text:
by Terry Hallman
27 April 2006
First and foremost, I want to point out very clearly to all readers that I am not picking on Ukraine. What is presented here is not unique to Ukraine. While it might appear that I'm singling out Ukraine, there's a converse and profound condition to be considered: I reveal this, in Ukraine, because I can. In the former Soviet Union, freedom to do such a thing is quite an accomplishment for a newly-independent country in and of itself. Thus, what I'm writing about, tragic and brutal though it is, should also be considered in that light. In Russia — which is now an absolutely different and distinct dictatorial political climate than Ukraine's passionate drive toward freedom, democracy, and ending corruption — I'd never be able to get away with this these days, I suspect. In Russia, I was threatened, harassed, poisoned, and imprisoned, for daring to speak out against corruption and human rights abuses. That's another story. Suffice to say that it should be to Ukraine's credit that what I'm writing about here can begin to be exposed to the world.
In 1998, Human Rights Watch brought post-Soviet "orphanages" to light in a report titled "ABANDONED TO THE STATE – CRUELTY AND NEGLECT IN RUSSIAN ORPHANAGES." Russia and the former Soviet Union were at that time practically ubiquitous, one and the same thing. Thus Russia could just as well have been Ukraine or any other former Soviet state. Russia was always top dog, the largest country, most natural resources, largest population, and last but not least, home to the Kremlin and the power masters who have resided there for centuries. What went for Russia went for Russia's "near abroad", particularly Ukraine where Russia took for granted control and ownership until recently. In short, substitute "Ukraine" for "Russia" in the report, and it's still essentially the same report.
HRW in 1998 noted at the beginning of their report
"It is a pity that a vise of secrecy and fear, reminiscent of Soviet times, has tightened around the isolated world of Russia's state orphanages. Many dedicated orphanage staff and foreign volunteers begged us not to reveal their names, or the institutions in which they worked. Russian workers, they said, would be fired for talking to an outsider. Foreign charity workers would be expelled from the institutions and the doors slammed on humanitarian assistance. This would further isolate the system which they felt a desperate need to improve. We have respected these requests."
and this:
"They're called children with no prospects, not trainable, not treatable. A colleague called these psychoneurological internaty 'death camps.' The situation there is terrible."
Then, there is this from a recent letter I received from a multinational Western research group in Ukraine just three weeks ago:
"When we arrived at the orphanage we were met by older children without coats, they were begging us to give things to them and not to the directors. It is very hard to write about the rest of this part of the trip. I cannot give a step by step account because we were all in a state of shock. We spoke to the director about our program and he told us that he knows the children need more but he said, "I cannot ask my workers to do more, they work very hard, clearing the road, shoveling snow, cleaning the floors and the children, they have not time, they must work very hard all day and then they must dig graves and bury children." What do you say to that?
"Still, the staff took us around to show us how it is. Words don't come to mind, most of our team was crying and could not stop. Dark hallways, screaming, children clustered together in freezing rooms, some in strait-jackets, haunted looking crying, asking if they were good, asking for food. Water dripping from the dark ceilings, mold everywhere. We held children who were 10 and 13 years old in our arms like infants. One team member said later that she never knew that humans are like fish and will only grow to the size of their environment. One team member threw up outside. Children never leave their beds in some rooms. These children are ages 4-16. In other rooms they leave to go to a room with just a bench and nothing else in it. They hold each other -rocking one another. I have never seen such deprivation and our photographer said it best when he said it was a concentration camp for children. Sorry, this is such a hard part to write but I looked in the eyes of many children who are dying. Their tiny bones fit into the palm of my hands. Their skeleton faces begging for help. No one in our team has really slept since. We talk about it but just end up in tears. I promised the orphanage staff we would come back with a team of people to help them. They are counting on it. The director told one team member that 20 years ago he asked for help there and the soviet minister came and visited. The visiting soviet minister told the director, 'why do you keep these animals alive? You can kill them, you know how to do it you are a doctor.' He never sent any money or aid to the orphanage."
I pleaded with the researcher to allow me to publish the full letter. The full letter, along with what I know and what HRW published in December 1998, would provide three entirely independent sources corroborating the same information. Request was refused on what the team deemed to be "ethical" grounds: they were sworn to secrecy immediately on arrival, and told that staff would fired and charity aid workers would be expelled and prevented from returning. That had already happened before, with aid organizations having been shut out for four years.
I don't know if I'm stretching ethics here or not. On the one hand, I am bound by confidentiality and respect for the Western team's work, as well as legitimate concern that everyone could be shut out entirely via mere mention of this information publicly. At the same time, silence will continue to prolong a deadly situation. What the Western team was told three weeks ago is exactly what the HRW team was told seven years ago. Obviously, perpetrating silence remains the status quo, and therefore nothing has changed. The Western team didn't know about the HRW report until after the fact, when I pointed it out to them last week. They're at least reconsidering their promise of silence, but feel bound by their own word — unwitting though it may have been — to keep silent. I hope that they will ultimately recognize that their overriding obligation is to their clients — kids in concentration camps, as they themselves put it — above the interests of people keeping their jobs and certain powers-that-be threatening to shut these kids off from any further help from the outside world. In the meantime, I'm trying to strike a fair balance between confidentiality and avoiding being a party to death by silence. I think I have a greater moral obligation to speak than to keep quiet.
There is a big mystery as to exactly why these kids and their Hell holes are being kept secret. There are several possibilities.
- Ukraine just can't afford to do more than let a lot of them die. Keeping it all secret prevents pressure for doing more, and avoids major embarrassment and humiliation in the court of international opinion.
- Knowledge as to how to treat the children medically is sorely lacking (and this is, in fact, a significant factor.)
- Ukraine is already spending more monies for far better care of these children than is actually being used directly for their care, but it's being diverted by corrupt officials.
Knowing what I know personally about how things work in the former Soviet Union, I suspect it's a mixture of all three of those factors. Consequently, and knowing what to expect from fighting with Russian parasites in the past, there would seem to be some real risk in speaking out. The biggest risk now in Ukraine is possible deportation, making it more difficult to help rescue these children. Someone has to speak out for these children, because there is no doubt whatsoever that many of them are going to die quiet, pitiful, unknown deaths in a part of the world that, with due credit, is finally learning to care about its darkest, most sinister secrets.
Part 2
In order to understand how to rescue these children, it is first necessary to understand the scope of the problem overall: how many children are in all orphanages in Ukraine?
A 2005 report from EveryChild, "FAMILY MATTERS: A Study of Institutional Childcare in Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union" (4MB PDF file), a UK-based childcare-reform charity organization, explains estimates from 40,000 to 80,000 in 2002. (page 17) Recent anecdotal information to P-CED Ukraine, a UK and Ukraine-based social enterprise, indicates 100,000 to 120,000 children in state institutional care as of 2006. P-CED Ukraine has researchers working to confirm those numbers, and/or to get precise current numbers according to Ukrainian officials. EveryChild also points out the difficulty in getting reliable statistics. (Ibid, page 15)
The purpose of getting an accurate count is to determine budget for rescue and solutions. EveryChild further notes that as of 2002, 600 hryvnia or $120 per month were budgeted for each child in a Ukrainian orphanage. (Ibid, page 34) It is not clear if that amount applied to the most conservative estimate of 40,000 population in orphanages, or the better estimate they propose as 80,000 population in 2002. Sources in south-central Ukraine, who are promoting foster-care as an exit solution for orphans, state that on average depending on a child's age, the equivalent of $256.50 per month per child is immediately available to Ukrainian foster families from Ukraine's budget. They further state that this amount is less than the amount Ukraine's budget per child for keeping children in a state-run orphanage. That in turn puts Ukraine's expenditure at $260 per month or more per child to keep them in orphanages. The question remains: how many children are officially accounted as living in orphanages to start with?
Based on personal experience of caring for and raising a child in Ukraine, $150 a month is sufficient to cover all but dire emergency needs such as a serious accident or catastrophic medical condition, in most locations in Ukraine. This is roughly in line with the $120 per month per child cited by EveryChild (above) for 2002. $260 per month cited by foster-care advocates above includes a small caretakers salary, yielding an average amount per child to a comfortable $190 per month.
More realistic stimates regarding total number of orphans range between 80,000 (in 2002) from EveryChild's research, and 100,000 or more from anecdotal evidence in 2006. If any error is to be made in first assessing the size of the population, it is better to estimate too high than too low, given that any budget applications will be on a per child basis as needed rather than one lump sum to be spent no matter what. In other words, it is better to have excess budget than insufficient budget in arranging first measures for nationwide assistance for all orphans.
Going with the $256 per month average amount per child allocated for foster care, and allowing for 100,000 children, that brings immediate budget equivalence of a little over $300 million per year. Going with the lowest numbers of $120 per month and 40,000 children yields about $60 million per year.
Even the lower of those amounts — $120 per month per child — is sufficient not only to prevent death camps, but also to keep children in reasonably good physical health albeit without the essential need of a loving family.
Obviously, there is something amiss.
Someone is scaring and intimidating, or have done so in the past, orphanage directors and staff into silence. That much is clear. Possibly it might be attributed to habituated paranoia, a common disorder among older post-Soviets. In that case, it is reasonable to predict that foes are only imaginary, and there is no longer anyone in place anywhere in Ukraine's government or system willing to harm orphanage staff for allowing public information of facilities.
In any case, we're talking fairly substantial amounts of funding for these children, on the order of $300 million a year. That amount is sufficient for much more than improving health and living conditions in orphanages. As EveryChild points out (Ibid, page 34), the estimated cost of keeping children in any home-type environment alternatives to orphanages is cheaper than keeping them in orphanages. These alternatives include small group homes, foster care, and adoption. This is not speculation, as the group-home alternative has been tried and proven in Russia's Samara region. Children were placed in group-home settings with professional caregivers attending to them as substitute parents.
An average amount of $256 per month per child, if accurate as existing budget allowance for foster care, provides sufficient budget to place most children in professionally-staffed group homes as the first interim measure, getting them out of orphanages entirely and rendering the existing orphanage system obsolete. From there, they can be phased into foster families as families become available, into adoptive families within Ukraine and, if necessary, abroad. This measure can be undertaken and implemented immediately, and in full within eighteen months.
The aim absolutely has to be getting orphans into loving, home environments. Group homes with ten children per home and four full-time staffers is a good start. In Samara, a Canadian doctor who monitored the transition told me that children's lives were turned around after removal to small group homes. In his words, "They bloomed and flourished" by comparison to their existence in orphanages.
In Ukraine, foster care and adoption are still new ideas and practices. It will take time for public attitudes to come to embrace those practices. Transition must therefore include continuation of public education, in order to give children even better family living possibilities beyond group homes. Group homes appear to be the first step logistically, because this can be accomplished fairly quickly and represents great relief from orphanage conditions. Every child needs a family, family structure, a place to call home, and people who can be relied upon to love them and guide them. The existence of death camps instead, presumably because some people feel that these children aren't worth loving – and possibly that funds intended to care for them are therefore better diverted to unknown private elsewheres– is the darkest possible statement against any pretense of civilization.
Part 3
This is what can be done and, indeed, what has to be done, for Ukraine's orphans.
As explained in Part 2, it is unclear how many orphans Ukraine has, and how much is being allocated in the annual national budget for their care. Getting that specific information is not a simple matter. Moreover, getting that information takes time, and results in further delay. Looking at it from the point of view of, God forbid, an uncooperative and intransigent government, merely hiding those statistics could be used as a delay tactic to put off any further action.
Therefore, I'm going with the following information as a start point for action.
I am allowing that there are 120,000 chidren in Ukrainian ophanages. I am further allowing that adequate support per child is in the amount of $150 per month, as indicated in update 1.
That dictates a total budget of $216 million per year solely for the children. Add in another $300 per month on average across Ukraine for one professional caretaker salary (four caregivers per ten children in new group homes of ten children per home/flat, 30,000 total caregivers) adds another $108 million per year, for total annual cost of $324 million per year. Add in 12,000 flats of sufficient size to take in 10 children each, at an average cost across Ukraine of $40,000 per flat (100 square meters), and the total comes to $804 million for year one. That translates to one-time cost of $480 million for flats, and an annual recurring cost of $324 million. These are simply the financial numbers that must be taken into account to give these chidren any possibility for a decent life. Otherwise, Ukraine's government must admit that these children are disposable, and sending them to either death or a life with almost no hope is official government policy.
There is no other way to interpret this situation. This is no longer a time for Ukraine's government to shirk this matter, or to play games with words and numbers.
Excuses won't work, particularly in light of a handful of oligarchs in Ukraine having been allowed to loot Ukraine's economy for tens of billions of dollars. I point specifically to Akhmetov, Pinchuk, Poroshenko, and Kuchma, and this is certainly not an exhaustive list. These people can single-handedly finance 100% of all that will ever be needed to save Ukraine's orphans. None of them evidently bother to think past their bank accounts, and seem to have at least tacit blessings at this point from the new regime to keep their loot while no one wants to consider Ukraine's death camps, and the widespread poverty that produced them..
It is to the credit of the new regime that, at least, one of the most glaring and egregious thefts of state property has been reversed vis-a-vis the reprivatization of Kryvorishtal Steel company. I argued on Maidan a year ago that this reprivatization was appropriate if the state could get at least $3 billion for the sale as a one-time windfall, then intake taxes annually on profits. Otherwise, it would be to the state's long-term advantage to hold the property as it produced a steady $600 million a year in profits. Akhmetov and Pinchuk, in an insiders' deal that was clearly rigged in their favor, had managed to pay only $800 million for the company in the initial privatization, a fraction of what it was really worth on the open market. When the reprivatization controversy was coming to a boil a year ago, speculation was that it might bring around $2 billion or maybe even as much as three times the rigged purchase price of $800 million. Nobody seemed to believe it could bring $3 billion dollars that I proposed as a minimum bid price. The actual price under what was widely hailed as an open, honest, and transparent bid and sale process: $4.8 billion, or six times what Akhmetov and Pinchuk paid.
Now Ukraine has an extra $4 billion in national budget just from that one correction alone. Which, in turn, is far more than enough to permanently solve Ukraine's orphanage problems as well as create a nationwide poverty relief program to prevent such problems in the future. Most of these kids come from situations deriving from poverty. This money should be put exactly where it belongs, helping people who have been left with little or nothing due to massive pilfering and looting of Ukraine's national wealth to start with. $4 billion represents only a small, partial recovery of misappropriated resources, but is enough to bring badly-needed relief. Roughly $800 million in year one is the largest expenditure for childcare reform, with annual recurring costs of about $325 million. If Ukraine's government gets serious about helping these kids in internats and death camps, it is very likely that large donor organizations will also be willing to help out.
These are secondary means of bringing humanitarian relief. But, the primary reasons why this problem even exists must not be overlooked. Those reasons have names, and a partial listing of those names is above.
In the next part, I will outline a nationwide poverty-relief program that will not only work, but also will for the most part pay for itself in a combination of generated revenues and cost-savings for Ukraine's national budget. Front and center, first and foremost: getting these kids out of Hell holes and into home-style environments..
Part 4
This update is primarily to outline solutions. At the same time, it is also necessary to at least mention ongoing barriers to those solutions.
From the previous update, the sheer magnitude and scope of orphanage problems becomes apparent: a projected cost of $800 million immediately for year one reform, and an annual recurring cost of about $325 million.
Ukraine has funding in such amounts as a result of only the Kryvorizhshtal sale. The US side has funding in such amounts in its Millennium Challenge Account, for which Ukraine will be soon be eligible in full – pending resolution of corruption issues. MCA has 15 metrics that a qualifying country must satisfy for eligibility, in addition to two primary criteria: democratic progress and bona fide market economy. Without these latter two criteria, the 15 metrics do not come into play. As of November 2005, Ukraine qualified on those two criteria along with most of the 15 metrics. Ukraine came in below median score on the corruption metric, and therefore must satisfy that metric prior to full eligibility for MCA funds. MCA funds, administered by Millennium Challenge Corporation or MCC, are intended for economic development in qualifying countries in order to expand economic growth and reduce poverty.
Further, World Bank has large funding available for development aimed at poverty relief and social benefit. World Bank has been around much longer than MCC, and is therefore much better known.
In both cases, MCC and World Bank, Ukraine needs to define projects that will generate revenue, with that revenue earmarked for further economic development and social benefit. This is assuming that Ukraine's government is able to satisfy the MCC corruption metric.
At this time, Ukraine alone has more than enough money to turn the orphanage situation around and get these children into family-like environments. However, it appears very unlikely that Ukraine's children are of such priority for Ukraine's government. This is perhaps a holdover from previous government, allowing that new government can move only so fast and cannot resolve every single critical issue in Ukraine in only sixteen months since coming to power. That is quite understandable. Furthermore, given widespread poverty in Ukraine and a multitude of social disorders – widespread ignorance and lack of education on HIV/AIDS; lack of corruption remedies and protections for ordinary citizens hit with graft, extortion, and demand for bribes from officials and from mafia; corresponding ongoing tendencies toward demanding that graft; government officials who still refuse to acknowledge problems with orphanages to begin with – it is easy to understand how and why children in death camps are not exactly at the top of governments agenda.
According to Mrs. Yushchenko, the orphanage problems can only be resolved by new legislation. According to people around Mrs. Yanukovich, Mrs. Yanukovich is taking "good care" of all children in orphanages in "her region" (Donetsk.) Which is not true. But, that's the Yanukovich home base, and that's where heavy propaganda over the years has persuaded most people to believe that the Yanukovich clan are taking good care of them, even their orphans.
It is not true.
Thus, two of the top political wives are either resigning child care to a legislature that doesn't seem to have gotten around to caring, or, are engendering public relations indicating that children are already being cared for very well. Yanukovich says nothing. Yushchenko, to his credit, at least chastised and reprimanded several regional governors – including in Kharkiv – recently for not coming up with plans to improve the lives of orphans.
The only significant factor preventing a total overhaul and reform of all orphanages in Ukraine is this: lack of political will, deriving from lack of basic human compassion for the children.
One top official in Lviv, often considered to be one of Ukraine's more progressive communities, reportedly stated earlier this year in response to foster families in Ukraine offering to take in and care for orphans "Let government take care of these children. Why would you want to burden yourself and your family?" In another region, officials were insulted that anyone would think children in orphanages are receiving anything less than the best of care. This unbridled ignorance and arrogance is, I believe, at the root of the problem for orphans in Ukraine.
Underlying the problem with orphans and children assigned to state institutional care is one main, common factor, which is poverty. Many of these children are in orphanages and similar institutions because their families cannot afford to care for them. (See extensive research from Every Child, cited in prior updates above.) Every Child suggests that as many as 90% of children might be returned to their birth families, if their families receive state support. That support amounts to less than the cost of keeping children in state care. Of all other options available, be it foster care, in-country adoption, or family-like group homes, state care is worst for children and most expensive. ANYthing else is less expensive, and almost always better for the children. Returning children to their birth families would appear to be the first, best option, even ahead of group homes. But, readjustment to home family life may very well be an issue. In that case, getting children into small, family-like group homes may indeed remain to first, best solution. From there, as they adjust to more normal life outside orphanages, they might transition on to their birth families, foster families, or adoptive families, if transition back to birth families aren't immediately feasible. If transition onward to any of those options are not possible – dysfunctional birth family, no birth family, not enough foster families, not enough adoptive families – small group homes are far better than warehouses (orphanages/internats/state institutions) and pose a healthier and lower costs long-term solution.
Overall, cost-savings alone, over time, will pay for most of the care programs. Thus, Ukraine's government can simply borrow money from World Bank, or get a large grant from US government (no other governments have this kind of money available in such quantity), implement the better, lower-cost programs, and repay any loans via cost savings from national budget. Ukraine's national budget and MCC's budget – after Ukraine becomes eligible for MCC funds – both have more than enough funding to support the transition from orphanages and so on to healthier home environments for Ukraine's abandoned children.
Additionally, there's the issue of the 10% of children in internats who do require special care for special needs, such as physical and mental handicaps. This percentage is likely to cost more, not less, due to opening new, specialized facilities to shelter them and adding in new staff with new education and training. That means new education and training programs along with new facilities. Increased costs for this segment will somewhat offset reduced costs for the 90% or so of children who can be transferred to home-style environments, but not nearly enough to offset cost savings entirely.
Thus, cost savings alone will pay for most of the home-style care program, also known as Ukraine's childcare reform program of 2006. To offset the remaining costs is a fairly simple matter: social enterprise.
Ukraine, at this crossroads in economic development, holds great potential for hundreds of new enterprises that stand to make tremendous profits in undeveloped economic sectors and sub-sectors. The telecom sector, for just one example, is grossly underdeveloped and limited mainly by less than five oligarchs who are preventing development to protect present and future profits only for themselves personally. They employ, pay, and bribe friends and allies as needed to prevent, delay, and control telecom development solely for their own benefit. Social concern and social benefit are nowhere in their equations. This gets back to Ukraine's corruption climate, which MCC and many other international observers have certainly noted. Further, developing the telecom sector, particularly deployment of high-speed, low-cost Internet that is the norm across Europe, the US, and east Asia (excepting North Korea), is an essential ingredient in Ukraine's overall economic development. This equation is extraordinarily simple: without such Internet access nationally for Ukraine, Ukraine's economic future in the Information Age is bleak. Ukraine's economy can and will develop according to information access for Ukraine's citizens. Without that access, Ukraine's economy will be much more limited, but enough to make a few very wealthy oligarch's even more wealthy. These people have no care or concern for Ukraine, or for ordinary citizens in Ukraine. They certainly do not care about children in orphanages, claims about such as Mrs. Yanukovich's efforts notwithstanding.
Consequently, the telecom sector and other sectors are wide open for development, with billions of dollars in profits to be had – if Ukraine surpasses its current and ongoing corruption albatross and develops its infant market economy further past its previous mafia/crony economy. Honest players can step in, go to work, invest, make money, and it takes only one or two social entrepreneurs in the mix to work hard in new business development and steer profits first toward the most crucial social benefit needs – such as children in death camps. This satisfies World Bank and MCC criteria, and puts billions of dollars in play for this purpose.
Part 5
From the first installation:
"There is a big mystery as to exactly why these kids and their Hell holes are being kept secret. There are several possibilities.
"1. Ukraine just can't afford to do more than let a lot of them die. Keeping it all secret prevents pressure for doing more, and avoids major embarrassment and humiliation in the court of international opinion.
2. Knowledge as to how to treat the children medically is sorely lacking (and this is, in fact, a significant factor.)
3. Ukraine is already spending more monies for far better care of these children than is actually being used directly for their care, but it's being diverted by corrupt officials."
Based on private communications since that 27 April post, most of my suspicions have been confirmed. The only exception is the very first sentence of item 1:
"Ukraine just can't afford to do more than let a lot of them die."
In fact, Ukraine CAN afford to do more than let these children die. To date, to this moment, Ukraine has not bothered to try.
That is a fact that I will defend with my life.
The why and wherefore behind that fact is a tale of neglect and horror indefensible in any presumably civilized country.
Unfortunately, by my reckoning to this moment — or perhaps fortunately by Grand Schemes I am merely incapable of grasping — I am the only person speaking publicly now who has comprehensive and detailed knowledge of those horrors as detailed multiple times to date, to me, "behind the scenes", said information having been graciously supplied by concerned parties who at this moment flatly refuse that I should make ANY of their information public.
Therefore, innocent children continue to die. How many today? I leave it to those who supplied information, but are too cowardly to go public, to wrestle with your conscience in answering that question. Don't tell me. I don't want to know, and I don't care. It is not my business to be your Father Confessor, your priest, the person to whom you confess your dark secrets to get them off your conscience.
From here forward, anyone who tells me anything must accept that it is the same as telling the world. I will no longer keep your secrets. Don't bother, don't try, don't ask. Your secrecy is contributing to this horror, not solving it. I've listened to every one of you, your defense of your secrecy positions. Most of it is hogwash.
Now, with that being said, we come to what must be done next given that virtually everyone who can help with corroborative detailed information wants to do so secretly, privately, without common knowledge.
I do not believe there are any remaining serious political interests in Ukraine capable or willing of further obstruction of open knowledge, and consequent solutions, for Ukraine's Death Camps For Children. Those include everyone I lambasted earlier, above. I don't think they have the heart or stomach for it, and I believe that the primary problem was of controlling oligarchs being distracted by increasing their own wealth rather than focus on helping Ukrainian citizens. That focus of increasing wealth did, however, serve to set a very negative precedent and example under Kuchma's Ukraine, wherein utterly corrupt officials in Ukraine's orphanage system were merely following the example of Dear Leader(s) from the top down. That was the problem, and that was perfectly acceptable and normal before.
100% of people who have contacted me with sensitive information now live outside Ukraine. Some are Ukrainians working or studying abroad, some are Ukrainian diaspora, none are in Ukraine now. Therefore, none have their finger on Ukraine's political pulse as someone such as myself who lives and works in Ukraine, who has done so for years, and who has an unmistakable, no-nonsense and absolutely uncompromising position against any and all forms of corruption within Ukraine. Active or passive corruption are both exactly the same thing, where the result in either case results in injury to, or death of, fellow human beings. From something I published many years ago, and which has stood the test of time:
"We have only to ask ourselves individually whether or not this is the sort of progress we want, where we accept consciously and intentionally that human progress allows for disposing of other human beings.
"This is a tricky question. Except in the case of self-defense, if for any reason we answer 'Yes', regardless of what that reason is, we are in effect agreeing with the proposition of disposing of human beings. Whether disposal be from deprivation or execution, the result is the same for the victim. If we agree that sometimes, for some reasons, it is acceptable and permissible to dispose of human beings, actively or passively, the next question is 'Which people?' Of course I will never argue that one of them should be me, though perhaps it should be you. You respond in kind, it cannot be you, but maybe it should be me. Not only can it not be you, it also cannot be your spouse, your children, your mother or father, your friends, your neighbors, but, maybe someone else. Naturally I feel the same way. Maybe we come to an agreement that it shouldn't be either you or me, or our families and friends, that can be disposed of, but perhaps someone else. While we are debating this — passionately and sincerely, no doubt — a third party comes along and without warning disposes of the both of us, or our families, or our friends. And there is the trap we have fallen into, because whether or not we approve of our or our families' and friends' demise is irrelevant. It is fair because we accepted the principle of human disposability. We just didn't intend that it be us who are tossed, but if we or our families and friends die, it is in accordance with principles that we ourselves have accepted and so must live — and die — by."
There is no room for allowing other human beings to be disposed of, whether actively or passively. Doing so defines anyone, as a person or as a nation, as one who approves and supports that other human beings are disposable and have therefore crossed the line of civilization. It is the passive cooperation in allowing any continuation of Ukraine's Death Camps, even if by well-intended people who simply don't know any better, that I must take exception to now.
I just happen to find myself in a cutting-edge political position in Ukraine now, having taken an absolute anti-corruption stance years ago and which serves quite well now in New Ukraine's political climate for which anti-corruption is the main anchor, and is quite stylish. In Russia, I nearly paid for the same position with my life. Operatives there merely failed in their attempt, and so I am alive now. But, no quieter than ever, no more afraid, and given Russia's courage to grant me a visa, I will return there within 24 hours if only to make the point that I am NOT afraid of their worst operatives. Without such fear, I believe that I am clear-eyed enough to recognize danger where it exists, and danger where it is merely imagined.
In Ukraine, at this moment, such danger is merely imagined, carried over by habituation from the prior regime where corruption throughout Ukraine was practically universal, absolute, and unchecked in all social and economic spheres. Again, there are no political forces in Ukraine who are able and willing to continue Ukraine's Death Camps. Silence among those who have knowledge but are now afraid to speak is a fatal illusion.
What needs to be done and what can be done has already been described in previous updates, above. I am now preparing an updated strategy plan, past the first one delivered to Ukraine's Ministry of Youth, Family, and Sports four months ago. This will be done without photos or any cooperation otherwise from anyone else, because everyone else who knows remains too afraid to speak. Photos would tell far more than my words, and my words alone may or may not be believed by funding organizations within or outside of Ukraine. I am well aware that even regional officials who are responsible for orphans' welfare honestly do not know of some of these death camps, due to silence and secrecy. Thus, if they don't know, how might it be possible to convince major funding to assist something that might just be imaginary for all but those who know from direct experience and observation that death camps are not imaginary, but are real, inhumane, and very deadly?
Nevertheless, I am bound to try, and will do my best to convince major funding to help these children that everyone else is afraid to speak about. It's all I can do.


text:
Should you be worried about circovirus for your dog?
Should you be worried about circovirus for your dog?
Circovirus is a small but potentially deadly virus that has mutated from an illness affecting birds and pigs. It was identified through routine genetic screening of dogs for new viruses in June of 2012, and was found in 2.9 percent of serum of the dogs tested. It was also found in the feces of 14 out of 204 healthy dogs (Kapoor et al 2012).
The virus has been identified in only some of the canines that have become ill in California, Ohio and Michigan. It was initially thought that this virus was killing dogs across the country, now it is not certain if the circovirus is the causative agent.
According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, disease experts no longer think circovirus was the causative agent in Ohio; but they still are investigating cases in Ohio and Michigan.
What should you be watching for? Symptoms are similar to parvovirus and include vomiting, diarrhea, low energy and low appetite; this virus can also affect blood vessels causing inflammation and bleeding. It is spread in close contact situations such as kenneling, dog parks, etc. It may also be spread through contact with vomit or diarrhea from an ill canine.
Currently, there is no vaccine, and testing can take weeks.
If you suspect your dog is sick, the most important thing you can do is to seek veterinary treatment right away. Disinfect surfaces with a 10 percent bleach solution. Thorough hand sanitation also is important.
Depending on the degree of illness, supportive care with intravenous fluids and medications could be recommended.
It is not clear whether circovirus will become an epidemic. Remember, this virus has been found in healthy dogs as well. This virus can coexist with other illnesses.
There is still a lot to learn about this newly identified virus ,but prevention methods and regular veterinarian visits can only help your dog's health.
Julie Damron is a veterinarian at Sierra Veterinary Clinic in Stockton. Contact her at firstname.lastname@example.com.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Links to sites starting with W
Home - Members Area - Join Here - Links - Contact - Follow @Bhowani1
The home of Bhowani's bondage archive - 10 years of Bhowani bondage.
The site will be updated at least three times a week with some of the most iconic bondage images on the web.
A great low-cost way to access Bhowani's vast archive of bondage photography. Join today from less than 37c per day.


text:
gross(redirected from Groß)
Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Legal, Financial, Idioms, Encyclopedia.
coarse or large; visible to the naked eye.
Ludwik, 20th-century U.S. oncologist. See: Gross virus, Gross leukemia virus.
Coarse or large; large enough to be visible to the naked eye; macroscopic.
[L. grossus, thick]
1. coarse or large.
2. visible to the naked eye without the use of magnification.
Etymology: OFr, gros, large
1 macroscopic, as in gross pathology; the study of tissue changes without magnification by a microscope.
2 large or obese. Compare microscopic.
Coarse or large; large enough to be visible to the naked eye.
[L. grossus, thick]
coarse or large; visible to the naked eye.
gross energy
total energy of a feed as measured by direct calorimetry.
gross income
total income before costs have been deducted.
gross margin
total returns from an enterprise minus the variable costs incurred by the enterprise.


text:
Nguyen Nguc Phuong is 33 years of age and a confident, articulate public speaker – comfortable on a podium in front of an audience. He is resourceful and self-motivated, as seen in his decision to leave school at 16 and relocate to Vietnam's largest city, Ho Chi Minh City, to learn to be a mechanic and an electrician.
Nguyen later returned to his hometown of Danang, one of Vietnam's touristy cities, and opened his own repair shop. However, after seeing the impact of Agent Orange – a defoliant sprayed by the U.S. military during the Vietnam War to destroy the crops and jungle upon which the Viet Cong relied for food and cover – he decided he wanted to volunteer his time to help the children born mentally or physically handicapped due to the herbicide's tragic and grotesque effects.
"I wanted to become a teacher to do something for them," he says, pointing out to over 40 children and teenagers at the Danang Peace Village – a center run by the Danang Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin to care for children and teenagers affected by Agent Orange.Enjoying this article? Click here to subscribe for full access. Just $5 a month.
But Nguyen's story is not typical of a thirty-something bored with a day-job and seeking a socially-responsible career break.
Nguyen Nguc Phuong's father fought in central and southern Vietnam for 10 years up to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, and sometime, somewhere along the way, came in contact with some of the 76 million liters of Agent Orange that was sprayed on the Vietnamese countryside up.
As a result, Nguyen is only 95 centimeters (a little over 3 feet) tall and weighs in at a meager 20 kilograms (approximately 44 pounds). "My sister is the same size like me" he says. "When I was born I weighed only 800 grams and was less than 20cm long."
"I was very angry because I did not know when I was younger why I was left like this. I wanted, I still want, to be a normal person but I know I am not in a good condition," says Nguyen. "The salary is very little here but I don't care, I know the center doesn't have much money," he says. "But I want to help the other kids who are worse off than I am and help them have a better future."
Some of Nguyen's colleagues share similar stories. Now 24, Hoang Kim Nguyen lifts a blouse sleeve to show blotchy, discolored arms. "I don't know why I have this," she says, "but my mother worked at Danang airport during the war so I guess it is from Agent Orange."


text:
The link above will take to actual stories with photos and other links.
April 2018 e-News
WVM James Megellas Gallery at King Opens
With an expansive remodel complete, the Wisconsin Veterans Museum celebrated the grand re-opening of the James Megellas Gallery on April 20.
The interactive museum (take virtual tour here), which covers the rich history of military members from Wisconsin, is housed at the Wisconsin Veterans Home at King in its Marden Center. The museum includes stories and artifacts from Veterans who served in United States-involved conflicts from the Civil War until today.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of the museum at King brought dozens of members from the community and members at the home….
Volunteering for Veterans
April is National Volunteer Month, a time for us to recognize the incredible work volunteers perform across the nation.
Across the WDVA's three Veterans homes, almost 600 volunteers combined to put in more than 43,000 hours within the last year! Thank you to those volunteers who help care for our nation's heroes every day. Your gracious work is immeasurable and appreciated.
In this month's Field Report article, learn about our wonderful volunteers and read about the excellent work they do for our nation's heroes… Read more »
Governor Walker Signs Bill to Expand WDVA Program for Homeless Veterans
On April 16, Governor Scott Walker signed into law legislation that allows WDVA to expand its Veterans Outreach and Recovery Program that connects with at-risk military Veterans who may suffer from mental or addiction afflictions and helps them gain the necessary skills to transition back to a healthy, sustainable lifestyle.
One of those programs is with Viterbo University's Nutrition and Dietetics program. Interns at Viterbo pair up with Veterans and teach them valuable cooking skills… Read more »
Please take 5 minutes to complete this survey of military veterans in Wisconsin about business and entrepreneurship.
If you complete the Survey.vet research you will be entered into a drawing of $20 and $50 Amazon gift cards to thank you for participating.
This research was inspired by the need for better data about veterans and is designed to develop a deeper understanding of their business and entrepreneurship interests, needs, and aspirations.
More than 100 military Veterans gathered at VFW Post 305 in Eau Claire on March 29, 2018 to honor and welcome home those who served during the Vietnam War.
The event featured Medal of Honor recipient Gary Wetzel and speeches from Governor Scott Walker, Secretary Dan Zimmerman, former Secretary Col. Ray Boland, Maj. Gen. Don Dunbar of the Wisconsin National Guard and Bee Yang of the Wisconsin Lao Veterans of America. View Event Photo Gallery.
The Women Veterans Retreat has been scheduled for June 8, 2018 at Trinity Equestrian Center in Eau Claire. Details coming soon.
Also, don't forget to mark your calendar for the May 17th Cocktails with a Curator, a FREE happy-hour event with Wisconsin Veteran Museum curators sharing several jam-packed entertaining stories showcased in our galleries.
In the meantime, follow us on Facebook and Twitter for up-to-minute updates on these and and other events!
About the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs
The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs works on behalf of Wisconsin's veterans community — veterans, their families and their survivors — in recognition of their service and sacrifice to our state and nation. For more information,visit www.WisVets.com.


text:
If you've never used a Lensbaby before, they almost seem like a mysterious kind of secret, something unique and totally different.
This is how I felt before I joined in on the fun about nine months ago.
Lately I've found more and more people experimenting with them, and loving them. They bring something fresh and new to images and they are not expensive compared to most lenses.
I remember being totally intrigued with them before I got mine, from how they work technically to how you attach them to the camera. There's a great deal of information on the Lensbaby website, but really the only way to explore a Lensbaby is to get your hands on one and have a go.
Lensbaby lenses attach directly onto your camera body and there are eight interchangeable optics that can be easily removed or replaced with one another. Each of these optics give you slightly different effects.
The lenses are built to bend, as much or as little as you wish, which is what gives you the tilt shift effect. I own the Composer Pro with double glass Optic and the Sweet 35 Optic. I couldn't tell you which I prefer, both are uniquely fun in their own way and I like to switch them around depending on my mood and the image that I'm creating.
These images were taken earlier this year using the double glass optic. I love the ethereal feel that this lens gives to the images, it almost takes them into another realm.
There is definitely a learning curve when using a Lensbaby and one of the things that I found when first using one, is that I shot more frames then I usually would. As time went on and I became more familiar and comfortable with it, I found myself shooting less frames, but it's just something that improved with practice.
I also take the time to stop and look in the viewfinder after the first few frames and especially if I bend the lens – I want to make sure that focus is still falling on my subject and each time you bend the tilt shift part of the lens, this can change.
I would recommend when practicing at first, not bending the lens too much, you'll still get a lovely blurry background and it's easier to keep focus on your subject.
Practice is the key with Lensbaby, the more you practice the better you get. I've found this to be true of everything photography related but the slightly more unpredictable nature of a Lensbaby or a tilt shift makes this even more necessary. For me, the practicing and experimenting is the fun part.
Another great way to practice is to use objects that don't move. This allows you to get used to the lens, without worrying about focusing on moving subjects. These were taken using my double glass optic.
Capturing children with a Lensbaby
One of my favourite ways to use a Lensbaby is capturing my kids. The fantastic tilt shift effect of the lens just enhances that dreaminess and playfulness that we often associate with childhood. It allows me to focus completely on my subject, leaving the background very soft and smudgy.
It's absolutely possible to get a nice sharp subject with a lens baby but I have to admit, moving children are not the easiest subjects in the world. I've adopted a pretty relaxed attitude when using the combination of kids and the Lensbaby because sometimes I get images like this:
And other times I get images like this:
I try not to get hung up about the whole focus thing, because if I did, I'd miss moments like these, and I love them every bit as much. Having fun with the Lensbaby is really what matters to me and why I reach for it as often as I do.
Whenever I'm feeling in a rut, or just uninspired, this is my lens of choice. Lensbaby takes me out of the everyday, out of the ordinary and allows me to take my images just that little bit further.
sponsored giveaway!
Congratulations to Melanie who said, "I love those ethereal looking shots! Beautiful! I would love to have one. What a fun Christmas gift that would be!" on being the random winner! I will email you soon about claiming your new lensbaby!
We'd like to say a huge thank you to Lensbaby for sponsoring today's blog post! They have so generously donated a Composer Pro with Sweet 35 to one random commenter on today's post. How awesome is that?! Simply comment on this post before next Tuesday December 11th at 12pm EST to enter to win. We'll be back here on Tuesday to update the article with the winner. Good luck and please share with your friends so they have a chance too!


text:
The widespread protests across the Middle East and northern Africa in last year's "Arab Spring" were often viewed as the awakening of a critical region to the virtues of democracy.
And they may have had something to do with that.
But a paper by three New England-based researchers suggests the coordinated timing of all these protests was caused by something far more simple:
Skyrocketing food prices.
When food prices hit a certain critical level, Marco Lagi, Karla Z. Bertrand, and Yaneer Bar-Yam show, people tend to turn to violence--because their desperation hits a level at which they have nothing left to lose.
As the chart below shows, the Arab Spring protests, along with earlier protests in the region, coincided with two huge peaks in global food prices.
Food prices have dropped modestly since the spring of 2011, but the long-term trend is up. Lagi, Bertrand, and Bar-Yam plot the long-term trend of rising food prices and conclude that we'll hit the flashpoint again by August of 2013.
Here's the key exhibit from the paper, which plots a measure of global food prices (the FAO Food Price Index) in black and the timing of various protests in red lines. The chart shows how many of the recent protests coincided with the breach of a specific level of food prices. The numbers in parentheses following each country are the number of deaths. (Click chart for larger).
As an updated look at the FAO index shows, food prices have dropped modestly from the critical levels of last spring, both in nominal and real (adjusted for inflation) terms. (Click chart for larger).
But Lagi, Bertrand, and Bar-Yam also plot the long-term upward trend in food prices. They conclude that, on an inflation-adjusted basis, the critical level will be breached again in the summer of 2013.
Here's the conclusion from their paper (click to enlarge):
SEE ALSO: GRANTHAM: We're Headed For A Disaster Of Biblical Proportions


text:
State of Nebraska UTM
THE STATE OF NEBRASKA is divided by the Universal Transverse Mercator grid into three zones (see map below). DRGs have been placed into respective zones with a different origin, different false origin, and different central meridian. To edge match DRGs placed in different zones, the user must project to a common zone.
MOST DRGs for Nebraska will be found between longitude 96 degrees and 102 degrees west and place into Zone 14.
ZONE 15 covers only a small portion of southeastern Nebraska; that area between 90 and 96 degrees west longitude.
ZONE 13 covers the Nebraska panhandle region; that area between 102 and 108 degrees west longitude.


text:
About us
OnTheLevel Productions is your one-stop agency for all things online. Our team has expertise in key areas such as business requirement analysis, web development and design, and can provide you with the technical solutions that your business requires.
Our experience in areas such as social networks, mobile and e-commerce, combined with great customer support make us unique.
Contact us and let us know about your business requirements and what technical solutions we can offer, we are here to help.


text:
Save up to 40% on your winter reservations. Why not book your winter vacation while the savings are here? You'll ski and save when the powder hits! These unprecedented discounts will happen just one time. Guaranteed!
- Reservations must be made via phone only. Not available anywhere else.
- Call our Vacation Planners beginning at 8 a.m. on Monday, September 10 for this special sale.
- Flash Sale reservations can be made 8:00am – 8:00pm daily, Monday September 10th through Friday September 14th. Nightly minimums and unique cancellation & deposit policies apply.
- Regular Winter Season 2012-2013 (November 21-April 30, 2013, except for Holiday Season and President's Week): 40% off for 3 or more nights
- Holiday Season. (December 21, 2012-January 5, 2013): 30% off (Valid for Deluxe Studio Condominiums only December 26-31, 2012)
- President's Week (February 15-23, 2013): 30% off
Flash Sale Deposit & Cancellation Policies: Two night deposit is due at time of reservation. Non- refundable balance is due 60 days prior to arrival.The entire reservation amount is non-refundable within 60 days of arrival. No Exceptions. Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance offered and encouraged. Changing dates, shortening stay or downgrading to a smaller condominium is not allowed after final payment is made.There are no refunds for late arrivals, early departures or no shows.
*Winter Flash Sale subject to change and availability. May not be combined with any other offer


text:
President Barack Obama's school modernization plan could mean more than $2.8 billion for California's K-12 education system and another $1.13 billion investment for modernizing facilities at the state's community colleges, according to a fact sheet release by the White House on Tuesday.
A day after pitching his $447 billion jobs proposal to Congress, Obama traveled to Ohio on Tuesday to focus on how his plan will help rebuild and modernize schools across the country.
The president is proposing to invest $25 billion to modernize at least 35,000 schools nationwide, and another $5 billion for modernization at community colleges. The funds can be used for a range of emergency repair and renovation projects, greening and energy efficiency upgrades, asbestos abatement and removal, and modernization efforts to build new science and computer labs and to upgrade the technology infrastructure in our schools, according to a fact sheet provided by the White House.
The proposal ensures that the nation's schools in need of most repair can make necessary enhancements, by dedicating $10 billion toward 100 of the largest local education agencies. LAUSD, the largest public school system in California and the second largest public school district in the nation is on that list and stands to receive $743 million.
The school modernization funds are part of the president's larger American Jobs Act, a bill designed to jumpstart economic growth and job creation. The money would fund a range of critical repairs and needed renovation projects that would put hundreds of thousands of Americans – construction workers, engineers, maintenance staff, boiler repair and electrical works – back to work, according to the Obama Administration. The $2.8 billion investment for California's K-12 school infrastructure is expected to create 36,000 construction jobs.
The president's spending plan faces an ongoing political fight in Congress. On Monday, Obama proposed offsetting the price tag of his jobs plan by increasing taxes for the nation's highest earners and oil and gas companies starting in 2013. Those tax increases have been repeatedly rejected by Congressional Republicans.
The American Jobs Act requires funds to be spent by Sept. 30, 2012, an effort to encourage shovel-ready projects to begin right away.
Click here to find out where LAUSD and California allocations compare to the rest of the nation.
Follow NBCLA for the latest LA news, events and entertainment: Twitter: @NBCLA // Facebook: NBCLA


text:
Perhaps the most fascinating pick of the NFL draft was the third. More fascinating was the process that led to the pick. This is the story of how Blake Bortles became a Jaguar.
The Jaguars are 0-8. General manager Dave Caldwell is starting to think about the possibility of having the first pick in the draft. And he is staring at his quarterback depth chart. Blaine Gabbert. Chad Henne. Ricky Stanzi. Denard Robinson, if you call him a quarterback. Matt Scott on the practice squad. The future leader of the Jaguars offense has to be somewhere else.
So Caldwell looks wherever passes were thrown on college campuses, from Washington to Miami. At this time of the college season, Central Florida, just a couple hours from Caldwell's home, is starting to make some noise. The Knights nearly beat 12th-ranked South Carolina behind a big, strong-armed quarterback named Blake Bortles, who throws for a career-high 358 yards. Hardly anybody heard of the name a couple months earlier, but Caldwell had. Then Central Florida upsets No. 8 Louisville when Bortles leads the Knights on an 11-play drive, concluding with a game-winning touchdown pass with 23 seconds left. Teddy Bridgewater, the highest rated quarterback by almost every draft expert, is sitting on the sidelines watching. In the two minutes, 33 seconds it takes to go 75 yards, Bortles becomes somebody.
It is not even Halloween, but already Bortles hovers at the top of Caldwell's list of quarterbacks. "We were scouring quarterbacks not only in this year's class, but next year's class too," Caldwell says. "We always stay a year ahead of that. I felt all along that if he went back to school, he'd probably be the first pick in the draft next year."
Jaguars scouts convene for personnel meetings. They discuss every player on their draft list. Through the college season, Caldwell never speaks of his attraction to Bortles. Not to head coach Gus Bradley. Not to college scouting director Kyle O'Brien. Not to team owner Shad Khan. Not even to his wife Joelle. What's more, he tells his coaches not to discuss prospects with scouts. He asks offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch not to talk about quarterback ratings with QB coach Frank Scelfo. "I didn't want to influence anyone, or for anyone to be influenced by anyone else," he says. "I wanted guys to come back with their own evaluations and see if we could find a consensus. They came back with a consensus [that Bortles] was the best quarterback for our system."
Whenever someone asks him about Bortles, he is reticent. "I'm a little superstitious," he says. "I didn't even want to say his name, to be honest with you."
He is quietly pleased, however, when Jaguars scouts mention Bortles' name and attach high grades to it. After the meeting, the Jaguars assign a crosscheck scout to study Bortles. He never has seen Bortles previously and rates him the best quarterback in the draft. Later, when coaches become involved in the process, each of them will identify Bortles as their favorite.
The Jaguars also start running analytics on prospects. Senior vice president of football technology Tony Khan has some interesting discoveries about Bortles, including that the quarterback excelled in adjusted completion percentage, which STATS lists at 68.99. Khan presents Caldwell with numbers that demonstrate Bortles' productivity under pressure. Analytics also show Bortles was very efficient in keeping drives alive on third down.
Also significant are statistics that highlight Bortles' ability to make plays outside the pocket. On tape, Jaguars scouts see a player who can get outside the tackle box and retain his focus downfield, not losing track of his progressions. The numbers confirm his ability in this area. "For our system, we want a combination of a guy who can create outside the pocket, but also who can stand in the pocket and deliver with pressure in his face," Caldwell said. In the minds of Jaguars decision makers, this combination of abilities is separating Bortles from other top available quarterbacks.
Postseason circuit
While other top quarterback prospects decide not to throw at the combine, Bortles embraces the challenge. He does everything else, too, running the 40-yard dash (4.90) and doing the vertical jump (32½), broad jump (9-6), 20-yard shuttle (4.21) and three cone (7.08). "Knocked it out of the park," Caldwell says.
At Central Florida's pro day on March 19, two days after Bridgewater bombs at his pro day, Bortles goes yard again. Bortles sufficiently impresses a contingent of some 70 evaluators, representing 27 NFL teams. When a sweat-soaked Bortles is finished and starts to walk off the field, Bradley abruptly ends an interview session to run up to him and shake his hand.
At each event, Bortles' personal skills also are impressive. He shows up to EverBank Field for his pre-draft visit with the Jaguars, on April 10, and recognizes Caldwell, Bradley, Shad Khan, Tony Khan, Fisch and Scelfo, addressing each by name.
Draft time
It's the week of the draft, and Caldwell has yet to tell anyone Bortles is his man. Finally, two days before the draft, he breaks down and tells his wife. No one else outside the building knows, and his scouting staff still does not know. Even Bortles has no clue how much he is coveted.
Through the draft process, many of Caldwell's trusted friends on other teams have told him, unsolicited, how much they think of Bortles. He is comforted to know they see the same value in Bortles that he sees. He says some of his friends from other teams tell him Bortles is rated the fourth- or fifth-best player on their boards at any position.
Still, few expect Bortles will be chosen so high. His critics say he has not had sustained success, that his footwork and fundamentals are crude, that he is not NFL-ready.
One of the lessons Caldwell carries from his old bosses in Indianapolis, Bill Polian and Dom Anile, is to check all of the boxes before you use a high draft choice on a player. Caldwell goes through the process. Size: check. Athleticism: check. Arm strength: check. Productive: check. High character: check. Intelligent: check. Leadership ability: check. Tough: check. Competitive: check. Passionate: check. Durable: check. Upside: check. This, he believes, is a clean prospect.
"I had to watch every play he made about 24 times over the last eight months," he says. "I don't understand what people were picking apart on him. Look, he's not perfect. I think you get caught up when you are picking high that he has to be the next Andrew Luck or Peyton Manning or even Matt Ryan. If you go into it with that mindset, you will miss out on some good quarterbacks. He doesn't have to be those guys. If he is the best he can be, that's going to be pretty darned good."
Caldwell considers a trade down, but with five teams in the top 11 in need of a quarterback, he decides against it. "I know he was very highly rated on a couple teams' boards," Caldwell says. "We got the word there was a team a couple picks behind us that really wanted him. I really don't know what that team was thinking. But the risk for us wasn't worth it."
On Thursday night in the Jaguars draft room, Caldwell talks into a speakerphone to a team representative in New York. "What I need you to do is fill out a card with this name," he says, while standing between Khan and Bradley. "It's Blake Bortles." Then he turns to the room. "You guys all okay with that one?" Says Bradley, "Let's do it, man."
Post draft
The first press conference questions for Caldwell are about weighing the present versus the future. In his pre-draft press conference six days prior, Caldwell had said Johnny Manziel was the most NFL-ready quarterback. Now, he is upfront about the third pick in the draft being a developmental player. He acknowledges the Jaguars are in a marathon, not a sprint.
"We don't think he's ready to play," he says the next day. "And we are going to go with Chad [Henne] this year. We feel good about what he can do for our team this year, and Blake will be ready to play in 2015."
A plan already is in place to bring along Bortles methodically. He will get extra work on the field and in the classroom, in the offseason and in training camp. Even during the season, he will get an inordinate amount of seven-on-seven reps, and coaches and receivers will spend time working with him after practice.
It is rare for an owner to have the patience to wait for fruit to ripen. It is unusual that a head coach would be on board with passing up the potential of an immediate impact player, like pass rusher Khalil Mack or wide receiver Sammy Watkins. What enables the pick of Bortles is Khan's long-term vision. The organizational stability in Jacksonville, in stark contrast to the organizational instability that awaits Manziel in Cleveland, leads them to Bortles.
"We feel like we're making headway and going in the right direction, but we're not one player away," Caldwell says. "We're not one receiver away, one defensive end away. We feel if we can solidify the quarterback position, that's huge for 10, 12 years down the road. And when you evaluate quarterbacks, they aren't making 6-5, 240-pound quarterbacks very often who are very athletic and have the production and arm strength that Blake has."
It took a lot of time and effort just to get to chapter one of Bortles' career in Jacksonville. But you might want to kick off your shoes and settle in. It looks like it's going to take a while to get through this book.


text:
There was this one house I lived in, a very large old victorian in San Francisco, near the hospital by Haight street. The building seemed to be some kind of annex to the hospital, perhaps at one time housing staff or patients who were doing somewhat better or maybe even dying, but it was now just a place for people to rent rooms in.
It wasn't like a hotel or anything though, just a series of rooms, too many to comprehend. I lived there for several months and never went up the stairs. There were people there I had never even met. The house kept going and going.
I had dreadlocks then, and barely washed, mostly because the bathroom terrified me. The shower floor was slick with a green slime that had grown from years of use without being cleaned. The shower water would only nourish the mildew and mold like it was a sprinkler watering the grass underneath my feet. I felt dirtier after showering and so I just never went in there. I made do in my own room and washed my body piecemeal, feet then head then other parts when needed. I could do this because my room had a small sink and mirror.
I also had a television and there was this extremely beautiful but mysterious and thin couple who lived at the front of the house, and who I believe I did the renting from – I don't even remember their names, but they kind of went together, like "fee" and "fo" or "di" and "doe" would sometimes be sitting on my futon watching shows, which I didn't mind but I'd also wish that when I came home late at night they'd stay and keep watching with me rather than skittering quickly out of the room like elegant but insecure cats.
I paid $125 a month, usually in cash and the money would disappear into the giant armholes of a green or grey sweater. Once I saw a little girl down in the hallway across from the scary bathroom, and I said hi, and she didn't say anything and I just went in my room. It was weird because later I found out there were no children who lived there or visited.
I think about that house and I have driven by it and I wonder who or what is in there now. I left the television behind when I moved because I was determined to be on it rather than watch it and I guess that is what happened.
I wonder about that couple.
I wonder if that was a little girl I saw.
Omg the lights just went out here. Seriously.


text:
Swipe for more images
Tap twice to zoom
Ref. #: 25829PT.OO.0944PT.01
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Openworked Perpetual Calendar
Ref. #: 25829PT.OO.0944PT.01
Consult with a Darakjian jewelry expert
Selfwinding perpetual calendar watch indicating the day, date, moon phases, month and leap years. 950 platinum case, transparent dial, 950 platinum bracelet. Availability to be confirmed.
- - Extra-thin movement
- Suspended barrel
- Shake of the oscillating weight garanteed thanks to annular ring running on four jewels. Manual finishing of the bridges (polished bevels, satinbrushed edges, Perlage on the recesses)
- Hand crafted decorative engravings on oscillating weight componants
- Moonphase made with Physical Vapor Deposited metal onto sapphire
- Oscillating weight can be custom decorated upon customer's request
About Audemars Piguet
Founded in 1875 by Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet in the Swiss village of Le Brassus, Audemars Piguet is the oldest Manufacture of Haute Horlogerie never to have left the hands of the founding families. Today, its range encompasses complex mechanical watches, Haute Joaillerie creations as well as a line of jewelery. At each stage in its history, the Manufacture has daringly adopted avant-garde techniques in order to place them in the service of traditional craftsmanship. This approach has earned it an unparalleled number of world firsts in the field of Haute Horlogerie.


text:
Suppose we define an arbitrary field extension $K/F$ to be Galois if, for all subextensions $L$ of $K/F$, we have $K^{\operatorname{Aut}(K/L)} = L$. In words: for any element $x$ of $K \setminus L$, there exists an automorphism $s$ of $K$ such that $s(l) = l$ for all $l$ in $L$, but $s(x) \neq x$. (Note that in case $K/F$ is algebraic, this is indeed a characteristic property of Galois extensions.) What are the transcendental Galois extensions?
In my rough notes Transcendental Galois Theory, I show that if $F$ has characteristic $0$ and $K$ is algebraically closed, then $K/F$ is Galois in the above sense. [Actually, these notes are somewhat incomplete. Having been unable to complete the proof of the conjecture below, I left out some of the more straightforward details. If anyone wants to see more detail on anything in these notes, please let me know.]
I also conjectured: if $K/F$ is Galois, then either $K/F$ is algebraic, normal and separable, or $F$ has characteristic $0$ and $K$ is algebraically closed. Is this true?
Comment: It is easy to see that if $K/F$ is not algebraic, then $K$ must have characteristic $0$. It is possible to modify the question a bit so that the positive characteristic case is not ruled out, but I would like to understand what's going on in characteristic $0$ first!
In my notes, I show that an affirmative answer follows from a certain (arguably) less weird conjecture about Galois closures of subfields of rational function fields. If there is any interest, I will reproduce this conjecture here explicitly.


text:
I am preparing a speech and video to rebut Peter Hitchens' four reasons why religion is not only good for society, but essential. [yeah that Hitchens, Christopher's ardently Christian right wing brother] I could use some suggestions and help in preparing my case against the following.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
Views: 418
Some things are so obviously stupid that they don't need rebuttal!
Apparently not obvious to some...
1) Religion is, and always has been, the most effective vehicle through which absolutism and dictatorship function. It has been the validation for nearly every absolute monarchical system that is known of (the divinely anointed monarch etc. is well supported historically and can still be seen). Secular power and oppression can be broken down and opposed with relative ease, whereas absolutist power over a religious population can only be challenged if people are willing to evoke the "wrath of God" and eternal punishment in Hell. Furthermore, in a religious country the moral code can, and usually will, be hijacked and monopolised by religious institutions, which will erode the will of the people to rebel against that which is instinctively unappealing, since such action will defy moral edicts. Essentially, religion has the ability to provide power more effectively than any secular institution. This can easily be seized by the wilful and unscrupulous and used for interest of a minority.
2) The rule of law will always be in the interest of the majority of people, since a lawful society promotes long term commerce and growth, and provides security. The law of religion is highly undesirable as it offers no scope for revision as times and opinions change. This will, of course, be the case, since once "God has dictated laws", these then cannot be challenged by humans without challenging God's authority. Peter Hitchen's point is blind to the historical record, which clearly reveals that long before the establishment of religion as we now know it (that is, religions which monopolise the moral codes of nations) law was effectively upheld, and indeed was very much like conventional law (no killing, theft, etc.) Classical Greece and Rome (which did not have godly moral dictates) are good examples of this.
3) Religion may restrain the hand to some extent; however, there is no guarantee that the hand is being guided by sensible moral parameters. Indeed, if the claims of many 'original' religious texts are followed, they would dictate actions that would be condemned by today's standards. If, as many claim, these are now viewed as redundant, then there is no set of rules by which to determine how one should and shouldn't act. Religion is barren in this respect. There are more points on this, but ultimately it is in the interest of the powerful to consider the people, else they are unlikely to remain in power for long. Religion is actually likely to make it easier for rulers to act cruelly, but with impunity, since it will provide godly justification for their actions.
4) Once again, he presents a dangerous conception of religion. In assuming that religions should have the power to dictate moral absolutes, he leaves no room for revision of doctrine as times advance and understanding develops. If for example society had adhered to the set of laws "given unto Moses", we would not have been able to alter our moral code since. Hence it would still be punishable by death to commit many "atrocities" that are now part of everyday life. The question should be put to Peter Hitchens of where we can find these moral absolutes. Should we take them from the Bible, the Koran, or some random preacher? And if we select the wrong set, what then? If we try to change that set of rules, and create a new religious code (as has been done many times), we undermine the idea that there is any such thing as a moral absolute. The truth is that the "moral absolutes" of religion are so flimsy and have been altered so many times that the very notion has lost all credibility. I'm not sure of his beliefs, but unless he really thinks that moral laws are given to humans by God/s (which he probably doesn't), he must believe that they are created by humans in the first place. This being the case, he is essentially suggesting that we vest a tiny minority with the power to cement morality forever more. This is a strange and dangerous wish.
Sorry this is so ridiculously long, but I thought the topic justified extensive (but by no means exhaustive) coverage.
Great read!
Wonderful dissertation that I totally agree with--with one caveat---Atheists, like Richard Dawkins who demean those who believe, forget that those who believe provide a lot of good things and help many people, believing Jesus' voice of tolerance and the notion that "he who has not sinned shall cast the first stone" values. Atheistic values also have the human infection for allowing shit to happen without response, along with being infamously in-humane. Stalin was an Atheist as was Oppenheimer. Two more completely opposite human beings--one could not create.
Thank you again---and be tolerant to those who are kind--BUT religious.
I think Christopher Hitchens provided many of the answers to those questions himself.. Though I will leave you with a few quotes I feel are are appropriate to those points..
1) Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false and by rulers as useful. -- - Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4 B.C. - 65 A.D.)
2) Here's a link which refutes that concept. In fact it's written by a Reverend.. http://www.frontiersman.com/faith/rule-of-law-not-religion-is-at-th...
3)"There is scarcely any part of science, or anything in nature, which those impostors and blasphemers of science, called priests, as well Christians as Jews, have not, at some time or other, perverted, or sought to pervert to the purpose of superstition and falsehood."
-- Thomas Paine
4)"A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death."
-Albert Einstein
Thanks for the reply and the link, I will put them to good use.
I would have to ask which religion is used as the basis for being a reliable force. The differences among the world religions are substantial. How is judaism or christianity more valid than islam or other religions?
If religion is the only way to determine what is morally right and wrong then why is it considered necessary to subjugate men over women? Their is no equality of the sexes.
The use of morality in primitive group settings predates religion by many tens of thousands of years.
Jim Jones had a religion that fit this formula perfectly.
1. He protected the strong from the weak by killing babies.
2. He broke the law by kidnapping, torturing, and murdering people.
3. He used religion to take full unrestrained power over others.
4.And he did a bunch of shit that was emphatically wrong.
Redirect him to his brother's body of work.
In Response to the four seizures
Who said "God Said"? Man is God--Man invented God.
1. God "allowed" the weak to be slaughtered throughout history
2. Man made the rule of law---way before any mono-theistic culture arrived
3. Stalin and Hitler restrained????
4. I do not believe in God---where did I get my moral code from?---the Catholic priests?


text:
Breaking News
Business of Medicine
Expert Perspective
Expert Perspective
Credits Earned
*Medscape Business of Medicine Academy Survey, September 2015
Medscape App
Get fast, accurate answers for point-of-care decision making.
MedPulse News App
Stay on top of breaking news in your specialty and across medicine.
CME and Education App
Continue your professional development – anytime, anywhere.
You've become the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal of medicine. A must-read every morning.
Assa Weinberg, MD
I was an ordinary doctor until I found Medscape. A wonderful resource tool with great updates.
Hemant Makan, MD
Great content. Unbiased reviews. Relevant topics. Cutting edge.
Ramabala Vuyyuro, MD
Information and Policies
Contact WebMD LLC


text:
pretty GAP-tastic ...
20 comments:
- AnonymousJanuary 21, 2011 1:48 PM
VERY cool, miss jen! So thoughtful of you to create this, then post it for free. You rock!ReplyDelete
love the cowl! now, i need to convince someone to make one for me!! :)ReplyDelete
Awesome! It really inspires me to do a better job a crocheting. I'm still a newbie and stick to straight lines. Which is why I have a ton of single color scarves laying around. Found you via Freckled Nest. :)ReplyDelete
I literally JUST finished mine and wore it for the first time today (I haven't gotten it up on Ravelry yet). It's fantastic; thank you so much for sharing the pattern!ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJanuary 21, 2011 3:27 PM
No limit to your awesomeness!ReplyDelete
I made one and have received multiple compliments on it. Very wonderful and so comfy warm. It's one of my favorite things.ReplyDelete
you are jen-tastic, awesome girl :)ReplyDelete
This comment has been removed by the author.ReplyDelete
i am working on my GAP-tastic cowl now! love your stuff - you are very talented and inspiring. thanks for the great pattern!ReplyDelete
Oh man I wish I could knit, I only know how to crochet. Love this!ReplyDelete
You have inspired me to learn how to knit and now I can not put the needles down! This will definitely be a project that I must do!ReplyDelete
I got a cowl for Christmas from a friend, and I think she used this pattern! :) Love it so much, and thanks for posting it!ReplyDelete
That's awesome! Congratulations!ReplyDelete
so cool. usually it's the big companies capitalizing on the small companies (knocking them off for major profits), and i love that the tables are turned. in such a creative fashion!ReplyDelete
- KierstenJanuary 22, 2011 3:14 PM
I have made 2 already, but gave them away without taking pictures, so they never made it to my Ravelry account--- so make that 2 more!!!ReplyDelete
I am visiting from Freckled Nest and came across this post. So funny, because I totally favourited this pattern in Ravelry and have been on the lookout for the perfect yarn to make it!ReplyDelete
I love the stitch you used. I'll pass this on to my knitting friend! :)ReplyDelete
milktea just passed this link to me! I LOVE it!! Thanks for sharing this =DReplyDelete
sweet! just downloaded it!ReplyDelete
Its because you rock and found a way for us all to have our own personalized GAP-tastic cowl. I love your blog and am so happy to see you have Pinterest too. You inspire!ReplyDelete


text:
On first glance, chicharrones de pollo might just look like garden-variety chicken nuggets. Don't be fooled. This recipe with Dominican roots calls for the chicken to be marinated in a mix of rum, lime juice, soy sauce and sugar, making it full of flavor.
And if you're dubious about how these would work at a tailgating event, fret not: They're crunchy, not sticky, after being fried up, making them the perfect finger food. And thanks to the flavorful marinade, they don't even need sauce.
Chicharrones de pollo (fried chicken bites)
Makes: About 4 servings
1/4 cup amber or dark rum
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into 11/2- inch pieces
About 2 cups vegetable oil
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon paprika
Stir together rum, lime juice, soy sauce and sugar in a shallow bowl until sugar has dissolved. Add chicken and stir to coat. Marinate at room temperature for about 25 minutes.
While chicken finishes marinating, heat 1 inch of oil in a deep 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Meanwhile, whisk together flour, paprika, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a shallow bowl. Drain chicken and pat dry. Dredge in flour, shaking off excess, then transfer to a plate.
Fry chicken in three batches, turning occasionally, until deep golden brown and cooked through, 6 to 7 minutes per batch. (If chicken darkens too quickly, reduce heat.) Transfer to paper towels to drain.


text: MyAssignmenthelp.com is a reliable college essay writing service provider that students can trust to overcome their academic problems. With a team of most efficient and hardworking assignment writers, we are capable of providing fast essay writing services in more than 100 subjects. Students, who decide to take urgent essay help from us, are guaranteed to receive completed essay assignments within any short time limit. Some of our popular essay help services include application essay help, argumentative essay paper help, literature essay assistance, etc.


text:
May 15, 2009
Address: E. Rodriguez, Jr. Ave (C5) Bgy. Bagumbayan, Quezon City
Mall Hours: Mon-Thurs 11:00am to 10:00pm, Fri & Sat 11am to 11pm Sun 10am to 10pm
For inquiries call: 709-9888/7090888, 0917-8-EWCITY, 0918-9-EWCITY
When I need to go Malling, the most convenient and nearby to where I live is EastWood City. And with the new addition of EastWood Mall, it became a top most to go for movies, shopping, and dining. The place is very compact yet spacious for everyone who would want just to walk and relax . The lights at night is awesome and I cant help myself to include it in my photography collection. Also, if you visit the area, watch their dancing fountain too.
Other information about this Mall.
1. Parking is good- 3,000 parking slots
2. Eastwood Mall Stores:
A Different Bookstore, Aerosoles, Arrow, Babyland, Bayo, Baby Fashionistas, Beauty Bar, Bench, Bench Fix, Calvin Klein, Celine, Charles and Keith, DIY, EP Espada, Eyecrafts, Fino, Florsheim Kids, Folded and Hung, Franco Sarto, Giordano, Gingersnaps, Haze, Human, Hush Puppies, Isukoshi, Jellybean, Jessica, Jewelmer, Jump, Kashieca, Kenneth Cole, Kids of Bayo, Kitchenworld, Lacoste, Lock and Lock, Luca, Make Room and Mote, Marc Ecko Cut and Sew, Maldita, Mango, McDonalds, Me and U, Memo, Mizuno, Nautica, Nine West, Office Warehouse Super, Oxygen, Ollie and Co, The Kids Store, Penshoppe, Periwinkle, R.A.F. by Plains & Prints, Samsonite, Scribe Writing Essentials, Springfield, Steve Madden, Superga, Swell by Republic, Timezone, The A. Shop, The Body Shop, The Face Shop, Toytown, VNC, Wade, 158 Designer's Blvd.
3. RestRoom – Very Good, its clean
4. Security Guard – Always Smiling and Dress up like a Hotel Man.
5. Floors – It's Shiny. I wonder if the architect design it in a way that you feel your like in a hotel. I remember Bellagio Chains of Store when am walking in EastWood Mall.
6. Restaurant Selection – Very Good. I need to try each of those. However, I always end up in Red Mango.
Eastwood Mall Veranda:
Balducii, Buenisimo by Cafe Ysabel, Blu Fish, Crisostomo by Chef Florabel Co, Cyma, Flying Pig, Gloria Jeans, Gustavian/Pino!, Haagen Dazs, Itallianni's, Kitchen Secrets by Chef Florabel Co, La Creperie, Lucky Niku Cafe, My Thai, MOMO, Mrs FieldsCafe, Mr Kurosawa Euro-Japanese, Red Mango, Starbucks Coffee, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, The Old Vine, Thousands Cranes, Via Mare, Wagyu Stone Grill
Entertainment and Other Services:
Alteration Plus, Automatic Center, Dash, Eastwood Gold Cinema 5&6, Eastwood ULTRA 7 Cinema (twin recliner seats with all you can eat pop corn and drinks), Fully Booked, Gallery 7, Globe Telecom, Gymboree, LIkha, Nuts About Candy, Picture This, Samsung Electronics, Samsung Mobile, Sony Center
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Ultimate Blogger Theme By Buywptemplates


text:
For years now, appliances have been forced into hiding. Shoved under paneling, disguised as cabinets (see below) — some kitchen designs successfully manage to deny the existence of most appliances.
And those who do allow their appliances exposure, generally do so through the sterility of stainless steel.
But what about people who want appliances liberated from the everyday wood or stainless appearance, like our Twitter follower @MikePreble? Mike says bold colors such as blue and red are just more "him" — and we totally appreciate that. Bright colors on the walls can make a kitchen sizzle. Bright colors on your appliances, though, are totally unexpected.
Color options abound in the kitchen — and now laundry room — and the palette will only expand from here. Some options might seem completely impractical, but isn't that the point sometimes?


text:
Free box of Clementines at Safeway 12/7
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Do you have a Safeway grocery store near you? If so then you'll want to go become a fan on Safeway's Facebook Page so that on Monday, 12/7, you can get a coupon for a FREE box of Clementines. The coupon will be available on Monday, 12/7. You will need to register using your Club Card number and then load the coupon to your Card. Note that a minimum purchase of $25 is needed to get this offer.


text:
Posted by Pas at 26/12/2014
Category: VIDEO RAZMIŠLJANJA
Sorry, comments are closed for this item.
Here is the Music Player. You need to installl flash player to show this cool thing!
Il mio sito vale€ 5.971,21
Feedjit Live Blog Stats
© 2019 Igor Kostelac Blog · WordPress theme desigined by Dizzain.com · Subscribe: RSS


text:
NSA's XKeyscore Source Code Leaked! Shows Tor Users Classified As 'Extremists'
from the peeling-away-the-layers dept
We learnt about the NSA's XKeyscore program a year ago, and about its incredibly wide reach. But now the German TV stations NDR and WDR claim to have excerpts from its source code. We already knew that the NSA and GCHQ have been targeting Tor and its users, but the latest leak reveals some details about which Tor exit nodes were selected for surveillance -- including at least one in Germany, which is likely to increase public anger there. It also shows that Tor users are explicitly regarded as "extremists" (original in German, pointed out to us by @liese_mueller):
The source code contains both technical instructions and comments from the developers that provide an insight into the mind of the NSA. Thus, all users of such programs are equated with "extremists".
Such is the concern about Tor that even visitors to Tor sites -- whether or not they use the program -- have their details recorded:
not only long-term users of this encryption software become targets for the [US] secret service. Anyone who wants to visit the official Tor Web site simply for information is highlighted.
The source code also gives the lie to the oft-repeated claim that only metadata, not content, is gathered:
With the source code can be proven beyond reasonable doubt for the first time that the NSA is reading not only so-called metadata, that is, connection data. If emails are sent using the Tor network, then programming code shows that the contents -- the so-called email-body -- are evaluated and stored.
As well as all this interesting information, what's important here is that it suggests the source of this leak -- presumably Edward Snowden, although the German news report does not name him -- copied not just NSA documents, but source code too. As in the present case, that is likely to provide a level of detail that goes well beyond descriptive texts.
Follow me @glynmoody on Twitter or identi.ca, and +glynmoody on Google+
Filed Under: content, extremists, gchq, metadata, nsa, source code, surveillance, tor, xkeyscore


text:
A survey carried out by IUCN among fishermen in the Western Pacific region of Tonga, Fiji, Samoa and the Cook islands has given precious insight into the state of seamounts—mountains that rise from the seafloor and support rich biodiversity as well as important fisheries.
The study is part of a project funded by the Global Environmental Facility and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme in partnership with IUCN. The project aims to improve scientific understanding of high seas biodiversity and fisheries, improve high seas resource conservation and management and raise awareness about the importance of seamounts.
It is estimated that there are more than 1 million seamounts in our oceans and 30,000 that are higher than 1,000 m are believed to exist in the Pacific.
Seamount processes and linkages are complex. Currents hitting seamounts are forced upwards, causing localized upwellings which can bring nutrients from the deeper ocean, making the area more productive. This has a flow-on effect, supporting a seamount ecosystem with a high diversity of life. Highly migratory fish such as tuna and billfish aggregate around seamounts, possibly due to this higher productivity, and seamounts are also likely sites for spawning aggregations of a number of species. A number of commercially important bottom fish including snappers, groupers, deep sea trevalla and alfonsino are also a part of the seamount ecosystem.
"While being a productive focus for a significant sector of the fishing industry, seamount ecosystems are also very vulnerable," says Kelvin Passfield, IUCN's Marine Programme Officer. "IUCN's Oceania Regional Office has gathered information from those that know these ecosystems better than most, that is, the fishermen who rely on them for their livelihoods. This has revealed some important information on fishing practices in these unique marine areas as well some knowledge of their biodiversity."
According to the survey, approximately 40% of all longline fishing in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean is carried out around seamounts and 60% in open seas. The fish caught in seamount areas are mainly yellowfin, skipjack and bigeye tuna, mahi mahi and swordfish.
Apart from the main target species, longline fishermen fishing around seamounts also catch other species, including reef sharks, wahoo, and oilfish, as well as groupers, snappers and turtles.
One of the major issues faced in the Pacific Islands fishery is the vulnerable status of Bigeye tuna. This species is being overfished, and according to the Scientific Committee of the West and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, a reduction of 30 to 40% in catch is required to prevent the fishery collapsing. One possible way to help achieve this reduction is by reducing the number of juvenile bigeye being caught. Juvenile bigeye tuna are sold to fish canneries for approximately $7 each. If left to grow, each fish would be worth approximately 50 times more if caught as an adult. They would also have had the opportunity to reproduce, help ensure the sustainability of the fishery, and help the people of the Pacific Islands, whose survival so heavily depends on the resources of the ocean.
Seabed mining and possibly bottom trawling could become serious threats to Pacific seamount ecosystems in the near future. Proper management of fishing access and capacity, accompanied by effective communication and broader awareness-raising efforts on sustainable use of these unique marine areas, are necessary to ensure the future of pelagic fisheries that are vital to the economies of the Pacific Islands.
For more information please contact: Kelvin Passfield, IUCN's Marine Programme Officer
Watch Dr. Alex Rogers revealing some seamounts secrets


text:
Italy coach Massimo Barbolini: "We played a strong team today in Thailand. They play a different game than us, which is a good challenge. It makes it difficult. We didn't play so well in the first round. We have found a good rhythm now. We have won three matches in a row."
Italy captain Eleonora Lo Bianco: "Thailand are a good team. I'm satisfied with the way we played, especially in the first two sets. We were able to close it out when they came on in the third set."
Thailand coach Kiattipong Radchatagriengkai: "We learned a lot about Volleyball at the world level in this game. We have a lot of work to do to get better."
Thailand captain Apinyapong Wilavan: "Italy played very well. They have good technique. We played better in the the second and third sets, but it wasn't enough."


text:
Playing the Spoons – The Tim Martin Brexit Show
Published on by Martin Vessey (author)
While the Wetherspoons boss travels the country preaching his vision of a no-deal Brexit, his most vocal critic has made it his mission to attend every meeting.
Overseas Student Visits up on Last Year Despite Brexit
Published on by Martin Vessey (author)
Rise in number of overseas students visiting UK believed to be linked to cheap sterling but number of EU students expected to plummet in a "no-deal Brexit".
Amber Rudd Slams UN Poverty Report
Published on by Callum French (author)
The new Work & Pensions Secretary isn't happy new UN report.
Council warns services could be reduced to the legal miniumum
Published on by Adam Redondo Pearce (author)
Services could be disrupted as the council is forced to cut around £46 million from its budget.
Remember, remember the 5th of November, EU citizens cry out.
Published on by Harry Arnold (author)
Protestors from British in Europe and the3million lobby groups gathered in their hundreds at the hub of British politics.


text: Axe launched a new campaign website called "The Fixer Show". Its based on a talkshow which promises to fix everthing in your life with a funny presenter and hot brazilian girls. The TVC, yet another excellent production by Mekanism, has great viral potential in its own right. Actually I prefer the TVC (especially long version) more than the website because it can turn the experience into sale more effectively. There is also a Youtube channel for the campaign website where you can find more videos. Check out the website or view TV spot here!