zk-SNARK) algorithm in the zero-knowledge proof can be used to prove the declaration of private data, anonymous authentication, anonymous payment and outsourcing calculations, so in digital currency transactions, the availability of funds for user transactions can be checked , Without revealing the identity of the user and how much money is in his account to network participants, so it is very suitable for hiding the amount and flow of digital assets of the user.
If the mixed data structure
only uses zero-knowledge proof of zk-SNARK, it cannot achieve true on-chain concealment, because the data structure of the smart contract is public. If a single transaction is separately coded and recorded in the smart contract, then Just checking the field changes can connect the depositor and the proposer. The PAP system has joined the hybrid collection technology. Anyone who deposits into the contract to generate an electronic promissory note will be added to a growing data structure, and this structure is protected by encrypted calculations, and only the key of a certain promissory note is known. People who use zk-SNARK to send the encrypted key into the contract can verify that the key is indeed listed in the data structure. The entire process, including the key and the data structure, will not be completely encrypted, so there is no way to know After all, the key belongs to which depositor.
The PAP system supports mainstream Ethereum wallets (Metamask, imtoekn) and mainstream digital currencies (Ether, USDT, and ERC-20 digital currencies). Users deposit digital currencies into the PAP system, and a set of encrypted electronic currencies will be generated at this time. The promissory note, when you want to retrieve the digital currency, you can use the group of promissory notes to redeem it to any address in the PAP system. The process is fully encrypted and protected.
- Figure: PAP decentralized electronic cashier's check logic
The PAP system collects a handling fee of 0.2% of the promissory note value as income for each service, and creates an exclusive token economy, issuing PAP Token secret coins, and when issuing electronic promissory notes, users can obtain PAP Token secret coins as rewards. PAP can be pledged. Based on the spirit of the sharing economy, the fee income will be proportionally distributed to all users who pledge PAP Token. In addition to the pledge, it can also be taken out at will. Users who hold PAP can participate in community governance, and can vote on related governance parameters, including but not limited to currency denominations, number of rights, handling fees, profit sharing ratio, or vote for new ERC-20 specification currencies to be listed.
Red Capital took the lead in supporting the PAP decentralized electronic cashier's check system. It is the only company that opens up public participation and shares profits, solves the pain points of digital currency payment and creates a new era of digital currency transactions.
She is Writer with a desire to learn again how to be creative and with the idea planted by a new friend….I reach out to express the joy, sorrow, hope and renewed enthusiasm toward this wonderful life!
Disclaimer: The views, suggestions, and opinions expressed here are the sole responsibility of the experts. No Weekly Central USA journalist was involved in the writing and production of this article.


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07/05.2014 | Hairstyle(TopStuff) |
01585 |
By newsea |
It is Monthly TOP stuff,you can download it if you donated at this month, or you donated for 3 months or more.
The file is in sims3pack format.
This hairstyle is for SIMS3 female.
Works for all ages.
All level of detail meshes are reduced in polycounts.
For the hairstyle to display properly you need to set Sim Details to very high in your graphics settings.
To protect our site,be sure your account is for yourself use only. Multiple IP addresses download is not allowed.
Please don't share our site files,or your account will be closed and no membership refund will be given.
Please don't click the same download link too many times,if you click more than 3 times in 5 minute,the account will be frozen for 1 hour automatically.
newseasims 点击关注微博 Follow me weibo.com/newseasims


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Dear movie studios and companies that deal in digital download rentals of movies and television shows:
I have a more than full time job. I'm trying to raise 2 kids. From time to time, I'd also love to work out, leave my house, and see the world. Oh, and I really want to fly home to Alabama before the end of the summer to see my parents. It's been a while and they are getting older. Ralph and Barbara Jaffe, from Birmingham? Perhaps you know them?
It doesn't matter. Anway:
I also spend lots of cash on your products, both at home and in theaters. And I mean a LOT of cash. Hell, I just ordered the JAWS Blu Ray off Amazon this morning. I mean, seriously you guys: I love the stuff ya'll make.
Oh, and the last thing I pirated was a port of the Super Mario Bros. arcade game for my Apple //e back in the 1980's (85 I think it may have been). Happy to send ya'll a check for that act if that is what this is all about. But assuming it's not:
For the love of God, PLEASE stop with this 'once you hit PLAY on a movie/show download you only have 24 hours in which to watch the whole thing' bullshit.
I will be paying for THE HUNGER GAMES- great, great movie so far, by the way. Nice job, movie making people! I'm just at the point where she gets her rating and that's a really good part, you know?!?- at least 2 times and probably 3 before I reach the end of the film. Do I really need to be paying you guys for 3 different downloads? How about you track what I've watched so far so I can't rewind to a part I've already seen after 24 hours? How about you charge 1-2 dollars more for a longer download period for those of us with busy lives? How about you do SOMETHING?


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Information Possibly Outdated
The information presented on this page was originally released on May 29, 1997. It may not be outdated, but please search our site for more current information. If you plan to quote or reference this information in a publication, please check with the Extension specialist or author before proceeding.
Giant Redwoods Have Mississippi Cousins
By Norman Winter
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center
California is home to two of the most beautiful trees in the world, the redwood and the giant sequoia. If you have ever seen them, you were probably like me and just stood there in awe.
More than likely you returned to Mississippi wishing you could grow such spectacular trees. You can. Both the redwood and sequoia are in the redwood family.
The bald cypress, one of our most beautiful native trees of the South is in the same family. Don't think of it as a swampy trash tree because it isn't. It is a superior landscape tree that will grow on almost any soil. It commonly reaches 50 to 70 feet high and 20 to 30 feet wide. The bald cypress is this year's Louisiana Select plant of the year.
It can grow beautifully from our Gulf Coast to Syracuse, New York. The foliage is gorgeous, turning from green to a russet or orangish-brown in the fall. The bark is an attractive reddish brown and is especially noteworthy when it reaches a stage of buttressing.
The cypress knees which people see in the swamps and fear will develop in the landscape usually only develop in the presence of water.
Dawn redwood is another tree available at nurseries. It is worth growing just so you can say its botanical name, Metasequoia glyptostroboides. This species was thought to be extinct until it was found in China in the 1940s.
If you are a fan of dinosaur movies, then the dawn redwood is for you as it is one of the oldest living trees on Earth.
Its mature size can reach 70 to 100 feet high and 25 feet wide. It has been known to reach 40 to 50 feet in height after 20 years of good growing conditions. The tree is very pyramidal in shape. Friends tell me that the dawn redwood is fairly quick to form a buttress at the bottom of the tree, which is most attractive in a landscape setting.
Container-grown trees are a good buy right now at almost every nursery or garden center. While fall and early spring are traditionally thought of as tree planting times, container-grown stock allows us to plant around the year.
Correct planting will give your tree or shrub a good start. Dig the hole no deeper than the height of the root ball. The height of the root ball is less than the height of the container because the nursery leaves space at the top of the container to hold water and fertilizer.
Plant the tree so that the top of the root ball is level with or a little higher than the ground. Digging the hole too deep may result in the tree settling too low.
The planting hole should be at least 2 to 3 times wider than the root ball. Measure the diameter of the root ball and multiply that number by 2 or 3. The wider the hole the better.
When you finish planting, use your hands to form a 3-inch-high mound around the edge of the root ball with the remaining backfill. The mound will help make sure all the water goes right into the root ball this summer.


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SDI is a network of community-based organisations of the urban poor in 32 countries and hundreds of cities and towns across Africa, Asia and Latin America. In each country where SDI has a presence, affiliate organisations come together at the community, city and national level to form federations of the urban poor. These federations share specific methodologies, which are enumerated below.
In its organisational form SDI consists of a Secretariat, a coordinating team, a Board and a Council of Federations. The Secretariat has an administrative and management function. It is accountable to a Board and a Council of Federations made up of nominated grassroots leaders from affiliated Federations. The Board also nominates a Coordinating team that serves as an executive, responsible for overseeing the implementation of SDI programmes.
SDI is committed to supporting a process that is driven from below. The Secretariat facilitates, and sometimes resources, horizontal exchange and information sharing programmes amongst member Federations. It also seeds precedent-setting projects. These exchange programmes and projects have a "political" dimension, to the extent that they are geared towards catalyzing change processes at all levels, from informal community-based institutions to formal institutions of the state and the market.
Since 1996, this network has helped to create a global voice of the urban poor, engaging international agencies and operating on the international stage in order to support and advance local struggles. Nevertheless, the principal theatre of practice for SDI's constituent organisations is the local level: the informal settlements where the urban poor of the developing world struggle to build more inclusive cities, economies, and politics.


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J. Cage Cellars
Wine-Stained Dream Newsletter
(August 2016)
"He is Going to the Wine Harvest…The Grape Waits for No Man"
1954 movie "Father Brown
The 2016 Grape Harvest is Here!
As the 2016 grape harvest approaches, I find it hard to believe that this will be the third harvest for the J. Cage Cellars Wine-Stained Dream. It seems like just last week Donna and I were giddy at lunch in Healdsburg over the fact that on our 34th wedding anniversary we had just contracted for our first ton of 2014 Pinot Noir grapes. My, how time flies when you are having fun. In 2016, we will harvest over 9 tons for 7 different wines. On the red side, in addition to two single-vineyard Pinot Noirs, 2016 will be inaugural vintage of Zinfandel and Sangiovese.
So far the 2016 growing season has been nearly perfect. It all started with plenty of winter rain that was so badly needed. Flowering and fruit set went fairly smoothly. While the yields of 2016 will not be as big as the banner years of 2012-2014, they are significantly up from the low yields we saw just last year. The summer has been perfect for high quality grapes. The recent cool weather has slowed ripening to a crawl so the flavors in the grapes can intensify.
Patience is the key now. The scariest decision the winemaker makes each year is when to pick the grapes. Once the grapes are harvested and in the winery there is little we do to influence the outcome of the wine, unlike large recipe wineries. These cool days and slow maturation will allow Conch and me to pull the pick trigger at just the right time. Daily we are in our vineyards tasting and testing. We expect our Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay will be in the winery by week's end, but that's up to Mother Nature. I really can't express how excited we are about the wines we will craft for you this year.
Exciting Partnerships
Wine Spectator Magazine recently published an article 13 World-Class Restaurants in Napa and Sonoma Wine Country. We are proud to say that J. Cage wines are featured at 2 of these amazing dining experiences, Valette in Healdsburg and Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bistro in Yountville.
Pinot Noir – 24 Cases Left – Get Yours!
As the summer heat subsides, we will begin shipping again around the country. Our award winning Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier are still available for your end of summer pleasure. If you love our 2014 Nunes Vineyard Pinot Noir…There are only 24 cases left, so order now.
If you have any questions, Donna and I are always available to assist, so please reach out to us by phone or email.
It's time to head back to the vineyard and taste more grapes…
Roger, Donna, Conch and Whitney Beery
J. Cage Cellars


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9 Solutions to Key Hotel Security Concerns
Business and recreational travelers demand safe and secure hotel accommodations and responsive and friendly customer service. How can hoteliers ensure that their property provides as secure an environment as possible, while maintaining friendly customer service?
As Warren Buffet said: "It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently." A single act of crime on your property could diminish your brand. Hotels need to partner with an experienced physical security provider, and ensure that the entire staff understands the need to keep security top of mind – always. Savvy hoteliers should consider the following solutions when looking to improve their property's security:
Maintain Security-Minded Customer Service–
Front desk staff and valets are trained to embody a "customer first" customer service model. While maintaining friendly, responsive interactions with customers is crucial, it is also important to vigilantly follow all security protocols. What happens when a nicely dressed man asks the valet for his car or stored bags? As a matter of course, does the valet validate the request against identification, room card or ticket, or do they take the man at his word that that the Gucci luggage and Mercedes Benz are indeed his own? Does the front desk require identification when providing replacement access cards to those who have misplaced or lost their cards?
Key Card Access Review–
With a few pieces of hardware and minor programming, it is possible for a criminal to gain undetectable entree to millions of keycard-protected hotel rooms. At a security conference, a hacker presented the vulnerabilities he discovered in hotel room locks by a major manufacturer whose devices are installed in about seven million hotel rooms internationally. The manufacturer answered this security breach and is working with customers to repair these faulty mechanisms with hardware retooling. Hotels need to ensure that their key card access systems are not vulnerable to hacking or unlawful access.
Hoteliers should remind all guests of the security safeguards they offer and remind guests to use their lock bars and chains and deadbolts when retiring for the evening. Room safes or securing valuables at the front desk should also be recommended if available.
Establish Evergreen Background Screening Protocol–
While the hotel industry is ahead of the curve on ensuring that applicants complete comprehensive background screening, not all hoteliers are as vigilant when reviewing the processes of their contract partners, such as for landscaping and security. In addition, background screening should be an evergreen process. This is an important element of an ongoing commitment to safety and security. Re-screening employees annually can help hoteliers maintain the high-quality staff they desire.
Control After Hours Access–
For maximum safety, posting security personnel at front entrances and other access points is vital. Security personnel can report suspicious activity, conduct property tours and protect guests and guest information from outsiders. This effort shouldn't end when the sun goes down and foot traffic in the lobby slows. An around-the-clock security presence is a strong deterrent to unwanted activity and a clear signal to guests that your property is secure. Also ensure that your up-to-date surveillance system is tracking all of the hotel's public areas, including the parking lot, gym, restaurants, loading dock, etc.
Assess Location and Local Crime Statistics–
Not all hotels are created equal in terms of area crime statistics. A hotel in a rural community will have a very different crime profile than one in an urban market. CAP Index is recognized as the authoritative leader in quantifying the overall likelihood of crime or loss affecting a location's safety, operational goals, or profitability. This knowledge is power and can lay the groundwork for your hotel's safety and security plan.
Security Officers Who Welcome and Protect –
Hotels must foster an inviting atmosphere for guests while ensuring safety and security. Presenting security personnel in a customer service role with officers dressed in upscale business clothing rather than traditional police- or military-style uniform, makes for a more accessible presence. This careful balance of customer service and security requires experience, specialized training and supervision. When your guests feel that they are both welcome and watched-over, they will feel more comfortable.
Ensuring that the right type of person occupies this customer-centric security role is also important. It is important to identify candidates through selective recruiting resources like hospitality and concierge associations and conduct extensive interviewing to ensure they possess a high aptitude for customer interaction.
Bolster Public/Private Initiatives–
Establishing public-private programs that further police and security cooperation in the protection of people and property helps to enhance safety and security. Police officers dedicate a significant amount of time to public nuisance and lifestyle assistance issues such responding to noise complaints, administering first aid and addressing public drunkenness. When private security works in partnership with law enforcement to respond to these issues, police officers have more time to focus on solving crimes and enforcing the law. You also want police to be familiar with your location and understand you commitment to maintaining a safe and secure environment – both on property and in the surrounding community. Your security team can help bridge that gap.
The keys to success are the hiring of high quality security professionals who have developed quality relationships between all public and private groups – whether or not formal "partnerships" exist. Private security officers can make a significant impact on safety and security as they can be dedicated to specific posts or areas. This constant presence serves as a deterrent to crime, but also as a resource to local law enforcement and the community.
Maintain Emergency Response Plan and Team–
The collaboration between law enforcement and private security needs to extend beyond on-the-spot information sharing. Proactive security efforts and emergency planning initiatives should also involve everyone with a vested interest in safety and security. As hotels proactively implement prevention and response plans for everything from workplace violence to natural disasters, security professionals are quick to recommend the involvement of local law enforcement agencies and first responders. Existing plans should be reviewed annually, and evacuation and response drills, as well as and other training sessions should include those external groups as well. Involving everyone in planning and training will allow plans to be as situational as possible, and also help ensure a more efficient implementation if the worst-case scenario does occur.
Part of emergency response and event management plans require the ability to ramp up staff at a moment's notice. Ensuring that your security team is ready and available when you need them can pay enormous dividends in minimizing the real-world impact of a crisis to your brand, staff and guests.
Commitment to Ongoing Training– Security professionals require continual quality training if they are to be as responsive and knowledgeable as possible. Given that security personnel are placed in the front line of an hotelier's security force, it is vital that they have all the latest tools needed to handle emergency and crisis situations. Security professionals should be able to access training in a way that benefits their lifestyle whether it is online or classroom training.
Hotels are held to extraordinarily high standards with regard to safety and security. It is critically important that all hotel staff be trained on appropriate security procedures for all high-traffic areas including the lobby, front desk, baggage storage area, guest entry points, valet, and parking lot and receiving dock areas. The open environment fostered by hotels is welcoming to guests and visitors but, unfortunately, also creates vulnerabilities that must be addressed. Ensuring that all public spaces are continually monitored by staff and security personnel is crucial in maintaining a hospitable environment.


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Reconstructive surgery of this type is one of the most commonly performed cosmetic procedures in the UK. It's an important turning point for women who've suffered from breast cancer and can help signal a return to confidence and normality in their lives.
Breast reconstruction surgery aims to replace the body tissue you've lost so that you can regain as much of your original appearance as possible. It can be done using silicone implants or some of your own tissue, taken from another part of your body.
If you've had a mastectomy as part of treatment for breast cancer treatment, we can help. We understand how hard cancer is on both your body and mental health – and right now all you probably want is to get back to some kind of normal life.
If you've been diagnosed as having breast cancer you'll probably already have had some medical treatment before you reach us.
You might also be considering this treatment if you have a family history of breast cancer and you want to take preventative steps.
Many women come to us either because they've got private medical insurance or they are paying for themselves to guarantee prompt, personalised treatment in a modern and immaculate hospital.
You may be referred to one of our respected surgeons via your own GP. We can also make sure you see one of our specialist consultants within a few days of your referral to us.
We pride ourselves on our clinical excellence, you'll be looked after by an experienced multi-disciplinary care team.
We can't display a fee for this procedure just now. Please contact us for a quote.
Our patients are at the heart of what we do and we want you to be in control of your care. To us, that means you can choose the consultant you want to see, and when you want. They'll be with you every step of the way.
All of our consultants are of the highest calibre and benefit from working in our modern, well-equipped hospitals.
Our consultants have high standards to meet, often holding specialist NHS posts and delivering expertise in complex sub-specialty surgeries. Many of our consultants have international reputations for their research in their specialised field.
You will have a formal consultation with a consultant. During this time you will be able to explain your medical history, symptoms and raise any concerns that you might have.
Your consultant will examine your breasts, look at their shape and size and the position of your nipples. He or she will then discuss the best surgical options with you. Sometimes this treatment may be completed in several stages, depending on how much reconstruction is needed and the techniques used.
Your doctor will let you know if they feel any further diagnostic tests, such as scans or blood tests, are needed. They will also explain the potential benefits and risks of having a breast reconstruction and will discuss any alternatives to the procedure or whether you should be booked straight in for a procedure. Your surgeon will also give you advice about the size and type of bra you will need to take to hospital for after the operation. They will be there to listen and help you every step of the way.
You can book an initial appointment at the hospital most convenient for you.
We've tried to make your experience with us as easy and relaxed as possible.
For more information on visiting hours, our food, what to pack if you're staying with us, parking and all those other important practicalities, please visit our patient information pages.
Our dedicated team will also give you tailored advice to follow in the run up to your visit.
We understand that having surgery can be a time of worry and anxiety. Our experienced and caring medical staff will be there for you, holding your hand, every step of the way.
There are two main types of breast reconstruction: one uses an artificial implant, while the other uses tissue from your buttocks, thighs or abdomen to create a natural implant. If some of your skin was saved when your breast was removed you may also be able to use this as part of an implant.
There are several techniques available to do either type of procedure and your surgeon may use a combination of methods to get the best results for you.
There are three main approaches:
• A silicone implant can be placed either directly under the skin or behind the muscle where the breast lies. This may be the best option if your skin and nipple were preserved during the mastectomy.
• An area of skin, fat and muscle from abdomen, back or buttocks is repositioned, while keeping its connection with nerves and blood supply intact.
• An area of tissue may be removed completely from your abdomen, back or buttocks and transplanted to your chest. A new blood supply can then be created by connecting blood vessels from the old with those in the new location.
Your surgeon's approach will depend on a number of factors, including the nature of your mastectomy, breast shape and body type. Depending on which techniques are used the procedure will take between one and three hours.
After the procedure, you will be taken from the operating theatre to a recovery room, where you will come round from the anaesthesia under close supervision.
After this, you will be taken to your room or comfortable area where you can rest and recuperate until we feel you're ready to go home.
You will probably need to stay in hospital for three or four nights but your friends and family will be able to visit pretty much anytime you want – we have flexible visiting hours.
While you are in hospital a physiotherapist will help you with exercises that will speed up your recovery.
You will be sore after the operation and you will probably have some temporary swelling and bruising.
We will provide you with a supply of all the medicines your consultant feels you need to take home with you after you've left hospital, up to 14 days. This may be at an additional cost to some patients.
You will be advised on the steps you should take to speed up your recovery before you leave the hospital and you will probably be given some exercises to do every day. Follow your surgeon's advice about strenuous exercise, lifting and driving.
You should arrange to take a couple of weeks off work. The time it takes to fully recover will depend on the type of surgery you had but you should be able to get back to light physical activities within two or three weeks.
It may take several months for your new breasts to settle into shape and you will be left with some scars, which the surgeon will do their best to conceal. For most women, the benefits of breast reconstruction far outweigh any negatives associated with having surgery.
Once you're ready to be discharged, you'll need to arrange a taxi, friend or family member to take you home because you won't be able to drive. You should also ask them to help with shopping and cleaning for a few weeks.
We're with you every step of the way through your recovery, even after you've left hospital.
After your operation we will provide you with all the appropriate medication, physiotherapy exercises, advice on what you should and shouldn't do, and any other follow-up support you need. We'll arrange a follow-up appointment before you leave hospital.
On rare occasions, complications following surgery can occur. The chance of complications depends on the exact type of operation you are having and other factors such as your general health. Your consultant will talk to you about the possible risks and complications of having this procedure and how they apply to you.
If you have any questions or concerns, we're ready to help.
We are committed to delivering excellent individual care and customer service across our network of hospitals, clinics and specialist care centres around the UK. Our dedicated and highly trained team aim to achieve consistently excellent results. For us it's more than just treating patients, it's about looking after people.
The treatment described on this page may be adapted to meet your individual needs, so it's important to follow your healthcare professional's advice and raise any questions that you may have with them.
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West Street
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Sender Policy Framework or SPF is an email validation system designed to prevent email spam by detecting email spoofing, a common vulnerability, by verifying sender IP addresses. SPF allows administrators to specify which hosts are allowed to send mail from a given domain by creating a specific SPF record (or TXT record) in the Domain Name System (DNS). Mail exchangers use the DNS to check that mail from a given domain is being sent by a host sanctioned by that domain's administrators.
If your domain already has SPF defined for the domain, you MUST add the following string to your existing SPF record to include our server IPs:
If your domain has SPF and not including our IPs, emails to Gmail and other addresses could fail. To setup SPF to just include our IPs, you can setup your domain SPF as:
v=spf1 include:dnsexit.com ~all
To find out what is the current SPF for your domain, you can open a DOS/Linux prompt and use the "nslookup" command. For example, to find out what is the SPF for google.com, you can use command
C:> nslookup -type=TXT google.com
google.com text = "v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ip4:184.108.40.206/31 ip4:188.8.131.52/31 ~all"


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*Team iCal contains the SELECTED TEAM schedule. To subscribe to Flight iCal, click Bracket to open the Flight schedule, then subscribe to Flight iCal.
All published schedules will now have an "Subscribe to iCal" link and URL posted on the page. Once subscribed, your teams iCal Feeds are continuously synced with the most recent information, keeping subscribers up to date with their current schedule.
Basic instructions for iPhone, Outlook & Android users are listed below.
Adding an iCal Feed to an Android phone must be done on a computer with Google Calendar.
Team Calendar
Additional Help: https://support.google.com/calendar/answer/37100?hl=en


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by John M. Frame
It has become increasingly common in Reformed circles, as it has long been in Lutheran circles, to say that the distinction between law and gospel is the key to sound theology, even to say that to differ with certain traditional formulations of this distinction is to deny the gospel itself.
Sometimes this argument employs Scripture passages like Rom. 3:21-31, emphasizing that we are saved by God's grace, through faith alone, apart from the works of the law. In my judgment, however, none of the parties to the debate questions that justification is by grace alone, through faith alone, by the imputed righteousness of Christ alone. But it is one thing to distinguish between faith and works, a different thing to distinguish law and gospel.
1. The Traditional Distinction
The distinction between law and gospel is not a distinction between a false and a true way of salvation. Rather, it is a distinction between two messages, one that supposedly consists exclusively of commands, threats, and therefore terrors, the other that consists exclusively of promises and comforts. Although I believe that we are saved entirely by God's grace and not by works, I do not believe that there are two entirely different messages of God in Scripture, one exclusively of command ("law") and the other exclusively of promise ("gospel"). In Scripture itself, commands and promises are typically found together. With God's promises come commands to repent of sin and believe the promise. The commands, typically, are not merely announcements of judgment, but God's gracious opportunities to repent of sin and believe in him. As the Psalmist says, "be gracious to me through your law," Psm. 119:29.
The view that I oppose, which sharply separates the two messages, comes mainly out of Lutheran theology, though similar statements can be found in Calvin and in other Reformed writers.1 The Epitome of the Lutheran Formula of Concord, at V, 5, recognizes that gospel is used in different senses in Scripture, and it cites Mark 1:15 and Acts 20:21 as passages in which gospel preaching "correctly" includes a command to repent of sin. But in section 6, it does something really strange. It says,
But when the Law and the Gospel are compared together, as well as Moses himself, the teacher of the Law, and Christ the teacher of the Gospel, we believe, teach, and confess that the Gospel is not a preaching of repentance, convicting of sins, but that it is properly nothing else than a certain most joyful message and preaching full of consolation, not convicting or terrifying, inasmuch as it comforts the conscience against the terrors of the Law, and bids it look at the merit of Christ alone…
I say this is strange, because the Formula gives no biblical support at all for this distinction, and what it says here about the "gospel" flatly contradicts what it conceded earlier in section 5. What it describes as "correct" in section five contradicts what it calls "proper" in section 6. What section 6 does is to suggest something "improper" about what it admits to be the biblical description of the content of gospel, as in Mark 1:15 and Acts 14:15.2 Mark 1:15 is correct, but not proper.
2. Law and Gospel in Scripture
I have been told that proper at this point in the Formula means, not "incorrect" or "wrong," but simply "more common or usual." I have, however, looked through the uses of the euaggel- terms in the NT, and I cannot find one instance in which the context excludes a demand for repentance (that is, a command of God, a law) as part of the gospel content. That is to say, I cannot find one instance of what the Formula calls the "proper" meaning of gospel, a message of pure comfort, without any suggestion of obligation. And there are important theological reasons why that use does not occur.
Essentially, the "gospel" in the NT is the good news that the kingdom of God has come in Jesus (Matt. 4:23, 9:35, Mark 1:14, Luke 4:43, Acts 20:24f).3 "Kingdom" is (1) God's sovereign power, (2) his sovereign authority, and (3) his coming into history to defeat Satan and bring about salvation with all its consequences.4 God's kingdom power includes all his mighty acts in history, especially including the Resurrection of Christ.
God's kingdom authority is the reiteration of his commandments. When the kingdom appears in power, it is time for people to repent. They must obey (hupakouo) the gospel (2 Thess. 1:8, compare apeitheo in 1 Pet. 4:17). The gospel itself requires a certain kind of conduct (Acts 14:15, Gal. 2:14, Phil. 1:27; cf. Rom 2:16).
When God comes into history, he brings his power and authority to bear on his creatures. In kingdom power, he establishes peace. So NT writers frequently refer to the "gospel of peace" (Eph. 6:15; cf. Acts 10:36, Rom. 10:15), sometimes referring to the "mystery" of God bringing Gentiles and Jews together in one body (Rom. 16:25, Eph. 6:19).
It is this whole complex: God's power to save, the reiteration of God's commands, and his coming into history to execute his plan, that is the gospel. It is good news to know that God is bringing his good plans to fruition.
Consider Isa. 52:7, one of the most important background passages for the New Testament concept of gospel:
How beautiful upon the mountains
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,
Who publishes salvation,
Who says to Zion, "Your God reigns." (ESV)
It is the reign of God that is good news, news that ensures peace and salvation.
Even the demand for repentance is good news, because in context it implies that God, though coming in power to claim his rights, is willing to forgive for Christ's sake.
So gospel includes law in an important sense: God's kingdom authority, his demand to repent. Even on the view of those most committed to the law/gospel distinction, the gospel includes a command tobelieve. We tend to think of that command as in a different class from the commands of the decalogue. But that too is a command, after all. Generically it is law. And, like the decalogue, that law can be terrifying to someone who wants to trust only on his own resources, rather than resting on the mercy of another. And the demand of faith includes other requirements: the conduct becoming the gospel that I mentioned earlier. Faith itself works through love (Gal. 5:6) and is dead without good works (James 2:17).
Having faith does not merit salvation for anyone, any more than any other human act merits salvation. Thus we speak of faith, not as the ground of salvation, but as the instrument. Faith saves, not because it merits salvation, but because it reaches out to receive God's grace in Christ. Nevertheless, faith is an obligation, and in that respect the command to believe is like other divine commands. So it is impossible to say that command, or law, is excluded from the message of the gospel.
It is also true that law includes gospel. God gives his law as part of a covenant, and that covenant is a gift of God's grace. The decalogue begins, "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land ofEgypt, out of the house of slavery." Only after proclaiming his saving grace does God then issue his commands to Israel. So the decalogue as a whole has the function of offering Israel a new way of life, conferred by grace (cf. Deut. 7:7-8, 9:4-6). Is the decalogue "law" or "gospel?" Surely it is both. Israel was terrified upon hearing it, to be sure (Ex. 20:18-21). But in fact it offers blessing (note verse 6) and promise (verse 12). Moses and the Prophets are sufficient to keep sinners from perishing in Hell (Matt. 16:31).
So the definitions that sharply separate law and gospel break down on careful analysis. In both law and gospel, then, God proclaims his saving work, and he demands that his people respond by obeying his commands. The terms "law" and "gospel" differ in emphasis, but they overlap and intersect. They present the whole Word of God from different perspectives. Indeed, we can say that our Bible as a whole is both law (because as a whole it speaks with divine authority and requires belief) and gospel (because as a whole it is good news to fallen creatures). Each concept is meaningless apart from the other. Each implies the other.
The law often brings terror, to be sure. Israel was frightened by the Sinai display of God's wrath against sin (Ex. 20:18-21). But it also brings delight to the redeemed heart (Psm. 1:2; compare 119:34-36, 47, 92, 93, 97, 130, 131, Rom. 7:22). Similarly, the gospel brings comfort and joy; but (as less often noted in the theological literature) it also brings condemnation. Paul says that his gospel preaching is, to those who perish, "a fragrance from death to death" and, to those who believe, "a fragrance from life to life" (2 Cor. 2:15-16; compare 1 Cor. 1:18, 23, 27-29, 2 Cor. 4:3-4, Rom. 9:32). The gospel is good news to those who believe. But to those who are intent on saving themselves by their own righteousness, it is bad news. It is God's condemnation upon them, a rock of offense.
3. Which Comes First?
In discussions of law and gospel, one commonly hears that it is important, not only to preach both law and gospel, but also to preach the law first and the gospel second. We are told that people must be frightened by the law before they can be driven to seek salvation in Christ. Certainly there is a great need to preach God's standards, man's disobedience, and God's wrath against sin, especially in an age such as ours where people think God will let them behave as they like. And very often people have been driven to their knees in repentance when the Spirit has convicted them of their transgressions of law.
But as we have seen, it is really impossible truly to present law without gospel or gospel without law, though various relative emphases are possible. And among those relative emphases, the biblical pattern tends to put the gospel first. That is the pattern of the decalogue, as we have seen: God proclaims that he has redeemed his people (gospel), then asks them to behave as his covenant people (law). Since both gospel and law are aspects of God's covenants, that pattern pervades Scripture.
Jesus reflects that pattern in his own evangelism. In John 4, Jesus tells the Samaritan woman that he can give her living water that will take away all thirst. Only after offering that gift does he proclaim the law to her, exposing her adultery. Some have cited Luke 18:18—30 as an example of the contrary order: Jesus expounds the commandments, and only afterward tells the rich ruler to follow him. But in this passage Jesus does not use the law alone to terrorize the man or to plunge him into despair. The man does go sadly away only after Jesus has called him to discipleship, which, though itself a command, is the gospel of this passage.
4. The "New Perspective" and Paul's Gospel
Since the apostle Paul is most often in the forefront in discussions of the meaning of gospel, something should perhaps be said here about the "new perspective on Paul" in recent scholarship, based on writings of Krister Stendahl, E. P. Sanders, James D. G. Dunn, and others. In that perspective, the problem with Judaism, according to Paul, was not works righteousness, but its failure to accept God's new covenant in Christ, which embraced Gentiles as well as Jews. On this perspective, Paul's gospel is not an answer to the troubled conscience of someone who can't meet God's demands. Rather, it is the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham to bless all nations. The "works of the law" against which Paul contends are not man's attempts to satisfy God's moral law, but the distinctions between Jews and Gentiles such as circumcision, food laws, and cleansings.
Discussions of this new perspective are very complex, entering into details about the nature of Palestinian Judaism at the time of Paul, Paul's own history, and the exegesis of crucial texts. I cannot enter this controversy in a short paper. I do agree with those who believe that Sanders and others have been too selective in their references to Palestinian Judaism, and I believe that the new perspective fails to deal adequately with a number of Pauline passages, such as Rom. 4:4-5, 11:6, Eph. 2:8-10, Phil. 3:9, which make plain that Paul rejects, not only legal barriers between Jew and Gentile, but also all attempts of people to save themselves by their works. Luther's doctrines of sola gratia and sola fide are fully scriptural and fully Pauline.5
But the new perspective legitimately warns us against reducing Paul's gospel to soteric justification by faith. Paul's confrontation with the Jews was on several fronts. And his gospel deals with a number of different issues, as my earlier discussion also implies.
5. Legitimate Use of the Traditional Distinction
Now if people want to define gospel more narrowly for a specific theological purpose, I won't object too strongly. Scripture does not give us a glossary of English usage. A number of technical theological terms don't mean exactly what similar terms sometimes mean in the Bible. Regeneration and election are examples, as is covenant.6 We can define our English terms pretty much as we like, as long as those definitions don't create confusion in our readers.
Over the years, we have come to think of gospel as correlative with faith and law as correlative with works. In this usage, law is what condemns and gospel is what saves. Although this distinction differs from the biblical uses of the terms, it does become useful in some contexts. For example, we all know a type of preaching that merely expounds moral obligations (as we usually think of them: don't kill, don't steal) and does not give its hearers the knowledge of Christ they need to have in order to be saved. That kind of preaching (especially when it is not balanced by other preaching emphases) we often describe as a preaching of merelaw, legalism, or moralism. There is no good news in it. So, we are inclined to say, it is not preaching of the gospel. So in this general way we come to distinguish the preaching of law from the preaching of gospel. That is, I think, the main concern of the Formula: to remind us that we need to do both things.
We should be reminded of course that there is also an opposite extreme: preaching "gospel" in such a way as to suggest that Christ makes no demands on one's life. We call that "cheap grace" or "easy believism." We might also call it preaching "gospel without law." Taken to an extreme, it is antinomianism, the rejection of God's law. The traditional law/gospel distinction is not itself antinomian, but those who hold it tend to be more sensitive to the dangers of legalism than to the dangers of antinomianism.
Such considerations may lead us to distinguish in a rough-and-ready way between preaching of the law and preaching of the gospel. Of course, even in making that distinction, our intention ought to be to bring these together. None of these considerations requires us to posit a sharp distinction. And certainly, this rough-and-ready distinction should never be used to cast doubt on the integration of command and promise that pervades the Scriptures themselves.
It should be evident that "legalist" preaching as described above is not true preaching of law, any more than it is true preaching of the gospel. For as I indicated earlier, law itself in Scripture comes to us wrapped in grace.
6. Law/Gospel and the Christian Life
The Formula's distinction between law and gospel has unfortunate consequences for the Christian life. The document does warrant preaching of the law to the regenerate,7 but only as threat and terror, to drive them to Christ Epitome, VI, 4. There is nothing here about the law as the delight of the redeemed heart (Psm. 1:2; compare 119:34-36, 47, 92, 93, 97, 130, 131, Rom. 7:22).
The Formula then goes on to say that believers do conform to the law under the influence of the Spirit, but only as follows:
Fruits of the Spirit, however, are the works which the Spirit of God who dwells in believers works through the regenerate, and which are done by believers so far as they are regenerate [spontaneously and freely], as though they knew of no command, threat, or reward; for in this manner the children of God live in the Law and walk according to the Law of God, which [mode of living] St. Paul in his epistles calls the Law of Christ and the Law of the mind, Rom. 7, 25; 8, 7; Rom. 8, 2; Gal. 6, 2. (Epitome, VI, 5).
So the law may threaten us to drive us to Christ. But truly good works are never motivated by any command, threat or reward.
In my view, this teaching is simply unbiblical. It suggests that when you do something in obedience to a divine command, threat, or promise of reward, it is to that extent tainted, unrighteous, something less than a truly good work. I agree that our best works are tainted by sin, but certainly not for this reason. When Scripture presents us with a command, obedience to that command is a righteous action. Indeed, our righteousness is measured by our obedience to God's commands. When God threatens punishment, and we turn from wickedness to do what he asks, that is not a sin, but a righteous response. When God promises reward, it is a good thing for us to embrace that reward.
The notion that we should conduct our lives completely apart from the admonitions of God's word is a terrible notion. To ignore God's revelation of his righteousness is, indeed, essentially sinful. To read Scripture, but refuse to allow its commands to influence one's conduct, is the essence of sin.
And what, then, does motivate good works, if not the commands, threats, and promises of reward in Scripture? The Formula doesn't say. What it suggests is that the Spirit simply brings about obedience from within us. I believe the Spirit does exactly that. But the Formula seems to assume that the Spirit works that way without any decision on our part to act according to the commands of God. That I think is wrong. "Quietism" is the view that Christians should be entirely passive, waiting for the Spirit of God to act in them. This view of the Christian life is unbiblical. The Christian life is a battle, a race. It requires decision and effort. I am not saying that the Formula is quietist (Lutheranism rejected quietism after some controversy in its ranks), but as we read the position of the Formula, it does seem that quietism lies around the corner from it.
7. The Objective and the Subjective
Part of the motivation for this view of the Christian life, I believe, is the thought that one's life should be based on something objective, rather than something subjective. On this view, our life is built on what Christ has done for us, objectively in history, not on anything arising from our own subjectivity or inwardness. So in this view, gospel is a recitation of what God has done for us, not a command to provoke our subjective response.
This understanding focuses on justification: God regards us as objectively righteous for Christ's sake, apart from anything in us. But it tends to neglect regeneration and sanctification: that God does work real subjective changes in the justified.
I have no quarrel with this understanding of justification. But in Scripture, though justification is based on the work of Christ external to us, it is embraced by faith, which is subjective. And faith, in turn, is the result of the Spirit's subjective work of regeneration (John 3:3).8 So nobody is objectively justified who has not been subjectively changed by God's grace.
So the Westminster Confession of Faith 18.2, even in speaking of assurance of salvation, refers not only to the truth of God's promises (objective), but also to the "inward evidence of those graces" and "the testimony of the Spirit of adoption," which are in some measure subjective.
In fact, we cannot separate the objective and the subjective. Objective truths are subjectively apprehended. We cannot have objective knowledge, confidence, or assurance, unless we are subjectively enabled to perceive what God has objectively given us.
8. The Two Kingdoms
We should also note the "two kingdoms" view of Christ and culture, that draws on the sharp distinction between law and gospel.9 In general, that view states that there are two kingdoms of God, one, as Luther put it, the kingdom of God's left hand, the other the kingdom of his right hand. The former is secular, the latter sacred. In the former, God rules by law, in the latter, by his word and Spirit.
The problem is that the two-kingdom doctrine claims a duality, not only between law and gospel as such, but also in God's standards, his norms. There are secular values and religious values, secular norms and religious norms. Secular society is responsible only to natural laws, the morality found in nature. So, Gene Veith says, "morality is not a matter of religion."10 The church is subject primarily to the gospel, but in a secondary sense (as we have seen above) subject to both law and gospel, the whole content of the word of God. Therefore, although the Christian can participate in the general culture, he should not seek to Christianize it, to turn it into a Christian culture. There is no such thing as a Christian culture; there is only secular culture, and a Christian church. Nor, of course, should he try to bring secular standards into the church: secular music, for instance.11
It is true that we should not try to force unregenerate people to become Christians through civil power. The church does not have the power of the sword. Nevertheless, there are not two sets of divine norms for civil society, only one. And those norms are in the Bible. Morality is most emphatically a matter of religion. The unregenerate have some knowledge of God's law through natural revelation (Rom. 1:32), but believers see that law more clearly through the spectacles of Scripture. The biblical view of civil government does not require us to force unbelievers to behave as Christians in every way, but it does call upon us to restrain their (and our!) sin in certain areas. We should be active in society to promote those godly standards.12
Concluding Observation
The sharp distinction between law and gospel is becoming popular in Reformed, as well as Lutheran circles. It is the view of Westminster Seminary California, Modern Reformation magazine, and the White Horse Inn radio broadcast. The leaders of these organizations are very insistent that theirs is the only biblical view of the matter. One has recently claimed that people who hold a different view repudiate the Reformation and even deny the gospel itself. On that view, we must use the term gospel only in what the Formula calls the "proper" sense, not in the biblical sense. I believe that we should stand with the Scriptures against this tradition.
1 Lutheran theologians, however, frequently complain that Reformed theology "confuses" law and gospel, which is in the Lutheran view a grave error. The main difference is that for the Reformed law is not merely an accuser, but also a message of divine comfort, a delight of the redeemed heart (Psm. 1:2). Also, the Reformed generally do not give the law/gospel distinction as much prominence within their systematic theological formulations. And, historically, they have been more open to the broader biblical language which the Lutheran Formula of Concord calls "correct" but not "proper" (see below).
2 The passage cited by the formula, Acts 20:21, does not use the euaggello root, the usual term for "gospel" and "gospel preaching," but the term diamarturomai. But Acts 20:21 is nevertheless significant, since it gives a general description of what Paul did in his preaching to "both Jews and Greeks." That preaching was certainly gospel preaching. Paul resolved in his preaching to "know nothing but Christ and him crucified." Luke 24:47 is also significant, for it includes both repentance and forgiveness of sins as the content Jesus gives his disciples to preach (kerusso) to all nations.
3 N. T. Wright believes that this use of gospel has a double root: "On the one hand, the gospel Paul preached was the fulfilment of the message of Isaiah 40 and 52, the message of comfort for Israel and of hope for the whole world, because YHWH, the god of Israel, was returning to Zion to judge and redeem. On the other hand, in the context into which Paul was speaking, "gospel" would mean the celebration of the accession, or birth, of a king or emperor. Though no doubt petty kingdoms might use the word for themselves, in Paul's world the main 'gospel' was the news of, or the celebration of, Caesar," "Paul's Gospel and Caesar's Empire," available at https://www.ctinquiry.org/publications/wright.htm. Of course both of these uses focus on the rule of God as Lord, and both involve what is traditionally called law.
4 This a triad of the sort expounded in my Doctrine of the Knowledge of God (Phillipsburg: P&R Publications, 1987), Doctrine of God (forthcoming from the same publisher in 2002) and elsewhere.
5 Although I am critical of the general stance of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals and their publication Modern Reformation on this issue, I would strongly recommend Kim Riddlebarger's essay, "Reformed Confessionalism and the 'New Perspective' on Paul," available at the Alliance web site, www.alliancenet.org, as an excellent introduction to this discussion. I fully endorse the conclusions of that article.
6 The phrases "covenant of works" and "covenant of grace" found in the Westminster Confession of Faith, 7.2-4 are not found anywhere in Scripture. Covenant in Scripture refers to particular historical relationships between God and his people, mediated by Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, and Jesus. "Covenant of grace" generalizes the common features of these historical covenants, seeing them as successive manifestations of God's redemptive Lordship. "Covenant of works" finds in God's relation to our first parents features identical to his later covenants with, of course, significant differences.
7 Theological literature speaks of three "uses of the law" : (1) to restrain sin in society, (2) to terrorize people in order to drive them to Christ, and (3) as a guide to believers. In Lutheranism (not in Reformed circles) there has been controversy over the third use, though the Formula affirms it. But in Lutheranism, it is often said that "the law always accuses." So the third use is essentially the second use directed at believers, driving us to Christ again and again and away from our residual unbelief. Reformed writers do not deny our continual need for Christ and the importance of hearing again and again that we are saved only by his grace. But in Reformed theology, the law also plays a more direct role, giving us specific guidance in God's delightful paths.
8 So, again, saving faith works through love (Gal. 5:6) and is dead without works (James 2:14-26).
9 See, for example, Gene Veith, "Christianity and Culture: God's Double Sovereignty," from The Whirlpool (Jan.-Feb., 1997), available at www.alliancenet.org.
10 Ibid.
11 There are, of course, reasons to criticize the use of secular music in the church other than the two-kingdoms concept. But if that concept is rejected, then the distinction between sacred and secular is relativized somewhat, and one must evaluate "secular" music piece-by-piece, rather than as a general category.
12 In terms of the categories of H. Richard Niebuhr's Christ and Culture (NY: Harper, 1951), we should be "transformationalists," not "dualists."


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Program Description
The Houston Independent School District (HISD) Board of Education established and approved the campus-level planning and decision-making process in 1992. This process includes the creation and maintenance of a Shared Decision-Making Committee (SDMC) at each school to review the district's educational goals, objectives, and major district wide classroom instructional programs. Each committee is designed to involve professional and non-professional staff, parents, community members, and business representatives in establishing academic and other performance objectives of the school for each academic excellence indicator adopted in the Texas Education Code (TEC §11.253, TEC §39.051). The SDMC was authorized to fulfill the following responsibilities:
- Implement all pertinent campus-level planning processes;
- Develop recommendations for the school budget;
- Submit recommendations for the school curriculum;
- Recommend changes in the school's staffing patterns;
- Develop and approve the campus staff development plans;
- Develop, review, and revise the School Improvement Plan (SIP) for the purpose of improving student performance for all student populations (after principal approval of the SIP, the SDMC presents the plan to staff for approval);
- Review and make recommendations regarding the school's organizational structure, and
- Establish procedures to periodically obtain broad-based community, parent, and staff input.
The SDMC is required to meet at least once a year to discuss the performance of the school and the school's objectives. A record of all decisions and significant discussion items must be maintained by the committee. This information should be disseminated to appropriate school and district personnel as well as be available upon request for public review.


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Cuban Lung Cancer Vaccine Coming to the U.S.
Open trade between Cuba and the U.S. has given rise to the possibility of a lung cancer vaccine, free to the Cubans since 2011, coming to the U.S. This article from The Huffington Post highlights the hopes pinned on the vaccine being made available soon in the U.S.
President Barack Obama will become the first president to visit Cuba in almost 90 years when he and first lady Michelle Obama travel to the island nation on March 21. But one of the most exciting things about the thawing of relations between Cuba and the U.S. is happening stateside right now: the possibility of clinical trials on a drug to prevent lung cancer, and possibly other cancers, too.
CimaVax, which is both a treatment and vaccine for lung cancer, has been researched in Cuba for 25 years and free to the Cuban public since 2011. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's trade mission to Cuba in April 2015 resulted in a signed agreement to bring CimaVax to the U.S., but as with all international drugs and treatments, U.S. researchers need to conduct clinical trials and replicate international scientists' results before it becomes available to the American public.
"We're still at the very early stages of assessing the promise of this vaccine, but the evidence so far from clinical trials in Cuba and Europe has been striking," said Dr. Kelvin Lee, Jacobs Family Chair in Immunology and co-leader of the Tumor Immunology and Immunotherapy Program at Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York, the research center that is evaluating CimaVax for U.S. use.
The hoped-for success of CimaVax availability in the U.S. is just one example of the possibilities that come with open trade between the two nations. When Obama loosened the United State's 55-year trade embargo against Cuba in December, he allowed for such joint research deals to be finalized. Similar programs might have been impossible just a few years ago.
"You never know how long these things would take," said Candace Johnson, CEO of Roswell Park. "We would have loved to have had this already started because we've been working on this for quite a while, but we're persistent and we'll get it done."
Cuba has long been known for its high-quality cigars, and lung cancer is a major public health problem and the fourth-leading cause of death in the country. A 2007 study of patients with stages IIIB and IV lung cancer, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, confirmed the safety of the CimaVax and showed an increase in tumor-reducing antibody production in more than half of cases. It proved particularly effective for increased survival if the study participant was younger than 60.
So far, 5,000 patients worldwide have been treated with CimaVax, including 1,000 patients in Cuba. Lee said the latest Cuban study of 405 patients, which has not yet been published, confirms earlier findings about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine. What's more, the shot is cheap — each costs the Cuban government just $1, Wired reported. Studies have found there are no significant side effects.
"We think it may be an effective way to prevent cancer from developing or recurring, so that's where a lot of our team's excitement comes in," Lee said. "There's good reason to believe that this vaccine may be effective in both treating and preventing several types of cancer, including not only lung but breast, colorectal, head-and-neck, prostate and ovarian cancers, so the potential positive impact of this approach could be enormous."
How it works
CimaVax induces people to build antibodies against a certain growth factor that cancer cells make. For people who already have lung cancer, this response results in the body actually getting rid of the cancer cells. And for people who are currently healthy but at high risk for lung cancer — say, a lung cancer patient in remission — the treatment acts as a vaccine to prevent future relapse. Johnson envisions that it could one day be a standard preventive vaccine that a person gets in childhood, much like the way we get vaccinated against polio, measles, mumps and rubella.
In addition to CimaVax, Roswell Park scientists are also reviewing other vaccine approaches from researchers at Cuba's Center of Molecular Immunology (where CimaVax was invented) that could one day help patients overcome brain and pancreas cancer, as well as blood cancers like leukemia and lymphoma. While they aren't as far along as CimaVax, Johnson said she is excited for the possibility these other treatments hold.
"They are a very innovative group of scientists, and they have vaccines and drugs that we think could play a very significant role in our fight against cancer," she said. "We're delighted to be working with them and we hope very soon that we can start our trial on CimaVax — hopefully the first of many clinical trials to be done with some of these Cuban vaccine approaches."
To be clear, the CimaVax doesn't cure cancer. It's a therapeutic vaccine that works by targeting the tumor itself, specifically going after the proteins that allow a tumor to keep growing. (And as PBS points out, a person can't just take a shot of CimaVax and continue to smoke without fear of lung cancer.)
"We hope to determine in the next few years whether giving CimaVax to patients who've had a lung cancer removed, or maybe even to people at high risk of developing lung or head-and-neck cancers because of a history of heavy smoking, may be beneficial and may spare those people from having a cancer diagnosis or recurrence," Lee said.
What needs to happen first
Roswell Park faces many bureaucratic hurdles before clinical trials for CimaVax actually begin.
Because an embargo on Cuba is still in effect, Roswell Park had to apply for a license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control at the Treasury Department to bring CimaVax into the U.S. The license allows them to use it for lab research, but not to give it out to patients, Johnson explained.
Then, in order to start testing CimaVax on Americans, Roswell Park has to get approval for a trial from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Currently, Roswell Park and the FDA are communicating about the design of the trial, Johnson said.
Once the FDA signs off, Johnson has to submit the project to Roswell Park's Scientific Review Committee to evaluate its scientific merit, as well as their Institutional Review Board, a body that evaluates the ethical aspects of any medical research involving human subjects. These two final processes alone can take months to complete, Johnson said, and she hopes to start on Phase 1 and II clinical trials, which assess the effectiveness and safety of a drug, sometime in 2016. The entire process, from start to finish, can take years to complete — even when the experimental drug was invented in the U.S.
To that end, the United States is currently at work developing two lung cancer vaccines of its own, GVAX and BLP 25, though neither has been studied for as long as CimaVax.
Cuba's public health record
How does a tiny island nation with limited economic resources pioneer a powerhouse cancer vaccine? "They've had to do more with less," Johnson told Wired in May. "So they've had to be even more innovative with how they approach things. For over 40 years, they have had a preeminent immunology community."
Despite decades of economic problems and the U.S. trade embargo, Cuba has been a model of public health. According the New York Times, life expectancy for Cubans is 79 years, on par with the United States, despite the fact that its economy per person is eight times smaller. While many drugs and even anesthesia have been hard to come by over the years, Cuba has one of the best doctor to patient ratios in the world. Moreover, the Cuban government's investment in primary care for residents and preventative health measures like public education, housing and nutrition have paid huge dividends in the health of citizens, especially relative to similarly poor countries.
Looking forward, ongoing research collaborations between the two nations are almost certainly on the horizon as relations between Cuba and the U.S. continue to thaw. For now, Lee says the researchers at Roswell Park have their eyes trained on about 20 cancer treatment and prevention technologies in Cuba — including another lung cancer vaccine called racotumomab that the group hopes to study in clinical trials at Roswell.
Source: Cuba's Had A Lung Cancer Vaccine For Years, And Now It's Coming To The U.S.


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Heavy rainfall has caused significant flooding in the mountains, closing sections of Highway 5 and washing away the ground beneath a section of CN rail.
The section of damaged rail line is located near Hope and is part of the main CN railway line.
"CN crews are responding to incidents related to the heavy rainfall that has been occurring throughout the lower BC mainland," said CN in a statement.
"No one has been injured, no cars derailed and no product has been spilled."
The company said it will provide further updates as the situation develops.
READ MORE: State of emergency declared for Cowichan Valley after heavy rain, flooding
Sections of Hope are also without power after heavy winds and rain hit the region, according to BC Hydro, and there is no estimated for when power will be fully restored in the region.
Highway 1 north of Hope is closed beyond Yale, where multiple slides have dropped onto the road.
Dennis Adamson, the Director for the Fraser Valley Regional District Area B, which includes the area surrounding Hope, is currently at the community centre in Yale.
"The power's flickered on and off about five times today," said Adamson. "They've got generators at the centre that turn on when the power's gone off."
According to Adamson, a number of residents from the nearby RV park are staying in the Yale motel, after the park was flooded and the southern half ordered to evacuate.
"The [culvert] was blocked, so it caused the creek to overflow, and it changed directions," said Adamson. "It took out all the houses 20 to 30 feet below the highway 1 at that point, and it washed all the mud off the banks into the trailer park and buried several trailers."
"The fire chief, Bruce Marshall, he led his people down and they went door to door looking for people. They had to dig out a 102-year-old gentleman, they had kick through his doors, because the mud was past his doors."
Cowichan Valley has also declared a state of emergency following the storms, and evacuations are currently taking place.
CN Rail, the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, and the District of Hope were contacted by Black Press, but did not immediately respond to an interview request.
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For Libyans, Amb. Stevens was simply 'Chris'
| Benghazi and Tripoli, Libya
To Ahmed Bani, US Ambassador Christopher Stevens was simply "Chris," as he was to people throughout Benghazi.
"When he passed in the street, the young men would call out, 'Hello, Chris!' They knew his face," he says. "And he would laugh and say hello. This is the right way to deal with people here."
Mr. Stevens was newly arrived in Benghazi as the US envoy to anti-Qaddafi rebels when Mr. Bani, an Air Force colonel turned rebel spokesman, first met him. "Work for your country, not yourself," Stevens advised him at their first meeting in spring 2011. "Work as a Libyan, not as Ahmed Bani."
Stevens always put his country first, Bani says. Yet according to Libyans who knew him, he shone as an advocate for America in large part simply by being himself: friendly, modest, and interested in the lives of ordinary people. His death last month during an attack on the US consulate in Benghazi was met with shock and sadness in Libya – feelings that are a rare achievement of sorts in a region inclined to distrust American power.
"We'd never seen an American ambassador who walks in the streets, visits shops and sits down with people – a down-to-earth person," says Atia Lawgali, deputy minister of culture and civil society, who knew Stevens. "In this regard, he was unique."
Stevens' habits contrast with those of many US diplomats in unstable countries like Libya. Security concerns keep many within the walls of fortified embassies, while security details during trips outside can make it hard to get friendly with locals. While his exposure has been questioned in light of his death, the risks of his outreach helped advance America's image.
Winning Arab trust is no easy task. While Arabs often say they respect Americans as individuals, many also cite decades of American military ventures – notably wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – and support for Israel as grounds for distrusting the US government.
Just 21 percent of people in four Arab countries, plus Pakistan and Turkey, believe the US supports democracy abroad, according to a July poll by the Pew Research Center in Washington. Libya isn't among the countries polled, but skepticism of US foreign policy is echoed here. Many Arab autocrats, including Libya's Muammar Qaddafi, have spent years portraying the US as their peoples' enemy.
"In every speech he made on TV, he had to say something bad about the US or Israel," says Salmin Eljawhari, a dental student and civil society activist in Benghazi. "I think there's a generation who started to hate Israel and the US."
Stevens, by all accounts, was fascinated by the Arab world. Tall, with a broad smile and shock of blond hair, he served in the Peace Corps in Morocco, studied Arabic, and entered the foreign service at age 31 after a brief career as an international trade lawyer.
"He was one of our best diplomats, a very committed Arabist," says David Mack, a scholar at the Middle East Institute in Washington and former US diplomat in several Arab countries, including Libya, who knew Stevens. "He had all the right instincts; selfless, dedicated – and smart."
Stevens first served in Libya as deputy chief of the US mission from 2007 to 2009. He returned via a Greek cargo ship in April 2011 as the US envoy to revolutionary leaders in Benghazi.
Soon after arriving, he went to see Bani in the latter's office. The two would meet there regularly to discuss Libya – and life.
"He asked me about my life as an officer – how I joined the Air Force, and how I joined the revolution," Bani recalls.
Bani told Stevens about his plans in 1981 to train as a commercial pilot in the UK – plans thwarted by the Qaddafi regime, which forbade him from traveling and put him in the Air Force. Other times, Stevens would ask Bani's assessment of NATO air strikes against regime forces, a question he also put to ordinary Libyans, Bani says.
In early summer 2011, Stevens and Lawgali met for the first time. Over the following year the two worked together to support the civil society that was flowering in Libya after years of repression.
For Lawgali, such cooperation trumps politics as the key to building relations, a conviction formed during 15 years studying and working in the US.
"In the Middle East, we concentrate on politics," he says. "But when you live in the US and find that people there aren't really different from people you know, you start rethinking politics and its importance."
In October 2011, the two men attended the opening of Hamza Tawassal, an NGO workspace in Benghazi launched by US charity Mercy Corps, with support from USAID and Libya's culture ministry.
"Mr. Stevens talked about how the US would help Libyans achieve democracy," says Ms. Eljawhari, then working for Mercy Corps. "And he tried to talk with people in Arabic, even though he said he was just a beginner."
Stevens' term as US envoy to Libya ended the following month, but he returned last May as ambassador. On Sept. 11 he was visiting Benghazi to open an American cultural center when protests erupted there over an anti-Islam film. An attack on the consulate left Stevens and three colleagues dead. US officials say they believe the attack was pre-planned; an investigation is ongoing.
In the following days, Libyans marched in the streets to condemn the film and the violence, and mourn the ambassador named on placards as "a friend of Libya."
Ms. Eljawhari helped organize demonstrations in Benghazi. Some passersby joined in; others questioned any sympathy for the US in light of the anti-Islam film.
On Sept. 21, thousands marched in the city, prompting a hardline Islamist militia accused of involvement in the consulate attack to withdraw peacefully from its base.
"I can't tell you that all people love international support," Eljawhari says. "But in general, most people who want to build a country open to the world welcome cooperation with the US and other countries."
That is where the US could play a helpful role, say Bani and Lawgali. They suggest training for state security forces, student exchange programs, and language teaching as potential avenues of support.
America must also name a new ambassador. Lawgali hopes it will be someone like Stevens.
"Just as Americans have a certain image of Arabs, Arabs have a certain image of Americans," he says. "This guy came and presented a different, and positive, image."


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So which are the jobs that pay women the most? To find out, Forbes analyzed the median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in 2012, detailed by occupation and gender and tracked by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). It turns out that jobs in health care, business and computer science rise to the top.
At No. 1, pharmacist is the best-paying job for women and one of the most equal. Women pharmacists earn a median of $1,871 a week or approximately $98,000 a year. They comprise slightly more than half (52%) of all pharmacists and earn 100% as much as their male counterparts—making it one of just a handful of jobs able to claim perfect gender equality. It's also in demand, growing at a faster-than-average rate of 25% and projected to add 70,000 jobs between 2010 and 2020, according to the BLS.
"There's been some real improvement for women relative to men in health care," says economist Gregory DeFrietas, director of the Labor Studies Center at Hofstra University in New York. "The gender wage gap for pharmacists narrowed significantly."
On the latest list of the 20 best-paying jobs for women, nine are in health care, including nurse practitioners (No. 4), occupational therapists (No. 12), and medical and health services managers (No. 13). Health care is the fastest-growing sector of the U.S. economy and is dominated by women. Interestingly, however, women comprise only 35% of physicians and surgeons (No. 6) and make just 68% as much as their male counterparts, according to this data set.
Why do we still see such a cavernous wage gap among physicians? Men tend to pursue the higher-paying specialties like brain and heart surgery, says David Lewin, a UCLA management professor and head of Berkeley Research Group's Labor and Employment practice. On the other hand, women tend toward lower-paying specialties like pediatrics and general practice, and they often make further trade-offs in pay for more flexibility, he says.
New to the list this year is physician assistant, debuting at No. 7. Typically, physician assistants hold the equivalent of a master's degree and practice medicine under the supervision of physicians and surgeons. It's expected to be one of the fastest-growing jobs through 2020, and women comprise 69% of the occupation and earn a median of $1,364 a week. With increasing demands on physicians' attention—processing patients, filling out claim forms and dealing with changing regulations—physician assistants take on many of the routine or administrative tasks, says Lewin.
The second best-paying job for women is chief executive, which earns them a median of $1,730 a week or about $90,000 a year. While women have made significant progress in business over the last few decades, they are only about a quarter of all chief executives and earn just 76% as much as men with the title. The wage gap seems largely due to differences in company type and partially due to remaining discrimination.
"With executive compensation, you would expect the biggest factor to be company performance, but it's actually the size of the company and verticality," says Lewin. "If women really want to make it to the top, they tend to go to smaller businesses and nonprofits."
Furthermore, economist DeFrietas says women continue to experience lower advancement rates, which substantially impacts pay. It may be a combination of ineffective government family leave and child-care policies, less willingness to individually assert themselves, and employer discrimination. "Studies show that young women heard the message and are now more likely to ask for raises," says DeFrietas. "But they are less likely to get them, and when they do get them, they tend to be smaller. When employers have the attitude that women will take more time [to raise kids] it might be reflected in limited promotional and wage increases."
Although they are underrepresented in the field, computer science jobs are also among the best-paying for women. Female computer and information systems managers (No. 5) earn a median of $1,527 a week; software developers (No. 8) earn $1,362 a week; computer systems analysts (No. 10) earn $1,254 a week; and computer programmers (No. 18) earn $1,148 a week. Because technical skills are in such high demand with limited supply, employers are willing to pay a premium for these workers. However, depending on the occupation, only about one-fifth to one-third of these jobs are currently held by women.
Other notable jobs on the top-20 list include lawyers (No. 3), human resource managers (No. 11) and psychologists (No. 17). Meanwhile, the worst-paying jobs for women are food preparation workers, laundry and dry-cleaning workers, cashiers, child-care workers, and maids and housekeepers, which earn less than $400 a week.
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More on Forbes:
Top 20 Best-Paying Jobs For Women In 2013
The 10 Best Companies For Women


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