#Commonwealth Financial

[buzzzbyte]

Former Sydney FX trader sentenced for falsifying trading entries

Former Sydney Deutsche Bank FX options and futures trader, Andrew Donaldson, has been sentenced in the District Court in Sydney to 18 months imprisonment after pleading guilty to falsifying entries in Deutsche Bank’s internal financial records and systems.

Mr Donaldson, now living in New Zealand, pleaded guilty to one charge of using his position dishonestly with the intention of directly or indirectly gaining an advantage for himself.

The sentence was fully suspended and Mr Donaldson was released on his own recognisance with a condition to be of good behaviour for 2 years and a security sum of $10,000.

‘Dishonest use of position in the financial services industry, in order to gain a personal advantage, threatens the integrity of our financial markets. ASIC will continue to take regulatory action to address this type of misconduct,’ ASIC Commissioner Cathie Armour said.

Between 25 July 2013 to 25 June 2014, while working as a FX, options and futures trader with Deutsche Bank in Sydney, Mr Donaldson made a total of 85 false entries into Deutsche Bank’s internal records. By making these entries, Mr Donaldson was falsely representing to Deutsche Bank that he had made substantial profits of more than $31 million (AUD) from his trading in financial products, including US Treasury Note Futures.

As detailed in the agreed facts on sentence, the direct or indirect advantage that Mr Donaldson sought to gain by recording these false transactions was to falsely increase his recorded profit, and to mask his actual trading losses. He was then potentially able to meet his annual revenue budget, be eligible for larger incentive payments, and promote himself to a prospective employer.

As the entries related to trades that were fictitious and never executed in the market, no external parties were affected.

The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions prosecuted this matter.

[the-proeducator-blog]

A Comprehensive Guide to UK Government Scholarships for International Students

Studying in the United Kingdom is an exciting opportunity for international students, but the cost of tuition, living expenses, and travel can often be a significant hurdle. Fortunately, UK government scholarships offer a way to make this dream a reality for many students. In this comprehensive guide, we will explore the various UK government scholarships available to international students, the eligibility criteria, the application process, and the benefits these scholarships offer. If you're interested in learning more about UK government scholarships, check out this University ranking in UK.

Types of UK Government Scholarships for International Students

The UK government provides several scholarships to international students, each with its own set of benefits and requirements. These scholarships aim to attract talented students from around the world and support their educational journey in the UK. Here are some of the most popular options:

Chevening Scholarships The Chevening Scholarship is the UK government's global scholarship program, offering full financial support for students to pursue a one-year master's degree at any UK university. This prestigious scholarship is open to students from over 160 countries. It covers tuition fees, travel costs, and a monthly stipend, making it an excellent opportunity for those looking to study in the UK without financial stress.

Commonwealth Scholarships The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (CSC) offers scholarships to students from Commonwealth countries. These scholarships cover full tuition fees, airfare, and a stipend for living costs. The Commonwealth Scholarship is available for both master's and PhD programs, and it aims to promote international development by educating future leaders.

The GREAT Scholarship The GREAT Scholarship is a joint initiative between the UK government and universities across the UK, offering a range of scholarships for students from China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and other countries. This scholarship offers a partial financial contribution towards tuition fees, and it focuses on supporting students studying subjects related to sustainable development and innovation.

The Marshall Scholarship Although not directly funded by the UK government, the Marshall Scholarship is a prestigious program that provides funding for US students to pursue postgraduate degrees at any UK university. It covers tuition fees, living expenses, and travel costs, and it aims to foster strong ties between the UK and the US.

Eligibility Criteria for UK Government Scholarships

Each UK government scholarship has its own eligibility criteria, but there are some general guidelines that most programs share:

Academic Excellence: Most scholarships require students to have a strong academic background. This includes having excellent grades in relevant subjects and demonstrating academic potential.

Nationality: Some scholarships are available only to students from specific countries or regions. For instance, Chevening Scholarships are open to students from over 160 countries, while Commonwealth Scholarships are aimed at students from Commonwealth nations.

Work Experience: Some scholarships, such as Chevening, also require applicants to have relevant work experience. This is usually 2-3 years of professional experience, although the specifics may vary depending on the scholarship.

English Language Proficiency: Since courses in the UK are taught in English, most scholarships require proof of English language proficiency through tests like IELTS or TOEFL.

Program Level: Certain scholarships may be restricted to specific academic levels. For example, Chevening and Commonwealth Scholarships are available for master's and PhD students, whereas the GREAT Scholarship focuses on undergraduate and postgraduate studies.

The Application Process for UK Government Scholarships

The application process for UK government scholarships can be competitive, but with careful planning, you can maximize your chances of success. Here’s a general guide to help you:

Research Available Scholarships: Before applying, make sure you research all available UK government scholarships to determine which one suits your academic background, career goals, and nationality.

Prepare Required Documents: Most scholarships require academic transcripts, a statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, and proof of English language proficiency. Make sure all your documents are in order before applying.

Apply Through the Scholarship Portal: Each scholarship has its own application portal. For example, Chevening Scholarships have an online application system that requires you to submit your personal details, academic background, and work experience. Similarly, Commonwealth Scholarships have a separate portal.

Write a Strong Personal Statement: Your personal statement plays a crucial role in the selection process. This is where you can showcase your academic achievements, career goals, and how the scholarship will help you achieve them.

Submit the Application: After gathering all your documents and completing the online application, make sure to double-check everything before submission. Some scholarships have specific deadlines, so be sure to submit your application well in advance.

Benefits of UK Government Scholarships

Receiving a UK government scholarship comes with several benefits that go beyond financial assistance. Here are some of the key advantages:

Full Financial Support: Many UK government scholarships, such as Chevening and Commonwealth Scholarships, offer full financial coverage, including tuition fees, living expenses, and travel costs. This allows you to focus entirely on your studies without worrying about finances.

Access to Prestigious Universities: UK government scholarships provide opportunities to study at some of the best universities in the world, such as Oxford, Cambridge, and Imperial College London.

Networking Opportunities: As a scholarship recipient, you will be part of a global network of scholars, professionals, and policymakers. This opens doors to valuable networking opportunities, mentorship, and career development.

Enhancing Career Prospects: UK universities are known for their academic excellence, and graduating with a UK degree is highly respected globally. Scholarship recipients often have an edge when it comes to securing competitive jobs in their home country or abroad.

Conclusion: Making Studying in the UK More Accessible

UK government scholarships are an excellent way for international students to gain access to world-class education without the financial burden. Whether it’s the Chevening Scholarship, Commonwealth Scholarship, or GREAT Scholarship, there is a range of opportunities to suit different academic backgrounds and career goals. These scholarships not only provide financial support but also open doors to personal and professional growth in a global setting. To learn more about UK government scholarships and explore your options, visit University ranking in UK.

[creativemedianews]

Commonwealth Games Australia offers Scotland multimillion-dollar cash to save 2026 event

Commonwealth Games Australia offers Scotland multimillion-dollar cash to save 2026 event #2026 #Australia

[reasonsforhope]

"In some cities, as many as one in four office spaces are vacant. Some start-ups are giving them a second life – as indoor farms growing crops as varied as kale, cucumber and herbs.

Since its 1967 construction, Canada's "Calgary Tower", a 190m (623ft) concrete-and-steel observation tower in Calgary, Alberta, has been home to an observation deck, panoramic restaurants and souvenir shops. Last year, it welcomed a different kind of business: a fully functioning indoor farm.

Sprawling across 6,000sq m (65,000 sq ft), the farm, which produces dozens of crops including strawberries, kale and cucumber, is a striking example of the search for city-grown food. But it's hardly alone. From Japan to Singapore to Dubai, vertical indoor farms – where crops can be grown in climate-controlled environments with hydroponics, aquaponics or aeroponics techniques – have been popping up around the world.

While indoor farming had been on the rise for years, a watershed moment came during the Covid-19 pandemic, when disruptions to the food supply chain underscored the need for local solutions. In 2021, $6bn (£4.8bn) in vertical farming deals were registered globally – the peak year for vertical farming investment. As the global economy entered its post-pandemic phase, some high-profile startups like Fifth Season went out of business, and others including Planted Detroit and AeroFarms running into a period of financial difficulty. Some commentators questioned whether a "vertical farming bubble" had popped.

But a new, post-pandemic trend may give the sector a boost. In countries including Canada and Australia, landlords are struggling to fill vacant office spaces as companies embrace remote and hybrid work. In the US, the office vacancy rate is more than 20%.

"Vertical farms may prove to be a cost-effective way to fill in vacant office buildings," says Warren Seay, Jr, a real estate finance partner in the Washington DC offices of US law firm ArentFox Schiff, who authored an article on urban farm reconversions. 

There are other reasons for the interest in urban farms, too. Though supply chains have largely recovered post-Covid-19, other global shocks, including climate change, geopolitical turmoil and farmers' strikes, mean that they continue to be vulnerable – driving more cities to look for local food production options...

Thanks to artificial light and controlled temperatures, offices are proving surprisingly good environments for indoor agriculture, spurring some companies to convert part of their facilities into small farms. Since 2022, Australia's start-up Greenspace has worked with clients like Deloitte and Commonwealth Bank to turn "dead zones", like the space between lifts and meeting rooms, into 2m (6ft) tall hydroponic cabinets growing leafy greens.

On top of being adaptable to indoor farm operations, vacant office buildings offer the advantage of proximity to final consumers.

In a former paper storage warehouse in Arlington, about a mile outside of Washington DC, Jacqueline Potter and the team at Area 2 Farms are growing over 180 organic varieties of lettuce, greens, root vegetables, herbs and micro-greens. By serving consumers 10 miles away or less, the company has driven down transport costs and associated greenhouse emissions.

This also frees the team up to grow other types of food that can be hard to find elsewhere – such as edible flower species like buzz buttons and nasturtium. "Most crops are now selected to be grown because of their ability to withstand a 1,500-mile journey," Potter says, referring to the average distance covered by crops in the US before reaching customers. "In our farm, we can select crops for other properties like their nutritional value or taste."

Overall, vertical farms have the potential to outperform regular farms on several environmental sustainability metrics like water usage, says Evan Fraser, professor of geography at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada and the director of the Arell Food Institute, a research centre on sustainable food production. Most indoor farms report using a tiny fraction of the water that outdoor farms use. Indoor farms also report greater output per square mile than regular farms.

Energy use, however, is the "Achilles heel" of this sector, says Fraser: vertical farms need a lot of electricity to run lighting and ventilation systems, smart sensors and automated harvesting technologies. But if energy is sourced from renewable sources, they can outperform regular farms on this metric too, he says. 

Because of variations in operational setup, it is hard to make a general assessment of the environmental, social and economic sustainability of indoor farms, says Jiangxiao Qiu, a landscape ecologist at the University of Florida and author of a study on urban agriculture's role in sustainability. Still, he agrees with Fraser: in general, urban indoor farms have higher crop yield per square foot, greater water and nutrient-use efficiency, better resistance to pests and shorter distance to market. Downsides include high energy use due to lighting, ventilation and air conditioning.

They face other challenges, too. As Seay notes, zoning laws often do not allow for agricultural activity within urban areas (although some cities like Arlington, Virginia, and Cincinnati, Ohio, have recently updated zoning to allow indoor farms). And, for now, indoor farms have limited crop range. It is hard to produce staple crops like wheat, corn or rice indoors, says Fraser. Aside from leafy greens, most indoor facilities cannot yet produce other types of crops at scale.

But as long as the post-pandemic trends of remote work and corporate downsizing will last, indoor farms may keep popping up in cities around the world, Seay says. 

"One thing cities dislike more than anything is unused spaces that don't drive economic growth," he says. "If indoor farm conversions in cities like Arlington prove successful, others may follow suit.""

-via BBC, January 27, 2025

[wilwheaton]

Sen. Fetterman has refused to hold town hall meetings in Pennsylvania to hear from his constituents. In fact, the only public event where Fetterman will face the people of the Commonwealth is a joint appearance with Republican Sen. Dave McCormick and his wife Dina Powell, a former Trump administration official, to promote a children’s book written by the Republican power couple. Enough is enough. Fetterman no longer represents the interests of those who elected him, he seems disinterested in serving in his important position, and his actions in the Senate are actively harming Pennsylvanians. As a Democratic County Party leader, who worked tirelessly to elect Fetterman in 2022, who stood by him through the hardship of his recovery from stroke and depression, his complete abandonment of the core values of our Party has become untenable. I call for his immediate resignation from the U.S. Senate.

Fetterman is a liar and a fraud. He's betrayed every single person who voted for him, and all of us from all over the country who gave him financial and public support.

I deeply regret supporting him, and believing his many lies.

[eretzyisrael]

Britain Is Sending Millions to Hamas

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, May 2025. (@Keir_Starmer/X)

It’s Sunday, May 25, and the British government is knowingly sending millions of pounds to Hamas. That’s according to an astonishing investigation aired last night on Channel 12, in partnership with NGO Monitor.

There’s a lot to unpack, but I’ll try highlight the main findings.

Most damning is a British Consulate-General in Jerusalem document obtained by NGO Monitor. Written in November 2022, the document discusses, amongst other things, British financial assistance for the Gazan population via UNICEF from 2022 until 2026. It says the following:

“The risks to the success of the programme are moderate, with major risks of actual or perceived diversion of humanitarian aid.”

It highlighted the risk of “direct or indirect diversion of aid to the de facto authorities in Gaza and/or other terrorist groups. Cash cannot be tracked once withdrawn from the ATM. There are reputational and fiduciary risks around actual or perceived links of UK aid with supporting terrorist groups.” 

And here’s the worst part: “The cash assistance component will be implemented in coordination with the Ministry of Social Development MoSD. The MoSD in Gaza is affiliated with the de facto authorities and thus UK Aid can be linked directly or indirectly with supporting the de facto authority (Hamas) in Gaza which is part of a proscribed group.”

In other words, as NGO Monitor’s Anne Herzberg put it, “a Hamas-controlled entity was an integral partner in determining how cash assistance provided by the UK government to UNICEF would be distributed in Gaza.”

Ok, but maybe London changed its policy after October 7? Well, in March 2024, UNICEF wrote that it “maintained and strengthened the partnership with the MoSD,” adding in November that “this humanitarian cash transfer program in the Gaza Strip is supported by the European Union, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).”

And how much money are we talking about? Citing the UN Financial Tracking System, NGO Monitor wrote that “in 2024, the UK provided UNICEF with approximately $23.1 million for West Bank and Gaza operations.”

And yet, at the same time that Britain is knowingly sending millions of pounds to Hamas, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is busy condemning Israel for the war in Gaza, suspending free trade talks with Jerusalem, and sanctioning Israeli citizens.

Instead of lecturing Israel, Mr. Starmer would do well to reflect on his own government’s contribution to the war—and to the terrorists who started it.

More: Here

[aimeedaisies]

The Princess Royals Official Engagements in March 2025

03/03 Opened Minchinhampton Surgery in Minchinhampton near Stroud. 🩻👩‍⚕️

04/03 unofficial Sir Tim, as President of Kent Cricket Club, attended a memorial service at Canterbury Cathedral for former England spin bowler Derek Underwood. 🏏🤍

On behalf of The King, held an Investiture at the Palace of Holyroodhouse. 🎖️🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Attended a Royal Warrant Holders Association Reception at the Palace of Holyroodhouse. 📜🍽️

05/03 unofficial The King was represented by Dame Sarah Troughton (His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Wiltshire) at the Service of Thanksgiving for the Life of Lieutenant General Sir Maurice Johnston (formerly Her late Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Wiltshire), held at St John’s Church in Devizes. The Princess Royal was represented by Captain Sir Nicholas Wright RN. 🕊️

As Patron of Maritime UK, chaired a National Council Meeting at the offices of Gallagher, the Walbrook Building, in London. ⚓️💼

As Chancellor of the University of London, opened King’s College London’s new Engineering Building. 🦾🦿

As Patron of the Maritime Society and Sea Cadets, and Admiral of the Sea Cadet Corps, held a Reception at Buckingham Palace. ⚓️🫡

06/03 As President, this afternoon attended the National Equine Forum at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in London. 🐎

As Grand Master of the Royal Victorian Order, attended Evensong and a Reception at The King’s Chapel of the Savoy in London. ⛪️

07/03 As Admiral and Patron, this morning visited the Royal Naval Sailing Association in Gosport. ⛵️

Opened the new Emergency Department at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth. 🏥

As Patron of Maritime UK, attended a Coastal Powerhouse Summit Reception at Portsmouth International Port. 🔋

08/03 With Sir Tim As Patron of the Scottish Rugby Union, attended the International Rugby Match between Scotland and Wales at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏉

As Patron of Scottish Garden City Housing Society Limited, attended the 110th Anniversary Reception at Edinburgh Castle.🏡🥂

10/03 As Patron of the Canal Museum Trust, opened the “Building Britain’s Canals” Temporary Exhibition at the London Canal Museum. 💦🛶

Alongside The King and Queen, The Prince and Princess of Wales and The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester attended the Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration in Westminster Abbey. 🌍⛪️

11/03 As Past Master of the Worshipful Company of Butchers, attended the Annual City Food and Drink Lecture at Guildhall in London. 🍝🍷✍️

13/03 Unofficial Attended St Patrick’s Thursday of Cheltenham Races. ☘️🏇🏼

14/03 With Sir Tim Attended Gold Cup Friday of Cheltenham Races. 🏆🏇🏼

15/03 With Sir Tim As Patron of the Scottish Rugby Union, attended the International Rugby Match between France and Scotland at Stade de France, Paris. 🇫🇷🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏉

17/03 As Patron of Save the Children UK, attended the 30th Anniversary International Financial Review Annual Awards Dinner at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London. 🍽️

Unofficial As Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Science Museum, Sir Tim attended the Premiere of the Thinking Game and presented Science Museum Fellowship awards. 🎬🧬

18/03 Unofficial Departed from Heathrow Airport and arrived at Athens International Airport. 🇬🇧✈️🇬🇷

19/03 As Member of the International Olympic Committee, and Chairman of the Members Election Commission, attended day one of the International Olympic Committee Session at the Romanos in Costa Navarino, Greece. 🇬🇷

20/03 As Member of the International Olympic Committee, and Chairman of the Members Election Commission, attended day two of the International Olympic Committee Session at the Romanos in Costa Navarino, Greece. 🇬🇷

21/03 As Member of the International Olympic Committee, and Chairman of the International Olympic Committee Members Election Commission, attended day three of the International Olympic Committee Session at the House of Events, the Romanos Hotel in Costa Navarino, Greece. 🇬🇷

Unofficial Departed from Greece and arrived back at RAF Brize Norton. 🇬🇷✈️🇬🇧

24/03 As President of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, attended the President’s Panel Discussion and Dinner. 🍽️

25/03 Joined by the King, As Patron of the Butler Trust, held the Annual Awards Ceremony at St James’s Palace, followed by a Reception.

26/03 As Patron of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, attended the Spring Conference at Birmingham Repertory Theatre. 💊

As Colonel-in-Chief of The Royal Corps of Signals, inspected 22 Signal Regiment on public duties at St James’s Palace. 🫡

With Sir Tim As President of the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, attended a Presidential Dinner at Fishmongers’ Hall in London. 🎪🍽️

27/03 On behalf of The King, held an Investiture at Buckingham Palace. 🎖️

As Colonel of The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons), attended a Service of Thanksgiving for the new Organ at the Guards’ Chapel, Wellington Barracks, London. ⛪️🎹

As Patron of the British Quality Foundation, this attended the United Kingdom Awards Ceremony and Dinner at Wembley Stadium. 🏟️

28/03 On behalf of The King, held an Investiture at Buckingham Palace. 🎖️

Total official engagements for Anne in January: 34

2025 total: 97

Total official engagements accompanied/represented by Tim in January: 4

2025 total: 4

[inky-duchess]

Because i have no idea how it works:

- In periods in the aftermath of war, what may lead to a foreign country refusing to secede conquered land back to original?

- How long would it take for land to be restored through peace talks and politics to the original country (even if the people living there want to be reunified)? For instance, can it take a year to a few decades?

- Could financial strain on the country that lost land force them to temporarily relinquish said land until financial state and infrastructure was properly stabilized?

It’s 2 am so my brain. Is fried.

Sorry for the disjointed thoughts.

Also I keep forgetting to say this, but your character icon for the blog is very cute.

(contd.) If a nation successfully gets the land they lost back from the nation it was entrusted to (or annexed by) would that be grounds for upgrading their title? Or would it just stay the same? When their land was annexed, would the name of the nation degrade? Principality -> Kingdom -> Commonwealth -> Empire depending on whatever size it was before? (Is a commonwealth a higher ranking than kingdom or lesser?)

Mainly pride. I mean that is part of your home, imagine if somebody wandered into your house, beat you up and to get them to stop asked for you to give them your kitchen. You would be pretty pissed, wouldn't you? But if this is the only way to end the war and your guys have lost, they probably don't have a leg to stand on and will eventually have to cede the territory.

(800 hundred years and counting :-) But it all depends on the situation, it can be a few years to centuries.

Yes, if the war has damaged them significantly on those levels, then like I said above, they would probably give in and let the territory go.

And thanks for the compliment :-)

The Title would stay the same

No, they would keep the same style, kingdom of X etc.

A commonwealth is slightly lesser than a kingdom.

[impossiblesuitcase]

Okay hear me out- what if cinder’s father was Linh Garan all along? In the original Cinderella she lives with her biological father (until he dies) and her step mother. So, is it a possibility that it was the same in Cinder’s case, except Garan kept this information hidden from Cinder to protect her identity and potential questions she might ask? The only issue with this theory is that on Marissa Meyer’s blog, she describes Cinder’s ethnicity to be Asian/Caucasian mix. But, Linh Garan doesn’t exactly have a Western surname. It could also be argued that the Blackburn family is Caucasian, but that doesn’t make sense either because Dr. Erland suggests that Cinder has more Asian features in the first book and she is constantly reminded throughout the series of her uncanny resemblance to her mother. The only reasonable explanation is that maybe Channary was mixed? While Blackburn is an English surname, considering how far into the future the series is set, last names and ethnicity may not be as closely correlated as they are today.

Even if the theory is incorrect and Garan isn’t really biologically related to Cinder, do you think she ever actually viewed him as a father figure? Would she ever visit his grave and reminisce?

This theory could maybe work in a modern AU, but it's completely implausible in canon.

Around the time Cinder was conceived, all travel and emigration from Earth and Luna was completely banned. Some Lunars managed to escape to Earth during this time, but it's never mentioned that anyone managed to sneak onto Luna. Moreover, Linh Garan would have no reason to travel to Luna--not only would he have been executed for trespassing, he also was stated to be financially worse off, meaning he wouldn't have had the money to bribe someone to get to Luna.

Linh Garan--although extremely intelligent--was demonstrated to be a distracted, unassuming and unassertive man. Channary always sought out attractive men who wanted her and showed it by confidently making advances at her. The idea of bumbling Garan acting this way is laughable, and in all likelihood, Channary would have never given him the time of day. Furthermore, Garan was already married to Adri and father to Pearl by the time Cinder was conceived, and as he is shown to genuinely love Adri, it is unlikely that he would have an affair, let alone with a Lunar queen.

It's never specified if Cinder's Asian heritage comes from her mother or her father. Since both Channary and Levana wear glamours, their true appearance and thereby race are unknown.

Marissa has stated that she doesn't know who Cinder's father is. Although these are fairytale adaptations, many details from the original tales weren't carried over, so it wouldn't be that strange for Marissa to diverge from the fairytale here and not have Cinder's biological father involved in the story.

As for whether or not Cinder views him as a father figure, the answer is no. She only knows him for a few weeks before he dies, and she comments on several occasions during the series that she "barely remembers him." During the time he was alive, Cinder hardly saw him--apart from the trip in which he brought her to the Commonwealth--because he was always in his workshop. Cinder says that she has "few memories of him", so there really isn't anything to reminisce on.

[celticcrossanon]

I found this interesting

I ran across article linked below today. It is about the Annual Report of the Royal Household, and it raises a few point that I found significant, noted below as quotes from the article

NEW VALUES

The Royal Household has published a new set of written values, designed to guide the institution in the years to come.

Recording them in its annual report, it said: "The new reign has given the royal household the opportunity to define a new expression of purpose underpinned by a refreshed set of values."

Those five values are: "Act with Care"; "Make an Impact"; "Succeed Together"; "Stay Curious"; and "Lead by Example".

The stated purpose of the Royal Household is now to "support the sovereign in serving the UK and Commonwealth to help shape a better world".

EDIT: I am getting controlling vibes from this, i.e. 'do what I say or else', and I have no idea why that is. I have to look up what the old values were so I can compare them.

NO MORE ACCOUNTABILITY IN HOW PUBLIC FUNDS ARE USED

It [the report] retains a pledge to place "strong emphasis on value for money" but removes a clause from last year's report which promised "accountability in the use of public funds and resources".

EDIT: This is a large red flag to me. I see no reason for going from being accountable for the use of public funds to not being accountable for the use of public funds unless said public funds are going somewhere that they should not be going.

REMOVAL OF EMPHASIS ON DIFFERENT GENERATIONS

In a section about the Royal family's role in supporting the King, the 2023-4 report has also deleted a line from 2022-3 which said that: "The different generations of the Royal family help to make the work of the monarchy relevant and accessible to people at every stage of life."

EDIT: This is a minor point. I am simply wondering why this line was deleted.

RETAINS THE REMOVAL OF DUTIES FOR THE MONARCH, DONE IN THE LAST YEAR OF QUEEN ELIZABETH II'S REIGN

In 2022, the same section of the Sovereign Grant report, which introduces the role of the monarch, was rewritten to remove duties the then Queen "must fulfil".

The edit, the first of its kind in at least a decade, took out a 13-point list of specific events that were previously said to be necessary by "constitutional convention", including the State Opening of Parliament.

This year's report retains most of those changes.

EDIT: This is interesting to me because of the implications for The King's health. The duties were removed in the last year of the Late Queen's life, and many people speculated that it was because she was physically unable to perform all those duties anymore. When The King leaves those duties out, instead of putting them back in, it makes me wonder if he is physically unable to do them all as well.

I will have to take the 13 points from old financial reports to see if I should be concerned.

Edited to add in my opinion. :)

ARTICLE

For Reference - link to financial reports 2023-2024

I shall have to read and compare the reports for the last few years before I come to any conclusions. This is my reference and reminder post so I don't forget.

[new-years-digital-dash]

Sierra Leone's Blood-Diamond Hydra

ROLE IN SCOTLAND 

The Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs (SCSC) is an organisation that represents many prominent clan chiefs and Chiefs of the Name and Arms in Scotland. It claims to be the primary and most authoritative source of information on the Scottish clan system. In the Commonwealth of Nations, a high commissioner is the senior diplomat, generally ranking as an ambassador, in charge of the diplomatic mission of one Commonwealth government to another. Instead of an embassy, the diplomatic mission is generally called a high commission.[1] Chief of Mission is also the title of the team manager of a national delegation in major international multi-discipline sporting events, such as the Olympic Games.[3] The Royal Scots Navy (or Old Scots Navy) was the navy of the Kingdom of Scotland from its origins in the Middle Ages until its merger with the Kingdom of England's Royal Navy per the Acts of Union 1707. There are mentions in Medieval records of fleets commanded by Scottish kings in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. King Robert I (1274–1329, r. 1306–1329) developed naval power to counter the English in the Wars of Independence (1296–1328).

AUTHENTIC MOVEMENT DIAPREMEIR [Diamond and Premier]

Of Undisputed Origin.

Periodic Table Metallurgy Cultivator with Artisanal Primitive Anthropology, Nationalist, Art Intellect with Athletic Ability, Riverbanks Farmland, Real Estate Investment Trust and Real Estate Brokerage Trust Account, Pool-Live Monopoly Turf Accountant Board Game Tournament, Rugby and Kickboxing, Eagle Conservation, Painting, Polyrhythm Syncopated Progressive Drum Loops with Rhythm Flag (Bass Clef; Anacrusis; Staccato and Legato; Barcarolle; Tonic and Dominant; Triple G Positions; Riff Melody, Imitation Vocals, and Drum & Bass Licks), and (Diamond; Decapods; Mollusk; Opium; Deliriants; Tobacco; Coffee; and Arms) Black Market

(Artisanal Primitive King) Pedagogy: King Anthropology; Mixing a form of Royalty Title with Anthropology. CRAFT SOCIETY Sensory Processing Anthropology Artisan Primitive: Sensory Play of the Sensory Ethnography, Sensory Modulits CNS; Artisanal Plantation Metallurgy Cash Crops Spectrum; Evolution; Savagery, Emerging Markets, Civilianization, ECONOMICS OF FINANCIAL MARKETS; Economic Science (Supply-side Economics), Economic Geography (Artisanal Plantation), Economic Mathematics (CFD Probabilistic Model Exchange), Microeconomics (Contract Theory, Purchasing Theory, Portfolio Theory, Producer Price Index, Profit Sharing Plan, Lipstick Effect, Opportunity Cost, Private Limited Partnership, Public-Private Sectors, Pyramid Marketing, Minor Purchase Group) for Sensory Geography (5 Senses City); Prenatal Hormones with Fetus Alcohol Consumption for Sensory Overload Savant;

Randlords Agronomics Spirit: Economic Expansion, Economic Bubble, Supply-Side Economics, FX Counter Trading Party Interdependence Economics, Intermodal Port Economics, Horizontal Integration, Soil Chemistry;

Meturnomics: Periodic Table Element Manufacturing, Covalent Bonds Fertilizer with Soil Chemistry Ex. Carbon Compounds, Covalent Bonds Fertilizer with Soil Chemistry, Chandelier Tree for Bontonical Indicator; Diamond Vowels: A (Accessories Auctions), E (Exchange Probabilistic Model), I (Sensual Insurance), O (Open-pit Mines), U (Unanimous Laser Cutters and Laser Pressure); Metal Exchange Probabilistic Model for Derivatives CFDS; Crystalline Structure of Elements of the Periodic Table Covalent Bonds Fertilizer, The oxide mineral class includes those minerals in which the oxide anion (O2−) is bonded to one or more metal alloys. I treat my Fertilizer as a Mixing Agent.

AgCurrency: Economic Table, Barter Economics, NIRP Supply-side Fixed Rate Pegged De Facto; AgIndex: Commodities Portfolio Management; Agronomics CFDS//Option Exchange (Credit Spread Options, FX-CFD Interest Rates Beta-Arbitrage w/PPP and Supply-side Economics Currency Pair)

SIERRA PROCESS CERTIFICATE FOR EXPORT AND MARKET VOLUME

Open-pit Mines Economic Geography

Banking System and Probabilistic Model Exchange

Intermodal Cargo Countyline Trafficking Infrastructure

De facto SLL/SDM FX Counter Trading Party for Diamond And Oil CFD; SLL 5% AND SDM -0.5% Interest Rates Contract for Difference.

Diamond enhancements are specific treatments, performed on natural diamonds (usually those already cut and polished into gems), which are designed to improve the visual gemological characteristics of the diamond in one or more ways. These include clarity treatments such as laser drilling to remove black carbon inclusions, fracture filling to make small internal cracks less visible, color irradiation and annealing treatments to make yellow and brown diamonds a vibrant fancy color such as vivid yellow, blue, or pink.

the crystalline structures of the elements of the periodic table which have been produced in bulk at STP and at their melting point (while still solid) and predictions of the crystalline structures of the rest of the elements.

A brokerage account is an investment account held at a licensed brokerage firm. An investor deposits funds into their brokerage account, and the broker executes orders for investments such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on behalf of the investor.

The Argyll Arcade is a shopping arcade in the Scottish city of Glasgow . In 1970, the building was listed as an individual monument in the Scottish monument register in the highest monument category A. [ 1 ] Buchanan Street is one of the busiest shopping streets in Glasgow , Scotland's largest city . It forms the central section of Glasgow's famous shopping district and offers a more upmarket selection of shops than the adjacent streets, Argyle Street and Sauchiehall Street. Buchanan Street is one of the busiest shopping streets in Glasgow , Scotland's largest city . It forms the central section of Glasgow's famous shopping district and offers a more upmarket selection of shops than the adjacent streets, Argyle Street and Sauchiehall Street. Glasgow is considered a "working class city" in contrast to the Scottish capital Edinburgh . There is a 12th century cathedral and four universities, the University of Glasgow , University of Strathclyde , Glasgow Caledonian University and the University of the West of Scotland , as well as the Glasgow School of Art and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama ).

CURRENCY, OIL, & GOLD COMMODITIES CANDLESTICK CHARTS

Swing Trading: Use mt4/mt5 With Heiken Ashi Charts, Setting at 14 or 21 Momentum Indicator above 0 as Divergence Oscillator and Volume Spread Analysis as Reversal Oscillator and Trade when bullish candlesticks above 200 exponential moving average and/or 20 exponential moving average (EMA) on H1 (Hourly) Time Frame; use H4 (4 Hours) and D1 (1 Day) as reference.

MARINE MILITARY SCIENCE

Pythagorean Military

A + B = C

Commando + Brigade = 12 Teams of 500

Tactical Thinking + Operational Thinking = Mission Intelligence ex. Amphibious or Shore; Mountain or Jungle Warfare

Aquatic Training + Land Skills = Marine Black Ops

Carbines + Machete = CQB and Melee

Divine language, the language of the gods, or, in monotheism, the language of God (or angels), is the concept of a mystical or divine proto-language, which predates and supersedes human speech. Fon was a highly militaristic language constantly organised for warfare; it captured captives during wars and raids against neighboring societies. Tactics such as covering fire, frontal attacks and flanking movements were used in the warfare of Fon. The military of Fon was divided into two units: the right and the left. The right was controlled by the migan and the left was controlled by the mehu. There is an effort to create a machine translator for Fon (to and from French), by Bonaventure Dossou (from Benin) and Chris Emezue (from Nigeria).[14] Their project is called FFR.[15] It uses phrases from Jehovah's Witnesses sermons as well as other biblical phrases as the research corpus to train a Natural Language Processing (NLP) neural net model.[16] A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. Brigades formed into divisions are usually infantry or armored (sometimes referred to as combined arms brigades). In addition to combat units, they may include combat support units or sub-units, such as artillery and engineers, and logistic units. Historically, such brigades have been called brigade-groups. On operations, a brigade may comprise both organic elements and attached elements, including some temporarily attached for a specific task. Close-quarters battle (CQB), also called close-quarters combat (CQC), is a close combat situation between multiple combatants involving ranged (typically firearm-based) or melee combat. Special operations or special ops are military activities conducted, according to NATO, by "specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment."[1] Special operations may include reconnaissance, unconventional warfare, and counterterrorism, and are typically conducted by small groups of highly trained personnel, emphasizing sufficiency, stealth, speed, and tactical coordination, commonly known as special forces. A black operation (black op for short) is a covert operation which is done by a government or military. Black operations are secret and whoever does them does not admit that they ever happened.[1] There are differences between black operations and ones which are just secret. The main difference is that a black operation often uses deception. This deception might be not telling anybody who did the operation. It might also be blaming the operation on someone else ("false flag" operations).[2][3] Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included raiding ashore (often in support of naval objectives) and the boarding of vessels during ship-to-ship combat or capture of prize ships. Suppressive Forts Defense and Partisan Raid for Sabotage Offense.

Spiritual warfare is the Christian concept of fighting against the work of preternatural evil forces. It is based on the belief in evil spirits, or demons, that are said to intervene in human affairs in various ways.[1]

Harmony and Contrast Guerilla Warfare: Raiding, also known as depredation, is a military tactic or operational warfare "smash and grab" mission which has a specific purpose. Raiders do not capture and hold a location, but quickly retreat to a previous defended position before enemy forces can respond in a coordinated manner or formulate a counter-attack. Raiders must travel swiftly and are generally too lightly equipped and supported to be able to hold ground. A raiding group may consist of combatants specially trained in this tactic, such as commandos, or as a special mission assigned to any regular troops.[1] Raids are often a standard tactic in irregular warfare, employed by warriors, guerrilla fighters or other irregular military forces. A partisan is a member of a domestic irregular military force formed to oppose control of an area by a foreign power or by an army of occupation by some kind of insurgent activity. Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, government, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, demoralization, destabilization, division, disruption, or destruction. One who engages in sabotage is a saboteur. Saboteurs typically try to conceal their identities because of the consequences of their actions and to avoid invoking legal and organizational requirements for addressing sabotage. (Sabotage Partisan Raid)

Harmony and Contrast Siege Warfare: A siege (Latin: sedere, lit. 'to sit')[1] is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static, defensive position. Consequently, an opportunity for negotiation between combatants is common, as proximity and fluctuating advantage can encourage diplomacy. A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin fortis ("strong") and facere ("to make").[1] In military science, suppressive fire is "fire that degrades the performance of an enemy force below the level needed to fulfill its mission"[clarification needed]. When used to protect exposed friendly troops advancing on the battlefield, it is commonly called covering fire. Suppression is usually only effective for the duration of the fire.[1] It is one of three types of fire support, which is defined by NATO as "the application of fire, coordinated with the maneuver of forces, to destroy, neutralise or suppress the enemy". (Forts and Suppressive fire)

Operational And Tactical Thinking: Operational intelligence is real time, or near real-time intelligence, often derived from technical means, and delivered to ground troops engaged in activity against the adversary. Operational intelligence is immediate, and has a short time to live (TTL). Tactical Thinking of or relating to tactics, especially the placement of military or naval forces in battle or at the front line of a battle. characterized by skillful tactics or adroit maneuvering or procedure, especially of military or naval forces: tactical movements.

SOCIO-ACCENT

County Speech Jargon

Glottal Stops Consonants

Ex. T is Eigh'een, G is Jar'on, L Ho'y; How are you amon' us Ho'y Shi'

Made up Verbs, Nouns, and Adjectives with SCHWA Endings Endings: ER=SCHWA

Pover: Do you want a Pover to the Chin!

SOCIO-CULTIVATION MODEL

Pigou Effect, Corporate Tax Havens, Capital Gains Tax Havens, Private-Public Sectors, Joint Venture Plantations, Market Extension Mergers with Business Incubators and Enterprise Foundation Holding Company, Subsidiaries, and Horizontal Integration.

SOCIO-COLONIZATION

Bilingual Sensory Play TV Channel

Queen's English Immersion Liberal Arts Course

DRUGS AND CRIME NEXUS

First, the ‘psychopharmacological model’ argues that certain drugs may produce irrational, excitable, or violent behaviour in an individual. Many benzodiazepines are also likely to produce dependency in a regular user (Marshall & Longnecker 1992; Rall, 1992), and withdrawal from benzodiazepines has been associated with severe mood swings, irritability and personality changes (Marshall & Longnecker, 1992; Rall, 1992). In addition, use of benzodiazepines has been implicated in disinhibited behaviour (Bonn & Bonn 1998; Dobbin 2001; Rall 1992). Further, Makkai (2002) and Goldstein (1985) reported that some offenders use certain drugs purposely to reduce their fear of committing a crime, while Dobbin (2001) reported that benzodiazepine intoxication can produce feelings of over-confidence and invincibility in users, causing them to commit offences they would not normally undertake. Goldstein (1985) suggests that the incidence of psychopharmacological violence is impossible to assess, because such incidents may occur anywhere (including in the home, workplace, on the street and so on) and often go unreported, and also because when cases are reported the psychopharmacological state of the offender is often not officially recorded. The second model of the link between drugs and violence, the ‘economic compulsive’ model, argues that some drug users commit violent crimes, such as armed robberies, to support an expensive drug habit (Goldstein 1985), consistent with the enslavement model of property crime (Goode 1997). Theoretically, as illicit drugs are expensive and may be typified by compulsive patterns of use, the primary motivation of the user is to obtain money to purchase them. Thus, the violence is not usually intended, but occurs as a result of the situation where a property crime is being committed, such as the offender’s nervousness, the victim’s reaction, use of weapons by perpetrator or victim, or intercession by bystanders (Goldstein 1985). Studies have found that most 6 Benzodiazepine and pharmaceutical opiod misuse and their relationship to crime heroin users will avoid violent acquisitive crime if viable non-violent alternatives exist, because violence is more dangerous and also potentially increases the penalty if caught, and/or because perpetrators may lack a tendency towards violent behaviour (Goldstein 1985). In relation to violent crime, three models have also been put forward that may suggest implications for evaluating potential interventions aimed at reducing drug-related crime.

Abstract

Personality disorders and particularly antisocial personality disorders (APD) are quite frequent in opioid-dependent subjects. They show various personality traits: high neuroticism, high impulsivity, higher extraversion than the general population. Previous studies have reported that some but not all personality traits improved with treatment. In a previous study, we found a low rate of APD in a French population of opioid-dependent subjects. For this reason, we evaluated personality traits at intake and during maintenance treatment with methadone. Methods - The form A of the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) was given to opioid addicts at intake and after 6 and 12 months of methadone treatment. Results - 134 subjects (96 males and 38 females) took the test at intake, 60 completed 12 months of treatment. After 12 months, the EPI Neuroticism (N) and the Extraversion-introversion (E) scale scores decreased significantly. The N score improved in the first 6 months, while the E score improved only during the second 6 months of treatment. Compared to a reference group of French normal controls, male and female opioid addicts showed high N and E scores. Demographic data and EPI scores of patients who stayed in treatment for 12 months did not differ significantly from those of dropouts (n=23). Patients with a history of suicide attempts (SA) started to use heroin at an earlier age and they showed a higher E score and a tendency for a higher N score at intake. Discussion - The two personality dimensions of the EPI changed during MMT, and the N score converged towards the score of normal controls. Opioid addicts differ from normal controls mostly in their N score. The EPI did not help to differentiate 12-month completers from dropouts. Higher E scores in patients with an SA history might reflect a higher impulsivity, which has been linked to suicidality in other patient groups.

Personality

So called 'benzo binges' have been associated with shoplifting and other crimes. Patients may also experience paradoxical excitement with increased anxiety, insomnia, talkativeness, restlessness, mania, and occasionally rage and violent behaviour (known as the 'Rambo effect').

High doses are also associated with a puzzling complication known as the “Rambo effect.” This unusual side effect occurs when a Xanax user begins displaying behaviors that are very unlike them. This might include aggression, promiscuity, or theft. It’s not clear why some people react this way or how to predict if it will happen to you.

Despite the fully legal status of several common deliriant plants and OTC medicines, deliriants are largely unpopular as recreational drugs due to the severe dysphoria, uncomfortable and generally damaging cognitive and physical effects, as well as the unpleasant nature of the hallucinations.

Deliriants are a subclass of hallucinogen. The term was coined in the early 1980s to distinguish these drugs from psychedelics such as LSD and dissociatives such as ketamine, due to their primary effect of causing delirium, as opposed to the more lucid (i.e. rational thought is preserved better, including the skepticism about the hallucinations) and less disturbed states produced by other types of hallucinogens.[1] The term generally refers to anticholinergic drugs, which are substances that inhibit the function of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine.[1]

The systematic name (IUPAC) is [1R-(exo,exo)] -3-(benzoyloxy)-8-methyl-8-azabicyclo[3.2. 1]octane-2-carboxylic acid methyl ester. Cocaine is the methyl ester of benzoylecgonine and is also known as 3β-hydroxy-1αH,5α-H-tropane-2β-carboxylic acid methyl ester benzoate.

Specifically, the carbonyl oxygens and amine group on cocaine, on average, form ∼5 bonds with the water molecules in the surrounding solvent, and the top 30% of water molecules within 4 Å of cocaine are localized in the cavity formed by an internal hydrogen bond within the cocaine molecule.

£10 re-up and Marked up Pills BYOB.

Ex. Smurf the £10 re-up with $40 a pill for Molly Water.

Pill Presser Kids.

NMDA, ACETYLCHOLINE, AND WATER SOLUBLE PROTEIN.

💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎💎🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸💸🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑👑

ST. THOMAS MYR. OBASI

[reasonsforhope]

"Across religions of all creeds and sects, there’s a unifying theme of helping one’s neighbors — and that’s a mission that pastor Michael Jones wants to prioritize for his community in the coming years. 

Recently, Jones’ Village of Faith Ministries, a church based in Sandston, Virginia, joined congregations around the country in converting church property into affordable housing. 

“We knew that, at some point in time, we would look to position ourselves to sell a portion of it, or all of it, to simply aid where our congregation is trying to go in the future,” Jones told Next City in January.

The church is presently eying a portion of its 1.5 acre property on its Southside location with plans to construct 192 apartments and 40 townhomes. 

Jones told Next City that the homebuilding company D.R. Horton worked with the church to develop a housing plan that could meet the church’s financial goals while also keeping rent costs low. 

“We know that housing is a need,” Jones said. 

Jones sees a bright future for the 232 housing units yet to be built, and the 232 families that will call their property home. 

Jones wants the church to be a community hub, where people can seek services, meet their neighbors, and even visit the community garden on its property. 

“Our churches should not be vacant Monday through Saturday,” Jones said. 

Village of Faith Ministries joins a growing number of faith-based organizations that are addressing the housing crisis in a variety of ways, whether it’s by building tiny home communities for the homeless, offering zero interest loans for low-income families, or extending rental assistance to those in need. 

In response to cynicism surrounding new housing developments — often boiled down to the phrase “not in my backyard” — churches across the United States started the faith-based movement: “Yes, In God’s Backyard.” 

The grassroots effort works to address the nationwide deficit of affordable housing and inspire faith leaders to use their resources to give back to their communities. 

And it’s working. 

Last year, a bill titled “Yes, In God’s Backyard” passed in California, which permits religious institutions to convert their land into housing without being held to local zoning regulations. 

In early 2025, Virginia’s state senate considered a similar bill, “Faith in Housing for the Commonwealth” — a bill that was still under review at the time of publication. 

“[We proudly support the] ‘Faith in Housing for the Commonwealth Act’ to build more affordable housing where it is most needed by allowing churches to build affordable housing on their land through a streamlined process,” the Commonwealth Housing Coalition said in a press statement. 

“Today in Virginia, too many of our neighbors and community members struggle to afford a place to call home,” the coalition continued. “We have an opportunity to help more faith-based institutions help solve this problem by allowing them to build homes on their land.”"

-via GoodGoodGood, March 12, 2025

[shannendoherty-fans]

Shannen Doherty’s Untimely Death Sparks Important Conversations About Healthcare Access And Equity

By Janice Gassam Asare

Shannen Doherty, the actress best known for her roles in Beverly Hills, 90210 and Charmed has died after a long battle with cancer, at the age of 53. In a 2015 statement to People magazine, the actress revealed her breast cancer diagnosis, stating that she was “undergoing treatment” and that she was suing a firm and its former business manager for causing her to lose her health insurance due to a failure to pay the insurance premiums. According to reports, in a lawsuit Doherty shared that she hired a firm for tax, accounting, and investment services, among other things, and that part of their role was to make her health insurance premium payments to the Screen Actors Guild; Doherty claimed that their failure to make the premium payments in 2014 caused her health insurance to lapse until the re-enrollment period in 2015. When Doherty went in for a checkup in March of 2015, the cancer was discovered, at which time it had spread. In the lawsuit, Doherty indicated that if she had insurance, she would have been able to get the checkup sooner—the cancer would have been discovered, and she could have avoided chemotherapy and a mastectomy.

Under the IRS, actors are often classified as independent contractors, which comes with its own set of challenges. Although it is unclear what Doherty’s situation was, for many independent contractors, obtaining health insurance can be difficult. Trying to get health insurance as an independent contractor can be a costly and convoluted process. A 2020 Actors’ Equity Association survey indicated that “more than 80% of nonunion actors and stage managers in California have been misclassified as independent contractors.” A 2021 research study revealed that self-employment (which is what independent contractors are considered to be) was associated with a higher likelihood of being uninsured.

Doherty’s tragic situation invites a larger conversation about healthcare access and equity in the United States. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as “Obamacare,” was signed into law in 2010 and revolutionized healthcare access in two distinct ways: “creating health insurance marketplaces with federal financial assistance that reduces premiums and deductibles and by allowing states to expand Medicaid to adults with household incomes up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level.” The ACA helped reduce the number of uninsured Americans and expanded healthcare access to those most in need. It also helped close gaps in coverage for different populations, including those with pre-existing health conditions, lower-income individuals, part-time workers, and those from historically excluded and marginalized populations.

Despite strides made through the ACA, healthcare access and equity are still persistent issues, especially within marginalized communities. Research from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) examining 2010-2022 data indicated that in 2022, non-elderly American Indian and Alaska Natives (AIAN) and Hispanic people had the greatest uninsured rates (19.1% and 18% respectively). When compared with their white counterparts, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islanders (NHOPI) and Black people also had higher uninsured rates at 12.7% and 10%, respectively. The Commonwealth Fund reported that between 2013 and 2021, “states that expanded Medicaid eligibility had higher rates of insurance coverage and health care access, with smaller disparities between racial/ethnic groups and larger improvements, than states that didn’t expand Medicaid.” It’s important to note that if a Republican president is elected, Project 2025, the far-right policy proposal document, seeks to upend Medicaid as we know it by introducing limits on the amount of time that a person can receive Medicaid.

When peeling back the layers to examine these racial and ethnic differences in more detail, the Brookings Institute noted in 2020 that the refusal of several states to expand Medicaid could be one contributing factor. One 2017 research study found that some underrepresented racial groups were more likely to experience insurance loss than their white counterparts. The study indicated that for Black and Hispanic populations, specific trigger events were more likely, as well as “socioeconomic characteristics” that were linked to more insurance loss and slower insurance gain. The study also noted that in the U.S., health insurance access was associated with employment and and marriage and that Black and Hispanic populations were “disadvantaged in both areas.”

Equity in and access to healthcare is fundamental, but bias is omnipresent. Age bias, for example, is a pervasive issue in breast cancer treatment. Research also indicates that racial bias is a prevalent issue—because the current guidelines in breast cancer screenings are based on white populations, this can lead to a delayed diagnosis for women from non-white communities. Our health is one of our greatest assets and healthcare should be a basic human right, no matter what state or country you live in. As a society, we must ensure that healthcare is available, affordable and accessible to all citizens. After all, how can a country call itself great if so many of its citizens, especially those most marginalized and vulnerable, don’t have access to healthcare?

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this New York Times story:

Over the past decade, some three dozen states and local governments have sued the biggest oil companies in the world, arguing that the industry hid what it knew about the dangers of global warming.

The suits are considered a major threat to fossil fuel companies, potentially on the scale of the tobacco industry settlement a quarter-century ago that held cigarette makers financially responsible for the health consequences of smoking for generations of people.

Now the campaign to stop the oil lawsuits is heating up.

In recent weeks, President Trump declared the lawsuits a threat to the American economy, calling them “ideologically motivated” obstacles to his goal of energy dominance. The Justice Department took the aggressive step of pre-emptively suing two states to try to prevent them from even filing lawsuits like these.

Environmentalists are growing concerned that the industry will rehash past efforts to lobby for a federal immunity provision, similar to the 2005 shield law that protects gun makers from liability when their weapons are used in crimes.

The lawsuits have taken on greater importance, their supporters say, as the Trump administration retreats from policies to fight climate change and wean the nation from burning fossil fuels. As states and cities face rising costs from flooding, wildfires and other disasters intensified by global warming, they view litigation as one of the few remaining ways to bolster their budgets.

“The climate crisis is here, and the costs of surviving it are rising every day,” said Gov. Josh Green of Hawaii this month as he announced that his state would join the parade of lawsuits. “The burden should fall on those who deceived and failed to warn consumers about the climate dangers lurking in their products.”

His remarks were notable given that just hours earlier, the Justice Department, in a major escalation, had sued his state, and also Michigan, to try to prevent them from filing such lawsuits. Pamela Bondi, the United States attorney general, called the suits a threat to national security and “illegitimate impediments to the production of affordable, reliable energy that Americans deserve.”

Ms. Bondi also announced suits against New York and Vermont over their new climate superfund laws, which seek to impose liability for past emissions on companies to fund climate adaptation projects.

Michigan’s attorney general, Dana Nessel, has indicated the state will proceed with its lawsuit.

But the Justice Department’s actions could deter other states and municipalities from filing, or even sway ones who have sued to abandon their cases. A day after Ms. Bondi’s announcement, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico quietly dropped its case. A spokeswoman for Gov. Jenniffer González-Colón said the suit had been filed by a previous administration and that she was committed to a “pro-growth energy agenda.”

[eretzyisrael]

by Hank Berrien

A bombshell new report states that the British government is knowingly sending millions of pounds to the terrorist group Hamas.

NGO Monitor obtained a British Consulate-General in Jerusalem (BCGJ) document dated November 2022 with a plan for “UK Humanitarian Support in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.”

The document notes distribution of “multi-purpose cash” assistance in Gaza.  The document states, “The cash assistance component will be implemented in coordination with the Ministry of Social Development MoSD. … The MoSD in Gaza is affiliated with the de facto authorities and thus UK Aid can be linked directly or indirectly with supporting the de factor [sic] authority (Hamas) in Gaza which is part of a proscribed group.”

“Since taking control of Gaza in 2007, Hamas has employed a number of methods to divert international aid,” NGO Monitor wrote. “By exploiting monies and material intended for humanitarian purposes, the terrorist organization expanded its military infrastructure, paid salaries, and cemented its rule. More disturbingly, this aid diversion was central in Hamas’ preparations for the October 7 massacre, including the construction of tunnels and other military installations, and stockpiling supplies and resources.”

“Hamas has exercised effective control over the MoSD in Gaza for several years. In April 2019, Hamas appointed a politburo member, Ghazi Hamad, to lead the Ministry,” NGO Monitor notes. “As of July 2024, Hamas leader and politburo member, Ghazi Hamad, heads the Gaza branch of the MoSd. … In November 2024, the US Treasury Department designated Hamad, labeling him a “senior Hamas official. … In an October 24, 2023 interview on Lebanese television, Hamad hailed the October 7th massacre.”

“A Hamas-controlled entity was an integral partner in determining how cash assistance provided by the UK government to UNICEF would be distributed in Gaza,” NGO Monitor’s Anne Herzberg explained.

Israeli journalist Amit Segal noted after reading the report that the funding appears to have continued after the Hamas terrorist offensive.

“But maybe London changed its policy after October 7?“ Segal asked rhetorically. “Well, in March 2024, UNICEF wrote that it ‘maintained and strengthened the partnership with the MoSD,’ adding in November that ‘this humanitarian cash transfer program in the Gaza Strip is supported by the European Union, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).’”

“Citing the UN Financial Tracking System, NGO Monitor wrote that ‘in 2024, the UK provided UNICEF with approximately $23.1 million for West Bank and Gaza operations,’” Segal pointed out, adding, “And yet, at the same time that Britain is knowingly sending millions of pounds to Hamas, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is busy condemning Israel for the war in Gaza.”

[aimeedaisies]

The Princess Royal’s Official Engagements in March 2024

01/03 In Dubai Princess Anne; 🇦🇪

As President of the Mission to Seafarers, visited Dubai Ports World in Port of Jebel Ali. 🚢

As President of the Mission to Seafarers, attended a Women in Shipping and Trading Conference Panel Discussion at Dubai Ports World Pavilion. 👩‍💼🛳️

Opened Donnelly Lines British Forces Headquarters at Al Minhad Airbase. 🛫

Called upon HH Sheikha Hind bint Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum (wife of the Vice President and PM of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai). 👑

Attended a Royal British Legion Reception on board the QUEEN ELIZABETH II floating hotel. 🍾

As President of the Royal Yachting Association, visited Dubai Offshore Sailing Club. 🛥️

As President of the Mission to Seafarers, this attended a Dinner at the One and Only Royal Mirage Hotel. 🍽️

02/03 Departed Dubai International Airport and returned to Heathrow Airport 🇦🇪✈️🇬🇧

04/03 As Guardian of the Chaffinch Trust, held a Management Team Meeting at Gatcombe Park. 🤝

As Guardian of Give Them A Sporting Chance, held a Management Team Meeting at Gatcombe Park. ⚽️

unofficial Along with the Duke of Kent (President of the RNLI), Sir Tim (Vice President of the RNLI) attended a Service of Thanksgiving to commemorate the 200th Anniversary of the RNLI at Westminster Abbey. 🛟

05/03 As Patron of Livability, visited New Court Place, to mark its 180th Anniversary. 🦼

Opened First Garden Cities Homes' Sheltered Housing Scheme at John Coxall Court in Letchworth Garden City. 🏡

As Patron of the Butler Trust, visited HMP/Young Offenders Institute Aylesbury. 🔗👮

06/03 On behalf of the King, held two investiture ceremonies at Windsor Castle. 🎖️

07/03 As President, attended the 32nd National Equine Forum at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 🐴

As Grand Master of the Royal Victorian Order, attended Evensong and a Reception at The King’s Chapel of the Savoy. ⛪️🎖️

08/03 As Chancellor of the University of London, visited King’s College London’s Portable MRI Project at the Denmark Hill Campus. 🩻

As Patron of Save the Children UK, attended the International Women’s Day Luncheon at Bluebird on Kings Road. 👭💪

10/03 Attended the Global Fraud Summit at the Guildhall in London. 💻👾

11/03 Attended the Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey alongside The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, The Princess Royal, The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and The Duke of Kent. 🌎🌍🌏

Attended a Commonwealth Day Reception at Westminster Abbey. 🌍🥂

With Sir Tim As Past Master of the Worshipful Company of Butchers, attended the Annual City Food and Drink Lecture at Guildhall. 🍽️🍾

12/03 With Sir Tim Attended a luncheon on board Hebridean Princess to mark its 60th Anniversary in Greenock. 🥪

With Sir Tim Visited Peel Ports Group Limited Greenock Ocean Terminal. 🛳️

13/03 unofficial Attended Style Wednesday at Cheltenham Festival. 👒

14/03 unofficial Attended St. Patrick’s Thursday at Cheltenham Festival. ☘️

15/03 With Sir Tim Attended Gold Cup Friday at Cheltenham Festival. 🏆

16/03 With Sir Tim As Patron of the Scottish Rugby Union, attended the Six Nations Rugby Match between Scotland and Ireland at Aviva Stadium in Dublin. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇮🇪🏉

18/03 As Patron of Save the Children UK, attended the International Financial Review Annual Awards Dinner at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.🏅

19/03 As Patron of Sense, opened Sense Hub Loughborough.🦻👨‍🦯

On behalf of The King, with the Duchess of Edinburgh, held a Reception for Korean War Veterans at Buckingham Palace. 🪖

As Patron of the Butler Trust, held the Annual Awards Ceremony at St James’s Palace. 🏆

With Sir Tim As President of the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, attended a Presidential Dinner at Fishmongers’ Hall. 🐟🍽️

20/03 Held a morning and an afternoon investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle. 🎖️

21/03 As President of the Benenden Society and Founders’ Patron of Benenden School, attended the Centenary Service in Canterbury Cathedral. ⛪️👩‍🦰

Attended the Commonwealth Youth Orchestra and Choir Presentation Concert at Spencer House. 🎻🎼

22/03 Opened the new North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Allied Rapid Reaction Corps Headquarters Accommodation at the Officers’ Mess in Imjin Barracks. 🌊

Visited the Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre and Ministry of Defence Medal Office at Innsworth House in Imjin Barracks. ⛑️🎖️

As Patron of Stroud Hospital League of Friends, visited Stroud Maternity Unit. 🏥👶

25/03 Visited MacRebur Limited. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🛣️

Visited the Lockerbie Air Disaster Memorial at Lockerbie Garden of Remembrance. 🌹👼🏻

As President of the Scotch Chef’s Club, opened Browns Food Group’s new facilities at Kelloholm Industrial Estate. 🐄

As Royal Patron of Friends of TS Queen Mary, attended a Reception at the Hilton Glasgow. ⛴️🥂

26/03 Opened the Rural and Veterinary Innovation Centre at Scotland's Rural College in Inverness. 🩺🐑

As Chancellor of the University of the Highlands and Islands, attended the Integrated Land Use Conference. 🚜🧑‍🌾

As Royal Patron of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, visited the Saving Wildcats Project at Highland Wildlife Park in Kincraig. 🐯🦁

As Patron and Honorary Member of the Grand Antiquity Society of Glasgow, attended a Dinner at the Trades Hall of Glasgow. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿📜

Unofficial Sir Tim, as Chair of Trustees, attended the opening of the Adani Green Energy Gallery at the Science Museum 🌍🍃💚

31/03 unofficial With Sir Tim Attended the Easter Mattins service held at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle ⛪️🐣

Total official engagements for Anne in March: 49

2024 total so far: 134

Total official engagements accompanied by Tim in March: 6

2024 total so far: 29

FYI - due to certain royal family members being off ill/in recovery I won't be posting everyone's engagement counts out of respect, I am continuing to count them and release the totals at the end of the year.