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Growing up in the 1980s, I was an absolutely huge pro wrestling fan. One of my earliest wrestling memories was the build up to WrestleMania 2 in 1986, and I can remember watching this show on video tape over and over. The twist here is that instead of looking at this show through the eyes of a 5-year-old boy, I'll be watching as a 30-year-old man. Naturally, this post won't really appeal to non-wrestling fans, so you might as well skip this one if old-school WWF was never your cup of tea.
Keep in mind, this entry will be posted in that sort of "live blogging" format. That is, I'm just relaxing on my couch with the laptop while the show plays on my TV. So please don't expect a masterful writing job — I'm just have fun punching up quick notes while the show runs without any pausing, rewinding, or fast forwarding. When the show's over, so is this report. Here we go…
"WrestleMania 2 – what he world has come to!"
A young Vince McMahon welcomes us to the greatest sports entertainment spectacular of all time from the Nassau Coliseum, just 20 minutes from my home here on Long Island. Joining him in the ring is Susan St. James (the wife of Vince's good buddy, Dick Ebersol). In comes Ray Charles to sing "America the Beautiful." Though I remember constantly speeding through this part as a kid, Charles is actually very good — so already I've found something I appreciate as an old man that meant nothing to me as a youngster. The song ends with a photo of everybody's favorite hero, WWF Champion Hulk Hogan!
Now we're in Chicago with Mean Gene who tells us you can cut the electricity with a knife. That was quick, we're back to New York with Roddy Piper and his boxing trainer Lou Duva. Piper says if Mr. T knocks him out, he'll retire. He closes out the interview by saying though T mocked him by wearing a kilt, he'd never shave his hair like an Indian and paint himself black — awesome.
Ring announcer Howard Finkel tells us it's time for the opening contest. "Magnificent" Don Muraco with Mr. Fuji in his corner takes on "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff. These guys are jacked to the gills. Orndorff just taunted Fuji by making "slant eyes" — I kid you not. Susan St. James just remarked that Muraco may be employing Fuji's ancient Chinese techniques. There's some decent back-and-forth action until both competitors get counted out on the floor. Orndorff wants to swing a chair, but the referee intervenes. The crowd is chanting "bullshit" — I never noticed that before.
Mr. T is with "Smokin" Joe Frazier and the Haiti Kid (a midget wrestler with Mr. T's haircut). T says he's tried of talking and ready to get in the ring with Piper tonight.
Now we've got the Intercontinental Championship match – George "The Animal" Steele takes on the Champion "Macho Man" Randy Savage who has the lovely Miss Elizabeth in his corner. Savage is the heel here, and he's awesome in this role. Steele plays the Animal character extremely well, but he's not in Savage's league in terms of athleticism. Macho is probably the best athlete on this entire card. Steele slows things down with illegal chokes and bites, and, of course, ripping the turnbuckle open to eat the stuffing inside. Savage does what he can to keep things exciting, ultimately pinning Steele with his feet ont he ropes. All in all, this was a fun short match. Steele kicked out of Savage's flying elbow on the ONE COUNT and completely no-sold it, and that kind of messed things up at the end a bit. He was also pinned in a sort of missionary sex position which was kind of awkward looking.
Back in Chicago, Mean Gene interviews Bill Fralic and Big John Studd. This is great. Gene requests decorum, but Studd squashes a football and argues with Fralic about how wrestlers are better than football players.
In NY once again, we've got a squash match at WrestleMania. Yep, it's Jake "The Snake" Roberts vs. George Wells. Wells gets plenty of offense in early, but this is primarily there to showcase Roberts who was a newcomer at this point. Roberts wins with his signature DDT and he wraps Damien, his python, around Wells at the end of the match which causes him to foam at the mouth. Vince informs us that Jake's undefeated streak remains in tact with this win.
There's a video package giving us the build up to the boxing match between Mr. T and Roddy Piper.
Now we're in Los Angeles for Jesse Ventura to interview Hulk Hogan. Hulk says he's taking out King Kong Bundy in spite of his injured ribs. He also makes a prediction that Mr. T will defeat Piper because he's fighting for what he believes in. We return to New York and Susan lets us know she's rooting for Hulk.
Finkel hands the microphone over to Joan Rivers, who was probably 60 here, as the guest ring announcer. She introduces a boatload of celebrity stars — Guest Judges: Darryl Dawkins, Cab Calloway, & G. Gordon Liddy and Guest Time Keeper: Herb (Burger King commercial superstar). This is New York's main event, scheduled for 10 rounds of boxing. The best part of the introduction is that she misreads "The Ace Cowboy Bob Orton" as "The Ace Comedy — and funny man — Bob Orvin." I'm not making that up, it really just happened. Now it's time for the boxing match between Mr. T and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper. This is even faker than all the other stuff on this show. Wow, this gets really bad. Mr. T is atrocious. This whole thing is a sloppy, clumsy mess. So this represents the first horrible match that I didn't really know was horrible when watching as a kid. Mercifully, it ends in the fourth round when Piper gets disqualified for throwing the ref down and bodyslamming T. A melee ensues following the match where all the corner men flood the ring — Vince mispronounces melee twice. Thank god we're done with Susan St. James with our location switch.
Now we're in Chicago with Gorilla Monsoon, Mean Gene Okerlund, and Cathy Lee Crosby. It's funny that they're all sharing one microphone, it's sort of awkward as compared to how it would be today where all three would have their own mic. Chet Coppock is the ring announcer. Women's World Champion Fabulous Moolah defends against Velvet McIntyre. Moolah is ancient here, yet she's still the Champ and is believeable in the roll of tough old wench. The match is over in under a minute when McIntyre misses a splash off the rope allowing Moolah to pin her and retain the belt.
It's time for a flag match! The winner gets to wave his flag — so 1980s here. Representing the USSR it's Nikolai Volkoff with Freddie Blassie in his corner against Corporal Kirshner who represents the good old USA. This is pretty lousy, but that's ok. Blassie shouts to Kirshner, "get in there you yellow dog!" The mat in Chicago is really miced well, every stomp sounds like somebody beating a drum. Wow — this went faster than I remembered, certainly no more than 2 minutes. Blassie tries to throw his cane in to Volkoff but Kirshner intercepts it and uses it as a weapon. He wins and America reigns supreme over those commie bastards.
Mean Gene Okerlund takes over the ring announcing duties for the 20-man Battle Royal. More celebrities: Clara Peller (Wendy's Where's the Beef Lady) is the time keeper, but she is 100 years old and doesn't even know her name is announced. It doesn't matter, her microphone doesn't work anyway. The referees are Dick Butkus and Ed "Too Tall" Jones. Here are the 20 participants: Jimbo Covert, Pedro Morales, Tony Atlas, Ted Arcidi, Harvey Martin, Dan Spivey, Hillbilly Jim, King Tonga, Iron Sheik, Ernie Holmes, B. Brian Blair, Jim Brunzell, Big John Studd, Bill Fralic, Bret "The Hitman" Hart, Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, Russ Francis, Bruno Sammartino, William "The Refrigerator" Perry, and Andre The Giant. This is really cool because the crowd is so into it. Chicago really seemed to get the best portion of the show. Andre wins the battle royal, last eliminating Bret Hart by launching him onto his partner on the floor. The most memorable spot in this match is Perry offering a truce with John Studd, after Studd eliminated him, only to pull Studd out to the floor. As Ernie Ladd says, Perry fools him with "the oldest trick in the book."
Back in New York, it's getting a bit confusing now, Roddy Piper sits with Vince and Susan to continue his trash talk of Mr. T. The Long Island crowd cheers the replay of Piper slamming T. We head back to Chicago for Mean Gene to interview Jimbo Covert and the always entertaining Iron Sheik. We also see some highlights of the battle royal that just completed. Cathy Lee is less annoying than Susan St. James, but I'd still have enjoyed this show much better with Gorilla and Jesse like the other WrestleManias of the era.
Now, here comes the best match on the entire show. For the WWF Tag Team Championship, The Dream Team (Greg Valentine & Brutus Beefcake w/ Johnny V) defend their belts against the British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith & Dynamite Kid w/ Captain Lou & Ozzy Osbourne). As a kid, I always liked this match better than anything else on the show and still consider it one of my all-time favorite matches (even though I haven't really watched it in over a decade). Believe it or not, it really holds up well. Dynamite is a spectacular performer and Davey Boy is very good. Valentine is solid for the heels. Though Beefcake is very limited, they keep his involvement to a minimum which allows this match to shine. The Bulldogs win the belts when Davey rams Valentine into Dynamite and covers him. Dynamite takes a ridiculous bump off the top rope to the floor that doesn't even get appropriately captured because they just didn't have the type of camera set up you'd find at a show today. At any rate, the title victory really feels like a special historic moment — something else that's missing from pro wrestling these days. It sort of comes out of nowhere too which makes it even more fun. Nowadays, you'll know exactly when the matches are going to end because they telegraph it so blatantly.
After a brief interlude in New York, we're going out to Los Angeles. Vince really does a great job at making it seem like the main event is going to be something you just can't miss. Susan St. James says she thinks Hogan will win — what a bold prediction. Out in LA, you've got Jesse Ventura sandwiched between Lord Alfred Hayes (ungodly awful) and Elvira (horrible). To make matters worse, there are really only two fully-functional headsets which Hayes and Elvira use; Jesse's mic is all messed up which is pretty annoying. Our ring announcer, Lee Marshall, gets things rolling with Hercules Hernandez and Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat. I hardly remembered this one, but Steamboat was actually very good in this generic-1980s-WWF-mid-card match. Steamboat wins with a high cross body block. His talent was really wasted in what was essentially a curtain-jerker on the west coast. In fact, with the time zone difference, the LA audience didn't watch the already recorded matches until after the main event ended, meaning the Chicago portion we just saw would be their "main event" on closed circuit.
In a match that I can recall skipping almost every time I watched this show, Adorable Adrian Adonis w/ Jimmy Hart takes on Uncle Elmer. I've skipped this match so many times that I even had to fight the urge to hit fast forward when I saw it was about to start. The reality is it wasn't that bad. Adonis was deceptively awesome. He weighed 300 pounds and dressed like a woman, but he was actually a tremendous athlete and even even manages to carry Elmer (arguably the worst wrestler I've ever seen) to a reasonably decent match. He flips all over the place like an acrobat before securing a clean fall with a flying chop to the prone Elmer. Adding insult to injury, Adonis beats him up after the match until Elmer rolls to the outside.
"Awful" Alfred interviews an enormous Hulk Hogan who vows to win, regardless of his injuries. Jimmy Hart is back out there with Terry and "Hoss" Funk who battle it out with Tito Santana and the Junkyard Dog. I loved JYD as a kid. In fact, a month after this, JYD headlined the first live WWF card I ever attended against Hoss Funk at the Nassau Coliseum in a sort of WrestleMania revenge match. This is a by-the-numbers baby face vs. heels tag match. Approximately two and a half hours in, I'm really tired of watching wrestling at this point and I'm ready for the show to be over. Terry Funk actually does a lot to make things entertaining, bumping on the floor and taking a body slam on a table. Surprisingly, the heels steal one here in our penultimate match with a little assistance from Jimmy Hart's dreaded megaphone. Terry smashes JYD with the foreign object while referee Dave Hebner's back is turned, he gets the cover and the team is victorious. Much like the Long Island audience earlier, the Californians chant "bullshit." Terry sells a knee injury after the bout. Now we've got a dozen or so crew members coming out to assemble the steel cage for the main event.
We've got a string of video highlights detailing the long build up to the big match and Hogan's road to recovery following his injury at the hands of Bundy. We also get to hear from Heenan and Bundy — damn this was great. Bundy cuts an absolutely awesome promo about how he's going to win the belt tonight. Heenan lets us know we're about to experience "Bundy Mania." We head back to New York one more time for Vince to get just a little more hype in. Now, we are treated to our main event — WWF Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs. Challenger King Kong Bundy w/ Bobby "The Brain" Heenan inside a "15-foot-high" steel cage. Celebrity Mania continues with Tommy Lasorda as the guest ring announcer, Ricky Schroeder (who was booed) as the guest time keeper, and Robert Conrad (who was cheered) as the guest referee. Hogan slams Bundy, drops the leg, and climbs over the cage to hang onto his title. The spot I remember of Hogan kicking Bundy down to the canvas from the top rope is still cool. The best bumps on the entire show were probably by Heenan in the post-match ass whooping by Hogan. I always loved that part because Heenan was so good at making you want to see him get beat up. Hogan matches were predictable, but you got to see what you wanted. He slays a dragon, and everyone goes home happy.
This was a fun show to watch because it really takes me back. I felt like a little kid watching this show which is always a nice escape from the frustrating and complicated adult world. WWF absolutely overdid it with the celebrities as so many of them contributed absolutely nothing to the show. In fact,some of them, like all three women announcers, were a detriment to the overall presentation. This is also the last time they did a big show from multiple locations which really didn't mean all that much in retrospect, but I guess it could have been a big deal at the time in terms of making the show seem like a can't-miss happening. So I've had my fill of wrestling for a while after sitting through three hours of this, but I definitely recommend the show to old-school wrestling fans looking for nostalgia or new-school fans who have never seen it.


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Use the Nutrition Facts Label
- Listed: June 8, 2024 11:24 pm
- Expires: 97676 days, 4 hours
Use the Nutrition Facts Label
You can help your family eat better and balance their energy by learning to choose lower calorie, lower fat alternatives to some of their favorite foods. Use the Nutrition Facts label found on food packages to make smarter food choices.
This example below is a Nutrition Facts label is from a macaroni and cheese dinner. You can also visit the U.S. Food and Drug Administration website to see more examples of the Nutrition Facts label and what it can tell you.
When using the Nutrition Facts label as a guide, try these tips:
- Keep these low: saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, and sodium
- Get enough of these: potassium, fiber, vitamins A and C, calcium, and iron
- Use the Percent Daily Value (% DV) column when possible; 5% DV or less is low, 20% DV or more is high
Visit the Smart Food Shopping page and learn how the label can help you choose foods lower in calories, fat, and added sugar to help maintain a healthy weight.
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subset: commoncrawl


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South San Francisco Locksmiths Keyless Entry Locks Commercial South San Francisco, CA
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Recognize achievements the right way.
Say congrats with style and class. Custom made plaques and awards are the perfect way to recognize achievements and milestones or celebrate important events. At Minuteman Press, we can help you preserve that diploma or honor an accomplishment in a way that will last a lifetime. If you're throwing a party for the honoree(s), let us design invitations that are equally exciting and celebratory. Our experienced staff will work with you to preserve special memories and important moments however you see fit.


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Displaying 1-20 of 42 results.
A collection that allows you to be more confident while giving presentations in English. Here you'll find phrases for opening presentations, conclusions, branching topics, arguments ... Such as: "Before I go any further, let me...", "I'm going to do this as a show of hands" or "This all emerged from a simple curiosity" and a ton of others.


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Here is what you would expect to pay, if you went elsewhere...
Did you know that if you do not collect the name, email and possibly a phone number from someone when they visit your website that the chances of them ever visiting your site again is less than .001%. YES... 99.99% of people will never visit your site again if you do not capture their name and email! Guess what. Eresponder Pro will do it for you automatically! Build your email contact list of those who want to hear more from you and you will automatically build your revenues!
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Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) vendors provide a cloud-based platform for building and running applications.
After reading this article you will be able to:
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In the Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) model, developers essentially rent everything they need to build an application, relying on a cloud provider for development tools, infrastructure, and operating systems. This is one of the three service models of cloud computing. PaaS vastly simplifies web application development; from the developer's perspective, all backend management takes place behind the scenes. Although PaaS has some similarities with serverless computing, there are many critical differences between them.
The three models of cloud computing are PaaS, SaaS (Software-as-a-Service), and IaaS (Infrastructure-as-a-Service). IaaS refers to cloud computing infrastructure – servers, storage, etc. – managed by a cloud vendor, while SaaS refers to full applications that are hosted in the cloud and maintained by the SaaS vendor. If a SaaS customer is like someone renting a house, then a PaaS customer is like someone renting all the heavy equipment and power tools necessary to rapidly build a house, if the tools and equipment were continually maintained and repaired by their owner.
PaaS can be accessed over any internet connection, making it possible to build an entire application in a web browser. Because the development environment is not hosted locally, developers can work on the application from anywhere in the world. This enables teams that are spread out across geographic locations to collaborate. It also means developers have less control over the development environment, though this comes with far less overhead.
The main offerings included by PaaS vendors are:
Different vendors may include other services as well, but these are the core PaaS services.
PaaS vendors offer a variety of tools that are necessary for software development, including a source code editor, a debugger, a compiler, and other essential tools. These tools may be offered together as a framework. The specific tools offered will depend on the vendor, but PaaS offerings should include everything a developer needs to build their application.
Platforms offered as a service usually include middleware, so that developers don't have to build it themselves. Middleware is software that sits in between user-facing applications and the machine's operating system; for example, middleware is what allows software to access input from the keyboard and mouse. Middleware is necessary for running an application, but end users don't interact with it.
A PaaS vendor will provide and maintain the operating system that developers work on and the application runs on.
PaaS providers administer and maintain databases. They will usually provide developers with a database management system as well.
PaaS is the next layer up from IaaS in the cloud computing service model, and everything included in IaaS is also included in PaaS. A PaaS provider either manages servers, storage, and physical data centers, or purchases them from an IaaS provider.
PaaS is used to build applications more quickly than would be possible if developers had to worry about building, configuring, and provisioning their own platforms and backend infrastructure. With PaaS, all they need to do is write the code and test the application, and the vendor handles the rest.
PaaS permits developers to build, test, debug, deploy, host, and update their applications all in the same environment. This enables developers to be sure a web application will function properly as hosted before they release, and it simplifies the application development lifecycle.
PaaS is more cost-effective than leveraging IaaS in many cases. Overhead is reduced because PaaS customers don't need to manage and provision virtual machines. In addition, some providers have a pay-as-you-go pricing structure, in which the vendor only charges for the computing resources used by the application, usually saving customers money. However, each vendor has a slightly different pricing structure, and some platform providers charge a flat fee per month.
PaaS providers handle all licensing for operating systems, development tools, and everything else included in their platform.
It may become hard to switch PaaS providers, since the application is built using the vendor's tools and specifically for their platform. Each vendor may have different architecture requirements. Different vendors may not support the same languages, libraries, APIs, architecture, or operating system used to build and run the application. To switch vendors, developers may need to either rebuild or heavily alter their application.
The effort and resources involved in changing PaaS vendors may make companies more dependent on their current vendor. A small change in the vendor's internal processes or infrastructure could have a huge impact on the performance of an application designed to run efficiently on the old configuration. Additionally, if the vendor changes their pricing model, an application may suddenly become more expensive to operate.
In a PaaS architecture, the external vendor will store most or all of an application's data, along with hosting its code. In some cases the vendor may actually store the databases via a further third party, an IaaS provider. Though most PaaS vendors are large companies with strong security in place, this makes it difficult to fully assess and test the security measures protecting the application and its data. In addition, for companies that have to comply with strict data security regulations, verifying the compliance of additional external vendors will add more hurdles to going to market.
PaaS and serverless computing are similar in that for both, all a developer has to worry about is writing and uploading code, and the vendor handles all backend processes. However, scaling is vastly different when using the two models. Applications built using serverless computing, or FaaS, will scale automatically, while PaaS applications will not unless programmed to do so. Startup times also vary greatly; serverless applications can be up and running almost instantly, but PaaS applications are more like traditional applications and have to be running most of the time or all of the time in order to be immediately available for users.
Another difference is that serverless vendors do not provide development tools or frameworks, as PaaS vendors do. And finally, pricing separates the two models. PaaS billing is not nearly as precise as in serverless computing, in which charges are broken down to the number of seconds or fractions of a second each instance of a function runs.


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For voting officials, money from the private sector leading up to the 2020 election was a lifeline.
In Philadelphia, the city was able to buy new high-speed machines to help sort mail ballots by ward and precinct, thanks to the roughly $10 million it received in donated funds.
In Coconino County, Ariz., the money paid for temporary staff to assist Native American voters to register and vote. In Chester County, Pa., it paid for body cameras for election workers picking up mail ballots from drop boxes.
But a year and a half later, that lifeline has also spawned a slew of conspiracies, and efforts in dozens of states to ban the kind of financial help local election officials say saved them.
The pandemic was killing more than 1,000 people per day that fall, and the risks it posed made voting exponentially more expensive as officials hurried to implement mail options and make in-person precincts safer.
But Congress didn't allocate more money to help make the general election happen, after an initial allotment during the primaries. That left local election officials desperate for other funding sources.
"I know the benefit that that [private] funding provided," said Al Schmidt, a Republican former election commissioner in Philadelphia. "And I cannot comprehend what a mess the 2020 election would have been if we did not have the equipment that we were able to purchase."
But for many Republican legislators across the country, using private money to run a government operation was unacceptable. And now, in many states, it won't happen again.
Bans are spreading across the U.S.
Since voting ended in 2020, more than a dozen states — all with Republican-controlled state legislatures — have enacted laws that prevent local election officials from accepting donations like they did leading up to that election. In at least five other states, Republican legislatures have tried to do the same, but they have been blocked by the vetoes of Democratic governors.
Much of the money donated leading up to the election, $350 million, came from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan. It was distributed through a grant program run by a nonprofit called the Center for Tech and Civic Life.
Facebook and Zuckerberg have been criticized since the 2016 election for damaging democracy by allowing misinformation to flourish on the platform.
Republicans have falsely seized on Zuckerberg's donations as a sign that the tech executive interfered in the voting process in 2020 to advantage Democrats, although there is no evidence that is the case.
Much of the money did go to helping states expand vote-by-mail operations, which Republicans have sought to paint as partisan in favor of Democrats, but research has shown there is traditionally very little if any partisan effect to such voting access expansions.
Michael Gableman, a conservative former state Supreme Court judge in Wisconsin who the GOP-controlled state legislature there hired to investigate the 2020 election, recently released a report that falsely implied the private donations amounted to "illegal bribery."
"I've been shocked at how deeply ... embedded the private Zuckerberg agents or employees came in actually administering the elections in those cities to one degree or another. In some cities, they took over the election," said Gableman in a recent interview with Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission released a seven-page statement rebutting Gableman's claims shortly after, noting that a number of lawsuits were filed challenging the legality of the donations prior to the 2020 election and none were successful.
Republicans have also accused the CTCL of political bias, because significantly more of the donation money was allocated to districts won by Joe Biden than by former President Donald Trump.
But in many cases, those jurisdictions were cities with large populations that were also scrambling more frantically to ramp up their vote-by-mail operations, since it became clear early in the year that more Democrats than Republicans would want to vote by mail. Trump's misinformation campaign against mail voting tainted the practice for many GOP voters.
The Center for Tech and Civic Life gave grant funding to every election jurisdiction that applied for it.
"We invited every single election department in the entire country to apply for grant funding if they needed it," said Tiana Epps-Johnson, the executive director of the Center for Tech and Civic Life. "Ultimately, we received about 2,500 applications from election departments across 49 states and awarded funding to all of them."
An analysis of three swing states after the election by APM Reports also found no consistent difference in turnout rates among counties that received grants versus those that didn't.
A financial conundrum persists
Basically everyone in the elections community, including Epps-Johnson, wants these sorts of private grants to be unnecessary, regardless of whether they are legal.
"We have always agreed that the best way to fund election departments is robust, predictable public funding," said Epps-Johnson.
The problem is that predictable public funding hasn't come, even as state legislatures rush to cut off this other funding source for voting officials.
A recent MIT study noted that the U.S. spends roughly the same amount each year on its elections as it does on maintaining parking facilities.
"While legislatures have been taking up the issue of banning the ability to supplement election departments' budgets, they haven't at the same time made sure to address the underlying issue that made our work necessary in the first place," Epps-Johnson added.
Since revelations about election vulnerabilities came out of the 2016 election, officials have been begging Congress not only for more money to support voting, but annual allocations instead of one-time lump sums.
In 2020, Congress allocated $400 million to help election officials respond to the coronavirus. It sent no money in 2021, and this year the federal government sent another $75 million as part of the recent spending package signed by President Biden.
"The thing [election officials] want is consistency, something they can set their budget clocks to," said Chris Krebs, the former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, in 2019. "If the federal government is going to play in this space, we have to be dependable partners."
Experts also say the $75 million that Congress sent to support voting this year doesn't come close to what's needed. Schmidt called it "inadequate," noting that administering elections in Philadelphia alone costs about $20 million per year.
The Brennan Center for Justice estimated in a recent report that it would cost more than $350 million just to replace outdated polling place equipment nationwide. Another study from the Election Infrastructure Initiative estimated that election offices need roughly $50 billion over the next decade to modernize and run voting.
"There is an argument that funding should come from the government, so you don't open yourself up to criticism that you're being somehow persuaded by some partisan group. ... Perception-wise, it's cleaner," said David Maeda, the state elections director in Minnesota. "The problem has always been getting that [funding]."
Editor's note: Facebook's parent company Meta pays NPR to license NPR content.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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Many Americans await anxiously for federal aid money to pay thousands of dollars in back rent.
Nohemi Rojas is one of them.
"My application [was submitted] June 23. This is very slow," she said.
Rojas lives in Queens, New York. She requested help from the Emergency Rental Assistance Program, and yet she has not received any. Now, she and her children could lose their place to live.
"I don't want to be homeless outside because I get scared on the streets," Rojas' daughter Yoseline Diaz said.
Landlords are also on the edge of losing their properties.
One in New York, Clarence Hamer, said, "It's unfair to small independent landlords."
The state of New York received nearly $3 billion from the Emergency Rental Assistance Program – yet the state has only doled out less than 1% of the funds.
Rebecca Garrard, legislative director at Citizen Action of New York, says the housing emergency is a humanitarian crisis.
"We have tenants who are waiting for a sheriff or a marshal to knock on their door and remove them from their homes," she said. "We have tenants who are going to be sleeping in cars or on the street."
Congress approved nearly $47 billion to pay landlords as tenants fell behind on rent. As of June 30, only $3 billion of the total had been distributed.
Mayor of Miami Dade County Daniella Levine Cava said: "In total, Miami Dade County has spent over 62% of our rental assistance allocation."
Other places seem to be getting around the red tape to deliver the aid.
In places like South Florida, Mayor Cava says her municipality has helped nearly 4,000 families.
"In total, we have paid out $33 million in direct awards and $38 million in total obligations," she said.
Part of the problem is that states and localities were required to set up their own programs to disburse the funds. Some didn't have the resources and infrastructure, though authorities say it's starting to move faster and advise people to apply.
First — there is more than $40 billion in federal funding available, even after the moratorium ends. And if your state has its own program, you may submit an application to the state's Emergency Rental Assistance Program. In some states, tenants must provide a signed, written declaration to their landlord showing that they've tried to obtain assistance. That application could be used as a defense against eviction for a full year.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has a tool to help you find rental relief. Visit consumerfinance.gov/coronavirus.
One important thing to note: You can apply for mortgage and rental assistance. If you're approved, you could get up to 18 months covered.


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Thursday, February 3, 2011
Aftermath: A Tale of Two Centres
Plekanec is, on paper, a Jacques Martin kind of player. He's defensively responsible. He kills penalties like the KGB killed spies. He never fails to hurry back and assume his responsibility in his own zone. Yet, inside that defensive paragon beats the heart of a Jagr. Pleks, despite his adherence to The System, succumbs to bursts of creativity on a disturbingly (for Martin) frequent basis. Thankfully (for the Habs). He's the team's solution to any slumping winger. He's the go-to guy on the PP and the PK. And he's the team's leading scorer. When he scores, the Canadiens win 79% of the time. So, no surprise that in a Martin Special game, he managed to un-Martin himself long enough to score an important goal.
Scott Gomez, on the other hand, is Plekanec's polar opposite. He's the guy who thinks he's all about offence, but plays D because that's the only way he stays on the team. Yet, in reality, he can't score on an empty net, his passes are frequently off target, he takes stupid penalties at very inopportune times and his only real value to the team is his ability to break into the opposing zone and sometimes set up a better-shooting teammate for an assist. The hope that Gomez' habit of improving as the games get more important proves true again this year is the only reason to keep patience with him.
Brian Gionta is taking full advantage of his escape from Gomez purgatory. Plekanec is finding him in open ice and the captain has three goals in two nights to show for it. Andrei Kostitsyn, on the other hand, relegated to Gomez' line, is even more invisible than usual. This is a trend we've seen all year long: Play with Plekanec, no matter who you are, and score goals. Play with Gomez and vanish from the earth. That's the most disturbing difference between the two top-line centremen. Plekanec makes those around him better. Gomez makes them play at his own level. If he's pushing hard and playing with energy, that's a good thing. If he's floating around the offensive zone and taking dumb penalties, his linemates do nothing either.
Fortunately for the Habs, David Desharnais is showing an admirable work ethic and some nice vision on the ice. He, unlike Gomez, goes directly for the jugular when he's got the puck. Despite his size, it does give Martin an option if it becomes necessary to send Gomez a message via demotion to the third line. Not that Gomez would necessarily care about a demotion. His laconic attitude may be an act or a cover, but it certainly gives the impression that he's not overly bothered by his poor performance.
If Tomas Plekanec is the epitome of a successful Jacques Martin player, Gomez is the antithesis. He's got the ability to be better, without question. Whether he's still got the motivation to do it is a mystery.
After a win, it's a bit unsporting to point out a player's flaws, but looking ahead, it's important for Gomez to pick it up. The defence is doing the best it can right now, with Spacek and Weber playing manageable minutes, Hamrlik performing solidly, and Subban and Gill finding their way in their odd-couple partnership. The bottom-line guys are doing their best too, within their abilities, as are the goalies. The biggest issue facing the team is the lack of scoring, and that lack originates with Gomez and his linemates, whoever they are on a given night.
The coaches have no doubt shown Gomez video of what he's doing right and what he's doing wrong in an effort to get him going. What they really need to do is show him video of Plekanec and say, "Hey, Scott. Do this!" If challenged directly to play up to the level of his teammate, perhaps Gomez would respond with some passion. After all, Plekanec makes everyone else play better. Why not Gomez?
The win over Florida last night was important as the Canadiens fight to solidify a good playoff position. Perhaps, though, these close wins wouldn't be quite so nervewracking if the second-line centre played a bit more like his first-line counterpart.
8 comments:
Gomez can't play like Pleky because he doesn't think like Pleky.
Viva Plekanec!
The Pleky touch
Pleky power - February 3, 2011 at 2:48 AM
Lots of Gomez bashing. Can't say he does not deserve some but like you will hold out for the upside in the playoffs.
On the subject of performance assessment, isn't it about time we recognized the job Jacques Martin is doing with the team this year. Pleks for one is a guy that probably owes some of his success to Martin - wasn't it just before Martin arrived when Pleks signed a one-year deal because there were big questions about his performance. Under Martin he has blossomed. - February 3, 2011 at 4:54 AM
- J.T. said...
@V: I'm not sure Martin is behind Plekanec's success. Pleks had a pretty darn good season under Carbo as well, before the year he got dragged down with an underperforming Kovalev. Even in that 39-point season, he still worked hard and played very well defensively.
That said, I think Martin deserves credit for managing a depleted roster pretty well. The situation right now...loss of talent to injury...is actually saved by his defence-first system. Because he doesn't rely on offence or creativity to win, like, say, Guy Boucher does, Martin can get a team to function with much less available talent. Basically, all you need is a team of good, disciplined skaters to play a Martin game. The Habs would be suffering now if they had a more creative coach. - February 3, 2011 at 5:59 AM
- DB said...
Gomez reminds of Kovalev. Both are least effective when they try and do it all by themselves.
I don't know how many times I've seen Gomez pick-up the puck in his own zone, start carrying it up the ice while his wingers start heading for the other teams zone anticipating that Gomez will pass them the puck. Instead Gomez continues to carry the puck, forcing his wingers to stop at the other team's blueline.
Gomez then carries the puck across the other teams blueline and is immediately met by 4 opposition players. Since his wingers are still at the blueline Gomez has no one to pass to so he just dumps the puck towards the boards. Invariably the other team gets the puck and moves it easily out of their zone.
Last night you complemented Pacioretty-we-could-have-had-Perron on his play. If he keeps it up he'll soon lose the we-could-have-had-Perron tag.
Now if we only could get Kostitsyn-we-could-have-had-Carter-Seabrook-Parise-Getzlaf-Richards-Kesler-Perry-Bergeron-Weber(Shea not Yannick)to consistently play to his potential. - February 3, 2011 at 8:00 AM
Can just picture the Habs with Gomez in Hamilton and Fisher and Neil in bleu, blanc et rouge.
- February 3, 2011 at 8:14 AM
JT... you and others say that Martin is not creative. I think his system is very creative, just not flashy or even beautiful.
Some of our best architects and painters have subsribed to the dictum, 'less is more'. Their creative genuius was in stripping things down to their basic elements. The beauty was in their simplicity.
We keep hearing Martin talking about keeping things simple... defence, special teams (and something else). Could he just be hockey's version of a minimilist. - February 3, 2011 at 9:42 AM
I wonder if giving Gomez more money than he ever imagined making has perhaps taken the edge off? Kidding, of course it has. What is there for him to work for? He needs inspiration. Sometimes it isn't a coach that does that, or peers. Your inspiration comes from one source, and she might do us all a favor and kick Scotty's butt.
- February 5, 2011 at 1:58 AM
- Number31 said...
Maybe Gomez should spend his free time studying Plekanec's videos. However it's amazing how he just cuts through an entire team to bring the puck over the line only to do absolutely nothing once he's there. Or perhaps the rest of the forwards on the ice need to get it slammed into their brains that when Gomez has the puck, SKATE SKATE SKATE. Perhaps if he went deeper into the offensive zone with the puck, it might help instead of stopping just by the blueline (seems to work on the PP). That spontaneous back-pass to the D pisses me off though. Either way, guys need to keep their sticks on the ice more.
- February 5, 2011 at 4:30 AM


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Sign Up Now: SoCon12, Social Media and the Brews and News Fun-Raiser
December 12th, 2011 by Leonard WittJoin us for 1.5 days of learning, sharing and networking at our SoCon12 and Brews and News Fun-Raiser weekend on Feb. 3-4, 2012.
Registration is now open for SoCon12, our annual social media conference at Kennesaw State University outside of Atlanta on Saturday, Feb 4, 2012 . Every year we sell out our 325 seats early, so sign up now. Don't get shut out.
Plus be sure to do some extra networking at our Brews and News Fun-Raiser for our Center for Sustainable Journalism and our centerpiece Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, JJIE.org on Friday night Feb. 3, 2012 at the SweetWater Brewery in Atlanta.
One SoCon12 headliner is Steve Rubel, executive vice president for EVGlobal Strategy and Insights for Edelman – the world's largest independent public relations firm. His topic: Transmedia storytelling. Learn how Facebook, YouTube videos, videogames, comics and more could all play a role in your transmedia strategy.
Jeff Haynie will lead off the day with an overview of what to expect on the mobile front and he should know. Haynie is Co-founder and CEO of Appcelerator, which just got $15 million in new a round of funding because as TechCrunch writes:
The company … took the opportunity to provide an update on its growth. It now has 30,000 mobile applications on over 30 million mobile devices in its portfolio and 1.6 million developers in its ecosystem. This makes it if not the largest, then certainly one of the largest, mobile development platforms in existence today.
SoCon12 also will have more than 30 breakout sessions covering a wide variety of topics including this sampling:
- Creating and Leveraging Sustainable Social Media Communities
- Quit the Daily Grind: A Former Newspaper Reporter's Social-Media Journey to Freelance Success
- The Creative (not creepy) Use of Social Media Analytics
- Create, Connect, Collaborate: Words that Work Online
- Crowd Financing 101
More sessions are coming online daily, so keep watching the site.
There is an early bird special right now Dec. 12 for both SoCon12 and the Brews and News Fun-Raiser so register now before the special lapses. See you on Feb. 4-5 for the Southeast's premiere social media conference.


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- April 17, 2014
- by admin
- Uncategorized
- 0 Comments
For a long time, reciprocal links have remained at the forefront of most inbound linking strategies. This is going to have to change. Google now discounts all reciprocal links. The algorithm has been altered to identify the exchange of links by two parties for the purpose of increasing their number of inbound links.
The concept of reciprocal linking defies Google's original intention with the algorithm. Quality content should attract links. The exchange of links is nothing more than a mutual agreement to unjustifiably promote others' content with the end goal of promoting your own. Google doesn't particularly like this (see Link Schemes).
Some even claim that Google is now able to identify three-way linking schemes (i.e. website A links to website B, who links to website C, who links back to A). Whether this is true or not is hard to say. One thing is for certain though: inbound linking strategies should NOT be centered around reciprocal linking. This manufactured form of link creation is not well-received and is ultimately a waste of time. Instead, focus on creating unique, high-quality content in a given niche. The links will ensue.


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One might contend that the gas tank is actually still filled with gasoline and Eli, after a long day of replacing a car engine with a deep fryer and drinking, just doesn't realize. A sure fire indicator would be if his esophogus liquified.
"Death Race" seems like the kind of movie you could really enjoy if you'd just drank 16 gallons of beer through a tube. Dumb explodey fun. I'm going to go ahead and call this whole genre "Carsplode!". I assume I'll eventually see it the same way I see all Carsplode! movies starring Jason Statham, halfwatching it on TNT on a Sunday afternoon while I'm working.
Director Paul W.S. Anderson has decided that he's 'sploded cars so superbly and so "to the max" in "Death Race" that he can't ever top it in terms of killing cars on film, so he's decided not to make "Spy Hunter." As long as we're thinking of adapting arcade car games to films, how about "San Francisco Rush 2049"? That game kicked ass.
- Death Race Filmed By Running Cameras Over
- Some AICN Guy Wasn't Impressed (shocker)
- Death Race is Car Porn
CASTCAST and FANCY BASTARD SHITTY MOVIE NIGHT LIVE THING REMINDER!!!
He Podcast Castcast will stream live starting around 4pm central Saturday and the Shitty movie night stream will start afterwards. Read more here.
New Early Character Sketches in The Vault. See what the HE crew could have looked like!


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Ho Nursing Training College Interview Questions
There are several Ho Nursing Training College Interview Questions that are asked during the nursing admission phase. The interview is just to select the strong from the weak. There is nothing extraordinary from the normal interview we know. Just be yourself, confident and express yourself.
Sample Ho Nursing Training College Interview Questions
Dress as if you were going to a business interview. This would include:
Solid color, conservative suit (black, blue)
Coordinated blouse
Moderate shoes
Limited jewelry (pearls are a nice touch)
Neat, professional hairstyle
Tan or light hosiery
Sparse make-up & perfume
Try to relax and be yourself. Project a positive, self-confident, sincere, congruent attitude (not cocky or arrogant–this will turn off the interviewer fast). Lean forward slightly in the chair, smile, make eye contact, don't cross arms or legs. Appear at ease and enthusiastic. Speak in complete sentences with correct grammar and intelligent vocabulary.
Questions to anticipate:
Why do you want to be a nurse? (Another variation would be–Why have you chosen nursing as a career?)
How are your finances? Will your employer support your scheduling needs during nursing school? (We at this point interject our limitations–no working past 11 PM on clinical nights, no working more than 20 hours /week with a full time school
Is your family supportive of your schooling?
Do you have adequate transportation for clinicals? (Some of our clinical sites may be 2 hrs away from students' residences.)
We interject our requirements for immunizations, a complete medical examination, by a certain date. Have as many of these done prior to the interview as possible! It really helps!
What are your strengths and weaknesses? (Never give much information about weaknesses–this is just supplying reasons for you NOT be chosen).
Study habits.
Past school and work history.
It is even possible they may throw a case scenario at you to test your critical thinking skills: You are the nursing student on a clinical unit and the patient (on the 4th floor of the hospital) asks you "Would I die if I jump from this window?" What would you do? Or, you are the nurse and you are reporting an important change in patient condition to a doctor and the doctor yells at you and calls you stupid, what would you do?
Why have you chosen this particular nursing school?
Why do you want to be a nurse? (be creative on this one…they have heard "to help people" a million and one times )
What do you think a nurse's responsibility is in today's society?
What kind of experiences have you had with nurses in your past?
What qualities do you possess that will make you a good nurse?
What area would you like to work in once you finish school, and why?
In regards to nursing, where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
How well do you get along with others?
Are you a leader or a follower?
Are you comfortable taking a leadership role?
Are you willing to be a representative for a small group of people or the whole nursing program?
Do YOU have any questions? (I figured out they like the people who ask alot of questions]
Was also asked about how did I deal with a situation when a person who did not know me decided that he/she didn't like me? Interpersonal relations
I was asked what would I do if I noticed a classmate cheating
I was asked for my definition of plagiarism
I was asked if I was familiar with the APA style of writing and citing papers.
The most rewarding thing in your life thus far?
The most challenging thing in your life so far?
The type of educator/supervisor you like the most?
Scenario: Your supervisor comes to you and your small team of co-workers and tells you that a new change in policy is effective immediate. You do not think the change can be implemented due to logistics. What do you do?
Your short-term (3-5 years) goal in nursing?
Your long term (5+ years) goal in nursing?
As far as tips:
Be honest.
Do not give vague or general answers – they are looking for specific examples in your life.
Review your application and essay – assume that the interviewer is not familiar with it.
Be familiar with current trends in nursing – helps to demonstrate why you want to become a nurse and how you feel you can make a contribution in the profession.
Don't be afraid to show emotion. I cried twice during my interview in relating some life examples.
Practice with a partner. Anticipate these questions and think up the most positive attributes about yourself.
By another interviewer
I didn't feel an authoritative getup would be appropriate, so I wore a blue blazer, light slate blue shirt (non-button-down), khaki pleated dockers, brown wing-tip suede shoes, and a rep tie (cinnamon with white and blue stripes). I'm over 50 and have a crew cut, so I wanted to soften the edges. If you're right out of high school, you might want to wear a more authoritative look. The above (I imagine every male on the planet owns a blue blazer and gray or khaki pants, or a dark blue suit) with the only changes being a white shirt and black shoes will add years to your image. I wouldn't wear a pinstripe suit or anything that makes me look like a businessman, lawyer, or accountant. Not that I own anything trendy, but dress like you would for your mom. Be neat. Be early.
Another interviewer
The hardest question for me, which was not listed, when i was interviewed for nursing school was – what is the worst situation as a nurse that you think you would have to deal with?
Could you handle that kind of situation?
These are some of the Ho Nursing Training College Interview Questions.


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Bask in the Glow of More Youthful, Beautiful Skin with Easy, Comfortable Photorejuvenation
Get radiant skin by clearing unwanted pigment and blood vessels.
Stop covering and concealing your skin imperfections – and get back to the clear, youthful skin you desire, quickly, easily, and with minimal downtime. This is possible with optimized light™ photorejuvenation treatment – an advanced treatment that help clear undesirable pigment and vessels from your skin, revealing clearer skin that you'll be proud to show off.
Photorejuvenation is the non-surgical approach to skin renewal that can transform your looks for the better – and it lets you return to your normal activities right away.
Pulses of light make all the difference, because they target pigment and vessels in your skin without harming surrounding tissue. The result? You feel little to no discomfort during the procedure and your skin can look and feel better than ever.
Choose fast, easy, comfortable photorejuvenation to improve:
Sun spots, age spots, rosacea, spider veins, capillaries, and more!
Why is photorejuvenation the simple choice for clearer, younger-looking skin?
- Minimal discomfort during treatment
- No downtime – most patients can usually return to activities immediately
- Minimal risk of scarring or infection
- Treat face, neck, chest, hands, arms and legs
- Fast, easy treatment sessions
Frequently Asked Questions:
What is optimized light™ photorejuvenation?
It is a cosmetic treatment that uses gentle pulses of intense, optimized light to treat undesirable pigment and vessels, which can occur as a result of aging and lifestyle choices.
What type of results can I expect?
You can expect to see a decrease in the appearance of skin pigment and vessels for a more even skin tone.
How does it work?
Your provider uses a fractional laser from the company that invented and patented microfractional laser technology. Fractional skin resurfacing with Palomar ICON™ technology uses laser energy microbeams to create areas of affected tissue, resulting in healthier, younger skin.
How long does it take?
The photorejuvenation procedure can be performed in as little as 30 minutes, depending on size of treatment.
How many treatments will I need?
You can see some improvement immediately. Only one or two treatments may be needed; however, depending on the severity of your conditions, several treatments may be necessary to achieve your best results.
Does it hurt?
Most people feel little to no discomfort during the procedure.
How quickly will I recover?
You can resume regular daily activities right away and start to see some improvement immediately.
What can I expect following treatment?
Typically, most people experience a mild, sunburn-like sensation, possibly accompanied by some minor swelling, immediately following the treatment. This usually lasts 2-24 hours. Ask your provider to discuss other possible side effects and the necessary post-treatment care with you.


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Additional Python Guidelines
Here are some additional Python-related guidelines, moved here in order to keep the main page manageable.
Python 2 packages
If your package needs to build for Python 2 only,
follow the 201x-era Python guidelines,
except substitute 3 for 2.
For example instead of %{python3_sitearch}
use %{python2_sitearch}
Special emphasis on the rule that packages MUST NOT use /usr/bin/python
The source package for a Python library MUST be named with the python- prefix except for a specific case bellow. A built package must include the Python major version in the name, using the python2- prefix. This is accomplished by adding a subpackage.
If you need to package the python2 module as a separate source package (usually because upstream has dropped Python 2 support in newer versions but still supports the last version that works with Python 2), you MUST name the source package using the python2- prefix instead of creating a subpackage.
Common spec files for python3 and python2
It is possible to create both python3 and python2 subpackage from one common spec file. The following is a very simple spec file for a module building for both python2 and python3. It builds both versions in the same directory; this is possible because the build products for different versions of Python usually do not conflict.
There are cases where it is not possible to build in a single directory. Most
commonly this happens when the sources are modified during the build process to
convert them from python2 to python3 using the the 2to3
tool (see bellow).
As you can see in the %install
section below, the order in which
you do the python2 versus python3 install can sometimes matter. You need to be
aware of when the install is writing to the same file in both packages (in this
example, a script in %{_bindir}
) and make sure that you're getting
the version you expect.
%global srcname example Name: python-%{srcname} Version: 1.2.3 Release: 1%{?dist} Summary: An example python module License: MIT URL: https://pypi.python.org/pypi/%{srcname} Source: %pypi_source BuildArch: noarch %global _description %{expand: A python module which provides a convenient example.} %description %_description %package -n python2-%{srcname} Summary: %{summary} BuildRequires: python2-devel %description -n python2-%{srcname} %_description %package -n python3-%{srcname} Summary: %{summary} BuildRequires: python3-devel %description -n python3-%{srcname} %_description %prep %autosetup -n %{srcname}-%{version} %build %py2_build %py3_build %install # Must do the python2 install first because the scripts in /usr/bin are # overwritten with every setup.py install, and in general we want the # python3 version to be the default. %py2_install %py3_install %check %{python2} setup.py test %{python3} setup.py test # Note that there is no %%files section for the unversioned python module if we are building for several python runtimes %files -n python2-%{srcname} %license COPYING %doc README.rst %{python2_sitelib}/%{srcname}/ %{python2_sitelib}/%{srcname}-*.egg-info/ %files -n python3-%{srcname} %license COPYING %doc README.rst %{python3_sitelib}/%{srcname}/ %{python3_sitelib}/%{srcname}-*.egg-info/ %{_bindir}/sample-exec %changelog
Using separate build directories
Sometimes is it impossible to build both versions from the same source directory. Most often this happens when sources are "translated" to python3 in the source directory and made incompatible with python2 in the process. This used to be fairly common, but is fortunately much rarer now. Some things to look for are:
Sources are not Python 3 compatible (
without parentheses is used, old module names likeConfigParser
are imported), -
module is not used, -
is run insetup.py
without creating a separate build directory.
Our method in building from the same code to make the two separate modules is to keep each build as independent as possible. To do that, we copy the source tree to python3 so that the python 2 sources are entirely independent from the python 3 sources.
Some things to watch out for:
Make sure that you are copying the correct code. The example is copying the code from within the top directory of the untarred source. If the
has changed directory you will need to change back to the tarball location. -
Patching the source code is done before copying to
. Since you have both a python2 and a python3 directory you might be tempted to patch each one separately. Resist! Upstream for your package has chosen to distribute a single source tree that builds for both python2 and python3. For your patches to get into upstream, you need to write patches that work with both as well.
resets the directory at the end of each phase, so you don't need to restore the directory at the end of %prep
%prep %setup -qc mv %{srcname}-%{version} python2 pushd python2 %patch0 -p1 -b .testfix find -name '*.txt' | xargs chmod -x # copy common doc files to top dir cp -pr docs psfl.txt zpl.txt ../ popd cp -a python2 python3 find python3 -name '*.py' | xargs sed -i '1s|^#!.*|#!%{python3}|' find python2 -name '*.py' | xargs sed -i '1s|^#!.*|#!%{python2}|' %build pushd python2 %py2_build popd pushd python3 %py3_build popd %install # Must do the python2 install first because the scripts in /usr/bin are # overwritten with every setup.py install, and in general we want the # python3 version to be the default. pushd python2 %py2_install popd pushd python3 %py3_install popd %check pushd python2 %{python2} setup.py test popd pushd python3 %{python3} setup.py test popd
You'll notice that the %build
, %install
, and %check
sections again follow a pattern similar to the previous example. They switch to the python2 directory and do the normal steps for building the python2 module, and then switch to the python3 directory and run the same steps for python3. The usage of pushd/popd
commands will ensure that the directories are logged.
Conditionalizing the Python 2 parts
If the maintainer wishes to support a similar specfile across several Fedora releases, sometimes the Python 2 packages are only appropriate for the older ones. Conditionalizing the Python 2 parts of the specfile (if applicable) SHOULD be done with the following bcond:
%bcond_with python2 # to disable python2 by default, or: %bcond_without python2 # to enable python2 by default %if %{with python2} ... %endif
See the following example for reference:
%global srcname example # Disable python2 by default %bcond_with python2 Name: python-%{srcname} Version: 1.2.3 Release: 1%{?dist} Summary: An example python module License: MIT URL: https://pypi.python.org/pypi/%{srcname} Source: %pypi_source BuildArch: noarch %global _description %{expand: A python module which provides a convenient example.} %description %_description %if %{with python2} %package -n python2-%{srcname} Summary: %{summary} BuildRequires: python2-devel %description -n python2-%{srcname} %_description %endif %package -n python3-%{srcname} Summary: %{summary} BuildRequires: python3-devel %description -n python3-%{srcname} %_description %prep %autosetup -n %{srcname}-%{version} %build %if %{with python2} %py2_build %endif %py3_build %install # Must do the python2 install first because the scripts in /usr/bin are # overwritten with every setup.py install, and in general we want the # python3 version to be the default. %if %{with python2} %py2_install %endif %py3_install %check %if %{with python2} %{python2} setup.py test %endif %{python3} setup.py test %if %{with python2} %files -n python2-%{srcname} %license COPYING %doc README.rst %{python2_sitelib}/%{srcname}/ %{python2_sitelib}/%{srcname}-*.egg-info/ %endif %files -n python3-%{srcname} %license COPYING %doc README.rst %{python3_sitelib}/%{srcname}/ %{python3_sitelib}/%{srcname}-*.egg-info/ %{_bindir}/sample-exec %changelog
Avoiding collisions between the python 2 and python 3 stacks
The python 2 and python 3 stacks are intended to be fully-installable in parallel. When generalizing the package for both python 2 and python 3, it is important to ensure that two different built packages do not attempt to place different payloads into the same path.
Executables in /usr/bin
Many existing python packages install executables into /usr/bin
For example if we have a console_scripts
in a setup.py
shared between
python 2 and python 3 builds: these will spit out files in /usr/bin/
and these will collide.
For example python-coverage
has a setup.py
that contains:
entry_points = { 'console_scripts': [ 'coverage = coverage:main', ] },
which thus generates a /usr/bin/coverage
executable (this is a python
script that runs another python script whilst generating code-coverage
information on the latter).
Similarly for the 'scripts' clause; see e.g. python-pygments
scripts = ['pygmentize'],
which generates a /usr/bin/pygmentize
(this is a python script that leverages the pygments syntax-highlighting module, giving a simple command-line interface for generating syntax-highlighted files)
If the executables provide the same functionality independent of whether they are run on top of Python 2 or Python 3, then only the Python 3 version of the executable SHOULD be packaged, the python2 version MUST NOT be packaged.
Examples of this:
ought to generate the same output regardless of whether it's implemented via Python 2 or Python 3, so only one version needs to be shipped.
If the executables provide different functionality for Python 2 and Python 3, then Python 2 version MAY be packaged.
Examples of this:
runs a python script, augmenting the interpreter with code-coverage information. Given that the interpreter itself is the thing being worked with, it's reasonable to package both versions of the executable. -
augments the interpreter with a "curses" interface. Again, it's reasonable to package both versions of this. -
installs a module into one of the Python runtimes: we need a version for each runtime.
Many executables already contain a "-MAJOR.MINOR" suffix, for example /usr/bin/easy_install-3.4
. These obviously can be used as-is, as they won't conflict.
For other executables, the general rule is:
If only one executable is to be shipped, then it owns its own slot and should use /usr/bin/python3.
If executables are to be shipped for both python 2 and python 3:
Both python 2 and python 3 variants MUST provide symlinks with a '-X' and '-X.Y' suffix (python runtime major version, or python runtime major.minor version), unless upstream already provides appropriately versioned executables without the dash.
The unversioned executable MUST be the python3 version.
For example, the python3 version of "twisted" MUST ship executables
(assuming python3 is currently version 3.7) and/usr/bin/twistd
; while the python2 version MUST provide/usr/bin/twistd-2
. -
For compatibility packages, the Python version is appended after the specific package version, for example
for python3-coverage1.2 compat package.
Running 2to3 from the spec file
Sometimes, upstream hasn't integrated running 2to3 on the code into their build scripts but they support making a python3 module from it if you manually run 2to3 on the source. This is the case when it's documented on the upstream's website, in a file in the tarball, or even when email with the module's author has instructions for building a python3 module from the python2 source and the authors are willing to support the result. In these cases it's usually just a matter of the upstream not having written the build script that can turn the python2 source into python3. When this happens you can run 2to3
from the spec file. Once you have it working, you can also help upstream integrate it into their build scripts which will benefit everyone in the long term.
You should usually follow upstream's directions on how to run 2to3
and build the python3 module in these cases but there's a few things you should check to make sure upstream is doing it correctly.
Since the code is being built from a unified source, you need to copy the code to a new directory before invoking 2to3 just like the building more than once method.
If the
program is invoked instead of using thelib2to3
library functions, make sure it's invoked with--write --nobackups
is needed to make2to3
actually change the files.--nobackups
avoids leavingfoo.py.bak
files in the module directories that then make it into the final package payload. -
Be sure to run 2to3 on the correct directory. When you run
you need to run it on the whole tree. A common mistake here for distutils packages has been to run it on the directory belowsetup.py
, missing thesetup.py
file itself. This leads to errors whenpython3
tries to executesetup.py
If you need to run
to fix code, use2to3
. At the moment, this program is coming from thepython-tools
rpm. Using2to3
means that you'll be using a name that is supported upstream and across distros rather than/usr/bin/python3-2to3
which we have renamed in Fedora to avoid filesystem conflicts. This also makes it easier for us to test and eventually change from using the python22to3
to the python32to3
. We just need to change the python3 package to provide the/usr/bin/2to3
program instead of python and all of our python packages will start using that version instead. -
runs into a problem, please file a Fedora bug. Please try to isolate a minimal test case that reproduces the problem when doing so.
Manual byte compilation
This section only applies for the 201x-era guidelines. In the new guidelines, see the Manual byte compilation section. |
When byte compiling a .py file, python embeds a magic number in the byte compiled files that correspond to the runtime. Files in %{python?_sitelib}
and %{python?_sitearch}
MUST correspond to the runtime for which they were built. For instance, a pure Python module compiled for the 3.4 runtime MUST be below %{_usr}/lib/python3.4/site-packages
The brp-python-bytecompile
script tries to figure this out for you.
The script determines which interpreter to use when byte compiling the module
by checking what directory the file is installed in.
If it's /usr/lib{,64}/pythonX.Y
then pythonX.Y
is used to byte compile the module.
If pythonX.Y
is not installed,
then an error is returned and the rpm build process will exit on an error
so remember to BuildRequire
the proper python package.
If you have *.py
files outside of the /usr/lib(64)?/pythonX.Y/
and you require those files to be byte compiled
(e.g. it's an importable Python module)
you MUST compile them explicitly using the %py_byte_compile
Note that not all Python files are importable Python modules;
when in doubt, grep the sources for the appropriate import statement.
An example for a package that has both Python versions:
# Buildrequire both python2 and python3 BuildRequires: python2-devel python3-devel %install # Installs a python2 private module into %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/mypackage/foo # and installs a python3 private module into %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/mypackage/bar make install DESTDIR=%{buildroot} # Manually invoke the python byte compile macro for each path that needs byte # compilation. %py_byte_compile %{python2} %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/mypackage/foo %py_byte_compile %{python3} %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/mypackage/bar
The %py_byte_compile
macro takes two arguments.
The first is the python interpreter to use for byte compiling.
The second is a file or directory to byte compile.
If the second argument is a directory,
the macro will recursively byte compile any *.py file in the directory.
Manual byte compilation for EPEL 6 and 7
The script interpreter defined in %{__python}
is used to compile the modules outside of /usr/lib(64)?/pythonX.Y/
directories. This defaults to /usr/bin/python
(that's Python 2.6 or on EPEL 6 and 2.7 on EPEL 7). If you need to compile the modules for python3, set it to /usr/bin/python3
%global __python %{python3}
Doing this is useful when you have a python3 application that's installing a private module into its own directory. For instance, if the foobar application installs a module for use only by the command line application in %{_datadir}/foobar
. Since these files are not in one of the python3 library paths (i.e., /usr/lib/python3.6
) you have to override %{__python}
to tell brp-python-bytecompile
to use the python3 interpreter for byte compiling.
These settings are enough to properly byte compile any package that builds Python modules in %{python?_sitelib}
or %{python?_sitearch}
or builds for only a single Python interpreter. However, if the application you're packaging needs to build with both python2 and python3 and install into a private module directory (perhaps because it provides one utility written in python2 and a second utility written in python3) then you need to do this manually. Here's a sample spec file snippet that shows what to do:
# Turn off the brp-python-bytecompile script %global __os_install_post %(echo '%{__os_install_post}' | sed -e 's!/usr/lib[^[:space:]]*/brp-python-bytecompile[[:space:]].*$!!g') # Buildrequire both python2 and python3 BuildRequires: python2-devel python3-devel [...] %install # Installs a python2 private module into %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/mypackage/foo # and installs a python3 private module into %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/mypackage/bar make install DESTDIR=%{buildroot} # Manually invoke the python byte compile macro for each path that needs byte # compilation. %py_byte_compile %{python2} %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/mypackage/foo %py_byte_compile %{python3} %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/mypackage/bar
Note that this does disable the compilation of files in /usr/lib(64)?/pythonX.Y/
Byte compilation reproducibility
For two Python files with the exact same content and metadata,
byte compilation might produce different results.
The resulting .pyc
files are functionally identical but are not bit-by-bit identical.
In most cases,
internal Python reference counter is here to blame because it might have a different internal state during each byte compilation.
If you want a deeper explanation,
take a look at this Bugzilla comment.
This inconvenience might cause a problem in Koji where noarch packages built as a part of an arch build might be rejected because they have different content.
To workaround this issue,
BuildRequire marshalparser BuildRequires: /usr/bin/marshalparser
(a tool that makes .pyc
files more reproducible)
and instruct it to process the .pyc
files in certain paths by setting the %py_reproducible_pyc_path
%global py_reproducible_pyc_path %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/llamafarm/plugins
With that setting,
marshalparser recursively finds all byte-compiled Python files in %{buildroot}%{_datadir}/llamafarm/plugins
and attempts to fix them.
This happens at the very end of the build process when all previous byte compilation steps are finished.
If marshalparser cannot parse some of the cache files,
the build fails.
Want to help? Learn how to contribute to Fedora Docs ›


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Panspermia is a theory that originated in the 19th century in opposition to the theory of spontaneous generation. Panspermia propounded that reproductive bodies of living organisms exist throughout the universe and develop wherever the environment is favorable. The basic tenet of panspermia is that primitive life, which originated someplace else, was deposited on Earth's surface by means of a collision with some other object that already harbored life.
This theory has been repopularized upon the realization of the improbability that life formed through abiogenesis on earth, and is now more commonly called exogenesis.
Objections to Panspermia
The full theory of panspermia requires two events to explain the presence of life on earth:
- The generation of life outside the earth, and then
- The transfer of this life to earth.
Many scientists have objected that the generation of life cannot occur, or have occurred, outside of a planetary environment, where heavier elements are plentiful. Almost the only elements present in interstellar space are hydrogen and helium—and the latter, being an inert or noble gas, is not a component of life in any form known to man.
The generation objection by itself would not destroy panspermia. But the transference event requires a transit through space, followed by a passage through the earth's atmosphere and then an impact on the ground or at sea. Either of these events is fraught with danger. The unprotected space outside of an atmosphere is subject to unfiltered radiation in various forms. These include the products of radioactive decay, cosmic rays (the highest-energy form of electromagnetic radiation known to man), and the stellar wind, a stream of particles that fly out from any star as it continuously burns. Even if any life forms could survive the spatial passage, it must then somehow penetrate the atmosphere and risk incineration from sheer friction, and then must survive the impact.
A test done by attaching a piece of bacteria-smeared rock to a returning Russian spacecraft in September 2008 showed the difficulty of life surviving a fall through Earth's atmosphere, with temperatures on the rock reaching 1700 degrees Celsius, despite an entry speed little more than half that which a meteorite would experience.[1] However this source talks about the temperatures no deeper than 2 cm below the surface of the meteorite. Deeper layers may provide more protection.
Directed panspermia
In 1973, Francis Crick, co-discoverer of DNA, and Leslie Orgel proposed[2] a new mechanism, which they called directed panspermia, to mitigate the hazards of transport and entry detailed above. They assume that an advanced civilization fired a brace of rocket missiles, each laden with a payload of bacteria and/or blue-green algae, in all directions. Crick and Orgel estimated that a payload of one metric ton could contain 1017 micro-organisms organized in ten or a hundred separate samples.
The theory has gained some attractiveness primarily by proposing to explain why so many life-forms on earth depend on the element molybdenum, which is rare on earth but might not have been so rare on the planet of origin of these micro-organisms.
However, this theory is subject to a number of logical objections:
- Where and how did life form or come to this other world, for an intelligent race to build a civilization capable of launching guided missiles into interstellar, or even inter-galactic, space? Did life originate on that world, or was it deposited on that world in the very fashion in which that other world allegedly deposited life on earth? Directed panspermia thus appears to be an example of infinite regression, and violative of Occam's razor.
- Crick and Orgel totally ignore the question of the motive for firing this hypothetical brace of missiles. The attitude of such a civilization toward humanity would have to be one of four things:
- Irrelevant—that civilization was dying when it fired the missiles, and is now dead.
- Indifferent—having fired the missiles, they really don't care whether any of them landed intact or not, or whether any of them spawned a new civilization or not. But if so, then why bother with such a project? One can only imagine the sort of political debate that might have begun before the first launch-pad gantry crane was erected, and plagued the project for its duration. Such debates on alleged wastefulness ultimately curtailed Project Apollo, constantly threaten the abandonment of the International Space Station, and place the current plans for re-exploration of the moon by NASA in serious doubt. (They also invite disaster to themselves. Suppose, for instance, one of their "child" civilizations should decide to look for them and go to war with them to poach their technology, resources, and so on?)
- Friendly—that civilization plans a follow-up visit with a view to establishing trade and travel. Such a theory would no doubt have its appeal to non-believers hoping for a God-substitute to solve all the world's problems—which is a common theme in the science fiction of the twenty-first century. (Indeed, the intellectual heirs of Gene Roddenberry explicitly proposed a race of "Progenitors" who were ultimately responsible for the spawning of humanity, "Vulcankind," and all the other hundreds of races that Mr. Roddenberry and his successors conceived for the fictional Star Trek "universe".)
- Hostile—that civilization intended to create new planets for its own people to settle, in which case we are in the way, and "they" will follow up their life-seeding project with an expeditionary force consisting of warships. This theme pervaded the popular science fiction of the middle part of the twentieth century, especially in the early years of the Cold War between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
For all the attention that Drs. Crick and Orgel paid to the design of one of those missiles, and the stresses and radiation bombardment it must have had to withstand while in transit, they said absolutely nothing in consideration of motive. Without such predictions, one cannot even make a decent public-policy recommendation.
- ↑ Sarfati, Jonathan, Panspermia theory burned to a crisp: bacteria couldn't survive on meteorite, 10th October 2008 (Creation Ministries International).
- ↑ Crick, F. H. C., and Orgel, L. E. "Directed Panspermia," Icarus, 19, 341 (1973).


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The PsPrint Blog is a resource for graphic designers, freelancers, small business owners and fans of print marketing. You'll find helpful techniques on printing everything there is to print, including business cards, postcards, brochures, stickers, invitations, greeting cards, door hangers, magnets and more. The PsPrint Blog shares creative ways to improve your design and layout skills, and useful tips for marketing your business in any medium. We also like to have a little fun, sharing design inspiration and spotlighting some our favorite customers' printed pieces in our "Hot Off the Press" series.