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In order for the Social Security Administration (SSA) to pay all or part of an approved fee directly to the representative from a claimant's past-due benefits the representative must register to receive direct payment by doing both of the following:
- Submitting a completed Form SSA-1699 Registration for Appointed Representative Services and Direct Payment . This is a one-time submission. However, a representative must update the information if his or her personal, professional, or business affiliation information changes because SSA's automated claims systems use the information on the Appointed Representative Database to issue notices and fee payments.
- Submitting a completed Form-SSA-1695, Identifying Information for Possible Direct Payment of Authorized Fees, in each instance of representation by sending or delivering a completed paper form to the local Social Security Office. This means that the representative must provide the SSA-1695 each time:
- he or she is appointed to represent a claimant before SSA and will request direct fee payment;
- a Federal court approves a fee, if the attorney requests direct payment and did not submit an SSA-1695 when the claim was pending before SSA; or
- he or she ends affiliation with an entity and has pending case(s) related to that entity affiliation. The representative must provide a new SSA-1695 for each pending case. Submitting a new SSA-1695 will update the EIN and prevent delayed or incorrect fee payments.
Representatives who are eligible for and request direct payment must register in order to receive direct payment of approved representative's fees from a claimant's past-due benefits.
An attorney or a non-attorney eligible for direct payment of fees may complete and file the SSA-1699, even if he or she is not representing a claimant at this time. A non-attorney who has applied to participate, but has not yet been found eligible, should register on receiving notice that SSA has determined he or she is qualified for direct payment of fees.
The completed paper Form SSA-1695, Identifying Information for Possible Direct Payment of Authorized Fees, should be sent or delivered to the local Social Security Office. In order to receive direct payment, an attorney or a qualified non-attorney may complete the SSA-1695 each time he or she is appointed to represent a claimant before SSA. An attorney who did not register when the claim was pending before SSA should complete the SSA- 1695 and submit it to the local Social Security Office each time the Federal court approves a fee.
Is There Also a Registration for Firms or Employers?
Firms or organizations that have individual representatives as employees or partners are encouraged to register voluntarily in order to receive IRS Forms 1099-MISC. This will allow SSA to report to the IRS that the payments made to the individual representatives are taxable income to the firm or organization rather than to the individual representatives. To register, these firms or organizations may file a Form SSA-1694, Request for Business Entity Taxpayer Information, online or by submitting a completed paper form to the local Social Security office.
If a Representative is an Employee or Partner of a Firm, and the Fee Payment is Income to the Firm, will the Representative Receive a Form 1099-MISC?
Generally, pursuant to section 6041 of the IRC, SSA is required to issue a Form 1099-MISC to each representative who receives aggregate fees of $600 or more in a calendar year, with the total fee payments reflected in box 7 (non-employee compensation). However, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has provided SSA with special procedures for those situations where SSA makes payments to representatives who are employees or partners in a firm. Specifically, if SSA learns that a representative is acting as an employee or partner in a firm (therefore, the fee payments are income to the firm) and the firm has provided SSA with the name, address, and employer identification number of the firm (via the Form SSA-1694 registration process for firms), then SSA should issue two Forms 1099-MISC. Pursuant to section 6041 of the IRC, SSA should issue a Form 1099-MISC to the firm with aggregate payments made to the firm's associates in box 7 (non-employee compensation). In addition, pursuant to section 6045(f) of the IRC, SSA should also issue a Form 1099-MISC to each of the individual representatives (i.e., employees or partners) reporting their individual aggregate payments in box 14 (gross proceeds paid to an attorney).
NOTE: Beginning January 1, 2015, SSA will no longer provide the Fee Detail Summary with the IRS Form 1099-Misc issued to representatives who received from us payment of $600 or more during the calendar year.
In the past, we have provided the Fee Detail Summary as a courtesy to representatives, but due to increasing costs associated with processing, printing, and mailing the sheets, we have discontinued this service.With the payments, we provide information to the financial institutions where representatives receive their direct payments. We also recommend that representatives retain all detailed claim and authorized fee payment notices from us. This will help for an easier reconciliation of the payments at the end of the year.
Will the Gross or Net Aggregate Fee Payments be Reported on the Form 1099-MISC?
Section 406 of Public Law 106-170, the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999, established an assessment for the services required by SSA to determine and certify payments to representatives under the section 206(d) of the Social Security Act. This assessment is currently deducted from each fee payment to representatives. However, pursuant to 1.6041-1(f) of the IRC regulations, the IRS considers the gross amount (before the assessment) as the amount that should be reported on the Form 1099-MISC. The aggregate assessments may be taken as a business expense as appropriate.
Do Representatives Have the Option to Receive Fee Payments via Direct Deposit?
Direct deposit of fee payments for both title II claims and title XVI claims is available for representatives who have completed both steps in the registration process and requested fee payment by electronic fund transfer. The financial institution receiving the direct deposit is provided with information which may assist representatives to identify the source of the payment. This information includes the first four letters of the claimants' first name, the first thirteen letters of the claimants' last name, any suffix to the claimants name, the claimants' SSN, and the payment amount. It is at the discretion of the financial institution to provide this information to representatives and other account holders.
You can learn more at Direct Deposit of Fees Factsheet: Social Security Expands Its Use of Prearranged Payment and Deposit (PPD+) Format For Direct Deposit of Representative Fee Payments..


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The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University is pleased to announce that it has awarded Deland Awards for Student Research to Juan Losada, Mariana Oliveira e Castro, and Preeti Rao. Established in 1992 through the generous bequest of F. Stanton Deland, Jr., Harvard c'36, the award supports research by graduate and advanced undergraduate students investigating the comparative biology of woody plants.
Juan Losada is a Ph.D. candidate with Professor Maria Herrero in the Pomology Department of the Aula Dei Experimental Station–CSIC, Spain. His graduate work has focused on the reproductive biology of apples (Malus spp.). He is interested in the events between pollination and fertilization, primarily the role of arabinogalactan proteins in pollen-pistil interactions. The Deland Award will enable Juan to spend the summer working at the Weld Hill Research Building and to expand his studies to include additional species in the Arboretum's Malus collection.
Mariana Oliveira e Castro is working on her master's thesis in the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Coimbra in Portugal under the supervision of João Carlos Mano Castro Loureiro. In collaboration with John and Sally Perkins of the American Rhododendron Society, Mariana will determine the ploidy level (number of chromosome pairs) of 50 specimens of Rhododendron calendulaceum held in the Arboretum's living collection. R. calendulaceum, a tetraploid, shares many characteristics with the diploid species R. cumberlandense. Ploidy level analysis will help to clarify the classification of Rhododendron species present in the collection.
A Ph.D. candidate working with Dr. Lucy Hutyra at Boston University, Preeti Rao aims to understand how urbanization affects ecosystems. By comparing two plots in the Arboretum's Bussey Brook Meadow with plots at the Harvard Forest and other areas in between, she hopes to quantify the effects of urbanization on nitrogen and carbon dynamics. Her independent project is a collaboration with Adrien Finzi, an associate professor of biology at Boston University, and Arboretum Senior Research Scientist Peter Del Tredici. It is part of a larger BU/Harvard collaborative project, the Boston Urban Long-Term Research Area (ULTRA-Ex).

subset: commoncrawl


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I saw Tears for Fears in concert yesterday and it didn't occur to me until a few hours before that I should have printed up some fliers for the upcoming Fixx show in Baltimore and hand them out after the show. I'm sure they have plenty of fans in common.
I talked to a bunch of people at the concert and mentioned the show to them - all were excited and some were surprised to hear about it. Most of them said they planned to go.
There are plenty of upcoming Tears for Fears dates preceding nearby Fixx shows.
So if anyone is planning on going to those shows, how about bringing along some fliers?
Some dates include:
10/29 Atlantic City, NJ
11/5 Lakewood, Ohio
11/6 Columbus, Ohio
11/20 Reno, NV
11/24 Las Vegas, NV
11/26 Tucson, Ariz.
Plus several dates in California.


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Saltwater Fishing Heats Up
Since it's springtime and there are so many super outdoor happenings available, I'll offer a potpourri of choices. Any one or more of them would be a good choice.
Before diving into the fishing opportunities, perhaps it is a good idea to issue a warning. Folks that intend to spend time in the outdoors during daylight hours should use sunscreen. Sunscreen should be applied fresh every two or three hours, according to Capt. Kirk Stansel of Hackberry Rod and Gun. It is also a suggestion from his doctor, who just recently removed some skin cancers from his face, to wear a brimmed hat. Most of us choose caps, but a wide brim straw hat is a much better preventive of sun exposure skin cancer of the face, nose and ears. Certainly there are no guarantees, but the sun screen and hat is worth the trouble as deterrentsTo begin with, saltwater fishing has been good and is continuing now. The inland lakes and bays continue to yield speckled trout, redfish and also now some really solid flounder. Speckled trout are now on the move and they become somewhat scattered. By that I mean there might not be large numbers of them as there are whenever they're schooling. Normally whenever this begins to take place, some really big specks are taken. By locating pods of bait, and there are plenty in the lakes and bays, you will locate the specks.
I contacted four professional saltwater fishing guides to get their opinions about what is productive right now. Capts. Eddie Hernandez, Billy Watkins and Jim West in Texas as well as Capt. Stansel of Hackberry Rod and Gun in Louisiana were all in concert concerning lures and types of locations for their better action.
The more shallow water areas along the shorelines seem to be holding the better speckled trout. Three of the captains are fishing from boats drifting along the shorelines while West prefers to wade. The specks have been holding in water from 6 feet deep on up to the bank. Keep in mind that the action has been a scattered one fish here and one there pattern. The Corky has been the lure of choice. I'd imagine that will be the case for another couple weeks.
There has been some speckled trout action on some of the topwaters fished slowly as well as slow sinking plastics, but the Corky type lure has been the go-to lure for specks.
The redfish are still around in good numbers. With so many windy days, most folks are doing their thing in the inside waters. Many of the anglers going after specks on the reefs are taking more redfish than specks in those areas. The reds seem to be somewhat scattered, as are the specks. Whenever these fish begin to head for their summer haunts, they could show up at feeding areas. Don't over look the marsh types of areas. Keith Lake and Bessie Heights are prime examples of great shallow water redfish areas. Yes, there are still plenty of the reds in the lakes and bays. There are also sheepshead and small drum at the various jetties, but the winds have made these areas too rough most times. Gold lures or spoons with chartreuse or red are also redfish attractors. Small mullet and cut bait will take many reds every year.
There has been a really good spring flounder run this year. It began fairly slow, but the warmer weather seems to have brought them in. The only problem for anglers has been the number of days too windy for safe boating or flounder fishing. Like other springs, the fish have been feeding and bedding in areas where there are moving tides. Many anglers have had their better success catching the flatfish using shrimp tipped jigs with plastic tails. As always, live mud minnows are the most popular.Marsh drains, submerged points and bulkheads are good places to go after flounder. Bridge pilings are also right up there.
On the freshwater scene, all three of the big lakes have been productive. Largemouth black bass are steadily moving into spawning areas. First, the smaller males come in and them the big roe-laden females show up. That's beginning to happen now. On Rayburn, the smaller Kentucky spotted bass are active on sandy points. They seem to like lures with red on them best.
Topwaters and slow sinking plastics have been the go-to lures on Toledo Bend. Open shallow flats or brush is where the better action is happening. Expect some big fish to possibly take your lure.
White bass are showing up on Lake Livingston. That adds another dimension to the already hot black bass crappie and catfish action on that lake. All three lakes have been yielding limits of crappie and catfish whenever the anglers can go afloat. The winds have been a problem. That's normal in the spring.It would be difficult to make a bad choice about where to go right now.
Here are the telephone numbers of the captains listed above:
• Capt. Eddie Hernandez, Golden Hook Guide Service, (409) 673-3100
• Capt. Billy Watkins, FishSabinLake.Com, (409) 673-9211
• Capt. Jim West, Bolivar Guide Service, (409) 996-3054
• Capt. Kirk Stansel, Hackberry Rod and Gun, (888) 762-3391
Tune in to KSET 1300 at 6 p.m. on Thursdays for Billy Halfin Outdoors and listen to the updates daily at 7:25 a.m., 12:25 p.m. and 6:25 p.m.


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14 March 2013 at 5.57pm | Comment on this article
This is National Apprenticeship Week and although we have a number of apprenticeships in practical departments such as metalwork or carpentry that's not the only kind of job available. Jamie Ashwell (aged 20), is our Education Events and Tours Apprentice. He organizes events and shows visitors around the workshops where the Royal Opera House's scenery is made: the Bob and Tamar Manoukian Production Workshop in Thurrock. There are regular public tours and schools visits and previous guests have included the Duke of Kent.
'This was my favourite school trip ever! I made props and found out lots of cool facts' - Student from Deneholm Primary School
'Doing an apprenticeship has many advantages; one of course is money because you get paid to be an apprentice,' says Jamie. 'You work with leading practitioners in the industry, which you wouldn't necessarily get when going into a job or doing a university course.'
Originally from the local area, Jamie is passionate about giving all the Production Park's visitors a brilliant experience; a sentiment that's reflected in enthusiastic responses to the tours. Especially receptive are the primary school groups, who have a chance to make their own props.
Recently, Jamie gave a small group of Royal Opera House supporters an exclusive glimpse of the final touches being made to the scenery for John Fulljames's forthcoming production of La donna del lago, coming to the ROH Main Stage in May. They were also shown the initial designs for Carlos Acosta's Don Quixote, which opens The Royal Ballet's 2013/14 Season.
'Working for the Royal Opera house is an incredible thing because they are a world leading organization within the arts. I was attracted to the apprenticeship because of the chance to learn from people who are at the top of the creative industry so early on in my career,' he says.
Recently the future of the Apprenticeships programme was secured by a generous donation to the Royal Opera House Endowment Fund by The Derek Butler Trust. The Trust's support will enable the scheme to expand to at least 12 positions per year through to 2018 and provide match funding for a further five years' activity. We're delighted that we have been able to continue and extend our commitment to apprenticeships: if you or someone you know are considering an apprenticeship you'll find more information on our website.
See our recent Q&A with Tommy and Georgia, who work in our Metalwork and Collections departments.
Watch BBC News's film about the apprentices who help make the Royal Opera House work
Tours of our Thurrock Production Workshops are now available to book.
As well as The Derek Butler Trust, we are also grateful to John Lyon's Charity, The Headley Trust, Gordon Foundation, the Ashley Family Foundation, the Worshipful Company of Joiners and Ceilers Charitable Trust and an anonymous donor whose generous support is enabling us to offer a wide range of apprenticeships this Season.


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CourseMonster is currently in the process of updating this course outline. If you would like to receive a copy, please call an experienced service representative on 0800 40 848 40 for details of this course.
If you need training for 3 or more people, you should ask us about onsite training. Putting aside the obvious location benefit, content can be customised to better meet your business objectives and more can be covered than in a public classroom. It's a cost effective option.
Submit an enquiry from any page on this site, and let us know you are interested in the requirements box, or simply mention it when we contact you.
ITILv3, RESILIA, PRINCE2, PRINCE2 Agile, AgileSHIFT, MSP, M_o_R, P3M3, P3O, MoP, MoV courses on this page are offered by QA Affiliate of AXELOS Limited. ITIL, RESILIA, PRINCE2, PRINCE2 Agile, AgileSHIFT, MSP, M_o_R, P3M3, P3O,MoP, MoV are registered trademarks of AXELOS Limited. All rights reserved.


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Accounting firm EHTC seeks nominations for fundraiser beneficiary
Ada Township accounting firm Echelbarger, Himebaugh, Tamm & Co. held its 26th Annual Chipping for Charity golf outing at Scott Lake Country Club this fall. The $10,400 raised at the event went to the Hospice of Michigan James B. Fahner M.D. Pediatric Hospice Care Program.
Now, EHTC is accepting letters from anyone in the community who wants to nominate a particular nonprofit or charity to be the recipient of EHTC's 2013 fundraiser. The deadline for nominating an organization is Jan. 31.
Some guidelines EHTC will use in selecting a nonprofit charity are:
- The money would significantly impact the charity.
- The money would stay locally.
- EHTC would be permitted to send charity donors and volunteers invitations to the fundraiser.
- The organization would participate in the event through its volunteers, etc.
To nominate an organization, submit the following information about the potential recipient in order to be considered: most recent annual financial statements; copy of Form 990; literature explaining what the organization does; board of directors listing; how the money would be used; whether EHTC can send invitations to people on the organization's mailing list; if/how many of the organization's volunteers would be willing to participate (6-8 typically required).
Submit the information to Diane Friar, EHTC, 5136 Cascade Road SE, Suite 2A, Grand Rapids, MI 49546. For more information, contact her at (616) 575-3482 or firstname.lastname@example.com.
Over the past 26 years, EHTC has raised more than $230,000 to help support local charities. EHTC chooses a different local charity each year as the recipient of their annual Chipping for Charity Golf Outing.


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We're the strategic, creative and engineering folks behind some of your favorite websites and apps.
At SDG, we do without the big departments, the complex bureaucracy & the frustrating red tape. There are no layers here. We don't believe in outsourcing & we deeply care about quality, standards & doing it the right way. Everyone here can either code or design (and many times both). Direct is an understatement. You'd be surprised how much of a difference this makes.
Our business is 100% referral driven. We're not big fans of salesmen & we don't believe in selling you something you don't need. Trust us.
We're a team of experts. Working with us, is working with the best of us. Our primary focus is eCommerce & mobile-first UX driven design.
Our 100% in-house team covers design & development, Magento & Shopify, iOS & Android apps and strategic consulting services.


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Three months after her widely reported suicide attempt, Teen Mom star Amber Portwood is now opening up for the first time and in a shocker, she reveals she is "still suicidal."
While talking to E! News, Amber, 21, reveals she was rushed to the hospital last Wednesday after suffering a severe panic attack. "I couldn't breathe and I passed out," says Amber. "I stopped breathing."
Amber, who continues to make tabloid headlines with baby daddy Gary Shirley, then goes on to state she is still having a hard time despite spending weeks at a rehab facility in Malibu.
"Honestly, I feel like I did two months ago. I'm still suicidal," Amber reveals. "I'm f–king depressed. My family's not together."
Amber goes on to add that she is very upset at all the tabloid headlines, most notably the recent Life & Style magazine cover story which stated she is choosing partying over spending time with her 2-year-old daughter Leah. The mag even managed to get quotes from Amber's own brother Shawn Portwood who stated that Amber "enjoys her freedom too much right now."
"What hurts me the most is when people believe the lies about me," Amber tells E! News. "The bullying is too much to handle. Look at the rate of teen deaths related to bullying. It's scary."
Amber also makes it clear that she doesn't have a drinking problem and that she did not go to rehab for such. "I went to rehab for depression and anger management, not drug or alcohol abuse," says Amber. "I have been out twice since I left rehab and I'm 21. I take my medication the way I'm supposed to." Amber revealed last year that she suffers from bipolar disorder.
As for not seeing her daughter Leah, Amber reveals she agreed to let Gary have custody in other "to keep CPS off our backs." She adds that she tries to see her daughter as often as she's allowed. "I see Leah whenever I can. I have stipulations as to when I can and can't see her."
Kamil Krzaczynski/INFphoto.com


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TACOMA, Wash. – The Puget Sound women's tennis team went back on the winning track with a 6-3 defeat of Willamette on Saturday. The Loggers (4-3, 4-3 NWC) took an early lead in doubles and won convincingly in singles to end their two-match slide.
Malia Ford and Allison Emberate earned the Loggers first point with an 8-3 win over Mandy Carlson and Yasmine Genena in No. 3 doubles. Maddie Thiesse and Josie Dow fell 8-1 to Sabrina Gutierrez and Denis Poltavski in No.1 double but Logan Thompson and Marissa Friedman gained the Logger advantage with an 8-6 win at No. 2 doubles over Rachel Heringer and Stephanie Matsuura.
The teams traded quick wins in singles with Gutierrez defeating Jenna Gerdsen 6-0, 6-1 in the No. 2 match and Ford handling Yasmine Genena 6-1, 6-1 at No. 6. Poltavski won in the No. 1 match over Thiesse 7-6 (6-4), 6-1 but that would be Willamette's final point as the Loggers continued to show their strength in singles.
Dow won 6-4, 6-1over Mandy Carlson in the No. 5 match. Both Thompson and Friedman won in three sets to clinch the victory. Thompson defeated Matsuura at No. 3 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 and Friedman won 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) in the No. 4 match over Heringer.
The Loggers host a doubleheader next Friday, starting with a 4 p.m. NWC match against Linfield and followed by a nonconference match with College of Idaho.


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Bonking is fun
We had a walk along the seafront then through the Pavilion into the lanes. I explained how Brighton had always been a town premised on 'fun', from Regency excesses to Victorian bathing, seaside hols, dirty weekends and now a base for Bohemians. Good to see an academic get out and tell people what he's researched and the practical implications of those findings. This simply doesn't happen here. Our e-learning research lies fallow and unread. In my 23 years at Epic we never had a single request from academia to use our work in research, despite the huge number of projects we deigned and implemented. These were lost opportunities. Almost everything of use has come from the US. The exception is Seb Schmoller who genuinely crosses all sorts of boundaries - and I highly recommend his fortnightly newsletter.


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The Multistick
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Blush Pearl METALLIC WHITE WITH PINK SHIMMER
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Meet the ultimate multitasker. The Multistick is made to use anywhere on the face, from lips to cheeks to eyes. With 35 percent powder, this silicone-free, clean makeup stick creates a soft focus finish that's breathable, blendable and buildable. Its spectrum of universally flattering shades look beautiful anywhere on the face and on all skin tones, providing the perfect wash of color when applied as a lipstick, blush, eyeshadow, contour, or even highlight. Plus, it's effortless to use—just apply it with fingers or a brush.
Like all Bite Beauty products, The Multistick is handcrafted by Bite Beauty at the brand's facility in Toronto, and is made with natural and organic ingredients. From "no makeup" makeup to monochromatic looks, experience simplicity on the go and flawless versatile color, all in one.
Bite Beauty does not contain parabens, phthalates, or sulfates. Bite is cruelty-free and Leaping Bunny certified.
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+/- May Contain: Titanium Dioxide (Ci 77891)*, Iron Oxides (Ci 77491, Ci 77492, Ci 77499)*, Blue 1 Lake (Ci 42090), Carmine (Ci 75470), Yellow 5 Lake (Ci 19140), Red 40 Lake (Ci 16035), Manganese Violet (Ci 77742), Tin Oxide (Ci 77861)* Bismuth Oxychloride (Ci 77163)
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The Multistick can also be used to contour lips, cheeks and eyes.
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After v. 35 recommends arbitration for a quarreling couple, verses 36-42 of Sura 4 enjoin kindness toward relatives, friends, neighbors, and slaves ("what your right hands possess," v. 36), and denounce pride and miserliness.
Then v. 43 tells believers not to come to prayers while drunk. Ibn Abi Hatim says this was revealed because one of the Muslims began to recite sura 109:1-3: "Say: O disbelievers! I do not worship that which you worship; nor do you worship that which I worship." But the leader of prayer was drunk, and so he said: "Say, O disbelievers! I do not worship that which you worship, but we worship that which you worship." 4:43 was revealed shortly thereafter. It was the first stage of the three-stage Qur'anic prohibition of alcohol. First Allah commanded the Muslims not to pray while drunk in this passage; then he told them that alcohol was a "great sin, and some profit, for men" (2:219); and finally there came the revelation that alcohol was "Satan's handiwork" (5:90), and thus to be shunned altogether. The last of these verses is considered to have abrogated the other two. Muhammad himself became quite stern about drunkenness, saying that drunks should be given three chances and then executed: "If he is intoxicated, flog him; again if he is intoxicated, flog him; again if he is intoxicated, flog him; if he does it again a fourth time, kill him."
Verses 44-59 are an invective against the People of the Book in general and the Jews in particular. The Jews "traffic in error" and, and wish that the Muslims would "lose the right path" (v. 44). They "they believe in sorcery and evil, and say to the unbelievers that they are better guided in the (right) way than the believers!" (v. 51). They twist Allah's words, and Allah has "cursed them for their unbelief" — كُفْرِهِمْ, kufrihim, (vv. 46; see also 52).
Says Ibn Kathir: "Allah states that the Jews, may Allah's continued curse fall on them until the Day of Resurrection, have purchased the wrong path instead of guidance, and ignored what Allah sent down to His Messenger Muhammad. They also ignored the knowledge that they inherited from previous Prophets, about the description of Muhammad, so that they may have a small amount of the delights of this life." They are called to accept Islam or face terrible punishment, including being cursed "as We cursed the Sabbath-breakers" (v. 47) – that is, being transformed into apes and pigs (2:63-65). Allah will forgive anything except shirk, the associating of partners with him (v. 48). Because the People of the Book are accursed, they shall soon be "cast into the Fire: as often as their skins are roasted through, We shall change them for fresh skins, that they may taste the penalty" (v. 56).
According to Maududi, in saying that "Allah doth command you to render back your trusts to those to whom they are due," v. 58 warns the Muslims not to make the same mistake the Jews made: "One of the fundamental mistakes committed by the Israelites was that in the time of their degeneration they had handed over positions of trust (i.e. religious and political leadership) to incompetent, mean, immoral, corrupt and dishonest people." Maududi, a foremost exponent of political Islam who was writing in the mid-20th century, is implying that Muslims have gone astray by putting up with authoritarian regimes that do not govern according to Islamic law, rather than implementing full Sharia government. Another 20th century theorist, Sayyid Qutb, writing in a similar vein about the same verse, adds that jihad is "a fulfillment of a specific trust." A third, Maulana Bulandshahri, explains that contemporary governments in Muslim states have betrayed their trust by allowing their "legislative assemblies to make laws" instead of "following the guidelines of the Qur'an and Ahadith."
The believers, meanwhile, are exhorted to "obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those charged with authority among you" (v. 59). To obey Muhammad today is, many Islamic authorities say, to obey his dictates in the Hadith, which some contemporary Muslims wish to disregard and say that only the Qur'an has authority. And Muhammad himself is quite clear about the necessity to obey earthly rulers: "You should listen to and obey your ruler even if he was an Ethiopian (black) slave whose head looks like a raisin." Verses 60-70 continue the theme of obeying Muhammad, chastising the hypocrites who pretend to believe in Muhammad and Islam but refuse to come to him to judge their disputes. Allah tells Muhammad: "by the Lord, they can have no (real) Faith, until they make thee judge in all disputes between them" (v. 65).
Verses 71-104 exhort the believers to go forth courageously to jihad warfare. Ibn Kathir explains v. 71 in this way: "Allah commands His faithful servants to take precautions against their enemies, by being prepared with the necessary weapons and supplies, and increasing the number of troops fighting in His cause." A warrior should fight fearlessly, for "whether he is slain or gets victory" he will be rewarded (v. 74) – here again is the promise that has made Muslims fight with such tenacity throughout history. For the contrast is stark: the believers fight against oppression (v. 75) and for Allah, while the unbelievers fight for Satan (v. 76). One will not escape death by declining to fight, for "all things are from Allah" (v. 78). And in any case, Allah will "restrain the fury of the unbelievers" (v. 84). V. 90 is sometimes adduced as proof that Muslims have no open-ended mandate to fight unbelievers, but the Tafsir al-Jalalayn makes clear that this refers only to unbelievers who submit to Islamic rule: "And so if they stay away from you and do not fight you, and offer you peace, reconciliation, that is, [if] they submit, then God does not allow you any way against them, [He does not allow you] a means to take them captive or to slay them."
Verses 92-3 forbid Muslims to kill fellow believers intentionally; if one kills a Muslim accidentally, he should free a Muslim slave. How is it, then, that Muslims can kill each other with such apparent impunity in Iraq and elsewhere? They pronounce takfir on one another – declare the opposing group to be unbelievers – despite the gentle discouraging of this practice in v. 94. V. 95 says that those believers who stay home and risk no injury are not equal to those who wage jihad.
Passages such as this, which are often overlooked in discussions of the Qur'anic view of jihad, demonstrate definitively that what the Qur'an means by jihad is not an interior spiritual struggle, but warfare. Why should anyone fear death or the fury of the unbelievers, or shorten his prayers in view of an impending attack by the unbelievers (v. 101), in a spiritual struggle? How can one kill a fellow Muslim by accident in a spiritual struggle?
Next week: What really happened at the Crucifixion of Christ.
(Here you can find links to all the earlier "Blogging the Qur'an" segments. Here is a good Arabic/English Qur'an, here are two popular Muslim translations, those of Abdullah Yusuf Ali and Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall, along with a third by M. H. Shakir. Here is another popular translation, that of Muhammad Asad. And here is an omnibus of ten Qur'an translations.)


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Half-Life and Left 4 Dead developer Valve has been toying with new ways to use biofeedback—heart rate, facial expressions, eye-tracking, levels of physical arousal—for years. What does that mean for the future of people who like Valve video games? How about controlling games with your eyes?
Valve's Mike Ambinder talked about the sundry ways the company is experimenting with incorporating user biofeedback at GDC today. Currently, that includes prototype versions of Left 4 Dead 2 with an "AI Director" that responds to your arousal levels, modifying how it distributes health items, zombie hordes and Special Infected based on "player trauma."
It also includes a build of top-down shooter Alien Swarm that alters the game's timer in response to stress and a version of Portal 2 that decoupled aiming a cross-hair and viewing the game world.
Ambinder showed a demo of a Left 4 Dead 2 player connected to a biofeedback measurement device, a custom piece of hardware designed to detect skin conductance response. An in-game graph displayed levels of arousal from the player as he fought a series of Special Infected zombies, trying to refill a generator with gas cans. The player's stress levels steadily increased as he was attacked, until ultimately he peaked during a Tank battle. A post-gameplay graph showed spikes in player trauma levels, tied to game events: Smoker attack, Charger battle, game-ending Hunter pounce.
A Left 4 Dead 2 prototype used player biofeedback in another capacity, showing a teammates' arousal levels above their health bar to illustrate how other Survivors were responding to in-game trauma.
Ambinder said that data was entertaining to watch during competitive play in the upcoming DOTA 2. This, he said, was "the most enjoyable thing we've done so far" with biofeedback. Players who saw their opponents' sense of arousal spike would "go crazy" with delight.
"It's great to watch people suffer because of your actions," he said.
Ambinder also showed gameplay of Portal 2 being controlled with eye-tracking. Player movement, looking around the game world, was still done by hand, but aiming with a crosshair was done by looking with the eyes—they move faster than the wrist, so would using them to aim be an improvement? Enjoyable?
Eye-tracking hardware determined the X/Y location of a gaze, redrawing the targeting reticule at 60 Hz. It was jittery, but speedy, leading Valve to determine that eyes could be viable aiming controllers. Decoupling the aiming viewpoint was a plus, Ambinder noted.
Biofeedback controllers may be a long ways off, Ambinder said, cautioning developers that consumer grade eye-trackers are still "far away" due to cost. Clearly, though, Valve sees value in factoring in physical feedback into its games and, at the very least, watching them experiment is highly entertaining.


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Pacitan is located in Pacitan, Jawa Timur, Indonesia.
List of all hotels in Pacitan. By default, Pacitan hotels are sorted by class: the most luxurious hotels in Pacitan are listed first. You can change the sorting order using the navigation bar above. By clicking the first (leftmost) button you can interchange the direction of sorting between ascending/descending.
There are separate sections devoted to Pacitan luxury hotels and Pacitan cheap hotels.Unfortunately, there is no hotel available in Pacitan directly. You may want to consider the hotels listed in the following section or to search for hotels close to Pacitan.
Fortune Hotel is situated in Ponorogo – a city in East Java known for its reog traditional dance. Housing 2 dining options and a business centre, the hotel also provides free Wi-Fi access in its public areas.
Grand Soba Hotel provides simple accommodation with a 24-hour room service in Solo. It offers wireless hotspots and a shuttle service to Solo Balapan Train Station, free of charge. Massage services are available on request.
Offering classic rooms in Solo's commercial district, Indah Palace provides free Wi-Fi and parking. Featuring a spa, it is a 5-minute walk from popular Kasunanan Palace and the Batik markets.
Just a 10-minute drive from downtown Solo, Omah Gading Guest House offers free parking and villas with living rooms and kitchens. Villas are equipped with Cable TV and DVD players. Omah Gading's spacious villas offer air conditioning.
Novotel Solo is the only 4-star international chain hotel in Solo.
De-Solo Boutique Hotel is located in Solo City in Central Java. It provides free Wi-Fi, a spa and a restaurant. Its convenient location provides easy access to many tourist attractions.
Istana Griya 2 is within a 15-minute walk of the Kasunanan Palace and Kauman Batik House. It offers free parking on site and air-conditioned rooms with a private bathroom. Guest rooms are fitted with a TV set. Wake-up service can be requested.
Boasting historical Javanese designs, Kusuma Sahid Prince Hotel Solo offers an outdoor pool and spa. Located a 10-minute drive from Solo Palace, the hotel provides free Wi-Fi throughout its building. Free parking is also offered.
Lampion Hotel Solo is located in the city centre and provides a 20-minute shuttle service from Adi Soemarmo Airport. It provides rooms with a flat-screen TV and free internet access, and features a 24-hour restaurant.
Located in Central Solo, Tirtonadi Permai provides convenient access to popular attractions and the business area. It features a tour desk and offers free Wi-Fi in the entire hotel. Massage services are available.
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In the following list, car rental offices nearest to Pacitan are sorted by the approximate distance from thi city centre.
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