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I get this question so often (especially online) that now you get an entire blog post just on this topic!
So, here's how.
1) Judaism is a religion, but being Jewish isn't necessarily.
Jewish people have at various times considered ourselves and been considered by others a faith, a nationality, an ethnicity, a race, and a culture. While the distinctions between some of these categories are blurry–and some of them are recognized mainly by anti-semites–that doesn't mean they don't exist.
For instance, the fact that groups such as Nazis and Soviets considered Jewish people a separate and inferior race has obviously had a huge effect both on Jewish history and on how many Jewish people see themselves. To use the obvious example, Hitler didn't hate the Jews because they worshiped the wrong god or because they didn't eat cheeseburgers; he hated them (among other reasons) because he considered them genetically flawed and therefore dangerous to his vision of a perfect Germany.
(Weird how Nazi types can never seem to decide if Jewish people are genetically flawed or genetically so fucking good at money shit that we literally run the whole world. It's enough to give a Jew an identity crisis, for fuck's sake.)
Anyway, Nazis and Soviets don't get to define us–we do. And for many of us, the significant things about being Jewish have less to do with prayers and more to do with food, music, language, ethical values, history, overcoming oppression, bad jokes, holidays, drinking alcohol, arguing all the time, and so on.
Because Jews have historically tended to marry and have children with other Jews–not just for religious reasons but because non-Jews have typically wanted nothing to do with us–Jewish people are particularly susceptible to certain genetic abnormalities, and there are certain phenotypes particularly associated with Jewish people (i.e. My hair, olive skin color, and facial structure) just like there are with other ethnicities.
None of this means that all Jewish people are culturally, physically, or historically identical, and it's extremely irritating when people use that as evidence against anything I just said. (It's also extremely irritating that non-Jewish people feel the need to argue with anything I just said, period.) There are also distinct ethnic subgroups that evolved after Jewish people were expelled from the area now known as Israel/Palestine. The Ashkenazim, like me and my family, are the ones who ended up in Eastern Europe. The Sephardim settled in Spain and Portugal and were exiled from there in the 15th century. The Mizrahim hail from the Middle East and Central Asia. There are also smaller groups, such as the Beta Israel from Ethiopia and the Kaifeng Jews from China.
These subgroups differ in lots of ways, including language, customs, and religious observance. Ashkenazi Jews traditionally speak Yiddish, name their children after relatives who have passed away (this explains both my first and middle names), and pronounce Hebrew differently than other groups of Jews. Sephardi Jews traditionally speak Ladino (and potentially tons of other languages depending on where exactly they were from), name their children after living relatives, and sometimes face racism from their Ashkenazi cousins, which is bullshit, but there ya go.
I could go into a lot more detail about non-religious aspects of being Jewish, but that's a good start.
2) Belief in god isn't particularly central in most Jewish communities and practices.
If you're not Jewish, you may not believe me if I told you that in my many years of attending Jewish services, celebrations, and events in a variety of different traditions and communities, the subject of any individual's belief (or lack thereof) in god hasn't ever really come up. But it's true.
While Jewish prayers and texts obviously reference god copiously (usually with terms like "Hashem," "Elohim," "Adonai," and other clever ways to avoid using god's actual name which is forbidden), individual belief in god isn't central to most Jewish conceptions of how to be a good person. That tends to focus more on doing good deeds, not breaking commandments, and generally not being an asshole. I say "most" because of that whole thing about two Jews, three opinions. Jewish rabbis and scholars disagree with each other on just about every single detail of Jewish history or practice, and while certain views get a lot more consensus than others, the idea is that you're supposed to argue about it.
So while there are probably rabbis out there who would say that I'm a bad person–or even "not a Jew"–because I don't believe in god, they are in the minority and you'd probably have to go to certain neighborhoods in Brooklyn or Jerusalem that I honestly try to avoid in order to find them. I've never had a rabbi take issue with my personal beliefs. I've never been questioned about my personal beliefs at synagogue, or expected to express or defend them. I have never had a Jewish person of any level of observance react negatively to finding out that I'm an atheist; many of them simply say that they're atheists too. The one time I clearly remember telling a rabbi that I don't believe in god, it simply led to a friendly debate in which the rabbi challenged me to explain the mathematical improbability of life on earth. (You may not agree that it's mathematically improbable, but regardless, nobody told me I was going to hell.)
The vast majority of rabbis and other Jewish leaders that I've interacted with did not express or even show any sign of judgment or dissatisfaction with me about my beliefs or level of observance. They simply wanted me to participate to whatever extent I felt comfortable, because they liked seeing more young Jewish people get involved in the community and help it grow and improve.
3) Because I fucking said so.
Here I have to admit that I find it irritating as all heck when random people (usually on OkCupid, usually with a skeptical tone) ask me "how" I can be both Jewish and an atheist. First of all, it's eminently googleable. Try it.
Second, even if all of that stuff I just wrote wasn't a well-known and accepted viewpoint within most Jewish communities–why does it matter?
People identify how they identify. There are also many atheists from Muslim and Catholic backgrounds who still include that in their personal identity, although they usually call it "ex-Muslim" or "lapsed Catholic." But that's because Islam and Catholicism don't have a long tradition of secularism dating back centuries. Within Islam and Catholicism, atheists don't get a prominent voice. As far as I know, there are no secular mosques or churches within Islam and Catholicism. There are secular synagogues, and rabbis who lead them.
Point is, many people who were raised Muslim or Catholic but who no longer believe in god still identify with various aspects of those cultures, whether it's giving up something difficult for Lent, celebrating Eid, or simply acknowledging that their upbringing affects them even today and that whether or not they believe in god, they still care deeply about their religious families or about issues facing those religious communities.
Religion isn't the only category in which some people have complex and seemingly contradictory identities. There are bi dykes and lesbians who sometimes date men and nonbinary femmes and people who identify with different genders depending on the day and mixed-race folks who call themselves "Black" in certain contexts and "mixed-race" in others and asexual folks who have sex and biromantic homosexuals and homoromantic bisexuals and straight queers and married poly people and Jewish atheists. Sound confusing? Good! It's not supposed to be simple.
Identity is complicated because humans are complicated. The vast majority of the times you feel like someone's identity is contradictory, it's probably because you're defining words much more narrowly than they are.
If you think that "Jewish atheist" makes no sense, chances are you have a very narrow and ahistorical view of what it means to be Jewish (and probably what it means to be an atheist, too). Chances are I'm one of the first Jewish people you've ever really talked to about what being Jewish actually means.
And I get that. I do. But I'm getting pretty tired of having to justify an identity that feels obvious to me and to provide evidence of my own existence.
Every time I hear "but how can you be both Jewish and an atheist," it feels extremely invalidating. The way this question is usually phrased implies strongly that the correct answer is "you can't," and that I'm somehow mistaken about one or both of these identities, and that you, a person with no Jewish background and clearly very little Jewish knowledge, know better than me.
Here's a fact: polls and studies consistently find that about half of Jewish people are agnostics, atheists, or otherwise doubters of god's existence. Less than half of Jewish people consider themselves "religious."
Jews who openly question god or deny god's existence are hardly unknown and include Carl Sagan, Stephen Jay Gould, Niels Bohr, Richard Feynman, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Franz Kafka, Isaac Asimov, Howard Zinn, Neil Gaiman, Stan Lee, Stanley Kubrick, Baruch Spinoza, Peter Singer, Noam Chomsky, Saul Alinsky, Hannah Arendt, Elie Wiesel, George Soros, Mark Zuckerberg, Sigmund Freud, Emile Durkheim, and Albert Einstein.
So I think I'm in pretty good company, and I don't need to be corrected when I say that I'm a proud Jewish atheist.
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Tour Itinerary
Day 1: Kuala Lumpur - Genting Once you arrive at the Kuala Lumpur airport, meet our tour representative who helps you with an assisted transfer to the Genting Highlands. En-route, take a halt to explore the Batu Caves. Discovered way back in 1892, this cluster of 3 main caves and other small caves, is a religious site for the Hindus in Malaysia. The entrance of these limestone caves has a huge statue of Lord Murgan. Later, arrive in Genting and complete the check-in formalities, followed by a ride in the cable car (Genting Skyway). Enjoy this enthralling ride, offering great views of the surroundings. Next is a visit to the Genting Indoor theme park. An amazing place filled with fun and adventure, this park has a gaming arcade, several rides, safari jeep adventure and much more. Overnight stay. |
Day 2: Genting - Kuala Lumpur On the 2nd day of the tour, have your breakfast and get transferred to Kuala Lumpur. As you reach the federal capital of Malaysia, complete the check-in formalities at your pre-booked hotel. The rest of the day is free for you to indulge in the activities of your interest. Famed as Asia's Green Capital, this city is dotted with several attractions. You can visit the main attractions, can relish sumptuous local food, can interact with the locals, can absorb the myriad of sights and sounds etc. Stay overnight in Kuala Lumpur. |
Day 3: Kuala Lumpur The 3rd day of the tour is for exploring the city by partaking in sightseeing. Some of the main tourist attractions are Petronas Towers, Menara KL Tower, Chinatown, Thean Hou Temple, Royal Selangor Pewter Factory and Visitor Centre, Kuala Lumpur Bird Park, Putrajaya Bridge, Bukit Bintang, Islamic Arts Museum and so on. Overnight stay in Kuala Lumpur. |
Day 4: Kuala Lumpur Today is the last day of the tour. Have your breakfast. Now, you are free for indulging in personal activities. Enjoy a leisure walk around your hotel. You can also visit the local markets, possibly Central Market, to shop for gifts and souvenirs for your loved ones back home. Get an assisted transfer to the airport to go-aboard your scheduled flight for your onward destination. |
Tour Detail
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* Some Advance Percentage of total booking amount * Airfare/Transport fare to be paid full at one time in advance.~^#^~* Upon cancellation, refund will be made after deducting the Retention Amount. * Retention Amount varies as per the number of days left before your package start date. ~^#^~


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Germany's green energy sector: can it grow without subsidies?
| Berlin and Feldheim, Germany
Germany's renewable energy sector has experienced a boom in the last decade that has far superseded expectations. Supported by generous subsidies, a public that is fairly open to green investments, and a widespread skepticism of nuclear power, energy producers have covered the country with wind generators and solar panels. Twenty percent of Germany's electricity now comes from renewable sources.
But the industry risks becoming a victim of its own success. It is locked in a bitter debate with the government about the future of the subsidies that have allowed it to flourish. The government wants to severely curtail the financial support – particular for solar energy, which provides only 3 percent of Germany's electricity but receives about half the subsidies – although there are doubts the renewable energy industry could survive without it.
Feldheim, a tiny village just south of Berlin, is pretty, but otherwise unremarkable. Two dozen houses sit along a street lined with chestnut and maple trees. Nothing hints at why this place claims to be "the future" – but as the first energy self-sufficient village in Germany, and maybe the whole Continent, it just might be, says Werner Frohwitter.
Mr. Frohwitter's company, Energiequelle GmbH, provides all of the town's homes with heat and electricity generated from renewables at their doorstep, which feed into a local grid. Windmills rotate just behind the houses, a biogas plant on the outskirts provides heat and additional energy on windless days, and a bit farther down the road, rows of solar panels in a field face the dull winter sky.
Feldheim residents' energy prices are 30 percent below the average in Germany. Energiequelle profits from feed-in tariffs, a subsidy on the amount of energy they feed into the system. It gives the company, as a renewable energy provider, a 20-year guarantee on the amount of energy they can feed into the grid at a price that is considerably higher than what fossil energy providers get on the free market.
It is a good deal for the company, and people outside Feldheim are noticing. The solar power industry is booming. The government predicted an increase in solar power installations in 2011 with a total output of 3.5 gigawatts, but actual production far exceeded that prediction: at the end of the year, Germany had produced an additional 7.5 gigawatts of solar energy.
The feed-in tariff is regulated by the Renewable Energy Bill and financed not by the state budget, but by German consumers. A levy dedicated to the support of green energy is added to the electricity bill of each household. It rises with the number of solar panels and windmills out there, even though the government tries to adjust the tariff downward at regular intervals. Last year, the average household paid €130 ($171) extra to foot the green bill.
"The production of solar panels has become much cheaper in recent years," says Claudia Kemfert, energy expert with the German Institute for Economic Research in Berlin. "Manufacturers and providers can't reasonably ask for subsidies much longer. But they are not competitive yet, compared to conventional energies."
Overwhelmed by the green boom and under pressure from the conventional electricity utilities, the government has slammed the brakes on subsidies. Hardly a day goes by now without Economy Minister Philip Rösler asking the renewable energy sector for restraint in its demand for financial support. The feed-in tariff will now be adjusted every month rather than every six months, and subsidies for solar installations are scheduled to end in 2017 – five years before Germany shuts down its last nuclear reactor.
"The renewables can probably replace nuclear energy in Germany," says Mrs. Kemfert. "But not coal, which generates most of our electricity. We will need a lot of new coal-powered plants in the next decades. And that means a rise in CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions."
High expectations of solar
By 2020, Germany wants 35 percent of its energy needs to be met with renewable sources, with solar energy contributing 10 percent. By 2050, renewables are meant to provide 80 percent of Germany's energy, and some experts believe that solar installations will deliver more than half of that.
Not everyone agrees. "Photovoltaic [energy] in Germany makes as much sense as growing pineapples in Alaska," said Jürgen Grossmann, CEO of Germany's second-largest utility, RWE, at a conference in Berlin in January.
Clearly he was referring to Germany's limited sunshine. But even critics more sympathetic to renewables say that far too much money has gone into subsidizing wind and solar energy, and not enough into technologies needed to complement these, such as an up-to-date grid and energy storage.
DENA, the German energy agency, estimates that in order to connect all the planned new energy providers, including large offshore wind-farms in the North and Baltic seas, with customers across Germany, about 3,700 kilometers of high voltage network need to be built by 2025. In the past few years, a mere 100 kilometers of power lines were built.
Running Feldheim on renewables is one thing. Powering large urban areas, the whole economy even, is quite another, and many still doubt it can be done in the next few decades without the use of fossil energy sources.
"We need to put enough resources into research and development of a smart distribution grid and of energy storage facilities," says Mr. Frohwitter of Energiequelle. "If we do that, we can supply all private German households with renewable energy in 20 or 25 years from now."


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Steps to Better Secure Your Bricks and Mortar Business
So much attention is being paid today on conducting business virtually, digitally and online, it is easy to forget about the number of bricks and mortar businesses that are still being conducted on Main Street America. These are the small businesses that contribute to local taxes, school districts, charitable efforts and civic improvements.
While online security protecting digital assets is critical, it remains important to secure bricks and mortar businesses. Here are steps you can take to better secure your physical business location.
It may sound basic but protecting your business through obvious security signage can be very effective. Signs that indicate "You May Be Under Surveillance", "Protected By Video Camera Systems" and "Property Is Monitored by 24/7 Video Security" can be effective. Deterring criminal activity is key and letting unwanted visitors know you may be watching can be extremely effective.
Video Camera Systems
Of course, while signage is important, so is backing it up with actual security systems. Today, video security is less expensive than ever. Explore video camera systems to best fit your needs. They can range from 24/7 monitored systems to in-house video systems with video captured on hard drives or in the "cloud".
Nuts and Bolts Security
One of the best ways to provide security for your bricks and mortar business is to enhance the physical security of your location. This means deadbolts, steel doors, increased window locking systems, security glass and more. As a business owner, if you can think of a way to enter your building if you forgot your keys, so will a thief. Make your physical building as impossible to enter as you can.
Don't Ignore Digital Weak Links
While physical aspects like door and window locks, video cameras and exterior lighting can enhance security, don't forget those simple in-house issues that can create security issues. Make sure employee pass codes are changed frequently, don't leave passwords on post-it notes on computer screens and educate staff on online security issues like phishing. Even the most diligent security efforts can be thwarted by a moment of indiscretion.
Of course, the best way to protect your bricks and mortar business is through sufficient business insurance. Contact one of our independent insurance agents to discuss your specific business and your risks. We look forward to protecting your business as cost-effectively as possible.


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Universal Pictures recently released the first trailer for Judd Apatow upcoming film "Trainwreck". The upcoming film stars Amy Schumer, Bill Hader, Colin Quinn, Brie Larson, John Cena, Tilda Swinton and LeBron James.
"Trainwreck" hits theaters on July 17th.
For more information on this film, you can visit the film's official website at: www.trainwreckmovie.com
Press Release:
No contemporary filmmaker has chronicled the messy human experience with the eye and ear of a comedic cultural anthropologist like Judd Apatow. Hits as varied as those he's directed, like Knocked Up and The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and those he's produced, like Superbad and Bridesmaids, are all unified by their honest, unflinching, comic look at how complicated it is to grow up in the modern world.
Apatow has also built a history of helping break distinctive new comedy voices into the mainstream, from Seth Rogen to Lena Dunham among many others. Now, in his fifth feature film as a director, Apatow again brings a portrait of an unforgettable character, and a portrayal by a breakout new comedy star, together in Trainwreck, written by and starring Amy Schumer (Inside Amy Schumer) as a woman who lives her life without apologies, even when maybe she should apologize.
Since she was a little girl, it's been drilled into Amy's (Schumer) head by her rascal of a dad (Colin Quinn) that monogamy isn't realistic. Now a magazine writer, Amy lives by that credo—enjoying what she feels is an uninhibited life free from stifling, boring romantic commitment—but in actuality, she's kind of in a rut. When she finds herself starting to fall for the subject of the new article she's writing, a charming and successful sports doctor named Aaron Conners (Bill Hader), Amy starts to wonder if other grown-ups, including this guy who really seems to like her, might be on to something.
The comedy, from a script written by Schumer, co-stars Brie Larson, John Cena, Tilda Swinton and LeBron James. Apatow produces Trainwreck through his Apatow Productions alongside Barry Mendel (Bridesmaids, This Is 40).
"Trainwreck": Teaser Trailer


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The PA Growing Greener Coalition, the largest coalition of conservation, recreation and preservation organizations in the Commonwealth, Sunday praised the Corbett Administration and the House and Senate for including critical conservation programs in the 2013-2014 state budget.
Specifically, the general fund budget includes $2.25 million for the state's Heritage Areas Program and $3.3 million in restored funding for conservation districts, which is in addition to the $5 million the districts will receive from the Act 13 Impact Fee. The budget also includes increased support for the Department of Environmental Protection.
"The Growing Greener Coalition applauds Gov. Corbett and members of the General Assembly for showing strong support for critical protection of land, water and heritage conservation programs that are essential to the health of the state's economy and quality of life for Pennsylvania residents," said Andrew Heath, executive director of the Growing Greener Coalition. "The Coalition thanks the leaders of the House and Senate for restoring funding to the Heritage Areas Program, a program that had been zeroed out for many years. We cannot emphasize enough that this restoration is a victory for Pennsylvania's communities and the special places throughout the state that attract hundreds of tourists each year."
Heritage areas create jobs and bring businesses to the region, which generates hundreds of millions of dollars of added value in personal income, profits, community revitalization and government taxes. For every $1 of state funding received, Pennsylvania Heritage Areas leveraged an average of $5 of federal, local and private investment.
"Pennsylvania's Heritage Areas Program has successfully conserved and enhanced the state's natural and recreational resources and promoted tourism development for nearly 25 years," said Jane Sheffield, executive director of the Allegheny Ridge Heritage Area. "Legislators were right to support this important program which creates jobs and bring businesses to the region, generating hundreds of millions of dollars in added revenue to the state."


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Pro Student Painters's Stucco Repair & Painting
Stucco Repair
Stucco makes any building look distinguished. It's durable, attractive, and weather-resistant. Stucco hides any damages or ugly blemishes on your walls. It also has an interesting history, dating back to ancient Greek and Egyptian times. Traditionally, stucco was made of limestone and water, but today we use modern materials such as cement.
But what happens when your stucco needs repairs? For a lot of people, it can be overwhelming and confusing. Not to worry—that's where Pro Student Painters comes in. Our expert team has been fully trained in all aspects of stucco repair.
Stucco Patch and Crack Repair
If you notice cracks, holes or ripples in your stucco siding, don't ignore it. Your building may be suffering from poorly applied or cracked stucco. Moisture damage is one of the most common problems. Groundwater or drainage problems can cause stucco to crack and crumble. This is a serious issue. The longer it's left that way, the worse the problem will get. Don't let the damage get out of hand. Call Pro Student Painters as soon as you notice any problems with your stucco siding. We can make it like new again. And, most importantly, we'll make sure the damage doesn't reoccur. With our stucco repair services, your building will stand up to weather damage for years to come.
Stucco Repairs at a Low-Cost
Pro Student Painters knows stucco. Our years of experience gives us the skills to understand and repair any stucco problems. When you come to us with an issue, we'll use our expertise to assess the damage, then give you a fair estimate on a repair job. Sometimes all it takes is a minor patch. Some crack repair problems are more serious. Whatever the damage may be, we'll figure it out, and we'll always give you a fair estimate on your stucco repair cost. We're happy to answer any of your questions and listen to your ideas and concerns.
Best Stucco Repair Contractors
Stucco repair is serious business and shouldn't be attempted by amateurs. Not all stucco is the same. It's made from a variety of materials which aren't always obvious to the untrained eye. The last thing you want is a repair done with incompatible materials. That won't happen with Pro Student Painters. We're experienced in repairing all types of stucco siding. We repair interior and exterior stucco, as well as modern and historical. We'll fix any damage, and make sure your building maintains its character.
We are seasoned professionals with a commitment to integrity and quality. That means we use only the best tools and materials to get the job done. As leading local stucco contractors, our work is important to us. We take pride in making buildings look beautiful. Nothing is more satisfying to us than a job well done.
Don't let your home fall to pieces. Stucco repair is essential to maintaining the beauty and integrity of any building. Pro Student Painters will give your stucco siding new life


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This week's episode of The GAR! Podcast includes discussion of the following:
intro / special guest Jessica Walsh / The Cracking Nut / treadmill television / the binge / storytelling / iOS 9 / what makes a good treadmill show / holy crap moments / Touched by an Angel / quality time / oldheads and geniuses / Sons of Anarchy / marathon / the end / hero or villain / the coolest moments / cinematography / Kristen Ritter / recommendations / The Wire / worrying about Jesse / Skyler / the purple / BoJack Horseman / promotion / closing /
"Read On… Romance" by C.L. Quillen and Ilene N. Lefkowitz
Glenn's reviews of "The Flash"
Glenn's reviews of "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."
Glenn's review of "The Bastard Executioner"
Glenn's review of "BoJack Horseman"
Jessica's guest post at French Fry Diary
Jessica's first guest post at French Fry Diary
The Biff Bam Pop! Podcast Network
The GAR! Podcast Group on Facebook
The GAR! Podcast Page on Facebook
Contact us directly here.


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We believe at VegasKasino that gaming should always be fun, entertaining and in a safe environment. Offering quality gaming via online gaming platforms, we understand the associated risks with gaming and aim to create a safe atmosphere for our players to ensure that you remain within your comfort zone at all times.
For this reason, we encourage responsible gaming by allowing players to manage their own limits according to the level of playing they are comfortable with.
Someone with a gambling problem will generally play with or lose more money than they originally intended – and therefore more than they can afford.
Often the winning are re-bet in an attempt to regain the money lost, resulting in an even bigger loss. If this behaviour continues, it will result in long-terms problems related to health, finances and social relations. In the worst case scenario, a gambling addiction is developed, resulting in a further spiral downhill. There are varying degrees of gambling problems, there are general indicators to look out for. These include:
Much of the contact with our players is through interaction by email and live chat – and therefore some of the signs can be detected by our personnel. The responsibility for quitting gambling is on the individual themselves, but if you decide that you should be prohibited to gamble, VegasKasino can also help with this. When it comes to online gaming we can offer the following help:
There are many independent organizations that can provide you professional help and support. Please check this websites for more information:
If you have any questions or concerns regarding responsible gaming, please do not hesitate to contact our Customer Support Team.


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Varun In Jail: His Communal Strategy For Political Gains Misfires
By Nilofar Suhrawardy, MMNS India Correspondent
NEW DELHI: Political drama and media-hype raised over highly communal and inflammatory remarks allegedly made by Varun Gandhi while campaigning in Pilibhit as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate for Lok Sabha polls carry a far more significant message than apparent. Undeniably, a primary motive behind the entire drama staged by Varun and his political patrons is to push him and the party into political limelight. Besides, Varun allegedly made provocative comments targeting the minority communities (including Muslims and Sikhs) to create a polarization of votes along religious lines in Pilibhit to attract the majority Hindu community to BJP's side. Clearly, Varun tried his hand at the old-tainted communal card, which had incited public to the stage of riots over Ayodhya-issue, pushing BJP to the center stage as a national party from late 1980s onwards. The political novice apparently remained oblivious of the hard reality that the Indian voter has matured a lot over the past two decades. It cannot be ignored that 2002 Gujarat-carnage played a major role in pushing the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government out of power in 2004 elections. The anti-incumbency factor played a key role in helping Congress return to power, leading the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. Varun has also given little importance to the hard reality that BJP does not have as strong base in UP as it did earlier, which is responsible for Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati winning the state assembly elections in 2007 with a sweeping majority.
The situation would have been different were the national and/or UP government led by BJP. There is no denying that with her eye on capturing the prime ministerial position, UP Chief Minister Mayawati has no intention to agitate the minority community in UP and elsewhere. Hype raised by Varun's political colleagues over his arrest and charges framed against him have ironically not played the part they probably aimed for. Nothing else can be a stronger indicator of this than the fact that neither Varun's comments nor the subsequent developments aroused any communal frenzy to the stage of riots in Pilibhit. Yes, law and order in Pilibhit was put to risk when Varun allegedly made the inflammatory comments and when he courted arrest. The clash, the day he courted arrest (March 28) was between the saffron brigade activists and the police. This certainly defeats the logic exercised by Varun and his supporters to try inciting communal frenzy in Pilibhit.
If Varun assumed that by courting arrest for a few hours or days, he would return to the political field as a hero for his radical supporters, he has been proved wrong. This is marked by UP government slapping the stringent National Security Act (NSA) against Varun, which can keep him behind bars till elections are over. Thus, dismissal of the case filed against him on violating model code of conduct and grant of bails on other charges slapped on him spelt only a minor relief for him (March 30). He was granted bail on sureties of Rs 20,000 each in two cases – one related to allegedly causing breach of peace through inflammatory speeches and the other on charge of violating prohibitory order. The NSA was invoked against him the preceding day (March 29) for making inflammatory speeches at public meetings at Dalganj and Barkhera in Pilibhit on March 7 and 8 and for giving an aggressive speech at the court gate on March 28, because of which his supporters turned violent and clashed with the police. The decision to charge him under NSA was taken at a high level meeting, presided by Mayawati. Clearly, this move signals that BJP's rivals in UP seem prepared to counter attempts made by Varun and his supporters to incite communal frenzy for gaining political mileage by polarization of votes along religious lines.
A three-member advisory committee, comprising of one acting High Court judge and two retired judges, has been set up by Allahabad High Court to examine whether the NSA imposed on Varun is correct or not. The committee is expected to submit its report in three weeks. Till then, Varun cannot appeal against the NSA, which means that the political novice may have to contest polls from behind the bars.
While BJP leaders, including Varun's mother Maneka have strongly criticized invoking of NSA, majority of other party leaders think otherwise. Blaming Congress and BSP for conspiring against Varun, Maneka said: "Misuse of such powerful laws is unjust to Varun and to the country. The BSP and Congress are desperate for votes. They put pressure on the authorities.†BSP's key rival in UP, Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Mulayam Singh Yadav considers the NSA against Varun as a "tactic†of BJP and BSP to "generate sympathy†towards him. "If the BJP-BSP are not having any sort of tacit understanding, then why was Varun not arrested before the road-show?†he asked.
In the opinion of left bloc and the Congress, NSA against Varun is justified. "A very strong, tough message needed to be sent that no hate speech will be tolerated against any community and it has been sent,†Brinda Karat (Communist Party of India-Marxist) said.
"Those who break law to get votes, do divisive politics with open eyes…. They should have courage to face the law if they break it,†Congress party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said. On whether invoking NSA in Varun's case was correct, he replied: "If the state government is of the opinion that there is a threat to public order, it (NSA) can be used…. Can there be more threat to public order?â€


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By Peter Wright & Paul Elam
As men, we are born into the storybook world of brave knights saving damsels, stoic acts in the face of pain and suffering, and glorious deeds of male heroics. All these things constitute the psychological diet on which boys are raised.
Whether Sir Lancelot, Superman, a great athlete or firefighter, these archetypes silently shape our identity and direct our behaviors, often for the better and often at great cost. They are the living templates men use to map their world, to construct their sense of self, and to direct their behaviors in relationships with others.
Therapy with men, then, must involve a significant and compassionate understanding of the narratives that guide them, and must work within those narratives to carve out a path toward meaningful change.
To that end we will tentatively title a male-friendly approach to working with men, a Narrative Therapy With Men.
Before we get into the nuts and bolts of narrative therapy, we need first to examine the place where therapy, coaching and counseling happens, which is more often than not an environment tailored to suit female sensibilities.
The Therapeutic Setting
Many therapy rooms have pretty decor, flowers, artwork, an essential-oil diffuser, and of course face-to-face seating positioned to honor the typical female preference for eye to eye contact and sharing.
You will find tissues placed conveniently on a side table in a decorative box, conveying the silent expectation of tears, shared feelings, and emotional catharsis.
In a way the therapy office mimics an hour at the cafe sipping lattes, for which women might prepare by thinking about what clothing to wear and what juicy bits of personal drama they might like to share. Then to round it off with all the sincerity of here's your bill and have-a-nice-day.
So much for the male friendly therapy environment.
Imagine instead a therapy office in the boiler room of a ship, in a workshop, a park, a building site, mechanics shed or a sports locker room, with seating arrangements that allowed men to sit at 45 degree angles or side by side — engaged in some kind of task if they wished.
Imagine too if we were to engage in some kind of typical male play or industry – not just Jungian sandplay or water-color art therapies as suits the more effeminate sensibilities of women, but hands on therapy – while driving a truck, fixing the engine of a car or building a piece of furniture.
Or, if you prefer, something recreational. Standing on a peer fishing, hiking up the side of a hill or sitting beside a campfire.
When it comes to communication, men like a medium, something through which to channel their energy.
Lea Winerman, a staff writer for the American Psychological Association asks us to "imagine the Marlboro man in therapy."
"The image just doesn't compute, does it?" she half-asks, half-declares. Then she adds with obligatory condescension, "The Marlboro man wouldn't admit to needing help."
We can agree with Winerman that it is impractical to expect the Marlboro Man to sit in a feminized office, with a feminist-trained female counselor and gush his emotions on demand. But perhaps he would be more open to discussing his issues while riding a horse, stacking bales of hay or enjoying a beer?
As with boys, who are more engaged when kinetic learning is applied to the school curriculum, men too are generally more inclined to thrive outside of the prettified and sedentary counselor's office — in the world where real life takes place.
For most men the average counseling office is not only in poor taste, it is at once anesthetizing and pressurized. It is an environment where the senses are dulled and urges male participants to do something that is already likely a problem in their lives – the expectation to perform for the benefit of a woman.
This is a critical point to make. As we examine the narratives of men, as we look at their stories, what we find with great redundancy is the expectation for them to perform for women. From the mandate to please mothers, to protection and provision for women, to heroic sacrifice and even down to the basic assumed responsibility for the female orgasm, we see men in a role to satisfy through performance.
What then can possibly be happening in the minds of men sitting in female dominated space, box of tissue at their side, with a woman saying "tell me how you feel" about this or that? Even worse, asking such probing questions with the implication that he is an empty emotional vessel in need of her redemption.
There is little there for most men. Indeed, if we honestly and compassionately examine the narrative of men's lives, we have to agree with Ms. Whinerman again. There is no reason to imagine why the Marlboro man, or any other man, would have much to say to her at all, and the ones who do are likely just caving to the pressure to perform.
Without some kind of activity or medium to engage in other than naked personal drama and emoting, men tend to disengage. Feminist inspired therapy would have us believe that this is because men are emotionally stunted and ill-equipped to articulate feelings.
In reality, the only thing men are ill-equipped at is being women, which is why standard talk-therapy is such a poor option for most of them.
Like boys, men are more likely to connect with the therapist and be willing to table his issues (vs share his feelings) when they are engaged in something meaningful.
Rather than shaming men as recalcitrant therapy clients, we must take a different approach and offer them a greater variety of places in which to speak to their issues. Therapy can still take place in the traditional face to face manner in an office, but it can also take place in any of the environments mentioned before, providing the therapist is willing to step out of his or her chair and begin walking, literally, while the therapy takes place.
Alternatively, if the logistics of getting together with the therapist are restrictive, digital mediums like Skype can provide the platform, again with special consideration to siting postures: men might prefer to sit at an angle to the camera and have the therapist do the same, or he might prefer the vision switched to off altogether. For the tech-savvy therapist male-friendly backgrounds for his digital office might be employed on request – a bar, a mechanics shed, a kitchen… you name it.
And yes, unless a client has issues with alcohol, a beer during the session may not be out of the question.
That proposition will seem scandalous to some practitioners. However, we estimate the knee-jerk hostility to such ideas is rooted firmly in an academically acquired ignorance of men and their needs. It is consistent with trying to put them into the female emotional mold.
Finally, the language of the therapeutic session might need to undergo a similar revolution, depending on the client's imagination, with less emphasis on unquantifiable metaphors like personal growth and empowerment, or on feelings, and more on metaphors of manual-activity to describe emotional processes; men speak in terms of wrestling with challenges, hammering problems out, trying to understand the mechanics of depression, and when considering objectives, they might hope to score a goal: to nail it, as it were.
To summarize, a new therapy for men might consider utilizing new settings for conducting consultations, including the use of a wider range of manual activities – occupations and crafts – as therapeutic mediums.
Having briefly sketched out the 'where' of therapy, we can now move onto the 'what' of the therapy.
The Practice of Therapy
Narrative Therapy with Men assumes the following principles as axiomatic:
- Rejects misguided concepts like patriarchy theory and toxic masculinity.
- By definition it is tailored exclusively to men's experiences, men's ways of thinking and behaving.
- Does not hinge on demonizing or problematizing men
- Sees learned detachment as essential to problem solving
- Recognizes the unique emotional and psychological acumen of men
- Sees the therapist as more of a coach or mentor than an emotional conduit.
- Seeks to use men's kinetic inclination as an asset, rather than treat it as an impediment to progress
- Narratives, the building-blocks of our worldview become the focal point around which the therapy hinges, and include the following objectives:
- Identifying the current narrative
The way we tell our story is the way we form our therapy,1 so the first task for each man is to narrate his story about himself and his world. These initial narratives form the primary datum which sets the future direction of the therapy, a direction completely unknown until the stories are verbalized.
As stories are shared, likenesses between them and popular cultural stories can be discussed – such as classical myths, fairy tales, biographies of the famous or from movies, to bring the material alive. The comparison stories act as bass chords that animate the material under discussion, and to help depersonalize the content so that it no longer seems unique and isolating – ie. such stories belong to our collective cultural history and are thus very far from personal.
- Externalizing the narrative
Carl Jung was famed for saying "We don't have complexes, the complexes have us." The same can be said of narratives, including our personal ones. The stories and archetypes that drive our lives underscore the importance of gaining cognitive and emotional distance from them if we no longer wish to be held under their spell.
This is a radical departure from where most therapies in the modern mold take men. In standard practice the agenda of the therapist is usually to drive the client toward reliving trauma or loss and articulating the feelings that surround those things.
While practitioners with men need to have the skills to comfortably handle emotional upheaval when it happens, the objective is to help the client gain more distance from the inner turmoil, affording them an opportunity for practical, rational solutions.
How else, for instance, can a man stop acting sacrificially with women, until he rejects the sacrificial role? And to reject that role, he must be able to see it from a more objective distance, in practical terms. Men rarely need assistance to realize they are in emotional hell with a woman. They often stay silently immersed in it, entangled hopelessly in trying to find solutions that are not forthcoming.
While an exploration of childhood trauma, abusive parenting and unresolved grief may provide more insight into current life troubles, it will not provide what the client needs most. A path out.
Externalizing a narrative, depersonalizing it, helps us to see it as separate from our own self-image, perhaps for the first time. By abstracting the story and dissociating from it we can more easily edit its details and gain mastery: the narrative no longer has us – we have it.
The therapeutic practice of externalizing narratives has a long history beginning with Freud's talking cure, Carl Jung's 'active imagination' to James Hillman's practice of 'seeing through narratives', and on to newer practices such as Narrative psychology and Narrative therapy.
None of the aforementioned, however, have actively applied the technique to the stories men live by – a shameful oversight for therapies claiming to plumb the depths of human experience.
The life of men has heretofore been shrouded in a cloud of repression, amnesia and denial, ironically aided and abetted by the very psychologists called to lift the lid on that repression.
While some have claimed to help men raise consciousness, what in most instances has happened is therapists adding yet more layers of faulty text to an already burdensome set of male narratives. Narrative Therapy with Men aims to reverse the tradition of neglect.
- Problematizing the narrative
A core tenet of Narrative Therapy with Men is that Men are not the problem, the narrative is the problem.
We view this approach to be corrective on its face. Men are universally saddled with the artifacts of a faulty narrative. Whether that is driven by a failure to be heroic or successful enough to fulfill historic male expectations, or whether it is the more modernized narrative of toxic masculinity, or both, men typically see themselves as the source of the problem.
Continually failing to fix themselves, which their narrative does not allow them to do, aggravates the situation all the more.
Portions of a given narrative may be destructive and other parts may not, which a joint, detached exploration can discover. It can lead to a discarding of the dysfunctional parts and a retention of those parts retaining value and importance to individual men.
It is as simple as keeping what works and tossing out what doesn't, which is easier said than done. We view the main obstacle to that, though, as a lack of detachment.
For instance, shame can be a huge impediment. A man can see a problem, but without detachment, his experience of shame can drive him to deny, minimize and avoid the problem. Until, of course, the problem rears its head, causes pain, and the cycle starts all over again.
The only way, we argue, to interrupt that, is through healthy detachment.
An Ear for Men has detailed numerous examples of destructive narratives for men, such as the belief that men are inherently flawed, that they belong to and benefit from Patriarchy, that they must ignore their health to be worthy of relationships, or that their role in life is to serve women in one capacity or another while denying their own needs and value.
To these the new therapy for men applies the razor, surgically removing criticisms of men and replacing them with narratives of self-worth. And, importantly, it allows men the use of their logic and reason to guide the surgery, not their emotional reaction to the problem.
- Exploring potential new narratives
Life does not tolerate a void. That is why isolating problem narratives and the work of deleting them runs concurrent with a process of re-narration. In this a therapist and client can be imagined as co-authors working on a novel, where therapist co-writes or ghost-writes a new narrative, running a red pen though all the toxic text.
The new text can be literally anything the client dreams up. The practitioner consults with the client, offers observations, but otherwise gets out of the way and allows the client to have the lead role in the creative aspects of the process.
Narratives men adopt to break free from limiting expectations need not be reduced to reactions against the original problem-riddled narrative, which places the response into a narrow formula of thesis and antithesis. An example of that approach is seen in the tendency of some men to replace misandric narratives with misogynistic narratives. Or, perhaps, men who have been sexually rejected who seek to correct with sexual conquests.
An example of narratives structured along the lines of antithetical reactions vs. more liberating and proactive possibilities was elaborated in an earlier article at An Ear for Men, titled Values-based approach to gynocentrism for men. There we are given the example of three narratives:
-2. An anti-gynocentric reactive narrative, and
-3. A proactive narrative which transcends the for-and-against-gynocentrism binary
- Nailing down a narrative
The goal of the new narrative is to serve as a values-centered approach to dealing with self and world.
This part can be somewhat tricky. Values, or what we consider good and bad, right and wrong, purposeful or meaningless, are by necessity a product of our narrative. And they can be as destructive as the narrative itself.
For instance, you can ask a man to tell you about his values. He might tell you that among them are honesty and integrity. So far, so good. But he may also follow that up by saying his values drive him to sacrifice for the benefit of a woman, that a real man takes care of women and shields them from hardship.
The problem with that, as may be apparent, is that millions of men have led themselves to misery, ruin, and even to death, with precisely these values. It is not that their intent is flawed but that they have allowed values for which they have no conscious etiology to put them behind the wheel with a blindfold on, mindless of any values that might have addressed their self-preservation.
Again, a detached review of values, and how they stem from personal narrative is a necessity.
A values-centered ideology is established and articulated by the client at some time during the process of consultations. He may already have his core values clarified and will want to proceed with a narrative that honors them. Alternatively, he may feel his values have been implanted from without or inherited without consent, foreign objects that have brought harm to his health and wellbeing and so seeks to construct a new set of values and an accompanying life script that will do them justice. This can all be done with a practitioner, or simply on a man's own volition, or with a trusted friend.
That, then is a brief outline of Narrative Therapy with Men. It is not intended to be complete, and is indeed still a nascent approach to working with men. The psychological disciplines, as mentioned earlier, have hinted at this approach, have skirted the ideas contained here but without breaching the sacred wall of feminized psychology.
Now we set about the work of expanding on these ideas and calling on others to do the same.
[1] "The way we tell our story is the way we form our therapy" is a quote from Patricia Berry's essay 'An Approach To The Dream,' Spring Journal of Archetype and Culture (1974).
See also:


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'American Idol' Is Getting Rid of Bad Auditions…But Why?
She banged, she bangs, but she will bang no more — ABC's reboot of American Idol, which will premiere later this spring, will no longer air the show's iconic bad auditions.
But why?
In a new Hollywood Reporter story, showrunner Trish Kinane said that the advent of bad auditions through the show's early rounds — and subsequent scathing remarks from the judges — will be a distraction from the point of the competition. Also, upon further reconsideration, it's kinda cruel, she said.
"It doesn't feel comfortable to put borderline unstable people up on stage and laugh at them," she said. "I think that people once thought that the judges saw everyone, and now you know there's a line of producers who screen before them...We want the humor, but we don't want the exploitation."
And first-time judge Katy Perry doubled down on the new Idol credence:
"Literally, we are wasting our time if we are not finding another star," she said. "I take it very seriously, sometimes to my detriment."
Okay, yes, profiteering off of the superfluously untalented and emotionally unhinged can, at times, seem a bit savage. But it was occasionally in the spirit of the competition's push for resolve — after all, eventual winners Candice Glover and Jordin Sparks tried out multiple times before they even made it onto the show. AND ISN'T THAT TENACITY SIMPLY AMERICAN [IDOL]?!
Also, when contestants like the iconically bad William Hung managed to take the mud-slinging in stride, it actually made the humor somehow more palatable — if they were in on the joke, couldn't we be, too?
Anyway, here are a bunch of terrible (and terribly entertaining) Idol contestants that collectively prove getting rid of bad auditions is probably a big, big mistake.
Defining American Idol Season 1 Moments:


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Update: Now at Fox News!
Eventually the sham is going to give, and the latest letter signed by 50 NASA experts, with more than 1000 years of combined professional experience, is a sure sign the gig's about over.
…..unproven remarks…..not substantiated…..hundreds of well-known climate scientists…..tens of thousands of other scientists publicly declaring their disbelief…..science is NOT settled…..unbecoming of NASA's history…..advocacy of an extreme position…..damage to the exemplary reputation of NASA…..even the reputation of science itself…"
Letters to the top don't get any more blunt than that.
And how many tens of billions have these crackpots at GISS cost the taxpayers?
Here's the letter:
March 28, 2012
The Honorable Charles Bolden, Jr.
NASA Administrator
NASA Headquarters
Washington, D.C. 20546-0001
Dear Charlie,
We, the undersigned, respectfully request that NASA and the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) refrain from including unproven remarks in public releases and websites. We believe the claims by NASA and GISS, that man-made carbon dioxide is having a catastrophic impact on global climate change are not substantiated, especially when considering thousands of years of empirical data. With hundreds of well-known climate scientists and tens of thousands of other scientists publicly declaring their disbelief in the catastrophic forecasts, coming particularly from the GISS leadership, it is clear that the science is NOT settled.
The unbridled advocacy of CO2 being the major cause of climate change is unbecoming of NASA's history of making an objective assessment of all available scientific data prior to making decisions or public statements.
As former NASA employees, we feel that NASA's advocacy of an extreme position, prior to a thorough study of the possible overwhelming impact of natural climate drivers is inappropriate. We request that NASA refrain from including unproven and unsupported remarks in its future releases and websites on this subject. At risk is damage to the exemplary reputation of NASA, NASA's current or former scientists and employees, and even the reputation of science itself.
For additional information regarding the science behind our concern, we recommend that you contact Harrison Schmitt or Walter Cunningham, or others they can recommend to you.
Thank you for considering this request.
(Attached signatures)
CC: Mr. John Grunsfeld, Associate Administrator for Science
CC: Ass Mr. Chris Scolese, Director, Goddard Space Flight Center
Ref: Letter to NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, dated 3-26-12, regarding a request for NASA to refrain from making unsubstantiated claims that human produced CO2 is having a catastrophic impact on climate change.
1. /s/ Jack Barneburg, Jack – JSC, Space Shuttle Structures, Engineering Directorate, 34 years
2. /s/ Larry Bell – JSC, Mgr. Crew Systems Div., Engineering Directorate, 32 years
3. /s/ Dr. Donald Bogard – JSC, Principal Investigator, Science Directorate, 41 years
4. /s/ Jerry C. Bostick – JSC, Principal Investigator, Science Directorate, 23 years
5. /s/ Dr. Phillip K. Chapman – JSC, Scientist – astronaut, 5 years
6. /s/ Michael F. Collins, JSC, Chief, Flight Design and Dynamics Division, MOD, 41 years
7. /s/ Dr. Kenneth Cox – JSC, Chief Flight Dynamics Div., Engr. Directorate, 40 years
8. /s/ Walter Cunningham – JSC, Astronaut, Apollo 7, 8 years
9. /s/ Dr. Donald M. Curry – JSC, Mgr. Shuttle Leading Edge, Thermal Protection Sys., Engr. Dir., 44 years
10. /s/ Leroy Day – Hdq. Deputy Director, Space Shuttle Program, 19 years
11. /s/ Dr. Henry P. Decell, Jr. – JSC, Chief, Theory & Analysis Office, 5 years
12. /s/Charles F. Deiterich – JSC, Mgr., Flight Operations Integration, MOD, 30 years
13. /s/ Dr. Harold Doiron – JSC, Chairman, Shuttle Pogo Prevention Panel, 16 years
14. /s/ Charles Duke – JSC, Astronaut, Apollo 16, 10 years
15. /s/ Anita Gale
16. /s/ Grace Germany – JSC, Program Analyst, 35 years
17. /s/ Ed Gibson – JSC, Astronaut Skylab 4, 14 years
18. /s/ Richard Gordon – JSC, Astronaut, Gemini Xi, Apollo 12, 9 years
19. /s/ Gerald C. Griffin – JSC, Apollo Flight Director, and Director of Johnson Space Center, 22 years
20. /s/ Thomas M. Grubbs – JSC, Chief, Aircraft Maintenance and Engineering Branch, 31 years
21. /s/ Thomas J. Harmon
22. /s/ David W. Heath – JSC, Reentry Specialist, MOD, 30 years
23. /s/ Miguel A. Hernandez, Jr. – JSC, Flight crew training and operations, 3 years
24. /s/ James R. Roundtree – JSC Branch Chief, 26 years
25. /s/ Enoch Jones – JSC, Mgr. SE&I, Shuttle Program Office, 26 years
26. /s/ Dr. Joseph Kerwin – JSC, Astronaut, Skylab 2, Director of Space and Life Sciences, 22 years
27. /s/ Jack Knight – JSC, Chief, Advanced Operations and Development Division, MOD, 40 years
28. /s/ Dr. Christopher C. Kraft – JSC, Apollo Flight Director and Director of Johnson Space Center, 24 years
29. /s/ Paul C. Kramer – JSC, Ass.t for Planning Aeroscience and Flight Mechanics Div., Egr. Dir., 34 years
30. /s/ Alex (Skip) Larsen
31. /s/ Dr. Lubert Leger – JSC, Ass't. Chief Materials Division, Engr. Directorate, 30 years
32. /s/ Dr. Humbolt C. Mandell – JSC, Mgr. Shuttle Program Control and Advance Programs, 40 years
33. /s/ Donald K. McCutchen – JSC, Project Engineer – Space Shuttle and ISS Program Offices, 33 years
34. /s/ Thomas L. (Tom) Moser – Hdq. Dep. Assoc. Admin. & Director, Space Station Program, 28 years
35. /s/ Dr. George Mueller – Hdq., Assoc. Adm., Office of Space Flight, 6 years
36. /s/ Tom Ohesorge
37. /s/ James Peacock – JSC, Apollo and Shuttle Program Office, 21 years
38. /s/ Richard McFarland – JSC, Mgr. Motion Simulators, 28 years
39. /s/ Joseph E. Rogers – JSC, Chief, Structures and Dynamics Branch, Engr. Directorate, 40 years
40. /s/ Bernard J. Rosenbaum – JSC, Chief Engineer, Propulsion and Power Division, Engr. Dir., 48 years
41. /s/ Dr. Harrison (Jack) Schmitt – JSC, Astronaut Apollo 17, 10 years
42. /s/ Gerard C. Shows – JSC, Asst. Manager, Quality Assurance, 30 years
43. /s/ Kenneth Suit – JSC, Ass't Mgr., Systems Integration, Space Shuttle, 37 years
44. /s/ Robert F. Thompson – JSC, Program Manager, Space Shuttle, 44 years
45. /s/ Frank Van Renesselaer – Hdq., Mgr. Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters, 15 years
46. /s/ Dr. James Visentine – JSC Materials Branch, Engineering Directorate, 30 years
47. /s/ Manfred (Dutch) von Ehrenfried – JSC, Flight Controller; Mercury, Gemini & Apollo, MOD, 10 years
48. /s/ George Weisskopf – JSC, Avionics Systems Division, Engineering Dir., 40 years
49. /s/ Al Worden – JSC, Astronaut, Apollo 15, 9 years
50. /s/ Thomas (Tom) Wysmuller – JSC, Meteorologist, 5 years


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On June 6, 1944, General George S. Patton wrote this letter to his twenty-year-old son, George Jr., who was enrolled at West Point. Patton Sr. was in England training the Third Army in preparation for the battles that would follow the invasion at Normandy.
Dear George:
At 0700 this morning the BBC announced that the German Radio had just come out with an announcement of the landing of Allied Paratroops and of large numbers of assault craft near shore. So that is it.
This group of unconquerable heroes whom I command are not in yet but we will be soon—I wish I was there now as it is a lovely sunny day for a battle and I am fed up with just sitting.
I have no immediate idea of being killed but one can never tell and none of us can live forever, so if I should go don't worry but set yourself to do better than I have.
All men are timid on entering any fight;
Whether it is the first fight or the last fight all of us are timid. Cowards are those who let their timidity get the better of their manhood. You will never do that because of your blood lines on both sides.
I think I have told you the story of Marshall Touraine who fought under Louis XIV. On the morning of one of his last battles—he had been fighting for forty years—he was mounting his horse when a young ADC [aide-de-camp] who had just come from the court and had never missed a meal or heard a hostile shot said: "M. de Touraine it amazes me that a man of your supposed courage should permit his knees to tremble as he walks out to mount." Touraine replied "My lord duke I admit that my knees do tremble but should they know where I shall this day take them they would shake even more." That is it. Your knees may shake but they will always take you towards the enemy. Well so much for that.
There are apparently two types of successful soldiers. Those who get on by being unobtrusive and those who get on by being obtrusive. I am of the latter type and seem to be rare and unpopular: but it is my method. One has to choose a system and stick to it;
People who are not themselves are nobody.
To be a successful soldier you must know history. Read it objectively–dates and even the minute details of tactics are useless. What you must know is how man reacts. Weapons change but man who uses them changes not at all. To win battles you do not beat weapons–you beat the soul of man of the enemy man. To do that you have to destroy his weapons, but that is only incidental. You must read biography and especially autobiography. If you will do it you will find that war is simple. Decide what will hurt the enemy most within the limits of your capabilities to harm him and then do it. TAKE CALCULATED RISKS. That is quite different from being rash. My personal belief is that if you have a 50% chance take it because the superior fighting qualities of American soldiers lead by me will surely give you the extra 1% necessary.
In Sicily I decided as a result of my information, observations and a sixth sense that I have that the enemy did not have another large scale attack in his system. I bet my shirt on that and I was right. You cannot make war safely but no dead general has ever been criticised so you have that way out always.
I am sure that if every leader who goes into battle will promise himself that he will come out either a conqueror or a corpse he is sure to win. There is no doubt of that. Defeat is not due to losses but to the destruction of the soul of the leaders. The "Live to fight another day" doctrine.
The most vital quality a soldier can possess is SELF CONFIDENCE–utter, complete and bumptious. You can have doubts about your good looks, about your intelligence, about your self control but to win in war you must have NO doubts about your ability as a soldier.
What success I have had results from the fact that I have always been certain that my military reactions were correct.
The unerring jury of history written long after both of us are dead will prove me correct.
Many people do not agree with me; they are wrong.
Note that I speak of "Military reactions"–no one is borne with them any more than anyone is borne with muscles. You can be born with the soul capable of correct military reactions or the body capable of having big muscles, but both qualities must be developed by hard work.
The intensity of your desire to acquire any special ability depends on character, on ambition.
I think that your decision to study this summer instead of enjoying yourself shows that you have character and ambition—they are wonderful possessions.
Soldiers, all men in fact, are natural hero worshipers. Officers with a flare for command realise this and emphasize in their conduct, dress and deportment the qualities they seek to produce in their men. When I was a second lieutenant I had a captain who was very sloppy and usually late yet he got after the men for just those faults; he was a failure.
The troops I have commanded have always been well dressed, been smart saluters, been prompt and bold in action because I have personally set the example in these qualities. The influence one man can have on thousands is a never-ending source of wonder to me. You are always on parade. Officers who through laziness or a foolish desire to be popular fail to enforce discipline and the proper wearing of uniforms and equipment not in the presence of the enemy will also fail in battle, and if they fail in battle they are potential murderers. There is no such thing as: "A good field soldier:" you are either a good soldier or a bad soldier.
Well this has been quite a sermon but don't get the idea that it is my swan song because it is not–I have not finished my job yet.
Your affectionate father.
Sursa: AoM


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Welcome to the Job page for North Dakota.
We source these jobs from other sites on the internet to keep them current. It is okay if you want to sign up for a career site once you are directed there in order to apply for a particular job but I will also very much advocate that if you see something that you like, remember the name of the company posting the job and apply directly through their talent portal to stay on that company's radar for future opportunities. In addition, be sure to check out our previous post titled "Finding Jobs within the Tech Industry" where we listed other career sites that may be of interest.
In the U.S. we have what is called the Warn Act (Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification Act). It is a federal law that requires certain employers with 100 employees or more to provide 60 days advance notice to their employees before implementing mass layoffs or a plant closure.
If you happen to be looking for a job because you have suspicions of an impending layoff looming with your current employer we've provided a link to the Warn list in your state to help you stay informed. You could potentially know about a potential layoff before your manager or supervisor.
Warn Act list: https://www.nd.gov/labor/required-employer-posters
Best of Luck and Happy Job Hunting!
If you would like to subscribe to the STEMVoodoo.com mailing list, please enter your first name and email below.


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Thanks for checking out this video today. At Substance, one of our core values is to create community. We encourage you to get involved with us below Website : http://www.substancechurch.com Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/substancechurch Instagram : http://www.instagram.com/substancemn
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We are pleased to announce an exciting new alliance between Active Living Research and GP RED to co-host and coordinate...
Research results slides are available on the following topics:
- Land Use, Transportation, and Community Design
- Recreation Facilities, Parks, Trails, Playgrounds, and Open Space
- School Environment and Active Transportation to School
- Social Environment
- Obesity and Physical Activity Rates, Active Gaming, and Sitting
More slides for each topic will be added often, so please check back.
RWJF also has a presentation slide database available from their Web site. In this searchable database, informational slides highlighting research findings and useful lessons drawn from the Foundation's work are available.


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The year 2020 witnessed an unprecedented onslaught of cybersecurity threats across the world as the global workforce underwent a forced transition to remote working. However, not all cybersecurity threats come from the outside. In a study conducted by Bitglass, 61 percent of businesses surveyed reported at least one insider-related cybersecurity incident in the last year. This could be anything from negligent employees who lack cybersecurity training to rogue employees who facilitate a breach for personal gain.
Considering the increasing frequency of insider threats and the severity of data breaches resulting from them, it goes without saying that all organizations need to take proactive steps to combat this serious risk.
Before taking any preventative security measures, it is necessary to understand who causes these risks and why. In this blog, we'll discuss all aspects of insider threats including the motivations behind them, potential actors, primary targets, consequences and more. Actors Behind Insider Threats Anyone with access to critical information can pose a potential insider threat if the information is unknowingly or maliciously misused, resulting in a data breach. Businesses need to identify these actors if they want to curb insider threats effectively. Insider threat types can be classified as follows: · Negligent insiders – This may include careless executives or employees with access to privileged information. These insiders don't have any motivation – money or otherwise. They are simply careless in their actions or may have fallen victim to a scam. For instance, in one particular incident involving an apparel manufacturer, a careless employee clicking one phishing link from his laptop was enough to compromise the entire network. · Malicious insiders – These are insiders who intentionally abuse their credentials for personal gain. These actors have an advantage over external attackers since they have access to privileged information and are aware of the security loopholes. They may be motivated by monetary gain or may have a personal vendetta against the company. · Contractors or vendors – Sometimes, even third-party vendors and contractors who have temporary access to an organization's IT network can cause a data breach. The motivation in this case could also be money or vengeance. The US Army Reserves payroll system was once targeted in a similar attack, where a contractor who lost his contract activated a logic bomb to create a delay in delivering paychecks. Motivations Behind Malicious Insider Threats Malicious insiders are usually motivated by one or more of the following reasons: · Money or greed – Most cases of non-negligent insider threats are motivated by money and personal financial gain. A greedy insider with access to restricted information is most often the culprit in this case. For example, two employees of General Electric stole the company's intellectual property about calibrating turbines and started a competing firm with this information. After years of investigation, they were convicted in 2020. · Revenge – Another familiar reason for insider threats involves revenge. Disgruntled employees, who believe they have been wronged by the company they once worked for, are usually behind this type of threat. In August 2020, a disgruntled former employee of Cisco deleted hundreds of virtual machines and caused about $1.4 million in damages to the company. · Espionage – Many large organizations across the world have been victims of economic espionage from competing firms. This is mainly done to gain a competitive advantage in the market. A state-owned Chinese enterprise perpetrated espionage against American semi-conductor firm Micron by sending compromised insiders and stole valuable trade secrets. · Strategic advantage – Intellectual property theft against large corporations is most often a result of trying to gain a strategic advantage in the market. Korean smartphone giant Samsung became a victim recently when its blueprint for bendable screen technology was stolen by its supplier. · Political or ideological – There have been many documented cases of insider threats motivated by political or ideological factors. These cases often concern national pride or revenge against another nation for the attack. Why Insider Threats Are Dangerous Insider threats often have a massive impact on your data, primary assets and your bottom line. On top of it all, these threats are often hard to detect and contain. A study by the Ponemon Institute estimates that it takes 77 days on average to contain insider threats once detected. · Targets primary assets: Insider threats often target the primary assets of an organization including proprietary information, product information, business plans, company funds, IT systems and more. · Results in huge costs: The same study by the Ponemon Institute estimated that the average cost of insider threats has increased 31 percent to $11.45 million in the last two years. These costs include downtime losses, loss of business transactions, loss of business opportunities and more. Don't Wait to Protect Your Business Although the consequences of insider threats may be disastrous, you don't have to face this problem alone. If you are wondering how you can mitigate these threats and prevent losses, we've got you covered. Reach out to us today to understand the different ways by which you can build a resilient cybersecurity posture against insider threats. Data Sources: § Bitglass 2020 Insider Threat Report § https://www.zdnet.com/article/how-one-hacked-laptop-led-to-an-entire-network-being-compromised/ § https://www.theregister.com/2017/09/22/it_contractor_logic_bombed_army_payroll § https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/two-guilty-in-theft-of-trade-secrets-from-ge-072920 § https://www.bankinfosecurity.com/ex-cisco-engineer-pleads-guilty-in-insider-threat-case-a-14917 § https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/prc-state-owned-company-taiwan-company-and-three-individuals-charged-economic-espionage § https://edition.cnn.com/2018/11/30/tech/samsung-china-tech-theft/index.html § IBM Cost of Insider Threats: Global Report 2020


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Frequently Asked Questions
We hope our website gives you a good idea of the experience you will have on a Wildwind Sailing Holidays. You may however have still have some questions. The Frequently Asked Questions below may help answer most of them.
We are a small company and we pride ourselves on our personal service.You can call Peter Vander Linden , our representative in Belgium on +32 50 517 065, or you can send an email to email@example.com.
Flights and travel
- How far is the hotel from the airport?
Your hotel and the Wildwind Sailing centre is approximately 75 minutes from the airport. Please discuss your preferred means of transfer with your agent who can organize a taxi transfer or a hire car for the duration of your stay.
- What should I do about Travel Insurance?
It is a requirement of our Booking Conditions that you take out adequate travel insurance prior to travel. We have arranged a policy with an insurance broker that covers the necessary requirements for our holidays as well as a general travel cover – in particular it covers you and your party for injury to yourself whilst participating in any of the watersports and other activities we offer. When you book a holiday with us, if you are a UK resident, along with your booking documents we will email you a link to the insurers where you will be able to book and pay for this insurance by simply clicking on the link we provide which takes you straight to the insurer's website then follow the online instructions to book and pay for the insurance cover – your insurance policy will be emailed direct to you .
For those clients on our Sailing programme please note that under this travel policy third party liability is not covered for sailing. Many insurers are now reluctant to provide this cover so we have extended our marine insurance to provide this. Provided you have paid the damage/loss waiver as part of your holiday booking this now covers not only accidental damage to our boats and equipment but also covers you for injury to third parties whilst doing the sailing (please note that any negligent damage to our boats or equipment will be charged for locally). It does not however cover for injury to yourself whilst sailing so you do need to ensure you have adequate cover for this either through your own insurance or by taking out the recommended policy. Non Uk residents should source a relevant policy in their own country of residence.
Irrespective of whether you take our recommended travel insurance or another of your choice please do ensure you are fully covered for your holiday, including any sports or activities you may participate in which are included in your holiday and those you may decide to take part in whilst in resort.
- Are there plenty of options for vegans and vegetarians?
Absolutely! The Greek cuisine is very accommodating to vegans and vegetarians, and our hotel bars and restaurants have plenty of options, as do the nearby restaurants in the harbour. While there aren't any specialised restaurants, you should have no problems. While the local supermarkets might not be as well-stocked as you might be used to at home, they do carry, for example, plant-based alternatives for milk and yoghurt.
We have asked the restaurants of our hotels which vegan dishes they have on the menu, and we got back the following list (as per Sep 2019):
Kavadias Restaurant
- Toast and jam
- Fresh fruit salad
- Fruit juices
- Greek salad (without feta)
- Bean salad
- Chickpea salad
- Shephard's salad (minus parmesan and honey)
- Green salad to order
- Hummus with crudites
- Fries
- Florina's sweet peppers
- Baked potato with beans
Melas Restaurant
Default offering
- Fruit/veg juices
- Homemade jams
- Vegan yoghurt
- Plant-based milk alternatives: coconut, almond, rice, soya
- Muesli
- Variety of sandwiches with vegan cheese and salad/veg
- Hummus
- Vegetable risotto
- Pasta with vegetables
- Pasta napolitana
- Nutritional yeast
- Avocado salad
- Greek salad (without feta)
- Vegan club sandwich
- Black eyed bean salad
- Spaghetti with garlic/olive oil/ basil
- Lentil soup/ salad
- Bean soup/salad
- Chickpea soup/ salad
Dishes on request
- Caneloni (with soya)
- Pastichio (with soya)
- Moussaka (with soya)
- Artichokes (with soya)
- Vegetable burgers with oven potatoes
- Is there Wi-Fi in the resort?
Yes, there is Wi-Fi in public areas and it is free of charge.


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Project Management Professional (PMP) in just 4 months with the best Pmp Program. Enhance your career prospects by mastering advanced concepts and receiving top training from leaders in project management.
PMP-certified professionals are in high demand across all industries. Learn essential skills from project analysis to strategic planning, with a comprehensive program that covers project management methods, risk assessment, stakeholder management, and more. This PMP preparation program course will take you from beginner to expert, ensuring you are fully equipped for success.
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This program aligns with international project management standards and meets the Project Management Institute (PMI)® mandatory requirement of 35 contact hours for all candidates applying for the Project Management Professional (PMP)® exam. I'm satisfied. With guidance from experienced certified professionals and effective pre- and post-training support, this course not only prepares candidates for the 4-hour online Project Management Professional (PMP)® exam, but also prepares candidates to enter the industry. Make sure it's in place.
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Professionals from a variety of disciplines with at least three years of experience can enroll in this program. Project leaders, project managers, planning team members, project coordinators, business development managers, and project management personnel can all take advantage of this internationally recognized Project Management Professional (PMP)® certification to make a career-defining career move. can be advantageous.
PMP stands for Project Management Professional. It is a globally recognized professional certification offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI) for individuals working in the field of project management.
PMP certification is widely recognized and demonstrates your knowledge and skills in project management. It can enhance your career prospects, increase job opportunities, and potentially lead to higher salaries. Many organizations prefer or require their project managers to hold PMP certification.
The eligibility criteria for PMP certification include a combination of education and professional experience in project management. Typically, a four-year degree, 36 months of leading projects, and 35 hours of project management education are required. Alternatively, individuals without a four-year degree may be eligible with more extensive project management experience.
Preparation for the PMP exam involves studying the PMBOK Guide (Project Management Body of Knowledge) and other relevant study materials. Many candidates also take PMP training courses, either in-person or online, to ensure comprehensive understanding of the material. Practice exams and mock tests are also beneficial for exam preparation.
Yes, there are numerous PMP training courses offered by various institutions and training providers. These courses cover the PMBOK Guide and provide additional insights and practical tips for the exam. Some popular PMP training providers include PMI itself, as well as other private training organizations.
AC-4, 2nd Floor, 2nd Avenue, (Diagonally Opp to Ayyappan Temple ) Anna Nagar, Chennai - 600040.
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I have a set of 10 tables and each has an extra column that I don't want. Specifically, these tables are descriptions of database tables exported by phpMyAdmin, and they all have a "MIME" column that I would like to remove. Is there a way to do this other than using string manipulation / find and replace?
I have tried setting the column to p{0in}
, but the column title still remains.


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I Can't Stop Thinking About The Eclipse.
I can't stop thinking about the eclipse.
I thought I pretty much knew what to expect from the 2017 solar eclipse. I understood the science. I had already witnessed a few partial/annular eclipses. I've been anticipating the event for a few years now and had read about the sensory changes I could expect to witness. I had a few good viewing locations scoped out with choices depending on the cloud coverage or crowds we might run into that day. My 3 1/2-year-old twins had plenty of food, water, sunscreen, eclipse glasses, and excitement. We were prepared for the event. But I soon learned that nothing could prepare me for the experience.
We had a perfect location on a ridge near Muddy Mountain Wyoming that provided 360 degree views. We were away from the crowds. And most importantly it was cloudless with 2 minutes and 18 seconds of anticipated totality.
We spent an hour watching the partial eclipse and eating a picnic lunch in the shade provided by some old, scraggly, Limber Pines. Eventually, the temperature began to drop slowly. Soon our surroundings dimmed and crickets began to chirp. I found myself caught off guard by the strangeness of my environment. The landscape appeared rosy and dimmed – as if I was wearing sunglasses. My stomach flipped with anticipation and anxiety caused by the surreality of my surroundings.
Quickly, much faster than I anticipated, darkness descended on us. The disorienting passage of time was head-spinning. I took my eclipse glasses off to see if I could see the umbra race toward us from across the valley below. But it happened too quickly. It was with a ridiculous suddenness that the moon's shadow had shrouded us. I quickly turned around and looked up and saw the eclipsed sun glowing in the sky and my brain turned inside out.
My fingers fumbled around for my camera phone and I somehow managed to capture the image above. I tried to take a video of the "sunset" that surrounded us in every direction, but I only managed to catch these three seconds. I was overwhelmed.
The corona was much more bright and lustrous than I envisioned. It shone bright white and with a jaw dropping brilliance. We were all bewildered with its beauty and absolute strangeness. To look up into the sky and see a sparkling shine, unlike anything I have ever seen in my years of looking at the heavens. To share this with my wife and children.
And then it was gone. And now I can't stop thinking about the eclipse.