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Have you ever bemoaned the fact that high school students don't know much about how local government works or the importance of planning for the community's future?
If so, are you aware that some cities and towns have taken steps to address this by adding high school student members to their planning commission?
In this short article, we'll take a look at three communities that have taken this step. We'll see how both the community and the students have benefitted — and we'll consider some of the challenges in setting up this kind of arrangement.
The three communities we'll look at — Manchester and Burlington, Vermont, and Edina, Minnesota — have successfully shown that with a strong youth presence their planning boards are better able to analyze subjects from a larger variety of perspectives while continuing to be an efficient and effective resource for their communities planning staff. All three places have made a conscious effort to recruit local students to serve on their planning boards, and by all accounts these efforts have been rewarded.
When properly motivated and engaged, student planning board members can illuminate issues that may have otherwise gone unnoticed and expand the conversation among the voting commissioners.
Manchester, Vermont
Manchester, Vermont, is a small town (population about 4,000) located in the southwestern part of the state. If you're a skier (or an outlet shopper) you may have heard of Manchester, as it's one of the gateways to several of the state's ski areas. Lee Krohn, Manchester's long-time planning director has, since 2007, effectively integrated students into planning boards with a high level of success.
Through a partnership with Burr and Burton Academy in Manchester (an independent secondary school that serves as the public high school for students from Manchester and is offered as a school of choice for several surrounding communities) and supported by the Orton Family Foundation, the town government appoints two student members to not just the planning commission but to each of six additional government boards.
The Town of Manchester uses the same rigorous selection and interview process that is used when choosing adult board members. On all but two of these boards (the planning commission and the development review board) the student members have full voting privileges. Even on the planning commission, where students do not have a vote on all matters, student members have had a strong and overwhelmingly positive effect on the discussions and final decisions of the commission.
The students have, according to Krohn, provided great new insights, shifting many of the ways adult members conceptualize their communities. Prior to having student members on each government board, Krohn notes, there was a definite lack of student voice. There was a need to emphasize the thoughts of those who will "inherit the future."
Hayden Dublois, a former student member of the Manchester Planning Commission, felt his impact was greatest during the reformulation of the town plan. "As we went through the document, paragraph by paragraph, I offered amendments to existing language. Often these amendments became a part of the plan." The perspectives of students, according to Dublois, are even more far reaching, affecting the outcome of many issues, such as temporary residential structures, zoning, and sign variances.
Within a few years, the success of the Manchester Planning Commission youth engagement gained national recognition by the American Planning Association (APA) and three students accompanied Krohn to the APA's annual conference in Minneapolis to present the various ups and downs that come with their appointment to the town boards.
Is the success of the Manchester's youth engagement the result of an unusual population of students who are somehow inherently more interested in local planning projects than would be the case in other communities? Krohn doesn't think so. Instead, several factors in the program design were key.
First, the Town's approach to youth engagement focused on how serving on a board would ultimately serve the student's interests, instead of simply portraying the program as a way to aid a group of adults in making decisions. Manchester framed their student engagement ideas around the opinions, experiences, and suggestions of the local students themselves. Five Burr and Burton high school students served as members of the committee charged with developing a youth engagement model in 2006, the model that would, by the next year, open up the seven local government boards to student membership.
Also, by opening up board seats for students on multiple boards with different roles Manchester accessed a greater percentage of the student population than if the town were looking for just one student to serve on, say, the parks and recreation committee or on the planning commission.
For the students, too, there is strong encouragement and incentive. The high school, through its service learning graduation requirement, encourages students to participate in local government.
The program, Krohn states, is not only a great, practical partnership between the high school and the town of Manchester, but is a way for students to have a sense of place and see the value in community development.
This definitely resonated with Dublois, who, after completing the program, had a much clearer sense of how town committees work to represent residents and their community as a whole. In a larger sense, Krohn sees the program as planting a seed of interest in local government that will transcend this singular experience, encouraging students to carry on participating in their communities' decisions for the rest of their lives.
A more detailed look at the Manchester youth engagement program is available on the Orton Family Foundation web site.
Edina, Minnesota
Edina, Minnesota, situated less than ten miles southwest of Minneapolis, is considered a first-ring suburb. With a population of almost 48,000 and a territory of sixteen square miles, Edina is considerably larger than Manchester. Its student involvement program has been in place for ten years, the application process being channeled through the high school. Two spots are reserved for students on the Edina Planning Commission. Student applicants are interviewed by members of the City Council for the positions.
The program allows active participation of students in all planning commission meetings, where, according to Cary Teague, Edina's Community Development Director, they are "welcome to participate in the discussions and provide input." However, voting abilities do not come with their participation. Unlike in Manchester, the students do not receive any credit or meet a school requirement. However, their volunteer hours look great on resumes and college transcripts as a display of interest in the inner workings of their community.
The students' participation on the planning commission has contributed to better decision making, providing a "fresh perspective" to local concerns and problems. As Teague notes, Edina has been "very lucky to have had very bright students that are willing to participate."
Burlington, Vermont
Burlington, Vermont, located on the waters of Lake Champlain, is Vermont's largest city, with a population of about 42,000.
Burlington's program for youth participation began in 2003, with students serving on the planning commission; it has since expanded, with students now also sitting on a variety of committees. Burlington High School students receive credit for this service. In addition, their volunteer hours look tremendous on a college application or resume. More importantly, as Yves Bradley, current Chair of the Burlington Planning Commission, informed us, students "feel that they are benefiting the community."
While the students do not have the power to vote, their input and participation is greatly valued. Their unique perspectives allow the commission to view issues more broadly across the entire community, seeing the impacts of decisions not just on adults, but on youth as well. According to Burlington Planning Director David White, "in some ways, even though students can't actually vote, they can possess disproportionate power because the other commissioners really want to hear what they think."
Despite Burlington, Vermont's generally positive experiences with student planning board members, White notes that the success "depends greatly on the interest and personality of the student. If they are wall-flowers, it is boring and little is offered or learned."
Unlike Manchester or Edina, Burlington has not seen as consistent an interest from local high school students in joining the planning commission. Part of the reason for this, according to White, is that many students are not familiar with the function of the planning commission and how it may relate to the student's academic or extracurricular interests. To counter this, it is important to educate student populations on the widespread impact that planning commission decisions can have, and how these decisions can affect a student's daily life.
Former Burlington Planning Commission student member Andrew Saba echoed this sentiment, noting that the impacts of decisions made through planning should be highlighted to students. Additionally, he observed, illuminating the connection between city planning and broader academic topics such as history, economics, and government could further broaden student interest in serving on the planning board.
Embracing our Youth
Politicians are always exclaiming that "our children are the future" and that their decisions will ultimately shape the societies that we live in. As has been shown by communities like Manchester, Edina, and Burlington, instead of just rhetoric about how our young people will shape our communities' future, local governments can embrace and support programs like student membership on the planning commission and other local boards. If the youth of our nation will eventually become the most powerful policy makers, why not set them on the correct path today?
When a planning board is able to add interested and dedicated students to their ranks the community also benefits. Allowing a different generation with separate opinions, interests, and priorities to voice their thoughts in a constructive and established environment can create a more complete approach to forming and implementing planning projects. Students also learn about the role of planning, and how it can affect issues facing their community.
But questions remain as to how to best implement student participation on the local planning commission. We have highlighted three communities' approaches. But we look forward to hearing your comments. What mechanisms do you think could increase youth interest and participation in local government? How can communities better integrate their functions and daily proceedings with the lifestyles and interest of high school students? What sorts of associations, for students, would encourage linkages, relationships, and a willingness to engage with local government?
Casey Green is a native of Burlington, Vermont, who graduated from The College of Wooster in Ohio in 2012 with a degree in International Relations and History.
Casey is an avid traveler and runner and has spent time living in and studying cities and cultural groups in Peru and Kenya. He resides in Boston, Massachusetts, where he works for a non-profit called Playworks as an elementary school athletics coach and teacher.
Dan Rosenblum is a senior at the University of Vermont, studying anthropology, global studies, and Spanish.
Dan is interested in global urban development, especially in major world cities and how it intersects with social and cultural issues. He is applying for future studies of India's growing urban centers.
Update: Nov. 13, 2013:
Editor's Note: We received the following message from Alece Montez, a Senior Associate with the Orton Family Foundation: "After doing a survey with all the high school students (approx. 400), Cortez, Colorado, learned that over 50 youth wanted to have more of a role in decision-making. Through a Heart & Soul Community Planning project, the City hosted a youth/adult partnership training and now the City requires youth members on several boards and committees. No better way to groom future leaders and do more with what Pew's research shows on who moves and who stays.


text: Bagley Wright House Seattle, Washington, USA Designed 1977 Landscape by Cornelia Oberlander Located on a nine-acre forested site north of Seattle, this 9000 square foot single level residence was also designed to accommodate the display of a major modern art collection. The building is situated on the edge of a ravine at the north end of a 100-foot wide by 600-foot long clearing in the forest with distant views of Puget Sound to the northwest. A long driveway leads to an entrance courtyard on the west side of the building. From the courtyard, an elevated platform on an east/west axis leads through a series of carefully proportioned concrete structural frames in a north/south direction, which delineate the three major zones of the building: the residence on the west, the central gallery space, and the guest house on the east. The entrance axis, punctuated by a row of double columns, extends through the building to views of the forest on either side. The entry is flanked on the north side by the master bedroom suite and on the south by a sitting room, kitchen, informal dining area, utility, garage and caretaker's suite. The gallery space also accommodates the formal entertainment areas. The north facing living room has a view across a slate lined reflecting pool to a cantilevered stone/concrete terrace, which bears an Anthony Caro sculpture. A steel structural grid infilled with frosted glass block panels covers the roof of the gallery. The dining area looks through a greenhouse, which spans the south end of the building across a moss garden containing an Anthony Smith sculpture. Beyond the moss garden, a swimming pool surrounded by stone terraces reaches out to a rolling meadow planted with wildflowers and grasses. A Mark Di Suvero sculpture is situated to the west side of the meadow. The major building material is buff coloured cast-in-place concrete. Kasota sandstone pavers bordered by concrete cover all outdoor terraces and extend into the interior. See "Interiors- Bagley Wright House" for more photos.

subset: commoncrawl


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If you're not already familiar with the Glow With The Show ears they are a set of Mickey Mouse ears sold at Disneyland California Adventure (and other Disney theme parks) that integrate with their World Of Color show. Here's a video:
If you're just interested in the short "HOWTO", jump to the bottom of the page, or just continue reading for history, technical discussions and explanations of each moving part.
Since the release of the ears there were a few active discussions on reverse engineering the control of the ears. The most definitive one I know about was on DoItYourselfChristmas. It was so active and instrumental somebody who isn't involved in the Christmas lighting community joined the forums for the discussion. The individuals working on it found each other via YouTube videos, comments, etc. If you're interested in the history of that discussion and the reverse engineering, you'll want to read this thread. Warning: it's over 30 pages!
The relevant posts for the protocol that I followed are here: #1 #2 #3 #4 #5.
I'd like to extend a personal thank you to the users instrumental in the knowledge of the protocol are: Jon Fether, Timon, and RobG. Thank you gentlemen for your hard work!
Arduino Code
rjchu from DIYC took the knowledge laid out in the protocol and wrote some basic arduino code using my horae renard code to read renard data in, and spit out the GwtS IR protocol. Ironically I ripped out my renard code so I could glue in Komby RFPixelControl code. This made it such that I could use an RF1 to receive 2.4GHz RF wireless data via the onboard nRF24L01 module, and connect IR to then control the GwtS ears. Thanks -joni- for the lookup table and arduino code.
I need to give another mention to Komby for the RF1 and the RFPixelControl library. I was already familiar with the code-base from my work getting GECEs working and other refactoring work I did with Komby on this, so utilizing the RF1 was a no-brainer. Thanks Greg for the amazing work you've done on the RF1s and nRF front for the DIYC Christmas lighting community!
IR Flood
A sticking point I kept having was the layout of an IR flood to blast the IR signal from a controller to the lights. Thankfully for me, LabRat on DIYC had a project he abandoned which used IR communications. He graciously offered to sell me a couple IR flood boards he made for the cost of the boards/BOMs/shipping, or so he said. It was so cheap I think he cut me a deal. Thanks Andy!
This is assuming you already have knowledge of Komby's nRF wireless controllers. You should already have a working transmitter that will get your sequence data from your control machine to the air. You should be able to follow the Getting Started Guide to set up your environment and program both the transmitter and receiving RF1.
In addition to what Komby's website has, you will need to install the Glow with the Show Arduino library. In a nutshell I wrapped the code that rjchu wrote into an Arduino library for easy portability between Arduinos and projects.
Once you have those prerequisites met, you can simply open the "GWTSReceiver" example sketch from the Komby RFPixelControl Arduino library. Once opened, you will need to either set up your unique ID (if using OTA). If you're not using OTA, set your data rate, RF listen channel, and pixel start channel. Leave the data pin set to pin2, as that's the data pin on the RF1 device that you will use to drive the IR flood. The channels you'll set up are for each ear. Each ear is treated as 1 pixel (a.k.a. 3 channels) and therefore you need to send 6 channels worth to the RF1 in your sequencing software. The code that -joni- wrote takes those 6 channels and finds the closest color in the known GECE pallete to send out via IR.
IR Flood
The flood is a simple design that takes in power that feeds a mosfet to give high current to the IR LEDs from a low current signal wire. In my scenario, the power source will feed both the RF1 as well as this board. Since ATMega328 pins can only handle a spec'd 40mA of current the IR LEDs need much more current to blast the IR signal sufficiently so the mosfet is used to bump the current provided by the microcontroller.
A couple of years ago I purchased a dozen 500-watt flood lights when they went clearance. A couple were used for Mighty Mini flood lights, the rest sat in a box in the rafters for a project such as this. They're a great size for flood lights like this, and easily fitting custom projects that need to be visible and still be waterproof.
I pull out the portion of the flood that holds the halogen bulb and using simple L-brackets I can make holders for various boards. This is almost exactly how I mounted Mighty Minis in the past.
The way the RF1 is laid out, I feed the DC input with enough power for both the RF1 as well as the IR board. The power output pins on the bottom of the RF1 will then pass voltage/current directly to the IR board.
The Results
Once everything is all tied together, it went out in the yard. The RF1 went in a 1″ PVC Enclosure just like the other ones, and the pigtail connected to the one coming out of the flood that feeds the IR board. Unfortunately I didn't get quite the range I had hoped, so I have a few options I'm going to look at for 2014. First is a second flood that's portable, utilizing a battery and hoping that the RF range is better than the IR range. This means I can more easily move the flood around for use. Second is a 10W LED IR flood. I scoured the web last year for something like this before LabRat's offer and didn't find anything. This might be a bit better solution with the right control board.


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Shackleton: Antarctic Odyssey
Nick Bertozzi
First Second
June 2014
Ernest Shackleton was a hero. He was one of the last great Antarctic explorers in a time when it seemed that all had been discovered and there would be no new adventures. But Shackleton was not deterred. He assembled a team of the best and brightest and undertook one of the most ambitious expeditions ever undertaken…they would cross Antarctica. The first time such a feat had ever been attempted. Shackleton planned and raised the funds to complete the journey and promised his men that he would lead them all back home. But in order to keep that promise Shackleton and his crew would have to face an unimaginable journey across the deadly ice, cold, and the loss of their ship would stand in their way.
This is not your typical graphic novel. In part because its a biography of an explorer that few people maybe familiar with. And in part because instead of being told about the adventure they went on second hand, like we're hearing about it afterwards through letters or remembrances, we're right there with the characters. Struggling with them as they try to survive the cold, the ice, and the dangers they never saw coming. Nick's black and white illustrations make it almost feel like we're watching an old black and white news reel and that we're accompanying the team along their journey. Although the illustrations are relatively simple, Nick adds details to keep visual interest that will keep the reader looking for visual imagery that enhances the story. The story here, is also somewhat unfamiliar to most readers. Instead of giving extra details that some books do it's more of a…almost clipped style of conversation. The type that we can really imagine explorers during this age sharing, which gives the book that much more realism.
When I initially read an electronic ARC of the book, one of the things that I missed with a good bibliography/further resources to learn more about Shackleton. The book had caught my attention and I had to resort to reading Wikipedia to learn more about the group. And while Wikipedia is a decent place to get some information, I really wanted more! Thankfully the final print version contains an addendum about the group and Shackleton himself and a list of recommended resources to learn even more about the group, so others have a chance to learn not only about the brave souls that explored the icy unknown, but why they risked their lives to do so.
Overall this is an interesting story of a group of explorers that time has forgotten for more famous names, such as Captain Robert Scott. Nick has let their legacy be known to the world once more and that's a wonderful thing. Although my review is late, the book was published in time for the 100th anniversary of this expedition, in order to help celebrate and honor the men on this journey. I give the book 3.5 out of 5 stars.
ARC provided by Gina at First Second


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"Warm Up" Project
March 21, 2018
Last Saturday, five Nashoba Students: Nathaniel and Isaiah French, Hannah Gould, Leo Lukaszevicz, and Russel Christoff were recognized by State Representative Harold Naughton Jr. for their community service work with the homeless in Massachusetts. They were participating in the "Warm UP" project, where they devote many hours to collecting and sorting needed items and delivering them DIRECTLY to the homeless on the street. The group makes a variety of kits and packs including: snack packs, essential kits – and backpacks, which include essential winter gear to keep the homeless warm throughout the winter months. The French brothers and Lukaszevicz have been participating since 2014, Christoff and Gould just joined the project this year.
Isaiah French founded Project "Warm UP" after he participated in Project 351 when he was a student at Luther Burbank Middle School. Project 351 is a program where each January, they unite a new Class of diverse 8th graders who lead with kindness, compassion, humility, and gratitude for a year of unique service and leadership development opportunities according to the Project 351 website. Isaiah was chosen during his 8th grade year to be the representative from the town of Lancaster to participate in the one day event of service. Since then, Isaiah has continued to his "Warm UP" program and added to it each year. The "Warm UP" project is now making it the biggest community service project in Worcester County 4-H.
The group would like to thank the Nashoba Community for their continued participation via lost and found donations and the end of year back pack drop off. The group is also working hard to educate younger community members on how to engage in this very important and project.


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Carole Leigh Hutton, the brand new executive editor of the San Jose Mercury News, called a staff meeting on Wednesday to announce, that, yes, there would be cuts in the newsroom, but she couldn't yet say how many.
Final figures will be worked out in the next few weeks as managers draw up their fiscal 2007-2008 budget. Every group of employees, from Guild members to managers, are apparently at risk.
Rumors have been swirling for days that as many as 60 staffers – 1 out of every 4 editorial employees – would be fired. John Bowman, the former executive editor of the San Mateo Times, part of the Media News group, heard that figure tossed around at a top-level meeting of Media News editors in April. He broke an unofficial code of silence to announce the numbers because he is so disheartened by what is happening to the industry. (Read his gloomy and depressing assessment of Bay Area MediaNews papers here.)
But on Wednesday Hutton said that she didn't know where those numbers came from – and she was at the same meeting as Bowman.
This will be the third round of cuts at the Mercury News in the past 18 months.
"Everyone is so weary," said an editor at the paper. "Weary, weary, weary. It's a huge panic. The real danger is to democracy. Someone has to cover the city councils and Boards of Supervisors and police departments and corporations and hold them all accountable."
Hutton has been at the Mercury News less than three weeks. She replaced Susan Goldberg, who left to take a job at the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Hutton was previously vice-president of Community Newspapers, a collection of smaller Bay Area papers, and worked before that as an editor of the Detroit Free Press. Hutton apparently took the job knowing she would have to oversee deep cuts in the Mercury News operations. She told her staff that the job "was too good to pass up."
Hutton also told her staff that she would try and reinvent the Mercury in the coming months, drawing on the model presented by Newspapernext.org. She wants to "blow up the paper" and "do things differently." In this model, readers, rather than just reporters, help determine what is covered.
"I would love to be the ones who figure this out," Hutton told her staff, adding that "readers in
At this point, weary staffers at the paper are willing to try some new things, as long as they keep their integrity. But whether that will happen is still a big question mark.


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The UK is to donate £20 million to help find a vaccine in the fight against the deadly Coronavirus, which has now infected over 18,000 and taken the lives of 362 people.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the funding would help the UK to spearhead the development of a new vaccine to halt the spread of the virus, which has now been declared a global health crisis by the World Health Organisation.
The aid will go to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), an organisation that aims to fast-track the development of a vaccine within six to eight months.
The news comes as 94 people remain in quarantine at the Arrowe Park hospital on the Wirral after being evacuated from Wuhan, the epicentre of the virus. It is believed that the patients will need to spend at least another two weeks at the hospital before they can be given the all clear.
Meanwhile, Spain's Ministry of Health confirmed the country's first case of Coronavirus on Friday after a man was diagnosed on the island of La Gomera in the Canaries.
It is believed that the man was with four others and had come into contact with a German tourist who had been diagnosed with the virus after meeting with a Chinese businesswoman in Germany prior to travelling to La Gomera.
The patient is currently said to be in good spirits with other members of the group also under medical supervision.
The country's health ministry recently published frequently asked questions on the Coronavirus and how you can help to avoid it here.
Chinese scientists have now revealed fresh evidence that the latest strain of Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) originated in bats with the genome of the virus thought to be closely related to a form previously seen in the mammals.
Hackers look to exploit Coronavirus fears
Experts from Proofpoint, a cyber security firm, have reported that hackers are now leveraging people's fears about the Coronavirus and using their vulnerability to distribute malware on a massive scale.
Proofpoint believes that cyber criminals are registering Coronavirus-themed web addresses in order to create websites to launch their malware attacks.
When a user clicks a link or opens an attachment, their computer is infected with the Emotet malware virus which has the capabilities to extract a users personal login information used to access banks and other sensitive web sites. The malware will also infect the machine meaning that it can be used as to launch further attacks on other web users.
The company said, "All of this activity serves as a reminder to exercise caution regarding emails and websites related to current events, particularly ones that appear to ask you to take urgent action surrounding the Coronavirus. Be sure to only visit verified, trusted websites."
September 20, 2023


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August 11, 2010
Ok so I'm back but that doesn't mean I can get this song out of my head. Thanks to my
You can download the ep for free here, oh and here's a little video for ya too!
4 comments
that mix was from yo bro! shout outs to big L.ReplyDelete
woops then shout out to little leelee! also do you have a blog now too?ReplyDelete
hehe no i made one once while i was in asia but never posted on it. maybe someday i will.ReplyDelete
also, the movie trailor is so evocative, you all did an amazing job. love the way you throw that badminton racket.
hahaha damn badminton racket!ReplyDelete


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AP source: 9/11 suspects to face military tribunal
WASHINGTON The families of those killed in the Sept. 11 attacks have waited almost a decade for justice, and "it must not be delayed any longer," Holder told a news conference. Holder had announced the earlier plan for trial in New York City in November 2009, but that foundered amid widespread opposition to a civilian court trial, particularly in New York. Congress passed legislation that prohibits bringing any detainees from the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to the United States. Monday, the attorney general called the congressional restrictions unwise and unwarranted and said a legislative body cannot make prosecutorial decisions. Most Republicans applauded the turnabout, but Holder said he is convinced that his earlier decision was the right one. The Justice Department had been prepared to bring "a powerful case" in civilian court, he said. In New York on Monday, the government unsealed and got a judge to dismiss an indictment in the case that charged Mohammed and the others with 10 counts relating to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The dismissal was because the accused will not be tried in civilian court. The indictment said that in late August 2001, as the terrorists in the United States made final preparations, Mohammed was notified about the date of the attack and relayed that to Osama bin Laden. Some 9/11 family members supported the change to military commissions. "We're delighted," said Alexander Santora, 74, father of deceased firefighter Christopher A. Santora. The father called the accused terrorists "demonic human beings, they've already said that they would kill us if they could, if they got the chance they would do it again." Republican lawmakers, who led the opposition to a trial in civilian court, welcomed the administration's shift. "While it is unfortunate that it took so long to make this announcement, I am pleased that the Obama administration has finally heeded those who rebuked their decision and that the trial is being held where it belongs," said Senate Judiciary Committee Republican Jeff Sessions of Alabama. New York Republican congressman Peter King, who has opposed trying the 9/11 conspirators in federal court, said Monday's decision is a vindication of President George W. Bush's detention policies. Some Democrats also said holding a trial in New York was the wrong way to go. The American Civil Liberties Union criticized the administration's decision. Cases prosecuted in military commissions now "are sure to be subject to continuous legal challenges and delays, and their outcomes will not be seen as legitimate. That is not justice," said ACLU executive director Anthony D. Romero. Holder said it is unclear whether the five men could receive the death penalty if they plead guilty in military court.
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PCEC believes, among other equally Biblical truths, in the following:
I. The Bible, the Word of God, its divine, verbal, plenary inspiration and its inerrancy and infallibility as originally written; and its supreme and final authority in faith and life.
(2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21)
II. One God eternally existing in three distinct Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
(Deuteronomy 6:4, Matthew 28:19, 2 Corinthians 13:14)
A. The Lord Jesus Christ:
a. His essential, absolute and eternal Deity (Phil2:6; John 1:1,14: Heb. 1:8)
b. His true and sinless humanity (1Pet. 2:22; 1 John 3:5)
c. His Virgin Birth (Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:20)
d. His substitutionary, propitiatory death (Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45, 1Tim 2:16)
e. His bodily resurrection (Acts 1:11)
f. His ascension to the right hand of the Father (Mark 16:19; Acts 1:20)
g. His coming again with the power and great glory (Titus 2:13; Rev. 10:11-16)
B. The Holy Spirit who shows the redeeming purpose of God the world by convicting the world of sin, of
righteousness and judgment and by regenerating, uniting to Christ, indwelling, sanctifying, illuminating and
empowering for service all who place complete faith in the Lord Jesus Christ
(Hebrews 9:14; John 14:26; 1 Corinthians 2:10-11; 1 Corinthians 12:11)
III. The total depravity of Man because of the Fall
(Genesis 3:10-24)
IV. Salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ apart from works
(Eph. 2:8)
V. The everlasting bliss of the saved and the eternal suffering of the lost
(Daniel 12:2; John 5:24; Revelation 20:14; Luke 16:24-26)
VI. The real spiritual unity in Christ of all redeemed by His precious Blood
(1 Corinthians 12:13; Eph. 1:4-6; 4:11-15; 5:25,26)
VII. The necessity of maintaining, according to the Word of God, the purity of the Church in doctrine and life
(1 Corinthians 6:19,20; 1 Thessalonians 4.3)


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The Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC) announced on December 17 that it will privatise commuter rail services in New Zealand's capital city. Transdev, in partnership with South Korea's Hyundai Rotem, will take over the Wellington region service from July 2016. The 15-year contract covers passenger services in the lower North Island, including the heavily-used Kapiti, Hutt Valley, Johnsonville and Wairarapa lines.
Transdev presently operates commuter rail services in New Zealand's largest city Auckland, as well as rail and bus services in 20 different countries. The current operator of Wellington's passenger rail is Tranz Metro, a subsidiary of state-owned KiwiRail. This is the first time the service has been put on the market since the council took over ownership of the rolling stock and station buildings in 2011.
The decision to contract out metro rail services is in line with the pro-market agenda of the country's corporate elite, aimed at cutting costs and boosting profits at the expense of the working class. It follows the sale of other state-owned entities by the conservative National Party government, including power generators, public housing, and coal mining company Solid Energy. KiwiRail has been targeted for cost-cutting and possible privatisation for some time.
The 13-member GWRC is dominated by Labour and Green Party councillors. The chairman, Chris Laidlaw, is a former Labour Party MP. Paul Swain, the council's Transport Portfolio Leader is a former Labour transport minister, and Fran Wilde, the Economic Development Portfolio Leader, is also a former Labour cabinet minister and ex-Wellington city mayor. Former Greens MP, Sue Kedgley, is on the council as well.
Announcing the successful Transdev bid, Laidlaw said the selection was "the first of all new, performance-based contracts for our train, bus and harbour ferry services" to improve customer service with "strong incentives for operators to grow patronage by making public transport easier and smarter."
Job cuts and attacks on working conditions are already being prepared. The Dominion Post reported on December 18 that while Tranz Metro's 400 workers will be offered new contracts "on the same or more favourable conditions" as covered by the rail collective agreement, "some job losses are possible."
The Rail and Maritime Union (RMTU), which covers Tranz Metro workers, issued a pro-forma criticism, noting that "private rail operators often provide poorer service at a greater cost" by milking governments for subsidies. At the same time, speaking to Newzstalk ZB, RMTU General Secretary Wayne Butson falsely assured rail workers that "their jobs are secure, and their terms and conditions are secure."
Butson glorified the government's ownership of KiwiRail, stating that "privatisation just isn't needed. Wellington metro rail services have been delivered by the national rail operator for more than 80 years." Rail would "be the poorer for the loss of work and our members are deeply saddened at the prospect of leaving the KiwiRail family," he declared.
The union's depiction of a congenial "KiwiRail family" belies the actual history of the New Zealand railways, which have borne the brunt of free-market privatisation programs pursued by both Labour and National-led governments, enforced by the trade unions, for the last three decades.
The 1984-1990 Labour government of Prime Minister David Lange prepared the railway system for sale by transforming it into a profit-oriented State Owned Enterprise. This eventually resulted in the destruction of over 9,000 jobs and the closing of "unprofitable" branch lines.
In 1993 NZ Rail was privatised by the National government for $328 million to a joint NZ-US consortium, led by merchant bank Fay Richwhite and US-based rail operator Wisconsin Central Transportation Corp. A further assault on jobs, safety and working conditions saw the company, renamed Tranz Rail, post annual net profits from 1997 to 1999 of $60.6 million, $48.2 million and $70.2 million.
The corporate owners cashed up, stripped assets and ran down infrastructure and services. Rail workshops throughout the country were closed and many regional passenger services disappeared, leaving only four long-distance passenger services. CityRail Auckland was bought in 1991 by Auckland Regional Council, which contracted it back to NZ Rail to operate. Transdev took over operation of Auckland passenger rail in 2004.
CityRail was remodelled as Tranz Metro in 1995. In 2000, under the then-Labour government, Tranz Rail split Tranz Metro Auckland and Wellington into separate subsidiaries in preparation for eventual private operation. GWRC signed a contract in 2006 to run the passenger network, making Tranz Metro Wellington an operator on behalf of the council.
In 2004 Australian-based Toll Holdings took over Tranz Rail. After four years of disputes with Toll over terms of access to the rail tracks, which remained government-owned, the Labour government of Prime Minister Helen Clark bought back the indebted rail and ferry company for $690 million, effectively bailing out Toll Holdings. In 2011 KiwiRail agreed to hand ownership of railway station buildings excluding Wellington railway station, to the GWRC, along with all passenger rolling stock, while the state-owned company kept ownership of the tracks, platform, electric traction and signal systems.
Throughout the decades-long assault, rail services were gutted while rail workers paid the price with cuts to jobs and conditions. Staff levels are just over 4,100 today, compared with 21,000 in 1982. Working conditions have been eroded, with the introduction of part-time, casual and split-shift work to undermine full-time permanent employment.
Tranz Metro has been plagued by inadequate staffing and insufficient carriages during peak times and special events. Buses are routinely brought in to replace train services so track maintenance workers can repair outdated overhead lines and track infrastructure.
The KiwiRail-owned and operated Capital Connection rail service, which runs between Wellington and Palmerston North, could be sold off on the pretext of declining patronage. The company has withdrawn seven long distance passenger services since 2001.
The opposition parties, Labour, the Greens and New Zealand First have postured as opponents of the GWRC's decision. New Zealand First leader Winston Peters' main criticism was that profits would flow to "large overseas companies" like Transdev.
Green Party MP Gareth Hughes did not oppose privatisation as such, but attacked the government for allowing "huge foreign companies" to run "key infrastructure services." The history of rail privatisation, however, demonstrates that New Zealand investors like Michael Fay and David Richwhite are no less rapacious than foreign ones.
The leading role played by the ex-Labour and Greens MPs in handing the rail network over to a private operator again demonstrates that the so-called "opposition" parties are committed to the big business program of unending attacks on living standards, social rights and the privatisation of essential public services.
Rail workers can only oppose the threats of privatisation and assaults on their jobs and working conditions through a rebellion against these organisations. Workers must form rank-and-file committees, independent of the trade unions and the whole political establishment, unifying workers in New Zealand and internationally.
Such a struggle is possible only on the basis of a new political perspective: the mobilisation of the working class in the fight for a workers' government and socialist policies, including the nationalisation of rail and other major industries under the democratic control of the working class.


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Violence displaces 1m in CAR: UN
Updated: 2014-01-07 10:13
UNITED NATIONS - Nearly 1 million people have fled their home in the ongoing conflict in the Central African Republic (CAR) and more than 2 million are in need of humanitarian aid there, a UN spokesperson said Monday.
Recent estimates by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) put those who have been displaced at nearly 1 million, with more than half of them in the capital of Bangui alone, said Farhan Haq at a regular news briefing.
"There has been a 40 percent increase in displaced people in Bangui since 24 December," he said.
Some 2.2 million people, or about half the population of the CAR, need humanitarian assistance, according to the OCHA's latest figures. "But insecurity, as well as the lack of funding and access to people in need, continues to hamper aid efforts, including assessments and response," said Haq.
Insecurity hampered an emergency vaccination campaign against measles, along with other aid services at the international airport in Bangui, he said. The airport harbors about 100,000 people.
CAR has been thrown into turmoil since Seleka rebels launched attacks a year ago and forced President Francois Bozize to flee in March 2013. A transitional government has since been entrusted with restoring peace and paving the way for democratic elections, but armed clashes have erupted again.
Last month, Christians and Muslims launched reprisal attacks against each other in and around Bangui, worsening humanitarian situations.
"Despite the challenges, UN agencies and humanitarian partners are reaching people with essential relief supplies. The World Food Programme (WFP) provided over 1.7 metric tons of food to nearly 250,000 people in December. But it says that its food aid will be 90 percent depleted in February due to the lack of funding," Haq said.
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Geoff Tootill: building the Manchester Baby
Geoff Tootill describes the building of the world's first stored program computer, the Manchester 'Baby'.
Listen to the full interview track and all other tracks from this interview on British Library Sounds
The computer was built on these Post Office racks, which were six foot six tall and just about two feet wide, with holes up the sides of the uprights. The equipment was made on a chassis, two foot wide, which could be screwed to these fixing holes. So when I first arrived in Manchester there were probably a couple such racks with half a dozen or ten chassis units fixed to them. And we built up the computer by drawing out circuit diagrams of further units. Tom and I would design an eight valve circuit. Tom would do it in the train on his way to and from Dewsbury, where he was living, I would do it at home. We had – it was Norman, you'd give him a circuit diagram and he could then wire up the – the chassis in accordance with the circuit diagram. And I think he got promoted in the university's hierarchy and he was replaced by a young woman, Ida Fitzgerald, I remember her name, who was extremely efficient. She understood what was required from the circuit diagram and she executed the thing correctly, and she did very quickly too. We would screw it into a Post Office rack and connect it up to all the other units, and then start to find out why it wasn't working properly. And we thought it was very important to have something that worked, did something or other, at every stage as we built up these units. The very last thing we could contemplate doing was to design the whole thing and have it all built and wire it all up, and then find out why it didn't work. It was essential that the whole thing would work together at every stage, as you added one unit after the other. It was necessary that the apparatus should do something, which we could see was correct, and if it wasn't correct we could mend it until it was correct, at every stage, every chassis that we connected up. Well we went on with this process of adding the units and making the whole lot do something together at every stage, until we got to the stage when we'd made a computer. [Laughs] Tom and I commissioned this last unit and we laboriously fed in a few binary numbers and switched it on, and we saw the thing had done a computation.
- Interviewee: Geoff Tootill
- Duration: 00:04:02
- Copyright: Geoff Tootill
- Interviewer: Thomas Lean
- Date of interview: 1/8/2010
- Shelfmark: C1379/02
- Keywords:
Related Audio Clips
The following clips are short extracts from an in-depth interview.
To listen to the full interview visit http://sounds.bl.uk


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RTC was the most contentious issue during the series of negotiations in the run-up to the once-in-twenty-year United Nations housing and sustainable urban development conference. The last of such negotiations were held in Surabaya in Indonesia recently. The draft agenda will be discussed in the next round of informal negotiations between September 7 and 9 in New York and be finalised before or during the Habitat III conference in Quito in October 2016.
The RTC's deletion from the draft was also a demand put forward by the developed bloc of the USA, Japan and EU countries. It was only on the insistence of Latin American governments and civil society groups that the RTC has been retained in the draft agenda. Countries such as Brazil, which has written the Right to the City into its federal law, Mexico, which has City Charter for the Right to the City as well as Chile, Argentina and Ecuador were the most vociferous supporters of the right. Certain others such as the UAE were in favour of changing the language to "Cities for All" diluting the guarantees that are conferred by the language of a rights-based approach.
Following negotiations, the revised draft agenda's opening section titled the 'the Quito Declaration on Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements' retains the reference to RTC. It states, "Cities for all is also recognised as the Right to the City in some countries, based on a people-centered vision of cities as places that strive to guarantee a decent and full life for all inhabitants."
The term Right to the City has its origin in the writings of French philosopher Henri Lefebvre in his 1968 book Le Droit à la ville. It prioritises collective right over the individual right to urban space. It gives every inhabitant, and not just the legal citizens, the right to not just occupy a pre-existing urban space but also to produce spaces according to their needs.
"RTC gives every occupant, irrespective of their legality, a claim over the city. It requires the State to act on the principles of social justice and provide equal services to each and every resident. Just like the
Right to Education makes it the State's duty to ensure that every child is in school, acknowledging the RTC means that the State can no longer deny shelter or provision of services such as water to those living in unauthorised slums," said Chandana Das from the Indian chapter of the Global RTC movement which is involved in the Habitat III process. She added that India has opposed not only RTC but the inclusion of any new rights including the Right to Adequate Housing in the agenda.
India's opposition to the Right to the City stems from the fact that admitting to such a right would mean that it would have to adhere to the principle of social justice for all urban inhabitants and not merely the legally-recognised citizens.
Das pointed out how in most Indian cities, instead of the State providing shelter and other services as a right to one and all, the most marginalised of urban poor are confined to unauthorised slums that thrive on political patronage.
These are conferred legal status based on random cut-off dates that are advanced by subsequent governments as part of its vote-bank politics. In Mumbai and other cities of Maharashtra, it was extended from 1995 to January 2000 on the eve of last assembly elections, in Delhi the APP government advanced it from 2013 to January 2015.
Recognising RTC would make it incumbent on city and state government to provide equal access to shelter and basic services to everyone irrespective of their legal status or duration of domicile in the city.
Similarly, civil society groups point out that the resistance from EU countries is a result of the migrant crisis in Europe. EU's official stated position is that RTC is not an agreed human right recognised by international human rights instruments. India's position too was that managing migrants and refugees should be left to the individual nations and should not be dictated by the New Urban Agenda.
"EU's stand is that there is no common legal international understanding of RTC and, hence, they cannot support it. India's stated position is that it is not appropriate to venture into the articulation of any new right in the agenda," said Aashish Khullar, from the UN Major Group for Children and Youth, the UN General Assembly-mandated mechanism for engaging children in inter-governmental processes.
He added that besides RTC, the other major sticking point in the run-up to Habitat III is the role of UN Habitat in
monitoring the commitments made by each country. A recent review of the commitments made by all countries during Habitat II in Istanbul in 1996 shows that in the absence of any monitoring mechanism and due to the non-binding nature of the commitments, the overall global Habitat Commitment Index score has increased only 1.49 points. India, on its part, has shown no improvement on its various urban development indices in the last 20 years and lags behind other South Asian countries such as Pakistan and Nepal.
Right to the City: the term and its origin
The term Right to the City has its origin in the writings of French philosopher Henri Lefebvre in his 1968 book Le Droit à la ville. It prioritises collective right over the individual right to urban space. It gives every inhabitant, and not just the legal citizens, the right to not only occupy a pre-existing urban space but also to produce such a space according to their needs. India's opposition to the Right to the City stems from the fact that admitting to such a right would mean that it would have to adhere to the principle of social justice for all urban inhabitants and not merely the legally-recognised citizens.
The 4-point agenda in India Habitat III National Report
Economic Growth and Productivity
* Fully planned and sustainable human settlements
* High travel speed, above 30 kmph peak time
* Well-distributed business district centres
* Intensive use of technology/innovations
* E-governance
* Smart grid
* Normative norms/self-declaration/ approvals of buildings/ town layouts
* Composite living representing socio-economic population dynamics—inclusive development
* Adequate and affordable housing for urban poor and senior citizens
Sustainability and Issues of Climate Change
* 60–90 per cent population to travel by public transport
* Dominant mode of travel does not emit pollution in immediate environment
* Local travel, E-rickshaw, walking, etc. for last mile connectivity
* Street light LED with dimmer, low consumption, almanac micro-processor controlled
* Rainwater harvesting in all roads, streets and buildings
* Barrier-free pedestrian pathways and bicycle-ways
* Natural drainage pattern, climate change, cloud burst
* Waste-water treatment, on-site and re-use in immediate surroundings for gardening, sprinklers for dust control, etc.
* Reclaiming water bodies
* Bringing water use to half from standard use
* Cut down electricity consumption to 50 per cent level than normal use and 50 per cent generation from non conventional sources
* Waste (collection 100 per cent) to electricity
* RCC roads, supported by pipes, integrated with future expansion plans, no digging
* Disaster preparedness
Improving Quality of Life
* 100 per cent sanitation
* Well-developed public facilities
* Easy access to public utilities and services
* High-security streets and buildings by CCTV
* Crime-free society and access to social justice and gender equity
* Full of greenery/ plantation, bamboo and other suitable trees
* Green and barrier-free buildings


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Minute of Islands' creepy-cosy style turned a lot of heads when it first debuted at Gamescom in 2019. The "narrative puzzle platformer" is made by Germany developer Studio Fizbin (the team behind the acclaimed The Inner World and its sequel) and is hand-crafted in an illustrative style.
The game sees you playing as young engineer, Mo, on an archipelago that's polluted with spores. Mo is tasked with repairing ancient machines that keep the balance of the archipelago in check but, as you've probably guessed, they soon discover things are not what they seem. What follows, at least from piecing together the various trailers that have been released, is a disturbing and introspective journey.
At E3 this year, Studio Fizbin has announced a release date for Minute of Islands, and it's… right now. At least, it's available on PC, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch presently. An Xbox version will follow on June 15th.
All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.


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Rome, the Eternal city, is an evolving and never ending metropolis. It is a stunning destination and it's on every traveler's bucket list.
You surely need to pay a visit to magnificent Rome at least once in life.
There is so much to do and see in Rome that one short visit won't pay enough justice. Historical sites, romantic panoramas, a busy street life – all give Rome its special vibe.
Visiting Rome is a true luck and you do not want to spoil it. Rome is like a huge outdoor museum and you need the make the best of your trip. Having a customized private Rome tour planned out will help you visit most favourite landmarks in the Eternal City. All this while deeply understanding its spiritual features, artistic influences and architectural prospects.
Do not want to miss a thing? Your best option is to hire a personal tour guide in Rome.
Have your tour tailored out to your time allowance and choose the favourite spots to visit.
What to do in Rome
Activities and sightseeing in Rome can keep you busy for at least a month! But let's take a better look at what you cannot miss on your first visit to Rome.
Classical sights in Rome
The first spot to attract visitors and their cameras is surely the majestic Colosseum. This amphitheatre once hosted gladiator fights while a big crowd watched and cheered in the audience. Be part of the crowd for the day and admire the magic vibe that Colosseum stores to our days.
Next to the most famous Roman amphitheater in the world, pay a visit to the ruins of the Roman Forum. This spot was once the commercial hub in the city and teaches tourists how life was back in the old Roman Empire days.
Both those landmarks are very popular with tourists and it is not uncommon to find big queues. How to skip them? Most of the private Rome tours will get you right through the gate, no need to wait in line.
The Romans have also left another important work to let us understand their culture much deeply. Circus Maximus is an old circus, a venue for chariots races and other sport competitions.
Discover all Seven Hills of Rome through the sightseeing of beautiful historical sites like temples, baths, theaters, stadiums and much much more. Visit Capitol Hill, the political heart of Rome.
Your personal tour guide in Rome will not only fit classical sightseeing in your day tour, there is also some space for later architecture and art installations.
Baroque sights in Rome
Visit the baroque landmarks in Rome and learn about the true meanings behind fountains, squares, churches facades and urban plans.
A must see in Rome, Fontana di Trevi is the best example. A majestic marble sculpting work paired with the architectural restoration of the old Aqua Virgo aqueducts, the only Roman one that still works today.
Another famous fountain that deserves your time in private Rome tours is La Barcaccia, that not-so-ugly boat in Piazza di Spagna. Walk down the Spanish Steps into one of Rome's most charming squares. Learn the story that inspired Bernini in sculpting this beautiful masterpiece representing a boat that reached the square in a flood.
There is another masterpiece that Bernini projected and sculpted in Rome. The legendary Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi in Piazza Navona is an impressive sight. Four river gods around an Egyptian obelisk stand out for four of the major rivers in each continent.
Let your personal tour guide in Rome tell you about all curiosities that stand behind the artistic disputes between Bernini and his rival Borromini. There is one example right there, in Piazza Navona.
Want more of your private Rome tours?
Discover the major religious sights in the Eternal City.
Start from Vatican City, a city within the city, and the Holy See. Visit Saint Peter's Square and stroll through its columnade. Discover Saint Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel for beautiful frescoes. Do not miss out on the unique chance of climbing the top of the dome for a beautiful view over timeless Rome.
Religious character comes from many churches in the city, but also mausoleums and other monumental buildings in Rome.
Visit the Pantheon, a temple at first, a round base building converted into a Christian basilica in the VII Century.
Tired of all this sightseeing? Rome has a lot to teach and you have learned so much history and art that you can have a well deserved rest.
Public parks in Rome
The city has also beautiful green areas for you to seat down and have a break after the private Rome tours. City parks, botanical gardens and beautiful villas are perfect spots for a picnic in Rome.
Start with Villa Borghese, a superbly landscaped garden surrounding art galleries and villas. This is one of the nicest parks in Rome and it is a must in a trip to Rome. Also visit the neighbour Rome Zoological Garden, a zoo opened in 1910 and today a research venue for endangered species. The most appreciated feature of this zoo is that animals are not kept behind bars: instead, canals and ditches are separating the creatures habitats.
A visit to Rome can't be complete without discovering the largest landscaped park in the city: Villa Doria Pamphili is a XVII-Century villa just outside the walls of the Eternal City. Or head to Rome Rose Garden, next to the Circus Maximus. This colorful garden covers an area of 10.000 square meters and has plenty of chances for sitting down on the grass and have a lovely break from the city hussle. Visit the over 1000 varieties of roses, some are even experimental tests.
It is almost pointless to say that visiting Rome in a day is just impossible. There is so much to see and do than a lifetime wouldn't be enough. But do not panic. Your personal tour guide in Rome is here to help: visit all the best landmarks and discover the inner secrets of the Eternal city, just as locals know it.


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Weekly Harvest
Happy Friday all! Looks like the nice weather we had two weeks ago was a cruel joke played by mother nature. This past week I travelled to Orlando for a family get away and was stranded an extra day due to weather. Not a terrible place to be stranded and allowed me to catch up on some whitetail reading by the pool!
This weekend I'll be getting back to the archery range to continue extending my effective bow range for my western hunt this fall. And I may do some road scouting to find potential farms I'd like to request permission for hunting access. Knocking on random doors does not fit my personality, but I told myself that I'd make the attempt to gain access to hunting property closer to home this year—I'll let you know how this goes.
With that, enjoy this week's deer news! And I almost forgot…enjoy St. Patty's Day responsibly!
Trail Cam Dependability And Battery Life: Few things are more frustrating than a faulty camera or dead batteries when pulling cards.
Can You Estimate A Buck's Age From his Shed Antler: Interesting read, but not very accurate for aging bucks.
Trump's Proposed Budget Could Threaten Hunting and Fishing's Future: Feels like a stepping stone to set the financial stage for land transfer. This should upset anyone who enjoys the outdoors.
Busted—10 Myths About Blood Trailing Deer: Good tips for following up after the shot.


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What is Labor Market Information?
The career exploration process includes researching labor market information (LMI) to find the latest wage and occupational trends in your area. LMI is available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and categorized by geographic area (national, state, city, county), occupation, and industry. LMI includes information related to the economy and jobs, including:
- Salary and wages
- Unemployment rates
- Demand for jobs
- Supply of workers
- In-demand jobs
- Declining occupations
- Industry trends
What can LMI tell me?
When you are choosing a career to pursue, comparing LMI data will help you answer important questions to help make career decisions, including:
- How much money can I expect to make in an entry-level job within this career?
- Are jobs available where I live or will I need to move if I choose this career?
- Is this a career that will lead to growth and job options in the future?
How can I access Missouri LMI data?
The Missouri Economic Research and Information Center (MERIC) provides data to help you learn more about working and living in Missouri. Use the related resources to learn about:
- Missouri's "top jobs"
- Fastest growing occupations
- Occupations with the most openings
- Future outlook of occupations


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Sunday, 7 February 2010
Derby's No1 night dedicated entirely to music from the 80s, 1st Saturday of the month.
Are you a fan of 80s music? Well did you know there is a bar in Derby where you can enjoy an entire night of music from the 1980s (8pm to 2am).
The welove80s nights take place on the first Saturday of the month.
So the next 80s night is on Saturday 6th March, put it in your diary now so you don't forget.
For more information on the dedicated 80s night please visit their website : http://www.weluv80s.com/
They have a page on Facebook, so why not add them as a friend : weluv80s Facebook.
If you love 80s music get yourself along to the next 80s night, you will love it.
Last nights 80s set included tracks from Adam and the Ants, Depeche Mode, Duran Duran, Dead or alive, Spandau Ballet, Belinda Carlisle, chaka khan, Paul Hardcastle, Frankie goes to Hollywood, Gary Numan, New Order, Go West, Human League, Pet Shop Boys, Heaven 17, Human League, The Smiths, Blancmange, Blondie, Martha And The Muffins, Michael Jackson, Ultravox, Wham, Simple Minds, Visage, Teardrop Explodes, Talk Talk, Kraftwerk, Madness, The Beat, The Specials.
Any many more, far too many to remember, all classic 80s tracks.
So stop playing Jet Set Willy that you bought from First Byte computers in the Main Centre, unplug your ZX Spectrum pop your Rubik's Cube into your C5 and get pedling into town to enjoy the best selection of 80s music Derby has to offer!
If you are interested in a bit of history about this pub then read on...
This pub has had many different names over the years. The building dates from 1848 and was called The George and Dragon, In 1872 it was renamed the Kings Head. In 1878 it was renamed The Central. In 1939 it was renamed back to The George and Dragon (Click here to see) and incorporated the building next door (as you can clearly see by looking at the Metro Bar today). In 1989 it closed and looked like it was going to be demolished for shops but ended up reopening as The Central Vaults in 1992. In 1997 it was renamed The Tap House, since 2002 it has become The Metro Bar.
Map location for the 80s night at the Metro Bar :
View WeLuv80s at The Metro Bar, Derby. in a larger map
P.S. They have now also started a dedicated 80s night at another Derby pub, This one is at The Slug and Lettuce pub on Irongate and takes place on the LAST Saturday of the month with 80s music played from 9pm-2am !
So the next 80s night is on Saturday 27th February 2010.
Do you remember Derby's Pubs in the 80s?
Did you see UB 40, Thomson Twins, Culture Club, Spandau Ballet, Human League and Soft Cell perform at The Blue Note on Sadlergate in the early 1980s?
3 comments:
- Anonymous9 February 2010 at 18:45
massive thanks for this info andy about our 80s night.ReplyDelete
love the history of metro bar, really interesting and i remember it in some of its former guises.
didnt get to say hello last saturday but at future nights come and introduce yourself and have a drink with us.
once again many thanks from all the weluv80s crew & hello to leigh ann.
Lee Perry (founder/promoter/dj & general dogs body,(haha), weluv80s )
- Anonymous10 September 2011 at 17:54
Seems this club has now been closed down. :(ReplyDelete
- Anonymous16 August 2013 at 11:06
My friend and I went early this year and had the most fantastic night. The landlord and landlady made us feel so welcome on our first visit to Derby. We are planning another trip and will see them again soon.ReplyDelete
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An African safari has always been an elusive dream for many in Asia. No one knows this better than former bankers and A2A Safaris founders Jose Cortes and Victor Dizon. As avid safari enthusiasts, they experienced the challenges of organizing their own trips to Africa. This gap in the marketplace led to the launch Asia to Africa Safaris as Asia's first Africa safari specialist in 2002.
A2A Safaris specialises in bespoke, luxury safaris to Africa. We have deep and longstanding relationships in Africa and work with a carefully curated portfolio of luxury safari properties and handpicked safari guides across the continent's most pristine wilderness areas. We are excited to be able to share our passion for Africa with our clients and other discerning travelers in Asia.
We offer a personal touch and specialise in a highly individualised service. Our clientele consists of entrepreneurs, senior executives, professionals, honeymooners, retirees and their families who are keen to experience an authentic safari and go on an exciting 'adventure' without sacrificing their creature comforts. For most people, a trip to Africa is a once in a lifetime experience and our clients know we are always ready to go the extra mile for them and their families.
We don't take a one-size fits all approach. We offer full flexibility when planning a trip. Every single safari we arrange is designed with our clients' preferences in mind including the length of their holiday, the type of scenery, culture, wildlife, food and wine and other experiences they are after, who they are travelling with, and lastly their budgets.
About Us
Since opening our doors in 2002, A2A Safaris has grown and we now have offices in Hong Kong, Singapore, Manila and New York City. We also have representatives in Bangkok, Shanghai, Melbourne, Denver, Cape Town, George as well as in Shrewsbury in the U.K.
Our Team
Jose cut his teeth in the jungles of Wall Street and hung up his gloves as managing director of a global investment bank in Hong Kong. He is a keen photographer, usually out documenting the forests, deserts and windswept plains of Central Africa, South America, South Asia and the polar regions. When not out exploring and researching new destinations for A2A's clients, he spends his time around Asia and in Cape Town with his wife Kitty and their hounds Lucca and Lola. Jose is also a member of African Parks' APN-X private guide team.
Victor is an ex-investment banker who has lived and worked in the US, Europe and Asia. He has always had a passion for travel and that is what led him to co-found A2A Safaris. He has experienced all kinds of safaris including one as a solo traveler on his early safaris, a honeymoon safari with his wife and lately family safaris with his two children.
A2A Senior Travel Consultant Kevin grew up watching David Attenborough's early wildlife documentaries on black and white TV, dreaming of one day travelling to Africa. Since then he has spent years living in Kenya and Cape Town and travelled extensively through some 17 countries in between. He now calls Hong Kong home, but Africa is always a close second.
An ex-fashion buyer, entrepreneur and indoor cycling instructor when she's not designing trips, Yessa is not one to shy away from adventure and pursuing the road less taken. Her philosophy in travel is to get out of your comfort zone, with luxury and style.
Cherine has travelled extensively. She loves the experience of seeing new places and understanding the diverse cultures. After working many years in the corporate world, she turned her passion in travel into a career. She enjoys planning custom holidays to meet the requirements of her clients.
Michelle began her career in travel 20 years ago as a leisure and corporate travel consultant. These roles allowed her to enjoy her passion for travel while planning holidays filled with unforgettable memories and experiences for her clients. Michelle grew up in Cape Town and now calls the Garden Route home and here she gets to enjoy hiking, kayaking, exploring forests, lakes and spectacular scenery. She is always looking for memorable activities to share with her clients.
From an early age, Michael would spend hours poring over the family atlas planning his future travel plans - and travel he did! He has visited over 85 countries as well as having lived in Melbourne, Tokyo, Madrid, New York and now Hong Kong. In all his travels, it is the unique and diverse experiences to be had in Africa and Latin America which have really captured his imagination, and sees him returning to time and time again. This passion for travel has extended to his love of designing tailored made, bespoke travel experiences for his clients, whether they be street food tours in Peru and Mexico, authentic cultural exchanges in Bolivia, or horse riding safaris in Kenya.
Ever the "control freak", Tung Ling has been put in charge of planning mother-daughter holidays from a young age. This sparked a travel planning passion so strong that she decided to design holidays professionally. Always on the quest for meaningful & authentic travel experiences, you'll find her sprinkling hidden gems & interaction with local communities onto your holiday itineraries wherever possible. When not concocting up exciting vacation plans for clients, she loves seeing independent films, scrolling through cat accounts on Instagram & hiking the different nature trails around Singapore.
A former banking professional, Mingyun chose to follow her passion in pursuing a travel career a decade ago, exploring destinations, cultures, and gastronomy around the world through crafting meaningful journeys and experiences for her clients. A nature and safari enthusiast, Mingyun is a firm advocate of wildlife conservation and sustainable tourism. She hopes to continue to spread her passion for travel and love for safaris to people around the world.
Anna is a passionate, adventurous, and eco-conscious traveler, always fascinated by different cultures and the beauty of the world. From a young age, she was very eager to explore new places and learn about their history and traditions, thanks to the influence of her favorite cartoon, The Wild Thornberrys.
Later on, Anna realized that her love for travel was not just a hobby but a way of life. She began planning trips aronud the globe for her family of 20, and while planning her honeymoon with A2A Safaris, she realized she could turn her passion for travel and event planning into a lifelong career.
Monica has a passion for travelling, photography, nature, and the ocean. Her "Out of Africa" dream came true in 2004 when she went on safari with A2A Safaris' co-founder Jose Cortes III. She continues her love affair with adventure travel, representing A2A Safaris/A2A Journeys in Thailand. A Thai national, Monica is determined to spread her love for safaris to new clients. She wants them to experience what she has experienced - not just the wilderness and stunning landscapes but the African lifestyle, culture, people, and the unique safari way of life.
Kim is a Cape Town based Graphic Designer with both in-house and design agency experience. She graduated with a three year degree in Visual Communication Design at Vega School of Brand Leadership - specialising in Graphic Design. She is extremely passionate about travelling to new places, reading, food, wine and art. Kim has been working in the industry for over 4 years and on top of her Graphic Design skills, her expertise includes Social Media, Packaging, Branding, Illustration, Print Collateral, Advertising and Web Design. She also does Digital and Film Photography on the side.
An art director, artist, and former Manhattanite, Tracie thought New York City was the center of the universe, until she went on a honeymoon safari to Africa with her husband. As A2A's creative director, she still wears black, but never on safari.
Bitten by the safari bug' when she travelled to Kenya with A2A back in 2007, Leng is passionate about helping others create wonderful memories that will last a lifetime. With her experiences gained from working in the hotel and tourism industry at Grand Hyatt Singapore and the Singapore Tourism Board (Sydney office), and in the luxury retail sphere of Lane Crawford Shanghai where she managed concierge teams and catered to VIP customers, Leng derives great satisfaction from delivering the highest level of service and attention to detail.
Growing up in Qatar, Japan, and UK, traveling has been a part of Chelsea's life ever since she can remember. After working for a travel agency in Japan and chasing winters in Canada, Australia and Japan, she has moved to Singapore to pursue her passion of traveling through a career at A2ASafaris. She truly enjoys assisting her clients in turning their dream holiday into a real holiday.
A banker in her past life, Penny took a break from her fast-paced lifestyle to re-assess what career she wanted to pursue. Her passion was to talk about her travels - how she is captivated with history and culture, inspired by beautiful sceneries and just happy to experience the vibe amidst locals. The opportunity to share her enthusiasm in helping friends and family plan trips of a lifetime always enlivens her.
Jeremy is A2A Safaris' bachelor businessman cum travel junkie and foodie. Passionate about his restaurants and other enterprises, he says there is nothing he loves better than seeing his clients' faces light up when they come back from their safaris.
Edwin was an avid client of A2A Safaris before joining the team in 2013 and he is spearheading its expansion into New York City where he has lived for over 20 years with his wife and daughter. Like Jose and Victor, he has traded Wall Street for wildlife. Previously voted by institutional investors as a top-ranked equity salesperson, Edwin's new goal is to be a top-ranked safari specialist!
Nicole's lifelong passion for globetrotting began early. As the daughter of a diplomat, Nicole was brought up living and traveling between the US, Brazil and Portugal. After graduating with a degree in Environmental Biology she spent a semester in Kenya. During this time she became passionate about the continent, its people, wildlife and wide open spaces. Since then Nicole has devoted almost 2 decades to creating life changing journeys to Africa for her clients. She lives and breathes safaris and has a diehard loyal following of clients (now friends) because of her highly personalized, detailed and knowledgeable style. Nicole is based in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Lieze joined the A2A team with a slate of diverse work experiences and was ultimately drawn to eco-tourism because of her passion for nature and exploring new places. A native of Cape Town, Lieze looks forward to planning unforgettable safari experiences for clients, and hopes that they enjoy the magnificent wildlife and breathtaking views that her home continent has to offer. Lieze has traveled around the United States and currently lives in New York, a city she loves for its vibrant culture and diverse culinary scene.
While working in event management hosting the likes of Prince Philip, Pru undertook her first safari in 2008 and was immediately smitten. Within 3 years she was living in Africa and became firmly entrenched in the safari world. Her children were initially raised in Cape Town, giving her a unique insight into family experiences, while she and her safari guide husband searched out the best places for fine dining or more informal and relaxed getaways. She's travelled the continent extensively, and particularly enjoys more diverse experiences such as horseback safaris, hot air balloons or sunken hides, where the wildlife comes to you.
To travel the world has been one of Karel's biggest dreams since her teenage years. To explore God's breath-taking creations and to help others visit a paradise like Africa is a source of great satisfaction for her.
I'm an aspiring traveller who wants to explore the world. I want to know and experience different cultures, food and places for adventures. I believe that every place we go has hidden gems that they want us to unravel. I have the passion and love for travel because it give us the opportunity to live our life to the fullest. And I believe that you need to fill your life with adventures and not things.
Born and raised in Manila, Pat is an ambivert who has always had a passion for art and travelling. Although she prefers city life rather than wildlife, Pat would spend hours painting landscapes of nature. As someone who enjoys planning trips, Pat graduated with a degree in Travel & Tourism Management and has worked in the industry before exploring the hotel and banking industries. Realizing that travelling is her true passion, she decided to go back to her roots. She believes that travelling is one of the best investments you can make that will surely enrich you in more ways than one.
Laarni graduated with a degree in Tourism Management. She believes that traveling is not just visiting a certain place – it also means collecting extensive knowledge from local people and their rich culture.
Chico was a barista before pursuing a career in the travel industry. His current role as Booking and Reservations Consultant complements his insatiable addiction to iced coffee and to travel the world. His ultimate dream is to be friends with zebras in Africa and to take selfies with the llamas in Peru. Chico lives in Manila with zero pets and a whole floor of thrifted clothes.
A2A's resident CPA, Mark is always mesmerized everytime he watches wildlife in their natural habitat showcasing their survival skills. And being with A2A gives him an extra ordinary shot of adrenaline as merging work and encounters with wildlife and other stunning gifts of nature is such a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Jeff is A2A's data and tech guru with his decades of experience as a full time systems analyst, particularly as a network specialist in the luxury travel industry. He is an adrenaline junkie who loves adventures and challenges from scaling tall mountains to free diving on the ocean floor.
Why Us?
Knowledge & Experience
We have extensive knowledge and first-hand experience gained from planning our own safaris and arranging several thousand safaris since the 1990s. We have planned many of our own safaris using trusted safari specialists around the world so we know what to look for and expect from high quality safari lodges and camps, activities and guides. Several members of our team have lived in Africa and all our travel consultants visit Africa at least once a year to ensure their knowledge is always up to date.
We Specialise in Africa
We specialise in luxury safaris to remote African wilderness areas and we are very familiar with the products and services we recommend. We have been to all of the safari camps and lodges in our portfolio numerous times and during different seasons, so we know all these properties intimately. We keep up to date – on a daily basis – on developments in the various countries, game reserves and safari lodges in our portfolio. A2A Safaris co-founder Jose Cortes is currently based in Africa scouting for new destinations and experiences for our clients and strengthening our longstanding relationships with key players on the African safari circuit.
We are headquartered in Asia with a presence in most of its major cities. We offer our clients the convenience of dealing with a local company in the same country or, at the very least, the same time zone. We are familiar with the unique needs of our Asian clientele, from visa requirements and optimal flight routes to current conditions in Africa, including weather and wildlife movements. We understand concerns from an Asian perspective, such as safety, sanitation and hygiene, as well as shopping and dining. We also provide full service for all aspects of a safari, including extensions to Cape Town, Victoria Falls and the island resorts of the Seychelles and Zanzibar.
Competitive Pricing
Given the complexity of organising a high quality African safari, we provide FREE advice to our clients, drawing on almost two decades of experience in planning and arranging safaris. We are independent and are therefore not obligated to recommend certain safari camps and lodges, allowing us to focus on building the best possible experiences for our clients according to personal travel preferences. Due to our deep relationships with our African partners and our proven business volume, our prices are lower than booking direct.
Ready for your trip?
Let us help you plan everything.
We do not subscribe to the 'one-size-fits-all' philosophy. Sample itineraries and cost estimates are meant purely as a guide. To find out more, please contact one of our expert travel consultants to plan a customized itinerary based on your budget and interests.


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A bottle of health: Maté has 24 vitamins, 15 amino acids and jitter-free caffeine. You can energize with this line of fruit-flavored bottled maté teas.
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ELIZABET TRAVIS is an Editorial Intern at THE NIBBLE.
October 2007
Updated April 2009
CAPSULE REPORT: Maté is a hot or cold-water infusion of the yerba maté leaf that is becoming increasingly popular due to an enviable nutrition package of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and amino acids. It has more caffeine than energy drinks but calming properties that deliver "calm energy." Traditionally brewed as a hot tea, this line from Bombilla & Gourd is the maté version of flavored bottled teas. Made with unsmoked maté leaves, it avoids the tobacco-smoke profile that some people don't enjoy in traditional maté, offering a milder, sweeter profile. The line is certified organic, Fair Trade Federation-certified and kosher.
Yerba maté (MAH-tay), made from the leaves of the maté tree that grows in the South American rainforest, is a beverage on the ascent. It's riding the crest of healthy beverages and energy drinks. Maté has 90% more antioxidants than green tea; and while it has more caffeine than an energy drink, it has components that eliminate the caffeine jitters. In fact, with 24 vitamins and minerals and 15 amino acids, it's one of the most nutritious beverages on earth; like coffee and tea, in its natural brewed state it is calorie free (as an herbal infusion, it is also referred to as a tea).
You can read all about maté and its cultural background in our review of Guayakí Maté, a traditional line of tea bags, leaves plus bottled drinks; and a bit more in our review of Sol Maté, a sparkling drink that's a very different take on maté—its effervescence is as refreshing as a beer. as the next "hot" beverage. Beloved in South America, where it is drunk daily by millions of people, it is awaiting discovery by the rest of the world.
Yerba maté is drunk throughout South America—Argentina and Uruguay—from a gourd and a metal straw called the bombilla, hence the name of the company (although ironically, the company makes only bottled teas, not the brewed teas that would be drunk through a bombilla and gourd).
The gourd is the cup in which the maté is both brewed and drunk. It is often a dried calabash gourd, but may also be made of wood, bamboo, ceramic or metal shaped like gourds. Depending on the wealth of the owner, the gourds can be simple, trimmed with silver as shown in the photo at right, or elaborately decorated with heraldic designs with floral motifs. Maté leaves are packed into the gourd and hot water is added to steep them (maté leaves can be steeped in hot or cold water). When the infusion is complete, the tea is sipped through the bombilla, a metal straw, generally bronze or nickel (although affluent individuals may sport bombillas in precious metals). The bombilla acts as a sieve: The submerged end is flared, with small holes or slots that allow the brewed liquid in and keep the steeped leaves out. Bombillas are often passed down, and quality metal straws can last for generations.
Photo of bombilla and gourd by Fernando Mengoni | SXC.
In South America, maté is a shared experience. Traditionally, The bombilla and gourd are passed between friends with the host who prepared the brew taking the first and strongest drink. In this sense, the bombilla and gourd is not only a symbol of maté but of friendship and shared experience.
The maté is used in Bombilla & Gourd drinks is grown in northeastern Argentina by EcoTeas, a fourth-generation, sustainable family farm and a member of the Fair Trade Federation. Fair Trade Federation is an organization of wholesalers and retailers that sell 100% Fair Trade products. It is a different type of organization from Transfair, (TransFair.org), part of the Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FairTrade.net) and the U.S. authority for the Fair Trade Certification designation.
Bombilla & Gourd Yerba Maté debuted this summer in five flavors: Blueberry, Lemon, Mint and Honey, Peach and Pomegranate. Each is lightly sweetened with evaporated cane juice, which brings the caloric tally to 80 calories per 16-ounce bottle, half of that per eight-ounce serving (for those of us who drink just half the bottle). We found all flavors to be enjoyable, some more so than others.
The flavor profile of Bombilla & Gourd is very different from Guayakí Maté: a softer, more delicate flavor profile, where the fruit floats atop a tea-like maté flavor—it actually tastes like powdered instant tea, Camellia sinensis, true tea (Guayakí's is smokier, toastier style). There is a tiny bit of tartness from the citric acid (vitamin C) used as a natural preservative. The other ingredients are simply filtered water and natural fruit flavor.
Bombilla & Gourd mate is a Fair Trade product, but people may be confused at the particular logo, which isn't the familiar Fair Trade Certified seal, shown at the right.
There are typically two ways a product or company is certified Fair Trade. TransFair, which provides the Fair Trade Certified label, certifies individual products—a particular tea, chocolate or coffee, for example. The Fair Trade Federation, a separate organization, certifies actual companies, not individual products, stating that their purchasing methods, employment practices, sourcing, etc. complies with what would be termed "Fair Trade." Some types of products do not have a definition for "fair trade," because the products are relatively new on the market and the process for certification bodies to decide on standards is long and bureaucratic. Yerba maté is one example of a such a product: No yerba maté product currently carries the "Fair Trade Certified" seal because the Fair Trade standards have not yet been defined. However, there are maté products that do carry the Fair Trade Federation seal. The companies that produce them are certified by the Fair Trade Federation, even though the product itself is not Fair Trade Certified by TransFair.
All of the Bombilla & Gourd teas would make a perfect accompaniment to a salad or sandwich during lunch, or a refreshing beverage at any point in the day.
Bottled Yerba Maté Beverages in Blueberry, Lemon, Honey Mint, Peach and Pomegranate
Certified Kosher by OU
USDA Certified Organic
Fair Trade Federation-Certified
Available at fine food markets and grocery stores nationwide. Find a store locator at BombillaGourd.com
Prices and flavor availability are verified at publication but are subject to change.
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As we approach the close of polling stations at 8 p.m., Journal reporters are heading into communities to find out how Calgarians feel about the Alberta election.
Our reporters will be at the Big Four building (UCP), the Red and White Club (NDP), Junction Food. Stage. Bar. (Alberta Party) and at Liberal Leader David Khan's campaign headquarters on Centre Street.
Reporters will be tweeting all the action, so follow along and join in the conversation. Stephanie Hagenaars and Stephanie Babych are at the UCP headquarters, Bailey Gingras is reporting on the Alberta Party campaign, Christian Kindracuk is at Liberal headquarters and Noel Harper is with Calgary NDP supporters.
You can also follow the Calgary Journal on social media as we provide live updates throughout the night.
You can follow all the results live from Elections Alberta.


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Our Pets
Throughout September 2021, North Shore Animal League America (Animal League America) is hosting a virtual Walk & Wag — a month-long event where you can walk or run to raise lifesaving funds for shelter animals. Anyone can participate nationwide by forming a team with your friends, family and colleagues, signing up as an individual walker or registering to run. Participants who raise a minimum of $250, and share proof of their run using their fitness app of choice), will receive a special Team Animal League running singlet.
Participants can also visit interactive Virtual Vendor Villages, where they can learn more about event sponsors (some of which feature special offers!), participate in friendly competitions and contests, qualify for fundraising rewards and even bid on fun silent auction items for you and for your favorite pup.
Introducing the Fetch Health Forecast.
Actress, author and rescue advocate, Renée Felice Smith, and her partner, composer, author and rescue advocate, Chris Gabriel, are our Walk & Wag ambassadors (along with their dogs, Velma, Mabel and Alfie). The duo represents Team Hugo, which honors their late pup Hugo, the inspiration behind their children's book, "Hugo and the Impossible Thing."
So far this year, the event has raised almost $55,000 for homeless rescue pets. As an added incentive to register, Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health US, one of Animal League America's partners, agreed to contribute $20 to every person who signs up (up to $10,000).
Competition is a fun part of the event, but the countless animals that the donations will help are the real winners. For more information about the event or to sign up, visit animalleague.org/walkandwag.
The Dig, Fetch's expert-backed editorial, answers all of the questions you forget to ask your vet or are too embarrassed to ask at the dog park. We help make sure you and your best friend have more good days, but we're there on bad days, too.
Save up to 90% on unexpected vet bills
Use any veterinarian in the U.S. or Canada
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No enrollment fee, cancel anytime.
Photo by North Shore Animal League America