text: I am posting before coffee (PBC) so if I ramble more than usual, my apologies. Leif Nixon wrote: > Joe Landman <landman at scalableinformatics.com> writes: >>>> b) If an attacker has compromised a user account on one of these >>>> workstations, IMO the security battle is already largely lost. They >> s/largely/completely/g >> >> At least for this user, if they have single factor passwordless login >> set up between workstation and cluster. > > Of course. But you want to contain the intrusion to that single user, > as far as possible. I think there are two different issues. First: security is meant to be an access control and thottle/choke point. Second: is how you view your cluster. Is it "one-big-machine" in some sense (not necessarily Scyld, but with a security model such that if you are on the access node you are on the machine), or is it really a collection of individual machines each with their own administrative domain? One of these models works really well for "cluster" use. > If your security hinges on no user passwords ever > being stolen, you can very easily wind up in a situation that > traditionally is said to involve creeks, but not paddles. Your security model should mirror your intended usage model as indicated above. If you are using a cluster, security is the front door. If you are using something else, the security model may be different. Since we are into analogies, why not look at it like the front of a very exclusive club. If you get in, you are in. If you want, you can even implement different security room to room, which very quickly causes your club members to leave as it gets hard to move room to room. Security is in part about containment. Containment is not necessarily putting a lock on every door, and a different required key or three to unlock. More importantly, security is about minimizing the maximum damage an attack can do. A different lock on every door may stop the casual attacker, but as you have large binders of stolen passwords (the authorites might wish to ask you how you got them :( ), I have some not so nice log files of years of hackers, some script kiddies, and some very good ones, beating on everything but the front door. Put another way, I've been mimicing a few others for the better part of a decade, saying security is a process, not a product. Making a process hard doesn't necessarily make it secure. Making sure that when the process breaks down, and it will, the damage as a result of that breakage is as low as you can make it. > I have two > thick binders sitting on my desk, containing stolen passwords from an > impressive range of commercial, academic and military institutions. > >>>> In general, though, it is very good advice to stay with an updated OS. >> ... on threat-facing systems, yes, I agree. >> >> For what I call production cycle shops, those places which have to churn >> out processing 24x7x365, you want as little "upgrading" as possible, and >> it has to be tested/functional with everything. Ask your favorite CIO >> if they would consider upgrading their most critical systems nightly. > > I see this in hospitals a lot. I see this in every single production cycle shop we have been in. Not just FDA-regulated. So much so that they have a process that involves building a second (or Nth) test machine, called a sandbox, specifically to test things until they believe them to work before deploying them. Back to this in a second. > Some healthcare systems can't be > patched without reapplying for FDA approval, which is of course a > hideously complicated process. So hospitals wind up running software > which you can push over with a feather. Theoretically, they should be > running on an isolated network ("It's no problem, we have > firewalls!!!"), but it only takes a single mistake: somebody plugs in > an infected laptop, or somebody misconfigures a VLAN. Our local > hospital has fallen over due to worm infestations a couple of times. The analogy fails to hold up. Zero-day viruses and malware on fully patched windows systems burns through the desktop/laptop population of many. What is terrifying to me is that my government still mandates/allows the use of systems which are easily compromised in its most sensitive inner reaches. Specifically in the military and related areas. I don't know details, only heard faint mutterings online, but something like this appears to have knocked some portion of government computers in a highly sensitive area offline for several days very recently. As indicated before, security is not a product (e.g. an updated patch), it is a process (minimizing the maximum damage). If you act otherwise, the zero day virus' and malware are going to wreak havoc. Or if you think your systems are secure because you use multifactor access control with long random passwords and secure id cards, you somehow (mistakenly) believe your systems are secure, and you don't pay attention to some ... misfeatures that are being exercised by people of nefarious intent. If all I ever do is send random garbage to port 22 after doing the handshaking, and eventually blow ssh out of the water, it really doesnt matter if you have multifactor authentication running. I would be in as the user running the daemon. Hence privilege separation. Change the code so that if there is a break in, the maximum damage that can be done is done as the sshd_daemon user. Since they are no longer root user, and they are isolated, in their own group, the damage they can do is contained. Minimizing the maximum damage. > >> It all boils down to a CBA (as everything does). Upgrading carries >> risk, no matter who does it, and how carefully things are packaged. The >> CBA equation should look something like this: >> >> value_of_upgrade = positive_benefits_of_upgrade - >> potential_risks_of_upgrade > > With the security benefits being really hard to quantify. Not really. If you have a huge gaping hole that needs patching (OpenSSL off-by-one or weakness), the benefits are easy. Again, it is a process. You test the upgrade, and if it breaks nothing else, you do it. In fact, this suggests (usually) doing upgrades in smaller incremental bits rather than large complex bits. A huge bolus of patches and fixes often has a few new (mis)features (I could name a company here, but they know who they are) which are unfortunately potentially exploitable. To keep risks low, make as few changes as possible. To keep benefits high, update important threat facing things. To keep risks lower, do not introduce more changes than absolutely needed. Patches should not include new (mis)features. >> You have a perfectly valid reason to upgrade threat facing nodes. Keep >> them as minimal and as up-to-date as possible. The non-threat facing >> nodes, this makes far less sense. If you are doing single factor >> authentication, and have enabled passwordless access within the cluster: >> ssh keys or certificates or ssh-agent based, once a machine that holds >> these has been compromised, the game is over. > > I don't get this. What's the point of having a "secure" frontend if > the systems behind it are insecure? OK, there's one big point - > hopefully you can buy some time - but other than that? Its the model of how you use the machine. If you lock all the doors tight with impenetrable seals, and the attacker goes through the weaker windows, those impenetrable seals haven't done much for you. The idea is you minimize the exposed footprint of the machine to threat facing access. This is why lots of the secure sites are disabling USB ports on the motherboards (but mistakenly then running systems which can install keyloggers and other malware ... ). If the USB does not electrically work, it is not a possible attack vector. You can always take the approach of compartmentalization; locking *everything* down. Put those impenetrable seals up. Have one port exposed. Allow no back channels whatsoever. No shared storage. No single factor authentication. This is not a cluster computing model that I have heard of. Would break too many things. Yeah yeah, grid this and that. > The goal is to be able to contain user level intrusions. If you can do I disagree. I think the goal is to minimize the maximum damage. I do not think it is possible to completely contain a smart and resourceful attacker with multiple attack vectors. I know lots of security folks who used to think that their firewalls could, and then watched said resourceful hackers go through them. > this, the game *isn't* over even if you have an intrusion spreading to > a cluster machine. A user level intrusion isn't too hard to deal with, > but a cluster-wide root intrusion... isn't much fun. Sure, you can > probably reinstall the entire cluster in an hour. To a vulnerable > state. Hooray. Again, I disagree. I do not believe patching is a magic solution. A well designed security model that, in the event that the assumptions of the model break down (say all the doors and ports suddenly, magically spring open, because the attacker muttered the appropriate phrase into the wire), still limits the damage that can be done, might be an approach worth considering. Again, I watch (in horror) as military organizations, with some really nice rules and procedures behind them designed to contain and control these bits, proceed to use systems that are known to be insecure by design. If your system can be keylogged, it should never ever be on a network, anywhere. Or change your system so that keylogging is harder/impossible. Security is a process. Like never downloading important information to a laptop only to let it be stolen / lost later on. The current fad is encrypting the disk, and this might prevent some attacks, or slow the rate of information release. Or not. The point is that if the maximum damage an attacker can do is contained or minimized, then you can gather valuable threat information from their attack. Part of the rationale for honeypots is putting systems without anything important out there, in order to observe attacks, find vulnerabilities, and learn how to defend against them. This is done by not co-locating the honeypot on a useful system. By containing what is in there, and what it has access to. -- Joseph Landman, Ph.D Founder and CEO Scalable Informatics LLC, email: landman at scalableinformatics.com web : http://www.scalableinformatics.com phone: +1 734 786 8423 fax : +1 734 786 8452 or +1 866 888 3112 cell : +1 734 612 4615


text:
VERO BEACH, Fla. — A Florida man is accused of coughing, sneezing and spitting inside a Best Buy in Vero Beach after he was asked to put on a mask.
According to the Indian River County Sheriff's Office, Alton Ashby, 51, approached the Geek Squad counter maskless and was asked by an employee to put on a mask.
Deputies said Ashby dumped a package of masks on the store floor and then refused to leave.
According to authorities, Ashby began sneezing, coughing and spitting on surfaces around the store.
Deputies said Ashby walked to the front of the store carrying a soda, "which he sprayed everywhere as he was walking out."
According to deputies, Ashby said he was "upset and is going through a lot this year and got carried away at the store."
This story originally reported by Victoria Lewis on WPTV.com.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
CompTIA Linux+ Certification Training in Salt Lake City
We offer private customized training for groups of 3 or more attendees.
Course Description |
This course is designed for IT professionals whose primary job responsibility is the management of servers and other devices running the Linux operating system. A typical student in this course should have at least nine months of hands-on Linux experience and at least one and a half years of IT experience in other computing environments. The target student should wish to expand their skillset to support their career in Linux system administration and operation. This course is also designed for students who are seeking the CompTIA Linux+ certification and who want to prepare for Exam XK0-004. The Linux+ certification can validate the student's understanding and skill in configuring, monitoring, and supporting Linux systems.
Course Length: 5 Days
Course Tuition: $2090 (US) |
Prerequisites |
To ensure your success in this course, you should have at least foundational experience with general systems administration procedures, some hands-on exposure to one or more Linux distributions, as well as knowledge of computing hardware and basic networking and cybersecurity concepts. |
Course Outline |
Lesson 1: Performing Basic Linux TasksTopic A: Identify the Linux Design Philosophy Topic B: Enter Shell Commands Topic C: Get Help with Linux Lesson 2: Managing Users and GroupsTopic A: Assume Superuser Privileges Topic B: Create, Modify, and Delete Users Topic C: Create, Modify, and Delete Groups Topic D: Query Users and Groups Topic E: Configure Account Profiles Lesson 3: Managing Permissions and OwnershipTopic A: Modify File and Directory Permissions Topic B: Modify File and Directory Ownership Topic C: Configure Special Permissions and Attributes Topic D: Troubleshoot Permissions Issues Lesson 4: Managing StorageTopic A: Create Partitions Topic B: Manage Logical Volumes Topic C: Mount File Systems Topic D: Manage File Systems Topic E: Navigate the Linux Directory Structure Topic F: Troubleshoot Storage Issues Lesson 5: Managing Files and DirectoriesTopic A: Create and Edit Text Files Topic B: Search for Files Topic C: Perform Operations on Files and Directories Topic D: Process Text Files Topic E: Manipulate File Output Lesson 6: Managing Kernel ModulesTopic A: Explore the Linux Kernel Topic B: Install and Configure Kernel Modules Topic C: Monitor Kernel Modules Lesson 7: Managing the Linux Boot ProcessTopic A: Configure Linux Boot Components Topic B: Configure GRUB 2 Lesson 8: Managing System ComponentsTopic A: Configure Localization Options Topic B: Configure GUIs Topic C: Manage Services Topic D: Troubleshoot Process Issues Topic E: Troubleshoot CPU and Memory Issues Lesson 9: Managing DevicesTopic A: Identify the Types of Linux Devices Topic B: Configure Devices Topic C: Monitor Devices Topic D: Troubleshoot Hardware Issues Lesson 10: Managing NetworkingTopic A: Identify TCP/IP Fundamentals Topic B: Identify Linux Server Roles Topic C: Connect to a Network Topic D: Configure DHCP and DNS Client Services Topic E: Configure Cloud and Virtualization Technologies Topic F: Troubleshoot Networking Issues Lesson 11: Managing Packages and SoftwareTopic A: Identify Package Managers Topic B: Manage RPM Packages with YUM Topic C: Manage Debian Packages with APT Topic D: Configure Repositories Topic E: Acquire Software Topic F: Build Software from Source Code Topic G: Troubleshoot Software Dependency Issues Lesson 12: Securing Linux SystemsTopic A: Implement Cybersecurity Best Practices Topic B: Implement Identity and Access Management Methods Topic C: Configure SELinux or AppArmor Topic D: Configure Firewalls Topic E: Implement Logging Services Topic F: Back Up, Restore, and Verify Data Lesson 13: Working with Bash ScriptsTopic A: Customize the Bash Shell Environment Topic B: Identify Scripting and Programming Fundamentals Topic C: Write and Execute a Simple Bash Script Topic D: Incorporate Control Statements in Bash Scripts Lesson 14: Automating TasksTopic A: Schedule Jobs Topic B: Implement Version Control Using Git Topic C: Identify Orchestration Concepts Lesson 15: Installing LinuxTopic A: Prepare for Linux Installation Topic B: Perform the Installation |
Course Directory [training on all levels]
- .NET Classes
- Agile/Scrum Classes
- Ajax Classes
- Android and iPhone Programming Classes
- Blaze Advisor Classes
- C Programming Classes
- C# Programming Classes
- C++ Programming Classes
- Cisco Classes
- Cloud Classes
- CompTIA Classes
- Crystal Reports Classes
- Design Patterns Classes
- DevOps Classes
- Foundations of Web Design & Web Authoring Classes
- Git, Jira, Wicket, Gradle, Tableau Classes
- IBM Classes
- Java Programming Classes
- JBoss Administration Classes
- JUnit, TDD, CPTC, Web Penetration Classes
- Linux Unix Classes
- Machine Learning Classes
- Microsoft Classes
- Microsoft Development Classes
- Microsoft SQL Server Classes
- Microsoft Team Foundation Server Classes
- Microsoft Windows Server Classes
- Oracle, MySQL, Cassandra, Hadoop Database Classes
- Perl Programming Classes
- Python Programming Classes
- Ruby Programming Classes
- Security Classes
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- Tcl, Awk, Bash, Shell Classes
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- XML Classes
30 September, 2024 - 2 October, 2024 - Docker
26 August, 2024 - 28 August, 2024 - RED HAT ENTERPRISE LINUX AUTOMATION WITH ANSIBLE
29 July, 2024 - 1 August, 2024 - OpenShift Fundamentals
4 September, 2024 - 6 September, 2024 - VMware vSphere 8.0 with ESXi and vCenter
19 August, 2024 - 23 August, 2024 - See our complete public course listing
Linux Unix Uses & Stats
Year Created 1991/1971 |
Linux supports many efficient tools and operates them seamlessly. Because it's architecture is lightweight it runs faster than both Windows 8.1 and 10.
Because Linux is an open-source software, anyone can contribute code to help enhance the users' experience i.e., adding features, fixing bugs, reducing security risks, and more.
Software Development:
The terminal in Linux is a *wild card*. You can do almost anything with it. This includes software installation, application and server configurations, file system management, and etc.
Open-source projects benefit from having an attentive community. As a result, Linux is more secure than Windows. Instead of installing anti viruses to clean malware, you just have to stick to the recommended repositories.
Developers have the convenience of running servers, training machine learning models, accessing remote machines, and compiling and running scripts from the same terminal window.
Linux is free (you can put it on as many systems as you like) and you can change it to suit your needs.
Learning Curve:
Linux is not for everyone, there is a learning curve in switching to Ubuntu. To actually learn Linux efficiently would take a user one to several years.
No Tech Support:
Unlike Windows, there isn't a dedicated tech support, so getting help for things is up to you.
Designer Compatabilty:
Linux is not as user friendly as Windows or as 'straight out of the box design' As an example for design choices, Adobe hasn't released any of its products to Linux users. So it's impossible to run them directly. The Ubuntu alternative is a free software called GIMP.
Gaming Capabilities:
Most games aren't available in Linux. But that's not to say you can't make it happen, it's just not as easy.
Linux Unix Job Market |
Average Salary
Job Count
Top Job Locations
New York City |
Complimentary Skills to have along with Linux Unix
The following are types of jobs that may require Linux skills. The top 15 job titles on Dice.com that mention Linux in their postings are:
- DevOps Engineer
- Software Engineer - Java Developer - Systems Engineer - Systems Administrator - Senior Software Engineer - Network Engineer - Python Developer - Linux Systems Administrator - Software Developer - System Administrator - Linux Administrator - Linux Engineer - Senior Java Developer - C++ Developer |


text:
Originally featured on biz women.
N.C. entrepreneur cuts a deal on 'Shark Tank'
ABC/Kelsey McNeal
A husband and wife duo from Raleigh, North Carolina, surprise the Sharks when they bring a party atmosphere and a nude male model into the Tank to show how their franchised art studios work.
A nude model, a pair of Raleigh entrepreneurs and an equity stake: ABC's entrepreneurial pitch contest 'Shark Tank," featuring Wine & Design founders Patrick and Heather Mills, made for a memorable Friday.
Instead of just pitching the numbers to ABC's "shark" investors, the pair behind the wine-and-sip franchise brought out "Richard," a model who — to the surprise of the "Sharks," completely disrobed. It's a bachelorette party, Mills explained onscreen amid shocked faces.
"Does Richard come with every party?" Shark Lori Greiner asked.
See Also
- Raleigh entrepreneur to appear on ABC's 'Shark Tank' on May 12
- Appearance on 'Shark Tank' drives company's expansion into N.C.
The Mills' left the stage with a new backer: "Mr. Wonderful" Kevin O'Leary.
"I know we made the right decision," Heather Mills says, minutes after the episode aired from her watch party in downtown Raleigh, N.C.
Already, sales are up — as is franchise interest, she says. During the episode, she exchanged text messages with O'Leary, who she says is "all in" when it comes to Wine & Design.
The sharks couldn't help but note the uniqueness of her pitch.
The entrepreneurs got down to business, telling the sharks how Harriet Mills got the idea when attending a wine-paint party six years ago.
Within 60 days, she had a business. And, by the time she met the sharks, it had accumulated 74 franchisees.
In its first nine months, it had snagged $250,000 in sales, they told the sharks. The company was on track to make $10 million in annual sales, they said.
"We've done over $24 million in gross revenue from all the stores," Patrick Mills said.
In addition to a $25,000 franchise fee, franchisees pay six percent in royalties, they told the sharks.
The pair initially wanted $500,000 for a 10 percent equity stake — a valuation labeled as "way off the charts" by shark Barbara Corcoran. Within minutes, the only sharks remaining were O'Leary and Robert Herjavec.
O'Leary wanted to know if the Mills' would consider selling outright.
"Everything is for sale," Harriet Mills said onscreen, adding that she thought the company was growing "too slow."
"We do have a lot of competition," she told the Sharks.
O'Leary made the first offer: $150,000 for 10 percent equity. He added on a $350,000 loan "as a line of credit" at 12 percent.
And he pledged to deploy his "social media cannon" in leveraging the business.
Herjavec offered the $500,000, but for a third of the business.
What the cameras didn't show, Mills says after the episode airs, was the full decision process. When Herjavec's competing offer came to light, "my husband and I actually walked in the hallway and discussed it."
"It was a hard call," she says, adding that she has "no regrets" and looks forward to continuing to grow the business from Raleigh with O'Leary.
And O'Leary seems satisfied with the choice.
As the show aired, he tweeted his enthusiasm: "This one is going to be BIG! I can't wait to work with @WineAndDesignHQ!"
Lauren Ohnesorge covers information technology and entrepreneurship.


text:
This beautiful piece was created by designer, Marija.
Beautiful turquoise is a phosphate mineral popular all over the world. Mined since 5000 BC, it is one of the first gemstones known to be used by humans. Color variation from sky-blue to medium green is affected by differing amounts of copper and iron, more copper giving the stone a bluer color and more iron a greener one. Beautiful light blue turquoise is mined in Northern Iran and other varieties occur in Mexico, the United States and elsewhere.


text:
Use our Property Search page to view properties for sale in the local area. Easily view listings in your favorite neighborhoods.
View my Featured Properties in the local area. See the latest listings on the market. Schedule time for a showing.
Are you thinking of selling your home? Get a free evaluation and market analysis of your home with absolutely no obligation.
View properties available in the area today. Start your search for your dream home or real estate property now. Or, use my Find Your New Home form and I'll conduct a personalized search for you.
Get Your FREE Home Market Analysis Report Right Now!


text:
Beaded Flower Station Necklace
Beaded Flower Station Necklace
Shipping & Returns
Shipping & Returns
You may receive a store credit or exchange if the item is shipped to be returned within 21 days of delivery date. Returns are subject for to a $3.95 return shipping fee if you use our return shipping label.
All sale/discounted items are final sale and cannot be returned or exchanged.
For sanitary reasons earrings are final sale. If your item is defective please contact us with pictures at email@example.com.
For returns please email us at email@example.com with the below information:
Item number or nameReason for returnTracking number (if shipping it back yourself)Picture (For damaged items)
Be Unique
We sell each look in extremely limited quantity to set you apart from the rest and at glamorous prices that won't break your budget! Be your own kind of BEAUTIFUL.
Always $3.95 shipping. Free shipping on purchases over $100.


text:
After decades of decay, the Orangerie has recently reopened to the public, carefully restored as a cultural centre. It is now a Museum displaying the collection donated by Carlo Bilotti, a passionate art collector of international renown.
The Orangery was known, in the eighteenth century, as the House of Water Games because of the fountains and nymphaeums found there. It is is adjacent to the Garden of the Lake, with its spectacular lay-out. In the richly decorated and furnished rooms the Borghese princes organized parties and fashionable events. Following the serious damage caused by cannon bombardment in 1849, during the French defence of the papacy against the Roman Republic, all its precious decorations were lost. The building was freely reconstructed and adapted for growing citrus fruits in winter, from whence comes its name.
After decades of decline and improper use, the Orangery has once again become a place of recreation and culture, thanks to a challenging restoration, which has transformed it into a museum to receive a permanent gift of works of art, including paintings, sculpture and sketches, donated to the City of Rome by Carlo Bilotti, an internationally famous Italio-american buyer and collector. The donation consists of twenty-three works.
The nucleus is a collection of paintings and sculptures by Giorgio de Chirico, a representative selection of the artist's most famous subjects between the Twenties and the Seventies. Also included are a portrait of Carlo Bilotti by the American artist Larry Rivers, a portrait of Tina and Lisa Bilotti done in 1981 by the master of Pop Art, Andy Warhol, the portrait of Tina and Carlo Bilotti by Mimmo Rotella, as well as 'Summer' by Gino Severini and finally 'The High Cardinal', a work in bronze by Giacomo Manzù. In the years, the Museum collection has been enhanced through the acquisition of works by Consagra, Dynys, Greenfield-Sanders and Pucci.
To ensure that the museum is always open to new developments in contemporary art, spaces for temporary exhibitions have been included next to the room occupied by the permanent exhibition.
The creation of the Bilotti Museum is an exemplary example of public-private collaboration. As a new cultural institution it represents another piece in the project to transform the Villa Borghese into a Park of Museums, a place specially devoted to artistic and cultural experiences.


text:
Explore these Government publications highlighting U.S. and military history. Military topics cover major wars and battles, as well as the history on all branches of the military. For anyone interested in America's history, key publications cover information on American democracy, presidents, presidential elections, and other important topics.
Sign up for email alerts
on US & Military History products, news, and offers.


text:
3-in-1 vegan mascara, amplifies lash volume and length while nourishing lashes with powerful botanical extracts and plant protein to promote lash health and growth. The multitasking mascara/serum/conditioner enhances the look of lashes on a day-to-day basis plus provides potent vitamins and antioxidants to help lashes grow thicker, denser and fuller. Frail and brittle lashes are strengthened and protected by organic emulsion which prevents breakage and leaves lashes looking rich and full.
Wiggle brush starting from the root of the lashes and sweep upward. Re-apply if desired.
Aqua, Iron Oxide (CI 77499), *Euphorbia Cerifera (Candellila) Wax, *Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba Wax), *Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Vegetable Collagen, *Myrica Pubescens Fruit Wax, Stearic Acid (Cocoa Source), *Equisetum Arvense (Horsetail Plant) Extract, *Olea Europaea (Olive) Oil, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Propanediol / Pentylene Glycol / Phenethyl Alcohol (Non GMO Sugar Source), Hydrolyzed (Lupine) Plant Protein. *CERTIFIED ORGANIC INGREDIENTS
AWARD-WINNING MASCARA NATURALLY STRENGTHENS AND PROMOTES LASH HEALTH Rated a super clean zero by Think Dirty's Dirty Meter Helps prevent breakage with powerful plant active ingredients Lifts and defines lashes to give a full look


text:
Jeff.Com 4.0
Welcome to Jeff's Place, the Jeff.Com version 4.0 web site.
Jeff.com has been painfully stale for most of its existence. That's not likely to change, but now after 6 years or so I've moved everything off my own server and onto Google Apps. So that makes this Jeff.Com version 3.0.
It took a while to get everything moved over from the old wordpress site to this new one, but all the old content should be under here somewhere except for a few things I decided nobody should care about. I'm sure old links are broken, sorry about that.
Have fun.


text:
Populate PDFs, Word documents, and other files with data from other apps (including Formstack Forms).
Pass generated documents to your Egnyte account for easy storage and sharing.
Set routing logic to determine how files are passed into specific folders.
To learn how to set up the Egnyte integration, check out this help article.


text:
After 20 years, more than 1,000 Burundians returning home every day
After 20 years, more than 1,000 Burundians returning home every day
MABANDA TRANSIT CENTRE, Burundi, November 14 (UNHCR) - More than 1,000 Burundians are returning to their homeland almost every day with the help of the UN refugee agency and its partners, after losing their refugee status in Tanzania.
Taking advantage of a last opportunity for assistance in making the journey, close to 8,000 former refugees have returned from Mtabila refugee camp in Tanzania since October 31 on convoys organized by UNHCR, the International Organization for Migration, and other partners. The first convoy carried only 356 people, but more are signing up every day.
"We see more and more people coming forward and the pace of the convoys is picking up," said Chansa Kapaya, UNHCR's representative in Tanzania. "Co-operation between the Tanzanian government and humanitarian agencies on issues related to the orderly return continues to be excellent."
International agencies stepped forward to help the former refugees go home after the government of Tanzania found that some 37,500 Burundians living in the country were no longer refugees and needed to leave Tanzania by the end of the year. A further 2,715 are being allowed to remain in the country as refugees.
The decision followed interviews with some 40,000 Burundian refugees conducted by panels made up of UNHCR staff and Tanzanian government officials over 11 months, giving consideration to developments in Burundi since they fled nearly 20 years ago.
When the weather is bad, the bus journey from Mtabila can take as long as four hours instead of two because rain has made some roads impassable. Once inside Burundi, returnees are given a hot meal at one of three UNHCR transit centres in Makamba province. They also spend the night there before continuing to their home areas.
Those who need medical care receive it and those with specific needs - children alone, pregnant women, blind people or very old people - get special attention.
"We thank God who led us here," said a man named Athanase, standing in this transit centre 20 kilometres from the border, with his wife and seven children, ranging in age from one to 18 years. He said they were looking forward to rebuilding their lives, even though they would have preferred to remain in Tanzania.
All returnees are registered by UNHCR and receive a month's food ration as well as a small cash grant. They also receive a number of useful household items, such as sleeping mats, mosquito nets, buckets, jerry cans, some clothing and sanitary materials. As well, they begin the process of getting a vital government ID card.
By the next morning, most are on their way back, with the help of UNHCR and partners, to where they originally came from. Trucks take them and their possessions to their hometowns (called communes in Burundi) -- 76 communes in 17 provinces, although three communes are the main destinations.
Some of the returnees - who had fled civil strife in the 1990s - seemed genuinely surprised to find a country at peace, apparently believing Burundi was still at war.
Since April 2002, UNHCR has supported the government of Burundi to reintegrate more than half a million returning refugees - helping them reclaim their land, settle land disputes, build homes and start businesses.
"We have helped returnees to resume their normal life," said Catherine Huck, UNHCR's representative in Burundi. "UNHCR intends to continue working closely with the government and development organizations to make sure that this latest group of returnees can restart their lives and contribute to stability in Burundi."
By Kitty McKinsey at Mabanda Transit Centre, Burundi


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Labour Government's Fiscal Record: source OBR
Of course it is possible to find fault, and I do. In hindsight it would have been better if the debt to GDP ratio had been kept nearer 30% of GDP, or even reduced further. But debt to GDP was lower before the recession than when Labour took office, and the current balance was almost zero. Hardly a profligate government. Indeed one of the faults I find, over optimism in Treasury forecasts, has been fixed, to the Conservative party's credit, with the creation of the OBR.
With the financial crisis everything changed, because this produced the Great Recession. Deficits go up in recessions. There was a small contribution from the government's attempt to reduce the impact of the recession, an attempt which analysis suggests was successful, so they should take credit for that. It is pretty obvious that you cannot use the fact that the deficit rose in the recession to argue that Labour cannot be trusted with the public finances. Again, the data speaks - look at when the deficit rose in the past.
Of course you could say that the Great Recession was the government's fault. It should have foreseen the financial crisis coming. It should have known that levels of GDP in 2007 were going to be interpreted, five years later, as a massive economic boom rather than as they appeared at the time as something close to trend. It should have known this, despite the advice it was getting to the contrary from the Bank of England, the IMF, OECD, most economists …. and Her Majesty's opposition! You can take that idealist view - but not if you were agreeing with all this advice at the time.
So the idea that the last Labour government seriously mismanaged the nation's finances is a myth. What is more, unlike older myths like the earth is flat, as these charts show it is not something that is generated by perception and which requires expertise to unravel. Unless you are completely naive about the impact of recessions on deficits, a quick look at the data tells the true story. So it is a manufactured myth that distorts what the numbers appear to show. The problem with myths is that after a time, even otherwise good journalists at good places like the Financial Times start believing them.
Now we all know who manufactured the myth. Yet I think most people believe that if a political party started telling a story that was clearly at variance with the facts, it would be found out. In short, people expect journalists and economic commentators to confront politicians who attempt to create and perpetuate myths. In this case they did not. Its also pretty obvious why they did not. The incentive for organisations like the BBC is to stay out of trouble. And who has been making most noise about bias in economic reporting - the government. As any economist will tell you, its all about incentives.
So it really is the duty of academics to speak to truth, as loudly as they can, when it is being ignored by the media. On this topic, the media in general and the BBC in particular have been hopelessly biased in allowing the government to get away with this myth. They have some serious explaining to do. |
Wednesday 12 June 2013
Must we live with a post-truth media?
42 comments:
- Anonymous12 June 2013 at 14:38
Wasn't it Harold Wilson who said "if you tell a lie often enough it becomes the truth"? And that's just what Cameron and Osborne and supporters did. As soon as they got into office it was taken as gospel, which I thought silly as fundamentally it was a world problem, not a British made one. But who said politics had anything to do with the truth? It's all about power and getting elected - nothing else. and with Iraq hanging around the Labour Party's neck, pretty much nothing they did was going to get them reelected, IMO.
ReplyDelete 'to speak to truth, as loudly as they can'.
You are missing a considerable number of points:
-this is about the general perception of things (much more difficult to change than wrong factual info).
-this is also mainly about 'emotion' and not logic (only the correct info will hardly work);
-loud is so 1950's you should use the method that works (so another one, at least if you want it to work, if it mainly is to be nicely irritated on human stupidity, this one works better of course).- Anonymous12 June 2013 at 15:41
I concur with all you say. So why hasn't Labour made the point that you make? Because they know the media isn't listening? They think the public won't be receptive? The FT reference you give is to Janan Ganesh. A clever man but also a Tory and a true neoliberal, so he may have ulterior motives. If not, he should know better. Of course, the argument against Labour is that of the debt fuelled boom, and I believe Vince Cable referred to this at the time in the context of private/personal debt. Certainly Mark Littlewood was making this point about Labour and pre-2007 debt on The Daily politics yesterday. David Rose
ReplyDeleteRepliesBut the argument about the debt fuelled boom in the private sector, especially one housing driven, is that it generated super-normal tax incomes for the government.
It wasn't so much that Brown spent too much but that that spending was reliant on a bubble in tax receipts. All that stamp duty from housing, booming corporate and income tax from banks and bankers' bonuses and from VAt as everyone bought new kitchens and sofas with their multiple credit cards.- Anonymous12 June 2013 at 17:03
But didn't many governments, and not just in the UK, believe the economists and financiers when they talked of The Great Moderation? They thought economic cycles were a thing of the past. Wasn't it an economist who said in 2003 that the "central problem of depression-prevention [has] been solved, for all practical purposes"? We know better in hindsight.
Delete It is pure marketing.
Their brandimage is of the party that goes for new programms, which means spending which is associated with ....
Stating that they are as 'bad' as the rest of them will not help them in the ballotbox. Voters can make the way back (from deficits to new programms) as well. Main stream parties have already become too similar for the market. One of the main reasons of the rise of the populists. Hardly a message you want to give to your voters: 'it hardly matters for whom you vote'.
Furthermore a party should use its energy where it is efficient. Fighting windmills allthough they are real and (unlike for ordinary windmills) dangerous, still makes you look like an idiot. Plus put extra focus on the subject matter (a clear negative (hardly anybody likes extra spending, they like the things that bought it).
Doubtful btw if Labour thought that far, the PR machine of political parties is usually simply crap. Probably not is my calculated guess they simply missed it as a priority.
Taxes/revenue and gov spending are simply nearly completely obscure for the large majority of voters. Partly very likely caused by things as keeping it away from voters that overall they pay half or more of their income to the state. Partly simply because in a high expenditure enviroment as a welfarestate you simply need all the tax you can come up with to finance things. Spreading taxes gives the opportunity to make them overall higher.
In order to get Simon's point through, you will have to explain the basics of government income and expenditure. There might be some reluctance there.
Hardly believe that any main stream political party really likes that. Simply what you get for your 50% tax or more doesnot look great.
Same as bringing it to the issue of: where scarce means should be allocated. Which is what you are effectively saying from Simon's pov labour allocates means better. As one of those alternatives is leave it with the citizens.
System is something happens government act, usually not thinking about costs vs proceeds. And the majority of the voters/taxpayers like that as they havenot got a clue about things like risk assessment and costs vs proceeds. They expect everyday a guy with a bombjacket in their frontgarden (well sort off). And as they miss the link governmentspending means paying more taxes also for them it looks like a great deal.
Government is absolutely not focussed on an optimal allocation, it is in an optimal allocation for their voterbase. Which is pretty different.
Bring that up big time and you have the next Farange waiting, or better inviting him- or herself for tea. The closer direct democracy is to spending decisions the less the latter take place. Which you will have by getting everything in the general public domain.
So Simon will likely simply have to live with this unjustice. With may be as part comfort that a lot of the voterbase of Labour like the idea that Labour is big spending as they think they are not paying it (or at least not equally what they will be receiving) but are benefitting from it.- Anonymous14 June 2013 at 11:36
I emailed Mr. Ganesh questioning 2 or 3 of the claims he made in last Saturday's FT article.
He hasn't managed to reply yet. @JananGanesh Won't answer he refused to answer my questions on Twitter: all he could say was: who cares about facts they don't matter and then said: I don't want to talk about Patel the Tory economist.
I asked 3 things:
1) What overspending? 1997 Lab inheritted deficit of 3.9% (not a surplus) cut to 2.1% by 2008 = 50% cut & 22% cut in debt.
2) Who had the biggest ever deficit? 1994 Tory deficit = 7.9% Lab 2010 = 6.7% Who had the highest ever deficit in history?
3)U provide no evidence but Patel provides direct irrefutable evidence from IMF,OECD,ONS,Treasury,OBR & Banned BBC Osborne vid admitting it
read: Finally Exposed! The Deficit Mess! So, Cameron When Are You Going to Apologise? http://huff.to/QFYtKm @HuffPost
Make sure you click the links within the article for the evidence from the horses mouth.
The deficit under Labour in 2009/10 was not 6.7% of GDP, it was 11.2% of GDP.
You don't actually define what "mismanagement" or even "serious mismanagement" of an economy is, so we only have your word that it wasn't mismanaged.
Surely running a near 2% deficit on current budget whilst at "trend growth" (with plenty of people suggesting this was above trend growth) after 2002 counts as mismanagement, if perhaps not serious mismanagement.
And that's before one starts quibbling about areas of spending that were kept off books (transport maintenance counted as capex, tax credits etc).- Anonymous12 June 2013 at 16:04
And the people at the BBC who should most carry the can at the BBC are the self-styled economic experts such as the pitifully cowardly Evan Davis
ReplyDelete - Anonymous12 June 2013 at 16:14
I also echo the question of another poster, which is why doesn't the Labour Party simply produce the data? In theory, the charge of fiscal profligacy shouldn't be hard to rebuff.
ReplyDeleteRepliesEven if someone gave you absolute evidence and prove you would still try to deny it. I know this because every Tory on social media can't despute the facts I have given them and even @RickHolden could not in the end he apologised for lieing and then deleted the tweet and then blocked me. Brooks Newmark actually gave away the trick of fooling people to believe the deficit has been cut- a claim that has been made since 2011. In the end it all comes down to the fact most people are economic illierates- not there fault. We can all be economist as we all can not be scientists. So he come the prove followed by the camplete exposing of the deficit mess lie- A Tory economist letting the cat out of the bag on Tory deficit tricks and lies. First 5 facts:
1) Who had the biggest ever deficit? 1994 Tory deficit 7.9% 2010 = 6.7% My maths tell me Tories had biggest ever deficit!
2) 1997 Lab inheritted deficit of 3.9% (not surplus) cut to 2.1% by 2008 = 50% cut & 22% cut in debt = biggest ever cut!
3) Between 1979- 1997 the Tories had deficit through out. David Cameron has lied to the Tories and the whole country.
4) watch BBC banned video: Osborne laughing & admitting UK had the lowest debt http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQYfPhtWpy8
5)NEWS FLASH! Exposed! Tory MP Lets Cat Out The Bag: Deficit Has Been Cut TRICK!https://twitter.com/TweetBrooks/status/343725655462133762 … SCOOP!
Finally Exposed! The Deficit Mess! So, Cameron When Are You Going to Apologise? http://huff.to/QFYtKm- Anonymous12 June 2013 at 19:37
I think the answer is basically that Labours image for managing the economy was trashed by the conservatives and they are/have been afraid to talk about the economy/ their record on the economy
- Anonymous12 June 2013 at 16:49
'A lie told often enough becomes the truth' or whatever the exact quotation is was actually Lenin, not Wilson.
ReplyDelete - Anonymous12 June 2013 at 17:02
What about all the PFI expenditure that Labour kept off the books; massively expensive projects up and down the country that were not included in the official figures? And a bit specious to suggest that commentators don't understand that deficits rise in a recession - what is understood is that recession is inevitable, there is no end to boom and bust, and responsible management of the economy would have involved recognising that the enormous tax take was fuelled by financial services bubble, unleashed by the repeal of Glass Steagal in the States, and would have planned accordingly.
ReplyDelete - Anonymous12 June 2013 at 17:12
Of course, Osborne is now starting another debt fuelled boom via housing.
ReplyDelete You macro bunch got a geat talent by the way to attack problems in other 'sports' with 'macro-technology'. Like simplifying things to the extreme and assuming everything away that is inconvenient or too difficult to grasp as it is not Macro.
I am waiting with anticipation on the post about sending a rocket to Mars and the best way to perform hartsurgery (the laser variety of course).- Anonymous13 June 2013 at 09:09
Krugman blog February 5, 2010, 'The Spanish Tragedy' has a great graph showing OECD Government debt as % of GDP for 1997 and 2007, ie when the Labour came into office, and when the Subprime Crisis started (just before the Minsky moment of Lehman).
I have a complaint currently going through the BBC Trust on just this topic - hello, Chris Patten (and why is an ex-MP doing this job?).
The BBC has said to me that:
"The job of our economics team is to make sense of hugely complicated areas such as these for general audiences, and for that reason they would often choose not to deploy such difficult jargonistic terms as liquidity trap – especially in a short bulletins piece - if they felt such a term would not add to audience understanding. That in no way is intended to reduce the depth and the context they seek to bring to such issues and I would want to reassure you that they go to great pains to ensure their analysis is as detailed and accessible as it can be...the wider point, of course, is that the Bank of England and Fed in the US would not agree we are in such a trap, even if there are some economists who do" (02 May 2012).
- Anonymous13 June 2013 at 09:50
The FT source you refer to is hardly objective or unbiased!
ReplyDelete - Anonymous19 June 2013 at 16:54
1. Brown "we have beaten boom and bust". Why do Labour deserve my sympathy just because the opposition followed his line, along with the finance industry and the entire "house prices go up therefore we're all getting richer" brigade? Don't academic economists seek objective truth rather than party point-scoring?
2. Your entire argument is that recessions tend to drive the government books into the red. Agreed...but surely we can then acknowledge that the duty of government when things seem to be going OK is to be in the black....
3...and not just in the black, but with appropriate attention paid to the structural balance allowing for the boom in benefits and in public-sector salaries. Even allowing for Brown's failure (and ours, if you like) to identify the biggest credit bubble in a century, it's a disgrace.
3. "Off-balance sheet financing". Write it 100 times. Tattoo it on your forehead.
4. To comparisons with the recession under the Conservatives, and the size of the deficit at that time: quick question, how quickly did the country recover from that recession? And for how many years were the finances in deficit?
5. To all those of you determined to beat-up market economics, repeat after me: "markets are inanimate institutions; they have no opinions and cannot cause booms and busts; market participants can make errors and can cause booms and busts; Gordon Brown was an enthusiastic participant in the market; governments in general can exercise choice in how to participate in the markets; like all market participants, governments are responsible for the repercussions of their choices".Replies1. Actually that is what I was trying to do.
2. Which was my whole point: the debt to GDP ratio in 2007 was lower than in 1997.
3a. How public money is spent is not the issue here.
3b. I agree on PFI (as my paper makes clear), but the numbers are not that big
4. We were recovering from the recession until 2010, when policy changed!
5. Hmm, where have I heard something like this before. Ah yes, something about guns not killing people, its the people that use them that are the problem.This is laughable.
In 1997, government debt as a percentage of GDP had just peaked after the early 90s recession. The deficit was reducing rapidly and headed towards surplus.
In 2007, there had been continuous growth for 15 years and we were nearing the end of a huge credit-fuelled boom which generated enormous tax revenues. Debt as a percentage of GDP, however, had been rising for some time.
Only a fool would compare different points in the cycle like this, i.e. the government debt levels after a recession with debt levels prior to a recession.
Note that before the early 90s recession (which also followed a credit boom/bust) the government had been running a surplus of around 2% of GDP and government debt was down to 26% of GDP. Had the deterioration in the public finances in 2008 onwards been from a similar starting point, the debt and deficit situation now would have been much much more favourable.
And you're an economics professor?Try reading what I wrote. I am critical that, having got debt/GDP down to 30%, it was allowed to rise again. But this is not, for me, some political contest. The issue is whether the fiscal position before the recession was some terrible mess that accounts for much of our current economic difficulties. It is this idea that is laughable. The numbers just do not support this idea.
I suggest that you try reading what you wrote.
The fiscal position before the recession was, indeed, a mess. Nobody is claiming that it accounts for 'much of our current economic difficulties', but it was a contributory factor because the government was borrowing substantially to fund spending which further drove the boom. The real problem, of course was the credit boom its - government borrowing and spending was only a part of this boom. To run a deficit of nearly 3% of GDP during the greatest credit boom ever, was extremely irresponsible. Had the last Labour government followed similar policies to the Tory government in the late 80s (which also helped create and oversaw a credit boom), it would have been running a surplus of at least 2-3% of GDP an dos the public finances would have been in a fiscal position of at least 5% of GDP better. The deficit would have peaked at around 6% of GDP, not 11%.
Brown kept redefining the economic cycle in order to supposedly meet his fiscal targets (he ran a deficit of more than planned every year after 2001). It was obvious that we were storing up problems.
I really do not think that you understand numbers. You need to look at trends and understand rates of change.
Next you will be writing a piece saying that this government is worse than the last one for fiscal profligacy because it will borrow more than the last one did.
One thought for you. If we alternate governments of equal periods and one always doubles the deficit steadily over its term of office and the other always halves it steadily, then both will have run exactly the same average deficit. It would be very easy to tell which was most fiscally responsible, however.- Anonymous20 June 2013 at 12:12
This professor definitely doesn't get numbers. The comparison he keeps making between 1997 and 2007 is totally irrelevant - as one of you guys has commented, in 1997 the recovery was well under way and the deficit was falling; in 2007 the boom had been under way for five years.
Learned professor, you keep saying you're not in it for the party politics; yet you tell us that we were recovering from the 1990s recession right up until 2010! We might as well say we are still recovering from the South Sea Bubble. Regardless of party politics, the 1990s recovery had a full head of steam by 1997.
To put a more technical point to you, learned professor: it's not the overall level of debt or its ratio to GDP that matters (which you keep referring to in your 1997/2007 comparison). It's the direction of travel of that ratio that matters most. In the short run you can accumulate debt, if in the long run your income outgrows it. That's why economists talk about a "primary surplus" while businessmen talk about "debt repayment coverage" and homeowners talk about "mortgage instalment affordability". The fact that debt was growing faster than GDP 2002-2007 was only forgivable if you believed that GDP growth was going to accelerate i.e. that 2-3% was not just sustainable but accelerating. Now that really would have been a crass error.
Thank you for clarifying that you don't think "how governments spend money" is an important question for macroeconomists. Gordon Brown certainly agreed, as he sprayed it in the general direction of public sector wages with minimal good effect. I disagree; I think taxpayer resources should be spent in the most efficient way on the most advantageous services possible.
The amount of money that is spent is inseparable from what it is spent on. I don't care if the government wastes £1; I can understand if it spends £10bn to great effect. This is intrinsic to the discussion: it is fine to borrow in order to invest in future growth. The scale and nature of tomorrow's growth is the business case for borrowing today. So the true nature of the disaster that was Brown's economy is revealed:
- he borrowed throughout a boom
- he used the proceeds not to invest productively but to spend, spend, spend
- he locked the spending into non-discretionary costs
- Anonymous19 June 2013 at 17:34
This is nonsense, it's not a case of the total amount spent, deficits during a crash, simplistic figures from graphs, and so on - even considering the fact that better govts run surpluses during boom years which Labour did not do. It pertains to the Nu Lab economic model, which was clearly based around fueling private credit booms and then wasting the resulting tax receipts on the usual Labour rubbish - lots of public-sector non-jobs, and thousands of ineffectual public sector "projects" and "services", most of which were or are shite and basically represent a build up of unsustainable enterprise which it takes considerable pain and disquiet to reorder - as per the 1970s. I witnessed the extraordinary public sector corruption and waste of the NU Labour years first hand, and the obviously unsustainable dependencies it created, which are now socially and economically extremely problematic. The author of this blog misses the point about the idiotic nature of the spending - and the next and only left-wing rebuke to this is "oh well the Tories agreed to these spending plans too" - how on earth could a govt in a democracy hope to get elected by advertising the fact that it would spend less during a period when the populace is unaware or unwilling to acknowledge that structural dependencies were being rapidly accumulated?
ReplyDelete - Anonymous19 June 2013 at 18:04
"So the idea that the last Labour government seriously mismanaged the nation's finances is a myth."
Mmmm. Good essay question - a few thousand words plus plenty of real data will sink this. Not much difference between Simon Wren-Lewis' analysis and The Belgrano.
Incidentally, economic management includes future commitments and managing economic risk which is, of course, where the wheels really fall off for the argument presented above. Brown and Balls thought they'd found the perpetual tax-generating machine to fund the never-ending (current and future) government commitments. Nice try though.
Just a simple - 'we got it wrong' would be nice rather than this sorry revisionist rubbish. Can anybody with a socialist leaning ever apologise for not grasping the fundamentals of economics....? - Anonymous19 June 2013 at 18:42
On the other hand, there is the question of whether Labour's spending did any good.
Having worked in the public sector throughout the period in question, I would say that although well-intentioned, Labour's expenditure was mis-directed, mis-managed and, in far too many cases, wasted;the amount spent on bureaucratic activity (especially performance management) or vanity projects in the name of regeneration was scandalous and the improvement in public services that was achieved was hugely disappointing. And of course, at the end of Labour's tenure, society was actually less equal, less cohesive and less prosperous.
If you judge public spending on how much harm it causes, the case above may be sound; if you judge it on how much good it does Labour has a very serious case to answer. Now we know why you're in academia and not allowed near any real money. I would expect better than this politically driven nonsense from a professor of economics at Oxford.
1. When growth is at trend, a government should not be running a deficit.
2. Even on the Treasury's own figures, the current budget was at 2% deficit.
3. When current spending misclassified as capital expenditure (e.g. repairs and renewals) is correctly classified the deficit was much higher.
4. Growth was not at trend at all, it was the peak of a huge boom.
5. The argument that government did not know this was above trend growth is an argument to reduce government spending. If there is uncertainty then spend less!!
It's perverse to see a supposedly qualified economist defend the economic record of Gordon Brown given that he, aided by the BoE, led the UK into a huge crisis with over-loose fiscal and monetary policy. The only possible reason for this article is a political one. Bringing one's political biases to economic analysis is unprofessional and not something I expect from an institution such as the University of Oxford.RepliesI'll leave others to judge who is doing the political driving here.
DeleteThat's an easy one Mr Wren-Lewis - it's you.
Why else would you claim that "We were recovering from the recession until 2010, when policy changed!" ?
As anyone who has actually looked at the figures can see, the supposed recovery was a modest growth in GDP achieved through a huge, and unsustainable, rise in public spending (and borrowing). It isn't hard to manipulate GDP in the short term by this method.
Or are you suggesting that under a government of any flavour that the rate of growth in public spending could have been maintained? It's not as if the government actually cut spending after the 2010 election - it just slowed the rate of increase.
What these charts show is that Labour ran a persistent budget deficit at the peak of a credit cycle and with c. 14 years "uninterrupted economic growth". This naturally means that there is a large structural budget deficit, there was less fiscal flexibility when a downturn eventually happened, and a larger stock of debt to refinance and to pay interest on.
The debt to gdp ratio should have been steadily declining during the Labour Gov't to 2007 because they should have been running budget surpluses with a structurally neutral budget (or with a slight structural surplus).
Despite your intentions with this post, it merely confirms Labour's profligate legacy.RepliesRead my third paragraph. But there is just no way that allowing the debt to GDP ratio to rise back up in 2007 to a level lower than the one that was inherited, and with a current deficit of 0.5% of GDP, can be described as a profligate legacy.
DeleteBut that contradicts your point that they did not overspend. If Debt:GDP was nearer 30% then they would have, logically, needed to spend less. Therefore, because it was higher they overspent.
DeleteFor instance:
"So the idea that the last Labour government seriously mismanaged the nation's finances is a myth. "
Considering a small deficit (as % of GDP in nominal terms) is a large structural budget deficit when cyclically-adjusted, your point that there was no major mismanagement is completely incorrect.
Another example: "The previous Labour government set up fiscal rules that were both responsible and better than rules subsequently adopted elsewhere." If the fiscal rules allowed them to have a Debt/GDP ratio close to 40% then they were not responsible.
- Anonymous20 June 2013 at 08:12
"But debt to GDP was lower before the recession than when Labour took office, and the current balance was almost zero."
It should be remembered that the Conservatives had recognised that the debt to GDP levels were very high at that time, and had put in place strict 3 years spending plans to bring them down - plans Labour agreed to stick to (so suggesting they also agreed debt to spending was far too high).
Labour, to their credit, did stick to the plans - hence the debt to GDP levels fell to around the 30% levels that you congratulate... but having stuck to the Conservative plans for the 3 years, they then went on a spending spree. The spending spree pushed the debt to GDP levels back towards the level when they took power - the level that was felt to be unsustainable.
What has also been totally ignored in your analysis is the commitments made (and failure to plan, particularly in the area of pensions) which would increase debt to GDP even more in the years that followed...
A reduction in spending was needed just as much as when Labour took over from the Conservatives in 1997 - but it was not apparent that such a drastic reduction was planned. - Anonymous24 June 2013 at 16:55
This issue is that we should have been paying back debt during the 2003-2007 boom years, not limiting deficit levels to 30% of GDP. If you cannot pay back debt during the good years then when can you? That was irresponsible.
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Dec 11, 2012 Center for American Progress 12:00 - 1:00 PM EST
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In an era of increased enforcement on the federal, state, and local levels, what is life like for immigrants—those with and without legal status, and for the wider communities in which they live? This event will focus on three primary aspects of society in America: the school, the workplace, and the family. We will discuss how detentions and deportations build upon one another in harmful ways, straining family ties, opening the door to employer exploitation and mistreatment, and causing children to underperform or exit school early. Since the documented and the undocumented live, work, and go to school alongside one another, these issues ripple outward, affecting entire communities.
This event marks the capstone of our "Documenting the Undocumented" series, which seeks to shine a light on all aspects of life for undocumented immigrants. We will be releasing the report "Legal Violence in the Lives of Immigrants: How Immigration Enforcement Affects Families, Schools, and Workplaces," by Cecilia Menjívar and Leisy Abrego. The authors argue that the cumulative effects of immigration enforcement, and the ensuing stigmatization of immigrants that goes hand-in-hand—what they term 'legal violence'—hinder today's immigrants from integrating into life in the U.S. as their predecessors did before them. Between them the authors have conducted more than 200 in-depth interviews over 10 years of research, and bring their wide-ranging knowledge, and intimate stories of those affected, to the Center.
Please join the Center for American Progress for a discussion about the ways in which immigration enforcement affects families, schools, and workplaces. Authors Cecilia Menjívar and Leisy Abrego will discuss their research and the individuals caught up in the enforcement system they met along the way. Roberto Gonzales will discuss undocumented immigrants and education, from primary school through college, while Lisa Moore will discuss "A Wish for the Holidays," an advocacy campaign focused on ensuring that families are not separated because detention and deportation. Finally, Chris Newman will discuss how immigration enforcement affects immigrants as workers, and as well as the campaigns to garner greater protections and rights for these workers.
Introductory Remarks: Cecilia Menjívar, Cowden Distinguished Professor in the T Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University
Featured Panelists: Leisy Abrego, Assistant Professor of Chicana/o Studies, University of California Los Angeles Roberto Gonzales, Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago's School of Social Service Administration Lisa Moore, Gender and Immigration Campaign Organizer, National Domestic Workers Alliance Chris Newman, Director of Legal Programs, National Day Laborer Organizing Network
Moderator: Philip E. Wolgin, Immigration Policy Analyst, Center for American Progress


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Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Peripheral Vision Man goes to the mall
Vis a vis "How I Met Your Mother," turns out Robin and I share both a Canadian heritage and a refusal to go to the Willowbrook Mall -- though, unlike Robin, I was never a pop star. I just have too many bad memories of what a bad, generic mall Willowbrook was. But it was the nearest mall growing up, dammit.
Another hilarious episode, and one that has me increasingly convinced that this is the show CBS needs to air after the Super Bowl. That timeslot's not the ratings magnet it use to, but it still has the potential to expose the show to 15-20 million people who have never seen it, and if there's a show on CBS that needs non-CBS viewers to know it exists, it's this one.
On any other show, the video no doubt would have been the highlight, but here it had to compete with both of Marshall's slaps of Barney. Is there anyone, anywhere, who doesn't think Barney made the wrong choice with the 5 vs. 10?
And just as it took America's 1987 six years to get across the border, "Studio 60" is showing that it's taking 2001 five years to enter Aaron Sorkin's consciousness. Sure, Fox scheduled "The Tick" in a much different comedy climate, but would any network bother with "Peripheral Vision Man" today, let alone give Beavis and Hackboy the budget to hire the huge, untalented writing staff we've seen in the two or three scenes set in The Room? And Matt's brief attempt to hold the two under contract after humiliating and marginalizing them since his return didn't make him seem noble; it made him seem like a bully.
I suppose this was an improvement over the Pahrump episodes, in that the lecturing about how Hollywood and fundamentalist Christianity relate to each other was limited to one subplot. But when the show's not being simple-minded and preachy and obnoxious, then it's just dull. Maybe if I liked the characters more, I would enjoy a straightforward inside-baseball episode like this, but nine episodes in, the only ones I still have affection for are Jack, Cal and Jeannie, and they exist on the series' fringes (or, in Jack's case, disappear for entire episodes at a time).
As for the Harriet storyline, there were so many things wrong with it that I don't even care about Aaron's ongoing therapy about his break-up with Kristin Chenoweth. First, if this takes place on the same day as the Nevada trip, Harriet got this offer, agreed to it and let the word spread all within a few hours? Woman works fast. Second, she can't possibly be so naive that she doesn't understand either the lad mag's desire to put her in a photo shoot or one of the reasons she's so valuable to "Studio 60." It would be one thing if she felt offended because Tom and Simon were making it sound like that was the only reason they kept her on the show (i.e., belittling her talent), but she reacted like this had never ocurred to her before. Every time Harriet opens her mouth, I like her less.
What did everybody else think?
18 comments:
I have been watching this show since the first episode, and I think I am seriously coming to the end of our relationship. Harriett gets on my last nerve. She's shrill and unlikeable, I think it's partly the actress and partly just the character.
Alan, does it get any better? I know it was just picked up for more episodes, so ideally it does get better. But I just can't see that happening based on what they've already shown. - 9:20 AM, November 21, 2006
the first half or so wasn't all that bad, i thought. then, boredom set in. Just let go of the "culture wars", Aaron. I just hope we will see more of lucy davis in the future. Aside from jack (of course) she's about the only character i'm interested in, although I do wonder when they're going to address Peet's pregnancy.
- 9:29 AM, November 21, 2006
I watched HIMYM all last season and, while it was enjoyable, I didn't really find it laugh out loud funny, so I decided to drop it this year. I did think this episode sounded really funny, though, so I tuned back in. I'm glad I did. It was hysterical! It's too bad every episode isn't this funny.
This was also the first week that I haven't watched Studio 60. I can watch a mediocre show if I at least care about the characters, but I don't care about anyone at NBS. I really wanted to give the show a chance, but if it didn't grab me afte 8 episodes, I think it's a lost cause. - 9:32 AM, November 21, 2006
I tend to put the Harriet sequences on mute, they're much more tolerable that way. I honestly couldn't figure out what the deal was with that plot. Simon and Tom came off as creepy and controlling and Harriet should have told them to get bent.
I thought the Ricky/Ronnie plot was much better, and I got the sense we were supposed to see Matt as a bully, because for all his talent, that's what he is- an egomaniacal jerk. Ricky dressed him down well, and gave him the fuckyou he deserved, even though Matt was probably right on the money that PVM would crash and burn. Some really nice acting from Handler and Jacott and Perry there. - 10:17 AM, November 21, 2006
HIMYM is quickly becoming my second favorite comedy on tv right now (behind The Office, natch). I laughed out loud a LOT at last night's episode. As someone who just moved away from Bloomfield, NJ to South Carolina, I cheered when Barney cried "Willowbrook Mall!" I paused my Tivo and asked my husband, "Did they just cheer for Willowbrook Mall?" A quick rewind confirmed that they did (which made me laugh out loud again). I love this show.
- 10:21 AM, November 21, 2006
- Elayne said...
A) Re: "would any network bother with 'Peripheral Vision Man' today," I think you need to bear in mind that Sorkin isn't writing reality here, he's writing fiction disguised as reality. His stuff has always been springboard fantasy - nobody talks as rapid-fire as the Sports Nite people, no real White House operates like West Wing... but darn, don'tcha wish on some level that they did?
B) Of course Matt was being a bully. His attempt to try and get the Hacky Twins to stay was chiefly motivated by a desire to save his own rep from being associated with PVM. What I would have liked to see happen was an attempt to break up Frick and Frack by giving the bald guy the heave-ho and catering to the other one, who wasn't so much Danny to Bald Guy's Matt as he was 1776's Judge James Wilson to John Dickinson.
C) That said, I think I have a lot more affection for the characters than you do. Overall I'm still enjoying the heck out of Studio 60. The main problem I had with this episode was that it's still the Same Damn Day three weeks in a row now, and as you mention that may work okay for us as the audience but the time frame doesn't work as well for the narrative regarding Harriet. The escape clause for that is to surmise that the tour offer, the lingerie shoot offer and Harriet's remarks all occurred at some indeterminate time (and not simultaneously) before The Longest Day ever started.
I wish I could volunteer to live-blog this show for you, but as I say, I like it a lot more than you do, and my computer is in a different room from my televisions. - 11:58 AM, November 21, 2006
- Elayne said...
Oops, that last paragraph should read "live blog for Lance Mannion." :)
- 11:59 AM, November 21, 2006
- Joel said...
Willowbrook Mall was my "home mall" too, Alan. Yeah, it was pretty generic -- it sure as hell wasn't as nice as Garden State Plaza -- but at least it was better than some other malls out there. Just asked anyone who worked in that depressing Fortunoff/JC Penny mall next door...
That was the funniest HIMYM episode ever. It was so good that I almost never referred to my notes when I was writing up my TV Squad review of it. It's one of those episodes that makes you smile for days and weeks afterwards and makes you laugh every time it's rerun. It almost makes me hope the show makes it to syndication so I get a chance to see that episode over and over for years (and not have to buy the DVD, of course). - 12:14 PM, November 21, 2006
As amazing as the video was, the bit that had me laughing so hard that I actually had to pause the tape was Barney's description of Canadian pornography.
I know HIMYM usually doesn't refer back to comedy bits from previous episodes, but I really hope this stuff comes up again (both the random slaps and Robin's notorious history.) - 12:34 PM, November 21, 2006
I now call Studio 60 "the show I love to hate." There is just so much cheese there, that it amuses me immensely.
I agree totally with your assessment, the characters are becoming increasingly unbearable. I really only like Jack.
I seriously cannot understand how anyone finds Sorkin's lectures brilliant. He's heavy-handed and pretentious. If the characters weren't constantly moving, I think more people would realize that their dialogue is annoying, fake, and bloated.
Still, it's my guilty pleasure. It's so bad -- it's good. It makes me howl in laughter. So I guess I should thank Sorkin for entertaining me with his ego-trick. At least he isn't boring. - 1:22 PM, November 21, 2006
"I know HIMYM usually doesn't refer back to comedy bits from previous episodes, but I really hope this stuff comes up again (both the random slaps and Robin's notorious history.)"
Actually, they refer back to old shows all the time. The continuity on this show is one of the main reasons it is so great. Two examples from the top of my head: Marshall being the only one to understand Barney's gambling game with the Chinese, just like Barney was the only one to understand Marshgammon and Marshall being excited about the robot in the video. There are so many more that I can't remember right now. I really wouldn't be surprised if there were a few random slaps in upcoming episodes.
Entertainment Weekly spoiled me a bit for that pop star reveal, but it was still hilarious. Best episode of HIMYM yet, hands down. - 2:44 PM, November 21, 2006
re: HIMYM - I'm just sad no one referred to Barney as "Swarley" in last night's episode.
The other comment that had me doing a spit take last night was after Marshall's first slap when Barney mentioned how large Marshall's hands were...Marshall's response had me on the floor because it was SO unexpected and hilarious. - 3:19 PM, November 21, 2006
As a Canadian, I couldn't help but be reminded of Alanis Morisette in her early '90s "Alanis" days when watching the Robin video. Her hair and outfit were a little closer to 1989 though.
Another benefit of living north of the border is that we can watch Studio 60 on Sunday night after Desperate Housewives. Studio 60 doesn't seem as crappy when it follows DH as opposed to the still fresh Heroes. Even so, I would watch something else if there were better options. Sorkin and his characters are so full of themselves that I couldn't help but cheer when Handler told Perry off. More of that needs to happen. - 8:19 PM, November 21, 2006
But you know, Sorkin -- er, I mean, Matt -- can spell descent. So he's better than all of us put together.
Anyone else put off by Lucy Davis' completely odd inflections in how she speaks on this show? It's completely bizarre. It's as if she went to a vocal/dialect coach who told her to wheeze pretentiously between each syllable.
yeah, HIMYM was awesome. My only regret is that I let my 4 year old watch it, and I fear he will be describing Canadian porn next week in preschool.
Oh, and I can't get that damn mall song out of my head.
Marshall's reaction to Barney's slaps had me on the floor. Jason Segel just kills me.
Overall, the ep was legen
-wait for it-
dary! - 11:37 PM, November 21, 2006
Robin Sparkles was actually inspired by Alanis. The producers said all we really knew about Robin was that she was Canadian and they thought it would be funny if she was like Alanis during her teen pop years, but her career ended after that.
Btw, have you seen the myspace page: http://www.myspace.com/robinsparkles - 10:46 AM, November 22, 2006
One of the many things that bothered me with this week's Studio 60 was the -extended- discussion of product placement issues. This may be because I watch shows out of order on the TIVO, but this week I watched two shows do a great job with product placement/making fun of product placement (The Office, 30 Rock) without preaching to me about it, but rather making me laugh. I don't know--just one of many things this episode that rang false. I mean, some product placement just stinks, but you're seriously going to spend 1/2 the episode telling me about it, and how bad it is, and how good you are for not using it? When other shows assume I know about product placement and choose to deal with it intelligently?
Anyway, thanks for the blog.
Kate - 10:58 AM, November 22, 2006
Watch HIMYM last night and am still laughing at the video, the slap bet and the Willowbrook Mall shout out. Called my Mom this morning to see if, in fact, Sharper Image made its way to that poor, pathetic excuse of a mall.
I've watched the video three or four time already. I love the when the Prime Minister comes out to boogy. And I saw Tiffany live in a mall once, so it brings back awesome memories.
Let's go to the mall - Today! - 6:31 PM, November 22, 2006
- Kellie Huffman said...
hey, I just caught HIMYM-Robyn Sparkles for the first time last night(Apr.23,'07). I had heard nothing about it so it was a delightful surprise. We're Canadian and my husband and I almost fell over laughing through the whole thing. The show did a great job poking fun at American stereo types of what they think of Canadians, if they think of them at all, for example "aboot" (i don't hear it) and thinking the 80's didn't arrive here until the 90's. For one thing most of the media we see and hear is from the US so our pop culture is almost the same. This also feeds the american idea that the US leads in music, fashion, etc and the rest of the world follows along like good little wantta-be's (ok, it does in some respects). that came out a little catty-er than I had anticipated. "Whatever"
The writers definitely did their research, putting in references to Gretzky and Mulroney and that video! Brings back frightening memories with titles like "did we really dress like that?"
Too funny. - 12:15 PM, April 24, 2007


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Desire/Love (2nd edn.)
Imprint: Dead Letter Office
FORTHCOMING Fall 2023
"There is nothing more alienating than having your pleasures disputed by someone with a theory," writes Lauren Berlant in this volume. Yet the ways in which we live sexuality and intimacy have been profoundly shaped by theories — especially psychoanalytic ones, which have helped to place sexuality and desire at the center of the modern[…]


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The RBA has decided to leave the official cash rate unchanged at 1.5% for the 29th consecutive time and I'd like to share some thoughts on why the Reserve Bank of Australia has made this decision.
With speculation mounting that a date for the federal election is close to being announced and that tonight's federal budget will bring with it tax cuts, the Reserve Bank has again left rates on hold. Supporting the case are strong employment figures & continued low global interest rates, offsetting continued concerns around falls in housing prices.
If you'd like to have a chat about what today's news means for you and your finances, please don't hesitate to get in touch.
Any advice contained in this article is of a general nature only and does not take into account the objectives, financial situation or needs of any particular person. Therefore, before making any decision, you should consider the appropriateness of the advice with regard to those matters. Information in this article is correct as of the date of publication and is subject to change.


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It all started simply enough. A friend who is a baker messaged me "Do you know anyone who can make 600 crêpes?" Sure, so-and-so in San Diego or the crêpe truck….."No," she said, crepes only, no filling. "I think you should do it." This was just after she had been to my French Food Camp Brunch and I showed everyone how to make fancy crêpes filled with lemon curd and topped with blackberry compote. Soon I was making a sample batch and had a meeting with the best caterer in the area. He asked for a larger size and the classic "white" crêpe as opposed to the buckwheat "Brittany style" crêpe I make. I love crêpes in Brittany at the local market, where they are 100% buckwheat and I take them home and fill them for our car ride home. I also love a Gruyère crêpe for breakfast at the market in Paris 16eme where I used to live. I used to love the crêpe guy by the Louvre, a butter and sugar crêpe and a coffee was often a great snack. Oui, me and Real French Crêpes go way back….
After another meeting and tasting the two versions, he called back to say that they loved the original version, crispy and lacy on the edges, soft in the center, not too sweet except at the center, where I had sprinkled the sugar between the crêpes to keep them from sticking. Soon, I had an order of 800 crêpes. I had never made 800 crêpes, but it was a deal, and so….I was a one-woman crêpe factory for two days. Needless to say, my compost pile was happy to receive the shells of hundreds of eggs.
Now, if you want to make a small batch of fancy crêpes, here is the basic recipe, which is adapted from Pierre Hermé (Paris of course):
1 1/2 cups whole milk
2 tablespoons sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons Grand Marnier or rum
2 teaspoons orange juice
Zest of 3/4 of an orange (organic please)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil (I use grapeseed oil)
3 tablespoons browned butter"
3/4 cup sifted flour
2 heaping tablespoons buckwheat flour (Bob's Red Mill is great)
Extra sugar on hand
Makes about ten eight inch crêpes.
For a large quantity, I use the above proportions, but only use the milk, sugar, eggs, egg yolk, oil, butter, flour and buckwheat flour. Remember that buckwheat flour is not a grain, so it's also gluten free and a great addition even though this recipe also uses regular flour; there is something very settling to the stomach and satisfying (it's very savory so good to use this crepe with sweet fillings). I added a teaspoon of vanilla extract too to give more flavor but not be "boozy" and not expensive. I make the batter the night before I will make the crêpes; it's very important to give the batter time to rest.
Break your eggs and egg yolk in to a bowl and mix them well.
Brown the butter by melting it over medium heat, then watch it slowly burn a little and turn brown (that was redundant, I know). After a little while it will start to foam and bubble up. This is when you need to watch it and be sure it does not bubble over the pan (remove the pan from the heat if you think it will bubble over, but mostly, use a generous sized pan. Remove from heat and let cool. Add the milk, sugar and vanilla, (if you are using the classic recipe add the orange zest and juice and the rum or Grand Marnier) then the oil and browned butter, including any burned bits; it's all great flavor. Then add the sifted flour and mix with a whisk. The batter will seem a little lumpy but don't worry, give the gluten in the flour time to relax. Set in the refrigerator or a cool location overnight; I use three huge copper faitout or stockpots; stir in the morning and the batter should be smooth; otherwise just stir a little more. Notice the buckwheat has a tendency to settle, so whisk to the bottom of the pan.
And now, to the crêpe making! I use two very large non-stick pans with sloped sides. Use a paper towel and rub the warm pans with a little oil or butter before the first crepe. Set your batter out close by, and choose a ladle that will be the right size….the amount of batter you need will vary depending on which pan you use.
Heat the pan on medium-high, and pour the batter in in one quick motion into the center of the pan, then pick the pan up and swirl it so that the batter covers the entire pan. I prefer to cook crepes on a higher heat, which browns them a little more, but gives a crispy edge. Can you see the lacy edge here? Tips: the first crepe is to test: if the batter is too thick you can thin it with a little milk. The oil will tend to rise to the top of the batter, so stir well for the first few crepes if your first crepe looks oily. It's really very straightforward once you have made them, and I hate to add too many explanations, but play a little with the heat and the batter to get the taste and texture that you like. In Laguna I make smaller crepes on an electric range and I love them; the gas is hotter but easier to control. You can do it, trust me.
After the edges of the batter start to brown, you are ready to flip the crêpe. I use a large spatula. Slip it under the crêpe and… over!
The second side is faster to cook, but it's the first side which is the "pretty" side, the one you will have on the outside once you fill the crêpe (you can roll them or quarter them for filling). Flip the finished crêpes into a pile, with the pretty side down, and add a tablespoon of sugar on top, between each crêpe. This way the crêpes are ready to fill. The sugar will melt in the warm stack.
The edges will be crispy and delicious; if you refrigerate these now, they will lose the crisp but they can be frozen or refrigerated for several weeks with no problem.
I made piles of 25, and I counted each one as I flipped it in the pan; note my advanced counting system.
I made 350 crêpes the first day, then more batter late that night, and 450 the next day. The XXL faitout was looking much like I felt, as I finished the second day at 2am. Two hours sleep and I delivered the still-warm crêpes on schedule, all 800 of them, perfectly packaged.
Since those two days, I have made several more batches, though smaller. They have been called "amazing" and other great comments….so a success. Today I was asked to make 100 so that they had some on hand while I am in France. I decided crêpes are tough work. Thank goodness for a big lemon water and green juice. It's hot in there!
I've now made a total of 1,350 crêpes in the last month for the caterer. And whenever I doubt myself, I will just say, Girl, you made 800 crêpes in two days; if you can do that, you can do just about anything! Hope you will try the crêpes. There is a reason why the French love this sweet or savory treat; it's delicious~


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I signed up for Agile, but it sure feels like waterfall. What happened?
Occasionally, as part of our strategic advisory service, I work with clients who don't want custom application delivery from us, but rather want me to provide advice to their own Agile development teams. Many of them don't need a lot of help, but perhaps the single issue I observe most often is that iteration (or sprint, in Scrum terminology) planning meetings (IPMs) don't go well. Rather than being an interactive exchange of ideas and a negotiation between developers and product owners for the next iteration, I observe that the IPMs become 2-week status meetings that don't accomplish much. The developer team doesn't have much or anything to demo, there's little feedback from the product owner, and everyone just routinely agrees to meet in two weeks to go through the same thing again.
One of the main reasons for these lackluster IPMs is the failure to close tasks at iteration boundaries. If the developer team can't close tasks at iteration boundaries, then the product can't be usefully demoed, which means the product owner can't offer any feedback. This isn't any form of Agile – it's just waterfall with 2-week status meetings.
Failure to close tasks at iteration boundaries has other implications too, because what it's telling you is that stories are too big, and stories that are too big have big consequences.
First, big stories are hard to estimate accurately. Think of estimates as sort of like weather forecasts: anything over 2-3 days is probably too inaccurate to use for planning. The smaller the story, the more accurate will be the estimate.
Second, big stories make it harder to change business priorities. That may seem like a non sequitur, but when developers are working on any story, the system is in an unstable, non-functioning state. To change direction, the developers have to bring the system to a stable state where it can be taken in a different direction. Those stable states are achieved when stories are completed and the system is ready to demo.
An analogy I like to use is to think of the system as a big truck proceeding down a controlled-access highway, like an American interstate. You can exit only at certain points. If you're heading north and you realize you want to head east instead, you have to wait for the next exit to make that direction change – you can't just immediately turn east and start driving through the underbrush. The farther apart the exits are, the farther you're going to have to go out of your way before you can adjust. Think of each exit as being the close of a story. The closer together the exits (the smaller the stories), the sooner you'll reach an exit (a system steady state) where you can change direction.
In this series of blog posts, I'm going to look at what it takes to ensure task closure at iteration boundaries. Each post will focus on a different team role, and how that role can help ensure that iterations end in an actual delivery of working software that can be demoed in an IPM. I'll write about what product owners, developers, and project managers (or Scrum masters) can do to reduce story size, ensure product stability and functionality at iteration boundaries, and keep the system always ready to quickly change directions – the very definition of agility.
Watch this space.
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Thank you sir! I installed it last night and did a little tweaking to show an image next to the output. Very cool and easy to install! You da' man Ken.
This all depends of course whether or not your local NWS includes marine warnings and advisories in the RSS feed. Not all do, but the NWS states that they are eventually going to include them in all their RSS feeds for advisories and warnings. If yours isn't available yet, just be patient.


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Krampus Origins
The first World War rages on when a group of American soldiers find a mysterious artifact that can summon the ancient evil of the Krampus. After the men are killed in action, the artifact is sent to the commanding officer's widow who is a teacher at a small-town orphanage. The orphans accidentally summon the Krampus and the teacher, and her pupils are forced to battle this ancient evil.
Genre: Horror
Actor: Maria Olsen, Anna Harr, Amelia Haberman
Director: Joseph Mbah
Country: United States


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His research interests include the design and analysis of algorithms, combinatorial optimization, operations research, network algorithms, scheduling, algorithm engineering and computational biology. Professor Stein has published many influential papers in the leading conferences and journals in his field, and has occupied a variety of editorial positions including the journals ACM Transactions on Algorithms, Mathematical Programming, Journal of Algorithms, SIAM Journal on Discrete Mathematics and Operations Research Letters. His work has been supported by the National Science Foundation and Sloan Foundation. He is a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). He is the winner of several prestigious awards including an NSF Career Award, an Alfred Sloan Research Fellowship and the Karen Wetterhahn Award for Distinguished Creative or Scholarly Achievement. He is also the co-author of the two textbooks. Introduction to Algorithms, with T. Cormen, C. Leiserson and R. Rivest is currently the best-selling textbook in algorithms and has sold over half a million copies and been translated into 15 languages. Discrete Math for Computer Scientists , with Ken Bogart and Scot Drysdale, is a text book which covers discrete math at an undergraduate level.
Introduction to Algorithmsby Tom Cormen, Charles Leiserson, Ron Rivest and Clifford Stein. The official web site for the book is http://mitpress.mit.edu/algorithms. There is also information at the McGraw Hill website. A bug list can be found here . Tom Cormen maintains a FAQ list. |
Discrete Math for Computer Scientists.by Clifford Stein, Scot Drysdale and Ken Borgart. Information on this book is available here |
Prof. Clifford Stein Department of IEOR Columbia University 500 W. 120 St., MC 4704 New York, NY 10027