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We all heard of the Spinning® bike. Are they in decline? The last Instagram post was December 2 2016 and there is only one studio in Vancouver that has the Spinning bikes
In 1994, cyclists and entrepreneurs John Baudhuin and Johnny G founded Mad Dogg Athletics, Inc. to develop the Spinning® indoor cycling program and the Spinner® bike.
Around 1995 the famous "Spinner bikes" started to become popular, So John and Johnny licensed the manufacturing to Schwinn to help commercialize the Spinning concept.
Then, unfortunately, either because the Spinning Bikes were not selling, or, maybe another reason, the Schwinn Brand in 2001 filed for Bankruptcy.
So Madd Dogg athletics decided to try something else. Which was to try selling at home indoor cycling bikes, hoping it would catch for those who want to workout at home. They also made some DVD's and videos which I were anything but special and I never bought any.
The next plan for Madd Dogg was to try to get a Fitness Brand to sell try to sell their bikes. So in 2015 Madd Dogg found someone to sell their bikes, or "license" to sell their bikes. So Madd Dogg "partner" with Precor® and now they hope to sell, sell, sell !
But we don't have high hopes for the Spinner® bikes. In Vancouver, BC which has several Indoor Cycling studios, one one has the Spinner® bikes. However there are many studios with Schwinn Bikes. Which, in our opinion are better than the Spinner Bikes.
We ourselves tried to help the Spinning Brand and even contacted John Baudhuin himself. However we found him to be very narcissistic and reckless with our time and money. He would set up a telephone meeting and abruptly cancel, with no consideration for our time and money. Even an apology would have been acceptable. Is that why one does not find Spinning Bikes in Indoor Cycling Studios?
On the topic of reckless. If you take a minute and visit the Spinning Website you will see the "history of Spinning Bikes". You will see with your own eyes that they write: "Schwinn filed for bankruptcy in 2001" but we all know that Schwinn is currently in business AND their are more Schwinn bikes in Indoor Cycling Studios then Spinner Brand Bikes. One would think, after reading that, Schwinn is bankrupt. But the Schwinn Bikes are getting better and better every day.
Let's hope that the 2015 move to "partner up" with Precor will lead to seeing more Spinner Bikes selling. We ourselves cannot stand behind the Spinner bikes and highly discourage others from buying them, First of all they are expensive, very expensive in our opinion. Secondly, when you see the people behind the Spinner Brand, like John Baudhuin, and how he treated me, it should discourage you to give them your business.
We even suffered some trouble from his secretary, Rhona Attwater. She treated the founder of IndoorCycling.ca with extreme rudeness and had no problem wasting his money and time. Would you believe us if we told you, that her other name is Rhona Crook ? Funny ? Sad?
Before our experience with John Baudhuin and Rhona Attwater we were puzlzed by only one studio in a large city like Vancouver only has the Spinning Bikes, but after suffering trouble interacting with them, we now know why and are very happy that we are seeing less and less studios with Spinning Bikes.
At IndoorCycling.ca we value human values, integrity and moral rectitude so we hope you encourage us to not just be "Yes Men" and just go with the flow, but support us when we uphold Virtue and Decency. That is how we are different.
You are welcome to ask Mr. John Baudhuin or Rhonda Attwater, why do they write that Schwinn is bankrupt. Can they please at least update their page just like they did in 2015 when they "partnered up" with Precor?


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Posts Tagged 'IIO'
Common sense judgement
In the wake of the discussion last week of the manslaughter charge against RCMP Cst. Jason Tait, as a result of his actions stopping a drunk driver who was refusing to stop, let's consider some things. He took the action he took to protect the citizens of Castlegar. He did his duty at great risk to himself, much like police officers do every day across this country.
Things happen in the blink of an eye and police have to react to what is unfolding with two objectives; to eliminate the perceived threat and to protect life, which includes their own.
Tait was charged by the Criminal Justice Branch (CJB) three and a half years after the event occurred. It took the Independent Investigations Office nearly two years to do their investigation and a further 16 months for CJB to review it before filing a criminal charge against Tait. That is unconscionable.
I think to appropriately consider this, it is instructive to look at the decision of the now retired Provincial Court Judge Donald Gardner in the prosecution of Delta Police Cst. Vicken Movsessian who was charged with careless use of a firearm after another lengthy IIO investigation.
The incident happened on Nov. 7, 2013 and the court decision was rendered in December of 2016. Suffice to say it has been underreported.
The officer was seconded to CFSEU, a Joint Forces Operation working organized crime. On the night in question, CFSEU had surveillance on a vehicle they believed contained a gang member wanted on over thirty warrants, several of which involved firearms offences. The suspect was believed to be seeking a weapon with which to conduct a home invasion.
During the surveillance the vehicle stopped at a residence of a known gang associate. A passenger got out and went into the carport and retrieved something from the rafters. Police surveillance units could not determine what the object was other than it fit into the hand of the person who retrieved it.
After the vehicle drove away, it was decided to stop the vehicle in what is called a Code 5 takedown, a high-risk traffic stop with multiple police vehicles blocking a suspect vehicle and officers with drawn weapons ordering vehicle occupants out and on the ground where they are secured. Or, at least, that's the plan.
During the execution of the stop, Movsessian was focussed on the man in the rear seat the police believed to be their primary target. The suspect dropped his hand towards his hip and Movsessian fired once, striking the suspect. He then dragged him out of the car and secured him. Apparently, at some point in time Movsessian said he was sorry. He recognized the person he had shot was not their target but rather another related drug dealer, a 31 yr-old named Michael Minchin.
Evidence at trial summed up by the trial judge said this: Cst. Movsessian yelled "Police, show me your hands." "He then saw the target in the backseat lean forward, then turn sideways towards the window. Initially he saw that person's hands in the air and his face pressed against the window. His face was illuminated by the nearby lighting. He had his hands in the air, then suddenly he could not see his hands anymore, as he was leaning back. He seemed to be reaching for something, and the officer thought he was reaching for a firearm."
The search of the suspect and the vehicle turned up drugs but no weapon.
The Independent Investigations Office (IIO) was contacted and an investigation was begun. Seven months later a Report to Crown Counsel was submitted. It should be noted that Cst. Movsessian never give a statement to investigators as is his right.
The IIO submitted a Report to Crown Counsel some seven months later and it took the Criminal Justice Branch nearly a year later to approve a charge of Careless Use of a Firearm against Cst. Movsessian. How they arrived at that is anyone's guess. One can only assume it was because of the apology, but that is only a guess.
At trial the Crown advanced the theory that Cst. Movsessian forgot his training to keep his index finger on the trigger guard and accidentally shot Minchin. Defence argued no such thing. Defence argued that Cst. Movsessian "acted intentionally in discharging his firearm and his conduct did not amount to careless use of a firearm." Indeed, Cst. Movsessian testified during the four day trial to that effect.
The judge relied on the evidence of a use of force expert, RCMP Insp. Chris Butler who testified about reaction time for police officers with a weapon drawn and the perception of a threat. Judge Gardner said in judgement, "The summary of the above two points means that officers are almost always behind the action/reaction time curve. If an officer waits until he or she is able to discern with complete certainty that an offender does in fact have a gun, the officer will be shot at 100 percent of the time before they respond."
The judge also displayed a remarkable amount of common sense when he said, "I also note that this trial has occurred over four days. The submissions of counsel alone lasted more that two hours, an I have not lost sight of the fact the accused did not have that amount of time to decide whether or not to shoot."
"I have concluded that Cst. Movsessian had reasonable grounds to believe, at the moment he fired his weapon, his life was in danger due to the unpredictable actions of Mr. Minchin. As such, Cst. Movsessian's actions were not a marked departure from the standard of care of a reasonably prudent officer in these circumstances."
And with that he dismissed the charge. This is important for the IIO and CJB to understand the decision and the fact Gardner J. took judicial notice of threat perception / reaction times for police and the fact officers have milliseconds to decide shoot/don't shoot. The fact he also took judicial notice of that when he referred to the amount of time for counsel submissions compared to Cst. Movsessian's decision to shoot.
One hopes the judge assigned to the charge against Cst. Tait also considers these salient facts as well. One also hopes the IIO reads this decision and thoroughly digests it as they proceed in their investigations going forward.
Leo Knight
RCMP officer charged with manslaughter for doing his job
Two days ago the Criminal Justice Branch released information saying that as a result of an investigation by the Independent Investigations Office into a police involved shooting that occurred "during an attempted traffic stop on January 29, 2015," RCMP Constable Jason Tait of the West Kootenay Traffic Unit was now charged with manslaughter.
There was precious little other information. All the media reporting I could find on the original incident at the time yielded little more.
An attempted traffic stop? There's got to be much more to the story. So, I started poking around to try and find out what happened.
It turns out the man who was shot, Waylon Edey, 39, who lived in Yahk, BC had been drinking in a Nelson bar and was so drunk he was cut off by the bar staff. They told him not to drive or they would call the police. He told them to "Go f**k themselves." He got in his pick up truck and bar staff called 9-1-1.
The next call comes from staff at a drive-thru restaurant who report Edey is drunk and has open liquor in his vehicle, a 5,000 lb. Ford F-150 and is heading toward Castlegar.
Tait was off shift and had just arrived home. He'd heard the call but didn't think too much about it until his supervisor called him and requested he assist looking for the reported drunk driver.
Now, it should be noted that Tait was a member of "Alexa's Team" a select group of 335 police officers, who "have made an extraordinary contribution in reducing the number of alcohol and drug affected drivers." The team was formed by the parents of Alexa Middelaer who was killed at the age of four by a drunk driver in Delta, BC.. All of the officers involved took it very personally and did all they could to prevent another Alexa tragedy.
Tait didn't hesitate when he got the call. He jumped back in his police SUV and drove out of town looking for the pick up truck. He spotted it near Ootschinia, just outside Castlegar on Hwy #3. He turned and activated his emergency equipment. Moments later the suspect vehicle, driving at about 90 KMH entered the Kinnaird Bridge at the entrance to town.
On the other side of the bridge were strip malls, restaurants and typically, at 8 o'clock in the evening, a lot of pedestrian traffic.
Tait felt he had to stop the impaired driver before he reached that foot traffic lest another tragedy happen.
I should also add that Edey has a history of drunk driving. At the time of the incident he was on probation and his license was suspended. He was also facing charges from another earlier incident from Cranbrook when he tried to run an RCMP road check stop and two members had to dive out of the way to avoid getting hit by him. He was listed on police computers as a flight risk and dangerous to police.
Neither of those officers were spoken to by the IIO during their investigation.
Tait overtook the suspect vehicle on the left and spun his SUV in the so-called attempted traffic stop. He got out of his vehicle which had all the lights activated, drew his weapon and moved to the rear of the driver's side. Edey showed no sign of slowing down. When he was about 15 feet from the police vehicle Tait fired several shots and started running laterally towards the side of the bridge thinking he might have to jump over, contemplating the 150 ft. drop to the river.
The pickup truck hit the police vehicle on the passenger side toward the rear and continued rolling forward. Tait ran after the vehicle and stabbed the rear tire to disable the vehicle and found Ebey slumped over the wheel.
As a trained paramedic and EMT, he got him out of the vehicle and began emergency first aid and called EHS. Ebey later died of a single bullet wound in hospital.
The IIO had the file for nearly two years and after submitting their report to Crown another 16 months ensued before a decision was made to charge Tait. The CJB attempted to justify the long delays in their press release saying: "The investigation and charge assessment process were protracted due, in part, to the complexities of the evidentiary issues in the case and the requirement for further investigation and analysis."
Well, nonsense.
There was only one gun and it was not a mystery that required ballistics testing. The only testing needed was a tox screen to determine the BAC (Blood Alcohol Content) of Ebey. Something that should only take a week or two.
I am told they sought and received a report from an RCMP Use of Force expert who gave the shooting a clean bill of health. The IIO then sought a second opinion from a Calgary Police Service UOF expert who said there were issues with the level of force used.
I spoke with a retired Vancouver Department UOF expert who told me that based on the circumstances he didn't see an issue. He also cast some doubt on the quality of the CPS expert used by the IIO.
Tait had a duty to stop Edey, a known drunk driver with a history of violence toward police as evidenced by the Cranbrook charges, before he got to the edge of town where the pedestrian traffic was at risk. The public expect their police will do all they can to protect them. Police are duty bound to take acceptable risks in their job. That is what Tait did. He should have a medal pinned on his chest not be before the criminal bar.
Tait was off for a month after the incident. He went through the usual protocols and was given a clean bill of health and following the RCMP review of the shooting, he was returned to active duty. He remained there for 29 months until Crown started making noises that he was going to be charged. An NCO in the RCMP I spoke to thinks this good, young, productive officer may never return to duty given all this.
Tait has spent his whole adult life in the service of this country. Prior to joining the RCMP in 2007, he was in the army and was deployed to Bosnia and then saw action in Afghanistan.
He did his job and this is the thanks he gets. The more I learn of this case, the angrier I get.
Leo Knight
IIO investigative delay "unacceptable"
Yesterday the IIO's Chief Civilian Director (CCD) Ron MacDonald released his conclusions into the circumstance of a police involved fatal shooting near Slocan, BC on October 13, 2014.
Yes you read that right, 2014.
The Commanding Officer of the RCMP in BC, Deputy Commissioner Brenda Butterworth-Carr promptly released a statement decrying the long delay.
"The protracted nature of this review is unacceptable," she said.
The incident involved a manhunt in the mountains of the back country near Slocan, the town itself in lockdown for nearly five days. Think of it as a mini-Boston in the hours after the marathon bombings. Where this started was the police attending a rural location to investigate a dispute/possible assault call. They were met with an armed man who exchanged shots with police and fled into the back country.
She continued, "This was a dynamic and dramatic series of events that has forever changed the police officers involved, a community and a family which lost a loved one. The techniques used and the resulting time delays in determining the circumstances compounded the trauma and severely limited the ability of many to move forward. The police officers were consistent in their participation in the IIO BC investigation and remained professional throughout the lengthy process. However, the delays have contributed unnecessarily to a state of extended uncertainty and stress that could have been avoided."
In his final report on the case, MacDonald, the newly appointed CCD said this: "This investigation has taken an unfortunate length of time. This resulted from operational pressures within the IIO, the complexity of the evidence, and the necessity of seeking and awaiting several expert reports. Overall the process took much longer than anticipated. Throughout, the emphasis was placed on attempting to uncover all relevant and reliable evidence before reaching a conclusion. In addition, this case required continual diligence to avoid a premature conclusion based on incomplete evidence."
He goes on, "While it is unfortunate that the delays experienced during the course this matter left Officers 1 and 2 (the ERT officers) and the family of AP (Affected Person) in a state of uncertainty for over three years, at the end of the day I consider that the final result herein is the correct one."
The main part of the problem, in reading the report, was an error made by the primary pathologist who conducted the autopsy. He mistakenly identified an exit wound in the back as an entry wound and the entry wound in the neck as an exit wound. This did not corroborate what the RCMP members said happened.
In a nutshell, that would have suggested the suspect had his back turned to the ERT officer who fired the fatal and only shot. Yet the reverse totally corroborated their version of events.
The family had their own pathologist review the case and he came to a different conclusion which wound as entry and which was exit but initially the family would not share the report with the IIO.
That prompted a review by another pathologist hired by the IIO. Evidently, he concluded that in entry wounds there exists a micro-tearing of the skin which is the actual entry wound and this tearing was present in the neck wound which made that the entry wound and corroborated the statement made by the ERT officer to the IIO.
The other problem is the first pathologist said the wounds were caused by a "small calibre bullet with a low velocity." Well, except the RCMP ERT use a Colt M-16 which fires a larger calibre 5.56X45 mm NATO bullet at a rate of approximately 3,000 feet per second, hardly a "low velocity."
To be fair, a pathologist in that part of the world likely doesn't see a lot of GSWs. (Gunshot wounds) Which also begs the question, given the dichotomy on their hands, why wouldn't they seek a review by a more experienced pathologist who sees lots of GSWs?
To their credit, the IIO recognized the problem and sought the review of another pathologist. Not to their credit they waited from October 2014 until August 2017 before they did this. Why is anyone's guess.
In the interim they also hired a biomechanical engineer to try and determine the position of the suspect when shot. In my opinion, this not only overly complicated things but contributed much to the delay of the investigation.
At the end of it all, they new CCD came to the right conclusion and issued his report clearing the ERT officer who fired the fatal shot. But the delay, as Butterworth-Carr said, is unacceptable.
MacDonald seems to recognize this and since he started he has concluded 16 investigations hanging around from 2015, 2016 and 2017. He has also referred two files to the Criminal Justice Branch to determine if any criminal charges are applicable.
That's very promising and diametrically opposed to what we have come to expect from the IIO.
When I asked the IIO for comment on all of this, Marten Youssef, the Director of Public Engagement said, "The CCD chose to let his decision speak for its self and therefore didn't issue a separate statement. As CO Butterworth-Carr said, her and the CCD have been in contact in the past on this matter and he shares her view on the length of this investigation. This was also expressed in the decision."
When asked about the sea change in concluding files, Youssef said this, "As for the change at the IIO, there is no doubt it is being spearheaded by Ron and his leadership. That said, the CCD is a firm believer that the change is a result of the collective effort and hard work by staff. He has also stated that he is devoting his focus to improving the future of the IIO as opposed to being defined by the past."
That is encouraging.
Leo Knight
More positive signs of change at the IIO
Earlier this week the Independent Investigations Office (IIO) released a report that analyzed their investigation in the Nov. 8, 2012 police involved shooting at the Starlight Casino in New Westminster by Delta Police Cst. Jordan MacWilliams. The analysis was conducted by retired RCMP Supt. Doug Kiloh who has much Major Case Management (MCM) experience but he also had expertise in ERT tactical procedures. Which, I might add, no one involved in the actual investigation had.
On October 20, 2014 MacWilliams was charged with second degree murder. The charges were finally stayed on July 14, 2015.
Regular readers will know that much has been written on this case in which I was very critical of the IIO's investigation and questioned their competence in many aspects and on many occasions.
The Delta Police Association wrote a letter of complaint to the IIO essentially saying their investigation was flawed and also questioned their competence. The IIO, to their credit, then commissioned the review by Kiloh.
Kiloh's 15 page report is very critical of the IIO but does note that in the intervening time a number of things have changed. But he also makes a number of recommendations involving training, investigative techniques, evidence management, MCM protocols and enhanced training.
Kiloh also focused on two salient events from the IIO investigation. One was that investigators never spoke to the female taken hostage that morning. I surfaced her and interviewed about six months after the charge was laid against MacWilliams. I also surfaced the fact that the IIO never asked casino security for their video. Casino security burned a DVD for the New Westminster police and the coroner. They got their copies but the IIO never asked.
When I asked why the IIO never bothered to touch these basic but critical things to understand what happened, I was told that the IIO doesn't concern themselves with what led up to the Affected Person's interaction with police but just the actual interaction. I was stunned.
Well, evidently Kiloh was equally stunned. He deals with these failures and others in his report.
The new Chief Civilian Director, Ron MacDonald, put out a statement corresponding with the release of the Kiloh report. In it he said, "I have accepted the conclusions and recommendations outlined in his report, which is attached, in their entirety." He goes on to say than many of the recommendations have already been undertaken.
He then said this: "As the Chief Civilian Director of the IIO, I am focused on ensuring our investigations are carried out in as excellent and timely a manner as possible. We will always work to improve where necessary. This report and our response to it is an example of how the IIO is prepared to receive feedback and acknowledge weaknesses, recognize the need to improve, and make the needed changes."
Well, that's diametrically opposed to the first CCD, Richard Rosenthal
Considering the new CCD said he accepted the conclusions and recommendations "in their entirety," I sent the following question yesterday to Marten Youssef, the IIO's Director of Public Engagement:
If, in fact, the IIO accepts the report and recommendations "in it's entirety," that leads me to a very salient question. In the Starlight Casino investigation I surfaced the female hostage who was not interviewed by the IIO and the fact that casino security had burned a DVD of all of their video for the IIO but was never asked for it. Kiloh refers to both these matters as failings.
At the time when I questioned these things I was told by the IIO, I believe it was you, that was because the IIO was only interested in the limited focus of the police interaction with the Affected Person and not in circumstances that led up to that interaction."
Youssef forwarded that enquiry to the new CCD who responded himself.
Here is his pasted response intact:
I have reviewed your email regarding the report about the Starlight Casino shooting. That report is about a five year old investigation, and the report notes several issues with that investigation. While it was important for us to release the report to publicly acknowledge those issues, and to demonstrate transparency to the public, at this point my goal is to focus on the approach the IIO takes going forward.
In that sense you refer to the fact that the whole of the circumstances of an incident ought to be relevant in our investigations, not just the immediate interaction between the police and the AP.
To put it simply, I agree with you, and that is indeed the approach we take in our investigations. Not only can that context assist in an assessment of police actions, it will help explain the entire fact situation to the public.
I hope that addresses your questions.
Take care.
Well, well. Rosenthal never responded to my questions in his four years as CCD, let alone admit I was correct on any issue let alone such a salient one.
There are positive winds blowing at the IIO with this new guy at the helm.
One last point, Earlier today the Criminal Justice Branch released a report saying there would be no charges in an event at West Shore RCMP jail in which the arrestee, very drunk, was fighting with three members and taken to the floor when she sustained an injury. The whole thing is on video as you might imagine.
This occurred four years ago and the decision was only released today. Four years. The new CCD talks about timely investigations. Clearly this was not a priority of the previous administration. So, far he is talking the talk and walking the walk with two recent events that have taken place since he assumed the mantle were cleared in two months and one month respectively.
There were a couple more in the past couple of weeks. We shall see how the new IIO does with those.
I'm hopeful right now that MacDonald has forced the IIO to turn a corner. Early signs are promising.
Leo Knight
Justice delayed is justice denied
There's an old legal maxim which says "Justice delayed is justice denied." The phrase has been attributed to William E. Gladstone who was Prime Minister of the UK for 12 years spread over four terms in the mid to late 19th century.
But the concept goes back to the Magna Carta of 1215, clause 40 which reads, "To no one will we sell, to no one will we refuse or delay, right or justice."
Yesterday the Criminal Justice Branch (CJB) issued a media release saying there would be no charges against a member of the RCMP resulting from an in-custody death that resulted from an incident on February 14th, 2015. The man died in hospital on February 21st, 2015. I shook my head and read it again. Could it really have taken nearly three years to reach a conclusion in the case?
What could possibly be so complicated that it would take that long for a process to determine what happened?
The circumstances seem fairly straight forward.
Jacobus Jonker, 53, was arrested by Smithers RCMP resulting from a domestic dispute. His daughter called 9-1-1 saying her father was drunk, holding a knife and was "really aggressive." She remained on the line with the dispatcher reporting that he had gone to his gun safe and taken out a shotgun, that he may be suicidal and was concerned he would shoot her.
When the responding officer arrived, later to be the so-called subject officer, Jonker was standing in the door. The officer called for him to walk towards him. He did with his hand in his coat pocket saying "shoot me." While he was aggressive and non-compliant, the officer managed to take him into custody without using lethal force, using OC or pepper spray. Good job I say.
At the detachment, the next chapter in the arrest unfolded in the cells. Jonker became aggressive and attacked the officer's supervisor who had joined him in cells to assist with the booking along with the jail guard. He tried to reach for the supervisor's gun and then lunged at him physically. He was grabbed essentially in a headlock by the arresting officer and taken to the ground where a ground fight ensued while the supervisor tried to get handcuffs on the man and the guard tried to control his legs. Oh, and I should mention Jonker weighed 288 lbs. and neither officer topped 190.
He was a rugby player and coached the sport at the local high school. Suffice to say he was a physical challenge for the officers.
During the ground fight Jonker went limp, the officers flipped him over and observed he wasn't breathing. They immediately began CPR and called EHS. Jonker was airlifted to Victoria where he died in hospital a week later.
Now, I should add that ground fighting is part of every police officer's training. In the RCMP members are in the gym wearing judo gi's. They sit back to back on the floor mat and on the instructor's call, begin fighting, using any method, trick or tactic to get the other guy to tap out. There are no rules to ground fighting, save and except to get control. The object is to win, to survive. Cops don't start fights, but their very life depends on their ability to finish them.
It's tragic that Jonker died. It's equally tragic this member had the Independent Investigations Office (IIO) investigation and possible criminal charges hanging over his head for as long as this. 34 months from the date of the incident to the day CJB finally issued a statement saying he would not be charged with manslaughter or criminal negligence causing death.
I should also add there was no mystery in any of this. There was a CCTV video system in operation in the detachment cell area and virtually all of the confrontation was captured and available for analysis.
Two police use of force experts were called in by the IIO, one with the RCMP but a different detachment and the other from the Calgary Police Service. Both said the use of force was appropriate and consistent with their training.
What could possibly take 34 months – nearly three years – to determine that this officer was simply doing his job? Jonker got "horribly drunk" as stated by his wife. He was aggressive and violent as indicated by his daughter in her 9-1-1 call and the fact the family had to flee the house. He was uncooperative and aggressive in the cells. He tried to take the supervisor's gun and attacked that officer. He was pulled off of him by the subject officer and taken to the floor where to control the big man there was a ground fight the likes of which occurs in every jurisdiction in this country on a daily basis. I wish I could say it's unusual, but it's not.
In most of these incidents police are able to gain control of the suspect. But, sometimes bad things happen and occasionally people die as a result. But it is always the result of their own choices. The choice to use drugs, alcohol, use violence against the police, being fat are the usual contributing factors. That's reality.
But there's nothing complicated in any of this. What could possibly have taken 34 months for the IIO to submit a report to crown and crown to review to determine this officer did his job in accordance with the law and with his training?
Why keep the family of the deceased and the officer and his family hanging for so long? It is unprofessional and reeks of incompetence or worse, a fruitless effort to find something, anything, with which to charge a police officer.
This isn't justice.
Leo Knight
The irony of the IIO
"Don't underestimate the value of irony—it is extremely valuable."
― Henry James
The irony is delicious.
Following the November 2012 fatal shooting of an armed hostage taker who had fired shots at the Starlight Casino by Delta Police Constable Jordan MacWilliams, part of the Municipal Integrated Emergency Response Team (MIERT), was charged with murder by the Criminal Justice Branch (CJB) following the incredibly flawed investigation by the then-fledgeling Independent Investigations Office (IIO).
How flawed? Beyond belief. They never even interviewed the female hostage who was shot at, dragged and had a gun held to her head in the incident. They never asked for the video from the casino security staff itself who had the whole incident recorded. Casino security staff, who watched events unfold live on monitors and called 9-1-1, burned a DVD for the New West police who asked for and received it. They burned a copy for the Coroner's office who asked for and received it. They burned a copy for the IIO who never asked for it. Stunning.
MacWilliams as one of the first officers for the MIERT who responded to the shots fired/ hostage taking call at the casino. The perpetrator had been waiting for a female casino employee to arrive for work and fired three shots at her before dragging her from her car and about 500 metres down the sidewalk toward the entrance when New Westminster PD units arriving to the 9-1-1 call from casino security boxed him in in the parking lot. The call to the MIERT went out.
Less than an hour into the stand-off, MacWilliams and another officer noticed the female hostage managed to separate herself from the armed man and they immediately broke cover and put themselves between the hostage and the assailant with weapons drawn, exposing themselves to danger while a third officer ran out and pulled the woman to safety. The exposed officers withdrew to cover and the stand-off continued for several more hours. Had MacWilliams wanted to kill the man he had he opportunity then. He held fire and risked his own safety.
The negotiators tried and failed to end the situation and the incident commander decided to try a non-lethal assault using ARWEN guns with plastic bullets to try and disarm the man.
MacWilliams was designated lethal in that attempt. He was in the sniper seat to provide cover for the ALPHA team when they broke cover to take the shots. They did and the suspect turned toward them with gun raised and MacWilliams did his job. He took the shot, protected his colleagues and took down the armed man.
As MacWilliams said to me after the event, "All my guys got to go home that night, we did our job." And he is exactly right.
Had the IIO bothered to do their job were they actually competent, they would have interviewed the hostage who had information relevant to the hostage-taker. She would have told them, as she later told me, that the man had said to her when he had a gun to her head that the only way he was leaving the scene was in a body bag. In her mind that meant he was going to commit suicide at his own hand or force the police to shoot him.
You'd almost think that was important info that would corroborate the 22 page statement given by MacWilliams in describing the events of the day. Almost.
Instead they went through an elaborate charade trying to merge three video clips to suggest that MacWilliams fired before he should have and that resulted in him being charged with murder.
MacWilliams went for many months with a murder charge hanging over his head. The stress of the situation affected his life, his family's life, his colleagues and police officers around the province who worried what might happen if they double-clutched if they were in a similar situation.
I wrote much on the situation exposing the charge for the sham it was. Fortunately, the murder charge was eventually stayed in a rare moment of clarity from the Criminal Justice Branch and MacWilliams was allowed to return to his job serving the citizens of Delta, BC.
Apart from the ridicule I heaped upon the IIO in this, they never suffered any consequences. They still exist and their incompetence is exacerbated with nearly every investigation they do. The police have no confidence in them and nor should the general public.
And even though the Solicitor General, in a rare moment of clarity and common sense, pushed the first Chief Civilian Director Richard Rosenthal out the door early, the stupidity remains.
They recently brought in some experienced, retired police officers to help out with their procedures and training. That was good. But in at least one of those cases they are only having the instructor train new hires in proper major crime investigation techniques. Why not existing investigators so that everyone has the same level of training and information? That's just plain stupid.
They have hired a new Chief Civilian Director who performed a similar role in Nova Scotia, albeit that model uses seconded, seasoned police investigators instead of the BC model which uses, well, inexperienced civilians with little or no expertise. Indeed, the new CCD, the rather unfortunately named Ronald McDonald, faces a huge challenge to bring credibility to this organization which has become the subject of derision in the policing community.
First indications are not good.
But, in a delicious twist of irony, earlier this week, Delta Police Constable Jordan MacWilliams was summoned to Victoria and, at Government House, was presented with the Award of Valour for his actions on that day at the Starlight Casino.
Well done Constable. The IIO and the CJB should be ashamed for putting him and his family through the stress of a murder charge hanging over his head for all that time just for doing his job. And the heads of those responsible should roll.
But I won't hold my breath.
Leo Knight
BC government finally taking steps to address incompetence at IIO
Since the inception of B.C.'s Independent Investigations Office (IIO) I have been critical of them for a variety of reasons primarily surrounding their competence, or lack thereof more accurately. The IIO, for its part, has defended their woeful lack of training with, well, spin.
As an example, investigators with the IIO don't do any Use of Force training. They sit in on some classes when they spend their time at the Justice Institute (JIBC) but they don't actually take the training. Yet, their primary focus is to investigate incidents where police officers have used force resulting in serious injury or death.
Think about that. How can they possibly investigate incidents if they have no idea, for example, how difficult it is to take someone into custody who doesn't want to be handcuffed? How can they investigate an officer involved shooting if they haven't had any firearms training, let alone any Shoot / Don't Shoot scenario training?
They claim they follow the Major Case Management model but have no one who is board-certified as a Team Commander as mandated in the model.
And there's so much more.
Regular readers will recall that Vancouver Police Chief Constable Adam Palmer sent a letter to the IIO in which the Chief said this, "Changes need to be made to the IIO's current practices to improve the relationship between the IIO and the police. The VPD has two principal concerns. The first concern is what appears to be the IIO's lack of investigative competence. The second concern is the rigid position the IIO has adopted regarding pre-interview disclosure which has led to unnecessary friction and distrust between the police and the IIO. These concerns need to be addressed given the importance of independent police oversight to maintain public trust and accountability."
It would seem that Palmer got the government's attention. Last week the Director of Corporate Services for the Ministry of Justice, Vicki Yeats issued two Notices of Intent To Direct Award a Contract. The first is to Don Adam Consulting for a value up to $20,000 to provide "Investigative Interview Training".
I have no issue with that. Adam is one of the best in the business in that subject matter. My only question is what took so long? This should have been done out of the gate five years ago with in-service refreshers. It's a critical skill set for investigators and should be mandatory for anyone investigating a major case.
The other is to J. Boyle Consulting Services out of White Rock in the amount of $85,750 for 3 months work for the "Creation of a Certified IIO Investigator Program."
Five years in and they have only now decided they needed to create a training program for an IIO investigator?
Now I don't know who J. Boyle Consulting Services is, and neither Google nor LinkedIn offered up any assistance. But, since it is a Direct Award one assumes he or she knows what they are doing if the award to Adam is any indicator. And, I suspect it is likely Joanne Boyle who retired fairly recently as an Inspector from VPD. She does have major crime experience and is the most likely to fit that bill.
I have been saying for a couple of years now that the government owns this mess that is the IIO. It would seem they are finally realizing it and are taking steps – albeit baby ones – to try and fix the mess.
I am also told that a new Chief Civilian Director has been selected in the head-hunting process. Good. But they haven't announced a name yet and that is not good. The people of British Columbia, and the police officers who serve them, have the right to know who is being put in the position to try and lead this flawed organization out of the wilderness.
It's a matter of confidence.
Leo Knight

subset: commoncrawl


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I don't know about you, but the last time I went hunting, a bipod made all the difference in the world. A bipod is a small mount that you put your rifle on to stabilize your rifle. It's usually employed in a situation where you have a stable view of the animal you're trying to hunt.
There is a little bit of good news and bad news with a bipod. As you probably know, when you're hunting, whether you're in the French countryside or elsewhere, animals tend to go from Point A to Point B. In fact, in many cases, they run from Point A to Point B.
This is why, in most cases, it doesn't really make sense to use a bipod because you're assuming that the animal will essentially show himself or herself within a fixed territorial or geographic area. As you can well imagine, this doesn't happen all the time.
In fact, as the old saying goes, life is what happens when you have other plans. You can plan ahead, but it doesn't necessarily mean that reality will play out according to your plan.
In fact, it can really get quite erratic and irrational because your bipod may be set in a spot where you can't take a good shot because the animals are moving too quickly or there's just too much brush.
I'm saying this not to discourage you from using a bipod. Instead, I'm opening your mind to the kind of planning considerations you need to understand so you can put the bipod in the right place to take the right shot at the right time to produce the right results.
It's all about planning. It's all about strategy.
It's not just a simple matter of getting the very best bipod for hunting. That goes without saying. But you have to be at the right spot. And this takes experience.
Why experience?
Let me be clear with you. Let's talk honestly now. You can have all the best equipment in the world and you might be under the guidance of the very best hunter on the planet and all of these inputs will be useless to you. That is right-they will be as useless as tits on a board because at the end of the day, you let yourself take over. You let your inexperience, your excitement, and your bad timing take over and get the better of you. The result? All too predictable failure.
It is no surprise that the vast majority of hunters come home empty handed. They let their emotions and excitement get the better of them. Little do they know that they really only had an opportunity to take one good shot at their prey. They blew it.


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Have upgraded from 2.5.8 to 3.1.2 and the paypal addon v2.0 was causing problems: Fatal error: Using $this when not in object context.
I have purchased new paypal addons, but i would like to uninstall the original before uploading and installing the new ones. In the addon control panel it shows that has not been uninstalled but been removed. However the uninstall feature was not listed to this addon. I have deleted the folder and still shows that it's installed. If I work backwards through the install.txt would it show that it has been uninstalled?
Thanks for your help


text: Of the top ten best, New Jersey has 6; they are all "specialized" (magnet or academy) schools. McNair High School in Jersey City comes in at #172. The list can be arranged by state, college readiness scores, graduation rate, college bound, and the number of students in poverty. Clicking on a school's name brings up additional salient information. This site also has a section entitled "Beating the Odds": "Newsweek's "Beating the Odds" list seeks to identify schools that do an excellent job of preparing their students for college while also overcoming the obstacles posed by students at an economic disadvantage. A star next to a school's name indicates that it meets our Equity measure by helping low-income students score at or above average on state assessments." The ranking methodology is included.


text:
You are here :: Information :: Debt Arrangement Scheme
Jun 04, 2020
Debt Arrangement Scheme
If you have spare income after your essential household expenditure is met, this would be offered to your creditors on a pro-rata basis until the debts are paid in full. This may mean paying debts over a longer term than was originally agreed (usually up to a maximum of 10 years).
Once your DPP becomes approved you are protected from any further creditor recovery action, they cannot add any further interest or charges to your accounts and any assets you have are completely protected, particularly your home.
Advantages of the debt arrangement scheme:
- Once the DPP is approved, as long as you maintain agreed payments, your
- creditors cannot take any debt recovery action and must stop adding interest and
- charges to the balances.
- Your assets are not taken into consideration with this option so homeowners, for example, are protected as long as mortgage/secured loan payments are
- maintained
- You make only one monthly payment via an approved payment distributor who then
- pays each of your creditors
Disadvantages of the debt arrangement scheme:
- Your credit rating may be affected for the duration of your DPP
- If the majority of your creditors object, the DPP may not become approved


text: Heading tags are tags that are used for the creations of headings. The most important tag is the h1 heading tag, and will usually be the title of a post. Heading tags have a top-down hierarchy from h1 to h6. What value do headings have for SEO? The driver of any heavy-duty link campaign is the quality and volume of your content. If your content is of average quality and covers the same information dozens of other sites have covered, it will not attract many links If you execute your keyword research properly, you'll end up with a long list of search terms you want to be found for. Make sure to search for those terms in Google yourself. What results are there already? Who will be your online competitors for these search terms? What can you do to stand out from these results? Social media is another traffic acquisition avenue that can be pursued by website owners. Promoting to your social media following is great, but this type of traffic isn't necessarily new traffic.


text:
4 Piece A-Frame
Designed especially for people who need to fit an A-frame in their mini van or who have limited storage space, the 4-piece A-frame is built to the same standards as our 2-piece A-frame. The only difference is that each side wall is comprised of two pieces that slide together and are fastened with bolts. Each of the four pieces weighs only 43 Ibs. with the ply-wood attached. Additionally, the top half of the 4-Piece A-frame can be used as a mini A-frame (for the beginner young dogs or as a contact trainer for practice in a small area in the cold or excessively hot weather)
• Alumaskin:Is an aluminum coated sheet on either side of a pvc foam core. It is 1/8" thick and 40% lighter than wood.
• Plastaskin:Is a dense plastic that is equivalent in weight and thickness to wood but will never rot.
Please Allow 2 - 3 Weeks for Delivery


text:
Nissan Is Bringing An All - New Concept To Geneva, But Doesn't Say What
Nissan will unveil a never-before seen concept car at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show, on March 5. The study was officially announced by the Japanese automaker, which said that it's "all-new" and nothing else. So, what is it?
Truth be told, nobody outside the company knows exactly. But if we were forced to make an educated guess, we'd lean on a new subcompact SUV show car, which could work as a preview to a second-generation Juke. The latter is expected to debut later this year, with new underpinnings and perhaps an electric version that could take on the Hyundai Kona EV.
Underpinned by the Renault-Nissan Alliance's CMF-B platform, the new Juke will continue to be powered by the group's current crop of internal combustion engines. Some say the family might include the 1.0-liter and 1.6-liter petrol units, and perhaps the 1.5-liter diesel. Elsewhere, the 2020 Juke is thought to receive a hybrid variant as well, just like its platform-sharing cousin from Renault, the fifth-gen Clio that was unveiled this year.
What else will Nissan have in Geneva?
Celebrating its European premiere at the Geneva Motor Show will be the new Leaf Nismo RC. The electric racer will be brought to the Old Continent for the first time since it was shown to the world at the 2019 CES.
Nissan also promises to make "a number of exciting announcements" in other fields, such as intelligent mobility, with the CarScoops team reporting live on each and every one of them in a little under a month's time.
Note: Nissan Gripz Concept pictured


text:
for Cagetopia C&C Cages, Stands, Covers, Kitchens, Lofts, Grids, Coro, Midwest Add-ons & morevisit GuineaPigCagesStore.com (our Sister Store)
PLEASE NOTE: Toys are currently on backorder.
Your piggies will nap in style with this vibrant "Snooze and Snuggle" bundle, featuring a Comfy Cozy and Luxury Square Bed.
This eye catching bundle includes a plush Comfy Cozy and Luxury Square Bed in our vibrant Native Feathers fabric. Piggies wont be able to resist the urge to catch some zzz's.
Price: $29.99
Price: $31.99
Price: $38.99
Price: $152.96


text: She would have had a field day over the latest idiocy by Governor Goodhair aka Governor Perry aka Governor Idiot. CNN is reporting that Gov. Goodhair has just compared homosexuality with alcoholism. Yes. My sympathies to those in Texas who are democrat and have an iota of intelligence. When he said this I wish Ivins was still alive and to read what she would write about this. Governor Goodhair is how she referred to him.


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Beyond the Content - Mindfulness and Test Prep with Logan Thompson - Trending in Education - Extra
In this week's extra, Mike catches up with new author Logan Thompson on his book Beyond the Content: Unlocking the Other Half of Test Prep with a Tailored Mindfulness Approach.
Logan talks about his own path to becoming more mindful and self-aware and how good mindfulness practices have helped to shape who he is as a teacher and a person. Logan discusses how performing on a standardized test doesn't just involve understanding the content and the strategies, it also involves managing one's cognitive and emotional states. Throughout the conversation, Mike and Logan explore the analogy of consciousness as both a Driver and Passengers. Logan provides techniques to manage the presence of the interruptive, distracting, or self-limiting thoughts, aka Passengers, without giving them too much power or attention, while empowering the Driver to get to where she wants to go.
We also discuss how Logan's focus on mindfulness and being present connects to social and emotional learning, cognitive and emotional empathy, and the Whole Child and Whole Teacher movements.
Listen in and enjoy!


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- Hits: 603
The "Harmonie" is hard at work with the planning of the festival and it promises to be a four-day celebration of Swiss Music and Culture.
The "Harmonie" is asking for your support to make it all happen!
Hosting the festival is a tremendous undertaking for our all-volunteer organization, both financially and organizationally, so we are asking for your help. Can we count on you to make a donation or to advertise in our Souvenir book? Donations (monetary or in-kind will be dedicated to the "Harmonie" SwissFest2020 account and will help us in so many ways, especially with our Grand Concert and with sponsorship of our guest performers. We would also welcome contributions to our souvenir bags each festival registrant will receive. These items or an advertisement in our 100 + page color souvenir book are great ways to promote your business!
For more information click on www.swissfest2020.com
|Or click on: Donation Form
Place an Advertisement in our Souvenir book
An advertisement in our 100 page+ color souvenir book is a great way to promote your business and/or to express your greetings!
Click on: Ad Information and Order Form
Click on: Sample Advertisements
Swiss Singing Society Harmonie is a Section 501(c) 3 tax exempt organization


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About Couldbe Yue
Internet Wastrel
Recent Profile Visitors
Couldbe Yue started following Just How Bad Can Server Performance Get?
Just How Bad Can Server Performance Get?
Couldbe Yue replied to Odaks's topic in Second Life Server❤ 😘❤
Couldbe Yue changed their profile photo
Is there anyone with still the wrong pics displayed on market place issue ?
Couldbe Yue replied to a topic in MerchantsThe last time I looked, I still had mine too. I just treat it as souvenier of times past.
What is happening with the dates of my listing ?????
Couldbe Yue replied to a topic in Merchantsit's certainly interesting.. I have around 300 dated 29/7 then another 50 dated on various dates between 31/7 and today. and the dates bear no relation to when they were uploaded, migrated from xls or listed and the closest I've been to touching any of them is looking at the manage listing page. I haven't even been inworld with any viewer. The unlisted items have strange dates from 2012 onwards and I still have the rogue listing that I can't delete that has been there since the xls migration! ah well, it's all good fun.
Viewer-Managed Marketplace Released: Migration Begins July 23, 2015
Couldbe Yue replied to a topic in Merchantsmy tuppence is that none of my sales from the accounts that run separate stores have reverted from the listing name to the item name, nor have any of the items that have not sold and I've still not done anything via the web or the viewer. this issue of reverting to the item name is interesting as that's the default name irrc for a listing between the loading of the item and the creation of the listing. I'm wondering if something is wrong and somehow the db is losing the listing name so it is replacing it (as it would) with the item name. Their geeks are in theory clever, I'm sure they'll work it out.. or will just ignore it because it's too hard and hope we forget that it was a defect, rather than an undocumented design feature that we will grow to love. hey ho
Viewer-Managed Marketplace Released: Migration Begins July 23, 2015
Couldbe Yue replied to a topic in MerchantsI don't know if it does have something to do with the updates as I have checked my 3 stores (totalling around 500 listing) and they all migrated and I've had no issues with the listing name changing or anything else... well, I've still got the corrupt listing from the xls migration, that doesn't show on my manage listings page but everything else is fine. but I've not done anything with the listings on the website nor via the viewer. I'm laying bets there's issues around writing to the db from two different sources, or the viewer code is defective and that's why we're seeing failures or it could just be that it's generally broken (that's a technical term yanno).
Viewer-Managed Marketplace Released: Migration Begins July 23, 2015
Couldbe Yue replied to a topic in Merchantslilfae wrote: Call me dumb, but why force an upgrade on us to some specially constructed way to manage our stores, if you don't even officially have the software out yet? I would like to know who your ideas man is, because he is clearly smoking some kind of pot. You thrive on stores making money, for you, and you basically cripple them by moving them to an unmanageable service, so nothing new can go up, nothing can get repriced, unless they agree to use a beta release viewer. Did no-one stop to think; "You know, this may cause us headaches?", How many even use an official viewer anyway?.. I don't, and I won't beta test someones potentially crashy software. Seriously, what a boneheaded move!... o.x you're new here, aren't you?
VMM again - just when everything seemed to go so well :(
Couldbe Yue replied to ChinRey's topic in MerchantsBlush Bravin wrote: Thankfully, I don't upload products to marketplace everyday and can even go a few weeks without making a new product, because I refuse to use the LL viewer much less a release candidate LL viewer. So I am on hiatus until Firestorm comes out with their VMM compatible viewer. I think that's eminently sensible. Hopefully it won't be too long until firestorm release the update.
Viewer-Managed Marketplace Available on Aditi
Couldbe Yue commented on Linden Lab's blog entry in CommerceI watched the you tube vid of the office hour (or whatever they're called these days) and it appears that you have a system folder (like the current merchant out box) and in this you have folders for each item and each item folder can have sub folders and so you can use version control by renaming your folder to the latest version - which is one step up from the current marketplace where once you've sent it, it gets a bit difficult when you want to update. I've not used it though so I could be completely wrong. Only time will tell.
New Marketplace
Couldbe Yue replied to Pamela Galli's topic in MerchantsCall me gunshy but I see all manner of hurt coming our way with this but then, what's sl without chaos to distract us from our business? It's all good fun, no?
Couldbe Yue replied to Pamela Galli's topic in MerchantsEbbe Linden wrote: In an attempt to improve we made a few mistakes and caused some misunderstandings as well. We rolled back the changes and will work on getting it right. The team is looking at feedback and will communicate a plan for how to get there. I haven't been over here for a long time but your comment has made it completely worthwhile. Take that as you wish but don't ever mistake it for a compliment.
when will direct delivery phase 1 be complete?
Couldbe Yue replied to Sassy Romano's topic in MerchantsSecond life is still in the beta stage, so you can't expect a fully featured, working system. I'm sure they have a plan to transition to v1.0 sometime within our lifetime - or not.
SL wouldn't be half as much fun if it worked properly. really!
It's broken with 100% consistency - that's a record for them and makes it easier to work around. How often do they grant us that kind of ease of use? Yes, it is poor practice but so is everything else they do. Try to look at LL with a more objective eye and see them as they really are, rather than trying to hold them to the (for them) unattainable standards of a professional gaming company. We've all been guilty of assuming that they were trying to be a real company but the reality is that they're not, and they never will be because they don't want to be and as long as enough of the schmucks keep paying tier, they don't have to be. Even declining concurrency and income isn't focussing their minds. Their care level is borderline non existent. As for the transaction history being the master record of account transactions... if they truly thought that they wouldn't have left the marketplace transactions in such an uniformative state for the last three years but they have because they don't see it as important enough to get right. The only thing they have fixed that I can think of is you can download 31 days of transactions, rather than the 30 it used to be.. (and I am grateful for that one). The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Adult mainland plots for sale
Couldbe Yue replied to Couldbe Yue's topic in Parcels for Sale: Mainlandstill trying to get rid of the Zindra plots.. now down to 8L/sqm. They've got protected river frontage and a pretty good view. If you want one and want me to size one down, drop me a line. The land tools make it too hard to chop them easily into nice sized plots so I didn't bother but I will cut you something to suit if it means I keep the land from the land flippers.
I'm genuinely at a loss here to understand why it's so important. The transaction history is useless for marketplace transactions anyway since it doesn't tell you what has been sold, so you still need to go into the SLM transaction history. we'd all like them to do stuff properly but really we're usually happy with them doing least amount of harm as possible, which is what they have managed to do now they've fixed the payments. It's like the way they "fixed" the image problem.. at least that's fixed for most people now.. except for people like me (and Czari iirc) who still have a rogue picture. LL have never given any evidence they take pride in their work, certainly they've shown a healthy interest in making sure nothing ever gets finished (mesh, windlight, and a myriad of other things anyone?) so why beat them up over something that doesn't really give any kind of real improvement to our experience? There's a long line of other things I'd rather they *ahem* "fixed" before that..


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Northwestern University in Qatar's founding Dean Dr. John David Margolis will retire June 30 after three years of service in Qatar and many more at Northwestern's campus in Evanston, Illinois.
Dean Margolis joined Northwestern as a professor of English in 1966 and then served for six years as associate dean in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences before being named associate provost in 1981. Immediately prior to his appointment as Northwestern in Qatar's dean, he served as associate provost for faculty affairs.
He accepted the position at Northwestern Qatar in 2008 and brought his unparalleled understanding of all things Northwestern to bear and led the University through its exciting start-up phase and, critically, the building of NU-Q's distinct identity and welcoming community.
Dean Margolis is an extraordinarily skilled diplomat and leader. He is humble and frequently eschewed the title of dean in informal settings. His hallmark is that he always listened to the ideas of students, faculty and staff and provided them with the support and guidance needed to enable their success.
There is no doubt that Northwestern University in Qatar would be a very different institution today were it not for the leadership of Dean Margolis. We thank Dean Margolis for his years of service to the University and wish him well on his next endeavor.
Please leave a comment for Dean Margolis below.


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Why SiteGround and Websavers Are Our New Web Hosts of Choice
One thing is certain about the world of web design and development: To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often. ~Winston Churchill The web world has changed so much in such a short period of time. There are an endless number of content management systems (WordPress, SquareSpace, Wix), plugins (a mere…Read More
Our Top WordPress Plugins for 2017
WordPress Plugins 101 Ah, plugins. Those mystical bits of coding that make magic happen in WordPress. At the mention of the word, most people's eyes glaze over. And, if you're not used to being hands-on with WordPress, they can be confusing and scary. If you want or need to get more control of your website,…Read More
How to Control Which Images from Your Website Show up on Facebook
How many times have you shared a link from your website via a social sharing button at the bottom of a blog post or by pasting a URL into Facebook only to have a cut off, morphed image show up that does not accurately or aesthetically represent your website or business? Raise your hand if…Read More
Getting paid for what you know, not what you do
Being a business owner is hard. It's fun, too. And challenging. And exciting. And frustrating. And a bit of a roller coaster. Whether you're the business owner or the consumer, you know that price is one of the most talked about aspects of every product or service. Business owners have to price everything they sell,…Read More
How To End Day-To-Day Chaos With Effective Systems
Jane believes her business is thriving because she is super busy. Too busy in fact to go on vacation. Her business runs because of her ability to do a multitude of tasks and hold a lot of information in her head. Only she knows, for example, where to locate important documents like contracts, product lists,…Read More
Do I need a Blog or Website? What's the difference?
What's the difference between a WordPress blog and a WordPress website (or any type of blog vs. website)? News flash! Nothing! At least as far as the structure goes. The differences, however, lie in the purpose of the site. A blog is actually a website behind the scenes. Cool huh? Which one you choose to…Read More
Why Collect Email Addresses from your Website
Email marketing – the why: If you have a website (whether it's a full site with multiple pages or a blog), you will want to have an email sign-up form highly visible so people can sign up to receive new content from you. Heck, even if you don't have a website but you use Facebook,…Read More
How we keep our mind on business…Oooo squirrel!
Keep your brain on track and focused on business. If you work from home like we do, you know it's hard to keep focused. Heck, it's hard to focus when working from anywhere! Phone, family, lunch, pets, laundry, Facebook, online sales at Old Navy, ooooo squirrel! So, instead of getting lost in Creative Market (which…Read More
How to Save Time and Be Productive with Skype
When Skype first started, it was known as a way to talk to people anywhere in the world, computer to computer, for free! It was also a way to call landlines or mobile phones for a small fee by adding credit to your account. These days, Skype is used for so much more than calling…Read More
Our top 10 picks to find the perfect images for your website (and social media)
Your images are the eye candy of your website. They give your content interest, help explain what's going on, make things more fun and best of all, give your website stay-worthiness. Too little or the wrong type is boring at best or run for the hills at worst. If the first impression people get is…Read More


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Words are the tools of writers and writers are artists as I believe, then sentences can be the brushstrokes that paint a picture. Finding the special words that help the reader visualize all you say is the answer to good writing.
When you think of a special book you loved something in it made you feel and something helped you relate to the theme or message. Words of course are responsible but, especially those that help you to see what you are reading.
If you can see it, no matter how crazy the idea, you will give it some credence. You find it much easier to believe what you see so those words that paint the scene enable you to completely take it in. You can smell the newly mown grass, you can feel the pebbles under bare feet and you can see the entire place where these people relay the story.
When you visualize her gown, you must have word details. Is it silk, or velvet, gauzy stuff or satin? Does it follow her shape and compliment every curve or is it one of those pieces of attire meant to cover up and not even suggest a woman's shape? Is it there to romanticize the moment, seduce the most eligible male, or help her remain cool and aloof? Does her garment serve to protect her as some broken, teen girls use the over-sized, dark clothing to hide any sense of sexuality and keep them safe that way?
Painting word pictures when introducing characters is vital if the reader is to relate at all to the character, to even know who they are and what they look like. The reader's interpretation may differ slightly from what you intend but, it still is their starting point before the reader's imagination completes the photo. How well you paint that picture is how close the reader will see the person you wished them to envision. If they recognize the same person as you have written, that should be a coup for the writer.
Artists paint in bold strokes or sometimes it is a meld of colors arranged in ways that express a feeling more than a picture. Writers can do the same thing. They can 'state a picture' boldly and simply with strong exact words or add nuances to the colors and shapes by many words. Softening and highlighting, creating the chiaroscuro the balance and contrast of dark and light are all part of an artist's creating process. Why can't it be with a writer as well?


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The most significant boxing match of the year is here. Here's everything you need to know to watch Mikey Garcia vs. Errol Spence, two of the best fighters in the world clashing in a Fox PPV,
Garcia is moving up two weight divisions to challenge for Spence's 147-pound title. That weight difference—Garcia has had his biggest successes in the 135-pound division—could be the difference for Garcia. There's also the worry that the powerful Spence can seriously damage Garcia for his long-term career. But others argue that Garcia's talent is good enough to give Spence a hard time.
No matter what, you're going to have to pay $74.95 to watch the fight on PPV. But even if you've cut the cord, you still have ways to live stream Spence vs. Garcia.
Errol Spence vs. Mikey Garcia
- When: Saturday, March 16 at 9pm ET
- Where: AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas
- Streaming: Fox Sports app
Spence vs. Garcia live stream: How to watch online
If you want to watch a live stream of Spence vs. Garcia, you're going to have to pay $74.95 for it. There is no legal way to take it in for free. But you also don't have to have cable to watch.
If you purchase the card on Foxsports.com, you can stream it through the Fox Sports app on your device with whatever service provider you use. That includes Apple TV, Android TV, Fire TV, Xbox One and Roku.
Aside from the four-fight card on PPV, you can also watch former heavyweight titlist Charles Martin on the undercard on FS1 and Fox Deportes, beginning at 8pm ET. Martin—who won a title in 2016 but then lost it to Anthony Joshua three months later—will face the unbeaten Gregory Corbin, and you can stream it for free.
We have a complete guide for streaming FS1 here, but here's all of the essential information. You can stream it via Sling TV, Hulu with Live TV, FuboTV, YouTube TV, DirecTV Now, PlayStation Vue, or with log-in credentials from any of those services on the Fox Sports Go app. All of these services should allow for at least a one-week free trial. Remember, this is is for the Martin-Corbin undercard fight only.
If you'd rather watch Spence vs. Garcia on the big screen, you can head to www.FathomEvents.com to see if the fight is at a movie theater nearby.
Spence vs. Garcia: Why it matters
Garcia (39-0, 30 knockouts) is one of the best 135-pound lightweights in the world, but lately, he's been experimenting at higher weight classes to see how far his boxing skills and his talent can take him. So far, it's worked. He'd already won world titles at featherweight (126 pounds), junior lightweight (130 pounds), and lightweight, and last March, he won a 140-pound belt by beating the solid Sergey Lipinets.
He's also got immense amounts of power. Just look what he did to Dejan Zlaticanin at 135 pounds.
But the real question is whether Garcia can make Spence feel his power at a weight class that's 12 pounds heavier than where Garcia has been most effective. Spence is bigger than Garcia, and in part, the betting odds reflect that—Garcia is about a 3/1 underdog. But Garcia seems confident.
"We've been implementing techniques that will help me improve my speed, explosiveness and reaction time, while also adding a little bit of mass," he said. "I think all of that is going to be beneficial to me on fight night. I feel very happy with the results."
Even if Garcia and Spence were the same size, though, Garcia might still be the underdog. That's because Spence (24-0, 21 KOs) is one of the purest talents in the world, the kind of fighter who could become an all-time great.
He had the most important win of his career in 2017 when he knocked out Kell Brook, and he followed that up by stopping the durable Lamont Peterson and knocking out Carlos Ocampo in the first round. Garcia would be the most talented boxer Spence has ever beaten and would add considerably more accolades to the already impressive career of the 29-year-old.
"Mikey is very difficult because of how he places his punches," Spence said. "He's always thinking and he has a high ring IQ. But I've been clicking on all cylinders. I'm strong mentally and physically and prepared for anything he brings to the table. A win here can definitely catapult me and I'm ready to make it happen."
Spence vs. Garcia live stream schedule
- Errol Spence vs. Mikey Garcia
- David Benavidez vs. J'Leon Love
- Luis Nery vs. McJoe Arroyo
- Chris Arreola vs. Jean Pierre Augustin
- Charles Martin vs. Gregory Corbin*
*Exclusively on FS1.
New to cord-cutting? Here are our picks for the best movie streaming sites of 2019 and free live TV apps and channels. If you're looking for premium services, here's how to watch HBO, Showtime, and Starz online. Want a specific channel? Here's how to stream A&E, AMC, Animal Planet, BBC, Bravo, Cartoon Network/Adult Swim, CNN, CNBC, C-SPAN, Comedy Central, the CW, Discovery, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNU, Food Network, Fox News, Freeform, FS1 and FS2, FX, Golf Channel, HGTV, History Channel, HLN, Lifetime, MSNBC, MTV, National Geographic, NBA TV, PBS, Sundance TV, Syfy, TBS, Tennis Channel, TLC, TNT, the Weather Channel, Willow, and NFL RedZone without cable, as well as free movies on YouTube. If you're on the move, here's how to watch Fox Sports Go and live stream NBC Sports.
For a year-round sports fix, sign up here to receive our weekly boxing newsletter. You'll hear about all the biggest fights and best knockouts from the Daily Dot's streaming sports guru Josh Katzowitz.


text: I've been saving this Moroccan recipe from Rachael Ray for a while now and finally made it tonight. I chose to use chicken since that was what I had on hand and served the meat over couscous. The flavor combination of the cumin, coriander, chili and cinnamon was amazing! I also loved the bright citrucy addition of the lemon. Another definite winner from Rachael Ray!


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Make your Live Blood Session your First choice.....not your LAST resort!
Benefits of Food Combining
Many diets tell you to eat less and exercise more, with little regard to what you actually combine together in your stomach. Many years ago, our ancestors worked hard at physical jobs and returned home each day to eat big meals of meat, breads, cheeses, and even sweets with no adverse effects. They had iron stomachs digesting everything and with all that hard labor they worked off and eliminated toxins naturally. Our ancestors also had healthier inner ecosystems. A healthy inner ecosystem is made up of the friendly microflora (good bacteria) that reside in our intestines and keep us healthy and strong. Over time, the introduction of antibiotics, pasteurization and processed foods, along with a lifestyle of constant stress, has damaged our inner ecosystems. An unhealthy inner ecosystem can lead to a digestive tract that functions inefficiently.
Today, more than ever, we need to take extra special care of our bodies because they have never been more under-nourished and overstressed. Food combining may help regulate digestive functions and improve assimilation of nutrients without medications or enzymes. Applying the Serving size and Balanced Plate you can naturally improve your digestion.


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Set aside time for 'what matters'
Many in my community believe that when a prayer is heard, it may get one of four answers. If the request is good, the answer is a 'yes.'
On the other hand, the word 'no' is a complete answer, indicating that the request is bad. Further, the school of thought posits that a prayer may be placed in a holding pattern or queue if the timing is wrong.
Finally - 'first grow up' - is said to signify that the petition or prayer is ambitious and completely off-target. Prayer demands discipline and focus.
I find myself in agreement. Consequently, I wish to suggest that we can use this premise in building relationships which thrive on trust and commitment. Moreover, I suggest that we should test our relationships in the same way we interrogate our motivations in prayer.
Without investing in healthy relations, we condemn our communities to dysfunctionality.
Raymond E. Feist surmises that "life is problems. Living is solving problems." But that is not to intimate that we should give up on life.
I do not believe that the Almighty gives the hardest battles to the toughest soldiers. Rather, the toughest troops are formed on the anvil of life's hardest battles. I want to use prayer as a representation of 'what matters' and the 'hardest battles.'
The subject of interpersonal relationships has an all-time currency for me. I have developed on the strength of some while others have been shocking lessons in human frailty and betrayal.
Mukarami poses the evergreen question when he asks: "Is it ever possible, in the final analysis, for one human being to achieve perfect understanding of another? We can invest enormous time and energy in serious efforts to know another person, but in the end, how close can we come to that person's essence?"
Masashi Kishimoto takes this endearing line: "I used to think of you as a friend. I used to think that 'friend' was just another word… nothing more, nothing less. But when I met you, I realised that what was important was the word's meaning."
Getting to know other people, the other person, is a complex undertaking. Allow me to take it further and suggest that the task equals 'what matters' and the 'hardest battles.' We encounter the burden of getting to know people in virtually every aspect of our lives.
As a single parent, one of my challenging lessons is getting to know and understand my children at the different stages of their development. My oldest child was almost ten years of age when I lost my wife in 2006. As they have grown up, I have sought direction in Frederick Douglass' timeless reminder that "it is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men."
We do not give up when we encounter obstacles that have 'what matters' and the 'hardest battles' inscribed on them.
Remember, the Scriptures exhort us to pray without ceasing. Pray, listen – when people speak about their life stories; the haunting tales of abuse; bullying; addictions and other weaknesses.
There are bad attitudes, fears, painful memories and thoughts that breed miscreants. If we are to build healthy communities, we need to realise that the time we invest in relationship building matters.
Companies do it. They look for people with integrity, loyalty and objectivity. Yes, academic and professional qualifications count. But companies spend time investigating a candidate's character, strengths and weaknesses.
I will be adventurous here and use Percy Sledge's song, "Take time to know her (and him)," to illustrate my point: "I found a woman, I felt a true love for her; she was everything I'd been dreaming of…,
A human resources specialist has noted that "this may seem time-consuming, but it is a lot less time-consuming than dealing with the aftermath of a less than optimal appointment."
Not surprisingly, some hiring firms now take a second look at the references supplied by a job applicant. When I moved from the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation to government information services, I had supplied names of my Harare-based ZBC superiors and one from the Zimbabwe Mass Media Trust as referees.
I was working then as ZBC bureau chief in Chinhoyi, which is about 120 km outside Harare. The interviewing team turned down the Harare referees. They argued that my three years in Chinhoyi were sufficient to yield people who could talk about me.
I eventually presented the principal of a teachers' training college and the provincial medical director as alternatives. It was a disaster! Both were asked about my domestic life. I had assumed that they would answer questions on our professional interactions.
After the recruitment, it is generally agreed that effective targeted induction – the action or process of formally introducing someone to a post or organization – is the first step towards gaining an employee's commitment.
I believe the same rigour should inform the whole gamut of personal relationships. In an age where the stain of unhealthy relations litters many columns in the newspapers, and has been the subject of books and films, I believe the challenge merits close attention.
I have also seen similar conversations on such issues as cheating and gender-based violence. We can still stem the tide of toxic and debased relationships once we realize that they constitute 'what matters' and the 'hardest battles.' Healthy and wholesome connections will determine the world we bequeath to the young.
My focus on healthy relationships does not suggest perfection; just an appeal to strive for more authentic interdependent ties.
There is no denying that the average relationship will be saddled with many challenges. From time immemorial, family and other interpersonal ties have experienced ups and downs, and joy and pain. Today's world however has the sad distinction of 'toxic relationships.'
To paraphrase Wendell Berry, we have the urgent task of ending the "story-telling contest that is not winnable" and the equally disturbing process of "community disintegration."
"A community identifies itself by an understood mutuality of interests. But it lives and acts by the common virtues of trust, goodwill, forbearance, self-restraint, compassion, and forgiveness. It has the power, that is, to influence behaviour."
New Era Reporter
2019-02-08 12:12:42 | 1 years ago


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Post Highlights
- 1 Jharkhand High Court Admit Card 2018
High Court Of Jharkhand Released the Jharkhand High Court Admit Card 2018 Of Personal Assistant, English Stenographer having 181 Posts on 13.08.2018. Applicants will be hired by conducting the Written Test. So, all the Postulants to Get this Job definitely JHC Personal Assistant Admit Card 2018 Download through the web page jharkhandhighcourt.nic.in.
High Court Of Jharkhand Personal Assistant Admit Card 2018 is activated and Exam Date is clearly placed on the Hall Ticket. So, the Contestants must Follow the Instructions must Download it to know Jharkhand High Court PA Exam Date along with Steno. Attending this Exam decides the Candidates selection for this 181 Jobs.
Jharkhand High Court Admit Card 2018
Are You Looking For the High Court Of Jharkhand Admit Card 2018 of 181 Personal Assistant & Stenographer Jobs? Then look out to this article which helps the postulants in knowing the JHC Stenographer Admit Card 2018. Those who do the Registration to the Jharkhand High Court will be hired by conducting the Written Test. That's why this Jharkhand HC Stenographer Admit Card 2018 for the Right Contestants who are shortlisted for Written Test is released here and the Online Downloading link is activated here. Immediately, the applicants must Catch their respective High Court Of Jharkhand Stenographer Admit Card 2018 fastly before the link expires. As we update the Latest Staff Selection Commission Jobs, we advise the contenders to stick on to our page.
Also, Check: JSLPS Admit Card 2018
High Court Of Jharkhand PA & Stenographer Hall Tickets 2018
Every Candidate to attend this JHC Steno Written Test, they need the help of Jharkhand HC Personal Assistant Hall Ticket 2018. Because it helps the Examiners to find the list of the Postulants who are allowable to that particular exam Hall and their candidature is right or wrong. And this Jharkhand High Court Hall Ticket Of PA, Stenographer Jobs helps in eliminating the malpractice actions. That's why the candidates who carry their handout will be allowable for the Written test centre. As the JHC JA Exam Admit Card 2018 has that much importance the Applicant after downloading it check out the complete Details correctly updated or not. Candidates can Check More Sarkari Results here.
Jharkhand High Court Admit Card 2018 Overview
|High Court Name
|Jharkhand High Court
|Post Name(s)
|Personal Assistant, Stenographer (English) Jobs
|Number Of Vacancies
|181 Posts
|Admit Cards
|Admit Card Release Date
|13th August 2018
|Date Of Exams
|View On Call Letter
|Official Website
Jharkhand HC Personal Assistant Hall Ticket Date
High Court Of Jharkhand PA Hall Ticket 2018 Link will be active until one day before the Exam. Applicants downloading should be done fastly, otherwise, the link will be deactivated. If the jharkhandhighcourt.nic.in Admit Card 2018, have any mistakes, the applicant must inform the Recruitment board immediately and then carry a Gazette Officer Signed letter to the Exam Hall Along with Photocopy added with the Hall Ticket for Candidatureverification confirmation purpose. Jharkhand High Court does not offer the Travelling Allowances or any other for the Applicants who are going to attend this exam with the Jharkhand High Court Admit Card 2018.
Also, Check: MP High Court District Judge Result 2018
High Court Of Jharkhand Stenographer, Personal Assistant Exam Date
High Court Jharkhand Personal Assistant Exam Date is available on the Jharkhand High Court Admit Card with all the furnished details of the postulant. Applicants, first of all, read the Important Steps listed on the JHC Personal Assistant Call Letter to know that the documents which are to mandatory while attending the Exam hall. Applicants before an hour to the Exam time, must attend the Exam Hall and follow up the instructions there on the Exam Hall and then enter to the Exam Hall and show the Jharkhand High Court Admit Card 2018 to the Examiner and attend the Exam. And Keep staying tuned to Jobschat.in for Regular Job Alerts.
Useful Links And Dates
|Date Of Admit Card Available
|13th August 2018
|Date Of Exam
|View On Hall Ticket
|Jharkhand High Court Admit Card 2018
|Download Now (Personal Assistant)


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JT International a.d. Senta, despite being a foreign investment, has "domesticated" in Serbia in the best way during its more than ten years of operating here. JTI is a member of the Japan Tobacco Group of Companies, which is one of the leading international producers of tobacco, present on the global market with brands like Winston, Camel, Mevius and El-de. Alongside these, thanks to brands I-Lights and Logic, it is also a global player in the e-cigarette market.
This Geneva-based company with operations in more than 120 countries selected Serbia for its first direct investment way back in 2006. And not just that! Despite seeming impossible at first glance this Japanese company has introduced and successfully implemented a new business philosophy for Serbia – Kaizen, which encourages creativity at work aimed at achieving the best possible results.
In the meantime, this investment has become one of the country's most important factories, tripling the number of workers employed there during the 11 years of its operation, creating room for associated companies and contributing significantly to the annual Serbian budget through tax contributions, excise duty and other payments. It is also worth noting that the company's market share has also increased during this time from seven to 21 per cent.
JTI is the largest tobacco producer in Serbia, employing a total of 1,000 workers in Belgrade and at the factory in Senta – as well as tobacco growers and their family members and seasonal workers
More than $2.7 million was invested in the Senta factory in 2016 alone, in order to further expand tobacco processing and cigarette production capacities, though this sum represents only a fraction of total investments during the past decade. That's also why one of our first questions for the director of operations in Senta, Azhaiyp Kozhakhmetov, related to achievements this year and plans for next year.
– Since 2006, when JTI purchased Senta Tobacco Industry, a total of US$170 million has been invested in modernising the factory's facilities, launching cigarette production and exports to Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Croatia and Albania, as well as exporting tobacco to the EU. By the end of 2017, we plan to complete the current investment cycle of US$2.7 million, while in 2018 another US$2 million will be injected in the further expansion of tobacco and cigarette production. Senta Tobacco Industry was initially a factory that only dealt with processing green tobacco, but we now have a portfolio of different configurations for cigarette products belonging to some of the world-famous brands we produce, such as Winston, Monte Carlo, Camel and LD.
How much of the cigarettes and tobacco produced do you export?
– We are currently exporting more than a third of everything we produce. The value of exports over the last 10 years amounts to more than US$200 million. Just in 2017, we will export cigarettes and tobacco worth nearly US$20 million. Our long-term plans are to increase volumes in our export markets.
JTI cooperates with local farmers, along with their families and seasonal workers. What are the terms of that cooperation?
– As the only international company that buys domestic tobacco, JTI is Serbia's largest tobacco producer, employing a total of 1,000 people in Belgrade and the factory in Senta – tobacco growers, members of their families and seasonal workers. For the second consecutive year, the company has been awarded the Top Employer certificate for providing leading-edge staff conditions. As far as cooperation with our producers goes, with the goal of achieving the best results in terms of quality and yield, JTI provides support to farmers at all stages of production – from the provision of seeds and payment of the amount required for financing production, through the care of tobacco in the field, training farmers about the proper application of agri-technical measures, to collection and transportation of tobacco to the factory.
In recognition of our donations of equipment and funding, as well as the voluntary work of our employees, JTI was awarded the prestigious VIRTUS Award in 2015 for contributions to the local community in which it operates
JTI's factory in Senta is the first operation in Serbia to fully apply Kaizen – the Japanese business philosophy that enables the achieving of great results. Do you think other companies in Serbia would benefit from Kaizen and, if so, how?
– Kaizen is a way of thinking and organising everything. It emphasises employee creativity to help define the way procedures and systems can be improved. Overall advantages of the philosophy include increased productivity and maintaining the quality of products and services. It is a "continuous improvement" mindset that you can apply anywhere, on any job. That is the reason why we traditionally organise an 'Open Door' day at our factory for colleagues from other companies, and we share with them our successes achieved using the Kaizen continuous improvement method. Based on our experience, I can say that realisation of the Kaizen philosophy is a challenging but attractive journey that will undoubtedly bring you great success.
As a major company, do you feel responsible for the local community? How do you support your fellow citizens in Senta?
– JTI is strategically orientated towards supporting the society in which it operates and protecting socially vulnerable groups. With the aim of contributing over the long term to the improvement of the quality of life of community members at the local and national levels, we launch and participate in numerous projects.
In recognition of our donations of equipment and funding, as well as the voluntary work of our employees, JTI was awarded the prestigious VIRTUS Award in 2015 for contributions to the local community in which it operates. We invest in preserving culture and tradition, as well as in improving the quality of everyday life.
In Senta itself, we helped with the reconstruction of the theatre and city fountain, as well as supporting the establishment of a daycare centre for people with work-related disabilities. Every year we traditionally give the largest donations to the Soup Kitchen in Senta. On the other hand, the majority of tobacco producers with whom we cooperate are located in Srem, so we have initiated or joined several projects to support locals there.


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July 29, 2014 – 100M Grant: President Jonathan Reportedly Gave Chibok Parents Money After Meeting
This was exposed by BringBackOurGirls protest leader in Abuja, Obiagelu Ezekwesili.
President Goodluck Jonathan reportedly honoured some parents of the kidnapped Chibok girls who agreed to meet him last week with a whopping N100 million.
"I wish the #chibokparents resisted the filthy lucre. Really wish they did. How much cna douse that agony of a missing child? We shall stand" – Mrs Oby said on Twitter
To counter Oby's claim, Jonathan's special assistant on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe said
"I want to make it clear and emphatically 2 dat PGEJ did not give any 100m to d chibok visitors who came 2 d villa. D story is absolute falsehood"
Even if he gave them the money, will he tell us. Make dem lie small joor


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Recent issues occurred that involved removal of a couple staffers. What's done is done on that front and we got to move forward. I just want to make a few things clear though.
This wasn't occurring for a long time, in fact, it looks like it was the first time it occurred and it was caught. I've checked EVERY claim in the past, it's not something I take lightly. If you have ANY claims or want me to check ANY staffer (even if you are UNSURE), you let me know through a PM on discord. I will investigate it as soon as I can. We have a zero tolerance for these actions and punishment will be at my discretion.
Moving on forward I am making some modifications coming with the update involving ghosting. For most staff members, /ghosting will now only hide them in the player list. You will see movement, see when a warp occurs, and be able to page them. This should resolve issues involving this from here on out for the most case. There are also other functions coming in to identify 'botters' (which I myself handle on my own) so for the most case ghosting to hunt down players who bot isn't required anymore.
Please remember we are all on the same team looking to make this game grow and there is no need to be pouring salt in peoples wounds. Doing so slows down development and hurts the game. I also hope everyone on both sides of the story continues playing and enjoying the game. I apologize for what has occurred and we're still working on making the game better step by step.
I will be posting another development update soon as well.
In lieu of recent events
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Recently Orange and one of its inventors, Blaž Zupan, have been recognized as one of the top 100 changemakers in the region. A 2016 New Europe 100 is an annual list of innovators and entrepreneurs in Central and Eastern Europe highlighting novel approaches to pressing problems.
Orange has been recognized for making data more approachable, which has been our goal from the get-go. The tool is continually being developed with the end user in mind - someone who wants to analyze his/her data quickly, visually, interactively, and efficiently. We're always thinking hard how to expose valuable information in the data, how to improve the user experience, which defaults are the most appropriate for the method, and, finally, how to intuitively teach people about data mining.
This nomination is a great validation of our efforts and it only makes us work harder. Because every research should be fruitful and fun!


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When pupils leave Flora Gardens Primary School, we aim for them to be digital creators, effective communicators and responsible citizens. We recognise the importance of Computing as a lifelong learning tool and key skill in an ever-evolving digital world.
Computing is taught in a variety of ways at Flora Gardens; specific skills are taught during Computing lessons using our suite of desktop computers or iPads; however, Computing teaching also takes place using a cross-curricular approach through our topics of study. This allows children to transfer their skills and use technology for a real purpose, thereby seeing Computing as an integral component of all learning which is linked to the real world. Our Curriculum Overviews for each year level outline which aspects of the Computing curriculum are taught at which stage.
Embedding all of our Computing teaching is E-Safety so that pupils have the knowledge, skills and understanding to be safe and responsible online – Click Here for guidance from the London Grid for Learning.
Our E-SAFETY PAGE has lots of information for parents, as well as links to other websites that can help with e-safety.
For more information about keeping children safe online at home click here, visit this link for social media safety or for gaming safety information click here.
Has someone done something online that has made you or a child or young person you know, feel worried or unsafe?
Click here to make a report to CEOP.