#Installing a Public Announcement System

[pureresonanceaudio]

Top Benefits of Installing a Public Announcement System in Your Business

Picture this: it's a hectic day at your business, with employees moving at full speed, customers chatting, and background noise filling the space. Suddenly, the fire alarm sounds, or an important announcement needs to be made. How do you ensure your message is heard in such a busy environment? This is where a public announcement system proves invaluable.

Whether you're managing a retail store, warehouse, or office, a high-quality PA system can revolutionize communication with employees and customers. Still trying to figure out the benefits or return on investment of installing a PA system in your business? Let’s explore the top advantages of a public announcement system.

Effortless Communication Efficiency

Gone are the days of shouting across the room or relying on emails that may get lost in the shuffle. With a public announcement system, you can convey important messages, updates, and alerts in real-time and ensure that everyone stays in the loop.

With quick and efficient communication, you can reduce confusion and maintain a smooth workflow. Think about the brilliant efficiency you could achieve using these PA speakers. With just the push of a button, you can announce a change in the schedule or alert employees about an important meeting.

Improved Safety and Emergency Preparedness

In emergencies, every second is critical, and having a PA system can make all the difference in maintaining order and ensuring safety. A well-placed PA system allows you to make instant, clear announcements in an emergency, whether it’s a fire, severe weather, or a security threat. You can quickly direct people to evacuate or guide them to safety, minimizing confusion and risk. By implementing a PA system, you enhance the safety of your staff and customers.

Better Customer Experience

Imagine entering a store and hearing a friendly voice announcing promotions, events, or store hours. It sets a welcoming tone and keeps customers informed. You can use your PA system to announce special deals, product launches, or in-store events to create excitement and drive sales. This doesn’t just enhance the shopping experience for your customers; it also gives your brand a voice and fosters a more personal experience that is essential to building loyalty and encouraging repeat business.

Increased Productivity

Imagine a workplace where employees are frequently distracted by noise and interruptions- certainly not ideal for productivity. A PA system helps to cut through the clutter, enabling clear and direct communication without adding to the distractions. Instead of managers needing to move around to deliver messages, employees can receive announcements directly at their workstations. This streamlined communication leads to less disruption, allowing employees to focus on their tasks and ultimately boosting overall productivity.

Top Selling Products:

Business Paging System

Office Paging System

Outdoor Paging System

Next Steps

Are you looking for a top-tier public announcement system? Pure Resonance offers some of the best models on the market, designed for seamless performance at a competitive price. Browse our collection today and discover how clear, crisp announcements can transform your business communications!

Blog Source:https://pureresonanceaudio.wordpress.com/2024/11/29/top-benefits-of-installing-a-public-announcement-system-in-your-business/

[batboyblog]

Things Biden and the Democrats did, this week #16

April 26-May 3 2024

President Biden announced $3 billion to help replace lead pipes in the drinking water system. Millions of Americans get their drinking water through lead pipes, which are toxic, no level of lead exposure is safe. This problem disproportionately affects people of color and low income communities. This first investment of a planned $15 billion will replace 1.7 million lead pipe lines. The Biden Administration plans to replace all lead pipes in the country by the end of the decade.

President Biden canceled the student debt of 317,000 former students of a fraudulent for-profit college system. The Art Institutes was a for-profit system of dozens of schools offering degrees in video-game design and other arts. After years of legal troubles around misleading students and falsifying data the last AI schools closed abruptly without warning in September last year. This adds to the $29 billion in debt for 1.7 borrowers who wee mislead and defrauded by their schools which the Biden Administration has done, and a total debt relief for 4.6 million borrowers so far under Biden.

President Biden expanded two California national monuments protecting thousands of acres of land. The two national monuments are the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument and the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument, which are being expanded by 120,000 acres. The new protections cover lands of cultural and religious importance to a number of California based native communities. This expansion was first proposed by then Senator Kamala Harris in 2018 as part of a wide ranging plan to expand and protect public land in California. This expansion is part of the Administration's goals to protect, conserve, and restore at least 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030.

The Department of Transportation announced new rules that will require car manufacturers to install automatic braking systems in new cars. Starting in 2029 all new cars will be required to have systems to detect pedestrians and automatically apply the breaks in an emergency. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration projects this new rule will save 360 lives every year and prevent at least 24,000 injuries annually.

The IRS announced plans to ramp up audits on the wealthiest Americans. The IRS plans on increasing its audit rate on taxpayers who make over $10 million a year. After decades of Republicans in Congress cutting IRS funding to protect wealthy tax cheats the Biden Administration passed $80 billion for tougher enforcement on the wealthy. The IRS has been able to collect just in one year $500 Million in undisputed but unpaid back taxes from wealthy households, and shows a rise of $31 billion from audits in the 2023 tax year. The IRS also announced its free direct file pilot program was a smashing success. The program allowed tax payers across 12 states to file directly for free with the IRS over the internet. The IRS announced that 140,000 tax payers were able to use it over their target of 100,000, they estimated it saved $5.6 million in tax prep fees, over 90% of users were happy with the webpage and reported it quicker and easier than companies like H&R Block. the IRS plans to bring direct file nationwide next year.

The Department of Interior announced plans for new off shore wind power. The two new sites, off the coast of Oregon and in the Gulf of Maine, would together generate 18 gigawatts of totally clean energy, enough to power 6 million homes.

The Biden Administration announced new rules to finally allow DACA recipients to be covered by Obamacare. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is an Obama era policy that allows people brought to the United States as children without legal status to remain and to legally work. However for years DACA recipients have not been able to get health coverage through the Obamacare Health Care Marketplace. This rule change will bring health coverage to at least 100,000 uninsured people.

The Department of Health and Human Services finalized rules that require LGBTQ+ and Intersex minors in the foster care system be placed in supportive and affirming homes.

The Senate confirmed Georgia Alexakis to a life time federal judgeship in Illinois. This brings the total number of federal judges appointed by President Biden to 194. For the first time in history the majority of a President's nominees to the federal bench have not been white men.

[reasonsforhope]

"Governor Janet Mills announced that Maine has, two years ahead of time, surpassed its goal of installing 100,000 new heat pumps by 2025, a milestone that represents significant progress in reducing Maine’s reliance on heating oil, lowering heating costs, and curbing harmful carbon emissions.

To continue Maine’s momentum, Governor Mills also unveiled a new target: installing another 175,000 additional heat pumps in Maine by 2027, thereby bringing the number of heat pumps installed in Maine homes, businesses, and public buildings during her time in office to 275,000.

If this target is achieved, Maine would have more than 320,000 heat pumps in total installed across the state.

Heat pumps can be thought of as temperature recycling machines. They are filled with refrigerant fluid and contain a compressor, and they work by extracting excess heat and moving it around, either in or out of a house depending on whether it’s hot or cold.

It’s believed they work best in hot weather, but in February, Maine’s temperatures in some places plummeted during a cold snap to -60°F. Efficiency Maine, which aided in the state’s adoption of heat pumps by organizing rebates for customers under the provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, did a survey of owners they had helped the previous year.

Many of [the heat pump owners] reported they were comfortable and warm, and offered to bring up the fact that by February they had already saved hundreds of dollars on home heating systems, over boilers, gas furnaces, and heating oil.

“We are setting an example for the nation,” said Mills at the announcement event. ​“Our transition to heat pumps is… curbing our reliance on fossil fuels, and cutting costs for Maine families, all while making them more comfortable in their homes—a hat trick for our state.”

The transition began in 2019 with bipartisan support of the Legislature, when Governor Mills enacted laws setting ambitious targets for transitioning to renewable energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

-via Good News Network, July 31, 2023

[punkshort]

Come Fly With Me

Thank you anon for this request!

I'm double dipping and using this as an entry into my own AU August Writing Challenge ❤️

Pairing: pilot!joel miller x flight attendant!reader one-shot

Summary: You and Joel have a little fun in the cockpit.

Warnings: language, smut (18+ MDNI), competency kink, public sex (kind of?), unprotected piv sex, reference to blow job, light spanking

WC: 2.5K

Ladies and gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking. Welcome on board flight 1092, flyin' from Orlando to Austin. Our flight time today is 2 hours and 40 minutes, but I know a few shortcuts, I'll get us there a little quicker.

You smiled to yourself when you heard the familiar ripple of laughter cut through the plane.

On a personal note, this flight is particularly special for me. My wife is on board today, so if you see her, please don't listen if she tells you 'bout my drivin'.

Captain Miller just got married a few days ago and it was still strange to see the gold band around his finger. It seemed he was struggling with it, too, because you caught him fiddling with it every time you glanced inside the cockpit.

You listened from the galley, doing your checks and making sure everything was locked and secured as Joel announced the temperature, how to operate the systems installed in the seats, and how to call an attendant for help. It was a speech you heard a thousand times.

Finally, he wrapped things up with on behalf of myself and the crew, thank you for choosing us as your airline today. Have a wonderful flight.

You stood at your post with a smile plastered across your face as you watched Marissa and Brian explain to bored looking faces how to engage the floatation device and oxygen masks hidden around each passenger when you felt a tap on your shoulder.

You didn't even turn around. You knew who it was.

"Once we're clear, come and see me, sweetheart."

A thrill of excitement slithered down your spine and you tilted your face to the side so you could whisper, "you're a married man, now. We shouldn't be doing that anymore."

"A ring 'round my finger ain't changin' a goddamn thing here."

And then he was gone.

It took nearly an hour. A full hour where you had to do your first round of service, handing out snacks and drinks to people who mostly ignored you and rarely offered their thanks before you brought your cart back to the galley to clean up.

You heard the door to the cockpit open and Frank, the co-pilot, stepped out and stretched. He saw you and smiled, nodded his head, then asked if he could take ginger ale, like always. And your response was always the same.

"You don't need to ask, Frank."

He grinned and gave you a little salute before he did his rounds. Frank was very personable. He enjoyed meeting new people and hearing their stories. When an extrovert has a job where he meets new people every six hours or so, it's a match made in heaven.

And it's especially good for you and Joel because you both know he won't be back for at least half an hour, probably more.

Glancing around to make sure none of the other flight crew saw you, you tapped lightly on the door then slipped inside.

No matter how many times you saw it, and at that point it had to have been hundreds, the cockpit always left you breathless. When you first step in, you're instantly overwhelmed with lights, buttons, levers and monitors. The control panel was absolutely massive and intimidating. And it was one of the things that attracted you to Joel in the first place.

Watching him operate a plane with such ease, hardly even having to think as he went through the motions turned you on from day one. Part of you always thought he knew it, too. From the moment he saw you, he knew he had you in the palm of his hand.

And you loved every second of it, married or not.

"Captain," you said breathlessly, then grinned when he turned around and slid off his headset. The ache between your legs had been steadily growing for the past hour and you were at the point where if he didn't do something about it within the next five minutes, you would take matters into your own hands. Literally.

"C'mere, darlin'. Why don't you sit on my lap?"

He patted his thighs, clad in dark navy blue, same as your skirt, and you giggled before doing as you were told.

He hummed appreciatively and ran his big hands up and down your legs, which were spread wide and straddling him.

"Pretty little thing," he murmured. You wrapped your arms around the back of his neck and slowly, subtly, began to roll your hips.

"What if someone catches us one day?" you whispered before leaning forward to taste the skin under his jaw.

"Ain't no one gonna catch us," he assured you, dragging his hands up and over your hips to cup your ass and give it a firm squeeze.

You groaned and started to move your hips faster. You could feel his cock stiffening against his leg and you felt yourself clench around nothing. Fuck, you wanted him so badly. Every single time it was like this. Your need for him was never quenched. But still, you enjoyed teasing him from time to time.

"Didn't you just get married a few days ago?"

You felt his hands pause momentarily, leaving your skirt hiked up around your waist but your underwear still on.

"What's your point?"

You smiled and bit gently at his earlobe. "My point is, wasn't your wedding night enough to satisfy you?"

His hands resumed exploring your body and you felt a deep rumble vibrate from his chest.

"You know the answer to that."

And he was right. You did.

The answer was the reason he asked you to come see him in the first place.

Joel slid his fingers past the waistline of your panties, swiping them through your folds with a pained groan.

"Fuck, so wet, baby," he said. Your hips tried to chase his fingers, tried to keep him where you needed him most, but he was too fast.

"You gonna fly this plane and fuck me at the same time, Captain?" you murmured seductively. He smirked and nodded.

With your breath coming in quick little excited pants, you tugged on his zipper while he pulled your panties to the side.

"Need me that bad, huh?" he teased, and normally you might say something smart right back, but on that particular day you wanted him more than usual. Maybe it was the gold band that was catching the sun in just the right way, the thought of him being married now egging you on and making you needier, but whatever it was had the seam between your legs absolutely dripping for his attention.

"Oh!" you cried out, then immediately slapped your palm over your mouth when you first felt him breech your opening. He chuckled and continued to guide your hips down, watching in a trance as you took every inch of him deep within your walls while you whimpered in his ear and tried you best to remain quiet.

"Shh, darlin', I got you," he said softly, his own face pinched as he tried to hold back from slamming up into you. "I got you. Yeah, feel that? Feel how good you take me?"

You nodded because it was true. You could feel your body relaxing and opening for him, happily welcoming him back in.

He gave you a few minutes to adjust. He always did, and you appreciated that. You were always the one who ended up doing most of the work given the small space, so it was the least he could do.

With a sigh, you rested your head on his shoulder and gazed out at the clouds while he gently stroked your back. The view never got old. It felt so surreal every single time, to be staring out at such beauty while stuffed full of his cock. It didn't get much better than that.

He whispered your name, voice sounding strained, and you lifted your head.

"Who's needy now?" you asked with a grin. He bit lightly at your chin and gave one of your ass cheeks a quick slap with his palm, making you jump and giggle before you began to roll your hips over his lap.

Joel's fingers dug into your skin with a sigh, gazing up at you adoringly while you rode him just the way you liked. There was something so fucking hot about him having complete control over the aircraft, hundreds of lives in his hands every single day, but you were the one who had the power over him. You were the one he yearned for, ached for. Since the first day you were assigned to his crew, he couldn't keep his hands to himself. He began to request you specifically be assigned to his flights as much as your schedules would allow, then one day on a particularly long flight you had brought him something to eat without him even asking. You could see the exhaustion in his eyes and you just desperately wanted to take care of him, so you brazenly dropped to your knees and took him inside your mouth while his eyes fluttered closed, the only noises filling the air came from the back of your throat and the tinny voice echoing through his abandoned headset nearby.

The rest was history.

He wondered if getting married might dull his desire for you, but he was foolish to think his feelings could ever change.

"Fuck, baby, that's it," he growled when you picked up the pace and began bouncing in his lap, your tits jostling in your navy blue polo. He feverishly yanked the hem of your shirt up so it bunched up over your breasts and he made a pathetic little noise when he saw the white, lacy bra you had on underneath.

"Look at you, filthy thing," he murmured, squeezing at your covered breasts. "Fuckin' a married man like this. But I bet that just turns you on even more, don't it?"

You moaned and tipped your head back, chin aimed at the ceiling of the cockpit. His lips dragged down your throat, tongue shooting out to taste your skin, careful not to leave a mark. He was convinced at least Frank knew what you were doing in here but he didn't need to give the rest of the crew any reason to gossip.

Air traffic control crackled through the radio, checking in like they usually did when the plane reached a new zone.

"Hang on," he told you, so you gripped his shoulders while he leaned forward to pick up the receiver. His thumb hovered over the button to answer when he gave you a look. "Didn't tell you to stop, did I?"

You grinned and resumed fucking yourself on his cock while he pressed down on the button, dropping his voice to sound more professional when he answered the man on the other end. He confirmed his coordinates, his credentials and his flight pattern with ease, all while you circled your hips and ground yourself down, your clit catching on the coarse hair at the base of his cock. You had to bite back a moan when he was talking, the pleasure mounting low in your belly making it difficult not to make any noise.

Finally, he put the receiver back and you moaned his name, your face buried in the crook of his neck to muffle the sound.

"You fuckin' love this, don't you? Love gettin' fucked in here, love the thrill of it, huh?"

"Yes," you whispered, your eyes squeezing shut as you closed in on your release. "Oh, god, Joel - fuck!" you sobbed when he began to lift his hips from his seat, fucking up into you, matching you thrust for thrust, grunting like an animal in your ear each time your hips made contact.

"Lemme feel you, baby. Wanna feel you shake for me," he said through clenched teeth. You gasped and nodded, mustering every ounce of energy you had left to slam yourself up and down on his thick cock, so desperate to come you didn't care if the door flung open and the whole plane saw what you were doing.

"Tell me how it feels, honey," he said. He must have been close, too. You've done this enough times to know he likes hearing you talk dirty to him right when he's about to come.

"Feels so good," you began, "you always fuck me so good. No one else has - shit - n-no one else has ever... oh, god, Joel," you whined, losing focus when your vision began to blur.

"Don't stop," he begged, his thrusts becoming sloppy. "Keep talkin', baby, please."

"Will you come inside me?" you whispered, your teeth scraping against your lower lip, turning the skin raw. "Wanna feel you inside me the whole flight. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes," he gasped, forehead beaded with sweat, face flushed and jaw slack. "Yes, yes, yes... fuck! C'mon!" he groaned, slapping your ass a little harder than before.

You kept babbling, telling him how big he was, how badly you wanted him, how no one else has ever fucked you as good as he does when your voice caught in your throat and you came around his cock with a strangled moan.

He didn't hold back. He circled his arms around your waist and fucked up into you recklessly, your cunt pulsing around him while your chest heaved and your fingers clawed at his shoulders, trying to ground yourself through your high.

At the last second he pressed his face against the side of your neck, pinning you against his chest. He moaned, his mouth falling open when he came, not caring how loud he might have been. It felt too fucking good to feel himself fill you up, feel his hot spend pooling and dripping down his length while he weakly pressed into you, prolonging his orgasm as best he could before his limbs went weak and he sighed against your chest.

You were cooing in his ear, telling him how good he did, how full you were, fucking thanking him while his shoulders sagged and a shiver ran down his spine.

"Can't get enough of you," he whimpered. You grinned and kissed the top of his head before lifting yourself off his lap. He helped you slide your underwear back in place, the fabric immediately soaking with your combined release while you fixed your polo and stood up.

"Shit, my skirt's gonna be wrinkled," you muttered while he tucked himself away and zipped up his pants.

"Next time we'll just have to take it off," he teased, making you giggle and playfully swat at his shoulder.

"Next time? What would your wife have to say about that, Captain?"

He rolled his eyes and grabbed your left hand, bringing your knuckles to his lips. He silently appraised the two rings nesting on your finger with a pleased smirk before letting you go.

"I don't know, you tell me."

You leaned forward and placed a soft kiss against his lips, lingering for an extra moment before pulling away.

"She'd say she can't wait."

Please follow @punkshort-notifs and turn on notifications for fic updates ❤️

[beardedmrbean]

Black Lives Matter has criticized the Democratic Party for "anointing" Vice President Kamala Harris as the expected Democrat presidential nominee without a public vote.

President Joe Biden announced on Sunday that he was leaving the presidential race and endorsed Harris to replace him at the top of the Democratic ticket to face Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, in November. Biden had faced pressure to step aside after a disastrous debate performance last month magnified concerns about the 81-year-old's age and ability to beat Trump and serve a second term.

By Monday evening, Harris had secured the support of enough Democratic delegates to become her party's nominee, The Associated Press reported.

Responding to the development, Black Lives Matter criticized Democrats for not giving voters a say—and called on the Democratic National Committee to host a virtual snap primary ahead of the party's convention in August. Newsweek has contacted Black Lives Matter, the Harris campaign and the DNC for comment via email.

"Democratic Party elites and billionaire donors are attempting to manipulate Black voters by anointing Kamala Harris and an unknown vice president as the new Democratic ticket without a primary vote by the public," Black Lives Matter said in a statement. "This blatant disregard for democratic principles is unacceptable. While the potential outcome of a Harris presidency may be historic, the process to achieve it must align with true democratic values." The organization added: "We do not live in a dictatorship. Delegates are not oligarchs. Any attempt to evade or override the will of voters in our primary system—no matter how historic the candidate—must be condemned. We demand an informal, virtual snap primary now that the incumbent president is no longer in the running."

Harris is the first woman, Black person and person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president. If she becomes the Democratic nominee and defeats Trump in November, she would be the first woman to serve as president.

Black Lives Matter said any process that does not include voters could undermine Harris, or another Democrat, if they win the White House in November.

"Let us be clear: This is about the Democratic Party following a process that protects the legitimacy of any future Democratic president following this unprecedented moment," the statement said.

"Installing Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee and an unknown vice president without any public voting process would make the modern Democratic Party a party of hypocrites. It would undermine their credibility on issues related to democracy.

"Imagine our first Black woman president not having won some sort of public nomination process. The pundits would immediately label it as affirmative action or a DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] move, and any progress made by a President Harris would be on shaky foundations. If Kamala Harris is to be the nominee, it must be through a process that upholds democratic principles and public participation."

Some Republicans have already sought to cast Harris as a DEI hire.

"The incompetency level is at an all-time high in Washington. The media propped up this president, lied to the American people for three years, and then dumped him for our DEI vice president," Representative Tim Burchett of Tennessee wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday.

[girlactionfigure]

🟤 Latest Updates from Israel  

ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

( VIDEO - IDF soldiers stand among the ruins of Blida, Lebanon - which is across the border from Yiftah, Israel. )

▪️IDF ON YESTERDAY’S DRONE HIT.. IDF spokesman: Last night (Sun), an (attack drone) belonging to the terrorist organization Hezbollah hit a military base near Binyamin. All the injured were taken to the hospitals and a message was given to their families.  In the incident, 4 IDF soldiers were killed and 7 soldiers were seriously injured.  All families have been informed.

.. related: the training base, it’s exact location, and pictures of the facilities and a video tour ARE ON THE IDF RECRUITMENT PUBLIC WEB SITE.  The same site has 2 other northern training bases as well with the same info.  

▪️THE HERO SOLDIERS WHO FELL.. in preparing to defend Israel

Omri Tamari, 19 years old, from Mezekrat Batia

Yosef Hieb, 19 years old, from Tuba Zangaria

Yoav Agmon, 19 years old, from Binyamina Givat Ada

Alon Amitay, 19 years old, from Ramot Naftali

May their families be comforted among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem, and may G-d avenge their blood.

▪️ON BEIRUT ATTACKS.. Political source: The report on the supposed directive of the political echelon to the IDF to stop or reduce attacks in Beirut, is completely false. Israel maintains freedom of action anywhere in Lebanon.

▪️US PRES. CANDIDATE HARRIS SAYS.. Kamala Harris: "Israel must urgently do more to facilitate the introduction of aid to those in need. Civilians must be protected and must have access to food, water and medicine.”

▪️US SEC STATE BLINKEN.. in a conversation with the Minister of Defense Gallant is pushing for a diplomatic route in Lebanon as soon as possible!

♦️GAZA - (Enemy reports) the IDF attacked the tents of the displaced in the Shuhada al-Aqsa hospital compound in Deir al-Balah in the center of the Gaza Strip early this morning.  The IDF spokesman announced in Arabic that the compound, which was formerly part of the hospital, was precisely attacked after Hamas operatives used it as a center for planning attacks against Israel.  After the IDF strike, massive secondary explosions.

♦️JENIN (SAMARIA - huge explosion overnight, “work accident”.

⭕MULTIPLE ROUNDS OF MISSILES AT HAIFA and surrounds overnight and this morning, as well as massive rounds, Hezbollah says 38 rounds, across the north yesterday.

🔹UNIFIL SAYS.. spokesman for UNIFIL: the situation of the UN forces in Lebanon in recent days is a cause for concern, especially after the IDF forces attacked UNIFIL positions several times (when Hezbollah was firing on the IDF from next to them).  Despite being attacked, they decided to stay because it was at the request of the Security Council.  UN Secretary-General: "Attack on UN forces could constitute a war crime”.  (( But using them for human shields is not??? ))

🔹US AID CARTONS.. spotted among Hezbollah weapons in Lebanon.  Per US AID data, they only assist the American University in Beirut in Lebanon.  Who’s illegally streaming US AID to Hezbollah?

🔹SYRIA GETS OUT OF THE WAY.. Al-Arabiya: The division of the Syrian army under the command of Maher Assad is taking steps so that Israel does not attack it, including no attacks on Israeli or American forces, no weapons transfers to Hezbollah, no cooperation with Hezbollah.

🔹ON YESTERDAY’S US THAAD SYSTEM REPORT.. is already in Israel being installed.

📌WHAT TO DO in a MISSILE ATTACK -> Home Front Command instructions in ENGLISH: https://www.oref.org.il/eng/life-saving-guidelines/rocket-and-missile-attacks   Link only works IN Israel, use a VPN with an Israeli node to view from outside.

[psalm22-6]

LES MISERABLES. Par Victor Hugo (From the London Review.) When a work by M. Victor Hugo is announced as being on the eve of publication, we need scarcely say that all the literary world rises to a very high state of excitement; for whatever may be the variety of opinion about the taste and political sympathies of the author of "Notre Dame de Paris," there can remain no doubt respecting his vigour and his talent as a writer. Such being the case, the eagerness with which "Les Miserables" has or have been expected, is perfectly natural, and we are bound to acknowledge that, on the whole, our anticipations have not been disappointed. This new novel is far from perfect, some of its faults arising from the nature of the subject chosen, and others from the very character of M. Victor Hugo's genius; but there are scenes scattered throughout the two volumes which are equal, if not superior, to many of the author's happiest productions, and passages which, although written in prose, are more distinguished by true poetry than the innumerable recueils of rhymes by which our neighbours on the other side of the Channel have been deluged for the last ten years. Of the plot of " Les Miserables," it is as yet impossible to express any opinion, for we must remember that we have before us only the first instalment of a work which is to include no less than ten volume's; we may, perhaps, say, however, that in all probability M. Victor Hugo will be led, by the very exigencies of his theme to construct as intricate and as complex a story as that of the "Mysteres de Paris" or the "Juif Errant." His purpose being to delineate the vices of modern society, the abuses of our penal code, the errors of public opinion, and other questions of the like character, he must conceal the several sermons, for the sake of artistic effect, amidst the meshes of a highly-wrought intrigue, unless he adopts the plan of merely putting together a number of distinct episodes or sketches which might, perhaps, bo more in accordance with truth, but which would certainly not prove, so acceptable to the numerous class of readers who plunge into novels just for the sake of excitement. . . . The faults which are characteristic of "Les Miserables," and which are evident on the most careless perusal of the book, arise principally from the nature of the subject. With the most earnest desire to be impartial, and to give even the devil his due, it is impossible to write controversial novels without exaggerating in one direction or the other, and overstating the case you have undertaken to defend. It would be a miracle if the author did not make all his proteges as innocent as angles, and did not at the same time represent his adversaries as photographic portraits of the prince of darkness, in point of either low sensuality or quintessential wickedness. "Give a dog a bad name and hang him;" such should be the motto of "Les Miserables," and of all sermonising novels in general. From this almost unavoidable tendency an extraordinary number of improbabilities arise, either in the delineation of the characters or the construction of the plot; and of these two classes of defects M. Victor Hugo's tale affords several examples. . . . . We have already alluded to our author's imitations of M. Ballanche. Some of the characters in "Les Miserables" remind us of old friends whom we have met under different circumstances. Thus "Fantine" is a kind of compound personage, to the formation of which Marion Delorme and Paquette la Chanteflourie have equally contributed. In short, the beauty of certain detached chapters, and the truthfulness of a few scenes, cannot be questioned; but as a whole the work is essentially defective, the least of the objections to which it is liable being that an unfortunate esprit de systeme too often gets the better of the writer's judgment.

The Melbourne Herald, 9 July 1862

[mariacallous]

Let’s say you just searched Google to learn more about this new AI Overview feature that everyone’s talking about. If your query triggers an AI Overview—and not every query will—then you might see an AI-generated summary of this very article at the top of your results. These new AI Overviews in Google Search present users with AI-generated answers to queries that are culled from information on the web, and they’re presented in a way that gives you the answer you seek without ever requiring you to click on a web link or even learn the names of the publications that the AI used as sources.

Google has already released a nascent version of AI Overviews within something called the Search Generative Experience, but it was only available to users who opted in. However, at the company’s I/O developer conference this week, Google announced that the newly renamed AI Overviews is now receiving a wider launch; everyone in the US who uses Google to search the web or ask a question will now see AI Overviews at the top of their results—again, if their question can be answered by a summary.

Can I Turn Off AI Overviews?

What if you’d rather just see web links? Unfortunately, AI Overviews are baked into the default search results page now. You can’t opt out of seeing them in your results. While there’s no way to fully disable AI Overviews for your Google account, there are a couple of methods you can use to get a search results page filled with web links.

First, there's the manual method of selecting a special filtered view after each individual query. After landing on the search result page topped with the AI Overview, click on the More tab—it should now appear among other filter options like Images, Videos, Shopping—and click Web. You’ll see a results page just showing links to actual websites.

Second, you can install a browser extension that automatically forces this web-only view of the search results page. Developers have been hard at work since I/O; there are already options available for Chrome and Vivaldi, as well as add-ons for Firefox. Other browsers will likely get extensions soon.

What's in an AI Overview?

When can you expect your query to trigger an AI-generated summary of the results? “AI Overviews appear for complex queries,” says Mallory De Leon, a Google spokesperson. “You'll find AI Overviews in your Google Search results when our systems determine that generative AI can be especially helpful–for example, when you want to quickly understand information from a range of sources.” During my initial tests, it felt like the AI Overviews popped up almost at random for queries, and the summaries appeared for simple questions as well as more complicated asks.

According to De Leon, the AI Overview is powered by a customized version of Google’s Gemini model that’s supplemented with aspects of the company’s Search system, like the Knowledge Graph that has billions of general facts.

One of my core hesitations about this feature as it rolls out is the continued potential for AI hallucinations, more commonly known as lies. When you interact with Google’s Gemini chatbot, a disclaimer at the bottom reads: “Gemini may display inaccurate info, including about people, so double-check its responses.” There’s no such disclaimer added to the bottom of the AI Overview, which often simply reads, “Generative AI is experimental.”

When asked why there’s no mention of potential hallucinations for AI Overviews, De Leon emphasizes that Google wants to still offer high-quality search results and mentions that the company did adversarial red-teaming tests to uncover potential weak points for the feature.

“This implementation of generative AI is rooted in Search’s core quality and safety systems, with built-in guardrails to prevent low-quality or harmful information from surfacing,” she says. “AI Overviews are designed to highlight information that can be easily verified by the supporting information that we surface.”

Knowing this, you might still want to click through the webpage links to double-check that the information is actually correct. Though it’s hard to imagine many users, who are often looking for quick answers, will spend extra time reading over the source material for Google’s AI-generated answer.

Liz Reid, Google’s head of Search, recently told my colleague Lauren Goode that AI Overviews are expected to arrive for countries outside of the United States before the end of 2024, so over a billion people will likely soon encounter this new feature. As someone whose job relies on readers actually clicking links and spending time reading the articles, of course I’m apprehensive about this change—and I’m not alone.

Beyond concerns from publishers, it also remains unclear what additional impacts might trickle down to users from Google’s AI Overviews. Yes, OpenAI’s ChatGPT and other AI tools are quite popular in Silicon Valley tech circles, but this feature will likely expose billions of people, who have never used a chatbot before, to AI-generated text. Even though AI Overviews are designed to save you time, they might lead to less trustworthy results.

[lionheartapothecaryx]

Hoodoo 101 - Jezebel Root

What is Jezebel root & why is it used in Traditional Hoodoo & Vodou?

Jezebel Root is a feminine root used in traditional Hoodoo & Vodou for dominating a wealthy man, sugar daddy or powerful person and is sometimes used for hexing or cursing. This root was named after a mythical biblical figure Queen Jezebel who belonged the Omri dynasty of the Kingdom Israel in 852 BC. As a controversial figure, she was known to be extremely cunning and ruthless, using her power to gain the upper hand by any means necessary. Historically this plant has been used by ADOS who practiced Hoodoo & Vodou, for a variety of reasons. The Jezebel stereotype was an oppressive image that was used for the sexual assault and servitude of black women during chattel slavery in the US. This root was typically associated with brothels, working girls, vaudeville/showgirls and mistresses who needed to keep their bills paid and food on their tables, by attracting abundance and docility from rich clients to better their lives as a means of survival.

Today this root is still very potent and extremely beneficial for anyone who works in any type of service industry but is typically used by women seeking a luxury lifestyle via wealthy boyfriend or sugar daddy. Typically, these roots are fed or dressed in a variety of ways and placed in mojo bags, candles or other spells to manifest their intention.

Unfortunately, in modern times authentic Jezebel root has been extremely hard to come by and the majority of Jezebel root being sold on the market is actually common garden variety mulch or cherry bark. To the untrained eye it might resemble an actual root, especially when ground up. Here is a common example of fake jezebel root that you’ll typically see being sold in spiritual shops in person or online below.

Real jezebel root should not resemble bark or any type of mulch. Depending on the maturity of the root, the main root will always have multiple smaller roots sprouting from it, unless they have been clipped or shaven off. It should always look like a root! Fake jezebel root is also easy to snap and like most bark, has a dark brown center. Real jezebel root should be somewhat flexible and have a white center, when broken open.

While this is an easy to mistake to make, many trusted shops are STILL selling fake jezebel root to their clientele. I’ve always been passionate about collecting and providing authentic high-quality goods for myself and my patrons at an affordable price. So I’ve been working on a way to provide REAL Jezebel root to the public for the past few years.

I’m pleased to announce my shop will finally be offering in limited quantity plant shares of Jezebel root to purchase during the upcoming spring season of 2023 under our new indoor grow system.

Click HERE to Shop authentic Jezebel Root

Limited to one per person. We also offer Shop Installments via Affirm and accept PayPal & Apple Pay.

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this Canary Media story:

The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, the national green bank program created by the Inflation Reduction Act, has gotten off to a slow start — but the money has started to flow.

In April, a handful of nonprofit consortiums were selected to administer the $20 billion program. These groups face a hefty mandate: to use that federal funding to spur $150 billion or more of private-sector investment in climate and clean-energy projects, mostly for underserved communities.

But it isn’t simple to put that money to work. The projects they back must comply with the Biden administration’s Justice40 Initiative mandates, meet federal domestic-content and buy-American provisions, and follow complicated data-reporting requirements. Their loans and investments must also simultaneously reach hard-to-serve markets and earn returns that can be reinvested into future projects — while tempting private-sector investors to join in.

The complicated regulatory and financial requirements are some of the reasons why it has taken months for the consortiums to start dishing out green bank funds. But somebody eventually had to go first.

That honor goes to Climate United, the consortium in charge of nearly $7 billion in federal green bank funding, more than any other group. On Tuesday, it announced what is both its first investment and the first project financed by the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund: a $31.8 million loan for Scenic Hill Solar, a Little Rock, Arkansas–based solar developer.

That money will provide pre-construction financing for solar installations that will help lower the utility bills and carbon footprint of the University of Arkansas System. At 66 megawatts across 16 sites, the project will be the largest commercial solar deployment in Arkansas and the fourth-largest university renewable energy deployment in the country.

This kind of climate lending has a track record to build on. Over the past 12 years, green banks — government-backed and nonprofit entities now operating in 17 states, which provided the model for the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund — have enabled nearly $22 billion in public-private investment.

Even so, this proven ​“green bank” model has attracted political attacks: Republicans in Congress have accused the Biden administration of planning to use the program’s $20 billion as a ​“slush fund” to benefit favored groups. Former president Donald Trump has said he will halt federal spending for programs under the Inflation Reduction Act if elected.

[sacredechoes]

Fire Emblem: Battle of Revolution Translation

For April Fools' 2017, Nintendo of Japan put up a joke page announcing a Fire Emblem game starring Valbar, Leon, and Kamui set in the Meiji era. The page is archived and some in the English fandom have heard of it, but I don't know if the page ever got a full translation.

Below the cut is my attempt at localizing the text of this page.

Fire Emblem: 維新大乱 ~Battle of Revolution~

(see note 1)

A return to where it all started…

"For 15 years since taking on the role of Fire Emblem series producer, I have been thinking about how to make the game more accessible to a wider audience. I have been thinking of new challenges to attract more customers, such as creating TMS#FE based on the idea of what would happen if we tried to make it a modern drama, or creating Fire Emblem Fates based on the idea of allowing people to enjoy multiple stories in parallel. In that sense, you could say that 'I want to increase the number of customers' is the starting point of my approach to Fire Emblem. And now, the theme I have decided on for further leaps forward for the Fire Emblem series is 'Jidai-geki' (historical drama). I have been working with Intelligent Systems to create a Fire Emblem game that takes place in the late Edo period and vividly depicts the activities of talented local warriors as they work to create a new world. Experience a passionate story of men in the late Edo period while maintaining the fun of playing with swords, bows, and sickles, bow effectiveness against flying ninjas, and other interesting aspects of the Fire Emblem series. Please look forward to Fire Emblem: Battle of Revolution!" - Hitoshi Yamakami, Nintendo Co.

STORY

Some things are more precious than life itself...

In a time called "Bakumatsu", the sun has begun to set on Edo and the Tokugawa Shogunate. A great famine stretches on, and many communities near their breaking points. The world of Edo is burdened by a state of terrible unrest. Though the land of Hi-no-moto has observed a long period of isolationism, the waves of distant nations have begun to break on its shores regardless.

In a distant corner in the countryside of the fiefdom of Barenshia lives a man named Barubou. Our tale begins when he is unexpectedly appointed to the Sofia Security Corps, the bodyguards to the fiefdom's daimyo Seirika.

To bend the knee to the shogunate, or to advocate its overthrow? For either path this land might take, men clash fiercely with their beliefs held high and proud as banners.

Meeting a sworn ally, and then, farewell. With the nefarious conspiracies of the shogunate's underbelly unfolding before his eyes, Barubou is shaken to his very core.

When all is said and done, which belief will he commit his faith to? The stage is set for this decisive battle in the port town of Toba...

GAME SYSTEM

Command your comrades to win the battle!

Playing the role of Barubou, you will work with your comrades to achieve each map's victory condition.

A profound and moving tale

Catch a glimpse into each major character's rich past through Imperial Orders ("sub-episodes"), as well as through Public Service ("sub-quests") packed throughout the region.

The permadeath feature that defines the Fire Emblem series persists in this instalment, and a unique new system using elements of hanafuda cards debuts in Battle of Revolution. Powerful animations breathe life into battles.

SPECIAL EDITION: Barenshia Emaki (Picture Scroll)

Scroll One: One Hundred Flowers Blooming (see note 2)

Scroll Two: A Friendship like Fish and Water

Scroll 1, which depicts the everyday lives, traditions, and culture of the people of Barenshia, and Scroll 2, which details the specifics of Barubou, Ren'o and Kamucho's lives not told in the main story, will be distributed as a set.

DLC

Running Marusu - Cost: Free

This epic quest follows Marusu, a young courier from Akaneia Fiefdom, which neighbors Barenshia Fiefdom. The boy's star-crossed fate compels Marusu to single-mindedly run around to every corner of Akaneia Fiefdom, and how all of his travels weave together to earn him the title of Daimyo of Akaneia Fiefdom.

※Delivery date yet to be announced.

CAST

馬流暴 Barubou (Valbar) (see note 3)

Despite his humble origins in a farming family, his natural talent together with his compassionate, sincere, and heroic personality led him to be selected as the head of the Sofia Security Corps. His hearty laugh is so powerful that it can even be heard at a distance of 1 ri away. Since entering his thirties, his few worries are mostly consumed these days by the size of his belly.

恋男 Ren'o (Leon) (see note 4)

A runaway ninja of the Iga school. His intense admiration for Barubou drove him to join the Sofia Security Corps to stay close to the object of his affections. Every day, he applies rouge to his eyelids a little differently in relentless pursuit of being the most fashionable man in the Security Corps. He is incredibly precise with his makeup brush, among other fine motor skills, and is often asked for help by the village girls.

暇武猪 Kamucho (Kamui) (see note 5)

Formerly a ronin. He once crossed blades with Barubou in the past, but was touched by the man's personality and joined the Sofia Security Corps. While he hates feeling constrained and lives an idle and carefree life, he has considerable skill with a sword. Although the pretty girl who advertises for the general store has caught his attention, he's never bothered to actually speak to her.

-----

Translation notes

(Ishin Tairan - lit. Revolution Uprising - "Ishin" often refers to "Meiji-Ishin" or Meiji Restoration). The game is set in Mie prefecture in historic Japan, in the Bakumatsu era. (between 1853-1867)

(T/N: simultaneous emergence of many talents and achievements; lit. hundred flowers blooming in profusion)

(T/N: written with kanji meaning lit. "Force of a Rushing Horse". The kanji on-reading give "Barubou", but could be kun-read as the name "Managashi Sueo")

(T/N: written with kanji for "love" and "man". Kanji on-reading give "Ren'o".)

(T/N: written with kanji for "leisure", "martial arts" and "boar". Kanji on-reading give "Kamucho".)

Kanji names are given for all characters and locations. As such I have romanized them very loosely rather than using official names (usually given in kana). As noted with the main cast's names, these kanji names are some degree of pun and not chosen solely for the sound. Celica's, for example, includes the kanji 聖 which means "holy" and 里 which can mean "place of origin", fitting as she grew up in a priory.

-----

Barenshia = 刃蓮死亜 = Valentia

Sofia = 素風亜 = Zofia

Seirika = 聖里香 = Celica

Marusu = 真���澄 = Marth

Akaneia = 茜亥亜 = Archanea

[batboyblog]

Things the Biden-Harris Administration Did This Week #28

July 19-26 2024

The EPA announced the award of $4.3 billion in Climate Pollution Reduction Grants. The grants support community-driven solutions to fight climate change, and accelerate America’s clean energy transition. The grants will go to 25 projects across 30 states, and one tribal community. When combined the projects will reduce greenhouse gas pollution by as much as 971 million metric tons of CO2, roughly the output of 5 million American homes over 25 years. Major projects include $396 million for Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection as it tries to curb greenhouse gas emissions from industrial production, and $500 million for transportation and freight decarbonization at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

The Biden-Harris Administration announced a plan to phase out the federal government's use of single use plastics. The plan calls for the federal government to stop using single use plastics in food service operations, events, and packaging by 2027, and from all federal operations by 2035. The US government is the single largest employer in the country and the world’s largest purchaser of goods and services. Its move away from plastics will redefine the global market.

The White House hosted a summit on super pollutants with the goals of better measuring them and dramatically reducing them. Roughly half of today's climate change is caused by so called super pollutants, methane, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and nitrous oxide (N2O). Public-private partnerships between NOAA and United Airlines, The State Department and NASA, and the non-profit Carbon Mapper Coalition will all help collect important data on these pollutants. While private firms announced with the White House plans that by early next year will reduce overall U.S. industrial emissions of nitrous oxide by over 50% from 2020 numbers. The summit also highlighted the EPA's new rule to reduce methane from oil and gas by 80%.

The EPA announced $325 million in grants for climate justice. The Community Change Grants Program, powered by President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act will ultimately bring $2 billion dollars to disadvantaged communities and help them combat climate change. Some of the projects funded in this first round of grant were: $20 million for Midwest Tribal Energy Resources Association, which will help weatherize and energy efficiency upgrade homes for 35 tribes in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, $14 million to install onsite wastewater treatment systems throughout 17 Black Belt counties in Alabama, and $14 million to urban forestry, expanding tree canopy in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

The Department of Interior approved 3 new solar projects on public land. The 3 projects, two in Nevada and one in Arizona, once finished could generate enough to power 2 million homes. This comes on top of DoI already having beaten its goal of 25 gigawatts of clean energy projects by the end of 2025, in April 2024. This is all part of President Biden’s goal of creating a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035. 

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen pledged $667 million to global Pandemic Fund. The fund set up in 2022 seeks to support Pandemic prevention, and readiness in low income nations who can't do it on their own. At the G20 meeting Yellen pushed other nations of the 20 largest economies to double their pledges to the $2 billion dollar fund. Yellen highlighted the importance of the fund by saying "President Biden and I believe that a fully-resourced Pandemic Fund will enable us to better prevent, prepare for, and respond to pandemics – protecting Americans and people around the world from the devastating human and economic costs of infectious disease threats,"

The Departments of the Interior and Commerce today announced a $240 million investment in tribal fisheries in the Pacific Northwest. This is in line with an Executive Order President Biden signed in 2023 during the White House Tribal Nations Summit to mpower Tribal sovereignty and self-determination. An initial $54 million for hatchery maintenance and modernization will be made available for 27 tribes in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The rest will be invested in longer term fishery projects in the coming years.

The IRS announced that thanks to funding from President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, it'll be able to digitize much of its operations. This means tax payers will be able to retrieve all their tax related information from one source, including Wage & Income, Account, Record of Account, and Return transcripts, using on-line Individual Online Account.

The IRS also announced that New Jersey will be joining the direct file program in 2025. The direct file program ran as a pilot in 12 states in 2024, allowing tax-payers in those states to file simple tax returns using a free online filing tool directly with the IRS. In 2024 140,000 Americans were able to file this way, they collectively saved $5.6 million in tax preparation fees, claiming $90 million in returns. The average American spends $270 and 13 hours filing their taxes. More than a million people in New Jersey alone will qualify for direct file next year. Oregon opted to join last month. Republicans in Congress lead by Congressmen Adrian Smith of Nebraska and Chuck Edwards of North Carolina have put forward legislation to do away with direct file.

Bonus: American law enforcement arrested co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada. El Mayo co-founded the cartel in the 1980s along side Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán. Since El Chapo's incarceration in the United States in 2019, El Mayo has been sole head of the Sinaloa Cartel. Authorities also arrested El Chapo's son, Joaquin Guzman Lopez. The Sinaloa Cartel has been a major player in the cross border drug trade, and has often used extreme violence to further their aims.

[coochiequeens]

The Seoul Metro recently announced plans to pilot an AI-based gender detector.

The first pilot program is slated to begin at the end of June in a subway station women's restroom.

The preventive measure follows a fatal subway stabbing incident that occurred last year.

Following a fatal stabbing that took place last year in a Seoul subway restroom, South Korea plans to use AI-based technology to detect men entering or leaving women's bathrooms. 

The Seoul Metro announced its plans to pilot an AI-based gender detector program it developed, per South Korean outlet KBS as reported on April 20. 

The plan is slated to begin at the end of June and last for about six months, starting with the women's restroom in Sinseol-dong Station. Plans for expansion will only begin once the reliability of the program is confirmed, the Seoul Metro said, per KBS.

The AI-based gender detector is able to automatically detect a person's gender, display CCTV images in pop-up form, and broadcast announcements, KBS reported, citing the Seoul Metro.

According to KBS, citing the Seoul Metro, the system is able to distinguish gender based on body shape, clothing, belongings, and behavioral patterns.

Taking into consideration that most subway station restroom cleaners are currently women, the corporation will be putting the installation of the program in men's restrooms on hold, per KBS.

But some people are skeptical about the program.

"Do you think all women look exactly the same? Are you asking male-passing women to not use the restroom?" reads a tweet.

"Can installing this at the women's restroom really stop men from coming?" another tweet reads. 

According to KBS, the program was built as a preventive measure in response to a murder that took place in a metro station bathroom.

On September 14, a Seoul Metro employee fatally stabbed a 28-year-old female coworker in her 20s in the women's restroom at Sindang Station. The man has been sentenced to 40 years in jail, per BBC.

Members of the public paid their respects to the victim with handwritten Post-it notes at the entrance of the restroom where the incident took place. 

"I want to be alive at the end of my workday," reads one. "Is it too much to ask, to be safe to reject people I don't like?" reads another, per BBC.

Following the incident, the Seoul Metro has been implementing various safety measures, including self-defense training for its workers and separating men's and women's restrooms in renovated public buildings, per KBS.

I’m usually opposed to increased surveillance but at least South Korea is trying something to protect women

[notwiselybuttoowell]

The hair that drops in clumps on the floors of some salons in Kiel, a port city in northern Germany, is swept up to be turned into fabrics that filter oil from water. Parents who want to buy their children cloth nappies instead of disposable ones can apply for grants of up to €200 from the local authorities. At the city’s biggest festival last year, the organisers got rid of single-use cutlery and replaced it with a deposit system.

Germany is famed as a world leader in recycling – and Kiel, as I found out during a visit this summer, has some of the most weird and workable plans in the country to deal with its trash. It is the first German city to be declared “zero waste” by the environmental campaign group Zero Waste Europe. The certificate does not mean it has already stopped throwing things away – far from it – but rather that it has a concrete plan for how to do better.

“It’s one step in the right direction,” says Bettina Aust – a Green party politician who was elected president of Kiel city council in June – over a glass of juice made from apples that had been saved from landing in a supermarket bin. “You have to keep thinking further … You cannot stay still.”

Germany has a complicated relationship with waste. Despite its status as a world leader in recycling, Europe’s biggest economy is also one of its dirtiest. In 2021, the average German generated 646kg of waste, while the average EU citizen generated 530kg. Only in four EU countries – Austria, Luxembourg, Denmark and Belgium – did people throw away more.

Dino Klösen, a manager at Kiel’s waste management company ABK, says trends in the country’s consumption can be seen in its bins. Paper recycling bins that would have once been full of newspapers are now bursting with cardboard from delivery packages. “The weight of paper waste has dropped but the volume keeps rising from online shopping,” he says.

Awash with waste, cities like Kiel are exploring ways to throw away less and recycle more of what it does chuck. The city council has announced projects ranging from a ban on single-use items in public institutions, to installing more public drinking fountains, to teaching schoolchildren about waste. It is also encouraging people to make simple changes to their behaviour such as using solid bars of soap instead of buying plastic bottles of the stuff.

Other proposals are more systemic. The city is trialling a “pay as you throw” system where people are charged only for the rubbish they throw in the mixed waste bin. A report from the European Environment Agency last year found only about 30% of Germany is covered by such a scheme, even though areas that were covered saw an average drop in mixed waste of 25%.

“General waste is the most expensive form of rubbish there is,” says Klösen. “We are trying to motivate citizens to throw less waste in the bin by making them pay less for doing so.”

Even though waste-cutting efforts like Kiel’s are fairly novel in Germany, recycling is firmly rooted in the culture. In 2021, Germans collected more than two-thirds of their municipal solid waste to be repurposed – more than any other country in Europe. They burned most of the rest for energy, and dumped just 1% in landfills (the EU average is 16%).

[follow-up-news]

The United States is expected to announce an additional $275 million in military aid for Ukraine on Friday as Kyiv struggles to hold off advances by Russian troops in the Kharkiv region, two U.S. officials say. This will be the fourth installment of military aid for Ukraine since Congress passed a long-delayed foreign aid bill late last month and comes as the Biden administration has pledged to keep weapons flowing regularly and to get them to the front lines as quickly as possible. The package includes high mobility artillery rocket systems, or HIMARS, munitions as well 155 mm and 105 mm high-demand artillery rounds, according to the two U.S. officials. Additional items in the aid package include Javelin and AT-4 anti-tank systems; anti-tank mines, tactical vehicles, small arms and ammunition for those weapons, one of the officials said. Both officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide details of the aid package before the public announcement. It follows a monthly gathering Monday of about 50 defense leaders from Europe and elsewhere who meet regularly to coordinate getting more military aid to Ukraine. At this latest meeting, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Ukraine was in a “moment of challenge” due to Russia’s new onslaught on Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. He pledged to keep weapons moving “week after week.”

[bbsprint]

PMT01: Scaffold nano & Trowel pico

Scaffold nano & Trowel pico v1.1.0 have been released tonight.

Updates add a myStages to Scaffold, and QoL improvements to the powerup editing experience in Trowel pico.

Now that it's out, I'd like to also take this moment to talk about the development and release of both.

One year minus one day ago I had announced in Twitter I would work on the level editor for the demo version of BRICKBREAKER SPRINT (nano) so fans could breathe in more life to the game even in its limited state and to also showcase how much it can do with its limited toolset at the current time.

The reasoning for a completely separate technology version was simple, WebGL. WebGL in Unity is so limited for even the most basic things (I had to install a package to support cross-app copy/paste before nano+'s release!) and I said "hey, might as well give the multiplatform users something to be able to edit with, doesn't need to be just windows which is what the currently unpolished-ish trowel desktop is!"

But then it hit me that the same limitations would likely make it hell for me to support just levels downloaded as files (internally stored with "bxtp" extension btw :) ) so then... I came at a crossroads

just say FKIT and not do it, make ppl wait for BB Lite

still say FKIT and kickstart the foundation of the online service that I had planned since the first design iteration of the game

guess what I took?

I don't regret it.

Currently, Scaffold's login system is attached to itch.io. In the future, this will use my own account system (called Luna, still in development)

Now then... developing Scaffold's frontend was a challenge in itself, because I'm a masochist. I chose yet another technology to make the frontend in, this time Svelte, Sveltekit as backend saying "okay, no more fear of ServerSideRendering now that I can afford a VPS for this"

but... Svelte has been an absolute joy to work with. Its learning curve even smoother than React's (my first frontend framework, which powers cometSpectrum!), and I got everything rolling very quickly

At first, I was going to use my regular website design language, but it's kinda jank, so I said NO and started from scratch with a simpler façade. For the style I wanted to pursue... it was perfect. Some people have complimented the graphic aspect of the site, and I'm happy I could deliver exactly what I wanted. (and yes the icons being in opposite directions compared to bbsprint's UI is entirely on purpose)

BTW, the site is made in such a way that a BB theme could be used as the site's theme and every color will change except for PNG icons, i love it (this functionality is used for people using their OS's Light theme)

This is actually the first made-by-me website project that has "public" facing write actions to a database and stores actual files. It works... very well, and I am very happy about it. It's like a combination of everything I've learnt up to this point, down to API design and interop between programs.

I did say this was the foundation for Scaffold, and I plan for this game to keep Scaffold as its prime way of getting stages, even when getting to storefronts like Steam or GOG. Kind of like an osu! situation.

You're at this part of the message... wanna see how Scaffold's logo used to look like?