#agricultural licensing requirements

[farmerstrend]

The Future of Ndengu Farming in Kenya: How the Mung Beans Bill 2022 Could Shape the Industry

Kenyan mung bean or ndengu farmers will require licenses from the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) if a new Bill becomes law. The Mung Beans Bill 2022, seeking to promote growth and development of the mung bean industry, proposes that every grower shall register with the relevant county executive committee (CEC) member in charge of agriculture, with each CEC member required to maintain a…

[fatehbaz]

The link between warfare and technological innovation has been well documented [...]. World War II was a particularly intense crucible of technological change, and the repurposing of military technologies and industries in the forging of a new post-war consumer [economy] is crucial [...]. Processes of technological bricolage turned the machines of war onto the natural world as global powers competed to cement their economic and imperial hegemony. In Great Britain’s post-war “groundnut scheme” in its East African territories (1946-51), this collision of nature, military hardware, and technical expertise was part of efforts to both produce more fats for the British diet and to demonstrate to the world (most importantly the United States) that, through a newly energized science-led developmentalism, British colonialism still had a “progressive” role to play in the postwar world.

The aim was to produce millions of tons of peanuts across Tanganyika using the latest methods of advanced scientific agriculture. The environmental conditions in the north, where the scheme was to begin, were known to be especially trying, not least the dry climate [...]. But faith in the power of mechanized agriculture was such that any natural limits were thought to be readily surmountable.

The groundnut scheme was to be, as its Director put it in an interview with the Tanganyika Standard, a “war” with nature, and an “economic Battle of Alamein” waged over some three million acres by an army of colonial technicians - many recruited from military ranks - and local laborers, for many of whom the scheme represented their first entry into the wage labor market.

But it wasn’t just the rhetoric of war that was repurposed.

Lancaster bombers were kitted out to survey and discover “new country” in East Africa for agricultural development. [...] [T]ractors and bulldozers from military surplus stores in Egypt proved unable to tackle the hard ground and tough vegetation, so the planners turned to a novel solution: repurposing surplus Sherman M4A2 tanks. The Vickers-Armstrong factory in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne set about rearranging key elements of the tanks’ construction [...]. The tractors, christened “Shervicks” for their hybrid origins, were [...] thought to be particularly suited to large-scale earth-moving and to the kind of heavy duty “bush clearing” that was required in Tanganyika.

Officials sought to dismiss concerns that large-scale bush clearing would have wider environmental consequences, using the well-worn colonial trope that any observed changes in local climate or erosion patterns were due to the “primitive” agricultural practices of the locals, not to the earth-moving practices of the colonists.  [...] As the plants continued to wilt in the sun, [...] [t]he stakes were high. As [J.R.] of the Colonial Development Corporation put it in a letter: “Our standing as an Imperial power in Africa is to a substantial extent bound up with the future of this scheme. To abandon it would be a humiliating blow to our prestige everywhere.” The only option left was to try and bend the weather itself to the scheme’s will, by seeding the clouds for rain. [...] “Balloon bombs” (photographic film canisters tethered to weather balloons) and a repurposed Royal Navy flare gun were used to target individual clouds [...]. The scheme itself has survived as a cautionary tale of governmental hubris, but it is instructive too as a case study of how technologies of war have been turned against other foes.

---

All text above by: Martin Mahony. “The Enemy is Nature: Military Machines and Technological Bricolage in Britain’s ‘Great Agricultural Experiment.’“ Environment and Society Portal, Arcadia (Spring 2021), no. 11. Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society. doi:10.5282/rcc/9191. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me. Images and their captions are shown unaltered as they originally appear in Mahony's article. Public Domain Mark 1.0 License for images: creativecommons dot org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/]

[darkwood-sleddog]

AVENUES FOR CONTACTING REGARDING THE NEW CDC DOG IMPORTATION RULING

The CDC recently released their newly revised rules applying to all dogs wishing to enter the United States. This includes stricter paperwork and veterinary record requirements within a certain timeframe, implantation of a specific type of microchip PRIOR to rabies vaccination and a hardline restriction on any dog younger than six months. You can view all the new requirements HERE.

It is my belief that several aspects of the new ruling require additional review and nuance that is not being taken, specifically the 6 month of age rule which in my opinion is over regulatory as dogs can be fully inoculated against rabies at four months of age.

The new ruling makes very little if any distinction of dogs coming from high risk rabies countries and dogs coming from no/low risk rabies countries. The reasoning outlined in the ruling is to "streamline" the process of importation by making the requirements the same across all areas of import. This is unreasonable to countries that have no rabies present as they pose no risk.

Additionally, these rules do not take into account the shared land borders between the United States, Canada and Mexico and treats Canada and Mexico like other foreign bodies which is unreasonable. People living in border areas often cross between the US and Canada/Mexico on a frequent basis. There is no fencing at the Canadian border and wildlife of any health status can cross freely on both the northern and southern border. There are also border towns and enclaves that have an increased frequency of border crossings for daily life that need to be taken into account in regards to the paperwork requirements.

And Finally, I take big issue with the fact the ruling and reasonings behind several of the restrictions addressing the concerns of hobbyist and ethical dog breeders regarding the restriction on age of import will put on genetic diversity of dog breeds. Many breeders would rather place a puppy in an equally good home in a country where the puppy can be home at the critical young age than hold on to a dog for months. This will also prevent sport dog, service dog, and working dog puppies from being properly socialized into their future roles. Not only does the CDC make no exception for service dogs, dogs of military families, or any dog in this instance, but they addressed hobbyist and preservation breeder's concerns by stating that the USDA already has rules limited dog imports to 6 months of age for commercial breeding. Note that commercial breeding and what requires a USDA license is very specifically outlined by the USDA which does make exceptions for hobbyist breeding. The CDC ruling talks about commercial and hobbyist breeding as the same thing, referring specifically to the USDA even though the USDA themselves make specific distinctions. The CDC ruling equates hobby breeding with commercial breeding directly, with no acknowledgment that even if they were the same the puppy can be and is often most often already purchased and legally owned by the client/new owner so breeder requirements would no longer be applicable.

There are many other individual concerns. These are just my top concerns.

What can you do?

HERE is a change.org petition by Jaye Foucher that outlines similar concerns that I share as well as ones more specific to sled dog teams traveling and those that frequently do business in Alaska.

CONTACT the CDC directly and voice any concerns you have.

Contact your REPRESENTATIVES and SENATORS, especially if you live in a border state. Phone OR email would be fine. I personally prefer email as it provides a written record of the communication. While the CDC is not full of elected officials, the Senate and House recently passed an Agriculture bill titled "The Healthy Dog Importation Act" where many of the new restrictions are echoed and reiterated on a legislative level.

[mariacallous]

If you've been wondering when you’ll be able to order the flame-throwing robot that Ohio-based Throwflame first announced last summer, that day has finally arrived. The Thermonator, what Throwflame bills as “the first-ever flamethrower-wielding robot dog” is now available for purchase. The price? $9,420.

Thermonator is a quadruped robot with an ARC flamethrower mounted to its back, fueled by gasoline or napalm. It features a one-hour battery, a 30-foot flame-throwing range, and Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity for remote control through a smartphone.

It also includes a Lidar sensor for mapping and obstacle avoidance, laser sighting, and first-person-view navigation through an onboard camera. The product appears to integrate a version of the Unitree Go2 robot quadruped that retails alone for $1,600 in its base configuration.

The company lists possible applications of the new robot as "wildfire control and prevention," "agricultural management," "ecological conservation," "snow and ice removal," and "entertainment and SFX." But most of all, it sets things on fire in a variety of real-world scenarios.

Back in 2018, Elon Musk made the news for offering an official Boring Company flamethrower that reportedly sold 10,000 units in 48 hours. It sparked some controversy, because flamethrowers can also double as weapons or potentially start wildfires.

Flamethrowers are not specifically regulated in 48 US states, although general product liability and criminal laws may still apply to their use and sale. They are not considered firearms by federal agencies. Specific restrictions exist in Maryland, where flamethrowers require a Federal Firearms License to own, and California, where the range of flamethrowers cannot exceed 10 feet.

Even so, to state the obvious, flamethrowers can easily burn both things and people, starting fires and wreaking havoc if not used safely. Accordingly, the Thermonator might be one Christmas present you should skip for little Johnny this year.

[chaifootsteps]

"I first met Tokitae (also known as Toki, Lolita and Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut), a female orca who had been captured off the coast of Washington, in 1987. I was a biology graduate student at my first professional conference, and the scientific society hosting this event held the opening reception at the Seaquarium.

Toki was 20 feet long and 7,000 pounds, and should have been in the Salish Sea traveling 40 miles a day and diving 500 feet deep with her mother and siblings. Yet there we were, a few hundred marine mammal scientists who mostly did field research, watching this magnificent being perform silly tricks in a bathtub.

That’s not really an exaggeration in Toki’s case. Toki’s tank was the smallest enclosure in the world for her species. It was only 35 feet at its widest point and 80 feet long. It was 20 feet at its deepest; if Toki hung vertically in the water, her tail flukes touched bottom. Captured in 1970 when she was 4 or 5 years old, she lived in this tiny space for 53 years.

The federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA), administered by the US Department of Agriculture, has a ludicrous requirement for tank width — only twice the length of an average adult orca (or 48 feet). But Toki’s tank didn’t even meet that weak standard. For years, the USDA offered various excuses for not taking steps to revoke the exhibitor’s license. None of them made sense, as the tank was plainly not to code. Activists repeatedly tried to sue the USDA for failing to enforce the law, without success.

Toki’s was a strange, lonely life. Despite many campaigns to repatriate her to her family (the L pod in Puget Sound), years passed. The stadium around her slowly and literally crumbled.

The ‘Blackfish’ Effect,” named after the 2013 documentary that eventually reached tens of millions of people globally, has shifted the captive cetacean paradigm in the past decade. Businesses have severed ties with marine theme parks, and policymakers have passed laws ending the commercial display of orcas and other cetacean species. SeaWorld, the company that built its brand on Shamu, is phasing out orca display — no longer capturing, breeding or trading them.

And still Toki languished in the South Florida heat. The Seaquarium’s two owners during Toki’s first 52 years there were adamant that she would never leave the park and disdainfully dismissed talk of returning her to her family.

In March 2022, however, Toki’s outlook finally seemed brighter. The Seaquarium was sold to a company whose business model relied primarily on swim-with-dolphin encounters. An orca didn’t fit that model, and these owners were willing to let her go. Efforts could finally begin in earnest to return her home. The Lummi Tribe, who gave her the name Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut and considered her a relative, had prepared detailed plans for a seaside sanctuary in the Salish Sea.

Then, last month, Toki died. The hope felt by so many that she would finally go home disappeared in an instant.

Captivity robs orcas of a true life in the deep open sea. It robs them of family, of purpose, of change and challenge. Captivity is tremendous monotony for these socially complex, wide-ranging, intelligent animals. We should not perpetuate that.

Zoos and aquariums long ago relegated dancing bears and tricycle-riding chimps to circuses, but still claim that cetacean shows — loud extravaganzas featuring leaping orcas and cavorting dolphins — are educational (they are not). The industry could and should invest in seaside sanctuaries — it’s a win-win choice, as the industry would be heroes and the animals’ welfare would improve.

Let Toki’s miserable, isolated life and sad death mean something for her fellow captives. These amazing beings should not have to die to finally be free."

Dr. Naomi Rose is senior scientist (marine mammal biology) for the Animal Welfare Institute in Washington, D.C.

[freeced]

Hailing Frequencies (Part 1)

[art by @pockamune]

Lylack fiddled with the controls. There wasn't really anything to do with them right then, so the fiddling was redundant. Like playing an electric fiddle that wasn't plugged in. Electric fiddle, Lylack thought. Electric griddle. Mm...

The lanky springhare stretched both legs out onto the control panel and looked to their left, where a monument of empty Zapfood boxes regarded them balefully. It had been too long since the last stop, Lylack decided. Stocking up on packaged food didn't mean stocking up on proper meals, and the sooner they got to where they were going, the better. Back home, they would have simply stopped off at whatever highway diner happened along, confident that, wherever you are in the world, a pancake is more or less flat and edible.

Only, they weren't in the world anymore. They were in space, and whatever its charms, the vastness of the interstellar universe meant it wasn't just lacking in diners, it was lacking in everything. Between the little life-preserving systems ringed around their favorite life-sustaining stars, you weren't looking for friendly rest stop billboards so much as for two full atoms to rub together. There was nothing. And...

No one.

Lylack wouldn't have told you they were an introvert. You never would have had the chance to ask. For as long as they could remember, they had been burrowed away working on their little pet projects and flights of fancy, taking in society as a snorkel takes in air: a regrettable necessity that prevents its wearer from diving even further out of sight. It wasn't a question of how often they felt the need to be around other people, but how often their presence was required. In fact, it was one of the main reasons they had taken this job as an intergalactic bar delivery driver—the solitude, they assumed, would be comforting. And as it turned out, it was.

Yet, thought Lylack, as they checked the scanners for the millionth pointless time. Yet.

There was a difference between solitude and being all alone. It didn't set in right away, and it had a habit of fading from your mind when you were back on solid ground again. But these times, these long hauls, halfway between somewhere and somewhere else, just as far from anything as anything could be—this wasn't just a quiet place to think, it was a silence so intense it laid a blanket on your brain. Dimensions lost their shape, time became confused and seemed to go on only when you looked the other way. The clear sense of identity that tended to emerge from contemplation lost its balance way out here, unsure of the borders between the fathomless recesses of your mind and the beckoning infinity of space. At least, it did without a couple decent meals to spice things up.

Lylack glanced back over at the stack of Zapfood boxes over there on the floor. The portside cabin deck, they tried to glue into their brain. Not for the first time this trip, they considered going back into the cargo area to liberate a case of what this whole workaday voyage was supposed to be about.

Any decently advanced outpost had a food substantiator capable of synthesizing anything a bar or club might need—everything, that is, except the alcohol it made its money on. It was true that some quaint little places here and there still brewed their drinks the old fashioned way, but by and large, an operation of that kind relied on too many moving parts when you considered that most planets didn't even have an atmosphere thick enough to support traditional agriculture, never mind a business-minded person who might be carrying such antiquated expertise. To synthesize alcoholic drinks, then, as was standard practice, you needed a Wine, Beer, and Spirits Substantiator (WBSS) and a license to operate it, both items prohibitively expensive for any average establishment to bear up on its own. (There were also similar machines and licenses for other controlled substances—Lylack didn't concern themselves with these because it was enough headache remembering their own employer's ones.)

In fact, there was no actual difference in hardware between a regular food substantiator and one labeled as a WBSS, but manufacturers were required to lock unauthorized features safely away from consumer use. Tampering with a food substantiator with the intent to create illegal goods was punishable by severe fines, or, if done with intent to sell, imprisonment. The law, as is typical, ended up as a matter of cost, and it was far easier for most bar owners to turn a profit ordering their stock from light years away than to invest in legal manufacture locally or risk getting caught up in the aftermath of a smuggling operation gone bad.

It was a long way of convincing themselves that this delivery job was necessary, Lylack decided. They didn't decide whether their job actually was necessary, though. Not now. That was too much to think about out here where a vague sense of purpose could be the only line towing you along. Here where navigating scattered asteroids would feel like walking happily among a crowded room. Here where you'd give anything to see the screen light up with anything you hadn't entered in yourself. Here where—

It was lighting up.

Lylack scrambled to pull their legs back off the panel, and in so doing, lost their balance completely, tumbling backwards over the captain's chair and accidentally mashing keys as their long feet bounced off the controls. A comm link opened.

Lylack bounded back up behind the chair, their black-tipped ears making the first appearance, followed by a mess of purple hair and deep brown eyes that looked inquisitively up at the viewing screen. "Hello?" they said, squinting at the fuzzy image wavering in front of them until it resolved into a fuzzy face that squinted back before opening its own eyes wide.

The face opened its mouth as the comm speaker chattered to life. "Lylack?" it asked hesitantly, in a voice that cracked like sweet milk tea poured over lots of ice.

"Lylack, is that you?"

[sixty-silver-wishes]

Florida no-shade law endangers airport workers, farmworkers (usatoday.com)

It's no secret that our governor is a sack of shit. But I just wanted to talk about this law, because GOD does it piss me off. DeSantis' lax policies towards COVID restrictions in a densely populated and tourism-heavy state, as well as his targeting of queer people and immigrants in a state with a heavy immigrant population (more on that later) have already put lives at risk, but this is a new low, even for him.

So, this is Florida. The state notorious for being very fucking hot in the summer. And with climate change getting worse, our weather is only getting hotter. So DeSantis and co decide to strip heat protections from workers?? The article states that this was a move to target Miami-Dade, a progressive-leaning county, which was the only one to require heat protections to begin with. Miami-Dade also has an especially high population of Latin American immigrants, whom DeSantis has also targeted- there was, of course, the issue of Florida and Texas transporting Venezuelan migrants to progressive states possibly without their knowing consent, and a law that invalidates the drivers' licenses of undocumented immigrants- which is currently causing an exodus of immigrant workers from the state, to whom Florida largely owes its prominent agriculture industry- 37% of Florida agricultural workers are immigrants, as well as 23% of construction workers and 14% of service workers. Agriculture alone is a huge industry in Florida, with the agricultural sector contributing over $7.74 billion to the economy in 2021. Not only is this new law discriminatory and inhumane; it's also putting a large segment of the state's economy at risk, with many immigrants forced to find work elsewhere in a state that's becoming increasingly hostile towards them. In 2023, according to sources cited in the article I linked at the top, 2,000 people across the US died of heat-related illnesses, with an 88% rise in Florida between the years 2019 and 2022. With worsening climate change, that number will likely continue to rise.

I've been haunted today by something that happened this morning. My mom was out for a walk, and she came home dizzy and feeling like she was going to faint. She said it was heat exhaustion, and she'd passed out from it before. Thankfully, we brought her some water, a washcloth, and a sports drink, and she was fine, but she was out for a short exercise in 95 F (35 C) weather and was already experiencing health issues. I couldn't imagine how much worse it would have been to be performing intensive manual labor all day in this weather, without any protections. I've lived here all my life; I know Florida weather, which is why I believe a law like this should infuriate anyone who's spent any amount of time here.

[somer-writes]

Heart of Hyrule Modern AU pt 2

Wanted to get down some thoughts on world-building. specifically as it relates to war and reconstruction. this is all subject to change, i just needed to get it laid out somewhere so if something doesnt make sense please let me know!!!

Also CW for wartime, occupations, terrorism

The Borderless War

13 year long civil war

Started as an attempted coup to move from monarchy into military dictatorship

General Rivia of Noble Court planted his men at major forts throughout Hyrule. Once smoke signals were lit, the men mutinied and took control (or attempted to) of military stations and strategic routes.

Rivia was swiftly detained by the Sheikah protecting the royal family. The outposts were more difficult because the sitting king was deemed weak/ineffective. The forces were split 50/50 as was most of the populace

Rivia’s wife Nomi managed to take the royal family as political hostages with a rogue group of Sheikah she promised power

Nobles were rounded up and executed if they refused to kneel as were important figureheads. Entire towns were razed if they refused to swear fealty

As refugees fled to neighboring lands, the defected army hunted them down

During this time Ordon (previously on good terms with Hyrule) was forcibly occupied for their agriculture and isolation

The Zora remained neutral but accepted refugees, the Gorons defended the Eldin province from non official militants (the defected army), and the Rito fled from forest fires up into the mountains

The war ended when Nomi was betrayed by the Sheikah after failing to follow through on her promises

Without her at the helm, the uprising was swiftly squashed (About 4 years after Time is born/left in Kokiri Forest)

The Harkinian royal family takes the throne again (princess Zelda was born while the family was captive and sent as a protected hostage to a sheikah base in the east)

Weapons development

The war served as the turning point in modern magic weaponry.

The warriors family established their company by refitting old weaponry with mana charges which could fire liquidized or crystalline spells even by those not magically inclined

On top of projectile spells, the company produced traditional weapons (swords, spears, etc) that also used charges to apply spells to the weapons

They also produced tactical staves and learned to make the first lab-grown mana crystals (which they still have a patent on)

The weapons advanced much faster than the defenses which had devastating results for casualty numbers

Anti mage armor does come about towards the end of the war but is expensive and heavy

Reconstruction

Due to the lawlessness of the war era, monsters swiftly took over the wilds (especially in the south of Hyrule)

As the land was attempted to be resettled, monsters attacked and killed a lot of townships/camps

Monster hunting starts off as a noble trade but swiftly becomes synonymous with extortion and ransoming

Much of the south is left abandoned and with forces and resources already stretched thin, the royal army leaves the area to monsters with devastating results on the towns that survived through the war but were left defenseless

As a way to catalog refugees/orphans, Hylians are made to adopt true surnames over place names

The first wave of standardized official identification is rolled out. ID cards include names, birthdays, province of origin, and whether or not the person is magically inclined

King Harkinan establishes the sages as a unified council in peace attempts

Official seats of the country (castle town, goron city, etc) are fitted with anti mana barriers that require a key item such as a ring to use magic within the barrier limits

Dark magic is declared officially illegal. Light magic requires special licenses.

Post-war Occupation of Ordon

Ordon is denied a representative on the sages’ council leading the relationship to sour more. Hyrule has yet to pull out of the region.

The first Ordon Rebellion occurs resulting in the destruction of the great fort on the north end of Faron bridge. As a result, a second occupation occurs

Ordon is forced to name a capital (Ordon village) and an ambassador. Ordonians are then forced to take Hylian surnames.

A rebellion group forms with Ordon leading to a number of small terror acts and attacks on Hylian grounds. Anti-Ordon sentiments begin to crop up

Hyrule exhausts itself in Ordon and withdraws from the area under an unstable treaty. Ordon is considered Hyrule territory, but is allowed to functionally govern themselves. This makes trade/travel/logistics difficult between Hyrule and Ordon.

The temple of hylia constructed in Ordon Village is abandoned

Anti-ordonian laws (ID cards, permits/paperwork, lack of representation) are passed further dividing the kingdom and province

Character effects

Time is a war refugee who is born during the war and taken to the Kokiri for safety as an infant when his parents were outed as monarch loyalists working with a resistance

Malon’s family stayed in the south through the war and reconstruction. She vividly remembers hiding in the cellar from monsters as a child

Wars’ family owns and operates Warriors’ Weaponry Co. He has mixed feelings on his family’s legacy. He’s fairly inclined to magic and is somewhat skilled with a power spear.

Twilight is a Hylian reconstruction refugee adopted into Ordon. He faces a lot of anti-Ordon sentiment in Hyrule and the opposite in Ordon. His home and family were destroyed by a monster.

Wild was severely injured in a monster attack in the northeast of Hyrule which destroyed his home village.

Legend’s family is noble blooded but went into hiding after the war and gave up their titles.

[racefortheironthrone]

I was rereading some of your old union questions and I was wondering if there was some reason why hiring halls wasn't more common.

So I discuss hiring halls a bit here, but just to explain to new readers, a hiring hall is a particular mode of labor relations whereby the union takes over the power to hire and fire workers from management while agreeing to provide workers to a given job site upon request from a business that has a contract with the union. One way to think of it is that the union has essentially put the HR department under worker control.

The union then undertakes to match requests for a certain number of workers to the same number of union members (in the case of a closed shop) or dues-paying workers (in the case of an agency shop) who have applied to the hiring hall for work. In order to prevent corruption and favoritism, the union assigns or refers workers on the basis of some non-discriminatory rule. To quote from IATSE (the theater worker's union) Local #18's rules for referrals:

"Referrals are to be based upon such recognized factors as ability to perform specific services requested by said Employer, availability for employment at the time of such request, and seniority as defined by the length of service in the industry or for a specific employer."

Finally, the hiring hall also undertakes a responsibility that the labor that it's providing to employers is of high quality. At a minimum, this involves keeping detailed records on union members' "good conduct" on the job site. Most hiring halls tend to require, in addition to union membership and/or dues, that a worker has completed an apprenticeship or other form of licensing or certification process in a trade, and has a minimum amount of experience as a trainee. Finally, some hiring halls even attempted to regulate personal behavior standards when it came to alcohol, on the grounds that workers who are habitual alcoholics are likely to drink on the job, which compromises the quality of their labor.

Hiring halls tend to be confined to a fairly narrow set of industries - you see them in construction, longshoring and warehousing, maritime, theater, agriculture. So why aren't they more common?

Well, one major factor is that employers tend to be highly resistant to allowing unions to take over something that they consider to be a core role of management - and thus it's kind of the last thing they'd agree to in a union contract. Thus, the relative balance of power between labor and capital becomes pivotal: where employers are strong and unions are weak, you don't see hiring halls; but where employers are weak and unions are strong, you're more likely to see hiring halls.

Another factor is labor law - the hiring hall tended to be associated with closed shops, and a lot of countries ban closed shops. (The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 banned the closed shop but left hiring halls alone, so hiring halls had to shift to agency shops.) Moreover, historically the NLRB has been rather suspicious of hiring halls, in part because the NRLB had pioneered the model of union shops associated with the then-new CIO unions and wanted to steer unions towards that model rather than the hiring hall, which was associated with older craft unions. As a result, NRLB bureaucrats tended to discourage the formation of hiring halls when they made labor law decisions or conducted arbitration and mediation during collective bargaining.

A third factor is the union's capacity - as you can see from above, operating a hiring hall takes a lot of work (and financial resources to pay for that work). A lot of unions find that degree of extra effort to be more than they're willing or able to muster. The United Farm Workers, for example (and this is a topic that I'd welcome further asks about, because it's a fascinating story of the rise and fall of a social movement), ran into a good deal of difficulty trying to set up a system of hiring halls in the wake of their first breakthrough victory in the grape-growing industry in California in 1970.

As detailed in the excellent history From the Jaws of Victory by Matthew Garcia, Cesar Chavez was more interested in the UFW as a social movement than in doing the work to ensure that contracts were signed in a timely fashion, that hiring halls (which had to be set up on far-flung farms all over the state of California) were operational in time to handle the seasonal hiring rush in the fields, that they were adequately staffed by competent people (Cesar Chavez had a rooted ideological objection to paying union staffers more than a poverty wage), that they kept adequate records and matched workers to referrals efficiently, and that they were operating in a non-discriminatory and efficient manner. As a result, a lot of UFW hiring halls developed a reputation for being shady or slow and inefficient or favoring Mexican workers over Filipinos - which became something of a hindrance in maintaining existing membership and organizing new workers.

[investmentassistant]

Overview of WL COMPANY DMCC financial marketplace

The company we want to talk about today is called WL COMPANY DMCC. WL Company DMCC (License Number DMCC-89711, Registration Number DMCC19716, Account Number 411911), registered in Dubai, UAE whose registered office is Unit No BA95, DMCC Business Centre, Level No 1, represented by the Director, Stephanie Sandilands.

DMCC is the largest free trade zone in the United Arab Emirates, which is located in Dubai. It was established in 2002 and now serves as a commodity exchange that operates in four sectors: precious goods; energy; steel and metals; agricultural products.

Main services and activities

WL COMPANY DMCC is a financial marketplace, the direction of which is financial services, consulting, management, analysis of services, provision of services by third parties to the end user. The list also includes:

• Investment ideas;

• Active product trading;

• Analytical support for traders;

• Selection of an investment strategy in the market using various assets.

WL COMPANY DMCC operates on the MetaTrader 5 trading platform. There is a convenient registration, detailed instructions, as well as the ability to connect a demo account for self-study.

Among the main services:

1. Trading.

2. Social Services.

3.ESG Investment.

4. Analytics.

5. Wealth management.

Company managers will help with registration, with opening an account, with access to the platform. After training (if required), you can make a minimum deposit of 500 USD and start trading.

Main advantages and disadvantages of WL COMPANY DMCC

Before going directly to the benefits of the marketplace, it is worth saying a few words about the loyalty program. Depending on the amount of investment, the user receives one of three grades. Each of them gives certain privileges. The program itself makes it possible to get the maximum effect from investments in a short time.

Now about the benefits of WL COMPANY DMCC:

1. Availability of a license in the jurisdiction of the DMCC trading zone.

2. No commission when making SFD transactions on shares.

3. More than 6700 trading instruments.

4. High professional level of support.

5. Very strong analytical support (client confidence level 87%).

6. Weekly comments and summaries from WL COMPANY experts.

7. Modern analysis software.

8. Large selection of investment solutions.

9. Own exclusive market analysis services in various areas.

10. Own analytical department with the publication of materials in the public domain.

11. Modern focus on social services.

The feedback from WL COMPANY DMCC clients highlights the positive characteristics of the work of marketplace analysts, the convenience of a personal account, the speed of processing positions, analysis tools, and low commissions.

Negative reviews relate to the freezing of the system, delays in withdrawing funds for a day, and the small age of the company. Also, for some users, the application for withdrawal of funds was not processed the first time, and someone could not instantly replenish the deposit. North American traders complain that WL COMPANY DMCC only has a presence in Dubai.

At the same time, the financial group received several significant awards:

• Best MetaTrader 5 Broker 2022

• The Most Reliable Fintech Service 2023

Outcome

According to the information received, it can be concluded that WL COMPANY DMCC can be called a good financial marketplace in the modern market. By registering with the DMCC, the company can be called reliable and trustworthy. There are also negative reviews, but they relate mainly to the technical component.

For August, 2023 WL COMPANY DMCC has about 12000 clients worldwide. The main regions are North America, Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States. Traders can act independently or use the advice of marketplace experts.

[transgenderer]

Familianten or Familianten Gesetz was the German term commonly used for the laws and the related record books which regulated the number of Jewish families in the Czech lands in the 18th and 19th centuries.

It was the avowed policy of the government to prevent any increase in the number of Jewish residents in the Czech provinces. When Maria Theresa revoked her edict expelling the Jews from these provinces (1745), it was on the condition that their number should not be increased; even her son Joseph II reasserted (1780–90) the condition...

The number of marriage permits issued was limited to the number of deaths among the Familianten. An applicant for a permit was required to give surety for the payment of three years' taxes, to prove that he possessed at least 300 florins, to show that he had received a school education, to pass an examination in Jewish religion according to Herz Homberg's text-book, "Bene Zion," and to give evidence that he was at least twenty-four years of age. A first-born son, a school-teacher, or a veteran of the army had precedence over other candidates. The license was issued either by the county or by the provincial authorities (Kreisamt or Gubernium).

Besides the ordinary Familianten there were those who, in recognition of special merit, were permitted to marry as "supernumeraries". It was a rule, however, that they should be given the first license vacated by death. The law of Francis I (Aug. 3, 1797) permitted Jews who had served as volunteers in the army or who lived exclusively by agriculture or by technical skill to marry without regard to the number of established families...

like a proto-one-child-policy! except its family based, instead of children based, which would have the weird effect that if you had more than two children, at least one probably wouldnt be able to marry

[jcmarchi]

Romanian AI Helps Farmers and Institutions Get Better Access to EU Funds - Technology Org

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/romanian-ai-helps-farmers-and-institutions-get-better-access-to-eu-funds-technology-org/

Romanian AI Helps Farmers and Institutions Get Better Access to EU Funds - Technology Org

A Romanian state agency overseeing rural investments has adopted artificial intelligence to aid farmers in accessing European Union funds.

Gardening based on aquaculture technology. Image credit: sasint via Pixabay, free license

The Agency for Financing Rural Investments (AFIR) revealed that it integrated robots from software automation firm UiPath approximately two years ago. These robots have assumed the arduous task of accessing state databases to gather land registry and judicial records required by farmers, entrepreneurs, and state entities applying for EU funding.

George Chirita, director of AFIR, emphasized the role of AI-driven automation was groundbreaking in expediting the most important organizational processes for farmers, thereby enhancing their efficiency. Since the introduction of these robots, AFIR has managed financing requests totaling 5.32 billion euros ($5.75 billion) from over 50,000 beneficiaries, including farmers, businesses, and local institutions.

The implementation of robots has notably saved AFIR staff approximately 784 days’ worth of document searches. Over the past two decades, AFIR has disbursed funds amounting to 21 billion euros.

Despite Romania’s burgeoning status as a technology hub with a highly skilled workforce, the nation continues to lag behind its European counterparts in offering digital public services to citizens and businesses, and in effectively accessing EU development funds. Eurostat data from 2023 indicated that only 28% of Romanians possessed basic digital skills, significantly below the EU average of 54%. Moreover, Romania’s digital public services scored 45, well below the EU average of 84.

UiPath, the Romanian company valued at $13.3 billion following its public listing on the New York Stock Exchange, also provides automation solutions to agricultural agencies in other countries, including Norway and the United States.

Written by Vytautas Valinskas

[groupfazza]

حمدان بن محمد يصدر قراراً بتعديل عدد من التشريعات لغايات تبسيط وخفض بعض الاشتراطات في بلديّة دبي :

أصدر سمو الشيخ حمدان بن محمد بن راشد آل مكتوم، ولي عهد دبي رئيس المجلس التنفيذي، قرار المجلس رقم (65) لسنة 2022 بشأن تعديل وتبسيط وخفض بعض الاشتراطات المعمول بها لدى بلديّة دبي بمُوجب التشريعات السّارية، وذلك استكمالاً لمبادرات إمارة دبي الرامية إلى تحفيز الاستثمار والنمو الاقتصادي وتقليل الوقت المستغرق لتقديم الخدمات، وترسيخاً لمكانتها العالمية كبيئة جاذبة للأعمال.

ونصّ القرار على إلغاء بعض المواد في التشريعات السارية، وشملت؛ إلغاء المادة (6) من الأمر المحلّي رقم (40) لسنة 1989 بشأن الشُّروط الواجب توفرها في الأسمِدة العُضويّة المُستوردة أو المُصنّعة محلّياً، والمادة (5) من الأمر المحلّي رقم (54) لسنة 1990 بشأن تنظيم وترخيص الشّركات العامِلة في قطاع الزِّراعة في إمارة دبي.

كما أُلغيت بموجب القرار نصوص البنود (1)، (4)، (5)، و(6) من المادة (3)، والفقرة (ب) من المادة (4)، والبنود (1)، (2)، (3)، (5)، (6)، و(7) من المادة (6)، والبند (5) من المادة (7)، والمادة (9) من الأمر المحلّي رقم (59) لسنة 1991 بشأن الشُّروط العامّة الواجب توفرها في مُستودعات الأسمِدة الكيماويّة ومعامِل السّماد العضوي في إمارة دبي.

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, has issued Executive Council Resolution No. (65) of 2022, which amends, simplifies and reduces the procedural requirements for some of Dubai Municipality’s services. Part of efforts to enhance investment and economic growth and raise Dubai’s status as a global business hub, the resolution aims to cut down the processing time for the Municipality’s services.

The new Resolution annuls some clauses of current resolutions including Clause No. (6) of Local Order No. (40) of 1989 on Conditions for Imported and Locally Produced Organic Fertilizer; and Clause No. (5) of Local Order No. (54) of 1990 on Regulation and Licensing of Companies Operating in the Agricultural Sector in Dubai.

Articles No. (1), (4), (5) and (6) of Clause No. (3); Articles No. (1), (2), (3), (5), (6), and (7) of Clause No. (6); Article No. (5) of Clause No. (7); and Clause No. (9) of Local Order No. (59) of 1991 on General Conditions to be Fulfilled by Chemical Fertilizer Warehouses and Organic Fertilizer Plants in Dubai, have been annulled.

Wednesday, 9 November 2022 الأربعاء

[gaesnek]

join me tonight as we skim through title 11 of maryland state law and learn:

What does and does not count as an explosive

How you can have up to 5lbs each of smokeless and black gunpowder without a license

How you can get around some explosives license requirements by saying you're using it for agricultural purposes

And much more!

[gapaskat]

Addressing Response to Customer Difficulties: Starting Point

What are the common problems encountered by CMU students nowadays?

In this journal, you will learn about our journey of finding problems and how we were able to come up with this particular product in order to achieve a more efficient and productive academic life for college students.

The first thing we did during the first week was to create a plan on how we will conduct our interview and how many prospective people we need including the college they should be from. The team agreed on making interviews by pair; one person will do the asking while the other will do the documentation.

After some interviews, we gathered all the information and shared it together with other members.

After giving it some thought, we took notes of the problems raised and created possible solutions to each of them. The next day, we interviewed another group of people for further investigation. The following is the summarization of the data gathered from respondents.

Data Gathered:

• 2Males (From Agriculture) - Problem: Garbage’s on Agriculture Benches

• 1 male (From CAS) - Problem: Lack of trash bins & sometimes no water on Comfort Rooms

• 1 Female (From CFES) - Problem: CMU market is too far printings

• 1 Female (From CBM) - Problem: CMU market is too far school supplies

• 2 Females (Graduate Students) -Problem: Financial problem

• 1 Female (Veterinary Medicine) - Problem: CMU market is too far printing

• 1 Female (Education) -Problem: Slow internet

• 5 Females (CAS, Psychology) -Problem: Lack of benches

A total of 14 customers are interviewed. And then we all gathered together to brainstorm and discuss our possible plans.

In consideration of the data’s we have gathered while conducting interviews, we noticed that there was diverse array of problems from our customers' answers. The group decided to formulate possible solutions to the problems while also considering the opportunity to profit. The most significant one was financial problems, our chosen solution for this was to construct or create a platform for a marketplace where we will play the role of a broker. It aims to give opportunities for students to:

1. Dispose of their old possessions through selling second-hand items (books, print-outs, yoga mats, swimsuits, etc.) 2. Allows them to buy items at a lesser price. 3. Easy access for available boarding houses in the area.

However, it requires a lot of estimations and assumptions and we found out that CMU already has an online marketplace.

Another best alternative we are able to formulate was the solution to the distance of the CMU market in regards to printing services. We came up with the decision to choose the printing problems to be addressed. After considering other variables, the team has made an idea of providing a self-service, coin-generated, Vendo printing machine rather than using a regular printer which needs someone to operate and provide assistance for all the time. It is super convenient and can be less hassle since we only need to provide maintenance for it once in a while. For that cause, we did research if this product is available in the market or is yet to be created.

To find out that it is currently unavailable in the local market, we are advised to manufacture the product ourselves, because formulating it on our own and managing its service function would dampen the fixed cost, causing us to hardly match the value of the product in the value the customers can afford to give which can dampen the possibility of profitability. With that in plan, we established steps to properly manufacture the product and as to where we will market it.

The group formulated the following measures:

• Collaborate with people with expertise in the making of the product (IT technicians/ Engineers) • Interview experts as to the costs of manufacture, the processes and licenses needed to manufacture the product. • Have the estimation as to the possibility of profitability or determine the economic value of the product in a certain point of time. • Make a model or prototype of the product, as to the process of using it • Devise a clear plan on whom to sell the product.

To sum up, working with other institutions to create a clear plan for marketing your product might be a smart step to access new markets, make use of pooled resources, and ultimately succeed more in the education industry. Our teamwork leads to productivity, innovation, decision-making, communication and personla growth, while also fostering strong relationships among team members.

[pogoyarabelajane]

Addressing Response to Customer Difficulties: Starting Point

What are the common problems encountered by CMU students nowadays?

In this journal, you will learn about our journey of finding problems and how we were able to come up with this particular product in order to achieve a more efficient and productive academic life for college students.

The first thing we did during the first week was to create a plan on how we will conduct our interview and how many prospective people we need including the college they should be from. The team agreed on making interviews by pair; one person will do the asking while the other will do the documentation.

After some interviews, we gathered all the information and shared it together with other members.

After giving it some thought, we took notes of the problems raised and created possible solutions to each of them. The next day, we interviewed another group of people for further investigation. The following is the summarization of the data gathered from respondents.

Data Gathered:

2 males (Agriculture Students) — lack of trash bins in Agri benches.

1 male (from CAS) — lack of trash bins and CR (no water)

1 female (from CFES) — CMU market is too far for printing documents.

1 female (from CBM) — CMU market is too far for printing documents.

2 female (Graduate students) — Financial problem.

1 female (from CVM) — CMU market is too far.

1 female (from COEd) — Slow internet.

5 females (from CAS) — Lack of benches.

A total of 14 customers are interviewed.

And then we all gathered together to brainstorm and discuss our possible plans.

In consideration of the datas we have gathered while conducting interviews, we noticed that there was a diverse array of problems from our customers' answers. The group decided to formulate possible solutions to the problems while also considering the opportunity to profit. The most significant one was financial problems, our chosen solution for this was to construct or create a platform for a marketplace where we will play the role of a broker. It aims to give opportunities for students to:

Dispose of their old possessions through selling second-hand items(books, print-outs, yoga mats, swimsuits, etc.)

Allows them to buy items at a lesser price.

Easy access for available boarding houses in the area.

However, it requires a lot of estimations and assumptions and we found out that Central Mindanao University already has an online marketplace.

Another best alternative we are able to formulate was the solution to the distance of the University Market in regards to printing services. We came up with the decision to choose the printing problems to be addressed. After considering other variables, the team has made an idea of providing a self-service, coin-generated, vendo printing machine rather than using a regular printer which needs someone to operate and provide assistance for all the time. It is super convenient and can be less hassle since we only need to provide maintenance for it for once in a while. For that cause, we did research if this product is available in the market or is yet to be created.

To find out that it is currently unavailable in the local market, we are advised to manufacture the product ourselves, because formulating it on our own and managing its service function would dampen the fixed cost, causing us to hardly match the value of the product in the value the customers can afford to give which can dampen the possibility of profitability. With that in plan, we established steps to properly manufacture the product and as to where we will market it.

The group formulated the following measures:

Collaborate with people with expertise in the making of the product (IT technicians/ Engineers)

Interview experts as to the costs of manufacture, the processes and licenses needed to manufacture the product.

Have the estimation as to the possibility of profitability or determine the economic value of the product in a certain point of time.

Make a model or prototype of the product, as to the process of using it.

Devise a clear plan on whom to sell the product.

To conclude:

Team work and Cooperation with the team

Work with Unity, and Diverse Perspective

Adaptability

Constructive feedback

Having this kind of behavior and attitude makes the team create a unique and successful product and/or service, it also helps the students life easier in terms of printing their outputs. Moreover, the team should not waste time on thinking of innovative ideas that can be useful not only for students but also a product and/or services that we can still benefit in the future.