#ITS BEEN 800000 YEARS

[milosirlgf]

OMG HI HI I FEEL LIKE ITS BEEN SOME TIME SINCE WE LAST TALKED 😭😭

HRUUUUU (ALSO I LOVE THE NEW THEME!!!)

ITS BEEEN LIKE 800000 YEARS OH MY GOD CALY I MISSED YOU!!!!! im great :3 THEME IS BEING AN ASS rn imtryubg mybest 🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽 HOW AR YOU

#CALY!!!

[abimee]

its been 800000 years since ive written be kind to me

[snsdpop]

SHAN LOOOOOK

WHAT OMG ITS BEEN 800000 YEARS

[sublimeobservationarcade]

Scott Morrison Bragged About Being A Robodebt Welfare Cop

Robodebt was an ideological attack on the welfare system by the Coalition for economic and political gain. When they were unable to find the billions of dollars claimed to have been rorted, they confabulated them via illegal means. Scott Morrison bragged about being a Robodebt welfare cop in his public announcements as social services minister. If he is not ultimately responsible for a scheme that has cost the lives of the innocent and vulnerable Australians who is. If Scott Morrison is not responsible for the $1.8 billion lost in a settled class action against the government who is.

The Lies, Incompetence & Cruelty of Scott Morrison Exposed By Robodebt

We live in a world where our political masters and their bureaucratic minions are able to wrongly ascribe large debts to half a million poor Australians and seemingly face bugger all consequences. We have seen Royal Commission after Royal Commission into banking, aged care, and now Robodebt where no criminal charges have been laid and no one has gone to prison. No wonder corporate and government leadership roles are so sought after with huge pay packets and no come back for corruption and incompetence. Highly paid public servants performing in a moral vacuum with only their arse licking of major concern to their reward and ambitions. This is the Australia we live in and that we have created.

Scott Morrison Should By Rights Go To Gaol For His Role In Robodebt

If you or I were involved in criminal activities costing billions of dollars and which cost the lives of human beings, we would find ourselves the subject of criminal proceedings and likely be incarcerated for a lengthy period of time. However, those in power rarely face the consequences of their actions if history is any guide. Peter Dutton, the opposition leader, accuses the Labor government of politicising the findings of the Robodebt enquiry, as if this claim frees those responsible of any wrong doing. Life itself is political and it is a byproduct not an excuse.

PwC, the most ‘on the nose’ consultancy in the world right now, is going to refund the federal government the million bucks they cashed for an incomplete and shelved report of the Robodebt scheme they performed back in 2017. “The commission found PwC was contacted in January 2017 by Kathryn Campbell, the then secretary of the department, as she had concerns about the delivery of targets under the scheme, and wanted an external review of its processes.” - (https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jul/08/pwc-to-repay-800000-for-work-on-robodebt-after-damning-royal-commission-report) Kathryn Campbell is the leading senior bureaucrat in this whole sorry saga, who must face the music if the Australian governmental and justice systems are not to be viewed as complete moral vacuums. For nearly 5 years multiple levels of government and public servants have been found to have known that the scheme was illegal and morally wrong. Cowardice has been mentioned by the Commissioner in charge of the Robodebt Royal Commission – Catherine Holmes. She has repeatedly labelled the departmental public servants involved in administering Robodebt cowards, along with their political masters in the Coalition. Cruel and cowardly! This is the behaviour of those supposed to serve the people. Instead they were serving liars and ideological fanatics like Scott Morrison, Alan Tudge, Stuart Robert, Tony Abbott, and Christian Porter.

Scott Morrison bragged about being a Robodebt welfare cop. He beat up stories to enflame the mean underbelly of Australia and its inclination to kick a man and woman when they are down. How else can you explain the populism of attacking dole bludgers and welfare cheats in the lucky country. It has a rich tradition and the Coalition exploit if for all its worth whenever possible. This widely held belief that there are legions of these welfare cheats rorting the system has been comprehensively proven to be false. It has cost us the tax payers $1.8 billion. There are not hundreds of thousands of such folk, nor tens of thousands, and not thousands of them either. It is a furphy that has cost us all a great deal in all sorts of ways. The liar that was voted out of the lodge should be sent down for the term of his natural life – if there was any justice in this place. ©WordsForWeb

Read the full article

#Australia #Coalition #moralfailure #politics #Robodebt #RoyalCommission #ScottMorrison

[hakesbros]

San Antonio Homes For Sale Between $800000 To $1000000

When it's time to chill out, there is no higher place to learn the newest finest vendor or catch some sun than poolside at a K. Many of our communities feature both indoor and outdoor swimming pools, good for swimming laps, taking a water aerobics class or just lounging poolside. These sparkling creations are designed to give you that trip feel right in your personal yard. K. Hovnanian's® Four Seasons communities set the standard for way of life, success and value. Ideally located, these distinctive, resort-at-home communities provide a private world the place friendships flourish, recreation abounds and quality is second to none. With year-round actions deliberate so as to take part when you want, life will get better all the time.

three,255 single-family homes have been bought in April of this 12 months, representing an 8% year-over-year lower. Open floor plan with 4 bedrooms, three bath new homes san antonio, three car garage. New Monticello home underneath building with a late fall completion date.

Start your search and discover your perfect luxurious home today. Toll Brothers provides new building home options within the larger San Antonio space that includes trendy structure with single-level dwelling options, lifetime warranties, and luxurious good home options. Cresta Bella-The Enclave is a pristine new home group by Toll Brothers positioned in San Antonio, Texas, featuring homes for sale san antonio luxury single-family homes that offer unparalleled views of the attractive Texas Hill Country. Hakes Brothers provides homes for sale in San Antonio, TX that replicate the richness of the area’s local history. To honor these scenic surroundings, our new homes in San Antonio are thoughtfully located in picturesque settings such as the quintessential Texas countryside or the grand Guadalupe River.

I really have so many questions as to why this was included in the listing. If you are studying this, I will hire out just this house for $800 a month. Professionally managed, quality single-family rental homes and apartments across North America.

The frame of a development project within the Government Hill neighborhood of San Antonio, TX, is seen on Oct. 26, 2022. As San Antonio officers ponder which affordable housing developments to fund with public money, they're wrestling with the city's position in displacement and gentrification. Officials are in the midst of evaluating the place to distribute $150 million in funding from San Antonio’s first housing bond of its type, permitted by voters earlier this 12 home builders in san antonios. Developers recently sent of their pitches by way of a request for proposals and City Council may make funding decisions before the top of the yr. Sitterle Homes has at all times been a pacesetter in homebuilding. Our architects and builders design and build homes that fit their environment, neighborhood, and meet the distinctive needs of our clients.

The San Antonio-New Braunfels Housing Market Area encompasses eight counties in south-central Texas. The principal metropolis of San Antonio, the seventh most populous within the United States, is in Bexar County. The metropolis of New Braunfels, in Comal and Guadalupe Counties, is 30 miles northeast of the city of San Antonio.

Our Sales team is comprised of local new homes consultants who're licensed brokers specializing in new construction home transactions. We bring together listings of all newly constructed homes and communities in your area, permitting you to explore them using digital excursions or in-person showings. Use the LoopNet search to discover a industrial real estate broker near San Antonio, TX now. The common rent for a 1-bedroom condo in Beacon Hill, San Antonio, TX is presently $950. Over the previous month, the common hire for a 1-bedroom apartment in Beacon Hill increased by 4% to $950.

Bridgehaven is situated in the growing city of Converse, Texas. The group is conveniently located simply minutes from Randolph AFB with quick access new homes for sale san antonio tx to San Antonio. You also can relax at the Converse City Park solely half of mile from the neighborhood.

Many of our new home communities home Junior Olympic swimming pools, recreation facilities, and sculpted walking paths built to resemble the area’s rolling hillsides. Located at the north end of town, the Stone Oak space has a wide selection of newer neighborhoods and new-build communities inside, including Coronado. This new home community is zoned with the fascinating Northeast ISD, making it a great place for homebuyers trying to start a family. Many consumers who had been looking for a house final 12 months were “just worn out” and opted to proceed renting, she mentioned.

The excellent news is that home inventory, which has been exceptionally low over the previous 12 months, is on the rise. That means you’ll have extra homes to choose from and may get a chance to compete with different patrons in this sellers’ market. SAN ANTONIO – A new local real property report is a good-news/bad-news scenario new home builders san antonio for potential homebuyers in San Antonio. We will still provide the same companies however with an emphasis on compassion, equity and excellence. A home is a construction, a spot of shelter, someplace to stay.

#real estate #san antonio

[russet-red]

words cant describe how hard im trying to not make a deer pun right now TRUST ME

#genyatta #tekhartha zenyatta #genji shimada #faunyatta #dragon!genji #overwatch #faun au #ITS BEEN 800000 YEARS #sprites

[metaknight]

tumblr is strangely quiet on this, the day of kingdom hearts 3

#unless everyone's busy playing it cause its been 800000 YEARS #my boyfriend is playing it #the dialogue is kinda weird but it looks gorgeous and fun

[imposterogers]

yk what after seeing the batman i hope kevin fiege is shaking in his fuckin boots bc dc really has been knocking it out of the park by their experimental comic book movies. like look at birds of prey, shazam, joker, and now the batman. for dc there really is something for everyone and you don’t have to watch 800000 projects to understand the one movie yk? idk this is rambley but dc is just proving it’s kind of always been superior

the mcu has become a factory line up to push out as many projects as possible while still cutting costs (CGI everything, not giving actors the scripts, costume and poster design) while DC is that company that only makes like one-two products a year max because its handmade from start to finish. plus it seems like the writers at DC care/at the very least like the characters & source material

#mcu #dceu #now dc now is not the time to get too big for ur boots. stay on the path u have been taking and there won't be any trouble lmaooo

[chanyeollipop]

!!!!!!!

#CHnyeoks BLDINE THAT MENAS HE COULD STAY BLODNE OR GO LITERALL Y AN Y COLOR #I HAD TO FUCKING LEAVE MY DINNE R ANS EXCUS WMYSELF TO THE BAHROOM BC I STARTED CYRING ITS BEEN 800000 YEARS

[traveltips2019]

Ways to Get Residency in Saudi Arabia in 2019.

Getting Residency in Saudi Arabia in not complicated and hard as it was before. The government of Saudi Arabia has made great changes in its visa and immigration policies. New program of temporary and permanent residency of Saudi Arabia has been launched in 2019. Besides new residency programs, the government of Saudi Arabia has started electronic visa system in order to boost tourism in the country and to attract foreign investors. The conventional ways of getting residency in Saud Arabia are also still available along with newly launched programs. In fact, the government of Saudi Arabia wants to discover alternate resources to boost economy. Here are some ways to getting residency in Saudi Arabia:

Employment Residency:

This is one of the most common ways of obtaining residencies in the world. Almost every country gives residency to persons who hold employment visa. Saudi Arabia has kafeel system, kafeel is exactly same as the sponsor. There should be a sponsor willing to offer a job in order to get employment visa in Saudi Arabia.  Usually Saudi Arabian Sponsor applies employment visa for foreigners and then send visa to foreigner to get it stamped on passport from Saudi Arabian embassy. The length of employment visa depends on the length of job contract made between Saudi sponsor and employee.

Employment visa gives to right to apply for residency in Saudi Arabia but it never gives right to apply for permanent residency of Saudi Arabia or citizenship. Employment visa holder is considered a resident in Saudi Arabia and it is mandatory for every foreign resident to apply for residency in Saudi Arabia. Residency is Saudi Arabia is known as Iqama which works like an identity card in ksa. It is mandatory to carry a valid id card in Saudi Arabia.

Depending on job position and salary, employment residency holder can apply residency for his family members like spouse, daughter and sons. Employment visa holders are also eligible for obtaining visit visa and umrah visa for their family members, friends and relatives but it all depends on job position and salary. Usually, when an employment visa holder reach Saudi Arabia, his sponsor helps him to apply residency card. It can be applied online or office of Saudi Arabian immigration. Saudi Arabian Sponsor provides him with required documents. Applicant have to go through from medical fitness test, bio metrics collection and need to buy health insurance.

Business Residency:

Saudi Arabia was notorious for its strict visa and immigration rules. It was also notorious due to bad behavior of Saudi Arabian sponsor with their employee. To help foreigners get rid of sponsor problems, Saudi Arabia has launched a new residency program. Thanks to new program, foreigners do not need to any Saudi Arabian employer to live, work and set up business in Saudi Arabia. It is not only for investors but also available for researchers, highly qualified professionals and businessmen.

Business residency will have two types: temporary and permanent. Temporary residency will be given for one year with possibility of unlimited renewals. It will cost 100000 SAR. The Permanent residency of Saudi Arabia will be given for life time and there will be no need to renew as it won’t expire. It will cost 800000 SAR. It is called business residency because it requires huge amount as a fee.

#green card saudi arabia #privileged iqama

[earthcookies]

i really want to rewatch hxh since its been like, 4 years? its still one of my favorite shounens Ever, but do i also want to be in a huge amount of emotional turmoil again. what if i hyperfixate on it again and draw 800000 gings

#i drew a lot of killua and pitou too lol #lemme tell you it was hard having ging as a fav ppl were so rude and weird to me over it #like dont come at me for liking a character who ppl rarely make content for??? #anyway yeah. i wanna rewatch

[avanneman]

Dirty Chinese try to prevent the U.S. from spying on them

Jerry Chun Shing Lee, a former case officer with the CIA, pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide intelligence information to the Chinese government. He did not admit to actually providing information. You can read about the case in this story from the New York Times by Julien E. Barnes. According to Barnes, Lee’s case “highlighted the growing aggressiveness of Beijing’s spy services,” a statement for which, unfortunately, the intrepid reporter offers precisely zero evidence.

“Mr. Lee’s contact with Chinese intelligence came in 2010, at the same time the C.I.A.’s informant network in China collapsed,” Barnes writes. “Intelligence officials have been divided over how the network crumbled. While some believed that the Chinese had hacked the covert system the C.I.A. used to communicate with its foreign sources, others believed that Mr. Lee had given the Chinese at least some of the names.”

A few paragraphs later, Barnes provides more “information”: “The case has received a high level of attention because of an increase in Chinese espionage in recent years. Kevin Mallory, a former official with the C.I.A. and the Defense Intelligence Agency, was found guilty in June. Ron Hansen, another D.I.A. official, was sentenced to 15 years in prison in March.”

Yes, we have three convictions in one year. But why does that prove “growing aggressiveness”? Maybe we’re just better at catching them, or, even, just trying harder. Of the three, only Mallory actually passed classified information (three documents of unspecified significance). To my suspicious nostrils, Mr. Barnes’ dramatic words bear the odor of what journalists—the hip ones, at least—call “source greasing”—writing what your sources want to hear to they’ll like and trust you and feed you helpful information down the road. Three convictions, one of them based on events that took place in 2010, are not exactly evidence of a “spy wave”.

I’m quite willing to believe that all three men committed criminal acts, though I can wonder at the severity of the sentences, because I’m also quite willing to believe that courts are often too eager to accept the government’s word in espionage cases—the old “if you knew what I knew” routine. Clearly, the Chinese sought classified information, but, from these three spies, at least, they didn't seem to get much.

And what about the fact that this espionage is, in significant part, a response to our espionage? After all, we used to have a “network” of informants—that is to say, spies—in China as well, and, presumably, have worked hard to revive it. And then there was that “amusing” incident back in 2002 when a special Boeing jet built for the president of China was discovered to be rampant with bugs. A Washington Post story that ran back in the day cited a “Chinese source” as claiming that “27 listening devices had been found, including devices in the presidential bathroom and in the headboard of the presidential bed.” Very clever, these Americans!

Meanwhile, the Trump Administration’s efforts to convince the rest of the world not to use electronic equipment manufactured by China’s Huawei Technologies Co. have been going nowhere. Bloomberg’s Todd Shields and Bill Allison tell the tale:

Attempts to persuade other governments to exclude Huawei equipment from the next generation of super-fast mobile networks have hit a wall—even among close allies. So far, only a handful of countries, including Australia and Japan, have joined the U.S.’s call to boycott the Chinese company.

Not a single European nation has done so, not even the U.K., triggering a scolding from U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in London on Wednesday. "Now is the exact opposite time to go wobbly," he said, invoking the famous locution that Margaret Thatcher, the U.K. prime minister from 1979 to 1990, used to spur the U.S. into sending troops to Kuwait after Iraq invaded it in 1990. “Would she allow China to control the internet of the future?"

Huawei, meanwhile, is piling up record sales, forging into new markets, passing Apple Inc. as a phone maker and cementing its position as a leading global supplier of telecom gear.

Today, of course, stocks are falling through the basement in response to Trump’s threatened butt-kicking of China over trade. Maybe all this “aggressiveness” stuff isn’t the way to go.

Afterwords Mallory was given a life sentence for conversing with, and passing three classified documents to, Chinese intelligence officials.1 He also received $25,000 from the Chinese, according to the prosecution. Hansen pled guilty to a single charge, “attempt to gather or deliver defense information”, took $800,000 from the Chinese government and was carrying classified information with the intent to pass it to the Chinese when arrested, according to the government.

UPDATE WashPost columnist/CIA mouthpiece David Ignatius cranks up the volume to 12, or even 13, in the Lee case in this pulse-pounding, albeit inuenndo-riden and fact-free tale of, well, something, titled "The saga of the Chinese mole reads like a spy thriller”, even though there was no evidence presented at court to show that Lee ever passed any information to China, either before or after leaving the CIA. But that doesn't stop Ignatius from unleashing a tale of Agency derring-do that almost covers up the possibility that, according to this report for NBC News by Tom Winter, Ken Dilanian and Jonathan Dienst, the CIA let the Chinese capture and execute 20 U.S. spies out of sheer incompetence. According to the NBC article, "One theory is that Lee may have helped the Chinese do that [identify U.S. spies]. But two former officials said the CIA's system for exchanging messages with its agents was shockingly primitive and subject to easy penetration by the Chinese.”2

Dave links to the NBC piece but leaves out the stuff about "shockingly primitive”. Instead, Dave ends with a florid, cloak and dagger finish:

Here’s a last Chinese riddle. Experts say that in the Thailand meeting [which provided information pointing to Lee], the Chinese operative asked the former CIA officer about cases that Lee shouldn’t have known about. Which leads to an eerie question: Was there another Chinese mole, buried even deeper?

Spy fact can be much scarier than spy fiction.

I guess it can, Dave. But here's a Washington riddle for you: which one are you pitching?

Mallory did not plead guilty. It’s a little hard to understand why this would be enough to merit a life sentence. Perhaps he deserved it. Perhaps the court just gave the government the ruling it asked for because spies are bad. ↩︎

The NBC article, written before Lee's guilty plea, contains all sorts of sweeping allegations that are missing from the Times article, written after the trial, that I cited at the top of this piece. ↩︎

#China #Jerry Chun Shing Lee #Kevin Mallory #Ron Hansen #Donald Trump

[totallyshelfaware]

So India’s having its worst cyclone in 20 years

there’s a cyclone approaching the eastern coast of India 

and it’s got over 100 million people potentially in the path of the storm

it’s called cyclone fani and is expected to hit tomorrow night (friday, may 3rd)

as of me writing this, they’re estimating it to be a category 4 hurricane (according to cnn)

the state of orissa is probably going to be hit the worst, although andhra pradesh, tamil nadu and west bengal have been put on alert 

bangladesh will have very heavy rains

reports say that 800,000 people have been evacuated 

(and I’m really hoping the government puts giving these states all the support they need ahead of the election campaigning they’re doing right now)

“the Navy, the National Disaster Response Force and the Coast Guard are on high alert “

“local media reports say there are more than 850 shelters in the state [... of orissa] that can accommodate around one million people”

if you, or your friends / family in the area need support, call a helpline 

please signal boost if you can? thank you

stay safe everyone

sources / updates: 

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/cyclone-fani-foni-live-updates-cyclone-fani-to-make-landfall-near-puri-today-odisha-moves-11-lakh-pe-2032198

https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/02/india/cyclone-fani-evacuations-india-intl/index.html

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/may/02/tropical-cyclone-fani-india-evacuates-800000-people

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/05/02/world/asia/india-cyclone-fani-map.html

https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/nation/2019/05/02/fani-set-to-strike-bangladesh-friday-evening

#world news #current events #cyclone fani #cyclonefani #india #cyclone warning #~

[vediosexmelayuucvf120-blog]

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Introduction: The full name of the book is "American Idol after Iraq" which is published by Blackwell - Wiley in 2009. The author of the book Nathan Gardels has been the editor of New Perspectives Quarterly since it began publishing in 1985. He has written widely for the daily papers and journals since mid 1980s and he has been a Media Leader of the World Economic Forum (Davos) as well. Apart, he has given speeches in Islamic Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (IESCO). Gardels holds degree on Theory and Comparative Politics from UCLA. His co-author Mike Medavoy has had a very active role in making large number of Hollywood movies. Throughout his career in Hollywood, he has been active in politics as well. In 1992 and 1996 he advocated Bill Clinton and in 2008 he was in favor of Barack H. Obama. He was born in Shanghai, of Russian-Jewish parents; he graduated with honor in History from UCLA.

Summary

In this must-read book the authors explain and mainly discuss the public diplomacy and Hollywood role in shaping it, mainly in the new era after 9/11 terrorist attacks. The foreword is by Joe Nye, Harvard Professor which is mostly well-known with his notion of "soft power". Once again, Nye asserts the importance of the soft power- Weapon of Mass Attraction- and recalls that not missiles and bomb but the American soft power was the key in collapse of Berlin Wall and consequently Soviet Union, the Evil Empire as Reagan called it. Nye believes that in wake of the new century American soft power is not as powerful as the past decades. It is because of the mistreatment of the prisoners in Gitmo and Abu Ghoraib prison by American troops. The world does not believe and trust America as before. Professor Nye puts forward that in the Information age success is not merely the result of whose army (hard power) wins but also whose story (soft power) wins. He recalls the US challenge and problem with Islamists hardliners and extremists in which hard power is needed to defeat them but WMA is needed to win the hearts and minds of the moderate Muslim which are the majority in the Muslim world. He accentuates the fact that democracy and human right could much more easily achieved with soft power with a long lasting effect. Obviously, the most important tool as soft power for America are its giant media-industrial complex and Hollywood which broadly discussed by the authors in their script.

HEARTS, MINDS AND HOLLYWOOD:

Hollywood, as the authors put forward has been the largest machine of dream making and storytelling in human history. Unlike most countries in the world America's image is based not only on who they are and what they do, but on how the Americans present themselves to the world through their global window. The most attractive and glamorous production of this machine has been the image of America as the promise land of infinite possibility and opportunity where individual liberty is in hand and the society is always on the move. In its 100 years it has opened a new window toward the world in which America has been seen through it and Americans has seen the world through it, as well. Some believe it has been truly and largely successful in telling and selling the American (version of) stories in past 100 years. "The dreams of America - individual freedom, middle class, prosperity, social mobility, the rule of law- which were made the dreams of the world, too, were pictured by Hollywood."

Other than that it has been used as a tool by the American Government fighting against "freedom" enemies, Fascism, Communism. Even the author argues that during the tensest day and peak of the Cold War, it was J.F.K who ordered the managers in the Hollywood that the Ian Fleming 007 espionage novels ought to be made into motion pictures. Other than that he mentions that to fight against Fascism and Nazism in the twentieth century Hollywood made the fist celebrity known globally, Charlie Chaplin who diminished and underestimated the power of Hitler in The Great Dictator. It followed the Wilsonian ideal in America's role in bringing democracy and self determination to the other parts of the world. These are samples which shows that Hollywood in its lifetime has used and been used as a tool and actor for America's political purposes. By creating roles known globally, like Rambo and James Bond, Hollywood has beaten its enemies, world foes and made it believable that the US is the ultimate savior of the world. Its values are absolute and universal and needed to save human and humanity. Accordingly, Washington eagerly sought to employ Hollywood's influence and soft power at home to make people in favor of his own foreign policy objectives.

But it could not be generally accepted that America's secret weapon, Hollywood, the biggest soft power tool is playing a positive role all the time. Not only foreigners criticize Hollywood to spreading violence, porn culture through its images in the world but within the US there are who reprimand and knock the film industry as well. To a great extent Fukuyama asserts that "It is perceived as the purveyor of the kind of secular, materialistic, permissive culture that is not very popular in many parts of the world, especially the Muslim world." It is living without any responsibility which is creating the greatest tragedy of our time. It is emptied of a spiritual dimension. Many believe that Hollywood is not doing a great job in elevating spirituality and morality of America in the world to win the hearts and minds of the people, but conversely Hollywood is sowing the seeds of loathing and hatred in the world generally and in the Muslim world particularly. Some, like Bill Bennett, Ronald Reagan's secretary of education openly and famously charged that Hollywood is undermining the America's mainstream values. This is much clearer when we take a look at the PEW foundation Poll in April 2005, which nearly 61% of Americans are concerned what their children see or hear on TV. Accordingly, "Soft power does not necessarily increase the world's love for America. Soft power is still power and still makes enemies". If there is a resistance to military presence and occupation, surely there would be an opposition and resentment to cultural invasion and occupation. For example even in Turkey which is America's NATO Ally, the most popular novel in 2004 which was sold more than 800000 copies envisioned a war between Turkey and the US in which finally Turkey wins. Even American brand of secularism which is pictured in movies has been the source of concern among the religious leaders in the West. Pope Benedict XVI carried forward the worry that aggressive secularism reflected in the media was eroding the religious Foundations of America. He told American bishops that "America's brand of secularism poses a particular problem. It allows for professing belief in God and respects the public role of religion, but at the same time can subtly reduce religious belief to the lowest common denominator. The result is a growing separation of faith from life."

Although the Noble poet Octavio Paz called America "the Republic of Future" which always eyes on future and new horizon in which Hollywood has been successful to create. But now due to democratization of digital media all around the world the future is not a Gospel for American soft power and its culture. For instance, although American soap operas largely viewed and seen from Malaysia to Canada, but in South Korea, for example 92% of TV and video games are domestically produced and are telling and selling their own stories.

In the age of globalization, we may be witnessing the end of "the end of the history"-which Francis Fukuyama stated after the end of the Cold War. Process and era of globalization, accelerated the modernity and post modernity and diversification around the world. The Singaporean diplomat, Kishore Mahbubani, makes this critical point in his book, "The New Asian Hemisphere: The Irresistible shift of Global Power to the East" asserted that the great paradox about the failed Western attempts to export democracy to other societies is that in the broadest sense of the term, the West has actually succeeded in democratizing the world. One key goal of democracy is to empower its citizens to make them believe they are masters of their own destiny. The number of people of in the world who believe this has never been higher. Even in the undemocratic society of China, citizens have seized the opportunities provided by the economic freedom they enjoy to completely change their lives.... In the global term there has been a huge democratization of human spirit." Due to the point that some assert that in a democracy the voting booth and the box office share the same public. So, Hollywood has largely been considered to be the United States of America muscle in public diplomacy to win the hearts and minds of public as well as elites around the world. The trend of globalization and democratization of the media and the increasingly power sharing in many centers - the rise of the rest -as Fareed Zakaria calls it, results in an atmosphere in which Hollywood is not the expected and absolute winner. Apart, by the development of the communication technology mainly Internet and the emergence of Netizen (Network citizen) now everyone is their own story teller and filmmaker which is growing largely in numbers. It leads all people to move to the same neighborhood, more and more people want to see and hear their own stories on the screen, to see that their own ideas and cultures has been projected and reflected on the screen and then to enjoy the latest offerings.

CONCLUSION:

The authors assert that as Harry Warner, one of the founders of Hollywood believed "the movies should educate as well as entertain people". The author puts forward due to the change in challenges that the world and America are facing, the media and Hollywood strategy should be changed to meet the problems of the new era. Some recommendations are given on close cooperation of public diplomacy and mass culture. Some of them include the matter of sensibility which should be considered in media and Hollywood to promote the empathetic understanding of other civilizations and ways of life. It is insane to try to impose the American way of life and the liberal model of "good life" to the world. "To Be able to put oneself in another's shoes without prejudgment is an essential skill" as a Chinese cellist asserts. Among the recommendations is the breaking the American public narrow mindedness by promoting more cultural cooperation with other cultures, promotion of the exposure of the worthy American cultural products, elevating the level of exchange in students and journalists and cultural figures as well and creating a joint committee by Washington and Hollywood on cultural relations. They believe it may work to restore the American dream and stance in the new era again.

[sarcasticcynic]

Last week, Congressional Republicans and Democrats were wrangling over what should have been a bipartisan farm bill. Everyone agreed on the basic provisions, but Republicans--with Trump’s full-throated support--decided they also wanted to slash the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (food stamps), to make its work requirements even harsher. Democrats declined to agree with this, which threatened to derail the legislation.

After Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue met with House Republicans, however, they agreed to compromise, and the bipartisan farm bill then passed easily. Well, now we know what Perdue said to persuade them: he promised that, if they passed the farm bill without the SNAP cuts, the Trump administration would proposed new regulations to accomplish pretty much exactly what Congress refused to do. And the administration has now done just what it promised, proposing new rules that will “cut off basic food assistance for hundreds of thousands of the nation’s poorest and most destitute people” -- 755,000 people, by the administration’s own estimate.

Present Law

Let’s start with the basics: SNAP provides an average of “about $1.40 per person per meal” in food assistance. That’s the massive amount of public assistance that conservative Republicans and Donald Trump begrudge the poorest of Americans who can’t find work.

SNAP generally requires “Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents” (ABAWDs) to work at least 80 hours a month in order to receive food stamps. Looking for work doesn’t count, no matter how bad unemployment may be. For ABAWDs who cannot find enough work, SNAP limits benefits to a maximum of three months out of every three-year period. This hits minorities hardest, because minority unemployment rates are almost always higher:

“People of color would be at particular risk, given their much higher unemployment rates and continued racial discrimination in labor markets. As noted, the African-American unemployment rate has long been roughly double the non-Hispanic white unemployment rate. Studies have found that white job applicants are much likelier to receive callbacks after job applications or interviews than equally qualified Black applicants.”

Because this rule is rather harsh, SNAP also allows states administering the program to seek temporary “waivers of this three-month cut-off in areas where jobs for these individuals are lacking, such as when unemployment is elevated.” Waivers are available “in areas that have an unemployment rate of over 10 percent or a lack of sufficient jobs for ABAWDs to meet the work requirement.” Waivers are also available “in areas with unemployment rates that are at least 20 percent greater than the national rate”; for example, if the national average were 4%, a 4.8% local unemployment rate would be 20% higher.

“Since the 1996 welfare law took effect, every state but Delaware has sought a time-limit waiver at some point.” At present:

“36 states ... currently waive at least part of their SNAP populations from the existing three-month limit for able-bodied adults without dependents to receive benefits within a three-year period if they’re not working at least 80 hours a month.”

Republican Reaction

Conservative Republicans have decided that states are too lenient when it comes to securing waivers for the poorest Americans. They want to make work requirements stricter, and crack down on these waivers. Congress just refused to do that, but the Trump administration has never had a problem “pursuing through executive powers what it could not achieve in Congress”:

“Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue tipped his hand on how the administration plans to assuage House conservatives who wanted stricter SNAP work requirements in the final legislation: Once the bill passes, USDA will issue a proposed rule to crack down on work-requirement waivers. ... Perdue said the rule will appeal to conservative lawmakers who are frustrated that House Republicans came up short in their push for stronger work requirements for millions of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients.”

And sure enough, the administration has done just that:

“The Department [of Agriculture] has determined that the standards for waivers must be strengthened so that the ABAWD work requirement is applied to ABAWDs more broadly. ... The Department proposes stricter criteria for ABAWD waiver approvals that would establish stronger, updated standards for determining when and where a lack of sufficient jobs justifies temporarily waiving the ABAWD time limit. ... Limiting waivers would make more ABAWDs subject to the time limit and thereby encourage more ABAWDs to engage in meaningful work activities if they wish to continue to receive SNAP benefits.”

Proposed Law

The proposed rule completely eliminates the most commonly used bases for waivers. The primary change is an across-the-board denial of waiver in any area where unemployment is below a certain floor. (Current law has no such minimum.) The floor would function as an absolute cutoff regardless of how much higher local unemployment is than the national average, or how hard it actually is to find work, or whether an ABAWD belongs to a group with a statistically higher-than-average unemployment rate, e.g., minorities or people without lower education. These are all valid considerations under current law, but not under the proposed changes.

The Trump administration is thinking a floor of 7%, but might decide to make it even higher based on the higher number of current participants that would now be completely barred from getting waivers no matter what:

“The Department requests feedback on which unemployment rate floor – 6 percent, 7 percent, or 10 percent – would be most effective at limiting waivers. ... Based on the Department’s analysis, nearly 90 percent of ABAWDs would live in areas without waivers and would be encouraged to take steps towards self-sufficiency if a floor of 7 percent was established. In comparison, a 6 percent floor would mean that 76 percent of ABAWDs would live in areas without waivers and a 10 percent floor would mean that 98 percent of ABAWDs would live in areas without waivers.”

The administration is also eliminating other criteria upon which waivers can be based under current law, including: “a low and declining employment-to-population ratio, a lack of jobs in declining occupations or industries, or an academic study or other publication(s) that describes an area’s lack of jobs,”  as well as factors like “a historical seasonal unemployment rate over 10 percent.” Now none of those will make any difference, and none can ever support a waiver request.

The new rule will also completely bar states from seeking statewide waivers, as they can under current law. There are various other changes as well, all adding up to the same thing: accomplishing the administration’s stated goal of denying SNAP assistance to as many people as possible:

“The Department has estimated the net reduction in federal spending associated with the proposed transfer rule to be approximately $1.1 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2020 and $7.9 billion over the five years 2020-2024. This is a reduction in federal transfers (SNAP benefit payments); the reduction in transfers represents a 2.5 percent decrease in projected SNAP benefit spending over this time period. ... Under current authority, the Department estimates that about 60 percent of ABAWDs live in areas that are not subject to a waiver and thus face the ABAWD time limit. Under the revised waiver criteria the Department estimates that nearly 90 percent of ABAWDs would live in such an area. Of those newly subject to the time limit, the Department estimates that approximately two-thirds (755,000 individuals in FY 2020) would not meet the requirements.”

Will It Work?

The $7.9 billion-dollar question: Will denying basic nutrition to these hundreds of thousands of ABAWDs help them find jobs, as conservative Republicans and the Trump administration claim?

Of course not. There is no evidence that kicking people off of food stamps ever helps them obtain jobs, and plenty of evidence and analyses to the contrary:

“This is not how the relationship between public assistance and private commerce actually works, as policy experts and economists and poor people and food bank managers and job training professionals have all been saying for years.”

Not that the Trump administration has ever cared about things like evidence.

CAVEAT: The original article is from Think Progress, which is heavily left-biased. That is why this Tumblr entry quotes liberally from the proposed rule itself. Feel free to verify.

#Food Assistance #SNAP Basics #Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program #SNAP #Donald Trump #economy #food stamps #Paul Ryan #politics #poverty #Sonny Perdue #Trump #President Trump #Ryan #Speaker Ryan #Perdue #Secretary Perdue #USDA #Department of Agriculture #U.S. Department of Agriculture #Center on Budget and Policy Priorities #CBPP

[kosheeka]

Mesenchymal Stem Cells Offer Hope For Depression

Depression is considered a serious health disorder especially when it is long-lasting. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that across the world, 264 million people suffer from this condition! A person who is affected by depression shows poor performance at their studies or work with relationships also getting impacted. If depression reaches its worst limit-an outcome can be suicide. The WHO states that the annual number of suicides is 800000 people! In fact, it ranks second as a cause of death in people of the age group 15-29 years (WHO fact sheet). While there are treatments available, a challenge for such treatment is a lack of correct diagnosis with people who are depressed not getting diagnosed and those who do not have it are diagnosed incorrectly and also given antidepressants. A research article published in 2016 in Patient preference and adherence reported the side effects of long-term use of antidepressants that include: addiction in 43% patients, emotional numbness in around 65%, weight gain in around 65% and sexual problems in 72% of the users.

 The promise of Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) has been seen for several neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and stroke.

 Work by scientists, Shwartz and team in Theranostics in 2017 reported that as shown by research, excessive glutamate release has been linked to stress and many neurodegenerative diseases. Flinders Sensitive Line (FSL) – the genetic rat model for depression increased the presence of glutamate and lowered levels of the transporter called glial excitatory amino acid transporter (EAAT) 1. The team made MSCs express EAAT that were administered into FSL rats and tracked using gold nanoparticles. The depression-like symptoms were diminished by the cells as observed by tests and the effects were seen up to 1-month post-transplantation.

An article published by Kyohei and team in 2018 in Brain Circulation discussed the use of such eMSCs; when these cells were transplanted in the dentate gyrus (DG) and sub-ventricular zone of the hippocampus, neurogenesis (the formation of neurons from neural stem cells) was observed. This neuron formation was more when encapsulated MSCs were used than MSCs without encapsulation. The specific location where MSCs are transplanted: the lateral ventricle allowed the secretion of various factors that support nerve cell growth such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor, fibroblast growth factor-2 and ciliary neurotrophic factor.

The pathways associated with these factors have been shown to mediate antidepressant effects in mice. Hence, the specific transplantation of MSCs in mice that were resistant to depression treatment showed antidepressant effects mainly by neurogenesis and secretion of important factors. The encapsulation of the stem cells helps to increase the time of this secretion.

The promise of treating treatment-resistant depression using MSCs is exciting: further studies can help address the long term effects and efficacy to target this serious condition.

 For more info, you can mail your query to kosheeka at [email protected] or call us at [phone].

#mesenchymalstemcells #msenchymal stem cells #Stem Cells #cell culture #cell biology