#WHEN EVEN THE US AND UK ARE PASSING MORE AND MORE BARRIERS TO TRANSITION EVEN SOCIALLY

[hussyknee]

"you can't pick most trans men out of a lesbian lineup" have you ever like. met a post transition trans man?? do you not see the transphobia in saying that most trans men just look like masculine women? this isn't even about transmasc lesbians, idgaf how somebody wants to identify but goddamn that's a rude as hell thing to say. like if you reverse it with "you can't pick most trans women out of a lineup of gay men" like obviously theres a problem there.

The majority of trans men and women aren't transitioned. A pre-transition trans woman who doesn't dress any differently than a cis man looks like a man and male-attracted people will be attracted to her! Why the fuck do you think so many marriages both het and gay break up when trans people first assumed to be cis begin to transition?? It's also why most trans women first find community among gay men, why both transvestites and trans people formed the first trans communities to the point that we can't even tell whether Marsha P. Johnson was transgender and why people assumed Storme DeLarverie was a trans masc before finding out that he was a he/him cis female lesbian. But Storme presented and acted like a gentleman, the same way the MAJORITY OF TRANS MASCS DO. This is WHY ENFORCING A GENDER BINARY IN QUEER SPACES HURTS TRANS FOLK THE MOST.

ALSO!!! Even transitioned trans men can still choose to look like women! There's lots of mascs whose gender expression is "boy who looks like a girl". How the fuck are you going to tell whether someone is a pre-op trans masc or a butch cis lesbian?? Or pre-op trans masc who presents femme or cis femme lesbian or a femme post-op trans woman??? Do you submit a questionnaire about their gender identity before feeling attracted to the presentation and aesthetic??

[anxiety-trademark]

The week in review:

Raw 09/21 NXT 09/23 NXT UK 09/24 Smackdown 09/25 Clash of Champions 09/27 + Main Event 09/24

Raw:

Billie’s not wrong. None of these people are wrong. That title has fallen so fucking far since Becky held it, Jesus.

Interesting to see Billie Kay be somewhat (?) supportive of Peyton. Manager?

I implore women to stop using red eyeliner unless you’re trying to look possessed.

Oh at least Mickie’s gonna have her last match with her snazzy pants on.

God that theme music is so outdated.

If there was one person on the roster that could convince me they wrestled in the Diva’s era, it’d be Mickie James.

Beautiful Octopus, dare I say best in the division. Look at those crossed legs. Just beautiful, Zelina.

Man it was cool watching Zelina reverse the powerbomb attempt into a rollup, but Mickie couldn’t be bothered to get her shoulders down for a 2 count before the reversal. Shame.

Zelina needs an increase to her speed to pull off the style she’s going for, but it’s a fun style.

oof I think Mickie actually caught Zelina’s forehead with that high kick.

Seated Senton off the top rope is garbage and I hate it.

Lmfao Zelina won with a backstabber. She’s literally Sasha-lite. Okay.

Word was Bianca was the star of the pc combine, right? So if you wanna showcase her strength, do it against someone I fucking know lmao. Who was this bro? Of course she’s stronger than a nobody in the pc. Friggin Alexa Bliss can effortlessly give piggy back rides to Sheamus. That’s impressive, because I know how strong and big he is. This could’ve been done better is all I’m saying. Maybe do a sitdown interview with her pc peeps hyping her up, or show footage of her blowing everyone in the combine out the park. Idk.

Ruby stop hyping up Nia and Shayna individually, individually they suck lol lesbireal.

So did Ruby just give Liv her shirt? …You know what, it works, I’m not gonna dig into this.

I feel like all women use the same starting moves against Nia and it’s a little tired ngl. They do this headscissors into a standing crucifix hold, and then slide down to try and roll her up. Then she picks them up and headbutts them. Come on peeps.

Mk just throw Lana through another table, she’s as useless in the ring (kf wise) as Liv is on commentary (non-kf wise)

Let me rewind, how did Nattie get taken out this time? A punch again. COOL. Nattie confirmed worst tag partner in the history of the division.

Lmfao rip Lana. Bye.

Wow we just said fuck entrances huh? Ugh God. Imagine Becky not getting an entrance as a damn champion.

So Peyton forgoes jumping for the German suplex, which could’ve resulted in her landing on Asuka’s head, and her reaction is to laugh. Consummate professional. Becky Lynch’s optic cranial nerve injury (caused by a failed German suplex) called, it can’t seem to find the humor.

Idk what that double underhooked move was by Peyton, but it was nice.

What bothers me about Peyton’s spinning heel kick, is as high as she gets it, she only hits people with her calf. Awkward to see.

That attempted transition into the Asuka Lock was... something.

Highlight: Lana going through the table

---

NXT:

Did Tegan say “why me” to Candice fucking her knee up with a metal pipe? Somebody get this girl some tissues.

Haha watching Tegan writhe in pain is funny. Candice gets points. And I do not like giving Candice points.

Really appreciate Rhea’s theme after hearing so much generic garbage lately. She’s so done with nxt as a performer, she has passed literally all of them by.

Not to be that person, but seeing so many people in the ring together bothers me. If one person was sick, literally all of them are sick now. It’s just kinda yikes.

Did they forego having a crowd? If so, wise. There’s enough ppl in the ring and at ringside.

Rhea fucking yeeted that girl into the barrier lmaooo.

“...Marina Shafir who’s done some great things on Raw Underground recently,” lmao sure.

The absolute half-assed attempt by that girl to pull herself up before Rhea booted her down to the floor was questionable.

So adding all these random peeps from the pc to this battle royal was done solely to have Raquel and Rhea flex for their feud in 4 months, huh.

Kacy does cool shit, wbk lmao. Gets kicked out, lands on her back, rolls into a handstand, rotates, pulls herself up into the ring using her feet on the ropes; gets kicked out, lands on the side of the guardrail, pulls herself up, uses the plexiglass to help balance herself, jumps onto the stairs; gets kicked out, lands on the side of the guardrail, stands on Kayden’s shoulders and gets chauffeured back to the ring. Brilliant. Would be overkill in a Royal Rumble, but it works here.

R&R eliminate each other/themselves together. Fitting. Dakota “help me I’m useless on my own” Kai is shook.

Why is Indi in the top 5? Or top 7? How is this girl so damn prestigious??

Kacy really just slung herself around the ringpost. I’m becoming a fan of her antics/performances in multiwomen matches.

I see Shotzi’s character is, “I come so close yet cannot manage to touch the gold.” I feel for her... cuz I can’t stand Candice.

Boooo

I love how Io carries herself. She’s a shining example of not allowing her heritage to hold her back or make her feel unimportant. She responds in Japanese, and without missing a beat, translates in perfectly spoken and quick English. Never dances, never smiles, never looks like a chump. Serious and answers the damn question. She gets points.

Highlight: Kacy shenanigans

---

NXT UK:

Lol I love KLR so much. Just ducks out of the ring the first time she’s bested.

“KLR is well versed in mental manipulation,” that she is. She’s honestly a top competitor in that sense; equal to the likes of Sasha and Charlotte when it comes to psychology.

Piper’s got power. Ragdolling KLR here.

That’s right, performing with Charlotte Flair at wm is an accolade one can only hope to achieve (I’m annoying I know) no but seriously, KLR vs Becky Lynch? Take my money.

Nice Superkick, nice Tornado ddt.

Dear ref, stop yelling at her and restart the count. Dweeb.

Lmao self inflicted wreckage of her knee. 

This ref is a walking headache. We’re now getting into the autumn of overbooked women’s matches. And UK’s first title match back. Yikes.

That senton was awkward and looked painful af for KLR’s neck. If you’re gonna risk that move while selling a leg injury, make sure you have more space to correct your landing.

I almost wish that turnbuckle came undone naturally because KLR is already such a good seller, but I’m gonna assume this is a worked move since it’s been left exposed.

Yeah see there are issues with that spot. Positives: KLR didn’t purposefully undo the turnbuckle, so it’s not on her to give another title match; the spot has potential, as I’m guessing that would be genuinely painful. Negatives: Piper is too big of a woman to hit the lower turnbuckle doing the cannonball, so she ended up hitting the middle... which was padded. Good ending on paper if you don’t do the equations, but poor execution. Not Piper nor KLR’s fault though.

Slow pacing and I hate overbooked garbage, but this obviously isn’t the only match they’re having so *shrug*

Highlight: Clean tornado ddt, and I do love KLR’s selling

---

Smackdown:

Lol Bayley has her chair. She automatically gets a point every time I see it.

Top of the ramp this time? Okay, sure.

Stop cutting to the fancams, production. I don’t care about their reactions.

A fine enough promo to move along both of her angles, but production sucks. Wbk though.

“...one of the most complex personalities,” which personality of Alexa’s are we referring to, though?

Their timing on her pyro was off and now I’m sad. The pops during the breakdown leading into the fountains are fucking amazing and honestly cannot be topped by any of the other women.

When did Alexa stop wearing her gloves to the ring? Probably when she turned face. Shame.

She just called Lacey bitter, southern tea, and you know what? What a fucking drag. Imagine bitter southern tea. As someone who was raised in the south, that is a disgrace to southern tea. Sweet sun tea or pass.

Look at Alexa: selling Lacey’s strength, full of agile speed, and yet here’s Lacey not even bothering to put her shoulders down for her pin attempt. SAD.

A problem I consistently have with SD in particular is how they set up commercial breaks. They always do something dramatic, cut to commercial, come back and shit’s always completely different. How you gonna cut from Alexa leading and hearing the Fiend’s laugh, to return to Lacey in charge ???

Dear Cole, why are you calling her Alexis lol. Like I know that’s her real name but, hello??

oof Alexa’s midsection is beet red.

Lacey has not been putting on a “clinic” stop tossing that term around, Cole. Good bump by Alexa though.

Love how Lacey doesn’t mind landing flat when her moonsault misses. Respect. Her and Charlotte both eat that so perfectly.

LOVE how the monitors of people turned into Fiend’s face. POINTS.

It’s like she’s reverted back to her heel persona. This is literally 2016 Bliss, right? Right??

Roman is a large, strong, intimidating guy... but holy shit the visual of 5′1 Alexa staring daggers into the back of his head is intense af. I almost complained that he cut off her exit, but well done with the continuity.

Highlight: I’m really digging the Alexa/Fiend story

---

Clash of Champions:

Loving the red roots, hate the eyeshadow.

See, if Asuka wants to fuck around in the ring, you won’t hear me complain. I just wish she took her non-wrestling segments more seriously.

The patience Asuka gave Zelina to set up the arm kick was dumb.

“A hard arm bar by Asuka,” he says, even though her legs were completely bent. Easy on the credit given plz.

Zelina telegraphs too much. None of the bumps she takes ever catch me by surprise.

In the spirit of being fair, put your fucking shoulders down and let her attempt a pinfall, Asuka.

Haha Sasha-lite did meteora in the corner.

Nice roll into a kick, half point for Zelina.

No you don’t get to sell frustration or disbelief yet, that’s not buyable.

I don’t know wtf Zelina was going for with that counter before the Asuka Lock, but honestly idc. Could’ve been a kickoff match indeed. State of Becky’s title btw.

Every week it’s the same shit with Asuka. She gets on the mic, speaks Japanese, barely accomplishes anything, then gets interrupted/slapped/attacked... with dancing and smiling inbetween. I really wish she was more like Io.

Nikki isn’t “medically cleared to compete”, and the tag team titles aren’t being defended. My memory is fuzzy but wasn’t there some covid concerns going around back then? Was that just baseless speculation?

Love that Bayley turned this into an opportunity to be a bigger douche than she already was lol.

IS SHE DOING A VICTORY LAP LMAO

I want to hate this from a smarky “give other women a chance” perspective, but Bayley is an ass and this is great for Asuka to build credit as a face, and after being made to look foolish yet again. Lesgo.

Lol sounded like Bayley said, “you think you can cuck me?” I’m sure she didn’t. I’m choosing to believe she did though.

I never know exactly who to blame when Asuka’s Codebreaker looks ugly, but I swear Charlotte is the only one it looks impactful with. Sell job isn’t the problem, but taking that actual move is always dicey af.

Great kick by Asuka. Rekt.

Bayley says nah fuck this rofl. Fair ending; a fun little sprint of meaningless jabs.

“Chairwoman of SD” I like that too, Graves. Points to you.

LMAOOO Bayley set that shit up perfectly kekekek what’s up Sasha.

She be looking fucking incredible, but that neckbrace is a mega bummer.

Character wise, I’m surprised Bayley’s choosing to dole out punishment rather than taking her title and bolting.

Welp maybe she should have, Sasha going to town lmao.

oof peep that red line going down Bayley’s arm. eesh. Welts all over her back.

Highlight: Sasha beating the shit out of Bayley with a kendo stick

---

*BONUS*

Main Event:

You don’t pan the camera over to fucking commentary during Bianca’s entrance. Do better @ production.

Ruby puts her confidence in Liv even though everybody knows Bianca is winning this match lmao.

LOVE Liv’s boots.

like 20 seconds into the match and it’s already 10x better than the Bianca vs Billie Kay one. Don’t even waste a spot on Main Event for Billie Kay. No, I’m not not sorry for saying that.

It’s not that I hold issue with Bianca’s showboating or mannerisms, but it’s all so much more fitting for a heel.

Beautiful stalling suplex, but Liv is rather small.

Beautiful distance on that dropkick to Liv. Liv gets points for throwing herself so far.

We have enough women who rip their shirts off deep into matches, me thinks. Don’t need it from Liv as well.

Momentum could’ve been split better, but that was a decent match.

---

*Clash of Champions would be my highlighted event mostly thanks to Bayley, but if that’s a cop out, I’ll give a slight nod to Smackdown’s handling of Alexa.

[mbbsadmissionworld]

studymbbsinphilippines

ABOUT PHILIPPINES

The Philippines, also known as the Republic of Philippines is situated in Southeast Asia in the Western Pacific Ocean. Its capital, Manila, is famous for its waterfront and centuries-old Chinatown. Philippines was a colony of USA for around 50 years and thus the country follows the American system of education.

Philippines is a founding member of the United Nations, World Trade Organization, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, and the East Asia Summit. The country also hosts the headquarters of the Asian Development Bank.

The Philippines has shown a great transition in economy from agriculture to the one with services and manufacturing. In addition to membership in the United Nations, the Philippines is also a founding and active member of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).

As a founding member of the United Nations, the Philippines has been elected many times into the Security Council. The country is also an active participant in the Human Rights Council and in peacekeeping missions.

The tropical climate of Philippines is usually hot and humid. The temperatures usually vary from 21 °C (70 °F) to 32 °C (90 °F) with January being the coolest and May being the warmest months of the year.

When it comes to study abroad destinations for MBBS, Indian students has a few countries in the list. MBBS in Philippines is one of the preferred destinations of Indian students. Similar to studying MBBS in China or European Countries, the Medical Council of India provides approval for many medical colleges and universities. Here is the brief outlook on studying medicine in Philippines.

 WHY MBBS IN PHILIPPINES?

Philippines offers American system of medical education and the Primary Medical qualification is M.D. degree(MBBS). This qualification is globally recognized including the Medical Council of India.

The medical universities are approved by the World Health Organization. In addition, these are also listed and approved in the list of IMED and ECFMG medical education directories. It provides student an internationally recognized medical program. Also, students are eligible to appear in the international medical exams, namely USMLE.

When you check MBBS in Philippines review, you can see that about 8000 foreign students are admitted in MBBS every year. The standard of education by these medical universities in Philippines is on par with global standards. Every year, thousands of doctors move to different countries for higher education and practice.

Check out the MBBS in Philippines quora comments or MBBS in Philippines review, where climate is most favourable for the Indian students. The climate in Philippines is very similar to Indian climate. So, it is easy for the Indian students to adapt to the environment in a foreign country. Philippines MBBS syllabus covers all aspects covered in a MBBS degree offered across the globe.

Do you know that more than 10000 international students enroll in Philippines Medical universities and out of which more than 50% are Indian students? Philippines universities and colleges are known for its quality and sending thousands of doctors and engineers every year to work in USA, UK, and other developed western countries. It has 2299 higher educational institutions and 40 medical colleges. According to American Physician Statistics, one among ten Physicians in the USA studied at Philippines medical university.

Philippines medical college fees would range anywhere between Rs 12-20 Lakhs for the complete medical course. Even though some of the medical colleges/universities in Philippines have low fees, one should not choose the Philippines medical college only on the basis of the tuition fees. The quality of medical education as well the facilities would also be less when the fees is less.

ADVANTAGES OF STUDYING MBBS IN PHILIPPINES

  The MD in Philippines is recognized and approved as an equivalent course to the MBBS by the MCI (Medical Council of India) who has established and maintain uniform standards of medical education.

·         Philippines medical universities are widely renowned in many countries for the superior standard of education and also have listed in the WHO, IMED and ECFMG medical education directories.

·         Professors in the Philippines universities are coming from different countries, including USA and India who are highly qualified and experienced in the allied field.

·         Philippines medical colleges are regulated by the Philippines ministry of education and that is why Philippines colleges do not have any capitation fees as well as no donations to be paid for enrollment.

·         Another advantage of an Indian student is the climate of the Philippines. Philippines climate varies from 23 °C to 32 °C throughout the year, which is very alike to the Indian climate helps Indian students in settling with no trouble. The other advantage of the similar climate is, people having the same pattern of disease which aids to the Indian students who want to practice in India.

·         There is no any donation required to enroll in Philippines medical college, unlikely to Indian medical colleges.

·         Philippines follows US education system that opens numerous opportunities to make a career in English speaking countries inclusive of UK, USA, Australia, Canada, etc.

·         The English medium of instruction diminishes the barrier of learning the native language and helps to concentrate only on the study.

·         All the medical colleges in Philippines emphasis on practice over theorygive you greater extent of practical experience that helps you during practice.

·         The entire faculty of the Philippines medical colleges is co-operative and ready to help you in every query.

·         As the MBBS degree of Philippines is recognized by MCI, you can practice in India after completing the MCI registration formalities.

·         The MBBS degree of Philippines is recognized by every major country, that proffers you great career opportunity of working in the US, Canada, Australia and other developed countries without any extra course.

·         The living cost at Philippines is very less compare to other along with there is very mere difference in Philippines currency and Indian currency that makes Philippines more affordable.

·         We have a large number of messes and team of Indian chefs to make all the Indian dishes available for Indian students at affordable rates.

·         India and Philippines both have a tropical climate that helps you to quickly adjust to the Philippines climate.

·         Listed on the 12th as the most populous country in the world, hence you will have greater opportunity to practice with a varied and large number of patients.

·         You can easily communicate with patient and a local as the Philippines is the 3rd largest English speaking country where almost 94% of Filipinos speak English.

·         If you are planning to migrate at US, there is good news for you. The student can crack the USLME parts I and II in Philippines only under the guidance of medical professors.

·         Philippines is also renowned country for MD, the students coming from US, UK, Germany, France, Australia, Japan and South Korea is an evidence of it.

·         If we look at the data of past years and today, the number of Indian students enrolling for MBBS in Philippines are drastically increased shows its worthiness.

·         Excellent flight connectivity from India offers easy commutation throughout the year

·         Philippines embassy is very liberal, that means it is easy to obtain a student visa and quick processing of documentation.

·         To study MBBS in Philippines approx 20,000 students enroll every yearthat shows prominence of the Philippines is not only limited to the India.

·         Universities of the Philippines not only prepare for medical practice, but also prepare students for the MCI screening test.

 INDIAN STUDENTS LIFE IN PHILIPPINES

Students who study MBBS in Russia need to manage the extreme weather conditions in Russia. More importantly the diseases which they learn in cold climatic country like Russia is not relevant in Indian context, where the climate is sub-tropical. The percentage of students who clear the FMGE (MCI screening test) from these two countries Russia and China range between 15-20%. But in case of students from Philippines medical colleges, the passing percentage for Foreign Medical Graduate Exam(FMGE) is well above 50% because of similar disease spectrum.

Happiest hostel life

Shopping and Entertainment

Travel

Best college life

Protective Environment

 Philippines Food & Accomodation

Philippines medical colleges provide excellent hostel accommodation for students coming from abroad. The rooms are furnished with every modern amenity. There is the provision of good hostel system with fully furnished rooms, quite study environment as well as recreation center. 

Dormitory rooms at hostel can accommodate 2 or 3 students in a room. Hostels offer the perfect environment for study. Students have access to 24 hour emergency medical services.After witnessing the migration of many Indian students towards Philippines, a lot of local Indian restaurants have come up that offer luscious Indian food. Otherwise, the availability of common kitchen helps the students to cook whatever they like to. Cooking Indian food independently is the best way to enjoy it. Study MBBS in Philippines.

 Philippines Climate

There are four recognized climate types in the Philippines, and they are based on the distribution of rainfall. The Climate of the Philippines is either tropical rainforest, tropical savanna or tropical monsoon, or humid subtropical (in higher-altitude areas) characterized by relatively high temperature, oppressive humidity and plenty of rainfall. Study MBBS in Philippines.

 Philippines Culture

The culture of the Philippines is a combination of cultures of the East and West. Education in the Philippines has been influenced by Western and Eastern ideology and philosophy from the United States, Spain, and its neighbouring Asian countries. Study MBBS in Philippines.

Eligibility for sudying medicine in Philippines

 Aggregate marks of 50% in Physics, Chemistry, Biology

Should have passed in NEET

 TOP RANKING MEDICAL COLLEGES IN PHILIPPINES APPROVED BY CHED AND LISTED IN MCI

 Davao medical school foundation

Lyceum Northwestern University

University of Northern Philippines

Our Lady of Fatima University

UV Gullas college of medicine

University of Santo Tomas

Emilio aguinaldo college

South western university

St Lukes college of medicine

Ama school of medicine

University of Perpetual help system dalta

Cebu doctors university

De la salle University

Pamantasan ng lungsod ng maynila 

Angeles University

Xaviers university

Bicol christian college of medicine

Iloilo doctors college of medicine

San beda college

West visayas state university

University of saint la salle

Silliman university

[shinra-makonoid]

Hey. I don't know if it's still the case, but I know in some earlier posts you had some concerns about transitioning (not cause of the effect but of complications). I had some doubts about that too which is why I delayed it some time. But the more trans people are discussed in public the more I worry it's going to affect some laws in my country. Like I never expected RvW would be turned over so quickly. I try to "console" myself thinking it's just their american system that allows such quick changes but I'm not so sure here. I honestly hoped they would have "more important" stuff to discuss since there is a war going on and still corona...

Are you worried that healthcare related to transsexuality is declining?

I do have my mastectomy in september and a surgeon meeting for the hysterectomy. But even when it's only 2 months I'm scared, also for the following trans people.

I read somewhere online about a trans guy who said something similar and that we was so at ease when everything was "over" for him. That it basically doesn't concern him anymore because worse case HRT can be acquired using different prescriptions. And I know that view is bad but I honestly can't wait that it doesn't concern me anymore.

Do you have any experience with these thoughts, concerns or some advice how to deal with the anxiety?

Sorry for late response.

I have less worries about complications but I still have some. I'm not worried in my own country in regards to declining healthcare related to transsexuality for me. I used to be, because I thought that the swarm of new trans people would make people transphobic and ergo would make it more difficult, and it has been the case mainly in the US and the UK, but I think the language barrier made it pretty difficult to cross there, or maybe we're just a bit late compared to them. I hear about trans people with people I'm stealth with, almost monthly, but usually it's pretty neutral. My most recent example is my raid group talking about someone who changed their name to "Zoe" and it was surprising but overall the person mentioning it was happy that there was freedom to do that now and everyone agreed.

Of course it is polarized online, especially on Twitter, even on the French side, but it doesn't seem to cross the internet barrier just yet, even in political programs, it was mentioned only by a radical left (to provide more access to healthcare to trans people and protect them mainly).

It doesn't exclude the idea that it might become more difficult on the long run, because again as I was saying, I think we're just a bit late to the party but eventually it'll probably get there. However I'm not really worried that much for me, because I'm well surrounded in regards to my healthcare, and considering I have transitioned for some time, there is no doubt in the fact that I'm serious in it. I don't think much surgeon or healthcare provider would look at me and think "hummm this is probably a woman who is confused about her gender" because I have the chance to fit well in society in general as a dude. I am however more afraid for my best friend for example because she doesn't pass that well and that might make things more complicated for her if that happens you know.

"I read somewhere online about a trans guy who said something similar and that we was so at ease when everything was "over" for him. That it basically doesn't concern him anymore because worse case HRT can be acquired using different prescriptions. And I know that view is bad but I honestly can't wait that it doesn't concern me anymore."

I think this pretty much nails down why I'm not too worried, even for top surgery you can claim it's for other reasons (like gynecomastia). Bottom part is harder to really handle for sure, but it impacts such a little amount of trans people to begin with, I'm not sure it would be down right forbidden either, idk.

For the anxiety part, I think that getting away from the internet or living as stealth and regularly seeing that most people don't care much about it and "live and let live" is the thing that reassured me the most to be honest. Despite my fear regarding anesthesia/powerlessness, I cannot deny that surgeons usually know what they are doing and are formed for quite a long time to handle procedures. You can ask questions to them to settle your fears, or even, if you got the stomach for it, watch some procedures on youtube videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GFYPcmPqFA or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEKPz5zuDjc (warning, graphic obviously, it's a surgery). I feel like knowing what exactly is going to happen can settle a bit of the anxiety for me. You can ask them what kind of medicines will be used to check for their specific information (I know I will be doing that), you can ask about the post-operative care, etc etc. I fight against the anxiety with knowledge, because I think that's the best tool we have when we can't really control what's going to happen, and your surgeons know exactly what will happen. And I think that asking your surgeon a lot of questions can also build some trust with them, they are going to handle your body while unconscious, so it's important that you trust them for that! Also, you have to remind yourself that whatever negative feeling you feel a week after the surgery, it might not be the feelings forever, because surgery is a traumatic moment for your body and your mind, and it can be painful and difficult to adjust, but it gets better with recovery. So don't forget to look forward to milestones after your surgery to keep your spirit up if you're struggling a bit.

I hope that helps, if only a bit. Thank you for your message. :) I wish you a good surgery and a happy and fast recovery.

[thelondonfilmschool]

What I wish I'd Known

By Sophie McVeigh

Samuel Johnson may have been right when he said that 'when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life', but that doesn't mean it's without its challenges, and when you move to a big, bustling capital city, it's easy to feel like everybody knows exactly what they're doing except you. With this in mind, we spoke to students past and present to find out what pearls of wisdom they could pass on – about London, about the UK and the London Film School (LFS) itself – to help make the transition that little bit easier.

Head Space

Not everybody finds it easy to work at home, what with the fridge always there to distract you and those cupboards that suddenly need reorganising. Thankfully there are some great spots not too far from school where you can get your homework head on. All of London’s public libraries are free to join and have free WIFI - Charing Cross, Westminster and Holborn are the nearest to school, while the British Library near St Pancras is a great place to feel inspired. A short and Instagram-friendly walk across the river will take you to the BFI library, which is not only peaceful and free to use, but also crammed with so many books on film that the Work and Research Journal will practically write itself.

(Jonathan O’Donnell)

https://www.gov.uk/local-library-services

Photo Credit: Working on the WRJ at the BFI Library, Christina Morelli

Speaking of the Work and Research Journal...

We're at film school, so it's tempting to want to focus ALL our time on our films, but they're not kidding when they tell you not to leave the journal the last minute. Make notes as you go along and your life will be a whole lot easier when it comes to the deadline. Personally, whenever something came up in class that I thought I could use, I wrote a massive WRJ!!! next to it so it was easier to find later in my notes. People get frustrated with the journal when they leave it until the Thursday before it's due, but if you use it as a space for reflection on what you've learnt it can end up being pretty … enjoyable? OK, I won't say enjoyable. Useful though. It's definitely useful.

(Ulla Prida)

Photo Credit: Choose a quiet time for those free BFI tickets, Jackie Mahoney

Free Films!

Also while you’re at the BFI, don’t forget to take advantage of the free cinema access for LFS students. You’ll need your LFS badge, and to get there a good half an hour early to secure seats, but as long as the showing isn’t sold out they’ll be happy to let you in. Hang around at non-peak times and you’re sure to bag a seat. Horror fans, don’t miss the current Stephen King season to celebrate the author’s 70th birthday.

Cheap films!

If that's still not enough silver screen for you, Odeon does a £17.99 per month ‘Limitless’ cinema pass (£19.99 if you include central London), which, if you went everyday, would work out as 58p per film - for trivia fans, that's the equivalent of going to the cinema in 1975. Speaking of bargains, for the annual membership of £7.50, the Prince Charles Cinema just off Leicester Square does weekly £1 members screenings, randomly chosen from a program which includes anything from the latest releases to classic musicals.

http://www.odeon.co.uk/limitless/

https://princecharlescinema.com

(Xiao Tang)

Photo Credit: Don’t forget to make the most of those student discounts, Ulla Prida

Cheap everything!

The National Union of Students (NUS) extra card will get you discounts on everything from pizza to Apple products, and even your supermarket bill. The Unidays app does a similar thing without the £12 annual fee, while the Student Oyster card gets you a third off London transport. Since London has one of the most expensive underground networks in the world, you might want to think about this. If you’re planning on travelling much outside of London, the Young Person’s Railcard also gets you a third off tickets. And don’t miss Amazon Prime’s 6 months free for students.

https://cards.nusextra.co.uk

https://www.myunidays.com

https://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/adult-discounts-and-concessions/18-student

https://www.16-25railcard.co.uk/

https://goo.gl/9UcZ86

Money in the bank

Now that you've made all those savings you're going to need somewhere to keep them. It can take a while to get an appointment to set up a bank account, so you should start trying as early as possible - the further out from zone one (Central London) you go, the quicker it is. You'll need to take a letter confirming your enrolment at the school, signed by LFS. The vast majority of UK banks don't charge you to hold an account and actually give you stuff to attract your custom, so it's worth shopping around for the best deal. The major ones like Barclays, Lloyds, Santander and HSBC are currently offering incentives such as free NUS cards, Young Person's Railcards (see above) and Amazon gift vouchers, as well as the standard interest-free overdraft. Be careful with these though and read the small print – most are only free while you're studying, and you'll be charged interest if you're still in it when you graduate.

Photo Credit: Hidden squares for a picnic near LFS, Jackie Mahoney

Your health is your wealth

In order to get registered with your local GP ('general practitioner', or family doctor), you will need a piece of mail to prove where you live (since GPs serve their local area). Your first official appointment with the GP is then only to fill out the registration info, so if you actually need to start seeing a doctor sooner rather than later, try to make your first TWO appointments at the same time. There are urgent care centres around London where you can go without an appointment if you are having an immediate issue and can't wait for your doctor's appointment, and they do take your NHS insurance but you will need to have your NHS number. If you don't have it, your GP's office can provide it to you at the front desk. In the UK, healthcare is free at the point of delivery, and although we pay £8 per prescription, students can avoid this charge by filling out an HC2 certificate – see below for more information.

www.nhs.uk

https://www.studentmoneysaver.co.uk/article/how-to-get-free-prescriptions-and-check-ups-at-the-dentist/

(Thanks to Braden LuBell for these words to the wise)

All work and no play ...

OK, so now you've got your money and your health covered, it's time to enjoy yourself. Time flies at graduate school and the best way to make the most of it is to throw yourself into whatever opportunities come your way. Whether it's the photography society, script clinic, the running club or volunteering for the SU, taking a break from your work while also widening your social circle is the best way to find people who share your passions that you want to work with. Talk to Emily Marquet, the Student Union's Community Liaison, or if something doesn't exist, start it yourself. Cheese appreciation society, anyone?

(Christina Morelli, joiner-inner extraordinaire)

Photo Credit: Barbecue in Lincoln’s Inn Fields, Jackie Mahoney

And on the subject of food ...

The canteen is a great place to socialise, but sometimes after a morning in Cinema A you want to take those sandwiches outside for a bit of fresh air, Vitamin D and some down time. Of course, in Covent Garden you’ll find an abundance of café terraces, but they’re not always designed for the student budget. Thankfully, within 5 minutes of the school there are some beautiful courtyards to picnic in - some well-known (Neal’s Yard, St Martin’s Courtyard) and some more hidden - Ch.Ramphal Sangwan Park and The Phoenix Garden are two of my favourites. If you feel like stretching your legs even more, a ten-minute walk will take you to Lincoln’s Inn Fields, an unexpectedly lovely park right in the heart of the city, where they even let you barbecue if the mood takes you.

Language barriers

Don't feel bad if, when you arrive at the school, it feels like your English isn't quite as good as everyone else's. This is an international school and we're here to share our influences and inspiration, not our mastering of the present perfect. If you need help, ask, and if you find it difficult at first just trust that after a couple of terms of intense classes, film watching, discussion, socialising and set life you're going to be chattering away like John Oliver.

(Andrea Garcia)

You can stand under my ...

Umbrella. The most important piece of advice I can give you. Carry an umbrella at all times. You might be lucky enough to come from a country where the weather in the morning gives you some indication of what it will be for the rest of the day, or even the next half an hour, but London likes to keep you guessing.

(Sophie McVeigh, who needs to learn to follow her own advice)

What about you? What are your tips for getting the most out of life in London? Share below anything you think new (or current) students would find useful/life-saving.

  

[lukecmurray]

2016 Review

Last year I spent several days (and well over a dozen hours) reviewing 2015. This is a drastic improvement from 2006, when I spent several months reviewing the previous year. But still, the process could be improved. So, I spent about a half-dozen hours going over my process (see my previous post for lessons learned from that) and am going to hopefully finish reviewing 2016 in just a couple of hours. This will be a beast of a post, but should only be a single post. Here’s the structure I’ll use.

Why am I doing this?

Already did this last  year, will just revisit and revise it for this year.

What did i do?

The highlights of what happened in each month, plus how many total checkins I had that month and lessons learned.

Best and worst things that happened.

Will likely be pulled from the above list.

Habits analysis

How much progress did I make with each habit?

Is it still a good habit? (keep/toss/change?)

What are the biggest barriers to crushing it and ideas to overcome those barriers?

Themes analysis

Love

Unplug

Core values

How well did I live them?

Expected vs. Actual

What things did I want to get done, vs. what did I actually get done?

WHY AM I DOING THIS

Last year, I clarified the reasons I spend several hours (and even days) at the beginning of each year going over the previous year in nauseating detail:

Make new/different mistakes

Get more accurate w/goals vs. reality. Get my expectations closer to reality, without lowering my standards or ambitions.

Increase my ability to accomplish goals

To record things, so that I have a sense of having lived, of having “done things”, of having moved forward in my life.

I would still consider these to be accurate, but I would summarize the first three by saying this:

"I do these yearly reviews to tighten my 'wisdom feedback loop'."

I wrote about what the 'unlived life within us' means to me: Decreased clutter and increased clarity. This, I think, is the essence of what wisdom in action looks like. So if I'm a) always making new and mistakes instead of old ones b) shrinking the gap between my expectations/plans and my reality, while c) increasing the difficulty of tasks to which I aspire, then I'm increasing my velocity towards becoming my definition of 'wisdom in action'. Or, tightening the wisdom feedback loop.

I also want to add another reason for doing this: To help others accomplish the same things.

I don't mean that they will have the same goals, but if they have the same reasons, I can help them. I've done this process in increasingly less wrong ways every year since I was 18.  And each 'less wrong' process makes me that much more valuable to people that are trying to do the same.  

Also, I mean this in both a virtual and physical capacity. Nobody reads this blog, so I don't expect that I'll be able to help lots of folks virtually in January 2017, but perhaps months or years from now people may discover it and use it to improve their own process for self improvement.  I'm sitting next to my good friend Mike (pictured above) and he interrupts me every few minutes to ask about how I do x, y, or z and my advice to him is always based in personal experience...based on a lot of wrong ways that I've done these reviews over the years.  Hopefully I can help facilitate more of these in-person sessions and be valuable because of the work I've put in for the past 15 years.

WHAT DID I DO IN 2016?

tried to get into car flipping

got ATLS certified

almost got a job in Owenton ER

broke up a fight in the middle of the street

BL summit

failed to get an in-person personal assistant onboarded

lived in Vegas: iora, boosted board adventures, time w/cousin’s fam

INSIGHTS - this was one of my best months ever and i didn’t bring my cell phone to vegas at all and I stopped at 7pm sharp every day.

clinic, then chief on service

INSIGHTS 

I wrote about being worried to hit a burnout wall after my great January month, and this is what I wrote in the second week of feb "I did hit that wall (screwed around for 2 hrs on thursday PM)...but then recovered and have done okay since, and in the grand scheme of things, that's AMAZING for me (only screwing around for 2 hrs)."  That's how in the zone I was - I complained about 2 hrs.

i turned down a lot of things to stay in the zone - ski weekends, a wedding in Oregon

After one of my best weeks ever in the history of recording checkins: "Why?It wasn't trying harder. It was saying no, keeping my head clear, and getting up really early to knock out all the stuff that I'd usually put off until the end of the day. It feels like a miracle, like I'm a new person. It gives me an insane amount of confidence...So remarkable that the true answer to how to make such dramatic change is basically: do less, say no, cut out the BS...if you do that, all you should be left with is your own voice, and it's plenty wise enough."

chief on service, then clinic

called friends in the evening for awhile

Michelle got sick

Annabelle was born

AMSA speech: Med Students & Adversity

Fancy Nick engagement party #1

INSIGHTS - was getting up at 5am in feb, this got thrown off by a couple days worth of surprises and never recovered. 

Derm rotation, became great friends with Dr. Tobin

last night with Nick as roomate

Nick bachelor party

Nick getting married

took FM boards

delivered baby

South Africa...which included

time in the hospital

going to mosque, buying Quran, time with Uncle

cape point sunset

getting lost on table mountain

run through newlands forrest

robben island/nelson mandela jail cell

rondebosch garden

hiked lionshead

bungee jumped world’s highest

ostrich farm

snowboarded (indoors)

met some cool girls & camped at storms river

INSIGHTS

last year i spent a month abroad and totally fell off the wagon...did incredible by comparison this time. learned from last time.

recording what i did each day really added significantly to the richness of that experience it, because i get to re-experience those memories

Geriatrics, then clinic

Meacham

double date with Dr. Tobin

passed boards

did graduation roast speech, and tried to get drunk

started working out consistently b/c elevated BF % s/p Africa

got UK job

Florida trip to negotiate with landlord

Dale Hollow houseboat trip with Amy’s family

moved into RV, LOTS of time working on it & hosting friends in it

Samuel helped work on the RV, became my friend

family trip down in GA

marriages: Emily Wehrley. Stu Brenner.

INSIGHTS

friends went on a surfing trip to charleston and i turned it down, hard to do, glad i did

“#1 HAVING A MORNING ROUTINE THAT KNOCKS OUT A BIG CHUNK OF THESE <habits> GUARANTEED....I'M JUST TOO ANXIOUS TO INVEST THIS TIME IN THE AM...BUT THAT'S WHAT I SAID IN MEDICAL SCHOOL THAT KEPT ME OUT OF THE GYM FOR YEARS. Wow, i really need to work on controlling anxiety/pressure in the moment.”

went low carb

worked on RV, RV expo

trip to Charleston b/c friend got sick, surfed

started my autobiography

scanned all family photo albums

visited all my old friends

GA visit b/c Melissa back from deployment

Pa visit x 1 wk

INSIGHTS

While in Charleston “it's REALLY hard to steer when you feel pulled all over the place by circumstances. but the consequences of ignoring those circumstances and plowing through are mostly illusory...i could only stop by <the hospital> for one hour 3 times per day and that would be PLENTY of visiting time. i could then spend the rest of the day working by myself”

While scanning photos “why do i feel behind? b/c I am compared to the schedule i made for myself at the beginning of the year. pretty silly to be operating off of a plan you made 6 months ago.”

time with family/grandparents in OR + coast...SUPER quality time

surfing in OR

writing autobio

Spout Springs visit

credentialing for job

pendelton roundup, deck with dad, Bethany visit

garrett NYC proposal trip + Adeel + Chris Salotta visit

INSIGHT

time with gparents was some of the best & most important things I did all year

best month of checkins in ever (4 yrs!!)...not sure why

freaked out about every friend i have getting married/engaged. changed my priority to emotionally fulfilling hangouts instead of caring about ‘romantic relationships’

installed solar panels

autoB progress

started talking/helping Aalap with SignalHealth - DC conference

Such family camping trip

started Curt book

first shift at UK as employee

surf trip to SC with Raney’s

job apps

moved into jenna’s

comedy club with dr tobin

long weekend with DP & friends

ehof - board meeting, event

accomplished my NY resolution!

G life transition meetings

job apps

started Murray Medical, LLC

hurt myself w/flag football

confirmed BIAB project/EHOF book

global entrep week

alejandra x 1 wk, visited everywhere + beaufort

such appreciation dinner

started work at KDMC

INSIGHT

after an 80 checkin week “best week i've ever had in my life. a LOT of it was about saying no to the camping trip this weekend. that was hard, but i'm proud of myself for doing it. also got to practice not feeling sorry for myself by wishing i was somewhere else.”

worked every day at KDMC

Freeda adventures/challenges

brought back 2 people from codes

ski trip with friends at PNS

INSIGHT

Working 34 days in a row was awesome because it created a routine that allowed me to consistently do lots of things (besides work) and improve at a much faster pace in my medical skills & knowledge.

BEST AND WORST OF 2016

BEST

finishing residency & passing boards

not getting a job - was scary, but this provided me the freedom to do lots of other 'life list' important things

having one metric that mattered and tracking that only - doubled down on using coach.me and accomplished my NY resolution for the first time in my life

also...

gave med student adversity speech

Annabelle was born

nick marriage/end of a great roomate run

south africa month

RV - doing what i said

quality time - vegas, grandparents, parents, friends, surfing

WORST

I didn't grow in my romantic relationships as much as i did in 2015 - In 2015 i grew a lot by having the goal to be "terrifyingly honest" in relationships. I didn't push myself to that standard this year and stagnated as a result.

also...

things took longer than I thought - but that was good lesson to learn because it forced me to accept and live by realistic timelines, and because i didn't have a job I could follow all the way through on my plans

RV was more work than expected (example of above) - i first was glad that i spent time getting to know the RV and how to fix things, but i got to the point where i don't care to 'learn' more, i'd rather spend that time being a doctor and use the money made to pay a professional.

i got broke - i coasted on credit cards in the interim between residency and starting a job and got pretty close to 100% broke - but this was also a lesson that was important. things cost more money than you expect and if they are really priorities, then you've got to pay the price, in both time and money.

HABITS ANALYSIS

In my recent post “My Goals for 2017″ I said:

“Last year my goal was to check in to more daily habits on coach.me. And I crushed it. And it had the ripple effect of me crushing a bunch of other areas of my life...when using the 'total number of checkins metric’ I improved 107% since last year and 60% over my best year ever (2013).”

This was the only metric that I tracked week over week. And because of that, for the first time ever, I consistently did week reviews where I knew how far ahead or behind I was from my overall goal (eg on July 1, I should have 1,000 checkins for the year, if I had 1,100 at that point, I would note that I was 10% ahead of schedule). Making this the only metric that I tracked had a positive affect on lots of the parts of my life - most obviously, on each of the areas the specific habit addressed.

So, now I’m going to take each goal and ask:

How much progress did I make?

Is it still a good habit? (keep/toss/change?)

What are the biggest barriers to crushing it and ideas to overcome those barriers?

progress vs 2015: 272 checkins vs 117 checkins. 132% improvement.

I didn't feel like i was growing in this in 2015. I was doing it but didn't feel more calm/mindful throughout the day, which is the whole point. Late this year I downloaded several meditation apps and HeadSpace stood out as far and away the best one.  I've spent at least $100 total at this point and I really am growing in this super important area.  I catch myself (the most important part) getting anxious, frustrated, distracted, etc. and then use the techniques I've learned from this app to get back to calm. Probably the best money I spent all year in terms of its return on my health.

keep/toss/change: definitely keep, continue progress with headspace app

barriers: just making the time, but i'm at a point where i like this enough that it doesn't take discipline. sometimes i do it when i'm tired and don't get much out of it. On those days I should consider doing it twice - the second time when I'm not exhausted.

progress vs 2015: 233 checkins vs 111 checkins. 110% improvement

In 2015 wrote about wanting to feel clear-headed after walking away from a session of reviewing goals & 'visioncasting' and i didn't have a good process for it at the time. Surprising to see that this was still an issue as of the end of 2016. i came up with a system just a couple days ago that will hopefully help with this and i think the reason this will work is because of my improved mental condition/focusing of the mind that came from meditating. Glad to see how long this problem has existed. Should motivate me to solve it this year.

keep/toss/change: keep it as a goal, but changed it as noted above to have some structure

barriers: lack of clarity - which I have now

progress vs 2015: 138 checkins vs 77 checkins. 78% improvement

Posted 60+ things this year, (< 30 last year), did much better, big realization is that this was streaky. Another great example of being able to keep consistent tabs on something because you kept all your data collection in one place (I kept track of all my writing progress on coach.me, including using the notes section to keep track of  when I posted stuff). 

keep/toss/change: I would like to actually start sharing my content somehow. This probably means fiddling with marketing, setting some goals about viewership, but I feel like this might do two negative things: 1. scare me off from writing and 2. change what/how I write.  So will probably at least track viewership or something. 

barriers: none for posting on this blog. Barriers to working on larger projects (book, etc.) are the same that used to (and sometimes still do) keep me from publishing on this blog. Namely: fear. I think the answer for that is writing with friends. Going to try to schedule writing hangouts, even if only brief ones. 

progress vs 2015: 210 checkins vs 80 checkins. 163 % improvement

Goal last year was 200, actual was 80. this year i didn't have a goal but hit 210. Hell. Yes!  Big realization here was starting with one small thing at a time. I went on a streak from august where I added one new thing to my physical health regimen each month, and kept it going consistently until late november, when I got injured playing football, then had a friend visit from out of town for a week, then went on a 34-day straight work assignment away from home. I took January off (though I still had 4 checkins that month + 8 days of skiing, vs my monthly average of 6.7 in 2015) and have been on track 100% thus far this month.

keep/toss/change: change to one small thing I'm doing that month to improve my health. Keep track of it in the notes of exercise. 

barriers: injury (don't play football!).  Simplicity/low bar - adding one small thing per month put me on course to have the best 4 months of physical health progress in years...maybe ever.

progress vs 2015: 153 checkins vs 56 checkins. 173% improvement.

This is a keystone habit. If I do this then everything else goes better. I realized this last year and wrote about how important it was. This year I had the second highest amount of improvement of all my habits (except for eat the frog, which was 193% improvement). I’m super proud of myself for making such amazing progress on this...but it still is the 9th most checked into habit out of 12. As one of the most important habits it should be one of the most checked into. 

keep/toss/change: keep - and double down on it! again!

barriers:  Make sure to identify it when planning the day and checking it off when you do it, even if it’s not a specific action (e.g. if you stayed calm all day).

progress vs 2015: 51 checkins vs 82 checkins. -38 % decrease

I don't have this anymore....but the bigger lesson here is 'what's the thing that causes the background static/stress in your life and what's your process for getting rid of it or ignoring it?'

keep/toss/change: already tossed it, but getting out of my email inbox is my #1 goal for Q1 of 2017 and I'm well on my way. Also, to get rid of the static - my visioncasting format really is helpful in clearing my head to do this.

barriers: I'm addicted to my email inbox. Need to CREATE barriers (and an alternative outlet) to keep me out of it.

progress vs 2015:  113 checkins vs 83 checkins. 36% improvement

i crushed the boards, studying 37 days before taking it (about 83 times the year before total). Totally didn’t deserve that. So no clue what happened there. Then i got a bit lost on what 'studying' made sense. i started with reading a book summary every day, which felt like i was accomplishing something, but none of the content really stuck, even when i reviewed my highlights on the weekends. then changed to tax books, which was awesome bc i wanted to learn that stuff. i still need to nail down what this means and then pick a bite-sized way to chip at it.  I also expect this to change often. I kept track of actual studying vs expected for awhile, which was motivational, as was just hearing that another resident friend of mine was working her ass off. Just hearing her say that she studied 2 hrs per day in addition to her residency duties lit a fire under me.

keep/toss/change: change continually, should be part of planning my day

barriers: lack of clarity on what this means, get rid of it by deciding what it means when i plan my day

progress vs 2015: 348 checkins vs 183 checkins. 90% improvement

Went OFF on this. not sure why other than that it's something you can get away with skipping a day here and there and still check in later. also stopped rating the days - not sure why i did this, other than i couldn't put a number when i tried to think of it. hopefully this is a reflection of an improved attitude and a better acceptance of my life, along with less judgement, which I wrote about on my birthday. 

keep/toss/change: keep, might revitalize the 'today' project, because when I read through my summaries of each day they spark certain memories...but a photo does that so much better.

barriers: none...but might be if I start expecting myself to take a picture.

progress vs 2015: 252 checkins vs 145 checkins. 74% improvement

i've ended up doing this during my 'think about goals' time, which is not when it's supposed to happen. but everything i wrote about this goal last year, applies to this year 

“I’m afraid to do this sometimes, especially if i’m not in bed on time & am tired….because i have to come to terms with all the things i will not get to do tomorrow. But then i end up just feeling sad and like “damn, tomorrow’s going to really suck because i won’t be able to get everything done that i want, and i’m bummed that i didn’t get what i wanted to get done today, too.” Wow, writing that. What a crummy/unintelligent strategy for ending your day.  I HAVE to stop with energy/motivation in the tank so I’ll have the willpower left to accept what has happened that day & decide what i’m going to do the next day…because when I do do this, it really does feel mentally freeing & motivating for getting up in the morning…i literally don’t want to wake up in the morning when I haven’t done this because I just have this ball of vague stress to great me that I feel: “Well, not sure what all this stuff is that i need to do but i know that i’m not going to be able to get as much of it done as i want to and even what i decide to work on i probably won’t get finished which is going to give me a feeling of being even more 'behind’…so yeah - not pumped about this day”. What a terrible cycle of not-awesome!  Glad I articulated the concept of paying the opportunity cost of planning up front.”

 This even happened during my 6 months off, or on days i was truly supposed to be 'on vacation'. the idea of 'i don't want to wake up tomorrow'.  That was a big surprise because i thought it was because of my job. It turns out it was totally because of my attitude - which was affected by my expectations (pay opportunity cost up front) and my energy. I need to manage both of those.

keep/toss/change: keep, but try not to do it until AFTER you've meditated and taken a high level view of your life (visioncasting/reviewing goals) so that you have the right mindset when planning the day.

barriers: my attitude at the end of the day. not wanting to wake up, addressed above.

progress vs 2015: 126 checkins vs 43 checkins. 193% improvement

This was one of the top two most important things on my list to improve from last year...and I did it! This was the most improvement of any of my goals. However, I still have lots of room to get better at this, as it was only the 9th most checked into goal I had. 

keep/toss/change:  keep. duh.

barriers: just having the courage to identify it when planning the day, and then checking it off at the end of the day.

progress vs 2015: 45 checkins vs 18 checkins. 150% improvement 

These were too long and I didn’t have a central place to put them. I changed it and put EVERYTHING in my notes instead of on a spreadsheet or somewhere else and that 100% solved the problem. It kept me keeping track of my progress throughout the year. This little checkin session helped recalibrate me and actually fed my feedback loop. 

keep/toss/change: change to track my 4 goals for the year.

barriers: none. just keep the time expectation down at 10min.

progress vs 2015: 130 checkins vs 68 checkins. 91% improvement

This is a goal that sneaks up on you because the problem is pretty much never solved (my back hurts every day and every night). In retrospect I had an amazing year with it. I was able to sleep on my back for a couple nights in South Africa, was able to stand for significant amounts of time without significant pain, and even let myself be active (i.e. sprinting) to push the boundaries of what’s possible for my back.

keep/toss/change: change by continuing to try new methods and seeing what works

barriers: this is all about minimal time commitment (5-10 min) and building from there, because some of the stretches feel SO GOOD that once I do a few of them I get more into it.

THEMES ANALYSIS

Love

I didn't set the standard of being “terrifyingling honest” so I didn’t get out of (or into situations) fast enough, or at all. 

I also had a breakdown when a bunch of friends got married on the same weekend (felt like I was ‘alone’ or doing something wrong) & redefined what this meant. Ultimately, I’m not worried or ‘empty’ because I’m missing out on physical intimacy, what I’m missing is emotional connection, or interactions that fill my emotional tank. So now that’s what I’m doing - focusing on those kinds of interactions, and turning down ones that are anything less than 8/10 in this respect.

Also, part of this is giving/being selfless and it motivated my goal for this year.

Unplug

I spent time at the cabin and other time just alone, and it was good. Read Deep Work twice. Probably could have said 'no' a little bit more often, especially near the end of the year. Am realizing more and more that this is the ‘answer’ in so many ways. 

CORE VALUES

This is the third year I’ve tried to systematically focus on one core value per week. I didn't do this consistently. I want to give up on it...but so did Ben Franklin. I now have it in my daily visioncasting so I think I'm okay with that. 

EXPECTED VS ACTUAL

At the beginning of the year I listed out what I wanted to happen week to week all year long. It stressed me out once I fell behind this, and I wanted to somehow keep an updated sense of how many iterations happened and what changes were made. I quickly found that keeping track of the iterations was a huge hassle. So this year I’m just trying to book out my calendar really far in advance and chunk it at a high level (i.e. this week I had off and just blocked off “finances/admin” for the week). 

I’ll publish my ‘takeaways’ from this review, as well as things to do differently in 2017 in a later post. 

First Draft: 1/21/17

Published: 3/21/17

Time: 20+ hrs

Image Credit: me, and my buddy Mike Leek

[gadgetsrevv]

Meath Chronicle – Divergence, for its own sake, is what the UK wants

clannad.jpg

I would like to start by saying a few words about the man in whose honour tonight’s lecture is being held, Brendan Halligan . Brendan is the founder of the Institute.

 He could see, back in 1980, when he and a few friends came together to found this Institute, that the European Union was developing fast and that Ireland needed to be an informed participant in European debates, including on issues of no apparent direct interest to our island, on the western edge of the continent.  As he saw it, it was only by understanding the problems of others and contributing intelligently to solving them, that Ireland itself could make sure it got a good hearing in Europe when it needed it. Prior to founding the IIEA, Brendan had been from 1967 a very effective General Secretary of the Labour Party, attracting many bright people of his generation into that party. He became a member of the European Parliament in 1983, and in 1984 was one of the MEPs who voted for the Spinelli Report which called for Federal Union in Europe. This stance earned him severe reproofs from some more cautious elements in his own party but he held his ground.  Brendan is much influenced be  Altiero Spinelli, like him a man of the Left , and colleague in the European Parliament, and I understand from one of the co founders of the IIEA, Tony Brown, that Brendan modelled the IIEA on the  equivalent Italian Institute that Spinelli had founded. In addition to all this, Brendan has been a successful businessman, chairing Bord na Mona for ten years, and he continues to work actively for the development of  renewable energy, a matter of ever increasing urgency.

THE THEME OF THIS LECTURE

The EU is a treaty based organisation. States are entitled to withdraw from treaties. But they are not entitled to so in a way that nullifies the value of other treaties that still bind them. They are obliged to take account of the effect of their withdrawal on neighbouring states. The UK is still bound by the Belfast Agreement of 1998, and the Anglo Irish Treaty that underpins it.   Brexit, in the extreme form contemplated by the current UK government (no customs union and no single market), poses an existential threat to the Belfast Agreement.   Mrs May tried to face up to that contradiction. Her successor, Boris Johnson so far refuses to do so. The Brexit saga will eventually come to an end, somehow or other, and the EU, with or without Britain, will have to face other challenges.  Later on in this address, I will say a few words about these challenges. Notwithstanding its preoccupation with Brexit, Ireland must adopt a proactive approach to all these issues, in its own interests, and in those of the EU.

BREXIT……THE KEY PARAGRAPH IN PRIME MINISTER JOHNSON’S RECENT LETTER TO EU HEADS OF GOVERNMENT

 Mr Johnson told his fellow Presidents and Prime Ministers 

“When the UK leaves the EU and after any transition period, we will leave the single market and the customs union. Although we will remain committed to world-class environment, product and labour standards, the laws and regulations to deliver them will potentially diverge from those of the EU. That is the point of our exit and our ability to enable this is central to our future democracy.”

DIVERGENCE FOR ITS OWN SAKE

This is the most revealing paragraph of HIS entire letter to his fellow leaders The point of Brexit, according to Mr Johnson, is to “diverge” from EU standards on environment, product and labour standards.   This  would mean, in the absence of the Irish  backstop,  that Northern Ireland’s environment, product, and labour standards  will continuously, and progressively over time, diverge further and further away from those of Ireland (as a  continuing member of the EU) and of the rest of Europe.   Significantly, although it has been promoting Brexit for years now, the UK government has yet to say which EU standards it wants to diverge from, and why it wishes to do so.  Most Brexit supporters would have difficulty naming one EU based law that has had an adverse effect on their lives. It is, therefore, reasonable to conclude from Mr Johnson’s letter, that divergence, for its own sake, is what the UK wants. That was not the approach of the May government.  It is important to tease this out. Prime Minister Johnson has said he is committed to the” letter and the spirit” of the Belfast Agreement. Given that the Good Friday Agreement is all about convergence (not divergence) between the two parts of Ireland, and between Britain and Ireland, there is a head on contradiction between  Mr Johnson’s proclaimed commitment to the Belfast Agreement , and his commitment that the UK  will progressively and intentionally diverge from EU standards. The more regulatory divergence there is between the two parts of Ireland, the more border controls or other barriers there will have to be.   On day one, relatively few border controls may be necessary.  But, by day one thousand and one, after the deliberate divergence had been done by the UK, far more border controls will be necessary. By day two thousand and one, in about six years from now, the UK rules and tariffs will have diverged even further from EU ones, and even greater barriers and controls will  then be needed between North and South in Ireland, and between Ireland and Britain.  Nobody knows for sure which present rules or tariffs a future UK, government might change and in what direction.  It is because of this complete uncertainty about the future direction of UK policy that the issue of North/South relations in Ireland, and the compatibility of Brexit with the Belfast Agreement, HAD to be settled upfront, in the Withdrawal Treaty.  Hence the backstop.  Leaving all this over until the wider trade negotiation with the UK, if one is ever concluded and ratified, might have meant that the UK government would never have faced up to the issue. The incompatibility, between the form of Brexit it has chosen and the Belfast Agreement , might have continued to be ignored by UK negotiators.  They would probably have tried to agree everything else, and to leave the inconvenient “Irish problem” off to the very end of the negotiation, in the hope of isolating Ireland.  The issue had to be faced, sooner or later.  It is hard ,and not without risk, to put it to the test now, but it is much less risky than leaving it over until everything else is settled..

THE UK NEGOTIATING STYLE A backstop to cover the whole UK is what is contained in the existing Withdrawal Agreement.  This was requested by the UK but it is the best outcome for Ireland, because East/West trade supports even more jobs in Ireland, than does North/South trade, although both are very important.  For the EU, at this very late stage, to contemplate reverting to a Northern Ireland only backstop would be a significant concession, and potentially a costly one for Irish exporters to Britain.  But does the UK see that ?  I do not think so. When concessions to the UK in EU negotiations are often not recognised by the UK as concessions, and are often just pocketed without a word, and becoming a platform for another demand.  Look at how the UK negotiated on Justice and Home Affairs in the Lisbon Treaty.  Look at the way the” renegotiation” concessions to David Cameron in 2016 were ignored in the subsequent UK Referendum debate.  In fact some of those concessions would have been damaging to the EU and it is good that they are gone..  Exempting the UK from the commitment to ever closer union of the peoples of Europe would have been used as a precedent by populists in other states, and the suggested “Red Card”  would have gummed up the EU legislative process, making the completion of the Single Market impossible.

HOW BREXIT WAS DECIDED….THE MEANING OF DEMOCRACY

Brexit arose from a referendum in the UK in 2016, in which the larger populations in England and Wales were able to outvote the smaller populations in Scotland and Northern Ireland, who favoured remain. There are two democratic principles at play here, consent, and respect for minorities.  Mr Johnson’s own letter refers to  “respect for minority rights” and to “consent”  The majority of people in Northern Ireland voted against Brexit, but their wishes are to ignored because a majority in the wider UK voted for Brexit.. One of the fundaments of democracy is that governance should have the consent of the governed.  The people of Northern Ireland have not “consented” to Brexit, or to the new barriers, controls, and costly bureaucracy that flow from it.  And one of the fundaments of a successful union between different nations is a decision making process that shows respect for minorities and smaller nations. The process by which Brexit was decided in the UK did not pass these tests. As any football fan knows , the UK encompassed four nations,  England,  Scotland,  Wales and  Northern Ireland.  Brexit had the consent of the voters of England and Wales, but it did not have the consent of the voters of Northern Ireland, nor of Scotland.  The purely majoritarian Referendum allowed two of the UK’s nations to overrule the other two. That would  not happen in our European Union. Brexit, no matter what way it may now be implemented, will change the status of Northern Ireland, and will do so without the consent of the people living in Northern Ireland. 

WHAT IS THE ESSENCE OF SOVEREIGNTY?  In his recent letter to his fellow EU Heads of Government, Prime Minister Johnson claimed that the Irish backstop is inconsistent with the “sovereignty” of the UK as a state.   All international agreements impinge on sovereignty.  But the sovereignty of a state primarily consists in its having a monopoly on the use of force within its territory. The backstop does not diminish UK sovereignty in that way.  By joining the EU in 1973, the UK agreed to pool aspects of its sovereign rule making authority with other EU member states. It entered into a succession of EU Treaties on that basis.  While  it was always possible  in international law for the UK  to renounce these Treaty commitments, as it is now doing,  the UK was, and is, obliged to take proper account of the effect  this has on other parties to the Treaty. After all, these other EU states, including Ireland, acted in good faith on the basis that these shared EU Treaty commitments would continue to be adhered to by the UK.  Ireland acted on that assumption when it changed its constitution to facilitate the Belfast Agreement it made with the UK in 1998.  It is the UK that is now taking the initiative to renounce the EU Treaties, so it is for the UK to take the primary responsibility for finding a way to reconcile that renunciation with the other Treaty commitments it has made, notably  its legal Agreement  made in Belfast in 1998. That is how international relations work, and why renouncing Treaty commitments is a rare occurrence.  Unfortunately, the UK never faced up to that responsibility.  That was a failure of statecraft on the part of the UK, and of the UK alone.

THE IMPORTANCE OF RULES IN INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE

Adhering to Treaty commitments is usually in a state’s self interest.  This is because, in international commerce, rules are important. That is a commercial and political reality.  Without shared rules or understandings, commerce would be impossible.  The EU is an engine for  + making rules democratically,  + enforcing them consistently and  + interpreting them uniformly.  I do not think these realities of international commerce were explained to the UK electorate by their leaders over the last 40 years, which is why the English and Welsh electorate fell for the Brexit delusion..  Mr Johnson claimed in his letter “The Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement neither depends upon, nor requires, a particular customs or regulatory regime.“ That is true, but disingenous.  At the time the Agreement was negotiated, both the UK and Ireland were in the same customs and regulatory regime….that of the EU.  That was taken for granted, and did not have to be made explicit in the Agreement. In any event in 1998, if there was in fact a possibility of the UK leaving the EU, it would have been the responsibility of the UK to have brought that up in the Good Friday negotiations.  It did not do so, and, to the best of my knowledge, the Conservative official opposition,  did not bring it up either.  If they had done so, it would have been a very different negotiation.  Prime Minister Johnson goes on “The broader commitments in the Agreement, including to parity of esteem, partnership, democracy and to peaceful means of resolving differences, can be met if we explore solutions other than the backstop.” This is a strangely vague  statement to make, barely a month away from the 31 October deadline.  No solid proposal, just “possibilities” and “explorations”.  Not good enough, I now need to pose the following question.

DOES MR JOHNSON WANT TO CREATE NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR SMUGGLING AND THE ACTIVITIES FINANCED BY IT?

Mr Johnson’s letter says

“This Government will not put in place infrastructure, checks, or controls at the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland. We would be happy to accept a legally binding commitment to this effect and hope that the EU would do likewise.” This reads to me like a straightforward attempt by a UK Prime Minister to destroy the EU Single Market.  He seems to want the EU to legally bind itself not to enforce its own rules at its own borders. If neither side enforce their rules, this will create want a “no man’s land” in the vicinity of the Irish border, where no controls or checks would apply.  This is an open invitation to criminal and subversive organisations, who have financed themselves in the past by smuggling.  Brexit will create a whole new set of opportunities for smuggling and consequently for the financing of subversive organisations  Given that one such, smuggling financed , criminal organisation attempted to murder one of his predecessors as Conservative leader, one would be forgiven for thinking that Boris Johnson has not studied the history of his party closely enough. At the moment, the only products where there are big price differences on either side of the border are fuel ,alcohol and tobacco. And there are huge revenue losses to legitimate traders and to the state on both sides of the border because of highly organised smuggling by criminal organisations. I reckon the losses are as much as £200 million, without Brexit. Imagine what it will be like after a hard Brexit, in the absence of a backstop.  There will be hundreds of new products where there will be progressively ever greater price differences on either side of the Irish border, due to different rates of tariff and different standards. A whole new set of opportunities for smugglers will thus be created, on top of the opportunities they are already exploiting.  The opportunities for smugglers will  probably be trebled, thanks to a UK policy of deliberate divergence from the EU, in the event a hard Brexit without a backstop. It would be downright irresponsible, in last weeks before this fateful decision may be made, to fail to highlight these foreseeable consequences of a hard Brexit. Of course the smugglers are criminals, and they must be treated as such. But to counter them, the burden placed on policing services on either side of the border will increase exponentially, and  scare police resources will have to be diverted from  dealing with conventional crime.  For a UK government to go out of its way to create new opportunities for smugglers by insisting, on the basis of some high principle of not having an Irish backstop, is irresponsible. This is a truth that must be stated..

WHY CHECKS ARE NEEDED TO PROTECT THE SINGLE MARKET To sum up, in the event of Brexit without a backstop,controls  and checks on the goods and services that may cross EU borders will be essential .  This is because  +  the UK has said it will to make trade deals, with different rates of tariffs,  and/or different quality standards for goods and services to the ones applied by EU, and +  the UK has decided it will  increasingly diverge from EU environmental , product, and labour standards. If it fails to protect its Single Market, the EU will not be able to continue to lead the world in setting higher standards to protect the climate, and to protect the privacy of the data of its citizens.  That is why the EU cannot allow its nearest neighbour, and recently departed member, to undercut its standards with impunity. The requirements to be fulfilled by Ireland, as part of the EU Customs territory, at its borders and its ports, are set out  clearly and in immense detail in the EU Customs Code.  The Code was adopted in October 1992 by Council Regulation 2913/92, with full UK participation.   It requires the uniform application of the Code across the entire customs territory of the EU.  The UK knows full well what Ireland will be legally obliged to do as a continuing member of the Single Market and Customs Union. The fact that Mr Johnson has invited the EU not to enforce its own rules, raises the suspicion that he would like to the EU to dissolve itself altogether !

THE SINGLE MARKET We must defend the integrity of the EU Single Market, at the borders of the European Union and throughout its territory.  Ireland must be seen to be, fully compliant with EU Single Market rules. Otherwise Ireland’s geographic position will be used against it by competitors for the investment. The EU Single Market is not complete. There is much more to do. An April 2019 Study “Mapping the Cost of non Europe” estimated that      + completing the  classic single market would add  713 billion euros to the EU economy.      + completing Economic and Monetary Union would add a further 322 billion, and         + completing a digital single market a further  178 billion euros.   A more integrated energy market would save a further 231 billion and a more integrated EU approach to fighting organised crime would be worth 82 billion.  Cross border VAT fraud is costing 40 billion. These are some of the reasons why we must complete the Single Market. Services account for three quarters of EU GDP.   But  we have been very slow in creating a single EU market for services.   In the field of Services, only one legislative proposal had been adopted during the term of the outgoing Commission, a proportionality test for new regulations on professions.  All other proposals are blocked.  I think that a major obstacle is vested interests in national or regional governments, who do not want to give up power. By completing the Single Market, the EU can show that it has much more to offer to the world than a post Brexit Britain.  The European “Single Market on the Liffey” can will deliver more consumer benefits than “Singapore on  the Thames” . To help complete the Single Market, Ireland should be open to qualified majority voting on energy and climate matters.  We should also be open to carefully defined individual amendments to the EU Treaties if they can be shown to the public to deliver real benefits.

A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The existing Withdrawal Agreement protects UK environmental, product and labour standards, in a way that a mere Trade Agreement will never do.  In any trade negotiation with a post Brexit Britain, maintaining a level  competitive playing field will be vital.  No subsidies, no cartels, and no undercutting of EU standards must be insisted upon.

A CLIMATE TARIFF? President Elect Von der Leyen has suggested a border Adjustment tax to penalise imports that have been produced at the cost of excessive carbon emissions.  The intellectual argument for such a tax is a good one, but it will be provocative in the present fraught international trade atmosphere.  Perhaps an adjustment of the VAT rate to take account of the emissions intensity of various products could be designed. It could be applied to domestic as well as imported products and services of all kinds.  It would be more comprehensive than a Carbon Tax and would put the EU in the lead in the battle against climate change.

THE RISE OF CHINA China is returning to the dominant position it held in the world economy in the two millennia up to 1800.  It is doing this on the strength of its human capital, not its physical capital. It is educating more engineers that the US and the EU combined.  It is doing it through its competitive and  innovative firms, not through its monopolistic state enterprises.  It is ahead of everyone in 5G communications, at the time the world economy is becoming ever more digital.  If the US thinks it can use trade policy to arrest Chinese development, it is probably making a mistake.  But the US is right to insist on fair competition. China must be treated in the WTO as a developed country, and not get concessions intended for much poorer countries. In its response to the Chinese challenge, the EU should maintain its robust competition policy and should not try to pick industrial winners from Brussels. Europe would be much better placed to defend its own interests, and to act as a balancing power in the world, if the euro functioned as a global reserve currency.  To achieve that, we need to create a Capital Markets Union and complete the Banking Union.  The Eurozone must have a capacity to cope with localized shocks and to prevent contagion.  We need viable proposals for a eurozone wide reinsurance of bank deposits, and eurozone wide reinsurance  of the unemployment  benefit systems of member states..

CYBERSECURITY Global trade disputes are becoming increasing entangled with arguments about security.  The EU is not a military power. But it does have interests to defend, notably in the field of cybersecurity.  Ireland’s island status may have inured it against conventional military threats,  but  it offers no protection against cyber attacks.  The European Network for Information Security should have active Irish participation.  The EU must develop joint capabilities to counter cyber attacks.

THE RULE OF LAW There is an erosion of the basic tenets of the rule of law in some EU member states. This takes two forms…a weakening of the separation between the judiciary and the executive, and a weakening in the effective administration of justice.  We cannot contemplate taking in new member states until we are satisfied we can have full confidence in the rule of law in all existing members.  The Commission must be non partisan and objective in pursuing member states that are falling below acceptable standards in respect of the rule of law. The European Court of Justice is the place where the rule of law can best be vindicated.  The Commissioner for Justice should show neither fear nor favour in making proposals for remedial action.  He should have the sole right to make such proposals, should do so publicly, and while the College should be free not to accept his proposal, it should have to publish its reasons. 

EU WIDE DEMOCRACY  It is over 40 years since the first European Parliament election.  While the  EP elections are hotly contested, the contests are often really about national issues.  A genuine EU wide debate does not take place, because the elections are confined within in national constituencies. An EU “polis” or public opinion has not been created. In her political guidelines for the 2019-2024 Commission, President elect Von der Leyen commits to strengthening EU democracy.  She says she wants to strengthen the Spitzenkandidat system, and to address the issue of transnational lists in European Elections.  I hope she is true to her word. My own view is that the President of the Commission should be elected separately from the Parliament using a system of proportional representation (PR).  The Spitdenkandidat system failed for many reasons, not least the fact that it was to be a winner take all contest without any proportional element to reflect the preferences of the whole electorate. It will be difficult to introduce transnational list without reducing the number of MEPs elected on a national basis. But it should be done.

CONCLUSION As you can see, we have a very busy few years in front of us in the EU. As Greece was for many years, Ireland may soon be cut off  from the rest of the EU by the territory of a non member. We will be a frontier state, never a comfortable position in international relations.  We will need to work harder than ever before to overcome the barriers that may be placed in our way.  We will need our network of friends around  the world more than ever before, and that is why the Brussels branch of the IIEA will be more important than ever before! We will also need to be assertive in protecting our interests, but to do so in the context of a strong pro European philosophy. Thank you!  

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Four Decades Later: An Interview with Rick Friedman | SLR Lounge Artist Feature

Our “SLR Lounge Artist Feature” articles highlight some of the very best photographers in the world. This article features award-winning photographer Rick Friedman of Rick Friedman Photography (Boston, MA). Rick has been a photographer for going on four decades, getting his start in photojournalism in the mid 1970s. We recently met Rick while hanging out near the Tamron booth at WPPI 2019, and got to know him a bit further over a few emails and phone calls. So, what’s Rick up to in 2019? Well, read on and be inspired by a true master of photography, lighting, and story telling!

[Related: “Interview with Kate Woodman | SLR Lounge Artist Feature (NSFW)”]

Thanks so much for taking the time for an interview, Rick. Could you start out by talking a bit about how you got into photography?

When I got out of college, I was working as a teacher and got a part time job working at a camera store in Harvard Square [mid 1970s]. Soon after, they offered me a full-time job, and I didn’t go back to teaching. A couple people that would come into that store had a big influence on me and my career. One was George Riley, who worked for UPI (United Press International). George was always willing to teach any young photographer the trade, as long as they were willing to put in the time.

The other person was Arthur Grace, who, at the time, was working for Time. But it was really George Riley who taught me how to be a photojournalist. And, more and more, I began working for UPI on a regular basis.

By a fluke, I went and took a photograph of Arthur Fiedler, long-time conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra. On a whim, I went and rang his doorbell. I asked if I could photograph him, and he said I could. It was the fist time in 50 years that he would not be conducting on July 4th. I took a roll of black and white for UPI and a roll of Ektachrome, but no one was interested in the color. Undaunted, I called Black Star, and they were interested. Now, at that time, you mailed in the film. You didn’t develop it. You overnighted it. Unfortunately, Mr. Fiedler passed away while the film was in transit. Of course, everyone called me back and wanted the film, but Black Star had it. And from there, I suddenly had a connection at Black Star.

My first real assignment for Black Star was to cover Pope John Paul II coming to the US. And that was the beginning of a twenty-eight-year relationship with Black Star. All done on a handshake. What a nice way to do work, right? Within a short time, I was also regularly doing assignments for Newsweek. And I am still an active photojournalist today, currently represented by Polaris Images.

You’ve covered several presidents and are still covering politics. How has the landscaped changed? What’s a piece of advice you’d give someone looking to cover politics as a photojournalist?

Well, from the very beginning, I loved covering early presidential campaigns. You quite simply have more access. It’s before the motorcades, the crowds, Secret Service, and all the security.

When I first started, I did a little bit with Carter and did a lot on the Reagan v. Bush campaign. My first Newsweek cover was actually when Reagan won the New Hampshire primary. I was on assignment to cover Bush. After Reagan won, I photographed Bush’s speech and then drove from Manchester to Concord, dumped my car in a snow bank and ran into the room, setting up 15 minutes before Reagan’s speech. I got a photograph of Reagan that made the cover of Newsweek.

Of course, today, you can’t do that. You can’t just walk into the room 15 minutes before a high-profile politician is about to speak. It’s unheard of. But yeah, it’s the access that you have early on that makes it fun. When they’re campaigning in a bar with twenty people, for example …

And as far as advice? Be nice. When you are covering a campaign early on, introduce yourself to everyone, especially security and police. Because when access is restricted or they’re only allowing in three photographers? They’ll remember you and let you in.

You have photographed quite a few celebrities, and also regularly photograph professors from local universities. That’s a diverse, and very interesting, clientele for head shots. How do you make that happen, i.e. get a celebrity to be comfortable with you or relate to a professor who is an expert in area with which you aren’t familiar?

When you deal with celebrities, you, of course, get a ‘Do and Do Not List’ from their people. For Anthony Hopkins, for example, the entire ‘Do Not List’ was simply that I couldn’t have anyone on set who wasn’t working. We spent an hour with him, telling jokes, etc. In preparation, I watched several of his earliest movies. And I asked him, because I was wondering about it, if he ever went, wearing a disguise, to see how people reacted to his movies when he first started out. He said he didn’t have to wear a disguise, because no one knew who he was! He couldn’t have been nicer.

Basically, my rule is to know everything I can about a subject before I photograph them. You have to be able to talk to your subjects/ask them a question about what they do. It accomplishes a couple of things. First, it breaks down any barriers. Second, it helps them relax, because it shows them that you care enough about what they do to learn something about it.

And it’s similar with professors. I photographed, as another example, a professor of physics, where I had 15 minutes to photograph her. In fact, I had been reading up on physics for three days in advance of the session: textbooks and some work on string theory, which was her area of expertise. I asked a few questions, and she asked how long I’d been studying physics. I told her three days, and our 15 minutes became an hour. And then we had lunch.

So, that’s how you get through to a subject. Realistically, anyone can buy a camera and push a button. Not everyone knows what to do with their subject to create a photograph …

You’re well-known for your lighting workshops, and your Location Lighting Workshops in particular. What are a few of your go-to lighting tips for lighting “on location”?

First, know your lighting equipment.

Second, do your best to plan everything out in advance, so you are ready for any possible situation.

Third, know how to control your light and plan what light modifiers you might need. For example, I will often mix speedlights and portable studio strobes. For speedlights I use Nissin Flashes. In the studio I use Dynalite, and on location I use Dynalite Baja portable strobes.

On major shoots, I will bing several sizes of soft boxes, strip lights, grid sets, gobos, and, of course, my Sekonic flash meter. If I am using speedlights, I’ll bring Rogue Flashbender XL2 and Rogue Grid sets. I also work a lot using Rosco gels and cinefoil. On some shoots the gels become a major part of the final photograph, and, other times, I might just use a 1/2 CTO (orange filter) to bring out warm highlights in the hair …

The photograph above is a good example of a quick lighting set up. The model in the photograph is my former assistant Hyunah Jang, who is now a successful photographer in the San Francisco area. And that’s the basis of what I teach in my Location Lighting Workshops, I teach across the US and UK.

Likely, most photographers reading this interview are wondering how you are still rocking it some 40 years later? It’s impressive! So, can you give us your secret?

It’s fun. I love the challenge of all the different kinds of work I get to do. I could be covering the President one day, a noted scientist or professor the next, and then be off on a travel story overseas. Truly, I have the best job in the world. I get to jump in and out of people’s lives. I describe it like this: I have gotten my college education one hour at a time, from some of the greatest minds in the world.

And one last question, Rick! Who and/or what companies are you working with that make your job that much more enjoyable?

First off, I have a wonderful photography partner (pictured above). Her name is Keiko Hiromi, and we’ve been working together for 15 years now, even though she is an award-winning photographer in her own right. As far as companies and products, I only have relationships with companies whose products I actually use and have used for years. I am very proud to represent Tamron as an official Tamron Ambassador, and with Rosco, I created the Rosco Location Lighting Kit by Rick Friedman. I also work with the following companies that I didn’t mention in the interview already: Click Props Backdrop, ExpoImaging, Hoodman, LensBaby, Mindshift, PocketWizard,  and ThinkTank Photo.

You can check out more of Rick Friedman’s work on his website. Also, be sure to connect with him over on Facebook and Instagram as well. Finally, you can learn more about his upcoming education events and lighting workshops here, including the Can Am Photo Expo (Buffalo, NY, from April 26-28, 2019), a Tamron Benefit Seminar for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life  (Commack, NY, May 2, 2019), and his next Location Lighting Workshop at Cardinal Camera in (Lansdale, PA, May 4, 2019).

Thanks for checking out our latest artist feature! Quick reminder before you go! Don’t forget to submit by the April 30 deadline to be considered for SLR Lounge’s April 2019 awards competition. Remember that anyone can sign up for an SLR Lounge account for free and submit. However, Premium Members are able to submit up to three photographs each month!

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[sharonchteh]

~31st January 2019~

Leaving El Chalten with a heavy heart as we drove away from one of the most identifiable mountain range. While looking longingly towards the mountain, I was thinking of how I could spend a couple of months here without spending my entire savings.

We had a few camping nights to look forward to before we reach Buenos Aires. It was a long drive before we reached a nice seaside town, Puerto San Julian, where we camped in a municipal campsite. It’s a cute little place with a beach and a promenade for walking and jogging. It was pretty much dinner, sleep, breakfast and on the road again.

~1st February 2019~

Long drive days are a killer to the body, so most people tend to just sleep or unintentionally dozed off. The next municipal campsite was in Camarones, a relatively long drive and I can see that everyone was getting a bit tired it. Overlanding with a large group of people was becoming my least favourite things to do.

Once we were at the campsite, it was routine to put up the tent then dinner and bed. There was excitement in the air that night because we’ll be visiting a penguin colony the next day before we head over to Puerto Madryn.

~2nd February 2019~

Breakfast was nice and early so that we were ready when the guide for the penguin colony arrived. The guide was a nice lady looked like she’s near retirement or retired and decided to educate people about the penguin colony as a guide. She spoke Spanish only, so Oli did the translating for us with Kylie helping from the truck cab.

The colony lives within a protected national park for wildlife like guanacos, hares, armadillos, rheas and many others apart from the penguins. There were broadwalks where the penguins lives, allowing visitors to get closer to them without getting in their way of life.

The penguins are cute and seemed so familiar with the presence of people around them. They just get on with their daily grind of digging out a home, protecting it and waddle to the beach to go fishing for food. We stayed there a while, enjoying the wildlife around us, the walk and being out of the truck.

On the way back, we were able to sit on the roof seats again to enjoy the surroundings. It was great to see people in other vehicles that passed us waving and looking in amazement of the truck. We dropped the guide back at the campsite and continue with our journey to northwards to Puerto Madryn.

We visited the travel agency on the way into town and arranged activities for the next day. It’s a large seaside town with everything you expect such as restaurants, ice cream stalls, beach bars, travel agencies, beach sports and a lot of people.

It was quite late and dinner was cooked in the dark so was putting up the tent. I saw that the campsite was busy and there were a couple of mini parties going on, I kinda knew it was going to be a restless night.

~3rd February 2019~

The campsite is on the edge of town so I thought it’ll be a bit quieter, nope! That didn’t help when people partying till the early morning on the campsite with no rules visible for partying till late night.

Most of us are heading off to do snorkelling to see the sea lions. The tour office kitted is out with two layers of wetsuits that seemed too tight and wet shoes. We were led out o the office towards the beach to board the boat used to take us out to sea. It didn’t take us long to get to the location where the sea lions were but still, a few people were getting a bit sick from the motion of the boat.

We were further kitted out with hoods, fins and snorkels before jumping into the water. It was great to be so close to the sea lions but none were interested in playing that day. Instead, they were just lounging on the rock sunbathing and stretching out to chill. The sea was a bit rough that morning and even though I know I can swim pretty well with fins, I was staying near the guides and floats.

On the way back, there were some green faces that looked like they were ready to empty their stomach at any time and one finally did when we were back on the beach. It was then a race to get the wetsuits off so that we could go to the loo. What a relieve to make it?!

The rest of the day was just chilling out with few people lunching and bar hopping. We met a lovely artist backpacking with a puppy, looking for a ride out of town so that she could hitchhike to Buenos Aires. I knew the answer would be no on our truck for many reasons yet some thought it would be possible. I saw the disappointment in her face when she was given a no on the lift out of town.

The truck was broken into when it was parked at a supermarket for cook group shopping. One of the bags got stolen was mine with laptop and money in it. It was fortunate that someone saw what was happening and called the police. The thieves didn’t manage to go through any of my stuff so everything was still in the bag. I’ve learnt a few things from this incident about myself and a few other facts that I have to keep in mind for the rest of the trip.

~4th February 2019~

We’re camping for the last night for this leg of the trip from Santiago to Buenos Aires then hotel in the city where the next trip starts for Rio de Janeiro. It was the usual routine in the morning, all packed and hit the road for a long drive day.

Our campsite for the night was in Bahía Blanca en route to Buenos Aires. The campsite with a pool but the facilities would make you cringe, that’s how I remembered it. Oh…I was more than happy to skip the shower when I peeked at the cubicle.

For the first time I felt like I’m supposed to be somewhere else doing something else. Restless, that’s the word. I’m restless and the world around me suddenly felt foreign because there’s no purpose of me being there. Made me think and force me to focus on why I’m on this trip in the first place.

After a quiet evening to myself, tiredness seeped in and I fell asleep like a baby. My brain probably had enough by then.

~5th February 2019~

Buenos Aires, this was the first time I was looking forward to a city. Perhaps it’s a transition between two trips which will give me time to get my head together before the start of the trip to Rio de Janeiro.

Another long drive day and we were all too familiar with the routine stops for loos and refreshments. When we reached the city, everyone was happy to be checking in to a hotel to recoup from all the camping we did. Roomie with Emma, finishing the trip how we started by sharing a room.

Dee, Emma and I went out for a simple dinner that night then back to the hotel for a good night sleep.

~6th-8th February 2019~

There were a few things I needed to do in BA before we start heading to Uruguay. First thing first was to get my yellow fever vaccination for Brazil then see the city. It was easy enough to get it but the language barrier made it a bit tricky.

So, I went to the clinic early in the morning on the 6th and they told me I must have a prescription from the doctor. They recommended a doctor for me, gave me the wrong address and direction but lucky that I managed to find it. I had to pay for the prescription and it was still cheaper than getting it in the UK. When I went back to the clinic with the prescription, they told me I had to come back the next day midday for the jab. So I went back, paid a small charge and all done within 15mins.

The rest of the time in BA was spent exploring and scheming to do ‘not touristy’ things, which was hard. Walking around the different sectors in the city to get a feel of the cultures and history. To start was a free walking tour after visiting the clinic, then I was looking for something fun to do to end this spell of being tired of cities. Since I had to be back at the clinic at a certain for my jab, I planned to go to Recoleta cemetery and do a fun task of finding and taking photos with cartoon characters around Puerto Madero area.

On the way to the cemetery there is a beautiful bookstore on Av Santa Fe called El Ateneo Grand Splendid that certainly worth visiting. A converted theatre with its stage is now a coffee shop, the features preserved and lined with bookshelves. There was still a feel of the grandeur of a theatre but a bit less than I expected. Now Recoleta cemetery is one impressive place to visit. I love cemetery for its peacefulness (apart from the tourists) and it reminds me how fragile and temporary life is.

I appreciate the present because I knew death from a young age and the Ripper felt like an angel looking after me since father passed away. My closeness with death at times is questionable but the introversion reflective state of mind helped me stay in the present, appreciating the moments I have and live the life. I was wondering whether the feeling of contentment and fulfilled life might be temporary and it’ll just dissipate as I travelled the continent. It didn’t happen. Being in the cemetery reinforced that and if the Ripper decides that it’s my time to go then it’s time to go, hopefully in a peaceful state as father did years ago.

It was a nice stroll from the cemetery to Retiro area and back to the clinic before going off on a hunt for cartoon characters. When I crossed the bridge to port area, the scenery reminded me of Dublin with new buildings lining the canal. Once I found the first cartoon character, it was the thrill of the chase for the rest of them that kept me going. It was a fun non-touristy thing to do, something different from the normal sight-seeing and I have photo evidence of it all!

Buenos Aires…saying goodbye to some of the quirkiest people I’ve ever met and the start of the last leg of this journey around Latin America. Travelling with 22 other people taught me a lot about myself and behaviour in general. BA to Rio, there were 13 of us plus Kylie and Steve (Lewis left us for Santiago to do another trip to Ushuaia). The dynamic changed again with people leaving and joining the group.

Next stop, Colonia where we crossed the border to Uruguay.

Argentina: Puerto San Julian-Buenos Aires ~31st January 2019~ Leaving El Chalten with a heavy heart as we drove away from one of the most identifiable mountain range.

[toomanysinks]

Blockchain is solid, in that there is no liquidity

The quality of a financial market is driven by liquidity. Companies want to list on the NYSE, because that’s where the most financial investors in the world are located, and the thicker the market for investors, the better the valuations for companies. The NYSE has “problems” though — its closed most hours of the week, for instance, because humans are lazy, and it has a bunch of rules on what can be listed and how.

So blockchain! Blockchain solves this liquidity problem by allowing traders to operate 24/7, sell assets immediately, yada yada yada. All the stuff that’s been talked about ad nauseam the past few years.

I wanted us to get a better feel for the real liquidity of blockchain technology, and so we had Extra Crunch contributor Galen Moore crunch the numbers. And, my god, these markets are about as liquid as my dining room table.

In his analysis of security token offerings, Moore finds that liquidity can be measured in dollars a day. As in, sometimes there is someone, somewhere that wants to trade a token, but it isn’t all that often! For BCAP and SPICE, there are days that had no liquidity at all despite millions in purported market value.

It’s straight out of my market microstructures textbook that I used to read before going to bed. When you have lightly-traded assets, you want to build a market that concentrates trades in that asset into tight windows, in order to increase the thickness of the market. These securitized tokens would do better with an hour of trading per week when more buys and sells could be matched together, rather than the current model of no one trading ever.

We talk a lot about the user story from a utility token perspective, but we also need to talk about the user story from an investor perspective. Markets are sort of the classic case of network effects. Blockchain technologies are great and I am a “believer” for whatever that means, but if you are going to run a market, there has to be a crowd that shows up — or there is no market.

Why can’t we operate anything?

Leadinglights via Getty Images

The Wall Street Journal had a great piece yesterday on the travails of Amtrak, which in addition to being an actual business, needs to get approval from Congress to make operational changes (and you think your board is tough). If you thought we couldn’t build anything, wait until you see how little we can operate anything as well.

This story has everything:

Train nostalgics want Amtrak to continue running unprofitable, long-distance routes daily

Congressmen with rural stops want unprofitable routes to continue serving stations that essentially have no passengers

Unions are opposed to removing dining cars on trains that operate over short distances

Private rail owners don’t want more frequent service because it makes scheduling freight trains more complicated

Amtrak’s entire long-distance fleet has aged and needs to be replaced, but no one can agree on what configuration new train sets should have

Even so, Congress wants Amtrak to become more financially solvent (!)

And so you get to this fact:

Amtrak’s long-distance routes carried about 4.5 million riders in fiscal 2018, down slightly from the previous year. Amtrak reported an adjusted operating loss of $543 million on those routes in 2018, more than offsetting the $524 million in earnings coming from its operations on the Northeast Corridor.

Long distance passengers are just 15% of Amtrak’s total, but hold the company hostage.

We have an infrastructure obsession over here these days, but it’s not just planning and construction that matters — how we operate infrastructure is even more crucial for preserving the quality of the user experience. As Amtrak makes clear, the kinds of sprawling debates that plague the planning process come up just as often in operations.

Quality news from around the web

Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Google Policy “Reorg”

Dave McCabe at Axios got the scoop yesterday that Google is re-organizing its policy wing. The details are vague and don’t portend huge changes to its model. One interesting note is that the shop will be called “Government Affairs and Public Policy” instead of just “Public Policy,” indicating that Google clearly sees a need to lobby more forcefully on its behalf than it has in the past. The company will also bolster regional teams, which seems critical in emerging markets like India and Indonesia, where massive elections this year threaten to rapidly change the policy environment for large foreign tech companies.

Two internets is increasingly the reality at the protocol level too

We’ve talked a lot about the splitting of the internet into internets due to content firewalls and barriers to competition in the tech sectors in countries like China, India, and elsewhere. Another dynamic is that the very protocols that run the internet are now diverging between these countries. The FT noted that emerging markets have made almost no efforts to migrate to IPv6, the modern Internet Protocol system, from IPv4. With more and more devices coming online and the IP address space exhausted, that split on the core protocol of the internet complicates keeping the world on one platform.

Does Saudi Arabia’s Asia investments paint a blurry picture for the SoftBank Vision Fund?

During his tour across Southeast Asia this week, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has been publicizing his intentions to invest billions in the region. And we’re not talking about chump change here — just yesterday during his visit to India, MBS stated Saudi Arabia was looking to invest at least $100 billion in the country over the next two years, which came just days after Saudi Arabia reportedly signed agreements to pour around $20 billion into Pakistan.

Besides the fact that Saudi Arabia is diving further into the infrastructure race in Southeast Asia and that the country is actively engaged with national rivals, Salman’s statements interestingly came right after reports that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund was growing frustrated with the SoftBank Vision Fund where it has invested $45 billion. Based on the crown prince’s ambitious claims in Southeast Asia, it seems like Saudi Arabia has more than enough alternatives to SoftBank to put its money to work, which might create some more around hopes for a second Vision Fund if the reports of LP discontent are true. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

Countries are torn on how to transition to a cashless future

Pieces from Quartz and the New York Times highlighted a developing story of how countries are approaching the swift decline in cash. As regions move closer to cashless societies, policymakers are voicing concerns over equity, data treatment, and the underbanked. Such negative externalities have been well-documented in countries like Sweden, where cash is rarely used, infrequently printed and is no longer accepted in most places.

To avoid the same unintended consequences, the UK will publish a roadmap for handling falling cash usage next month, while policies banning cashless stores have already been passed or discussed in major US cities and states. While other countries like South Korea, India and China have advocated for cashless payments, the UK and the US are hoping to create a more gradual, manageable and predictable transition. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

JVP’s new $220 million fund leverages its frontier tech and cyber pedigree

Yesterday, Israel-based Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP) announced it had closed on $220 million in committed capital for its eighth fund, which will focus on investing in early and mid-stage companies in frontier tech sectors like AI, cybersecurity, and computer vision. JVP has a long track record of investing in these categories and working with governments. The firm has worked with the Israeli government to help run several leading cybersecurity accelerators, and recently partnered with New York City to help launch the city’s $100 million Cyber NYC program focused on establishing a dominant cybersecurity ecosystem. Israel has long been a source of new innovative cyber solutions while New York’s central financial institutions have been some of the largest customers and stakeholders in cybersecurity. Given its established and expanding presence in these markets, JVP seems well-positioned to source deals and grow companies that fit under the focus of its new fund. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

Obsessions

More discussion of megaprojects, infrastructure, and “why can’t we build things”

We are going to be talking India here, focused around the book “Billonnaire Raj” by James Crabtree, who we just interviewed and will share more soon

We have a lot to catch up on in the China world when the EC launch craziness dies down. Plus, we are covering The Next Factory of the World by Irene Yuan Sun.

Societal resilience and geoengineering are still top-of-mind

Some more on metrics design and quantification

Thanks

To every member of Extra Crunch: thank you. You allow us to get off the ad-laden media churn conveyor belt and spend quality time on amazing ideas, people, and companies. If I can ever be of assistance, hit reply, or send an email to danny@techcrunch.com.

This newsletter is written with the assistance of Arman Tabatabai from New York

source https://techcrunch.com/2019/02/21/blockchain-is-solid-in-that-there-is-no-liquidity/

[cryptswahili]

Blockchain is solid, in that there is no liquidity

The quality of a financial market is driven by liquidity. Companies want to list on the NYSE, because that’s where the most financial investors in the world are located, and the thicker the market for investors, the better the valuations for companies. The NYSE has “problems” though — its closed most hours of the week, for instance, because humans are lazy, and it has a bunch of rules on what can be listed and how.

So blockchain! Blockchain solves this liquidity problem by allowing traders to operate 24/7, sell assets immediately, yada yada yada. All the stuff that’s been talked about ad nauseam the past few years.

I wanted us to get a better feel for the real liquidity of blockchain technology, and so we had Extra Crunch contributor Galen Moore crunch the numbers. And, my god, these markets are about as liquid as my dining room table.

In his analysis of security token offerings, Moore finds that liquidity can be measured in dollars a day. As in, sometimes there is someone, somewhere that wants to trade a token, but it isn’t all that often! For BCAP and SPICE, there are days that had no liquidity at all despite millions in purported market value.

It’s straight out of my market microstructures textbook that I used to read before going to bed. When you have lightly-traded assets, you want to build a market that concentrates trades in that asset into tight windows, in order to increase the thickness of the market. These securitized tokens would do better with an hour of trading per week when more buys and sells could be matched together, rather than the current model of no one trading ever.

We talk a lot about the user story from a utility token perspective, but we also need to talk about the user story from an investor perspective. Markets are sort of the classic case of network effects. Blockchain technologies are great and I am a “believer” for whatever that means, but if you are going to run a market, there has to be a crowd that shows up — or there is no market.

Why can’t we operate anything?

Leadinglights via Getty Images

The Wall Street Journal had a great piece yesterday on the travails of Amtrak, which in addition to being an actual business, needs to get approval from Congress to make operational changes (and you think your board is tough). If you thought we couldn’t build anything, wait until you see how little we can operate anything as well.

This story has everything:

Train nostalgics want Amtrak to continue running unprofitable, long-distance routes daily

Congressmen with rural stops want unprofitable routes to continue serving stations that essentially have no passengers

Unions are opposed to removing dining cars on trains that operate over short distances

Private rail owners don’t want more frequent service because it makes scheduling freight trains more complicated

Amtrak’s entire long-distance fleet has aged and needs to be replaced, but no one can agree on what configuration new train sets should have

Even so, Congress wants Amtrak to become more financially solvent (!)

And so you get to this fact:

Amtrak’s long-distance routes carried about 4.5 million riders in fiscal 2018, down slightly from the previous year. Amtrak reported an adjusted operating loss of $543 million on those routes in 2018, more than offsetting the $524 million in earnings coming from its operations on the Northeast Corridor.

Long distance passengers are just 15% of Amtrak’s total, but hold the company hostage.

We have an infrastructure obsession over here these days, but it’s not just planning and construction that matters — how we operate infrastructure is even more crucial for preserving the quality of the user experience. As Amtrak makes clear, the kinds of sprawling debates that plague the planning process come up just as often in operations.

Quality news from around the web

Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Google Policy “Reorg”

Dave McCabe at Axios got the scoop yesterday that Google is re-organizing its policy wing. The details are vague and don’t portend huge changes to its model. One interesting note is that the shop will be called “Government Affairs and Public Policy” instead of just “Public Policy,” indicating that Google clearly sees a need to lobby more forcefully on its behalf than it has in the past. The company will also bolster regional teams, which seems critical in emerging markets like India and Indonesia, where massive elections this year threaten to rapidly change the policy environment for large foreign tech companies.

Two internets is increasingly the reality at the protocol level too

We’ve talked a lot about the splitting of the internet into internets due to content firewalls and barriers to competition in the tech sectors in countries like China, India, and elsewhere. Another dynamic is that the very protocols that run the internet are now diverging between these countries. The FT noted that emerging markets have made almost no efforts to migrate to IPv6, the modern Internet Protocol system, from IPv4. With more and more devices coming online and the IP address space exhausted, that split on the core protocol of the internet complicates keeping the world on one platform.

Does Saudi Arabia’s Asia investments paint a blurry picture for the SoftBank Vision Fund?

During his tour across Southeast Asia this week, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has been publicizing his intentions to invest billions in the region. And we’re not talking about chump change here — just yesterday during his visit to India, MBS stated Saudi Arabia was looking to invest at least $100 billion in the country over the next two years, which came just days after Saudi Arabia reportedly signed agreements to pour around $20 billion into Pakistan.

Besides the fact that Saudi Arabia is diving further into the infrastructure race in Southeast Asia and that the country is actively engaged with national rivals, Salman’s statements interestingly came right after reports that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund was growing frustrated with the SoftBank Vision Fund where it has invested $45 billion. Based on the crown prince’s ambitious claims in Southeast Asia, it seems like Saudi Arabia has more than enough alternatives to SoftBank to put its money to work, which might create some more around hopes for a second Vision Fund if the reports of LP discontent are true. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

Countries are torn on how to transition to a cashless future

Pieces from Quartz and the New York Times highlighted a developing story of how countries are approaching the swift decline in cash. As regions move closer to cashless societies, policymakers are voicing concerns over equity, data treatment, and the underbanked. Such negative externalities have been well-documented in countries like Sweden, where cash is rarely used, infrequently printed and is no longer accepted in most places.

To avoid the same unintended consequences, the UK will publish a roadmap for handling falling cash usage next month, while policies banning cashless stores have already been passed or discussed in major US cities and states. While other countries like South Korea, India and China have advocated for cashless payments, the UK and the US are hoping to create a more gradual, manageable and predictable transition. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

JVP’s new $220 million fund leverages its frontier tech and cyber pedigree

Yesterday, Israel-based Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP) announced it had closed on $220 million in committed capital for its eighth fund, which will focus on investing in early and mid-stage companies in frontier tech sectors like AI, cybersecurity, and computer vision. JVP has a long track record of investing in these categories and working with governments. The firm has worked with the Israeli government to help run several leading cybersecurity accelerators, and recently partnered with New York City to help launch the city’s $100 million Cyber NYC program focused on establishing a dominant cybersecurity ecosystem. Israel has long been a source of new innovative cyber solutions while New York’s central financial institutions have been some of the largest customers and stakeholders in cybersecurity. Given its established and expanding presence in these markets, JVP seems well-positioned to source deals and grow companies that fit under the focus of its new fund. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

Obsessions

More discussion of megaprojects, infrastructure, and “why can’t we build things”

We are going to be talking India here, focused around the book “Billonnaire Raj” by James Crabtree, who we just interviewed and will share more soon

We have a lot to catch up on in the China world when the EC launch craziness dies down. Plus, we are covering The Next Factory of the World by Irene Yuan Sun.

Societal resilience and geoengineering are still top-of-mind

Some more on metrics design and quantification

Thanks

To every member of Extra Crunch: thank you. You allow us to get off the ad-laden media churn conveyor belt and spend quality time on amazing ideas, people, and companies. If I can ever be of assistance, hit reply, or send an email to danny@techcrunch.com.

This newsletter is written with the assistance of Arman Tabatabai from New York

[Telegram Channel | Original Article ]

[mbbsadmissionworld]

ABOUT PHILIPPINES

The Philippines, also known as the Republic of Philippines is situated in Southeast Asia in the Western Pacific Ocean. Its capital, Manila, is famous for its waterfront and centuries-old Chinatown. Philippines was a colony of USA for around 50 years and thus the country follows the American system of education.

Philippines is a founding member of the United Nations, World Trade Organization, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, and the East Asia Summit. The country also hosts the headquarters of the Asian Development Bank.

The Philippines has shown a great transition in economy from agriculture to the one with services and manufacturing. In addition to membership in the United Nations, the Philippines is also a founding and active member of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).

As a founding member of the United Nations, the Philippines has been elected many times into the Security Council. The country is also an active participant in the Human Rights Council and in peacekeeping missions.

The tropical climate of Philippines is usually hot and humid. The temperatures usually vary from 21 °C (70 °F) to 32 °C (90 °F) with January being the coolest and May being the warmest months of the year.

When it comes to study abroad destinations for MBBS, Indian students has a few countries in the list. MBBS in Philippines is one of the preferred destinations of Indian students. Similar to studying MBBS in China or European Countries, the Medical Council of India provides approval for many medical colleges and universities. Here is the brief outlook on studying medicine in Philippines.

 WHY MBBS IN PHILIPPINES?

Philippines offers American system of medical education and the Primary Medical qualification is M.D. degree(MBBS). This qualification is globally recognized including the Medical Council of India.

The medical universities are approved by the World Health Organization. In addition, these are also listed and approved in the list of IMED and ECFMG medical education directories. It provides student an internationally recognized medical program. Also, students are eligible to appear in the international medical exams, namely USMLE.

When you check MBBS in Philippines review, you can see that about 8000 foreign students are admitted in MBBS every year. The standard of education by these medical universities in Philippines is on par with global standards. Every year, thousands of doctors move to different countries for higher education and practice.

Check out the MBBS in Philippines quora comments or MBBS in Philippines review, where climate is most favourable for the Indian students. The climate in Philippines is very similar to Indian climate. So, it is easy for the Indian students to adapt to the environment in a foreign country. Philippines MBBS syllabus covers all aspects covered in a MBBS degree offered across the globe.

Do you know that more than 10000 international students enroll in Philippines Medical universities and out of which more than 50% are Indian students? Philippines universities and colleges are known for its quality and sending thousands of doctors and engineers every year to work in USA, UK, and other developed western countries. It has 2299 higher educational institutions and 40 medical colleges. According to American Physician Statistics, one among ten Physicians in the USA studied at Philippines medical university.

Philippines medical college fees would range anywhere between Rs 12-20 Lakhs for the complete medical course. Even though some of the medical colleges/universities in Philippines have low fees, one should not choose the Philippines medical college only on the basis of the tuition fees. The quality of medical education as well the facilities would also be less when the fees is less.

ADVANTAGES OF STUDYING MBBS IN PHILIPPINES

 The MD in Philippines is recognized and approved as an equivalent course to the MBBS by the MCI (Medical Council of India) who has established and maintain uniform standards of medical education.

·         Philippines medical universities are widely renowned in many countries for the superior standard of education and also have listed in the WHO, IMED and ECFMG medical education directories.

·         Professors in the Philippines universities are coming from different countries, including USA and India who are highly qualified and experienced in the allied field.

·         Philippines medical colleges are regulated by the Philippines ministry of education and that is why Philippines colleges do not have any capitation fees as well as no donations to be paid for enrollment.

·         Another advantage of an Indian student is the climate of the Philippines. Philippines climate varies from 23 °C to 32 °C throughout the year, which is very alike to the Indian climate helps Indian students in settling with no trouble. The other advantage of the similar climate is, people having the same pattern of disease which aids to the Indian students who want to practice in India.

·         There is no any donation required to enroll in Philippines medical college, unlikely to Indian medical colleges.

·         Philippines follows US education system that opens numerous opportunities to make a career in English speaking countries inclusive of UK, USA, Australia, Canada, etc.

·         The English medium of instruction diminishes the barrier of learning the native language and helps to concentrate only on the study.

·         All the medical colleges in Philippines emphasis on practice over theorygive you greater extent of practical experience that helps you during practice.

·         The entire faculty of the Philippines medical colleges is co-operative and ready to help you in every query.

·         As the MBBS degree of Philippines is recognized by MCI, you can practice in India after completing the MCI registration formalities.

·         The MBBS degree of Philippines is recognized by every major country, that proffers you great career opportunity of working in the US, Canada, Australia and other developed countries without any extra course.

·         The living cost at Philippines is very less compare to other along with there is very mere difference in Philippines currency and Indian currency that makes Philippines more affordable.

·         We have a large number of messes and team of Indian chefs to make all the Indian dishes available for Indian students at affordable rates.

·         India and Philippines both have a tropical climate that helps you to quickly adjust to the Philippines climate.

·         Listed on the 12th as the most populous country in the world, hence you will have greater opportunity to practice with a varied and large number of patients.

·         You can easily communicate with patient and a local as the Philippines is the 3rd largest English speaking country where almost 94% of Filipinos speak English.

·         If you are planning to migrate at US, there is good news for you. The student can crack the USLME parts I and II in Philippines only under the guidance of medical professors.

·         Philippines is also renowned country for MD, the students coming from US, UK, Germany, France, Australia, Japan and South Korea is an evidence of it.

·         If we look at the data of past years and today, the number of Indian students enrolling for MBBS in Philippines are drastically increased shows its worthiness.

·         Excellent flight connectivity from India offers easy commutation throughout the year

·         Philippines embassy is very liberal, that means it is easy to obtain a student visa and quick processing of documentation.

·         To study MBBS in Philippines approx 20,000 students enroll every yearthat shows prominence of the Philippines is not only limited to the India.

·         Universities of the Philippines not only prepare for medical practice, but also prepare students for the MCI screening test.

 INDIAN STUDENTS LIFE IN PHILIPPINES

Students who study MBBS in Russia need to manage the extreme weather conditions in Russia. More importantly the diseases which they learn in cold climatic country like Russia is not relevant in Indian context, where the climate is sub-tropical. The percentage of students who clear the FMGE (MCI screening test) from these two countries Russia and China range between 15-20%. But in case of students from Philippines medical colleges, the passing percentage for Foreign Medical Graduate Exam(FMGE) is well above 50% because of similar disease spectrum.

Happiest hostel life

Shopping and Entertainment

Travel

Best college life

Protective Environment

 Philippines Food & Accomodation

Philippines medical colleges provide excellent hostel accommodation for students coming from abroad. The rooms are furnished with every modern amenity. There is the provision of good hostel system with fully furnished rooms, quite study environment as well as recreation center. 

Dormitory rooms at hostel can accommodate 2 or 3 students in a room. Hostels offer the perfect environment for study. Students have access to 24 hour emergency medical services.After witnessing the migration of many Indian students towards Philippines, a lot of local Indian restaurants have come up that offer luscious Indian food. Otherwise, the availability of common kitchen helps the students to cook whatever they like to. Cooking Indian food independently is the best way to enjoy it. Study MBBS in Philippines.

 Philippines Climate

There are four recognized climate types in the Philippines, and they are based on the distribution of rainfall. The Climate of the Philippines is either tropical rainforest, tropical savanna or tropical monsoon, or humid subtropical (in higher-altitude areas) characterized by relatively high temperature, oppressive humidity and plenty of rainfall. Study MBBS in Philippines.

 Philippines Culture

The culture of the Philippines is a combination of cultures of the East and West. Education in the Philippines has been influenced by Western and Eastern ideology and philosophy from the United States, Spain, and its neighbouring Asian countries. Study MBBS in Philippines.

Eligibility for sudying medicine in Philippines

  Aggregate     marks of 50% in Physics, Chemistry, Biology

Should     have passed in NEET

 TOP RANKING MEDICAL COLLEGES IN PHILIPPINES APPROVED BY CHED AND LISTED IN MCI

 Davao medical school foundation

Lyceum Northwestern University

University of Northern Philippines

Our Lady of Fatima University

UV Gullas college of medicine

University of Santo Tomas

Emilio aguinaldo college

South western university

St Lukes college of medicine

Ama school of medicine

University of Perpetual help system dalta

Cebu doctors university

De la salle University

Pamantasan ng lungsod ng maynila 

Angeles University

Xaviers university

Bicol christian college of medicine

Iloilo doctors college of medicine

San beda college

West visayas state university

University of saint la salle

Silliman university

[fmservers]

Blockchain is solid, in that there is no liquidity

The quality of a financial market is driven by liquidity. Companies want to list on the NYSE, because that’s where the most financial investors in the world are located, and the thicker the market for investors, the better the valuations for companies. The NYSE has “problems” though — its closed most hours of the week, for instance, because humans are lazy, and it has a bunch of rules on what can be listed and how.

So blockchain! Blockchain solves this liquidity problem by allowing traders to operate 24/7, sell assets immediately, yada yada yada. All the stuff that’s been talked about ad nauseam the past few years.

I wanted us to get a better feel for the real liquidity of blockchain technology, and so we had Extra Crunch contributor Galen Moore crunch the numbers. And, my god, these markets are about as liquid as my dining room table.

In his analysis of security token offerings, Moore finds that liquidity can be measured in dollars a day. As in, sometimes there is someone, somewhere that wants to trade a token, but it isn’t all that often! For BCAP and SPICE, there are days that had no liquidity at all despite millions in purported market value.

It’s straight out of my market microstructures textbook that I used to read before going to bed. When you have lightly-traded assets, you want to build a market that concentrates trades in that asset into tight windows, in order to increase the thickness of the market. These securitized tokens would do better with an hour of trading per week when more buys and sells could be matched together, rather than the current model of no one trading ever.

We talk a lot about the user story from a utility token perspective, but we also need to talk about the user story from an investor perspective. Markets are sort of the classic case of network effects. Blockchain technologies are great and I am a “believer” for whatever that means, but if you are going to run a market, there has to be a crowd that shows up — or there is no market.

Why can’t we operate anything?

Leadinglights via Getty Images

The Wall Street Journal had a great piece yesterday on the travails of Amtrak, which in addition to being an actual business, needs to get approval from Congress to make operational changes (and you think your board is tough). If you thought we couldn’t build anything, wait until you see how little we can operate anything as well.

This story has everything:

Train nostalgics want Amtrak to continue running unprofitable, long-distance routes daily

Congressmen with rural stops want unprofitable routes to continue serving stations that essentially have no passengers

Unions are opposed to removing dining cars on trains that operate over short distances

Private rail owners don’t want more frequent service because it makes scheduling freight trains more complicated

Amtrak’s entire long-distance fleet has aged and needs to be replaced, but no one can agree on what configuration new train sets should have

Even so, Congress wants Amtrak to become more financially solvent (!)

And so you get to this fact:

Amtrak’s long-distance routes carried about 4.5 million riders in fiscal 2018, down slightly from the previous year. Amtrak reported an adjusted operating loss of $543 million on those routes in 2018, more than offsetting the $524 million in earnings coming from its operations on the Northeast Corridor.

Long distance passengers are just 15% of Amtrak’s total, but hold the company hostage.

We have an infrastructure obsession over here these days, but it’s not just planning and construction that matters — how we operate infrastructure is even more crucial for preserving the quality of the user experience. As Amtrak makes clear, the kinds of sprawling debates that plague the planning process come up just as often in operations.

Quality news from around the web

Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Google Policy “Reorg”

Dave McCabe at Axios got the scoop yesterday that Google is re-organizing its policy wing. The details are vague and don’t portend huge changes to its model. One interesting note is that the shop will be called “Government Affairs and Public Policy” instead of just “Public Policy,” indicating that Google clearly sees a need to lobby more forcefully on its behalf than it has in the past. The company will also bolster regional teams, which seems critical in emerging markets like India and Indonesia, where massive elections this year threaten to rapidly change the policy environment for large foreign tech companies.

Two internets is increasingly the reality at the protocol level too

We’ve talked a lot about the splitting of the internet into internets due to content firewalls and barriers to competition in the tech sectors in countries like China, India, and elsewhere. Another dynamic is that the very protocols that run the internet are now diverging between these countries. The FT noted that emerging markets have made almost no efforts to migrate to IPv6, the modern Internet Protocol system, from IPv4. With more and more devices coming online and the IP address space exhausted, that split on the core protocol of the internet complicates keeping the world on one platform.

Does Saudi Arabia’s Asia investments paint a blurry picture for the SoftBank Vision Fund?

During his tour across Southeast Asia this week, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has been publicizing his intentions to invest billions in the region. And we’re not talking about chump change here — just yesterday during his visit to India, MBS stated Saudi Arabia was looking to invest at least $100 billion in the country over the next two years, which came just days after Saudi Arabia reportedly signed agreements to pour around $20 billion into Pakistan.

Besides the fact that Saudi Arabia is diving further into the infrastructure race in Southeast Asia and that the country is actively engaged with national rivals, Salman’s statements interestingly came right after reports that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund was growing frustrated with the SoftBank Vision Fund where it has invested $45 billion. Based on the crown prince’s ambitious claims in Southeast Asia, it seems like Saudi Arabia has more than enough alternatives to SoftBank to put its money to work, which might create some more around hopes for a second Vision Fund if the reports of LP discontent are true. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

Countries are torn on how to transition to a cashless future

Pieces from Quartz and the New York Times highlighted a developing story of how countries are approaching the swift decline in cash. As regions move closer to cashless societies, policymakers are voicing concerns over equity, data treatment, and the underbanked. Such negative externalities have been well-documented in countries like Sweden, where cash is rarely used, infrequently printed and is no longer accepted in most places.

To avoid the same unintended consequences, the UK will publish a roadmap for handling falling cash usage next month, while policies banning cashless stores have already been passed or discussed in major US cities and states. While other countries like South Korea, India and China have advocated for cashless payments, the UK and the US are hoping to create a more gradual, manageable and predictable transition. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

JVP’s new $220 million fund leverages its frontier tech and cyber pedigree

Yesterday, Israel-based Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP) announced it had closed on $220 million in committed capital for its eighth fund, which will focus on investing in early and mid-stage companies in frontier tech sectors like AI, cybersecurity, and computer vision. JVP has a long track record of investing in these categories and working with governments. The firm has worked with the Israeli government to help run several leading cybersecurity accelerators, and recently partnered with New York City to help launch the city’s $100 million Cyber NYC program focused on establishing a dominant cybersecurity ecosystem. Israel has long been a source of new innovative cyber solutions while New York’s central financial institutions have been some of the largest customers and stakeholders in cybersecurity. Given its established and expanding presence in these markets, JVP seems well-positioned to source deals and grow companies that fit under the focus of its new fund. ~ Written by Arman Tabatabai

Obsessions

More discussion of megaprojects, infrastructure, and “why can’t we build things”

We are going to be talking India here, focused around the book “Billonnaire Raj” by James Crabtree, who we just interviewed and will share more soon

We have a lot to catch up on in the China world when the EC launch craziness dies down. Plus, we are covering The Next Factory of the World by Irene Yuan Sun.

Societal resilience and geoengineering are still top-of-mind

Some more on metrics design and quantification

Thanks

To every member of Extra Crunch: thank you. You allow us to get off the ad-laden media churn conveyor belt and spend quality time on amazing ideas, people, and companies. If I can ever be of assistance, hit reply, or send an email to danny@techcrunch.com.

This newsletter is written with the assistance of Arman Tabatabai from New York

Via Danny Crichton https://techcrunch.com

[euroman1945-blog]

The Daily Tulip

The Daily Tulip – News From Around The World

Tuesday 24th April 2018

Good Morning Gentle Reader….  Off to Malaga, this Tuesday morning, Sandra is performing her usual Cataract operations, so it is leave the house early, and drive the 100 kilometers to the clinic, I leave her there and take a comfortable drive along the coast road, back to Estepona, Bella and I had a slow walk up the hill, earlier, slow I hear you say, well my back is playing up, age I suspect is catching up with me, for the past week, it’s been stiff, my back that is… So for me today, another cup of coffee, write another section in The History Of Organized Religion In Scotland, and share an hour in the car with my wife…..

PLANET-HUNTER LAUNCHES FROM FLORIDA…. It's lift-off for a new era in planet-hunting. The US space agency's Tess satellite has launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida on a mission to find thousands of new worlds beyond our Solar System. The mission will survey a great swathe of stars, hoping to catch the dips in brightness that occur when orbiting planets traverse their faces. Tess's goal is to compile a catalogue that other telescopes can then focus in on for more detailed analysis. "Tess is equipped with four very sensitive cameras that will enable it to monitor nearly the entire sky," said George Ricker, the mission's principal investigator from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which leads the project. "The types of planets that Tess will detect are revealed by a process called a transit. We can see the shadow, effectively, of the planet as it passes in front of its host star."

HEDGEHOG TIED TO TREE WITH SHOELACES IN BLACKWOOD,,,, The RSPCA said how the animal was treated was "barbaric and wholly unacceptable" A hedgehog was left tied to a tree using a "makeshift crucifix" of shoelaces. The RSPCA said it was "utterly disgusted" after the animal was found in Brynglas Avenue in Blackwood Wales on 17 April. The male hedgehog could not curl up after being restrained and also suffered injuries to its face and leg. The RSPCA said the animal has been treated for its injuries and is being "closely monitored". Izzi Hignell from the charity said: "We have been left utterly disgusted by this shocking incident, with a poor hedgehog cruelly tied to a tree by a makeshift crucifix of shoelaces. This hedgehog will have suffered immeasurably by this horrendous ordeal. Treating wild animals this way is barbaric and wholly unacceptable."

FACEBOOK SEEKS FACIAL RECOGNITION CONSENT IN EU AND CANADA…. Facebook says its face-matching tech is a way for users to learn if they are in a photo even if not tagged. Facebook has started asking European and Canadian users to let it use facial recognition technology to identify them in photos and videos. Facebook originally began face-matching users outside Canada in 2011, but stopped doing so for EU citizens the following year after protests from regulators and privacy campaigners. The new request is one of several opt-in permissions being rolled out in advance of a new data privacy law. The move is likely to be controversial. The company is currently embroiled in a privacy scandal related to the use of its members' personal information by the political consultancy Cambridge Analytica. The social network is also facing a class-action lawsuit in the US for deploying the facial recognition technology there without users' explicit consent. "Biometric identification and tracking across the billions of photos on the platform exacerbates serious privacy risks to users," commented Silkie Carlo, director of UK civil liberties group Big Brother Watch. "Facebook now has a duty to prove it has learned how to respect the law, not to prove it can take its surveillance capabilities to new depths."

HEATWAVES 'COOK' GREAT BARRIER REEF CORALS…. Prolonged ocean warming events, known as marine heatwaves, take a significant toll on the complex ecosystem of the Great Barrier Reef. This is according to a new study on the impacts of the 2016 marine heatwave, published in Nature. In surveying the 3,863 individual reefs that make up the system off Australia's north-east coast, scientists found that 29% of communities were affected. In some cases up to 90% of coral died, in a process known as bleaching. This occurs when the stress of elevated temperatures causes a breakdown of the coral's symbiotic relationship with its algae, which provide the coral with energy to survive, and give the reef its distinctive colours. Certain coral species are more susceptible to this heat-induced stress, and the 2016 marine heatwave saw the death of many tabular and staghorn corals, which are a key part of the reef's structure.

CANADIAN MELINA ROBERGE JAILED OVER CRUISE SHIP DRUG SCHEME…. A Canadian woman who helped smuggle cocaine into Australia on a cruise ship has been jailed for eight years. Melina Roberge, 24, was one of three Canadians who pleaded guilty to the import of 95kg (210lb) of drugs on the MS Sea Princess. Roberge had agreed to pose as a tourist on the trip in exchange for money, a court heard. A judge said she was also motivated by the chance to post "glamorous" travel photos on social media. Australian police discovered A$21m (£12m; $16m) of cocaine in cabins on the ship in August 2016 after it docked in Sydney following a trip around the world. Roberge's cabin mate, 29-year-old Isabelle Lagacé, was jailed in November for seven-and-a-half years. Andre Tamine, 64, is still to face sentencing over his role in the operation. Authorities have described the drug seizure as the largest Australia has ever had on a commercial boat or plane. On Wednesday, New South Wales District Court Judge Kate Traill said she accepted that Roberge was genuinely remorseful and had a good chance of rehabilitation. But the judge criticised Roberge's "vacuous" decision-making, saying she had been influenced by seeking validation online. "She was seduced by lifestyle and the opportunity to post glamorous Instagram photos from around the world," Judge Traill said. "She wanted to be the envy of others. I doubt she is now."

Well Gentle Reader I hope you enjoyed our look at the news from around the world this, Tuesday morning… …

Our Tulips today are at the Wooden Shoe nursery in Oregon 

A Sincere Thank You for your company and Thank You for your likes and comments I love them and always try to reply, so please keep them coming, it's always good fun, As is my custom, I will go and get myself another mug of "Colombian" Coffee and wish you a safe Tuesday 24th April 2018 from my home on the southern coast of Spain, where the blue waters of the Alboran Sea washes the coast of Africa and Europe and the smell of the night blooming Jasmine and Honeysuckle fills the air…and a crazy old guy and his dog Bella go out for a walk at 4:00 am…on the streets of Estepona…

All good stuff....But remember it’s a dangerous world we live in

Be safe out there…

Robert McAngus

[learnsongwriting]

New Post has been published on https://learnhowtowritesongs.com/songwriting-news-october/

Songwriting News October

October Songwriting News and Events featuring these news stories…

The 20 Hottest Songwriters in Pop Music Right Now

How To Balance Conversational and Poetic Language In Your Songwriting

Universal launches startup ‘Accelerator Network’ in bid to find the next Spotify

Will.i.am Joins ‘Mobile Record Label’ Startup Amuse, Talks ‘Defining a New Type of Record Industry’

Two Big Mistakes Songwriters Make

APRA AMCOS Announces A Bumper Year For Songwriters Thanks To Streaming And Export

Incoming Pandora CEO Roger Lynch Shreds With Corporate Bandmates at Aspen Fest: Exclusive Interview

Official: Miles Leonard stepping down at Parlophone, Mark Mitchell named Co-President

The magic of making hits: The psychology behind and economics of pop culture

Should music videos have to disclose product placements?

C3 Warn Against “Transparency In Music Licensing And Ownership Act”

Scrappy NSAI turns 50, keeps fighting for songwriters in D.C.

The 20 Hottest Songwriters in Pop Music Right Now

In 2017, more than at any other time in history, writing Top 40 hits is often a by-committee affair. A typical Rihanna song like “Work” may have as many as seven different songwriters; Demi Lovato’s latest album, Tell Me You Love Me, has no fewer than 28 writers credited. These days, it often takes a village to get a song on the radio.

  How To Balance Conversational and Poetic Language In Your Songwriting

Although songwriters are often praised with the backhanded comment that they are not mere songwriters but poets, in truth, songwriting and poetry are quite distinct. Song lyrics are intended to be sung and heard, not read or spoken. Lyrics with a melody can be poetic certainly, but not so much as to overwhelm the entirety of the song, especially at the start. While complex, abstract ideas succeed in a poem that exists on the page, where it can be scrutinized slowly, the words of a song pass swiftly in time, and must be grasped in the moment. The challenge of the songwriter is to balance simple, conversational language with enriched, poetic language.

Written By Paul Zollo – American Songwriter

Universal launches startup ‘Accelerator Network’ in bid to find the next Spotify

Universal Music Group (UMG) has launched a new ‘Accelerator Network’ to help develop music-based startups around the world – and, naturally enough, get in there early before they get big.

UMG says it will will work closely with existing entrepreneurial ‘accelerator’ programs around the world to ‘assist in the evaluation and development of music-based start-ups’.

From there, UMG will mentoring accepted digital music companies, while its endorsed network of accelerators will ‘guide these new companies in developing, launching and raising funding for innovative new products’.

From: Music Business Worldwide

Will.i.am Joins ‘Mobile Record Label’ Startup Amuse, Talks ‘Defining a New Type of Record Industry’

The company is being billed as the “world’s first mobile record label,” but unlike most labels the only barrier of entry to use the service is being the least bit tech savvy. From there, it’s simply a matter of whether your music takes off. When Amuse sees artists performing well (they will after all have access to all that juicy data), the service becomes a proprietary A&R tool with the aim of signing these artists and developing their careers in partnership. From billboardbiz by Colin Stutz

Two Big Mistakes Songwriters Make

In the twenty-five years that I’ve been writing songs and, more recently, since I’ve been teaching, I’ve made and/or seen some common mistakes in both writing and navigating a songwriting career that can be avoided. Here are two of them.

Source: BMI by Cliff Goldmacher

APRA AMCOS Announces A Bumper Year For Songwriters Thanks To Streaming And Export

APRA AMCOS announces yet another year of record royalty collections, driven by exponential streaming growth. Of the $386.6m in revenue, digital royalties contributed $110.3m, an increase of $42.5m on previous year.

Songwriting royalties paid by music streaming services in Australia have delivered 546 per cent growth in APRA AMCOS’ revenue in just the last three years. The rapid adoption by Australian consumers eclipses that even of television in the 1950s or mobile phones in the 1990s, both of which presented a licensing changing-of-the-guard for APRA AMCOS at the time.

Source  Music Industry News Network

Incoming Pandora CEO Roger Lynch Shreds With Corporate Bandmates at Aspen Fest: Exclusive Interview

Although Lynch has never really worked in music, he says the key is making sure record labels and streaming services deliver music to consumers in the way they want to receive it, rather than insisting they pay extra for products they don’t want. “Remember all those years back, Apple did that famous ad campaign, “Rip. Mix. Burn”? “The industry didn’t like that one”, Lynch says. “But they were trying to take away pain points… It leads to more consumer satisfaction and therefore more consumption.” From billboard by Steve Knopper

Official: Miles Leonard stepping down at Parlophone, Mark Mitchell named Co-President

Warner Music Group has officially confirmed that Miles Leonard will step down as Chairman of UK-based Parlophone Records in January 2018.

He will continue in an advisory A&R role and support the label’s leadership transition until late 2018.

As revealed by MBW earlier this month, Mark Mitchell – currently GM of Atlantic Records UK – will become Co-President of the label on January 1, 2018.

Source: Music Business Worldwide

The magic of making hits: The psychology behind and economics of pop culture

What makes a hit? Many assume it has to do with artistry or luck. Not so, says Derek Thompson, a writer and editor at the Atlantic. In his first book, “Hit Makers”, he analyses the psychology and economics of pop culture and argues that “hits”—the things that get everybody talking—are based on three rules that rely on more than creative genius alone. from The Economist

Should music videos have to disclose product placements?

From electronics and clothing brands to food and liquor, products carefully situated in music clips have yielded handsome payouts to musicians. Though often hailed as creative marketing, these placements are considered “embedded advertising” by law, subject to almost the same (if not more) stringent rules than typical advertising. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has taken the position that most of these types of advertisements require disclosure—so why aren’t they enforcing these rules against music videos?From Pitchfork by Jessica Meiselman

C3 Warn Against “Transparency In Music Licensing And Ownership Act”

The Content Creators Coalition (c3) sent a letter to the leaders of the House Judiciary Committee warning that consideration of H.R. 3350, the so called “Transparency in Music Licensing and Ownership Act,” would spark a backlash in the artist community and could derail the Committee’s work to create a consensus copyright reform legislation.

Source: Music Industry News Network

Scrappy NSAI turns 50, keeps fighting for songwriters in D.C.

When most companies and special interest groups head to Washington D.C., they are armed with millions of dollars in campaign donations and expensive lobbyists.

When the Nashville Songwriters Association International goes to Washington, its representatives are often armed with a guitar and a song.

Source: Nate Rau, USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee

[hellolightbulbmoments]

7 Observations from Gibraltar

1. The UK in Spanish-speaking

The Rock of Gibraltar is an interesting place for many reasons. First and most obvious of all are the many British elements around the place. Yes, it is counted as part of Great Britain, but it has enough Spanish elements to make the British ones look very much out of place. Red telephone boxes, London-like policemen in green fluorescent jackets, BBC news on the televisions, the use of pounds as a currency, not to mention the many British high street shops and banks in the town centre. All of these items were around palm trees, many Spanish-speaking people, warm weather and right-hand driving. It's a sight that takes a while to get used to, however, after I did, the charm of it all becomes quite apparent.

2. British people everywhere

The majority of tourists there were British which makes sense as it's not a very drastic transition from place to place (well, minus what was mentioned in the previous point), there were a few Spanish, although the majority of them actually worked on the peninsula, and even fewer tourists from other parts of the world.

The morning and the early afternoon crowd were mostly young families and elderly people, lots of elderly people. It almost felt like it was a retreat for old British folk on our first morning there, we were shocked by the sheer amount of them at first, but it wasn't long till we got used to it. In the late afternoon and evening, the crowd got younger and after the sun went down on the pubs and bars were filled with young Brits on different levels of intoxication. It wasn't as rowdy as the atmosphere in Brighton, but I have a feeling it might have ended up that way if we stayed out a bit longer.

3. The Spanish border

As I've mentioned before Gibraltar is part of the UK, not Spain, so in order to get to Spain, one would have to go through border control. Now living in England for most of my life I had never seen the border of two different counties on the same land before, especially one that was so busy. There was always a traffic jam going through it and being so close to the airport didn't help since people were probably also driving from either side to get there. I heard that most of the people that work in Gibraltar actually live in Spain and commute in every day which definitely must have added to its numbers. Although I didn't see as many people as cars going through, there were a handful tourists and locals waddling through every so often, in fact, we even gave it a go.

I'd never been to Spain before and even setting a foot in for five seconds was good enough for me. To our surprise it was incredibly simple, just flash a passport which the border control really didn't bother to scrutinise, walk through a few doors and voila, ‘Bienvenido a España’. The difference between the places was immediate, everything was in written in Spanish, the colour palette architecture included more oranges and yellows, and the place felt, less looked after. Streets were littered there was more vandalism around, and the few people we saw weren't as well dressed. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the food from the Spanish McDonalds restaurant before heading back to familiar ground.

4. Gibraltar Airport runway

This is something Hannah picked up on immediately but I didn't notice until we landed from England. As the plane started approaching the short runway we noticed traffic and pedestrians waiting behind a red and white barrier on either side, as a train was about to pass. At first, I took no notice of this. It wasn't until after we landed were the barriers lifted and the traffic moved, across the runway. I had never seen anything like it, I knew that the peninsula was small but I wasn't aware it was so small its airport runway had to intersect with a busy road. To make matters more interesting, the main road from Gibraltar to Spain cut through the airport, so not only did traffic accumulate from the border control–but also traffic from the airport runway barriers. We experienced this first had when we discovered we had to walk across the runway to get to our hotel, I couldn't stop looking around at how close I was to the planes and ground support equipment.

5. Monkeys

The rock of Gibraltar isn't called that for the same of it, there is an enormous rock that makes up almost a quarter of the land, naturally, this was the main tourist attraction. In order to reach the summit, we took the cable car which showed amazing views of the peninsula from a great height. Once up it was possible to view attractions such as the Moorish castle and St. Michael's Cave which, although we didn't personally visit, I heard promising things about, and last but not least, the monkeys, lots of them all over the rock, for people to look at and take pictures of which was pretty much all you were allowed to do. No petting, no feeding, no taunting them, and definitely no plastic bags in sight of them. We saw first hand what happened when someone showed off their white bag they must have got from a food shop, all their belongings fell to the ground when a primate ripped it open and scavenged for things inside before being chased away by a larger one. The monkeys were very confident and would climb onto car roofs, peoples heads and would not flinch or move away no matter how close someone got to them.

6. Swift marriage

The main reason Hannah and I were in Gibraltar was to get married, legally. Doing it in the UK would have involved both of our councils and taken over a month which wasn't ideal for us. A friend of ours suggested we Gibraltar as a possible solution since their laws allowed for a legal marriage in 24 hours. The other option was, of course, Las Vegas, however, we had no intention of making a quick trip there just before our wedding.

Being one of the only [few] places in Europe that allow for a quick marriage is one thing that makes Gibraltar very unique, whilst there we saw many people who were married and spoke to others who planned to do the same. The queue to the registry was incredibly long, and although most of those looking to get married were British (surprise surprise), there were a few others from different parts of the world. This law no doubt helps with their economy, tourism and is probably one of the reasons why the hotels were incredibly expensive.

7. Pricey hotels

To be fair, we did book the hotel quite late, and I'm sure it would be much cheaper to book a hotel in Spain and travel into Gibraltar, however, our predicament didn't allow that. In order to be legally married in Gibraltar, both participants had to spend a period of 24 hours in a Gibraltar hotel, not a Spanish one. To my understanding, this was a law introduced by the hotels to make some money for couples aspiring to be married which, makes sense but it's very sneaky considering they were around 5 times more expensive than hotels across the border. There are only a handful of hotels on the great Rock so a lot of them were fully booked so I guess that's one explanation for their hefty price tags, and the one that we did end up booking had a pool, a gym, and a games room, and some amazing Mediterranean views from our room, or at least we were told. The gym and games room matched the size of a bedroom in a studio flat, the pool was being refurbished and was out of order until the following year, as a result, the hotel was surrounded by scaffolding blocking out any picturesque scenery from our windows. Our request for a discount of some sort wasn't completely honoured, I mean we had to stay in order to fulfil the task we were there to do in the first place, so we were in their hands more than they were in ours.

In conclusion, would we visit Gibraltar again? It's very unlikely as there isn't much to do and we visited most of the popular attractions, but there is a chance we might 'pop over' if we're around that part of Spain. Did we have a good time there? Yes, it was fun. We had a beautiful legal marriage in The Alameda botanical gardens, our wedding assistants were fantastic, and the whole ordeal was fairly smooth. Would I recommend it? If you're in Europe and want to get married quickly then I can think of no better place. On the other hand, if you're looking for somewhere interesting to travel to, Gibraltar is great for observing the British items on the land, but there is no need to spend longer than a week there as there is a chance you might get bored.

Ollie