#and according to empire! empire! i was a lonely estate it is an age that will swallow me hahaha laughs in dread but its funnt

[ilovelickingrocks]

i tink its funny how i dont turn 23 til the 19th but ive been thinking of myself as 23 for months now. like i wanted to shed the weight of being 22 for a while lmfao

[drosera-nepenthes]

A Royal Recluse: Princess Clotilde

Just at the time when, in consequence of the weakness and folly of the republican government, certain French Monarchists are looking to Prince Victor Napoleon Bonaparte as the possible savior of their country, the Prince, whose marriage to Princess Clementina of Belgium recently brought him before the public, was watching by the deathbed of his mother, Princess Clotilde of Savoy, who breathed her last on June 25. The story of this royal lady is a pathetic one and, apart from the interest that is attached to her as the mother of the imperial candidate to the French throne, her personal character was one of rare beauty.

She was the daughter of Victor Emmanuel II, first King of Italy, and of Adelaide, Archduchess of Austria, and was born at Turin on March 2, 1843. Her mother died in 1855, leaving five young children, of whom Clotilde was the eldest, the others being Humbert, the future King of Italy ; Amadeo, Duke of Aosta ; Maria Pia, the queen dowager of Portugal, and a son who died in childhood. The Queen of Sardinia (Victor Emmanuel had not at that time laid violent hands on the independent states of Italy) was an exemplary wife and mother, and her orphan daughters were carefully educated by the attendants whom she had placed about them.

Never was a princess more ruthlessly sacrificed to political interests than the eldest princess of Savoy. When a mere child of sixteen, Clotilde was chosen to cement the alliance between France and Sardinia, and was promised in marriage to Prince Napoleon Jerome, nephew of Napoleon I and first cousin Napoleon III, the reigning sovereign. Princess Clotilde was connected with the Bourbons, her very name was French and was given to her in memory of the French Princess Marie Clotilde, sister of Louis XVI, who married a King of Sardinia ; but allied as she was by close ties of blood to the Bourbons, she had nothing in common with the Bonapartes who occupied their place, and a more ill-assorted couple never existed than the middle-aged, violent, cynical and free-thinking Prince Napoleon and the daughter of the most ancient royal house in Europe, who traditions and surroundings were strictly conservative and religious. Their marriage took place at Turin on January 30, 1859. The bride was sixteen and the bridegroom thirty-seven. He had a handsome presence and was intelligent and well informed and well informed, but neither his private life nor his freely expressed opinions on public matters made him estimable or lovable. His attitude with regard to his cousin, the Emperor, was one of constant opposition, and it was reported that his anti-religious views led him to take part in the banquets organized by a group of free thinkers on Good Friday. Under the Second Empire the French Government was officially Catholic, and Prince Napoleon's hostile and aggressive attitude was pronounced ill-bred, if not worse. Throughout France he was distinctly unpopular.

The young bride, married to this unsympathetic nephew of the great Napoleon, probably had few illusions as to the sum of happiness that awaited her in her new home. There are still some old men living who remember her when she took possession of the Palais Royal, Prince Napoleon's Paris house.: a slight, pale girl, with fluffy, fair hair and bright eyes, not pretty but singularly attractive. Her high breeding stood her in good stead in the somewhat parvenu atmosphere of the Court of the Tuileries, she had a royal dignity all her own, and her simplicity of heart was combined with much quiet firmness. From the first she ordered her life according to the principles in which she had been educated. An early riser, even at the Palais Royal, she gave much time to prayer and to works of mercy, but her piety, says M. Emile Ollivier, a former minister of Napoleon II, “never made her tiresome or intolerant. She believed that the most useful sermon was the practice of the virtues that are taught by faith.” Her husband, although so widely apart from her, acknowledged her goodness. “Clotilde is a saint,” he sometimes said ; “if there were many like her, I believe I myself should end by becoming devout.”

When the disastrous war of 1870 brought terror and shame upon France, the Princess was in Paris. During that fatal month of August every day came news of a fresh defeat, and the revolution that was to break out on the 4th of September was already distinctly perceptible; the infuriated and terrified people made the imperial government responsible for the reverses that so keenly wounded their patriotic pride.

Princess Clotilde was alone at the Palais Royal ; her husband was with the army, her three children she sent to Switzerland, where Prince Napoleon had an estate; but she steadily refused to leave Paris while the Empress Eugénie remained at the Tuileries. There was not much personal sympathy between the two; it was Princess Clotilde's feeling of loyalty that chained her to the post danger as long as there was a semblance of imperial government in Paris.

In vain her husband wrote imperious messages bidding her join her children at Prangins; in vain her father sent the Marquis Spinela to Paris to escort her ; the Princess so yielding in everyday life, was unbending in her decision to remain at the palace as long as the lonely woman at the Tuileries was the nominal ruler of France ; she had shared the splendors of the Empire, and it went against her noble spirit to desert the Empress.

The letter this young woman, a stranger in a strange land, wrote to her father on August 25, 1870, has been quoted by the French papers. It is a right royal letter worthy of the daughter of kings:

“I am a French woman,” she says. “I cannot desert my country. When I married although so young, I knew what I was doing and if I did it, it was because I wished to do so. The interest of my husband, of my children and of my country require that I should remain here. The honor of my name, your honor, my dear father, and that of my country also demand it. Nothing will make me fail in what I believe to be my duty to the end... You know that the house of Savoy and fear have never gone together, and you would not wish that they should meet in my person.”

At last, when the Empress was driven from her palace by the mob, the Princess considered that she was free to follow, but how different was the departure of the two women!

The brilliant and beautiful sovereign, closely disguised, was only able to leave Paris owing to the assistance of her American dentist, Dr. Evans; her young cousin made her exit as a princess. In an open carriage, accompanied by her lady in waiting, she drove to the railway station in broad daylight. The excited people, awed by her courage and dignity, saluted her as she passed out of their sight, a truly royal and saintly figure.

Princess Clotilde lived for some years at Prangins, near Geneva, where she devoted herself to the education of her three children; then, when her husband was allowed to return to France, the difficulties of her married life were such that by mutual consent she retired to the Castle of Moncalieri, near Turin, with her young daughter. Here, in the home of her childhood, she spent nearly forty years. They were years of peace, largely marked by sorrow. Four times only did she emerge from her retreat, once in January 1878, when she heard that her father lay dangerously ill in Rome. She had suffered cruelly from the spoliation of the Holy See by the house of Savoy, and the remembrance of her father's part in the matter prompted her to fly to his bedside. On the way she heard that he was dead, and she sadly returned to Moncalieri. In 1891, she again started for Rome, this time to visit her husband, who lay dying at the Hotel de Russie. Those who saw the Princess during those solemn days can never forget her sweetness, earnestness and gentle patience. What passed between her and Prince Napoleon none can tell, but Cardinal Mermillod a frequent visitor to the sick room, professed himself satisfied, after two private interviews, that the dying man was fully conscious. The Princess, whose married life, it is well known, had been a via crucis, remained near him to the end, praying incessantly for the soul that probably owes its salvation to her intercession. Again in 1903 and in 1904, she left Moncalieri to visit her sister-in-law, Princess Mathilde Bonaparte, whose deathbed she attended.

Her life, as it neared the end became more and more that of a recluse. Her sons lived their own lives in Brussels and in Russia; her daughter, having married a Prince of Savoy, was near to her, and their visits, occasionally brought an element of joy into the silent castle. Last autumn, Prince Victor Napoleon's marriage to the Princess Clémentine of Belgium gladdened his mother's heart. It was celebrated at Moncalieri, and to those who attended the ceremony the most striking figure present was the slight, gray-haired lady, plainly dressed in black, whose eyes had the far-away look of those who are nearing the eternal shore. Even in the days of her youth Princess Clotilde's spirituality struck M. Emile Ollivier. It gave her, he says a singular insight into all questions that touch on right and wrong; she possessed the gifts of the true mystics, “who judge human affairs with a clearness and rectitude born of detachment.” Her chief link with the outer world during the long, silent years of old age was her love for the poor, to whom she gave royally, with a loving kindness that made her gifts more precious. Their grief was great when they heard of her death, and their prayers will follow her remains to the royal mausoleum of La Superga, near Turin, where the daughter of the Sardinian Kings sleeps with her ancestors.

America. United States, America Press, 1911.

[thechasefiles]

The Chase Files Daily Newscap 2/17/2019

Good MORNING  #realdreamchasers! Here is The Chase Files Daily News Cap for Sunday 17th February 2019. Remember you can read full articles for FREE via Barbados Today (BT) or Barbados Government Information Services (BGIS) OR by purchasing by purchasing a Sunday Sun Nation Newspaper (SS).

ONE DEAD, ONE INJURED IN NEW ORLEANS SHOOTING – The stillness of a lazy Saturday afternoon was abruptly interrupted yesterday when the sound of gunshots rang out in New Orleans, St. Michael. The incident left 31-year-old Lorenzo Joseph, of Chapman Lane, St Michael and Goodland Park, Christ Church, with injuries to his body and a second victim, 25-year-old Rio Walkes, of Sobers Lane, St. Michael, was also shot. Both male victims were transported to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by private ambulance. Police confirmed that prior to his arrival at QEH Joseph succumbed to his injuries however, Walkes’ condition was still unknown. An adult male is assisting police with the on-going investigations.   (SS)

NEW ORLEANS VICTIM IDENTIFIED; SECOND MAN INJURED –  Lorenzo Joseph, of 3rd Avenue, Chapman Lane, St Michael and No.35 Goodland Park, Christ Church is this island’s 12th murder victim for the year. The 31-year-old was shot and killed around 5:20p.m. on Saturday, February 16 following a shooting incident between 5th and 6th Avenue, New Orleans, St Michael. Joseph was reportedly liming among a group of men in the area when a lone gunman approached and opened fire, striking him about body. Another man was also injured. He transported by private vehicle to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) where he succumbed to his injuries. The deceased was a former Empire Club footballer who also represented the City of Bridgetown in the David Thompson Memorial Football Classic. The second man, 25-year-old Rio Walkes, of Sobers Lane, St Michael was taken to the QEH by private transport. However, police say his condition is unknown at this time. A man is currently assisting lawmen with their investigations into this incident. (BT)

POLICE RELEASE NAME OF ST GEORGE VICTIM – Police have released the name of the man whose lifeless body was found “lying on the road in a pool of blood” following reports of a shooting at Rock Hall, St George near Taitt Hill this morning. He is 22-year-old Graham Norville, of No.14 Lemgreene Development, Lemon Arbour, St John. Investigations are continuing into this island’s 11th murder which occurred today, February 16 around 11:52 a.m. Police are asking anyone with information that can assist with their investigations to call emergency number 211, Crime Stoppers at 1 800 TIPS(8477) or any police station.  (BT)

LOCAL CAST MOURNS FOR MURDERED ACTOR – The quiet of the Rock Hall, St George community was shattered just before noon today when gunshots rang out. When the dust had settled, 22-year-old Graham Norville lay in the road dead. The father of two, of No.14 Lemgreene, Lemon Arbour, St John is the island’s 11th murder victim for 2019. His lifeless body was found “lying on the road in a pool of blood” following a shooting at Rock Hall, near Taitt Hill around 11:52 a.m. Saturday, February 16. Norville is known for his role as Short Boss on the Barbadian web video series Badness. Dwayne Harris, director and lead actor in the popular series told Barbados TODAY that the cast was devastated by the news of Norville’s murder. He said the deceased who was seeking to further his career in the local film industry had “great potential”. “He was a very great individual. He had some things about to happen for him in the film industry. It is just sad that he had to pass so early,” Harris said, while adding that he hoped the content of the web series would not be aligned with the circumstances surrounding Norville’s death. Prominent youth activist and facilitator of the Nature Fun Ranch, Corey Lane, who has also acted in the web series, shared that Norville was also a songwriter, singer and an artiste. The activist issued a call for early intervention of the nation’s youth so they would not fall victim to crime and violence. “If we could only facilitate our young men . . . within the society . . . we could really put a dent in the fatalities, the murders and even everyday crime and violence in the society,” said Lane. He went on to suggest that the public use Norville’s death as a motivation to rescue the island’s youth so the cycle of violence would not repeat itself. “The saddest comment that I have heard thus far is that these guys live by the gun and therefore they will die by the gun and while it maybe a fact, I think there is much more we can do as a society to be proactive as opposed to reactive. One of the other things that is very important is prevention and reaching our teenagers, of young teenage age, to prevent them from having to walk down this road because it is much easier as the saying goes to bend a boy than break a man. “His death does not have to be in vain. His death can be a rallying call for all of us to double down and save our youth and save our society,” he said.  (BT)

COW ITCH CLEARED FROM NEAR BLACKMAN AND GOLLOP – The clean-up of cow itch infested lands to the east of the Blackman and Gollop Primary School got underway this morning. It took place under the supervision of the Ministry of the Environment and the owner of Staple Grove estates who refused to be identified. Also on hand were members of the executive of the Blackman and Gollop Parent-Teachers Association and Minister of Environment Trevor Prescod.  (SS)

24 HOUR POLYCLINIC SERVICE COMING JUNE 1 – The 24-hour health care service, to be introduced at two of the island’s polyclinics, will be officially launched on June 1. From that date, patients will be able to access medical care on a continuous basis, Monday through Sunday, at the Winston Scott Polyclinic, Jemmotts Lane, St Michael, and the David Thompson Health and Social Services Complex, Glebe Land, St John. According to the Ministry of Health and Wellness, the initiative is aimed at cutting down on the time patients currently wait to be seen at the Accident and Emergency Department of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by offering them round-the-clock service at alternative venues. Services offered will include urgent care, which refers to illnesses and injuries which require immediate care but are not life-threatening, as well as routine care, which may include follow-up care for chronic conditions and health checks. In a statement, the Ministry revealed that it would be meeting with the major trade unions and workers’ representatives in early March to provide an update on the initiative. The meeting will report on the actions taken to address security concerns and human resource issues raised at earlier stakeholder meetings. The organizations involved are the National Union of Public Workers, the Barbados Workers’ Union, the Unity Workers Union, the Barbados Association of Medical Practitioners and the Barbados Nurses’ Association. With the introduction of the 24-hour polyclinic service, the public will be encouraged to visit the Accident and Emergency Department of the QEH primarily for emergency care, which is defined as life-threatening conditions or conditions which need an emergency response. For all other medical issues, they are encouraged to utilize the polyclinic services which will be fully staffed and equipped to meet their needs. (BGIS)

LAUNCH OF VISION 2020: WE GATHERIN’ NEXT FRIDAY – Hundreds of Barbadians are expected to converge in Bridgetown next Friday, February 22, for the launch of Vision 2020: We Gatherin’. It will be held in Parliament’s Courtyard and two screens will be set up so members of the public may view the ceremony on Broad Street or by the Palmetto Square Market. Vision 2020: We Gatherin’ is a 12-month global celebration of Barbadian excellence and a recommitment to this country’s successful future and core values that have defined us as a people. 2020 has been designated as the year for Barbadians and those who love this country to come home, reconnect with family and friends, and invest in the rebuilding and development of Barbados. Purposeful Pursuit of Barbadian Excellence is the theme of the year-long celebrations, which is an initiative of Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley. It is designed to reinforce Government’s mantra of building the best Barbados together. Vision 2020: We Gatherin’ will comprise structured events at the national level, which will be coordinated by Government with input from its social partners. However, community groups, churches, educational institutions, entrepreneurs, and regional and international persons with Barbadian connections, among others, will be encouraged to produce other events. The initiative will begin in the north of the island in January 2020, and move southward every month, allowing each designated parish to showcase its icons, social life and the food for which it is renowned. The parish celebrations will culminate in St Michael in November, and Vision 2020: We Gatherin’ will climax in December with a Christmas extravaganza for all Barbadians – at home and abroad. (BGIS)

DIGICEL PLEASED WITH PERFORMANCE - After more than a decade of operating in Barbados and despite continued economic challenges, telecommunications company Digicel (Barbados) Limited, says it is pleased with its performance so far. Acting Chief Executive Officer Katherine Payne said the company’s 15 years of operations here have been fruitful for customers, the country and the company, adding that Digicel would continue to expand its offerings and grow its operations in order to capture a bigger piece of the pie. Opting not to give details Payne said: “LTE was one of our largest investments of late and our technical team and business strategy team are always looking at what is the next best thing in terms of not just the company but the country. While I have nothing to announce right now you can look out for things in the future.” She was speaking to members of the media on Friday night at the Barbados Hilton Resort where the company awarded about a dozen winners with cash prizes, cellular phones, free months of service, plane tickets and a home entertainment system for taking part in its Christmas 2018 promotion. She said the response for the competition was a positive one and that there was “nothing that we regretted with our Christmas promotion. It was very, very well received.” Barbados Community College employee Vercia Webb walked away with the grand prize of a brand-new Suzuki Swift. Other top prize winners were Debbie Brathwaite, a Liberty Store employee, who walked away with $20,000, and Barbados TODAY employee Maria Bascombe, who received two LIAT plane tickets. Digicel customers had the opportunity to win once they top up, purchase a handset or SIM card, pay a bill on time or sign up for a new service. Speaking on the progress of the company over the past 15 years, Payne said Digicel had played an important role in the development of the information and communication technology (ICT) sector here by breaking the monopoly. “What this basically means is that as a country the average citizen can afford to have access to varying levels of communication, so it is not just about mobile anymore. Digicel is a full-service provider, we service not just mobile customers but home and entertainment. We provide now fixed line and TV services to our customers, and then full ICT solutions for our business segment. So it really has provided an opportunity where the country as a whole can expand when it comes to telecommunications,” Payne explained. She said while the company did not yet have 100 per cent coverage of the island, she was satisfied that “the coverage is good” and was continuously improving. “We have increase bandwidth from a home and entertainment perspective. For our corporate customers as well, we have one of the largest customer bases in the country. In fact, for most of the Digicel offices across the region we have been expending not just from a corporate space but into government as well. We have signed deals over the last eight to nine months in Dominica and other Caribbean islands,” she revealed. “So Digicel is not just about providing mobile but about growing the telecommunications infrastructure of the country,” Payne added. During the brief award ceremony on Friday night, Director of Consumer Sales Dionne Emtage delivered remarks on behalf of the company’s board director Ralph Bizzy Williams. In that speech, Emtage said Digicel had played an exceptional role in Barbados and the region in providing “well-paid jobs for hundreds of people”. “The impact on the economy of the island has been tremendous all because Digicel aimed to break the monopoly of a single operator to bring the price of communication down drastically,” she said. Emtage also pointed out that Williams Industries benefited from the company as a result of partnerships. (BT)

HARRIS PAINTS PARTNERS WITH UNFPA IN PROACTIVE HURRICANE RESPONSE - By partnering with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Harris Paints is joining a proactive effort to help women and young girls in the region – should a natural disaster strike. The Caribbean paint company has provided space in its main Barbados warehouse for the UNFPA to store 1264 “dignity kits.” This storage allows the UNFPA to respond rapidly to the needs of affected populations in case of an emergency. In 2017 Harris Paints worked to ship water and supplies, provided by the company, staff and the wider public, for the hurricane ravaged islands of Barbuda and Dominica. This included the distribution of several dignity kits provided by the UNFPA. This current collaboration allows the UNFPA to be even better positioned in advance of a potential disaster. Randy Warner, Programme Clerk with the UNFPA, explained, “that during natural disasters many women and adolescent girls become more vulnerable to sexual exploitation and lack basic human necessities and protection. Left unattended, it is a situation that becomes progressively more acute. Dignity kits help women and girls maintain their dignity during humanitarian crises. Preserving dignity is essential to maintaining self-esteem and confidence, which is important to cope in stressful and potentially overwhelming humanitarian situations. Supporting women’s self-esteem and confidence also assists them in providing care and protection to their children.” These kits help mitigate some of these issues and contain toiletries like soap and toothpaste, sanitary supplies and clean undergarments to provide basic hygiene. In other humanitarian efforts UNFPA also works with ministries of health in the region to provide reproductive health kits during emergencies that include items to support clean delivery, rape treatment, the treatment of sexually transmitted infections and other essential drugs, basic equipment and supplies. “This storage space from Harris Paints allowed us to create and store more dignity kits to facilitate better pre-positioning of emergency supplies should any Caribbean nation face a natural disaster,” said Warner. Some of the kits will be stored locally but the majority will be sent to the National Office of Disaster Services (NODS) in Antigua and Barbuda where they can be distributed throughout the region. Tracy Johnson, Product and Trade Marketing Manager, welcomed the effort. “It’s great to partner with an organization like UNFPA who work to support women and adolescent girls when they are at their most vulnerable. We were happy to be able to provide a staging post in their efforts and to assist, should the need arise, in making sure these supplies are available and can get to those that need them as quickly as possible.”  (BT)

WEST INDIES BRACING FOR STRONG CHALLENGE - With the odds yet again firmly stacked against West Indies in the upcoming One-Day International series, marquee batsman Shai Hope says the Caribbean are bracing for a strong challenge from England but also plan to counter with firepower of their own. West Indies are ranked ninth in the ICC one-day rankings and face a number one-ranked England side, already pencilled in as firm favourites to win the World Cup at home later this year. However, Hope said while the Wes Indies were cognisant of the challenge, they were not intimidated and would be looking to spring a surprise, similar to what occurred in the preceding three-Test series. “We’re an international team, we’ve come here to play cricket and we just view it as a challenge. We know they’re going to come at us hard and we’ve got to do the same – fight fire with fire,” Hope said here Saturday. “It’s a lot to look forward to, very exciting times especially leading up to the World Cup so I’m sure the guys are ready and raring to go. We’re just coming off a Test series win so it’s important for us to continue in that vein and try to get the series win as well.” He added: “We can use this as a good gauge for us going into the World Cup. We’re still looking at some plans [in terms of] what is the best fit and [team] combination but it’s a good challenge for us and we’ve got some work to do.” The two teams clash in the opening ODI at Kensington Oval here, with the hosts seeking their first series win over their opponents in 12 years. They will be motivated by their performance in the Test series, however, where they tore up the form books to crush the English in the opening two Tests, and regain the Wisden Trophy or the first time in a decade. (BT)

BAJAN SKIS INTO 2ND PLACE – Barbadian free skier Victor White placed second today in the Europa Cup in Poland. His win saw him receive an outpouring of congratulatory messages, including one from Minister of Sports, John King.  (SS)

TAMIS WILL BE OFFLINE FOR MAINTENANCE ON SUNDAY –The public is asked to note that the Tax Administration Management Information System (TAMIS) will be offline on Sunday February 17, 2019 from 1 p.m. until 9 p.m. for scheduled maintenance. As a result, TAMIS registration as well as corporate and business tax filing will be unavailable during that time. We regret any inconvenience and look forward to your understanding.  (BT)

GIVE IT A HIGHER PLACE – While praising music teachers for the tremendous job they have been doing in schools with limited resources available to them, Minister of Education Santia Bradshaw is saying it is time music be placed as a priority on the curriculum. Bradshaw said it is impossible to change attitudes towards music, or to build a vibrant local music industry, if education is not included in the process. Speaking at the media launch of The School’s Music Festival, at the Ministry’s Elsie Payne Complex, Constitution Road Office this morning, Bradshaw said it is time a conversation is started about how important the arts are within education. She said some Barbadians have been fortunate to attain success in the entertainment industry, however, at the same time, she firmly believes that there was significant room and need for more persons to make a living out of entertainment. “I don’t want to underscore the role education plays in so many different facets of everyday life. But particularly relation to the creative arts, we have to start with the foundation. “And the foundation is when students go into primary school, and they play a recorder, we have to make sure that the teachers are skilled, that they are trained, that they understand the basics and the fundamentals of music. It is there that it starts in terms of being able to create a vibrant music industry,” Bradshaw said. The Minister said she agreed that students who are upcoming musicians must be prepared for competition, but should also be taught a certain level of confidence that would enable them to hone their craft. “It doesn’t make them feel as though one person is better than the other. But rather that they develop a certain camaraderie to be able to come back on another occasion. That is the spirit with which I believe education has to move forward in relation to the arts. We have to be able to overcome some of the challenges in terms of resources,” she said. The Schools’ Music Festival was established to provide participants at both the primary and secondary level, with the opportunity to develop their musical performance environment. While the festival climaxes with two distinct primary and secondary showcase events, the aim is to provide structures for the ongoing development of outstanding and promising participants, while also exposing them to the business elements of the music industry. This year, the two audition rounds scheduled to be held on February 21 and 22, at the Prince Cave Hall, District ‘A’ Police Station, would be closed. The Grand showcase events would be held on Saturday, March 23 for the primary schools, and Sunday, March 24 for the secondary students, at the Garfield Sobers Gymnasium. Deputy Chief Education Officer (Planning) Dr Roderick Rudder said one of the fundamental changes that underpins this year’s music festival is that there would be no competition, just a showcase. Dr Rudder said the decision to move away from the competitive element was made to ensure that students have the opportunity to demonstrate their true potential without having to face the fear of competing. “Now, one of the fundamental changes that we really want to drive home this year, is the collaborative partnership between the teachers in our schools, the students who would be performing, and the practitioners from the industry who would be assisting with the development of the skills and the talents to be identified by the panel that will be assessing talented students who would be participating in this year’s Schools Music Festival. Additionally, there would also be the provision of a framework for ongoing artiste development in the long term,” he said.  (BT)

For daily or breaking news reports follow us on Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter & Facebook. That’s all for today folks. There are 318 days left in the year. Shalom! #thechasefilesdailynewscap #thechasefiles# dailynewscapsbythechasefiles

[clusterassets]

New world news from Time: Finding Love in the Kingdom of the Little People

A dozen warriors in green tunics and crimson cloaks march down a long central staircase, brandishing golden swords and shields. As the foreboding chorus of Karl Orff’s Carmina Burana fills the open-air amphitheater, a haggard witch appears on an overhanging television screen to issue a blood-chilling curse. Then the frenzied slashing begins.

The audience nibbles sunflower seeds and fiddles with smartphones. An old woman knits. Their mythical enemy defeated, the warriors take their bows and troop off stage, to be replaced by a lone singer less than 3 ft. tall, who charges into a mournful ballad about love lost while clutching a pink plastic rose. “He’s so small!” says a giggling man, who shares my bench in the third row.

Welcome to the Kingdom of the Little People outside Kunming, the capital of southwestern China’s Yunnan province. Since opening in 2009, the theme park has been staffed exclusively by about 100 performers under 130 cm (4ft 3in) tall, most of whom have congenital conditions causing dwarfism.

Dozens of predominantly local tourists pay the 100 yuan ($15) entrance fee every day to watch an mélange of kitsch dance routines ranging from a saucy can-can to a parody of Swan Lake. The acts are hardly polished, and many outsiders see it as the epitome of exploitation. But for those who actually live and perform here, the Kingdom isn’t just a place of work—it’s a sanctuary providing companionship and love for nearly a decade.

“As soon as I arrived and saw people like me I was happy,” says Li Yan’an, 28, who married fellow performer Peng Chunking, 24, after they met at the Kingdom.

The $14 million theme park is the brainchild of Chen Mingjing, an electronics and real estate mogul, who tells TIME that he came up with the idea after striking up a conversation with two people with dwarfism he met at a train station. “I really pitied their situation,” he says. “Their families despised them, cursed them, so they had to sleep on the street. I thought we should build a kingdom just for them.”

Workers are paid around 2,000 rmb ($320) per month depending on their experience, with lodging and meals provided by the park, which is about equivalent to a full-time wage in a garment factory. “The performers are paid better than the security guard,” says Chen. During the day, the costumed ensemble hangs around an assortment of toadstool houses in the performance area—a nightmarish fusion of Gaudi and Disney—where visitors snap crouching selfies. But most workers actually live in a drab concrete boarding house at the back. There, all facilities are specifically designed for the short of stature, with low kitchen surfaces, small-stepped staircases, and light switches at half the standard height.

Toby De Silva—Barcroft Media/Getty ImagesEmployees at the “Dwarf Empire,” a dwarf theme park commune, which was set up in 2009, in Kunming, China. Everyone in the mountain commune in Kunming, southern China, must be under 4ft 3 ins tall, aged between 18-40 years old and can be from any part of the country.

“It’s a comfortable life as they only do an hour show in the morning and an hour in the afternoon, so the workload isn’t too much,” says Sha Hongyu, Chen’s assistant who helps manage the park. “And peopleoutside can be so mean.”

Still, the California-based dwarfism support group Little People of America (LPA) has likened the Kingdom to a zoo, and questions whether sequestering people from society is truly the best way to counter stigmatization. China struggles to get people with disabilities into education and employment. (Although the LPA say dwarfism should not be treated as a disability, China has classed it as one since 2007.)

Of the 83 million Chinese people with disabilities, according to official figures, a 2013 Human Rights Watch report estimates over 40% are illiterate, largely due to prejudice amongst the education establishment. Many families resort to horrific measures to care for ailing kin. Chilling reports of caged mentally ill people pop up regularly on local media. Many of the Kingdom’s performers arrive destitute and begging on the street.

According to the Red Cross Society of China, the world’s most populous nation is home to roughly 8 million people of short stature—meaning that the Kingdom only houses an infinitesimal proportion. But there are other exclusive communities scattered around China. “But they don’t generally last very long,” Li says. “The attraction of the Kingdom is that it’s so stable.”

Sure enough, in the village of Changlingzhen, an hour’s drive northwest of Beijing, an derelict blue building once housed another Kingdom where around 200 people of short stature sold handicrafts and put on performances for tourists visiting the nearby Ming Tombs. “It went bust about three years back,” says local resident Mr Hong, who TIME found fishing nearby. “I don’t know where they went after that.”

Toby De Silva—Barcroft Media/Getty ImagesA person with dwarfism stands outside a fairytale style house at the “Dwarf Empire”, a dwarf theme park commune in Kunming, China. 2010.

For people with dwarfism, even education is no panacea. Xu Shengwei found that even after gaining entry to medical school, the insurmountable hurdle was finding work as a doctor after his five years of training was complete. “I was interviewed by a dozen hospitals, but no one offered me a job,” sighs the 30-year-old. “Employers worried that my appearance might damage their hospitals’ image.”

Now Xu helps out with management duties at the Kingdom, though he occasionally still appears on stage. “All my classmates are now working in hospitals,” he adds. “Hearing them talking about their experiences, I feel really sad.”

But although his life in the Kingdom is professionally unrewarding compared with ward rounds, Xu has found something arguably more precious here: a stable, loving relationship. He met his wife, Chen Meixin, in the park in 2016, and they married a year later. Still, he is all too aware that his medical history imposes certain limits on their relationship. “I don’t want to have children, because the chance that my condition might be passed onto my children is very high,” he says. “Even if I could have healthy children, my condition would have a negative influence on them.”

Li shared the same fears when he found out Peng was pregnant. Children of people with dwarfism face a cruel genetic lottery dependent on a variety of factors: some are born symptom-free, others with conditions like their parents, and a significant proportion can be stillborn. Fortunately for Li and Peng, their daughter, Lele, was healthy. Now aged two, she is being cared for by her grandparents over 1,000 miles away in Shaanxi province, as is common practice in China among parents forced to migrate from their home villages to find work.

“When I was pregnant with my daughter, I was under a lot of stress,” says Peng. “Luckily she kept kicking in my belly. I just imagined what she would be like, imagined how I should I dress her up and take her to school. I just wanted her to be happy.”

But living so far away from their daughter augments the sense of estrangement between them. “I feel she is drifting apart from us,” says Peng. “Sometimes when I call her, she ignores me.”

With Lele growing up far from the Kingdom, surrounded by a society that has already cast her parents out, Li and Peng worry whether filial devotion or community prejudice will fill their daughter’s heart. “I hope my mom can educate her well, so when she grows up, she won’t discriminate against her defective parents,” says Li. “We really worry about it.”

June 01, 2018 at 12:30PM ClusterAssets Inc., https://ClusterAssets.wordpress.com

[cutsliceddiced]

New top story from Time: Finding Love in the Kingdom of the Little People

A dozen warriors in green tunics and crimson cloaks march down a long central staircase, brandishing golden swords and shields. As the foreboding chorus of Karl Orff’s Carmina Burana fills the open-air amphitheater, a haggard witch appears on an overhanging television screen to issue a blood-chilling curse. Then the frenzied slashing begins.

The audience nibbles sunflower seeds and fiddles with smartphones. An old woman knits. Their mythical enemy defeated, the warriors take their bows and troop off stage, to be replaced by a lone singer less than 3 ft. tall, who charges into a mournful ballad about love lost while clutching a pink plastic rose. “He’s so small!” says a giggling man, who shares my bench in the third row.

Welcome to the Kingdom of the Little People outside Kunming, the capital of southwestern China’s Yunnan province. Since opening in 2009, the theme park has been staffed exclusively by about 100 performers under 130 cm (4ft 3in) tall, most of whom have congenital conditions causing dwarfism.

Dozens of predominantly local tourists pay the 100 yuan ($15) entrance fee every day to watch an mélange of kitsch dance routines ranging from a saucy can-can to a parody of Swan Lake. The acts are hardly polished, and many outsiders see it as the epitome of exploitation. But for those who actually live and perform here, the Kingdom isn’t just a place of work—it’s a sanctuary providing companionship and love for nearly a decade.

“As soon as I arrived and saw people like me I was happy,” says Li Yan’an, 28, who married fellow performer Peng Chunking, 24, after they met at the Kingdom.

The $14 million theme park is the brainchild of Chen Mingjing, an electronics and real estate mogul, who tells TIME that he came up with the idea after striking up a conversation with two people with dwarfism he met at a train station. “I really pitied their situation,” he says. “Their families despised them, cursed them, so they had to sleep on the street. I thought we should build a kingdom just for them.”

Workers are paid around 2,000 rmb ($320) per month depending on their experience, with lodging and meals provided by the park, which is about equivalent to a full-time wage in a garment factory. “The performers are paid better than the security guard,” says Chen. During the day, the costumed ensemble hangs around an assortment of toadstool houses in the performance area—a nightmarish fusion of Gaudi and Disney—where visitors snap crouching selfies. But most workers actually live in a drab concrete boarding house at the back. There, all facilities are specifically designed for the short of stature, with low kitchen surfaces, small-stepped staircases, and light switches at half the standard height.

Toby De Silva—Barcroft Media/Getty ImagesEmployees at the “Dwarf Empire,” a dwarf theme park commune, which was set up in 2009, in Kunming, China. Everyone in the mountain commune in Kunming, southern China, must be under 4ft 3 ins tall, aged between 18-40 years old and can be from any part of the country.

“It’s a comfortable life as they only do an hour show in the morning and an hour in the afternoon, so the workload isn’t too much,” says Sha Hongyu, Chen’s assistant who helps manage the park. “And peopleoutside can be so mean.”

Still, the California-based dwarfism support group Little People of America (LPA) has likened the Kingdom to a zoo, and questions whether sequestering people from society is truly the best way to counter stigmatization. China struggles to get people with disabilities into education and employment. (Although the LPA say dwarfism should not be treated as a disability, China has classed it as one since 2007.)

Of the 83 million Chinese people with disabilities, according to official figures, a 2013 Human Rights Watch report estimates over 40% are illiterate, largely due to prejudice amongst the education establishment. Many families resort to horrific measures to care for ailing kin. Chilling reports of caged mentally ill people pop up regularly on local media. Many of the Kingdom’s performers arrive destitute and begging on the street.

According to the Red Cross Society of China, the world’s most populous nation is home to roughly 8 million people of short stature—meaning that the Kingdom only houses an infinitesimal proportion. But there are other exclusive communities scattered around China. “But they don’t generally last very long,” Li says. “The attraction of the Kingdom is that it’s so stable.”

Sure enough, in the village of Changlingzhen, an hour’s drive northwest of Beijing, an derelict blue building once housed another Kingdom where around 200 people of short stature sold handicrafts and put on performances for tourists visiting the nearby Ming Tombs. “It went bust about three years back,” says local resident Mr Hong, who TIME found fishing nearby. “I don’t know where they went after that.”

Toby De Silva—Barcroft Media/Getty ImagesA person with dwarfism stands outside a fairytale style house at the “Dwarf Empire”, a dwarf theme park commune in Kunming, China. 2010.

For people with dwarfism, even education is no panacea. Xu Shengwei found that even after gaining entry to medical school, the insurmountable hurdle was finding work as a doctor after his five years of training was complete. “I was interviewed by a dozen hospitals, but no one offered me a job,” sighs the 30-year-old. “Employers worried that my appearance might damage their hospitals’ image.”

Now Xu helps out with management duties at the Kingdom, though he occasionally still appears on stage. “All my classmates are now working in hospitals,” he adds. “Hearing them talking about their experiences, I feel really sad.”

But although his life in the Kingdom is professionally unrewarding compared with ward rounds, Xu has found something arguably more precious here: a stable, loving relationship. He met his wife, Chen Meixin, in the park in 2016, and they married a year later. Still, he is all too aware that his medical history imposes certain limits on their relationship. “I don’t want to have children, because the chance that my condition might be passed onto my children is very high,” he says. “Even if I could have healthy children, my condition would have a negative influence on them.”

Li shared the same fears when he found out Peng was pregnant. Children of people with dwarfism face a cruel genetic lottery dependent on a variety of factors: some are born symptom-free, others with conditions like their parents, and a significant proportion can be stillborn. Fortunately for Li and Peng, their daughter, Lele, was healthy. Now aged two, she is being cared for by her grandparents over 1,000 miles away in Shaanxi province, as is common practice in China among parents forced to migrate from their home villages to find work.

“When I was pregnant with my daughter, I was under a lot of stress,” says Peng. “Luckily she kept kicking in my belly. I just imagined what she would be like, imagined how I should I dress her up and take her to school. I just wanted her to be happy.”

But living so far away from their daughter augments the sense of estrangement between them. “I feel she is drifting apart from us,” says Peng. “Sometimes when I call her, she ignores me.”

With Lele growing up far from the Kingdom, surrounded by a society that has already cast her parents out, Li and Peng worry whether filial devotion or community prejudice will fill their daughter’s heart. “I hope my mom can educate her well, so when she grows up, she won’t discriminate against her defective parents,” says Li. “We really worry about it.”

via https://cutslicedanddiced.wordpress.com/2018/01/24/how-to-prevent-food-from-going-to-waste

[daviddrake]

This is my top lists of music from the year according to spotfiy.

op artists -- Short Term (4 weeks)

tortuganónima

Portugal. The Man

Color Film

Piñata Protest

Glassjaw

Bully

La Ciencia Simple

Mami Shikimori

Julien Baker

Tus Amigos Nuevos

Café Tacvba

División Minúscula

Turnover

Title Fight

Allison

empire! empire! (i was a lonely estate)

Porter

Sorority Noise

Top artists -- Medium Term (6 months)

Dance Gavin Dance

Title Fight

Tomppabeats

Minus The Bear

United Nations

Crime In Stereo

Into It. Over It.

Thursday

Portugal. The Man

Hail The Sun

Saves The Day

Bayside

Circa Survive

Sianvar

New Found Glory

blink-182

The Get Up Kids

Glassjaw

Say Anything

Tiny Moving Parts

Every Time I Die

Beach House

Dear and the Headlights

Reggie And The Full Effect

Boys Night Out

Gleemer

mt. fujitive

Anthony Green

Deftones

TTNG

Cobra Starship

The Smiths

Gatsbys American Dream

Brand New

Julio Iglesias

Pet Symmetry

envy

Best Coast

Copeland

empire! empire! (i was a lonely estate)

Fall Out Boy

Color Film

tortuganónima

Wu-Tang Clan

Piñata Protest

NOFX

Victor Jara

American Football

Daryl Hall & John Oates

Knowmadic

Top artists -- Long Term (years)

Say Anything

Minus The Bear

Portugal. The Man

Crime In Stereo

Thursday

Dance Gavin Dance

Every Time I Die

Saves The Day

Bayside

Circa Survive

The Get Up Kids

Into It. Over It.

Anthony Green

United Nations

New Found Glory

Boys Night Out

Brand New

Gatsbys American Dream

Glassjaw

Taking Back Sunday

Thrice

Hail The Sun

Title Fight

Head Automatica

Dear and the Headlights

Tomppabeats

Fall Out Boy

Best Coast

Midtown

Death Cab for Cutie

Reggie And The Full Effect

Ximena Sariñana

Tiny Moving Parts

Childish Gambino

Sianvar

Perspective, a Lovely Hand to Hold

Cobra Starship

Real Estate

blink-182

Beach Fossils

Piñata Protest

Copeland

At The Drive In

Deftones

The Sound Of Animals Fighting

Chiodos

The Smiths

mewithoutYou

La Dispute

Lifetime

Top tracks -- Short Term (4 weeks)

tortuganónima, Quimeras

Handsome Boy Modeling School, I've Been Thinking

311, Prisoner

Los Valentina, Alguna Solución

Radiohead, Jigsaw Falling Into Place

New Order, Ceremony - 2015 Remastered Version

tortuganónima, Sans soleil

American Football, Never Meant

Arrecifes, Meteora

Bully, Brainfreeze

Marineros, Espero

Piñata Protest, Intro

empire! empire! (i was a lonely estate), I Was Somewhere Cold, Dark... and Lonely

Dulce y Agraz, Me Reparto en Ti

Yuck, Southern Skies

tortuganónima, Kokoschka

tortuganónima, Morgan Freeman

Cayetana, Age of Consent (New Order)

empire! empire! (i was a lonely estate), It Happened Because You Left

Emisario Greda, Día Bueno

Portugal. The Man, People Say

Incubus, Are You In?

Emisario Greda, Todo Azul

Color Film, We'd Kill Each Other

Javiera Mena, Otra Era

Waxahatchee, Recite Remorse

Bully, Trying

Niño Cohete, El Bosque

Marineros, Cae la Noche

Deftones, Romantic Dreams

Niño Cohete, La Muerte

Incubus, Paper Shoes

Turnover, Super Natural

Amarga Marga, Tan Tuya

SadGirl, Little Queenie

Into It. Over It., Open Casket

Death Cab for Cutie, Little Wanderer

tortuganónima, ____

Real Estate, Darling

tortuganónima, Per Aspera

Beach Goons, Without U

The Postal Service, We Will Become Silhouettes - Remastered

Tigers Jaw, Plane vs. Tank vs. Submarine

Siempre Llueve Al Atardecer, Sé Que Estás Corriendo

Julien Baker, Appointments

Bush, Mouth

Joy Division, She's Lost Control - 2007 Remastered Version

The Game, Cali Sunshine

tortuganónima, Bordis

Cayetana, Am I Dead yet?

Top tracks -- Medium Term (6 months)

Title Fight, Memorial Field

Tomppabeats, Monday Loop

Cobra Starship, The Ballad Of Big Poppa And Diamond Girl

Carla Morrison, Hasta la Piel

Portugal. The Man, Easy Tiger

Knowmadic, Idkanymore

Dance Gavin Dance, The Robot With Human Hair Pt. 4 (Tree City Sessions)

Gleemer, Gauze

Café Tacvba, Eres

Justin Hurwitz, Mia & Sebastian’s Theme

Sianvar, Your Tongue Ties

Real Estate, Green Aisles

United Nations, United Nations Vs. United Nations

UGK, Int'l Players Anthem (I Choose You)

American Football, Never Meant

Victor Jara, Abre la Ventana

Raekwon, Ice Cream

New Found Glory, I'm Not The One

Dance Gavin Dance, Young Robot

United Nations, Serious Business

Wu-Tang Clan, C.R.E.A.M.

New Found Glory, Don't Let This Be The End

Mac Demarco, Chamber Of Reflection

Glassjaw, When One Eight Becomes Two Zeros

United Nations, Never Mind the Bombings, Here's Your Six Figures

Anthony Green, East Coast Winters

Tomppabeats, Far Away

Sianvar, Chest Pressure

Bayside, They're Not Horses, They're Unicorns

Beach House, She's So Lovely

Bayside, Already Gone

Bayside, Montauk

blink-182, Bored To Death

Neon Indian, Annie

Title Fight, Crescent-Shaped Depression

Crime In Stereo, ...but you are vast

Every Time I Die, I Suck (Blood)

Café Tacvba, Como te extraño mi amor

Glassjaw, Siberian Kiss

Dance Gavin Dance, Tree Village

Ximena Sariñana, La vida no es fácil

Bayside, Montauk

Title Fight, Room 200

Every Time I Die, Drag King

Childish Gambino, You See Me

Deftones, Romantic Dreams

Circa Survive, Tunnel Vision

The Black Keys, The Only One

Title Fight, Loud And Clear

Copeland, Eat, Sleep, Repeat

Top tracks -- Long Term (years)

Crime In Stereo, For Exes

Carla Morrison, Hasta la Piel

Say Anything, John Mcclane (feat. Chris Conley and Matt Pryor)

Crime In Stereo, ...but you are vast

Crime In Stereo, I'm On The Guestlist Motherfucker

Crime In Stereo, Everywhere And All The Time

Dear and the Headlights, Run In The Front

United Nations, Serious Business

Dads, Boat Rich

Every Time I Die, Thirst

Crime In Stereo, Bicycles For Afghanistan

Death Cab for Cutie, Title Track

Crime In Stereo, Everything Changes / Nothing Is Ever Truly Lost

Say Anything, Less Cute

Cobra Starship, The Ballad Of Big Poppa And Diamond Girl

Dear and the Headlights, Grace

Gatsbys American Dream, A Mind Of Metal And Wheels

Bayside, Already Gone

Beach Fossils, Sleep Apnea

Tigers Jaw, Plane vs. Tank vs. Submarine

Glassjaw, Siberian Kiss

Men, Women & Children, Dance In My Blood

Wu-Tang Clan, C.R.E.A.M.

TTNG, Cat Fantastic

Crime In Stereo, Sudan

Sianvar, Coordinate Love

The Dear Hunter, City Escape

Every Time I Die, Decayin' With The Boys

Title Fight, Memorial Field

Sianvar, Your Tongue Ties

Bayside, The Walking Wounded

American Football, Never Meant

Every Time I Die, Thirst

TTNG, And I'll Tell You for Why

Portugal. The Man, So American

Tomppabeats, Monday Loop

United Nations, United Nations Vs. United Nations

Say Anything, Mara and Me

New Found Glory, I'm Not The One

Glassjaw, Lovebites And Razorlines

Boys Night Out, Get Your Head Straight

Boys Night Out, Composing

Pierce The Veil, King For A Day

New Found Glory, Don't Let This Be The End

United Nations, The Spinning Heart of the Yo-Yo Lobby

Polar Bear Club, Screams in Caves

Minus The Bear, The Thief

United Nations, Never Mind the Bombings, Here's Your Six Figures

Gatsbys American Dream, Theatre

Crime In Stereo, The Impending Glory Of American Adu