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The Country/The Country

All Rights Reserved ©

The Nooz Does Not Show Them

Some of the shamings were taped. Keel learned this the way everyone did.

Headline Nooz did not show them. Local Nooz, Keel noted, unsurprised, no longer showed anything -- anything real -- of what was happening in the city of Monro. Were they threatened -- the producers and directors of these broadcasts? Were they afraid of finding themselves tied to a post, struggling to find enough sins, enough spoken crimes, or thought crimes, committed against Pig or his supporters to have the confession phase of the shaming over and allow the citizen-beating phase to begin?

They knew about the shamings -- how could they not? Keel asked himself -- because everybody did. You could not avoid them if you turned your TV on for any period of time for entertainment purposes because at random intervals the program would be interrupted without warning for scenes of men wearing broken spectacles and crying and begging and saying bad things about themselves. Pleading to be allowed to make amends. To go back to their classrooms, or their offices, and recant the false, shameful things they had said about Pig and his campaign and his hordes of loyal Common-UZ followers.

Or being hit. On the legs or the bound arms, mostly, by men or women or rigid, frightened boys or crying, nearly hysterical girls, all of them suffering a shaming of their own simply by being forced to take part in actions they abhor because they do not wish their loved ones, or themselves, to occupy the position of the victim, tied to a post on a street corner.

The shamings of the female opponents of Pig were much worse.

Keel knew that without having witnessed any. In some hidden deference to the essential value of their gender, the images of these ritualized torments shown on TV were fewer, and the depictions of them on video were greatly curtailed. A woman is slapped and cries out.

Another woman, one of the Pigglies, tears her clothing.

A man approaches the bound and now hysterical victim.

The screen goes blank

Everyone saw images of this kind if they turned on their television to the network-fun channels. Most people these days also had the electric line-connector machines in their homes, though Keel did not. If you connected you receiver to the line, you would find these images posted (and popping up) everywhere. And if you tried to ignore them and pursue your customary interests on ordinary info-screens, some robotic device seized control of your machine and made you watch these images of the shamings: an old religious man with his beard being tugged by a thick-handed Guardian of Public Virtue until he cried out.... and made you watch them for a specified time (unless of course some upsurge of free will enabled you to tear your eyes away) until control of the machine was returned to the owner.

But the Evening Nooz did not show these images. The networks did not show what happened in a city governed by Pig and his Animal Firm.

The broadcasts showed footage of people, mostly men, smiling as they arrive at city hall for meetings, or merely greetings, with Pig and his entourage. The mayor, viewers are told, has generously offered the campaign the use of some of the building’s many meeting rooms now that Voting Days in the district of Platow are over. Keel is momentarily confused. He does not remember voting. Then he recalls, of course, Voting Day in Monro was the day he went to see Pig at the Dormands instead of to his normal voting place, the courthouse in the square.

He had forgotten to vote. He has already forgotten that he remembered this once already.

And now, he realizes, he has forgotten that he forgot.

He can barely remember the last time the image of the candidate he personally favored appeared in any of the news broadcasts. He can barely remember her name. A matronly woman, whose mother had once been a popular figure, becoming governor of a neighboring district. Who preached the value of education. Who called for an appropriate balance of individual responsibility and social compassion. Emphasized the need for government to play a stronger role in raising health and economic standards.

Can he blame the campaign? If he, Keel, has neglected to vote, can he blame Pig and the Pigglies? Any day now, the networks tell him, the Sacred Commission will announce the election of a new national leader, the Chief Xec of the Commonhope of UZ.

They also say that ‘most people’ believe it is all but certain that the Leading Candidate Karol Pegasso will be proclaimed the winner of the Voting and the country’s new leader.

Still, he could have voted. Exercised his right, and privilege, as a citizen and registered voter in the District of Platow in the Commonhope of UZ. Behaved like a good citizen. If someone were to tie Keel to a post and demand his confession, wouldn’t this omission be the first thing on his lips? That he had been given the lawfully protected opportunity to vote against Pig and for some better suited candidate for national leader and had failed to exercise his citizen’s responsibility to take part in selecting public leadership.

Keel sat rooted to his chair in the little kitchen cubbyhole where he took all his solitary meals and despaired for himself and the future of his country. If even he could be swayed from his duty, the simplest and most basic of duties under the form of government that long shined as a beacon to less fortunate lands -- he, Keel, a man with no other source of pride greater than his citizenship in a justly founded society -- what hope could he hold for his neighbors? Most probably had better reasons to avoid voting or simply forget about it in the press of ordinary busyness. They had jobs, steady jobs that ate up the greater part of the greater number of their days. Keel could remember, though with increasing dimness, what it was like to be a ‘fulltime’ employee and arranging his time carefully so that during his lunch hour he could go stand on line at the courthouse to cast his ballot. He would not have missed it then.

Yet this year he had been consumed by his mission to make some sort of mind-connection with the Leading Candidate for reasons that hardly bore thinking of. And having endured that contact -- having actually been spoken to by the “Voice That Shook the Nation” (as the promotions for Pig’s candidacy sometimes boasted); and having even, in some slight degree, replied to the queries made by Leading Candidate, though the two at no point had fallen to disputing cases -- had escaped the ‘great man’s presence’ so shaken to his own depths, and mystified, and intrigued (let’s be frank, Keel urged himself) by the tack that Pig had taken in their converse, impressed even by his apparent familiarity with the name and teachings of the great Philosopher of Rule Mac-Velly....

...that he had wandered homeward down Pike Street, head in the clouds, lost in a dream, oblivious of the campaign signs that still blazoned forth from yards or houses (though those for candidates other than Pig had rapidly begun to disappear), and once returned to his domicile had meekly squatted there dumbfounded in his favorite chair until Survy tired of lying across his feet and began whining to be fed and walked, in that order. He complied.

But Survy didn’t care about voting.

Keel, ordinarily, did. He cared about it a great deal. Until he spent a half hour or so in the environs of Pig. Did Pig have that effect on others as well?

On the whole country?

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Sarah Silverman Show I find the intentional coyness of Sarah Silverman's comedic delivery unbelievable.

On the first season of The Sarah Silverman Show, she's contrary and "shocking" by being a cutesy girl and acting all "Aw, shucks!" about everything. She's a pretty, baby voiced girl with a potty mouth and penchant toward adolescent humor [mostly teenage boy humor though]. Is that supposed to turn the comedy world upside down or be impressive in some way?

At turns tomboyish, with her crude jokes and numerous "outrageous" scenarios-getting loopy on cough syrup and crashing into a playground, mistaking community activists for lesbians or inadvertently becoming an AIDS activist [actually the one episode I found clever and winning] -- she handles most of it with such precociousness it's challenging to watch.

There are only six episodes but I could not bring myself to watch them all.

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Newbury Store

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SOLIDWORKS helps Coalesce Product Development

Cambridge has a rich heritage of hi-tech start-up companies, so it was a natural step for a group of experienced, independent designers to ‘coalesce’ into a new product development company here back in 2009. Choosing a name was the easy part…

Solving difficult problems with SOLIDWORKS Premium

The team at Coalesce Product Development have worked hard to take the best elements of large technology companies and mix them with the benefits of working with independent designers to provide an optimised product development service. The company is run by engineers, allowing the business to stay lean and pass on low operating costs as savings to clients . These days, even large multi-national blue chip clients appreciate getting good value for money.

The engineer-lead structure also means there is a culture of striving for the best technical solution and making investments in the right tools, including software such as SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD Premium, which has proved to be vital to the business.

Director Robin Cocker explains “We were tasked by one of our medical device clients to solve a tough mechanical problem inside one of their device concepts; with extremely tight spatial constraints, the space that was left for us to work in was shallow (which meant we couldn’t stack up components, as you might in a gearbox) and the swept area was restricted so things like cranks and racks & pinions would not fit.

An input lever rotated through an angle of around 90°. It had to move a linear slider a relatively long way but only during certain periods. During the other periods it needed to hold the slider in place. The requirement for these dwells made the problem much, much harder. We had an abstract idea that we might be able to combine a crank and a cam to increase the output displacement beyond what a simple crank alone could achieve and at the same time allow us to create the dwells which would constrain the slider but not move it when required Could we turn this abstract idea into something that delivered the required motion? Thankfully it was a more or less “2D” design problem so we were able to apply traditional technical drawing skills within our SOLIDWORKS models to work out the geometry.

After a bit of head scratching, it looked like we had a solution, at least in theory. Just a chassis, the lever and the carriage with no other parts but it relied on three separate pairs of pegs and cam slots co-operating with each other to achieve the motion and the dwells. Without digital tools to analyse the design, we had to machine a prototype to see if it would work. Despite our trepidation, it worked perfectly first time with no tuning. Smooth. Precise. Brilliant!

When the client was shown our design, he couldn’t put the prototype down. “Mesmerising” was the word he used. We had tested our prototype and characterised its performance but we wanted to know how SOLIDWORKS Premium could help us to analyse such a mechanism before prototyping and testing, which is when we were introduced to the Trace path functionality. This allows you to generate loci, or trace paths within a mechanism effortlessly.

We use SOLIDWORKS Motion Simulation to program the motion we need (direction, velocity, acceleration etc.) and then SOLIDWORKS automatically generates trace paths which help us to create the most effective cam profiles to achieve the motion. Doing it this way around means the cam profile is driven by the analysis rather than us having to design the cam by traditional methods and then analyse it with SOLIDWORKS. It kind of flips the process the right way around and this results in fewer iterative loops. SOLIDWORKS Premium saves us days if not weeks compared to manual methods and we can be much more confident that prototypes will work. We have also gone on to design similar systems with much more complexity in the motions. Imagine the carriage in this example being split in two, driven along an irregular path, rotating at the same time and then sliding apart). Typically, such motions would require several cooperating mechanisms. To do it with only 4 components would have been impossible for us to contemplate commercially had we been relying on manual methods.

Ideas like these tend to be eliminated early because you cannot quickly determine whether they stand a chance of working, let alone assess how long they might take to develop. With SOLIDWORKS Motion, we can quickly gain confidence in seemingly crazy concepts, ultimately allowing us to solve very difficult, complex motion problems with unexpected simplicity, precision, economy and robustness where others may fail altogether.”

Director Dave Ahern said “The Simulation tools within SOLIDWORKS Premium have helped us to be more innovative in the way we approach difficult mechanism design challenges. Not only have we removed iterative loops and streamlined the design process, but ultimately our clients end up with better products. My advice for any design company would be – empower your engineers by investing in your SOLIDWORKS tools and get properly trained. It will pay for itself quickly and in ways that are often hard to predict.”

Mark Bradford, Managing Director at Innova Systems commented “This is a great example of how SOLIDWORKS can be used to solve very difficult design challenges. Coalesce uses the Simulation tools within SOLIDWORKS Premium as an integral part of the product development process. Coalesce recognised the importance of using our expertise for training and guidance on how to get the most out of SOLIDWORKS, and the results are evident. We are delighted to be a partner with the team at Coalesce”.


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Delilah Winder, who at one time owned a string of soul-food stands and the Old City restaurant Bluezette, appeared in a quarterly list of tax delinquents released today by the City of Philadelphia.

Winder, who now runs one stand (her flagship, at Reading Terminal Market), is into the city personally for $1,577,478.03, the city said.

Contacted this afternoon, Winder said the taxes stem from Bluezette, which closed at 246 Market St. three years ago.

"I've been working with the city and making payments, and that amount is not correct. It's been proven by an accountant. That's really all I can say. I opened a company and it didn't work. Life goes on."

Winder won national fame in 2002 when she appeared on Oprah Winfrey's "Best of the Best" show with her signature macaroni and cheese. Of late, she's also a pitchwoman for Lactaid.

If the numbers are correct, Winder owes the city even more than Neil Stein, the founder of such destinations as Striped Bass, Avenue B, Bleu, and Rouge.

Also on the list are judgments totaling about $500,000 over the now-closed KatManDu on the riverfront.


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Pro-Mueller Protests Set To Take Place Across America Thursday Evening

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President Donald Trump’s decision to fire former Attorney General Jeff Sessions is prompting thousands of Americans to take to the streets on Thursday evening.

Progressive organization had planned for quite some time to hold emergency protests if Trump took any action that would jeopardize the Russia investigation being led by special counsel Robert Mueller.

That investigation is looking into how Russia interfered in our elections in 2016, which has brought about questions of Trump’s presidential campaign and whether individuals from that effort unlawfully coordinated with Russia to steer the outcome toward a Trump victory. The special counsel is also likely pondering whether any actors in the Trump administration, including the president himself, may have obstructed justice in trying to impede the investigation’s efforts, reported CNBC in July.

Protests were set to happen if Trump took steps that would change the chain of command in the investigation, according to reporting from Quartz. Until yesterday, Mueller’s investigation was overseen by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who had made assurances that it would continue unimpeded under his watch.

With Sessions’ removal from his position in the administration, however, and with acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker assuming the role of supervising the inquiry, organizers deemed the protests necessary to commence at various locations across the country, at 5 p.m. local time of the place of the protest (a list of locations is available at MoveOn’s Nobody Is Above The Law website).

MoveOn is partnering with hundreds of activist groups across the country to carry out the protests. In Madison, Wisconsin, for example, the event is being co-hosted by Women’s March-WI and is planned to commence outside the state capitol building.

Amy Dean, communications director of that local organization, explained why it was necessary to carry out the protest.

“Trump’s actions — violating the independence of the investigation pursuing criminal charges in the Trump-Russia scandal and cover-up — pose a grave threat to our democracy, and we have got to get Congress to stop him,” Dean explained in an email to the Inquisitr. “[W]e will communicate unmistakably that this is not okay and that this act to undermine democracy is not going to be allowed to become a new normal.”

Dean also expressed skepticism about the new attorney general who was stepping in to oversee Mueller’s inquiry.

Trump “essentially replaced Mueller’s old boss, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, with a new boss, Matthew G. Whitaker, who has no problem intervening and obstructing justice,” Dean said, adding that Whitaker “has spoken in great detail about ways to hurt the Mueller investigation.”

Some have questioned whether Whitaker can legally take over supervisory duties that were held by Rosenstein. The blog site Lawfare, for example, points out that Whitaker’s appointment may not be constitutional, and he may not be able to direct the Department of Justice to take certain actions since he was not approved with the “advice and consent” of the Senate, as is required by the Constitution. Whitaker may also have to recuse himself from overseeing the Mueller probe, given his past negative comments and viewpoints on the matter.


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Man Who Allegedly Contaminated Grocery Store Food Thought Someone Was Trying to Poison Him

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The Michigan man accused of contaminating grocery store food has a history of mental illness and believes someone is trying to poison him, authorities said.

Kyle Bessemer, 29, allegedly admitted to mixing a Tomcat rodent poison with a water solution and putting it in a small hand sanitizer bottle, which he then used to spray salad bars and produce stands in the Ann Arbor area.

Surveillance footage from Whole Foods Market showed a man prosecutors said was Bessemer putting the liquid on avocados as he squeezed them, as if he was testing them for purchase.

Prosecutors said he also appeared to sway over the hot and salad food bars with the bottle in his hand, MLive reported.

Read: FBI: Man Admitted Spraying Mouse Poison on Salad Bars At Grocery Stores

“He’s going all over pouring this rat poison … knowing people are going to ingest it,” Assistant Washtenaw County Prosecutor John Reiser said while addressing Bessemer's bond Thursday. "He did it because he thought people were poisoning him – I mean that is a very scary crime that happened."

A federal investigation was launched after a Whole Foods employee allegedly spotted Bessemer dumping the liquid at the store.

Tips from the public led to Bessemer’s arrest on Tuesday after investigators circulated images of the suspect.

He was charged with four counts of poisoning food, though health officials say that he may have struck more than a dozen stores in the state. Receipts allegedly show Bessemer purchased the poison on multiple occasions in April.

Read: Bagged Salads Recalled Over Links to Deadly Listeria Outbreak Across 6 States

There have been no reports of illness or injury stemming directly from products that may have been sprayed with the poison, but authorities warned consumers to throw out goods from affected stores’ food bars.

Prosecutors said further charges related to another possible grocery store contamination may be brought against Bessemer

If Bessemer is found guilty, he could face up to 20 years for each count he is charged with. He remains in jail on $250,000 bond and was ordered to go on house arrest if he posts bail.

He is scheduled to next appear in court on May 12 for a probable cause hearing.

Watch: 'Salt Mom' Lacey Spears Gets 20 Years to Life in Prison for Poisoning 5-Year-Old


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Harrowing Police Dispatch Audio Details Hunt for Vegas Killer: 'We Need to Stop the Shooter'

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Dramatic police radio dispatches in the aftermath of the horrific Las Vegas massacre have been released that detail a relentless search for the killer.

Read: Vegas Gunman Stephen Paddock's Family 'Dumbfounded' After Massacre Leaves At Least 58 Dead

In one audio clip, a SWAT team member can be heard as they close in on the gunman, Stephen Paddock, 64, on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel.

“We can’t worry about more victims," the officer can be heard saying in an audio clip. "We have to stop the shooter before he has more victims."

In another clip, the SWAT team can be heard discussing with a dispatcher how they were planning to close in on the shooter.

“I am inside the Mandalay Bay on the 31st floor. I can hear automatic fire coming from one floor ahead. One floor above us,” one officer said.

“We are coming out on the 32nd floor. Just about a dozen officers,” another stated just as they went and breached into Paddock’s room to take him down.

Paddock was found dead by police. He had killed himself as cops closed in.

Nearly every moment of Sunday’s horrific attack was caught on video.

Country music star Jason Aldean ran from the stage as gunfire rained down on 20,000 fans in one video.

In another clip, revelers were seen fleeing for their lives. The folks who filmed the clip from a balcony had to dive for cover.

Another video showed the terrifying scene on the ground where people huddling for cover, keeping their heads down.

Attorney Brian Claypool was at the concert and spoke to Inside Edition about what he experienced.

“It's pot luck, whoever lives or dies," he said.

Watch: Victim of Orlando Massacre Was Ariana Grande's Backup Singer at Disney

A passing SUV was commandeered to take some of the wounded to the hospital.

Two blown out windows can be seen in the corner suite of the Mandalay Bay hotel, where Paddock was perched during the shooting. The windows don't open so police say he smashed them with a hammer.

Cops say they found 19 weapons and two firing platforms in the room. Cops say he also positioned a surveillance camera to warn him of police.

The famous Vegas Strip was on lockdown in the aftermath of the shooting but much of it has since reopened.

Watch: 10-Year-Old Boy Barricades Himself Behind Door During Tennessee Church Shooting


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How Springboard Consultancy Helped Streetwise | Instructus

How Springboard Consultancy Helped Streetwise to Support Young Women

“I have learned a lot about myself and have enjoyed the programme.”

2018 saw the partnership between the Springboard Consultancy and Streetwise draw to a close. The project, as originally set out here, focused on delivering Springboard training to a group of young, vulnerable women in the North-East, helping to support Streetwise’s charitable focus on the physical and mental health of young people from the area.

The course was delivered between April and June 2018. Following a post-course catch up with the participants, we’re now able to share the impact of this project with you.

Working with Streetwise

“Encouraging and empowering to women in all areas of life.”

Instructus were keen to work with Streetwise due to their fantastic work supporting disadvantaged young people. Streetwise’s aims are very much in-line with our own charitable objectives, and when we started the discussion last year it became clear how we could work together.

With the involvement of licensed Springboard Consultancy trainer Sue Wild, we worked with Streetwise to identify a course that would benefit not only the young women in attendance but also the Streetwise team themselves. The aim of this course was to build their confidence and self-worth and to help change their circumstances for the future.

The Streetwise team identified the beneficiaries through a referral process. These young women accessed the project seeking support and advice on matters including confidence, self-esteem and anxiety. These women were at risk of becoming “invisible” in a busy cityscape, and the demands on them can be greater than they can manage.

The Results

“It’s applicable to people in a range of situations and circumstances.”

The project returned positive results, with some specific outcomes for participants including:

  • Securing a job following the first workshop day.
  • Realising self-worth and capacity and securing a job with more responsibility.
  • Finding a new workplace and being happier than in previous employment.
  • Deciding to follow dream and study Fashion at university.
  • Asking for a pay rise – and getting it!

The young women have realised their self-worth and are now determined to develop themselves, as shown through their positive feedback on the course.

“I have begun achieving my goals and objectives and continue to work towards them more. I now know it is okay to be proud of myself and my achievements.”

“This programme has been great, and I have experienced being around positive people. I now feel it is possible and worth meeting new people and finding friends.”

“I’ve learned that I have to be the one to make a change in my life and did so by leaving my job I was unhappy in to do better paid temporary work.”

“I have realised my values a lot more and they have become clearer. I have also managed to get a better job while taking part in this programme and I’m glad as I like my new job.”

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Training for Everyone

The feedback given by the Streetwise team echoed the young women’s positive appraisal:

“Having experienced these kinds of activities and exercises for ourselves means we can relate in better ways to personal development. We now have more experience at working this way and know what it is like on the receiving end.”

“This will inform our skills in the future in how we work both in one to ones and in group work settings with young people.”

“The opportunity has deepened our tool kits as youth workers and has benefited each of us personally. I feel much more positive and forgiving for myself, I am more assertive and am much more aware of self-care.”

These results showed that all participants met the personal goals that they set at the start of the project.

The young women shared that they had:

  • Increased their confidence.
  • Changed their mindsets for the better.
  • Developed their assertiveness.
  • Reduced their social isolation and anxiety.

As well as the above many of the women have progressed in their careers, something we had set as a target at the start of the project.

Paving the Way for the Future

“The programme has allowed me to maintain my values whilst also focusing on new things that I’ve realised are important to me.”

Working with Streetwise was a fantastic step for our charitable outreach and paved the way for the work we’ve done since. The positive results that Sue Wild achieved with these women shows the importance of guided personal development; not only for those in a vulnerable position, but also for those that support them.

We have loved every second of working in partnership with Streetwise and would like to wish the participants all the best for the future. We have so much confidence in you!

Who We Are ⇢ Current Projects ⇢ Case Studies ⇢


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Jul 17, 2015 @ 12:45 pm
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It’s easy to understand how the child of Sean Penn and Robin Wright would have a red carpet-friendly, Hollywood sensibility. And that’s exactly why we’re crushing on 24-year-old Dylan Frances Penn, who arrived to last night’s Amazon Prime Endless Summer Soiree in Los Angeles with her California-cool style in tow. So how exactly did Penn learn to be so fashionable? It's simple: Mom.

“Since I was really little she’s always said, ‘The simpler you go, the better it is.’ Like, don’t over do it. And as long as you feel comfortable it’s going to be sexy. And I always go for comfortable,” she told InStyle. “Now that we live on opposite coasts it’s harder [to borrow clothes from my mom] but growing up, I used to steal all of her clothes. I still have a few pieces. The [Fiorentini and Baker] shoes that I’m wearing tonight are hers; she doesn’t know that I have them.”

RELATED: Here's Another Reason to Get Excited for the Release of Paper Towns

Wright also gave her solid wisdom about acting. “She’s always said, since I started doing this, that it’s always going to hurt. And after awhile you just get tougher and it doesn’t feel that bad,” she said. “I’ve been doing the whole audition thing. I’m trying [acting] out, I really like it for now. Not forever but … auditioning is the most painful thing. It’s hard. [But] it’s worth it.”

Of course, the actress has already learned how tough it is to make it in the acting world: “I tried out a couple times for Paper Towns and I’m so glad I didn’t get it because Cara Delevingne was so perfect for that part.” Yes, she may have been given the red light, but there’s no stopping Penn. Her dream job? “I guiltily watch New Girl with Zooey Deschanel and I would love to do a guest part on that show,” said the Lord & Taylor campaign model, who said she would even cut Deschanel-style fringe bangs. “I would!”

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London-Based MGA Nexus Offers Cyber Insurance in Partnership with Beazley

May 10, 2017

Nexus Group, the London-based independent specialty managing general agent (MGA), has formed a partnership with Beazley to provide cyber insurance with effect from May 1, 2017.

Nexus will underwrite the new line, offering third party cover up to a maximum limit of liability of £5 million ($6.5 million) per policy in the aggregate and, in respect of privacy breach response services, up to a maximum of 250,000 records in the aggregate per policy.

The Nexus cyber insurance cover is offered both in the UK and internationally with capacity provided by Beazley’s Lloyd’s business.

“Cyber insurance is currently the fastest growing sector in the global insurance arena, and this new product is closely aligned with our core financial lines products, namely professional indemnity, directors and officers and crime,” commented Richard Wynn, director of Business Development, Nexus Group.

“Also, our client base in the trade credit sector, including manufacturers, suppliers, retailers and construction companies all have cyber exposures in particular with regard to fraudulent transfer risks which are becoming prevalent in invoice driven accounts transactions,” said Wynn.

Nexus said that quotations will be provided on a statement-of-fact basis which streamlines the underwriting process.

“Key to the policy is the Beazley Breach Response service which helps clients handle data breaches successfully, Wynn added. “Beazley’s experience of handling data breaches via their network of specialist partners (which include privacy lawyers, forensic investigators, computer security and credit monitoring experts) is unrivaled in the market.”

Beazley Breach Response (BBR) is led by data breach managers who are Beazley employees and whose sole role is to deal with data breaches, explained Matt Norris, Beazley’s Focus Group leader for Technology, Media & Business Services.

He noted that the BBR team has handled over 5000 data breaches. “We believe this experience gives the best opportunity for the incident to be effectively resolved, with the insured’s reputation intact, or even enhanced,” Norris added.

The Nexus Group employs over 110 people and trades out of offices in London, France, Italy, Hong Kong and Ireland.

Source: Nexus

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Start the New Year Out Right with Your Background Screening Program

As a new calendar year begins, it seems like a great time to review an important component of your onboarding process, your background screening program. As you know, background screening can be an effective line of defense from preventing poor hiring decisions. A bad hire can cost an organization with lost productivity, and the time and money associated with a rebooted candidate search.

In order to get the most value from your background screening program, it’s vital to periodically re-examine it to see if you can get even more value. Below are a few ideas and questions to think about:

  • Audit your program – review the policies and procedures you have in place when evaluating a candidate.
    • Are forms used up-to-date?
    • Are screening methods consistent?
    • What criteria is used to evaluate results and is it FCRA compliant?
  • Are you taking advantage of technology? A good background screening provider will offer tools and services that will drive efficiencies that make a big difference. Some examples include:
    • Applicant Tracking System (ATS) integrations.
    • Easy ordering and intuitive results dashboard that makes it easy to evaluate candidates.
    • Convenient self-service portals that result in improved onboarding experiences for candidates and quicker turnaround times on searches.
  • Is the client service your receiving meeting your needs? Great client service can come in many forms, and it’s essential to the success of your program.
    • Can you speak with a background screening expert when you need to? Nothing can be more frustrating then when a pressing issue arises, and you can’t find someone who understands the issue to help you. Providers who offer account management teams who are in-house, knowledgeable, and available is a big plus.
    • Is it clear your provider is dedicated to your success? That dedication can show itself in many forms such as offering easy access to updated forms used in the screening process, making informational resources readily available to increase your knowledge of what is happening within the industry, and offer training to ensure you maximize the value from your screening program.
  • Does your screening provider help you stay legally compliant? Do you feel on your own when it comes to managing your background screening? Are you comfortable enough to navigate the legal complexities? If you are unsure, then maybe it’s time to rethink your program and who your provider is. Having a provider offer guardrails that keep you on the road of compliancy is key. Utilizing a provider who is accredited within the industry by the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA) is a good place to start. The penalties of non-compliance can sometimes be severe, both financially and to your reputation. Taking a chance that your program may not be completely compliant is simply not worth it.

While including background screening in your onboarding process is important, it must be done correctly. By performing program audits and making sure your current provider is offering the level of service you need and expect, you can be sure that you are taking the proper safeguards to protect your organization while at the same time optimizing the results you get from screening.

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How to build budget transparency, accountability and participation in fragile states?

Aug 06, 2012

According to recent research by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) most of the world’s poor will be living in fragile and conflict-affected states (FRACAS, pinching Duncan Green’s acronym) by 2015. It is, therefore, becoming even more urgent to figure out the puzzle of how to build budget transparency, accountability and participation in such states.

Another study by the World Bank (WB) and ODI (don’t they ever sleep?)  presents lessons from public finance management (PFM) reforms in eight such FRACAS. The good news is that they find that some reform is indeed possible. Anecdotal evidence from International Budget Partnership’s own work in places like Cambodia, Mali and Chad, support this finding. The bad news of  the WB and ODI research is that most of the successful reforms were technical in nature (such as the introduction of treasury single accounts or an improved chart of accounts). Further bad news is that these reforms did not improve government service delivery. Even worse news is that PFM reforms designed to support budget planning and budget accountability were generally not successful.

Where do we go from here?

To find out, I did a quick tour of recent research on government accountability in FRACAS (mostly accessed through the Governance and Social Development Resource Centre’s excellent document library). This post summarizes what I found, tries to figure out what it means for budget transparency, accountability and participation and then outlines how the IBP is testing these ideas in Tunis and Egypt.

What do we know about building accountability in FRACAS?

I was relieved that the research shows that it is possible to build accountability in FRACAS. Unsurprisingly, this is done through social and political, rather than through purely technical, measures. In summary, here is what the research says:

  • An accountability relationship between government and citizens requires a minimum of social capital that doesn’t exist in most FRACAS. The first steps, therefore, should be to rebuild trust between government and the people.
  • Such trust is best built through constructing inclusive pacts between governments and civil society institutions to identify shared priorities and oversee key programs.
  • Even these initial steps require entry points where some basic trust still exists. A few authors suggest that such entry points are more often found at local rather than national level.
  • Faith in these transitional arrangements is itself fragile and needs to be supported by early results in the form of government service delivery – something like the famous ‘democratic dividend’.

Can one build budget transparency, participation, and accountability in FRACAS?

Translating this general accountability research into the public finance sphere suggest  the following:

  • Right from the start, top-down PFM reforms should be supported by bottom-up, citizen-inclusive efforts to build transparency and accountability. Some of these processes may need to be exploratory and done in preparation for tougher accountability work, but without it, PFM reforms may fail.
  • Top-down technical reforms may be essential to basic state building in FRACAS, but the accountability processes that are needed to support them, are best be built from the bottom up.
  • In many FRACAS resource allocation lies at the root of the conflict. Until questions of who gets what are addressed in an acceptable way, trust may remain an illusive prize. In order to  build trust and move ahead, these questions should be addressed early in the reform process.
  • Without some service delivery benefit, stakeholders are likely to lose faith in more technical reform processes. Centralized technical reforms (which sometimes do not impact on service delivery), should therefore be coupled with line ministry and local level reforms that are more likely to result in service delivery improvements.

An opportunity amidst the crisis?

Rather than just posing a challenge, post-conflict situations also present a major opportunity to build trust and open public finance management systems. The crisis in FRACAS can present unique opportunities for reform that fast-track through years of red tape and bureaucratic process. For example, the constitution-making process in Egypt and Tunisia presents  historic opportunity to insert budget transparency and participation rules into the fundamental law.

The IBP is piloting some of these ideas in Egypt and Tunisia. We are working with government, civil society, academia, and media to build connections and capacity within and between these groups. In this way we hope to increase attention to PFM and accountability early on in the transition before bad habits re-assert themselves.  More detail in future posts.

APPENDIX: The rest of this post is a summary of research about FRACAS and accountability that I found on the web

Trust precedes accountability

Duncan Green of Oxfam argues that in FRACAS it may be premature to support citizen demand for accountability. He argues that “the state may simply lack the capacity to deliver, rather than the will, while citizens may have had such a negative previous experience of the state that all they want is to be left alone.” For this reason, he counsels that initial efforts to establish accountability should focus on building legitimacy, trust, and the social contract between citizens and state as a prerequisite to building accountability. His argument is supported by Henriette von Kaltenborn-Stachau’s research that argues that the lack of public trust, societal fragmentation, and exclusion in post-conflict situations contribute to  “particular public sphere challenges that are related to the prevalence of fear, rumours and uncertainty caused by disempowerment and loss of livelihoods.“

This is a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation, though. As the GSDRC page on accountability in fragile states points out, “problematic citizen-state relations are considered to be both a cause and consequence of violent conflict.” If the problem in FRACAS is a lack of trust between citizens and the state, it may be trite and even circular reasoning to suggest that the solution lies with building trust between citizens and the state. Exactly how are FRACAS supposed to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps?

Start at local level?

Research by Rosalind Eyben and Sarah Ladbury for IDS argues that civic participation often grows up around local, rather than national,  issues. While citizens may have withdrawn from national political life because of conflict, they may still be engaged at the local level around more immediate bread and butter issues (what some call “partial citizenship”). They argue that efforts to build participation and accountability, therefore, should start with local associations and focus on issues of local service delivery. In a recent post on the Fragile State Resource Center Blog, Seth Kaplan supports these claims when he argues that what he calls “social cohesion” can best be restored from the local level up.

While this may be a slight idealization of “the local,” their point that efforts to rebuild trust should start where there is still some trace of a relationship between citizens and government (what McLean-Hilker et al call “entry points”) is fair — whether that is at the local or national level. When even local politics are riven by conflict and mistrust, argues Pearce, civil society organizations, such as churches and NGOs, can “keep alive the participatory space” by distributing basic information about violence and resources.

Involve citizens from the start, deliver benefit from the start

The 2011 World Development Report argues that two characteristics mark successful transitions in FRACAS. First, the creation of coalitions of government, churches, and civil society that are “inclusive-enough.” The role of churches and CSOs in these coalitions is not just to signal inclusiveness but also to push for deeper institutional reform. The second is that the government needs to deliver early results so that a skeptical population can gain faith in the democratic process. Galtung and Tisné discuss examples from eight post-conflict states to show that CSOs can and should be involved in this process from the earliest stages. While some of this process can be driven by donors and the international community, such top-down efforts need to be supported by social accountability mechanisms that are better suited to the exigencies of a post-war context.

UNDESA’s note on service delivery in post-conflict situations has a few things to say about what such service delivery should look like, but doesn’t say much about how to do it. While some have been critical of  Paul Collier’s idea of  Independent Service Authorities, it does provide some answer to the riddle of how to build confidence in reform efforts through service delivery in low-capacity contexts.

Careful of the media

A potentially important buttress to reform efforts is the media. In a  World Bank policy brief, Kalathil, Langlois and Kaplan argue that the media can enable citizens to engage in dialogue and serve as platforms for debate and oversight.  As some of the IBP’s own impact case studies show, the media can however also be deeply divisive and may be perceived as a threat by  governments of FRACAS that are dependent on donors and the international community for funding, security etc.

  1. I think that you are being overly harsh on the World Bank report. The report analyzed 8 cases. It found a strong linkage between PFM reform and government effectiveness, but not with service delivery. I’m not sure measurements for reform like PEFA can be connected to service delivery. (You’ve built an argument that requires 4 bullet points ending with ‘democratic dividend’ – could the study have measured that with the tools being used?) But surely, government effectiveness is a better measurement for improved budget management.

    As another point, ‘technical’ improvements like the TSA, improved chart of accounts and budget execution are enablers for budget transparency. The last two are demonstrated in Timor-Leste (not analyzed in the study) through the transparency portal at http://www.transparency.gov.tl. Timor is a much better example because civil society outreach was a critical factor. Also, there has been transparency initiatives on procurement, revenue, aid and outcomes. Perhaps these additional domains are necessary for building trust.

    1. Thanks for the comment Doug. The connection or lack of connection to service delivery is raised by the WB/CAPE report itself – that’s not my point. But leaving that aside, the real is that there is not likely to be much support for these PFM reforms if they are not coupled with accountability reforms. That is what most of the research seems to suggests.

      Some work that I did on MTEFs for ODI a few years ago suggests the same thing – all reforms, even technical PFM reforms, should start with the facilitation of political buy in – and not just of the government. The seems to be even truer in fragile and post-conflict environments. The bulk of the post wrestles with how to do that. Any thoughts?

      1. Thoughts, yes. Post-conflict countries have social cohesion, digital divide & capacity constrains. Reform needs to be sequenced. My sense is that it may be more effective to create a platform for accountability as the first step. This is technical in nature and often driven by donors and civil society (including foreign NGOs) rather than truly bottom-up. We’d all like citizen engagement as the first step but I think that post-conflict governments need to show good faith and earn a sense of trust before citizen efficacy can steer accountability.

        1. Now I’m wondering whether the reforms covered in the WB/ODI report were coordinated with the kind of platform for accountability that you describe. And if they did, why did the budget accountability reforms still fail?

          1. I think that the sample size is somewhat too small and there wasn’t a benchmark against other types of countries. The analysis seemed to show that budget planning initiatives were not as successful as budget execution. Budget preparation requirements in PEFA assessments are quite strong. Budget preparation is far more complex than execution. My view is that lack of budget prep success (based on PEFA) does not necessary mean a failure in budget accountability and transparency. That’s because the chart of accounts needs to meet certain standards, program budgeting should be used and the budget result should be close to the original budget (budget credibility). A country can receive a reasonable assessment in the open budget index if they prepare budget prep and execution documents in a timely manner. But, they can have a poor PEFA assessment for budget preparation.

  2. Albert – this is a very interesting and thoughtful post, and I think it represents the WB/ODI piece quite well.

    I actually don’t think this is a sequencing issue at all. It seems to me that there isn’t much to be said in favor of building PFM reform plans based on platforms that treat accountability, transparency, budget credibility, budget-policy links etc as functionally similar dimensions of PFM systems. They are not.

    You can do quite sophisticated executive internal budget reforms without much buy-in from outside the central bureaucracy. think macroeconomic forecasting, or debt management.

    Strengthening external accountability in fragile states (or any states, for that matter) is a totally different process. It relies on pretty substantial and deeply political change. Executives are understandably reluctant to push for this if nobody powerful enough asks for it. And just having an “accountability component” in your PFM reform plan just won’t do it.

    I have to admit I’m pretty biased against technical PFM sequencing, just wrote something about that here: http://www.beyondbudgets.org/blog/2012/7/19/why-most-publications-about-pfm-sequencing-are-missing-the-p.html

    1. Thanks Philip. And thanks for the reference to the Beyond Budgets Blog – I hadn’t see before.

      You make some good points. But I find it hard to agree with your strong separation of technical budget reforms and accountability reforms. There is just so much of the seemingly technical budget reform process that touches on the interests of political interest groups for one to separate the two.

      I would argue that there are a minimum set of PFM reforms that are necessary in FRACAS as a pre-requisite for any other reforms.(I asked Paul Collier about this years ago and his answer was to focus on expenditure control.) These could be driven and supported by donors and the international community and implemented as a set of emergency PFM measures.

      Without some of the accountability reforms described in my post, these emergency measures would have a limited shelf life. So a second wave of reform should start building trust and accountability as well as starting more systematic reform of the resource allocation process. But that would be another post. Anyone keen to post on this? Doug? Philip?

      1. 1. Premise that PFM Reform and Accountability are Different Things

        I also find this argument against sequencing and the separation of PFM reform and accountability to be less than convincing. The premise that MTEF or accrual accounting has failed to take hold in many developing countries isn’t indicative of general reform or accountability success or failure. [Yes, it’s taken hundreds of years for reform in developed countries – and some do not yet have multiple year budgeting (US), accrual accounting (almost all) or even double-entry bookkeeping (Germany).] It might be more instructive to align PEFA assessment criteria with accountability assessments (Open Budget Index, Revenue Watch Index, World Governance Indicators) to see if there is a linkage between PFM reform and accountability success.

        2. Not Enough Analysis on How to Encourage Accountability

        Yes, can’t agree more.

        3. Need to start Accountability Bottom-Up with Citizens

        My sense is that both top-down and bottom-up is needed. Social cohesion and trust issues may mean that accountability starts top-down as a mechanism to build trust in some circumstances.

        1. Just to be clear, the reasons for MTEF and other advanced reforms often failing are, to my mind, completely different from the challenges faced by accountability-type reforms.

          We often talk about PFM reforms, and “the PFM system” as if all its component parts are pretty serve the same intermediate purpose, follow the same internal logic and succeed or fail for similar reasons. I don’t think that’s the case at all.

          Of course the core elements of the budget process have a technical and a politial dimension, and they are related.

          But there are some internal PFM stuff that is relatively non-political, and some other stuff that’s extremely political. And accountability reforms, which are undoubtedly very important in the long run, are extremely political and rely on factors entirely outside the executive to succeed.

          In other words, there are lots of necessary conditions that have to be combined to see sustainable success.

          So yes, probably something for a longer treatment, perhaps even a paper rather than a blog post…

          1. I’ve been scratching my head on this for a few days. Internal Ministry of Finance driven PFM reform is not, in my experience, purely internal and technical. This can be highly political especially in countries where the civil service is politicized – in most developing countries. Also, these ‘technical’ PFM reforms have significant accountability ramifications: segregation of duties, expenditure controls that ensure following fiscal discipline and audit trail that identifies fraud.

          2. Doug, no question at all – there are many MoF internal things that are extremely political for exactly the reasons you mentioned and more. MTEFs often fail because they don’t account for ministers unwilling to surrender power over outyear ceilings; cash automation because it hurts corrupt office-holders etc.

            But none of that compares in magnitude to, say, proper parliamentary accountability – which involves party systems, electoral systems, media freedom.

            There’s a difference between accountants tinkering with the chart of accounts and societal transformation. It’s not that the former doesn’t matter. But there is a pretty big difference…

          3. Here’s where our views fundamentally diverge. So-called PFM “technical” reforms are absolutely linked with political reforms. Lock step. Even this “tinkering” with the Chart of Accounts that you speak of is affected with these very same motivations/incentives/power struggles related to legislative and civil society accountability. It identifies accountability mechanisms through controls and segregation of duties (power), external reporting and comparability through IPSAS/GFS (transparency) and the accounting methods where the move to accrual accounting prevents hiding. Of course, the COA is but one little element of the PFM system. This so-called “technical” system eliminates points of corruption (audit trail, use of EFT), and creates the underlying mechanisms that make party system, media freedom and electoral system reform meaningful. And, the power systems within countries know it. They know that even “technical” PFM reforms can affect “clients” who benefit from corruption. That it is the mechanism that exposes corruption, mismanagement and poor governance. It upsets the status quo. Important “technical reforms” require legal reform – use of EFT rather than cheques, move from civil service payment by vouchers to bank cards, use of accrual methods, imposition of procurement process rules etc. (Many political parties are funded in developing countries via procurement corruption.) The power elite in any country recognizes that this is the slippery slope towards additional reform – especially if there are breadcrumbs for the manipulation of government contracts, hiring and the national treasury. (So do donors who make technical and legal reform conditions for continued support.)

            I’m not suggesting that these back-office and organizational reforms are equivalent to fundamental societal change. I’m saying the there are significant political implications to every technical reform and that the political implications become progressively meaningful. That’s why we see countries adopt audit, procurement and civil service laws. It’s not to enable tinkering or minor process improvements.These require legislation.

            Therefore, I find this notion that there is a distinction between technical and political reforms to be artificial. Technical reforms represent a sub-set of political reforms.

  3. Although Tanzania is not a FRACAS, public expenditure tracking work by Tearfund partner the Christian Council of Tanzania has shown that there is indeed a lack of trust at local level that needs to be overcome, and that a mixture of a courageous local population with support from a wider national level civil society is needed both to build this trust, but also to create a critical mass that will be strong and secure enough to challenge vested interests. See http://justpolicy.wordpress.com/2012/08/06/a-tale-of-two-villages-where-transparency-is-doing-its-job/

    1. Thanks Graham. That is very interesting. Could you say more about what you have done to support this process?

      1. Thanks Albert. The main support has been though the Christian Council of Tanzania through 1) training communities in their rights such as access to information and right to participation, 2) training them in the technicalities of the budget process, 3) supporting tracking techniques and wider social accountability work so that the budget tracking produces the desired results in a local context. We are currently undertaking some research into the impacts of this work and how it can be linked more strongly to wider participation in fiscal policy. Results expected early 2013!

  4. I don’t think there is a fundamental disagreement here over political versus technical reforms. Of course all PFM reforms are always both political and technical. But the same way technical challenges differ from area to area, so do the political ones. I’m all for emphasizing that bureaucracy-internal change has its own power relations, principal-agent problems, collective action problems, cultural issues and whatnot. In fact, that’s one of the most important – and interesting – areas of public administration as a subject of research and practice.

    That said, the political challenges differ between PFM areas. And just to come back to Albert’s original post, accountability reforms involve a lot of capital-P politics. That’s why there is all this research out there about fostering demand for more information and transparency – which of course is the business of IBP. Without such demand executives have less of an incentive to be accountable.

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Home / Security / When You Are Accused of Spamming…

When You Are Accused of Spamming…

Question: My web host has accused me of being a spammer and has suspended my account. How do I prove I am not a spammer?

Answer: Usually, you will only be accused of spamming in one of three situations: (1) you actually are a spammer, (2) your account is hosted on an unsecured mail server, or (3) You have a dedicated server or VPS, and you have left your mail server unsecured.

In the case of the first situation, I cannot help you. If you are in situation number 2, then you are truly one of the victims, and whoever is running the server needs to fix the problem. Usually this will happen if the server admin is someone different than the web host. Contact the web host and let them know that you are not in charge of the server but have been blacklisted.

In the third situation, you need to find the security hole in your server and fix it. You could have an open relay in your SMTP system. Another possibility is that a user account has been comprised. And the third unfortunate possibility is that one of your users may knowingly be a spammer. In any case, get the problem fixed first and then tell your web host. You should then automatically start dropping off of DNS blacklists, and everything will go back to normal.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

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July 4, 2015

Canada’s racist problem.

A cultural system that values a white voice more than a black one is a problematic system that must be fixed by those same white voices. This argument is masterfully made by Andray Domise, in White Supremacy is Not a Black Problem:

We’re still living in societies that rationalize why black people occupy a lower caste status, are still being disenfranchised, still struggle to receive justice. To be black in North America is to know that our skin negates our expectation of safety, and that any manner of white violence against our bodies will be isolated, explained, and often excused. To be black in North America is to speak out against that white violence done to our bodies, and brace for the retort that black on black violence” is a more important conversation to have. It is to know that our identities—our art, music, food, and colourful vernacular, and even our skin and hair—only exist as unique until white folks come to snatch them from us, too.

This isn’t a failure on the part of black communities, but rather, a failure of white culture. As long as people of colour have been free to form communities, white supremacy has existed to remind us where we stand. And as long as white supremacy has resulted in violence against our bodies, white culture has existed to downplay the problem, instruct us on how to deal with it peaceably, and deny it exists at all. White culture tells us that white supremacy is a black problem.

Mr. Domise’s entire piece is powerful and important: it will bring you to tears and remind you of work that needs to be done. Take a few minutes and read the whole thing — and then re-read it.

Upon re-reading, I was struck, hard, by the oft-repeated narrative of racism and white supremacy in Canada—specifically, that it doesn’t exist, or that if it does, it’s not so bad:

Despite the appalling lack of diverse representation in our politics and business, and overrepresentation of people of colour in our penal system, Canada is especially susceptible to the myth that we have outgrown racism. Many will be quick to tell you that here, racism claims a much lower body count than it does down south. That myth has permitted white Canadians to look the other way while we’ve had to deal with the worst of them. A couple of years back, in Georgina, Ontario, a black teenager was beaten by his white classmates while others crowded around shouting, Pound the nigger!” The assault happened in the same school where the Confederate flag waved so freely that complaints from black parents forced the local school board to ban it. It happened in the same city where Asian Canadians were being swarmed by white mobs and thrown off fishing docks with such regularity that the practice was given a name: nipper-tipping. But to hear white residents tell the story, all of this can be excused by the feeling that they are now minorities in their own country. I spoke about this story often with white friends at the time, and I can’t remember one conversation I had where someone didn’t pitch the refrain, Well, at least we’re not as bad as the States.”

The refrain of at least Canada isn’t as bad as the States” is one I’ve heard from quite a few people over the past couple of decades, and it is one that infuriates me.

Primarily, racism isn’t measured on a spectrum, in some kind of gradation, but instead a dichotomy: being half as racist” still makes you a racist, and that’s inexcusable. Secondarily, the claim in patently false: the media attention currently being given to a few cases in the United States shouldn’t allow us to forget the cases of overt and blatant racism that happen here without the same kind of public exposure.

A friend of mine, when calling out racist behavior on her neighborhood Facebook group — she was subsequently banned from the group for inciting” a discussion on race they didn’t want to have — was met with a response from another person I know, a person who claimed that, racial profiling is not a Toronto thing, it might be a popular stance currently but a country that prides itself to have been the freedom of the underground railroad … we do not share similarities with our great neighbors to the south. We don’t segregate people of colour in Toronto and we do not tend to be a racist set of people.”

This response is both exasperating and infuriating. It ignores and silences the experience of the people of color in Toronto who are saying, loudly, that yes, they experience racism here. It erases their struggles, silences their voices, and trivializes their lives, all in an effort to create a utopian narrative of Canada isn’t racist.”

That narrative itself is the problem why racism continues to thrive; when we aren’t able to acknowledge our own faults, and worse yet, when we refuse to hear the people who point them out because they are the ones most affected by our actions, we are perpetuating a system that tells us that a white voice is worth more than a black one.

That narrative itself is racist. We need to do something to fix it.


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Death of Professor John Coolahan – Ireland loses a national treasure, INTO a true friend.

The death has occurred of John Coolahan, Emeritus Professor of Education at NUI Maynooth and the country’s foremost educationalist. John, who was highly regarded at all levels of education both here and abroad, wrote the definitive history of Irish education and was a valued friend and supporter of INTO. He taught many of our members, or supervised their postgraduate work, in Carysfort College, UCD and NUIM. A consummate professional who sought high standards of those around him as he did of himself, he was also a true gentleman who valued friendship, company, the arts and of course his beloved Kerry football team.

A public figure who contributed to and drafted innumerable education Green and White Papers and Reports for successive governments and for the OECD, and who chaired arts and education fora and governing bodies, he was a genuine national treasure. Is deachair a shamhlú go mbeadh a leithéid arís ann.

One year ago this week, the Organisation awarded John Coolahan an honorary INTO President’s medal. On that evening, John spoke about his career-long links with INTO. He had, he said, been a teacher union member for 56 years, the first six in the INTO during his years as a primary teacher. As INTO celebrated its 150th year, there was he said much to be proud of and the Organisation could take “significant credit for many of the advances which have been made”.

John Coolahan was a powerful, progressive voice which supported INTO in advocating for education over many years. This support was evident in his addresses to Annual Congress and Education Conference and in contributions to our publications. Over recent years, he devoted significant time and provided valuable input while working as an advising editor on Niamh Puirséil’s history of the INTO – Kindling the Flame.

One of John’s final public engagements was to attend INTO Annual Congress in Killarney at Easter 2018. It was an honour as always to have his company and his involvement.

To say that he will be missed is an understatement. He was always available to INTO to offer wise counsel, informed analysis and perceptive understanding. As an Organisation, we have never had a truer friend.

John Coolahan will of course be missed most of all by his wife Mary, their daughters Marie-Louise, Iseult and Deirdre, son William and wider family. INTO offers our sincere condolences to them as we recall the privilege, we had of knowing and working with John over many years.


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Love Your Body Workshop Series: Healing with Crystals

With Sabrina Washington, MA in Dance/Movement Therapy & Counseling, Reiki-III, CAEH

Healing with Crystals: A Love Your Body Workshop

Date: 11/14/18
Time: 6:30 – 8:00PM
Place:  3356 N Karlov Ave., Chicago, IL 60641
Energy Exchange: $30

Tickets available HERE

Did you know…simply holding crystals near your body starts a deep multi-level healing process? Sometimes even completely shifting you out of a negative feeling state?

This will be a hands on workshop learning about the healing properties of crystals, and how to use them to love and heal your own body, mind, and soul. Participants will get to explore various stones known to bring relief to common physical, emotional, and spiritual ailments and issues, as well as learn how to apply them to a daily self-care and empowerment routine. Participants will also get to practice opening up to their healing potential in a crystal energy healing guided meditation.

  • Learn crystal energy healing techniques to easily add to your daily self-care routine.
  • Discover which stones you are looking for in your own life and how to take care of them.
  • Explore how to access your own intuition in selecting and applying them where needed.
  • Leave feeling more connected to your energy body and its healing abilities.

About the presenter:

Sabrina is InTouch & Motion’s Holistic Life Coach, Reiki Energy Healing Practitioner, and Integrated Body-Mind Wellness Specialist. Beyond her training in energy healing with crystals, she has spent years of personal and spiritual development exploring and embracing the healing power of crystals as a daily part of her physical, emotional, and spiritual health. Crystals have been a crucial part of her healing journey, helping her heal trauma and shift from sometimes unbearable physical or emotional pain, to a felt experience of relief and peace. She is really looking forward to sharing her knowledge and experience with those who also want to take their healing process into their own (loving) hands. She believes that when we each are empowered with our own ability to heal ourselves, our light can shine brighter, spreading this light and love to help heal the world around us. Life, with self-love, goes a long way (and feels a lot better)!

Contact for more details.

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Welcome to the second annual Intrepid Adventure Travel Index, an opportunity for us to share the latest trends and insights in the adventure travel industry with all Australians

As the world’s largest adventure travel company with 30 years behind us, this report aims to share insights in to the fast-growing adventure travel sector by combining our own travel figures and industry knowledge, with externally-commissioned qualitative research of 1000 Australians. To provide a report which challenges the dated stereotypes of adventure travellers, and redefines this growing sector within the tourism industry.

Intrepid Adventure Travel Index 2019

Intrepid travel cover 2019

The index, contains a wealth of current information and research examining topics such as top destinations for Australian travellers, how young Australians choose to travel, and trends in the travel market, plus some handy insights on getting your money's worth around the world.

Adventure travel is a growing sector within the tourism industry, stay ahead of the trends and read the Intrepid 2019 Adventure Travel Index.

Download the index

2019 Index highlights

Top 10 destinations for Australian travellers

Remaining our number one travel destination Vietnam offers adventures full of beauty and contrast, in a country of incredible food, lively locals, stunning scenery and cosmopolitan cities.

View our top trip

Full of mystery and culture dating back millennia, Peru is an indomitable land of deserts etched with enigmatic lines, Amazonian rainforests teeming with wildlife, and soaring mountains harbouring secret cities.

View our top trip

A vast nation filled with colourful, chaotic, and enchanting cultures. Witness pilgrims performing ancient ceremonies on the ghats of Varanasi and marvel at the iconic Taj Mahal, inspiring India has it all.

View our top trip

Growing in popularity and moving up one place on the list . Morocco's offering of camel rides through the Sahara, the stunning Atlas Mountains and the pulsating energy of Marrakech are just a few highlights that have helped build this destinations popularity.

View our top trip

Cuba a stunning and idyllic time capsule, where the cars are classic, salsa dancing is a must and the mojitos are icy, icy cold.

View our top trip

With art galleries popping up in Phnom Penh, and Siem Reap’s thumping nightlife, Cambodia is more than just epic temples (although they’re awesome too).

View our top trip

Sri Lanka is jam-packed with ancient sites, fascinating culture, beautiful wilderness and idyllic beaches, it's an all-encompassingdestination for those seeking a unique travel experience.

View our top trip

Whether you’d rather track rhinos in the Chitwan jungle or eat momos in Thamel  – there’s more to Nepal than the mighty Himalayan mountains.

View our top trip

Peel back the lucha libre mask and you’ll find a patchwork of cultures and customs mixed into one tequila-drenched country.

View our top trip

Food, wine, history, architecture, fashion, coffee – there’s nothing this European favourite can’t do. You’ll surely be seduced by a slice of La Dolce Vita.

View our top trip

Travel for good: Understanding Undertoursim

Destinations with the lowest tourism density ratio

The below figures examine tourism density ratios, by comparing the number of tourists to locals in each destination using 2018 figures.

As concerns with the impact of overtourism grow, we believe the concept of undertourism will become more relevant. Particularly as responsible travellers opt to spend their dollars wisely in economies where their holiday can provide positive benefits to the communities they visit.

The rise of solo travel

At Intrepid, we've seen increase in solo travellers with a rise of 113% in 2018. The global rise in single women and solo households is mirrored in the travel sector with 77% of solo travellers from Australia being women*.

Explore our range trips for solo travellers

The increasing value of experiences

Intrepid travellers have always sought out experience-rich holidays. Anecdotally, we are seeing a rise in consumers placing more value on experiences than materialistic belongings.

"This is the age of travel, where consumer shifts see the hoarding of material possessions increasingly making way for the desire to have extraordinary life experiences, especially through travel."

Dr. Jospeh Cheer - Center for Tourism Research at Wakayama University, Japan

In our survey 1,000 Australians* were asked to rank the below experiences that tourism facilitates in terms of what they value the most. See their rankings below:

 Spending time with loved ones

 Creating new memories

 Learning new things

Enjoying the food

Feeling recharged

Meeting new people

Getting outside a comfort zone

Achieving a travel goal

Making new friendships

Taking part in a physical challenge

Millennials and social media's influence on travel

Intrepid's national survey of millennial's revealed the growing power of social media on travel desicion making. It was found social media played a key role in the decision making process from providing destination inspiration, to influencing travel purchasing behaviours.

Furthermore, around a third of 18 to 24 year olds (33%) and 25 to 34 year olds (27%) admited they always consider how their social media feeds will look when booking a trip.

Ranked number 1 in influence over 18-24 year olds, with 81% indicating it played a significant role in their travel purchase decisions

Ranked number 1 in influence over 25 - 34 year olds, with 63% indicating it played a significant role in their travel purchase decisions

Interestingly, 31% of 18 - 24 year olds indicated Snapchat played a significant role in their travel purchase decisions

Explore Intrepid's 18-29s range of trips

Women in tourism: a force for good

"The industry is male dominated. In fact, I am the first female overland truck driver in East Africa and now I am known as ‘Mama Overland!'."

Becky Kieha, - Kenya Overland Truck driver

"My family, are so happy because I’m paving the way to other females to become tour leaders too."

Sara Lamzawaq - Morocco tour leader

"Other than my elder sister and a few friends, no one else supported my decision of becoming a tour leader .... Now, everyone feels very proud of me."

Sana Jinah - India tour leader

Our plan for gender equality

Intrepid travel is committed to supporting and empowering women across the globe. Women in developing countries often face ingrained gender discrimination and two years ago we set a target to double the number of female tour leaders around the world by 2020. We are currently on track to reach this goal.

Learn more

Further reading

Apr 26, 2019

6 easy tips for solo female travel in South...

After several extended trips in South East Asia on my own, I share some of my top...

Aug 30, 2018

What I discovered as a solo female traveller in...

I wasn’t prepared for the variety of reactions I received when I told people I was...

Sep 06, 2017

6 easy tips for solo female travel in India

The reality for solo female travellers is India can be challenging, but don't let...


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Sensi-Tak Roll Wig Tape

Product Features:-

  • Long Bond Low Residue Tape
  • Extended Wear Time 1-2 Weeks

£17.94 Inc VAT

Out of stock

Sensi-Tak Roll Wig Tape is popular to use with poly/skin units due to it’s low residue properties, making cleanup times shorter and easier.
This is designed for those not looking for the longest bond periods, but who are looking for something more than day to day wear. It has an extended wear time of 1-2 weeks.


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Invite Health TRUE

Prospective study suggests that consumption of soy foods, or soy protein or soy isoflavones may reduce the risk of colorectal cancer in postmenopausal women

Jan 15, 2009

Researchers at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville note that soy and some of its constituents such as isoflavones have been shown to inhibit cancer in experimental studies. Data from epidemiologic studies linking usual soy food intake with colorectal cancer are limited and inconsistent. They prospectively examined 68,412 women aged 40–70 years and free of cancer and diabetes at enrollment. Usual soy food intake was assessed at baseline and reassessed during the first follow-up period.

During a mean follow-up of 6.4 y, 321 colorectal cancer cases were identified. After adjustment for potential confounding factors, total soy food intake was inversely associated with colorectal cancer risk. Each one ounce increase in daily soy food intake was associated with an 8% reduction in colon cancer risk. Women in the highest tertile of intake had a 33% decreased risk o compared with those in the lowest tertile. This inverse association was primarily confined to postmenopausal women. Similar results were also found for intakes of soy protein and isoflavones. The study is published in the November 2nd, 2008 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.


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text: News & Events | Convention internationale pour la protection des végétaux News from the IPPC SecretariatScientific session at CPM-6 to examine approaches for addressing pest risks associated with grains and wood2011-03-07T08:10:10+00:00Admin Admin year, the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures holds a scientific session to consider emerging issues, such as new technologies or new pest threats. Past scientific sessions have addressed issues such as the potential impact of climate change on pest spread, food aid as a pathway for the transboundary movement of pests, aquatic plants as pests, and flaws in the current system for preventing pest spread. The speakers for CPM-6 have been announced - click here to view the programme for this year s scientific session. Gary C. Martin, President and Chief Executive Officer of the North American Export Grain Association, will present an assessment of current and future trends for trade in grain, oilseeds and other agri-bulks. He will discuss the role of Plant Quarantine Authorities in addressing the challenges and opportunities for industry, particularly the need for appropriate, sound, predictable official measures to address risks associated with this potential pathway for pest spread. Click here to see Gary C. Martin s biography. Mountain pine beetle damageEric Allen, a research scientist for the Canadian Forest Service, will describe how pest risks associated with Mountain Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) are virtually eliminated as harvested trees are transformed into wood products for international trade. He will explain how information on the biology of this pest is used to provide guidance to scientists, regulators and the forest industry for the development of effective pest mitigation processes. Click here to see Eric Allen s biography.


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Shorthouse & Martin

Based in Basingstoke, the practice includes ten qualified fee earners supported by four support staff. The team provides financial and business services to more than 2,000 companies including many foreign businesses looking to establish operations in the UK.

Change that improves

In order to ensure the delivery of quality and value to its customers, Shorthouse & Martin sets exceptionally high standards for its team while it invests in new technologies that drive efficiencies across the business. Les Shorthouse, one of the founding directors, explains, “If we see an opportunity to improve the way we work, without sacrificing quality, then we’ll embrace it. At the same time, we’re extremely careful how we bring in new staff.” He cites the firm’s early adoption of IRIS practice software in 1989 as an example of this approach to improving business processes. “It was then, and remains today, a revolutionary application for the industry. Because IRIS could automate so many of our existing processes it quickly made our business much more efficient. We were able to share these efficiencies with our clients through more competitive rates and an even better service.”


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Budget 2013 - Worst fears allayed, jobs main focus

Yesterday’s budget, the sixth austerity package in five years, continued the process of trying to restore some sanity to our public finances without introducing any measures so radical that it might threaten the Coalition’s immediate future.

Whether the package wins the popular support required to give it the moral authority it needs, in an ideal world at least, remains to be seen. However, there is hardly a measure proposed that will facilitate a game-changing salvo from the opposition. Most had been signalled, drip-by-drip, over recent weeks so the potential of any cumulative impact had been dissipated long before the speeches began yesterday afternoon.

The objective was to save €3.5bn next year, with tax changes accounting for €1.25bn of that and the balance — €2.25bn — coming through spending cuts. There was too a significant and welcome emphasis on trying to create an environment where small to medium businesses might sustain if not create employment.

Compromises around a new rate of universal social charge for high earners and a higher rate of property tax on homes worth more than €1m seemed to satisfy each party’s need to give a passing nod to their philosophies and constituencies. It would be a major achievement if this harmony, this ability to play one proposal against another, can be sustained without hindering the kind of deep change, especially and unfortunately around public sector pay and pensions, needed to resolve our financial difficulties. This was acknowledged by Mr Howlin when he said that savings of €1bn on the public service pay and pensions must be made before 2015 in any extended Croke Park deal.

Mr Noonan and his colleague Expenditure andReform Minister Brendan Howlin proposed savings of €3.5bn without increasing income tax or cutting core welfare payments which satisfied the priorities of a great number of people. Changes to PRSI will hit incomes directly as will changes to how tax relief is applied to pension contributions.

So too will changes for high-income pensioners, the group in society least affected in recent budgets. In the context of our situation it is very hard to argue with these changes, especially as other universal benefits for pensioners have not been reviewed.

The decision to cut children’s allowances by €10 is unfortunate and must be seen only as a stop-gap measure until a way to further reduce the payment enjoyed by high-income families and to transfer that saving to low-income families is found. The old excuse, implausible at the best of times, about the impossibility of means testing can hardly be trotted out again. A certain degree of urgency must be applied to this issue.

Though largely symbolic the ending of unvouched expenses for politicians is welcome though the measure may not ultimately mean around politicians’ expenses. Much more needs to be done in this area as some politicians get more in expenses and allowances than they do in salary.

The €250 increase in college registration fees each year for the next three years, and changes on qualifications for grants that may hit thousands of families, will put a further strain on a sector already paying heavily for this crisis. The chip, chip, chip away at middle-class security and confidence has become one of the great obstacles to recovery. Like so many other issues simmering away on a back burner the dilemma of third-level fees will have to be confronted sooner or later.

Earlier yesterday, speaking to a Dáil committee, Social Protection Minister Joan Burton sought a €685m supplementary budget for her department this year. This massive figure puts our difficulties — PRSI take down, unemployment up again — in context but despite this there may be some cause for restrained optimism.

All of the Government’s plans are predicated on growth of 1% to 1.5% and forecasts, though often inaccurate, suggest that this may be achieved. The decline in property prices has slowed, there has been an increase in retail sales and double digit increases in service exports and an increase in general exports too.

A resolution to the euro crisis now seems at least imaginable and the uncertainty of recent years has eased ever so slightly. Yields on Irish bonds have fallen from 10% to 2%. As Mr Noonan asserted yesterday we are meeting our targets and if we continue to do so we might be able to quit the bailout arrangement by Christmas 2013.

Let us hope that optimism is justified because it is difficult to see how many more austerity budgets can be introduced unless significant progress is made on lifting or at the very least adjusting the burden of bank debt immorally imposed on this society.

Their paths first crossed in the classroom 13 years ago for childhood sweethearts Emma Murphy and Kevin Leahy.Wedding of the Week: Lessons in love started in the classroom for childhood sweethearts

“This podcast features something never previously heard — anywhere, from anyone — the confession tape of an Irish serial killer.'Podcast Corner: Chilling story of an Irish serial killer

Children’s creativity is inspiring, says Helen O’Callaghan.Inspiring creativity: Kids on call for climate essay

'I came here for one thing, and that's to shine. That's why I'm wearing all this sparkly shit.'Review: Mick Flannery and Valerie June, Right Here Right Now festival, Cork Opera House

More From The Irish Examiner


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Wednesday, 30 November 2016

Irish Roots Magazine publishes its 100th edition
100 editions of insightful, entertaining and
reliable news and features since 1992
Irish Roots Magazine has just published its 100th issue – a terrific achievement for Ireland's only independent genealogy magazine, now run by Maureen and Julie Phibbs, a mother and daughter team based in County Wicklow.

This quarter’s edition brings reflections and forecasts about the past, present and future of Irish genealogy, and reproduces a nostalgic feature, written by the late Tim Cadogan for the first edition of the magazine in 1992, exploring the impact on public libraries of developments then taking place in family history research.

In it, he writes: "In the course of the past 20 years, genealogical research has advanced from the low-profile mildly eccentric activity of times past to a high-profile semi-commercial activity, increasingly targeted by tourism interest as another aspect of our heritage that can be exploited. I must confess to a twinge of regret at the arrival of the new and aggressive approach to genealogy."

More than two decades later, such feelings are still being expressed by those of us getting a bit long in the tooth, even at we delight in the latest online releases of records that were previously difficult, inconvenient and time-consuming to access. I'm sure these conflicting sentiments will still be being discussed among genealogists in another 20-odd years!

But back to the contents of the magazine... There is also a mammoth listing of 100 research tips and ideas to inspire you. It's full of research techniques, notes of record collections you may have overlooked, historical context details that may cast a new light on some aspect of your family history, and background explanations to give you a better understanding of some of the major genealogical record sets.

Other research features include overviews of sources for tracing ancestors in County Waterford and New Zealand; an article explaining the Brehan Laws of Gaelic Ireland; news and views from around the industry; a review of the many record collections released online during the last quarter; letters to the editor; Q&A; and much more.

Irish Roots Magazine is available in print via good newsagents, and by post or by digital format at the Irish Roots Media website. You can also download a free sample of this special edition.