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Russia Toplines

The coronavirus remained an important topic in the Russian media ecosystem last week, though its margin of prominence again declined as compared to the previous week. Most pandemic content relayed basic news updates; although, critical responses to U.S. government officials’ claims that the virus originated in a laboratory in China received a fair amount of attention. Russian government and diplomatic accounts on Twitter, along with a much smaller amount of content on websites and YouTube, continued a strong messaging push marking the 75th anniversary of VE Day, which is known as Victory Day and celebrated on May 9 in Russia. Common themes in this campaign emphasized the importance of the Soviet role in World War II, as well as cooperation and friendship with Allied countries.

China Toplines

As in previous weeks, coronavirus continued to dominate messaging from China’s state media and diplomatic outlets. State media highlighted news that two American mercenaries—part of a small force that planned to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and extradite him to the United States—had been captured in Venezuela. Additionally, state media attacked the U.S. government’s positions on the coronavirus pandemic, seeking to cast doubt on the virus’s origins in China and demonstrating China’s support for multilateral efforts to combat its spread. Other messaging attempted to signal to foreign businesses and decisionmakers another step on the China’s return to normalcy following the coronavirus pandemic, while highlighting the negative effects the virus is having inside the United States.

Russian state-funded media and government and diplomatic corps accounts:

Top 10 Hashtags — May 2-8:

The Hamilton dashboard collected about 15,000 tweets from Russian state-funded media and government Twitter accounts between May 2 and May 8 (figures as of 2pm on May 8). Like the previous week, less than half of the top ten hashtags related to the pandemic; although, total uses of pandemic-related hashtags outnumbered those of non-pandemic hashtags. In total, a little over 3,300 tweets mentioned “virus,” “covid,” and/or “outbreak,” accounting for about 22 percent of posts and marking a second consecutive week of more than ten percent declines in coronavirus output on Twitter, as compared to the previous week. The absence of explicitly virus-related content in the top overall tweets further reflected this decline. Top tweets about the pandemic primarily consisted of basic news updates, as well as posts about cute or interesting animals, such as:

The other notable trend last week was the continued messaging push related to Victory Day, which is celebrated in Russia on May 9 to mark the end of World War II in Europe. Expanding on efforts from the previous week, three of the top ten hashtags, #Victory75, #Победа75, and #FacesOfVictory, directly related to the end of World War II. Tracked accounts also used #OTD (an acronym for “on this date”) mainly, though not exclusively, to mark the anniversary dates of significant military developments in the European theater in 1945. Once again, these posts came primarily from government and diplomatic accounts. Main themes emphasized the Soviet role in the war and cooperation (and continued affinity) with Allied countries. While previous messaging efforts related to the war have often accused other countries of “rewriting” history, this type of criticism was muted last week, and the only use of the #TruthAboutWWII hashtag associated with these claims came from the Russian embassy in the United States. Nevertheless, the United States and Central and Eastern European governments released a statement this week criticizing the rosy depiction of the Soviets as liberators and accusing Russia of attempting to falsify history, illustrating the salience of this topic as a geopolitical issue. Examples of Russia’s Victory Day messaging from last week included:

Russian government-funded websites:

A little over 600 of the about 1,338 articles from Russian government-funded news websites collected on the dashboard last week mentioned “virus” in the first 200 words. As usual, this output mainly featured basic news updates. By a substantial margin, the top article by Facebook shares covered a development in research on the coronavirus. Articles of interest among the top overall articles by Facebook shares addressed several pandemic-related topics, including criticism of the UK’s coronavirus response and doubts about U.S. officials’ claims that the virus originated in a laboratory in China. An op-ed denouncing social media platform bans on conspiracy theorist David Icke was also noteworthy:

The man behind the UK’s Covid-19 lockdown has screwed his mistress, screwed us all, & now – thankfully – screwed his career,” Op-ed, RT, May 5, 2020.

“Professor Neil Ferguson is set to go down in history as the man who made all the wrong calls in the fight against the coronavirus. It’s difficult to know whether to laugh or cry at his sanctimonious pretence.”

London’s 4,000-bed Nightingale hospital to be SHUT after treating just 51 Covid-19 patients,” RT, May 4, 2020.

“NHS England’s flagship Nightingale hospital in London – which opened to much fanfare a month ago – is to close its doors and be placed on ‘standby’ after treating just 51 Covid-19 patients, despite having room for 4,000 . . . Critics of the UK government’s strategy say they have placed too much emphasis on resourcing hospitals and not enough on care homes – which provide vital shelter and support for the elderly, a vulnerable group particularly affected by the pandemic.”

CIA & MI6 put together ‘scientific’ dossier ‘targeting China’s Covid-19 cover-up’ – as West readies to demand Beijing COMPENSATION,” RT, May 3, 2020.

“The West’s wish to pin the blame on China (and probably the bill too) for the Covid-19 pandemic has been reportedly incarnated in a 15-page dossier compiled by intelligence agencies, which has now leaked, according to reports . . . The authors of the research found some pretty strange ways to paint China’s response to the outbreak in a negative and even sinister way.”

Covid contradiction? Pompeo believes coronavirus was ‘man-made,’ also agrees with intelligence that it was not,” RT, May 3, 2020.

“In his rush to accuse Beijing of unleashing the scourge of Covid-19 on an unsuspecting world, the US Secretary of State said the coronavirus was man-made, before making a U-turn without even blinking.”

Banning the conspiracist David Icke is WRONG & actually strengthens his case that we’re sleepwalking towards DICTATORSHIP,” Op-ed, RT, May 4, 2020.

“The banning of the former TV presenter from Facebook and YouTube is an assault on free speech and free expression which needs to be forcefully resisted, whatever your views are on Icke’s theories on world governance.”

While not substantial in terms of total output, close to 20 articles covered the ongoing controversy surrounding the sexual assault allegation against former Vice President Joe Biden. The overarching themes in this output questioned Biden’s fitness for office and accused Democrats of hypocrisy in their response to the claim. Notable examples included:

You can say the sex claim ain’t so, Joe, but it won’t work. Biden has lost his moral compass in his desperate bid to defeat Trump,” Op-ed, RT, May 4, 2020.

“The Democratic White House hopeful – plus his party and its media supporters – dismisses the allegations against him as utterly unfounded, in a nauseating display of hypocrisy. But the scandal – and his age – disqualifies him.”

‘It Has Not Been Safe’: Tara Reade Calls on Biden to End 2020 Bid, Addresses ‘Russian Agent’ Claim,” Sputnik News, May 7, 2020.

“Tara Reade is calling for presumptive Democratic nominee and former US Vice President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2020 presidential race and says that her speaking out about the alleged 1993 sexual assault has resulted in attacks from Biden surrogates and even a death threat.”

Finally, World War II-related content on websites did not reach the high proportion found on Twitter, totaling around 20 articles. A few pieces on the topic pushed themes accusing the West of forgetting the Soviet role in the war:

Russian Federation Council Slams Pentagon’s WWII Project as ‘Unworthy Falsification,’ Sputnik News, May 7, 2020.

“The US Department of Defence’s new project commemorating the events of World War II, which has no mention of the Soviet Union’s crucial role in it, is just another example of “unworthy falsification” of history, Oleg Morozov, a member of the Russian upper house’s foreign affairs committee, said on Thursday.”

Foreign intel chief slams efforts to belittle Russia’s, China’s role in WWII as criminal,” TASS, May 7, 2020.

“The Soviet Union and China paid the highest price for ultimate victory in World War II and any attempts at belittling their contribution to this triumph would be false and criminal as well, Chairman of the Russian Historical Society, Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), Sergei Naryshkin, said in a Russian-Chinese television linkup devoted to the 75th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War.”

Russian state-owned media:

About two-thirds of the videos collected from Russian state-owned media on YouTube last week covered some facet of the pandemic. Notable among the coronavirus videos were a couple of videos on anti-lockdown protests, continuing criticism of the U.K. government’s coronavirus response, and efforts to prevent Chinese investors from buying global businesses during the global economic downturn:

Anti-lockdown protester ARRESTED in London,” RT UK, May 2, 2020.

“‘Hug someone, save lives!’ Defying social distancing measures, anti-lockdown protesters staged a demonstration outside the London Metropolitan Police HQ where they carried out group hugs.”

Sudden acts of defiance in Michigan & New York,” RT America, May 1, 2020.

“Armed protesters stormed the Michigan state capitol on Thursday as officials debated an extension of the state’s COVID-19 lockdown, as similar protests erupt across the country. Meanwhile, the NYPD broke up a Hasidic Jewish funeral for a well-known rabbi in Brooklyn, where hundreds of mourners had gathered in defiance of social distancing orders.”

Why the government’s track and trace app won’t work,” RT UK, May 5, 2020.

“‘We’ve chosen to take an approach that is at odds with the rest of the world.’ Technology expert Bill Mew explains why the government’s centralised app is not up for the job it’s made for.”

Cutting Out Chinese Investors,” RT America, May 6, 2020.

“Global businesses are bearing the brunt of the COVID-19 outbreak, leading to a flood of failing firms. In the wake of the pandemic, several governments are seeking to halt Chinese investors from scooping up struggling entities.”

RT UK also covered the human-interest story of Russian WWII veteran Zinaida Korneva’s charity efforts, which were inspired by British WWII veteran Captain Tom Moore’s coronavirus relief fundraising. While a genuine feel-good story, this event aligns with Russia’s Victory Day external messaging more broadly, as it stresses the Soviet role in the war and portrays the USSR (and Russia) as old friends of Allied countries. Meanwhile, RT America put out a more direct video accusing the United States of de-emphasizing the Russian role in the war. Interestingly, neither video mentions the Soviet Union, eliding the distinction between Russia and the USSR:

From Russia with love, Captain Tom Moore! RT UK, May 6, 2020.

“From Russia with love, Captain Tom Moore! A Russian WWII veteran was so impressed by Capt Tom Moore’s charity feat that she’s decided to knit the 100-year-old a pair of socks!”

WWII could not have been won without Russia – Larry King,” RT America, May 7, 2020.

“The Second World War came to an end in Europe 75 years ago, with Germany’s surrender. This also marked the moment that the US became a global super power for its role in winning the war. But how much of our acceptance of America’s importance in the victory is based in fact?”

Chinese state-funded media and government and diplomatic corps accounts:

Top 10 Hashtags — May 2-8:

As in previous weeks, almost all top hashtags were linked with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The Hamilton dashboard collected about 13,000 tweets from Chinese state-funded media and government Twitter accounts between May 2 and May 8 (figures as of 4pm on May 8). This continues a downward trend in overall Chinese activity on Twitter since mid-April. However, overall activity—both in number of tweets and number of accounts active—remains much higher than the beginning of the year, prior to the global spread of coronavirus (see chart below).

At its peak in early April, Chinese accounts tracked on Hamilton were tweeting nearly three times as much on a weekly basis as in late January. Even now, the overall number of weekly tweets remains at more than twice its earlier level (though, again, it is important to note that this is due in part to an increase in the total number of accounts monitored on the dashboard).

Last week, one of the most engaged-with tweets from tracked accounts was a retweet by the Chinese ambassador to Venezuela of a story from Iranian state-backed Spanish-language outlet HispanTV saying that China would not accept any U.S. invasion of Venezuela.

The story itself was a reference to news that two American mercenaries had been captured in Venezuela. The article linked-to by Ambassador Li Baorong repeated uncritically the Venezuelan assertion that the U.S. government was behind the group of captured mercenaries that were part of a coup attempt against the Maduro regime.

Other top tweets attacked the U.S. government’s position on the coronavirus pandemic, while also seeking to demonstrate China’s support for multilateral efforts to combat the virus’ spread.

The aggressive tweet from China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying marked a return to form after a brief absence from Hamilton’s top tweets section.

Also absent from top tweets were statements addressing a major speech on May 4th by U.S. Deputy National Security Advisor Matt Pottinger on the 101st anniversary of historically important anti-imperialist protests in Beijing. Pottinger’s speech was delivered entirely in Mandarin and generated considerable attention in non-Chinese state-backed sources focused on China. Chinese official sources appeared to downplay the speech; it was only mentioned in four tweets across the accounts tracked on Hamilton.

Instead, top tweets from party state sources focused attention on a very different American entity. Tweets with the hashtag #Shanghai focused on the re-opening of Shanghai Disneyland in an attempt to signal to foreign businesses and decisionmakers another step on China’s return to normalcy following the coronavirus pandemic.

One other top tweet worth noting was from the China’s ambassador to the Maldives and highlighted medical aid sent there from China.

The Maldives are a strategically located island nation off the southwest coast of India, sitting astride important trans-Indian Ocean shipping lanes. Recent political upheaval saw an authoritarian-inclined, China-friendly ruler step down in favor of a more India-friendly politician. The island remains a focus for China-India competition in India’s near abroad, even as India struggles with rising coronavirus case numbers within its own borders.

Chinese government-funded websites:

The most-shared story of the week focused on China’s race to develop a coronavirus vaccine, presenting news that a vaccine had been successfully tested on animals. Many of the other top stories shared on Facebook leaned hard into theories that the coronavirus pandemic did not originate inside of China. Three of the top ten most-shared stories on Facebook either cast doubt on the notion the virus originated inside of China or that it had come from a lab in Wuhan. Other stories leaned hard into traditional themes of China’s negative messaging, analyzing “attacks” on China from the Trump administration and presenting “experts” warning the United States against a more aggressive stance towards China. Another article decried U.S. interference in Hong Kong through the National Democratic Institute, while yet another highlighted racism towards the Chinese diaspora in Australia. Interestingly, a widely shared story that featured the Chinese ambassador to the United States casting doubt on the virus’s origins inside China no longer appears to be available on CGTN’s website (see screenshot below).

COVID-19 spread started as early as October 6, 2019: Study, CGTN, May 6, 2020.

“It’s getting harder to find the true origin of the novel coronavirus that has plagued the world killing hundreds of thousands as genetic analysis indicates that the beginning of the pandemic dates back to early October 2019, over a month earlier than what was previously thought.”

Roundup: Fauci dismisses theory coronavirus originated in Chinese lab, Xinhua, May 6, 2020.

“Top U.S. infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, could not have been artificially or deliberately manipulated. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), made the comments Monday in an interview with National Geographic.

Public anger, growing distrust: What’s behind Trump’s China attack?” CGTN, May 4, 2020.

The growing public distrust in U.S. President Donald Trump’s ability to lead the country in its fight against COVID-19 is why he’s attacking China, according to, the largest digital-only publisher with the most users in Croatia.

Experts caution against Washington being “more aggressive” on China, CGTN, May 3, 2020.

A more aggressive stand adopted by some top U.S. administration officials against China on economic, diplomatic and scientific issues at the heart of the relationship between the world’s first and second largest economies may backfire, reported The New York Times on Saturday.

Chinese Australians recognized for cleaning up racist graffiti, CGTN, May 2, 2020.

Two Chinese living in Perth have been recognized by the Western Australia Police Force for their efforts in cleaning up racist graffitis in their community … They informed their local council and got to cleaning up several sites. Despite not expecting any form of reward for what they have done, the Western Australia Police Force issued two certificates to recognize their contribution to the community.”

Xi Jinping extends greetings to young Chinese ahead of Youth Day, CGTN, May 4, 2020.

“Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday extended greetings to young Chinese people of all ethnic groups, calling on the whole society to care for and support the youth. President Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks ahead of China’s Youth Day on May 4.”

Chinese state-owned media:

Coronavirus remains far and away the top subject covered by China’s state-media broadcasters. Many of the pieces broadcast between May 2 and May 8 focused on China’s economic recovery from coronavirus. A large number of segments also examined how the pandemic is playing out in South and Central America, including several pieces on rising case numbers in Brazil and one segment examining how individuals deported from the United States to Guatemala may be fueling new cases there. As in previous weeks, a number of segments highlighted the negative effects the virus is having inside the United States and how communities in the United States are coping. Additional content reflected themes seen in other state media sources, such as pieces questioning the virus’ origins in China, and a segment on the U.S. mercenaries captured in Venezuela. One interesting piece was a CCTV interview with China’s Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai, who said that the U.S.-China relationship needed new and more diverse forms of “ballast” outside of bilateral economic ties. He pointed to pandemic cooperation as one possible form.

China-US Trade, Economic Relations Should Not Be Only Ballast Stone: Chinese Ambassador, CCTV Video News Agency, May 6, 2020.

“China-U.S. relations are of huge interest to the whole world while the economic relationship between the two shouldn’t be taken as the only ballast stone in bilateral ties during these crucial times in the fight against COVID-19, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai said on Tuesday.”

Coronavirus’ origin should be concluded by scientists, not politicians: FM spokeswoman, CCTV Video News Agency, May 6, 2020.

“The origin of the novel coronavirus is a complex scientific problem, which should be explored by scientists and experts through rigorous and detailed scientific research, rather than judged by politicians, said Hua Chunying, the spokeswoman of the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Wednesday.”

As unemployment rises, debt level for millennials spirals, CGTN America, May 6, 2020.

“As millions of Americans file for unemployment benefits, one group is being especially hit hard. Experts say millennials are one group that is increasingly vulnerable, with debt levels constantly rising.”

Class of 2020 graduates amid uncertain times, CGTN America, May 6, 2020.

“The Class of 2020 started the year looking forward to graduating into one of the hottest job markets in a long time. But now, many have seen their job offers and internships disappear.”

U.S. COVID-19 cases are higher than confirmed: Stanford professor, CGTN America, May 5, 2020.

“A recent study by a Stanford University professor found that COVID-19 cases in Santa Clara County, California are actually higher than the confirmed count officials give.”

Explained: What’s going on with U.S. meat? CGTN America, May 5, 2020.

“U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order this week that he said would keep meat processing plants open.”

Substantial Evidence Shows COVID-19 to Be of Natural Origin: WHO, CCTV Video News Agency, May 5, 2020.

“WHO officials rejected claims by the U.S. government regarding the origins of the novel coronavirus, saying there is substantial evidence to show that the virus originated from nature, speaking at a pressing briefing on Monday.”

Wuhan in Central China Regains Vitality as COVID-19 Wanes, CCTV Video News Agency, May 4, 2020.

“People in Wuhan, the central Chinese city once hardest hit by the COVID-19 outbreak, are gradually returning to their jobs, dining out and walking around outside to appreciate the spring scenery as the epidemic has largely waned across China.”

China builds world’s highest 5G tower on Mount Qomolangma, CGTN America, May 3, 2020.

“On April 29, China opened the world’s highest 5G tower on Mount Qomolangma. This cellular tower is located at the mountain’s advance base camp with an elevation of 6,500 meters. Its construction was a joint effort between China Mobile and Huawei. The tower will cover the north side of Mount Qomolangma, including its peak. Its operation not only suggests China’s fast advances in 5G technology, but will also provide support for activities like scientific research and environment monitoring.”

China’s Highest Standard Container Berth Put into Operation at Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, CCTV Video News Agency, May 3, 2020.

“China’s highest standard container berth was put into use at the Beishan Port area of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in east China’s Zhejiang Province on Friday, as it received the largest container vessel on earth.”

Brazil COVID-19: Public health system nearly collapsed in Amazonas, CGTN America, May 2, 2020.

“COVID-19 has caused the public health system in the state of Amazonas in Brazil nearly collapsed. Take a look at what the residents, doctors and local officials are saying about this crisis.”

Guatemala: U.S. migrants deportation adds risk of spreading virus, CGTN America, May 2, 2020.

“Guatemalan officials face more pressures of handling COVID-19 infected deportees from the U.S. Violence against migrant deportees is on the rise. Here is the full story.”

U.S. millennials feel financial squeeze over college debt in COVID-19, CGTN America, May 4, 2020.

“Coronavirus restrictions are hitting the U.S. economy hard. For millennials burdened with college debt, it’s a scary time.”

The views expressed in GMF publications and commentary are the views of the author alone.


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Press & Media

The Security of Things™ Forum welcomes members of the media to attend our second annual Forum event and hear some of the top experts in industry, information security, and policy take on the greatest challenge of our generation: securing the Internet of Things.

** You can use the form at the bottom of this page to submit questions.**

Our previous events have attracted a wide range of media attention, drawing reporters from Reuters, The Boston Globe, Boston Business Journal as well as the technology press.

Here’s the critical information you need to cover the Security of Things Forum:

Date & Time: Tuesday, June 19 2018 from 08:00 to 17:00
Location: The Boston Convention and Exhibition Center
Address: 415 Summer St, Boston, MA 02210
Accommodations: Wireless access will be available at the Convention Center.  Attendees will enjoy breakfast and lunch along with attendees of PTC LiveWorks. Security of Things speakers will be available for scheduled one:one interviews. A schedule of speaker availability will be posted closer to the event.
Attending: complimentary press passes are available to members of the media. To obtain one, just use the form below to request a pass. We will respond with a link that will allow you to register for the event at no cost.

If you have questions about our event or wish to contact the organizers, feel free to use the form below.

We look forward to seeing you at the Forum!

Paul F. Roberts
Founder, Security of Things Forum

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“SING to Lord and for the Lord” – Seeds of Faith – July 29, 2019

Dear friends,

Why do we need to keep on SINGing to Lord and for the Lord?

First, S – Singing is a prescription from the Bible, and should be continued in our churches.

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 14:26 “What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.”

It is not just the preaching or the teaching of the Word of God that will strengthen the church but also the singing of psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.

Singing is actually one of the things that we will be doing throughout eternity. In Revelation 5:12-13 we have been given a peek of what is happening in heaven, and it includes singing.

Second, I – Invite people to hear the Good News of Salvation to people when we sing.

There is a great story in Acts 16. Paul and Silas were severely flogged and then shackled inside their prison cell but at about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

They were praying and singing despite of their very bad situation. That is lesson for us. Can we still pray and sing when we are in a bad situation? Paul and Silas gave us a good example.

Now, why were the guards and the prisoners convinced that what they are singing and praying is real? They were convinced because when the earthquake happened, they did not escape although there was an opportunity for them to do so. What is interesting was that the other prisoners followed theirs example. They did not escape also. That is what an example should be.

The result of this is that the jailer decided to accept Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior as well as his whole family. And in that early morning, the jailer risked everything when they went out of prison so that Paul and Silas can baptize him and his family.

And to think that all of these started with a prayer and singing of songs. That is how God can use our prayers and songs.

Third, N – New music comes from the heart as we encounter new experiences from God.

We make music out of our experiences because music is easy to remember. This is the reason why Paul told the Ephesians to sing.

Ephesians 5:19 says, “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord.”

Now here is a question to ponder. How many psalms can you memorize? Hymns? Spiritual songs? Paul is telling us to memorize these songs because it can help us, and others.

Fourth, G – Gratefulness to God should lead us to sing.

But what kind of song? Paul wrote in Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.”

Three types are given here – psalms, hymns, spiritual songs. We actually do not know the tune of most of the songs in the Bible. Only the tunes of some songs were passed down. But we can do is give new tunes to the psalms of David. We can compose spiritual songs that give praises to God.

But more importantly, Paul tells us that it is because of our thanksgiving to God that we can sing.

Let us continue to sing to the Lord and for the Lord. In doing so, God is pleased and people will hear the Gospel of salvation.

Rev. Francis Neil G. Jalando-on

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Maybe the world's best known, best loved German Shepherd Dog, protector and best friend, Hollywood star and World War I survivor, Rin Tin Tin's line survives and thrives to this very day. Pretty good for an orphan pup, sole survivor of a bombed German war dog kennel in Lorraine, France.

Rin Tin Tin, named for one of the tiny French puppets the grateful locals gave to the U.S. GIs as good luck charms, was well named. Luck followed the dog and the man who dug him out of the wreckage of the bombed kennel, Corporal Lee Duncan. Duncan and his fellow soldiers initially found Rinny's mother and litter mates alive and brought them back to their base. They were only about five days old. Duncan kept Rin Tin Tin and his sister, Nannette (named for the other puppet of the pair of French good luck charms) and the sister and brother were, sadly, the only two to survive to be taken home.

It was discovered that the German kennel master who had run the kennel where the pups were found had been captured by the allies and was a prisoner of war. Cpl. Duncan was able to meet with the man and learned much about the care and training of the German Shepherd Dog and devoted time and effort to laying the foundation for teaching the dogs in the German style.

Permission was obtained to transport Rin and Nannette back to the U.S. and then to his home in Los Angeles, but Nannette came down with distemper on the trip, and although the premier breeder of German Shepherds in the U.S. stepped in and offered to try to save the sick puppy, Nannette did not survive. Mrs. Wanner, understanding Col. Duncan's great love for the breed, sent him a female puppy from her own lines in place of the lost Nannette.

Back home in Los Angeles, Duncan and Rin Tin Tin went about their lives, but, his
fascination with the breed growing, Duncan took his dog with him to dog shows. At one fateful outing, they met Charles Jones, who watched as Rin Tin Tin performed, jumping nearly twelve feet. Jones had a new motion picture camera with him that he was wanting to try out and he asked Duncan if he could film the dog. Jones paid $350, got his film and Duncan realized that his dog could have a career in films.

So, he hit the pavement, visiting studio after studio with his dog and a script, only to be rebuffed. Finally, the pair stumbled across a crew trying to film a scene using a most uncooperative wolf. Duncan asked if they wouldn't give his dog a try, that his dog would do the scene in one take.

They weren't buying it.

At first.

A few takes later they were ready to give the dog a try. Rinny performed as promised -- one take. He became a contract talent for the studio whose fortunes were on the skids. His first film was Man from Hell's River. Moviegoers adored the big, heroic dog and flocked to all twenty-six of his films, helping to turn the fortunes of the studio around.

The name of the studio was Warner Brothers.

Rin Tin Tin died in August of 1932, just before he was to start filming a new movie. Rin had sired several litters, and Lee had kept one of the male pups and named him Junior. Warner Brothers put off the beginning of filming and sent Lee and Junior, the Son of Rin Tin Tin on tour to win America over, which he did in style. America's enduring love for the German Shepherd Dog that began with a war orphaned puppy became a part of the culture and remains so to this day, as does Rin Tin Tin's line.

Author's Bio:

Written by Shelly Seigler of Discount Pet Mall: Find low prices on Dog Kennels, Dog Training Collars, and Dog Doors.


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Failing to look after the “looked after” Loopholes in the SEN system

Businesswoman signing contract.

Current education law ignores the rights of those most in need of its protection

The term “looked after children” refers to those children who are subject to care orders or accommodated by local authorities under the Children Act (s.17/s.20, 1989) at the request, or with the agreement, of their parents. By definition, they are some of the most vulnerable children in society. Despite this, their rights in education law are often not protected.

The majority of rights in education law are bestowed on parents, rather than the children themselves. The definition of a parent for the purposes of education law is an anomaly. In general, the definition of a parent in law involves a consideration of who holds parental responsibility. However, the Education Act (s.576, 1996) defines a “parent” as a biological parent and any person who is not a parent of the child concerned, but who has parental responsibility for him/her or who has care of him/her. This means that foster carers, and extended family, or any other person caring for a child on an informal basis, constitute parents in the context of education law without any need to hold parental responsibility for the relevant child.

The right to appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability), formerly the SENDIST, is a parental right, as defined by Education Act (s.576,1996). On the face of it, the fact that appeal rights rest with parents appears satisfactory, as appeals in relation to looked after children can be pursued by their carers. However, the system fails to protect children looked after in a residential setting, such as a children’s home, where there is no obvious “parent”. The individual who may come closest to being the child’s parent is a key worker, but he or she will also be the key worker for a number of other children and may have no special relationship with the child concerned. Such an individual may also consider exercising a right of appeal on behalf of a child to be beyond their role. So, who can exercise the right of appeal for such a child?

In theory, their biological parent could appeal. However, many looked after children are estranged from their biological parents and, even if they are not, a biological parent is likely to be reluctant to mount any kind of challenge against the body looking after their child or may simply have no interest in doing so. Another option is that the child’s social worker could pursue an appeal. In the experience of the Children’s Legal Centre (CLC) this rarely happens even where the need to appeal is patently obvious to all concerned. Social workers are naturally averse to challenging the decision of another department within the local authority which has decided, for example, that a child does not require a statutory assessment or a specialist school placement. As a result, looked after children with SEN in residential settings are placed at a substantial disadvantage and are far less likely to have their needs met.

Those who are looked after by local authority foster carers are also disproportionately affected by the fact that rights to appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) rest with parents. The CLC’s experience is that, like social workers, foster carers are often reluctant to appeal decisions of the body which employs them. The solution is to give children a right of appeal in their own right.

In April, the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) published a Consultation on Giving Children and Young People a Right to Appeal.(1) This consultation was issued in response to the concluding observations made by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child on 20th October 2008, which criticised the Government’s implementation of Article 12 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in the context of education.(2)

The proposal contained in the consultation document is that children of a certain age should have their own separate right to appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability). The consultation is seeking views on how feasible this is and what kind of support system would need to be in place to facilitate it. The expectation is that most appeals would still be made by parents and carers, with children only exercising their individual right to appeal if their parent or carer is unable or unwilling to do so.

The DCSF is proposing that child appellants would have to be at least eleven years of age. Placing a restriction on the age at which children can appeal is undesirable, as children’s level of maturity and understanding will vary according to the individual child and the nature of that child’s SEN. Further, for children making the transition to secondary school, local authorities are required to amend their statement of SEN by 15th February in the year they are due to transfer. This allows parents and carers sufficient time to appeal the named school if they are in dispute with the local authority about its suitability. Conveying a right of appeal to children only aged eleven and over will mean that children wishing to challenge transition statements in which their secondary school has been named will potentially be unable to do so. The risk is that these children will end up being placed in schools which are entirely unsuitable for them, as they may not turn eleven in time to lodge an appeal and have the appeal heard before they transfer to their new school. Unless there is substantial evidence that a placement is unsuitable for a child, the Tribunal is likely to seek to maintain the status quo and dismiss the child’s appeal.

The Government’s proposals will only work if an independent body is established to represent child appellants at Tribunal hearings or, in the alternative, if the Legal Services Commission is required to extend public funding to cover representation at the Tribunal in situations where children are appealing independently. At present, no public funding is available for solicitors to represent clients before the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability). The Government cannot expect children to represent themselves before a Tribunal, which, although intended to be informal, is nevertheless a daunting environment.

There are, of course, children who are not looked after whose parents may not wish to appeal decisions relating to their child’s SEN. An extension of the right of appeal to children would also protect the interests of this group.

It is vital that this issue is addressed and the Government’s apparent commitment to reform is welcome. However, if the proposals move forward, the new system will need to be carefully thought out. It is crucial that all steps are taken to ensure that looked after children with SEN are not placed at a disadvantage simply by virtue of being in the care of the local authority.

Further information
Free legal advice on issues of education law is available from the Children’s Legal Centre:

1. The full consultation paper can be accessed at The closing date for responses is 28th July 2009.

2. Article 12 requires States Parties to ensure that children who are capable of forming their own views have the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting them, with their views being given due weight in accordance with their age and maturity. Article 12 also requires States Parties to ensure that children are provided with the opportunity to be heard in any judicial and administrative proceedings affecting them, either directly, or through a representative or an appropriate body, in a manner consistent with the procedural rules of national law.

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How to sell your story with data.

Businesses know decisions should be made with data points. So why is it so hard for people to buy-in when facts and numbers are presented? Data helps establish credibility and changes decisions from being subjective to objective, but far too often, it’s pushed aside.

After working with multiple businesses who have lots to little data, and companies who run on gut-feel or data-driven decision making, the issues stem from how data is being communicated. Sensible Marketer Inc has found there are five ways to help sell ideas better, with how numbers and facts are presented.

How to sell your story with data

1. Interpreting data: from a data table to visual queues

Far too often, people put together a presentation where they copy and paste an excel spreadsheet with columns and rows to present, because they feel all the data points can address the questions people will want to dig into. This may be great for a supporting page at the back of a presentation, or to have handy as a reference guide when those financial, sales, or technical minded people want to get into the details; however, putting them at the front in the main discussion area is overwhelming and you can lose control of the conversation. The presenter has had more time to digest the information, while the audience is trying to quickly come up with a conclusion about what they see in 2 minutes. By interpreting and tidying up the data, an audience can be lead to the same conclusion in seconds from visual charts, graphs, and highlights around which numbers are important. Think of this as how people learn – some people need visual queues to reinforce the story, where a slide with over 30 numbers is hard to digest. Visually, less clutter on the page can help people understand the data quicker. Quick tips here include:

– do the math for your audience – translate year-over-year numbers into growth %

– use colour and shapes to draw the eye to where focus is needed

– reduce clutter by rounding numbers – instead of $129,485.60, round to $129K

When putting a presentation together, if there is a chart of raw numbers, question what’s the story that it’s trying to sell and how can it be illustrated. Take a look at point number 4 if you need ideas.

2. Only show data that relates to the main takeaway

In companies where leaders and employees are starved for data, the temptation is to throw all the data you have into your pitch. The thought of adding data means credibility, and the thought is that the more there is, the better, right? Generally, it’s not the case. As an example, if the main take-away is about a 3-year trend that’s increasing, don’t put 5 years worth of data. It sounds simple enough, but it happens a lot. Always look at what the main point and ask if the data supports that take away strongly or not. When in doubt, it most likely needs to be removed or put on a separate slide of its own if it still feels like an important part of the overall story. Presenting too much data will get people lost in the weeds – it’s an added distraction, and it takes much longer for people to agree to what the presenter wants. Keeping it brief, with details that support that main takeaway can allow people to easily see how conclusions were drawn, rather than trying to figure out how the other data comes into play.

3. Guide audiences to the conclusion – don’t leave it open ended

Once when I was helping a family member write a research paper, I remember highlighting that after all the data and facts she reported, she needs to summarize it right after. Her response was “isn’t it obvious what the conclusion is?” The answer is ‘no.’ Time and time again, this comes up quite often where employees present data, but don’t get to the ‘so what.’ They expect that they’ve presented a strong case, and that the audience should arrive to the same conclusion. The problem here is that not everyone comes from the same reference point, nor have they had the same amount of time to study the matter. When presentations are expected to help reach a consensus within an hour, guiding the audience to the conclusion is the best approach. Whether it’s a kicker box at the bottom of every slide, ensure the question of “so what” has been answered and is written with every piece of data. An example came up when looking at national trends for a company. The data presented showcased 5 years worth of data, across multiple provinces. It was a large table, without summary or highlights. When presented, the team took completely different interpretations, as people were looking at the last 3 years instead of 5, some looking year over year, some looking by province. Too much data causes an audience to have their own ideas, which takes up value time in selling your idea. In many cases, people can’t get through a presentation cause they’re having to get the audience on the same page and address questions, leading to additional follow up and confusion.

4. Choosing the right visual – say ‘no’ to pie

Whenever people put together data, most often they turn it into a pie chart. I love pie, but those who know me know that it hurts my heart when I see those in a presentation. Pie charts are very flat, and don’t show the data in a way that can be easily interpreted. For example, two pie charts would be needed to show a year over year change in distribution of a client base. Visually, I have to continue looking back and fourth to try and figure out where a lot of the changes are. Using a distributed bar graph, or a line graph, or anything other, can help my visually capture quickly the differences at a glance, and see trends easier. A book that was once given to me in my telecommunication days is called “Say It With Charts” by Gene Zelazny. There, you can find multiple types of graphs and visuals, and how they support the story you need to tell. It’s a great reference source. Many of the big consulting firms prohibit the use of pie charts, as it is not a strong way to get a message across. If charts aren’t working, also look to iconography. With infographics becoming popular, icons are available in most programs and are a great way to call out the values that need to be highlighted. Remind yourself of the story you’re trying to tell, and try different visual treatments to help people see the story before reading the numbers.

5. The rule of 80%

In every business I’ve been in, data integrity is always an issue. I personally learned that unless you’re reporting information to the street in financial numbers, there’s no need to be exact in marketing. I had the experience where I was presenting numbers, and trying to present the data as unbiased as possible, I’d share caveats of “but there’s 10% possibility of X…” or “there’s a small chance that the data…” Following that presentation, my VP pulled me aside and told me I needed to stop doing that. I thought I was being very honest and accurate about my data, what she told me was that I was openly encouraging people to question and discredit my data. Many leaders and business people know that data isn’t going to be 100% correct. So If you the data is telling about 80% of the story correctly, there’s no need to share all the other issues that could come into play. It’s good to have those back-pocket should it come up but presenting data requires confidence to help win-over any audience.

What has worked for you? Share your thoughts, questions or tips you may have from your experience on how to present data.

Sensible Marketer Inc is a marketing consulting firm working with startups to enterprises, to better use customer insights in marketing, advertising and decision-making practices. If you need help with your content strategy and development, we’re here to help.

Contact us today for a coffee chat to discuss how we can work together.

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Content and Analysing Competitors

The key to ranking high in Google and other popular search engines weighs heavily on the ability of a business to produce high-quality content that encourages an increase in website traffic. Keywords are an important part of rankings, but the quality and usefulness of the overall content of a professional website is essential to the long term online success of any company. Google Quality Guidelines help dictate how a business should put together informative, engaging content for a website, but finding the right keywords to stay competitive is necessary.

Content and Competition

Every company that wishes to maintain a strong online presence needs to complete an internet search of similar companies in order to get to know the competition. Analysing competitors who are successful is an important step in putting together content for a company website. What are successful competitors doing that your company has not yet tried? What kind of content are these competitors using to draw attention from potential customers?

Finding out how competitors use their content in order to achieve and maintain rankings allows companies to utilise this information to put together their own useful website content. However, it is important to understand that copying a competitor is not recommended. Using the successful techniques of a competitor in a unique way is a valuable tool, but outright copying of these techniques could be detrimental to the success of a business.

Looking at a competitor’s website is just the first step in analysing their techniques and evaluating the content that a competitor chooses to use. Different tools that are used to analyse an individual URL can go beyond the words on a website to determine how the competition really stacks up when it comes to online presence. For example, SEMrush determines how words used by the competition are working for ranking purposes, Open Site Explorer analyses linking of a specific URL and Mutual Mind allows a company to discover how their competitors are using social media to establish a strong online presence.

Learning more about a competitor and their use of SEO allows a company to determine what they need to work on in order to stay ahead of the competition. Weak points in a business can be pinpointed when the success of a competitor is evaluated. Companies can work on bettering their own business when they take the time to learn all that they can about the businesses that are their direct competitors.


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How to turn mentions of your brand into links

Link reclamation is one of the easiest ways to build links as 90% of the hard work is done for you.

The process involves finding mentions of your brand on external websites, reaching out to whoever is responsible for creating the content on that website, and asking them if they can link the mention of your brand to the website.

The process can be broken down into 4 steps

  1. Finding websites that contain mentions of your brand
  2. Qualifying these websites
  3. Finding decision-makers and their email addresses
  4. Reaching out and asking for a link

Let’s go through each of these steps now.

1. Finding websites that contain mentions of your brand

To start with link reclamation you want to find an efficient way of identifying articles that mention your company.

Google is a great place to start with this, but an issue that many come across is that it takes too long to trawl through Google just to find a few opportunities.

This process can be sped up by effective keyword research.

Unlike traditional keyword research, where you are discovering articles people might search to find your product, link reclamation keyword research involves finding keywords that will only be used in reference to your company.

This can vary from company to company, but there are some that are universal to every reclamation campaign. They include:

  • Your brand name (if you have a unique brand name)
  • Your brand name + your CEO
  • The names of any other thought leaders in your company + your brand name
  • Your domain
  • The name of any unique research or other PR activities you have commissioned

So for example, for SEOScout, some effective keywords might be:

Note that all these keywords are wrapped in double quotes (“”) as we want to do an exact match search for them.

Now before we actually make a search, we want to combine the keywords with a negative site operator to filter out any references of our brand on our own site.

Therefore our keywords become

Here is what we see when we make some of these searches:

The ultimate guide to link reclamation: How to turn mentions of your brand into links

All these sites mention SEOScout without actually being SEOScout themselves. We can scrape these results using a SERP Scraper to put all these results in an excel file for qualification.

2. Qualifying websites

The qualification process for link reclamation involves determining whether a site owner will be motivated to link out to you.

We will be sending personalized emails, so good qualification is essential to make this an effective link building technique.

I like to use a five-point checklist to qualify sites for link reclamation. Only if they pass all of these do I add them to my final list.

The checklist is:

  • The website must NOT be built on user-generated content (like social media platforms).
  • The website must NOT already be linking to you (duh).
  • The content must NOT be mentioning your name in a bad light.
  • The content must NOT be a list of companies, none of which are hyperlinked.

So long as it passes all of these you can add the website to your outreach list.

You can also filter out websites in more traditional ways such as on metrics such as traffic and Domain Rating.

3. Finding decision-makers and their email addresses

Generally, the websites that we are looking to claim links from fall into three broad categories. These are:

  1. Newspapers, magazines, and other big media outlets
  2. Websites of businesses
  3. Personal blogs

The decision-maker that we want to reach out to depends on the type of website that we are approaching.

For bigger media outlets, we want the editor, digital editor, or relevant category editor (business editor for example).

Do not bother with reaching out to the article writer as they usually cannot edit a published article.

For websites of businesses, we want someone in the marketing or digital marketing department.

If a business does not have any marketing staff then just reach out to the most senior person you can find (Linkedin works well for this),

Personal blogs are easy to find decision-makers for as there is usually only one person behind the blog.

I could write a whole post about finding email addresses of people, so I am just going to list the main techniques that I use:

  1. Look at contact pages of websites
  2. Look at “about us” pages of websites
  3. Use and double verify by Googling the email address using an exact match search
  4. Look at the social media accounts of the person in question, especially Twitter for journalists
  5. Look at the “about” section of the Facebook page of the target site.

Try to find personal email addresses if you can, your conversion rate will be a lot higher.

If you do your research and qualification properly, you can achieve a 30% conversion rate for outreach with fairly basic templates.

When asking for a link in this way, you should consider a few points when creating your email template:

  1. You should be grateful your company has been mentioned on their website.
  2. Acknowledge that it is a pain in the ass to edit a webpage so make it as easy for them as possible to do so.
  3. Despite the above two points, you are still in your right to ask for a link if someone has written about your company.

So in short your outreach should be polite yet direct, and clear enough to make the adding of a link as easy as possible.

Here is an example template:

Subject: A big thank you and a quick ask…

Hi ,

My name is .

I see that recently you mentioned us in your article about : /link-reclamation.

Firstly thank you for mentioning us, .

I do have one quick request though, can you make your mention of our company click through to our website, please?

The mention of us is on .

Here is our websites URL: .

I know it’s a pain to make this change, but it really helps with our organic visibility, so I would be very grateful if you could.

Always follow up 1-2 times. This increases your conversion rate by around 100%.

Additional tips

Here are a few additional pointers you should know about claiming mentions of your company to build links.

  1. Given the 30% conversion rate, you should only do this if you have a lot of linkless mentions on the internet. You are likely to have this if you are a bigger brand or one that has run successful digital PR campaigns in the past.
  2. If you have a smaller pool of targets, add a screenshot of the mention of your brand to each email. This can significantly increase your conversion rate, but at a time cost.
  3. If you have a huge number of linkless mentions you can use Ahrefs content explorer to automate some of the qualification work. Simply type your keywords into Ahrefs content explorer, click the “highlight unlinked domains” button, and set the domain to your own site. This will filter out articles that already link to you.

The ultimate guide to link reclamation: How to turn mentions of your brand into links

It’s also worth mentioning that the difference in “SEO value” between links and linkless mentions does seem to be shrinking.

Therefore this type of link building should not be your only strategy. It should rather be seen as a source of low hanging fruit for larger companies.

Article by Oli Graham

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8 Tips on How Startup Companies Can Survive the COVID-19 Struggle

Being a startup company means you are still establishing yourself in the business world. With investors constantly looking to buy into potentially successful companies and overall seeking out areas to further the economy, it is surprisingly easy to break into the modern business world for the most part if your idea is viable in a financial, long-term sense.

Unfortunately, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has stalled the industry, leaving little room for new startups to gain footing and causing already existing ones to suffer due to the need for some investors to exercise contract cancellation clauses to protect their assets. It is a difficult time for everyone and a lot of businesses that are well established will not even survive, leaving many smaller startups struggling and scrambling for stability.

As Dan Rosen, Angel Investor Extraordinaire and Photographer, mentioned on a post regarding how startups survive during this pandemic, “Again, any step that cuts you burn early on, will have a lasting impact on the later cash balance and your cash horizon”. There are plenty of things you can do to help yourself weather this storm and come out ready to further your business venture. Let’s explore eight tips for how startup companies can survive the COVID-19 struggle and succeed to continue their business planning and investment relations.

1. Pause and Prepare

This point in our collective history is quite literally any startup’s worst nightmare. The economies are shaken and left bare-rooted, exposing them to potential long-term damage that could impact how we do business even after the COVID-19 pandemic has passed. There are a lot of businesses and startups that will not be able to make it through this, unfortunately. It has nothing to do with how good your idea is or how big of a dream you have; it is simply a harsh truth.

The best thing you can do to ensure your startup’s survival is to be realistic and look at the situation head-on so you can prepare for the potential struggles to come efficiently and effectively. This is not the time to throw out new ideas or try to market your business to tons of investors; right now, your goal is to survive until this is all over and then begin regular operations again as soon as the industry allows for it. Taking protective measures and working to set yourself up for a positive venture in the future will help to ensure you get to have a business to reopen at the end of the pandemic.

You can be hopeful and still dream of what will come once you can manage your business regularly again but right now, in the thick of things, you have to focus on curating a survival plan to ensure you can endure the tragic situations we are in and reopen as soon as possible for investments and other planning ventures. Sit down with your core team and make a strategy to keep you on track and ready to get back to things once it is time. This strategy should include a realistic budget for your company through this hardship and directly after and a plan for reintroducing yourself to the market effectively once it is safe to do so. Having this line-up will ensure you can come back stronger in the end.

2. Funding

Having funding is the key to keeping any business afloat. Even if you are not yet turning an impressive profit, you have to be able to pay your bills and overhead costs if you want to keep your doors open for any significant time. At the end of the day, companies do not die for no reason; they typically die out due to lack of funding or inappropriate crisis budgeting. To prevent this, it is important to curate a full, viable plan to keep the bare minimum costs covered through all of this.

Put a plan in place to help you plan out exactly where all of your money is going. Monitor your cash flow closely to ensure that you are only spending business money on essentials and have cut back on extraneous spending that will only serve to deplete your funding faster. Ideally, you will have good monitoring of your business’s finances in the first place that will make this easier but if not, it is a good idea to begin pulling receipts, bill documentation, and more or less anything else that routinely costs you money to allow you the best possible idea of how much you can expect to spend each month during the COVID crisis and immediately after.

Once you have this image of your potential expenses, it is a good move to have twelve months’ worth of money to cover all of the costs in place to allow you to still pay everything and prevent suddenly running dry and needing to fold the company. Hopefully, this virus will be resolved within a much shorter timeframe but since it could take some time to get back to normal even after the viral issue has been resolved or lessened to the point where businesses can safely resume as normal, so you will need to account for that extra time even if the viral impact is shorter than a year.

Having this funding covered will take a lot of stress off of your core team and allow you to plan your other moves for preservation without worrying about scraping together money or scrambling to cover bills and payments. This makes things easier from a financial and business planning standpoint and in ensuring your staff can handle the transition.

3. Expect Investment Caution

Your investors are going to look out for themselves before anything else. This means that even if your idea is amazing and you have a lot of options and interested investors knocking on your door, you can anticipate a downturn in discussion and planning as investors work to ensure that they can keep themselves maintained and safe through the entire COVID crisis, which impacts them negatively, as well.

During the COVID-19 crisis, there are a lot of good companies that will fizzle out and not get financed. It is important that you do not count on this investment cash flow to ensure that you can keep your own business afloat. You need to plan and budget for the events of this crisis as best you can on your own, as the investors will likely go on an indefinite pause to ensure their assets survive. If all goes well, the funding will go back to normal and you will once again be able to find investors and Angels to assist you in your business venture.

Remember that this investment caution will not go on forever, though, and that you should not lose hope. This will pass and soon you will be able to pitch your idea and get the funding you need; you just have to be patient and make a plan to keep things stable in the meantime.

4. Look at Technology

When you cannot open a physical storefront or otherwise conduct business, as usual, it can be difficult to bring in money, especially to the degree that you are used to earning under the typical business climate. This can be especially difficult for those with manufactured products whose clients typically come into the storefront to purchase items they need.

Fortunately, you can still sell your products if they are shippable or deliverable. The key to this method is moving to an online market. Offering your products for online sales can help you coast through this difficult time while still turning a profit, especially since many people are beginning to spend a little more, thanks to the CARE Act and its stimulus checks.

If you already have an online storefront, try notifying your regular clients of its availability. Contact them personally via phone or through email if possible and let them know that you have openings and availability online for any products, consultations, or other services they may need during this time. As long as you can safely do so, conducting your business online is a great way to keep yourself a little more stable until all of this passes, especially when used in tandem with preparative budgeting and other helpful survival techniques.

Considering alternative product manufacturing or service usage is another great tool that can be marketed online and help cast your business in a better light. If possible, use materials to create things that could be used in the COVID-19 crisis on a larger scale. For example, breweries and distilleries have begun to use their materials to create hand sanitizer which can be sold more quickly right now while providing a beneficial product for those fighting the virus. This also drums up positive public relations and makes your business look more caring and driven to help the community, which will help once the virus is over.

5. Government Help

The government has announced a lot of different ventures to help keep businesses open and people safe during this crisis. This is an unprecedented time and everyone is somewhat uncertain of how to proceed so these different venues of aid have been a welcome and refreshing bit of relief. Do not hesitate to apply for small business grants, low-interest loans, and other things to assist in keeping your business safe for the duration of the virus’s impact. Many options do not require repayment or are deferred until the virus is over with no penalty so you can help yourself by applying as soon as you can.

6. Stay Informed

If you want to stay ahead of what is to come, try keeping yourself as informed as possible during this crisis. There are a lot of different viable sources out there to help ensure you can predict what next steps you may need to take and form a plan to ensure your survival. While nothing can be said conclusively about the duration or impact of this virus on a long-term spectrum, there are plenty of helpful outlooks that have been provided based on previous pandemics and serious economic downturns that can play a very beneficial role in the formulation of your planning and preparation.

Do not rely on just one media source. Try looking at studies, figures, and facts about the virus without political input or sensationalized data. You want the base, core factual evidence to help you make the most informed and potentially correct plan that you can. This will help ensure that you are not forming your survival map on an unstable foundation and provide an overall easier and more potentially successful venture in general.

7. Consider Downsizing

No one wants to downsize their company and it certainly is not a fun thing to have to do but sometimes you simply do not have another viable option to keep your doors open. Downsizing is treated as a bit of a dirty word but it is a tool that can be used to temporarily prevent a company’s folding in times of extreme economic duress.

The survival of your company, at the end of the day, is the most important thing for you to consider. While there will be unhappy employees and less positive aspects of this maneuver, downsizing might save your business in the long run and ensure that you have a property to reopen once all of this is over. Just use downsizing wisely and weigh it against your other options before pulling the trigger.

8. Be Honest

Being honest with yourself, your clients, and your employees is the best thing you can do for yourself right now. There is no use in hiding potential issues and facing them head-on will help keep you out of hot water if things do end up taking a significant downturn. It is okay to say you are not okay and is morally and ethically a good option to save your relationships with those in your business network. Share the good and bad, whatever it is, where it makes sense to do so.

Survival and Stability

The two key things right now are survival and stability. At the end of the day, you want your business to survive this and come out still stable and able to function. Take any and every precaution you can and try to cover your bases to ensure you are going to come out of this terrible economic downturn that has been brought on by the COVID-19 crisis stronger than ever.

Josh McKay
Josh McKay
I write on the foundational concepts of search engine optimization (SEO). Learn the strategy behind great SEO, including keyword planning, content optimization, link building, and SEO for ecommerce, local search, and mobile audiences.
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Showing 3 comments
  • Brett

    Thank you for sharing a very informative article. Yes, I agree that you need to be honest when doing business. That is part of building your reputation. Pandemic or not, we should be good to each other.

  • John

    Great Post! This is one post that I will bookmark. This really helpful for people like me who is just starting.

  • Sharon

    Yes, Definitely startups need funding. If you have a great deal of following online, I would say, there will always be funding no matter what. Of course, always be honest!

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COVID-19 to RecoveryAnalysis with SEMrush


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Ep 185 - Mortal Kombat: Annihilation

April 14th, 2021

1 hr 2 mins 18 secs

Your Hosts

About this Episode

Twice in a generation, a tournament...wait a minute!! I thought it was once in a generation?!

This week, Shinnok is breaking all the rules to bring Mortal Kombat back to the screen for a 2nd round. Join us and a bunch of actors you don't recognize from the first film as we talk Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.

Black Lives Matter
Stop AAPI Hate

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Rated 5 out of 5 stars

How about putting the shortcut key on the options screen as a reminder. Putting it near the bottom of the options tab would be a useful place for it. ;) I keep forgetting the keys and keep having to search for them.Otherwise it's an excellent extension.

Information to BlueBerry938:

It does work like the pictures suggest. You can even watch a video to see how it works. Click the toolbar icon and the available emoticons will show in a sidebar where you can double click them to insert into the text area.

Or type the assigned shortcut into the text area and press the convert key (Ctrl+Shift+F) to replace the shortcut with the image.

It works perfectly and it's an excellent extension.

This user has 2 previous reviews of this add-on.


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Thursday, July 05, 2018

Sleeping Through the Revolution

One day you wake up and find the world has changed around you with seeming abruptness. There are strange faces and familiar ones look on you without recognition. Political opinions that once seemed perfectly mundane and inoffensive now excite outrage from everyone in your village. Finally you start to doubt your own identity--after all, some schools of thought would say your identity is defined by how you fit into society. You've had the Rip Van Winkle experience.

I felt like I had to do something to celebrate American Independence Day yesterday but every idea I thought of felt too depressing. All of the usual things that made me feel good about the U.S. just made me feel sad and slightly filled with dread. I found myself thinking longingly of another BBC Shakespeare production to watch. Maybe that's why I thought of Washington Irving whose collection of stories and essays, The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, serialised from 1819 to 1820, largely consists of Irving's ruminations and daydreams about England. Ironic considering two of its stories, "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", are two of the earliest and most famous examples of American fiction.

Maybe it's natural after such upheaval that someone would stop and ruminate on all that was inevitably lost. That's not exactly what Irving is up to, though.

I read "Rip Van Winkle" again last night and, like much of the rest of the collection, it's the kind of peculiarly effective comedy that comes from a blend of humour and melancholy. One of the funniest and potentially saddest aspects of it is, for as startlingly different as the world is when Van Winkle wakes up, in many ways it really hasn't changed at all.

It was some time before he could get into the regular track of gossip, or could be made to comprehend the strange events that had taken place during his torpor. How that there had been a revolutionary war—that the country had thrown off the yoke of old England—and that, instead of being a subject to his Majesty George the Third, he was now a free citizen of the United States. Rip, in fact, was no politician; the changes of states and empires made but little impression on him . . .

Of course, few things seem to infuriate political people more than people who aren't political--anyway, it seems a solid pretext to get on a soapbox. Poor Rip, when he first tries to make a statement to pacify the assembled people at the inn when he returns home, says;

“Alas! gentlemen,” cried Rip, somewhat dismayed, “I am a poor, quiet man, a native of the place, and a loyal subject of the King, God bless him!”

Here a general shout burst from the bystanders-“a tory! a tory! a spy! a refugee! hustle him! away with him!”

Even asking if anyone recognises the name Rip Van Winkle is no help, it only takes him into dark existential woods:

“Does nobody here know Rip Van Winkle?”

“Oh, Rip Van Winkle!” exclaimed two or three. “Oh, to be sure! that’s Rip Van Winkle yonder, leaning against the tree.”

Rip looked, and beheld a precise counterpart of himself as he went up the mountain; apparently as lazy, and certainly as ragged. The poor fellow was now completely confounded. He doubted his own identity, and whether he was himself or another man. In the midst of his bewilderment, the man in the cocked hat demanded who he was, and what was his name?

“God knows!” exclaimed he at his wit’s end; “I’m not myself—I’m somebody else—that’s me yonder-no—that’s somebody else, got into my shoes—I was myself last night, but I fell asleep on the mountain, and they’ve changed my gun, and everything’s changed, and I’m changed, and I can’t tell what’s my name, or who I am!”

That his now grown son not only has the same name but apparently the same characteristics and occupies the same place in the mind of the public must be bewildering. Both Rips are described as having a reputation for laziness though Rip Sr. "would never refuse to assist a neighbour even in the roughest toil, and was a foremost man in all country frolics for husking Indian corn, or building stone fences; the women of the village, too, used to employ him to run their errands, and to do such little odd jobs as their less obliging husbands would not do for them."

We're told Rip's chief trouble in life is his wife who endlessly upbraids him for his contented idleness. Irving's attitudes about women, displayed more fully in a preceding essay in the collection called "The Wife", are not misogynist but certainly influenced by a sentimentality typical of the 19th century. But certainly it's not impossible to suppose a man like Rip had a wife who was a bit brutal to him. She personifies the counterargument to one Irving is making for most of the collection--an argument for the usefulness of the useless. This is a distinguishing feature of the protagonists for both "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"--both feature protagonists whose occupation or lifestyle meet with disdain by the community. In many of the essays, Irving waxes eloquent on Falstaff, who is arguably the prototype for his protagonists--a useless, in many ways bad man who nonetheless inspires love in the audience and in other characters. He's arguably the original Homer Simpson.

Many re-evaluations of old works to-day tend to focus on the privilege of their authors and certainly that would be true in Irving's case. Though The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon was written at a time when Irving was contemplating the impeding loss of his family wealth due to his brother's poor business decisions. Irving's depression at the change in his lifestyle is evident in many of the stories and essays, especially the mostly melancholy vignette "The Voyage" that describes his journey over sea to England. On his arrival, "I had no friend to meet, no cheering to receive. I stepped upon the land of my forefathers—but felt that I was a stranger in the land." Not unlike Rip Van Winkle returning to his home town.

But the point of Irving's argument throughout the book is not that a privileged few deserve comfort and the freedom of idle contemplation but that it should be available to all. This is the point of his idolisation of European inn culture, of his search for the original Boar's Head of Falstaff. A place where everyone from Princes to footsoldiers could take their ease, be fed, and engage in discourse sometimes ridiculous, sometimes angry, but always with a basic sense of fellowship.

So it makes sense that Rip's supernatural slumber occurs after playing Nine Pins with a supernatural crew wearing the anachronistic, 17th clothes of the original Dutch settlers--who yet somehow know him by name. As though Rip has glimpsed some great continuous community of Irving's beloved inn culture.

The illustrations in this post are by Gordon Ross from my copy of a 1939 edition of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon.

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Real Estate Investing

Real Estate Investing

It’s another new year, 2019!

After all the hullabaloo the reality of the New Year quickly sets in. Usually, there’s a tendency to overestimate what you can do in a year financially and underestimate what you can do in a month. With the current turn of events in the economy coupled with the unpredictable political situation; there’s heavy speculation about everything. Here are six things to do before making investment decisions in 2019.

Also read: How The 2019 Elections Affects Your Real Estate Investment At Ibeju-Lekki

1. Draw a personal financial road-map

One of the primary reasons why most goals fail is the lack of tactical planning. Before making any investment decision, critically analyse your financial capacity. Decide the results you would want to see in the future and state exactly what you must do to achieve your written goals. That’s right, make sure you write your target figure.

Next, draft a financial road-map and identify your risk tolerance level. Most investment opportunities offer you a chance to either generate profits or risk a loss. However, there are certain investment ventures that are less risky – this is where you should focus on. Get your facts down and follow through on your road-map.

2. Evaluate your capacity in taking on risk

All investments involve some degree of risk. Investments like purchasing securities like stocks, bonds, or mutual funds entail a greater amount of risk. You could lose some or all your money and in the same way, you could gain a whole lot of money. On the other hand, the risk of investing in real estate is relatively lower and the turn over takes a longer time period. However, real-estate investments serves as an ideal long-term investment that can yield sustainable profits.

Read more: Why Real Estate is The Safest Investment Option In Nigeria

3. Create and maintain an emergency fund.

Life is highly unpredictable. While is optimistic to hope for the best, it’s wise to have a contingency plan. Always put money aside to cover emergencies like a sudden illness, family issues, unemployment and any other issues that might arise.

4. Diversify your investment portfolio

The ideal way to go about investing is to diversify your investments into short-term and long-term investments. Each category has its advantages and disadvantages. For instance, investing solely in the money market is appropriate for short-term financial goals, but the main concern here is the risk of inflation. Meanwhile, long-term investments offer a substantial way to secure retirement funds, while achieving your long term financial goals. You can hardly go wrong investing in real estate especially in Lagos state. The key to investing in real estate is to ensure factors like the location of the property, the title of the property, growth potential and zonal laws are taken into consideration.

5. Stick with Your Plan

Rule of thumb: always Buy Low and Sell High. The number one goal for investing is always to make a profit. Ensure you shift your money to the most profitable ventures. It’s important to do your research and determine which venture is profitable. Evaluate your investment portfolio regularly and identify which ventures are more profitable. Many financial experts recommend evaluating your investment ventures every six or twelve months.

6. Avoid circumstances that can lead to fraud

Scam artists follow the headlines too. That’s how they know how to trick you. Avoid quick money schemes (Ponzi schemes) and business deals that seem fraudulent. Don’t be easily cajoled by highly publicized potential investors and “opportunities” that may sound legitimate. Ask questions. Take out time to carry out your research and seek answers from unbiased sources before investing.

7. Save more to invest more

To invest more, you need to save more. Saving more entails cutting back on unnecessary spending. it’s critical to consider the volatility of the economy in making your investment decisions.

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Get the best land for sale deals in Lagos. Call us today on 0908123456409095757575. or send us an email at and we’ll give you the real estate investment of a lifetime. If you aren’t looking to invest in real estate, I’m sure you know someone who’s interested. Pass this information on!

You can also chat with us on WhatsApp: 09095757575 09081234564

Enjoy this blog? Please spread the word :)


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The best sewing machine thread

You can bet that it is one of two things when you face trouble with your sewing machine: a needle or a thread. You know all the eye openings until you go through the needle when you thread a sewing machine beforehand.

This means your thread must be ready for the journey, but it also means that it touches a lot of your computer, and if your thread does not do its job well, there is plenty of space for error. One thing that really messes with the voltage discs is a loose fibre thread.

If you have a microscope (hey, some people take a look at the various threads in your sewing basket. You have to do so. Are you looking for a piece of stray hair on the side? Now imagine the thread that passes through your sewing machine and the new project fabric.

These loose fibres can be left behind in your system, rub your equipment like nobody’s business, and after they go they’ll leave behind a thinner, weaker thread. Many of the thread spools you feel like taking off the bins are hairy and loose even if you can not tell it with your naked eye (but typically you can).

You don’t want to be close-wound in all your lives, but that’s just what you want when we talk about the thread. It’s worth it in the long run if it means paying out a little extra cash. You can find various quality levels, from thread to thread, whether you are using cotton, silk or polyester threads. Go for good things. Go for good things.

Select the right sewing thread for the job

Thread Rolls

Now that (hopefully) I persuade you and your sewing machine that you and your company deserve the most, let’s discuss what kind of “most” you need for your project.

It is not normal for anyone to talk about weight, but you have to get personalised when it comes to thread. The thread is a number, like wool, and usually, the thicker the thread is the smaller the number. Often those numbers come to you in part, but don’t freak out – it doesn’t require any serious math.

The top number is the weight of the film, and the bottom indicates how many strands are spun. For instance, a 40/3 thread weighs 40, which is spun 3 strands for power. See you’ve learned it already.

Now let’s talk about the details of the thread

Giving Thread Quilting:

Do not be mistaken (because I certainly have been there.) This thread has a special cover that make hand sewing more convenient without the aid of a thread conditioner (never heard of a thread conditioner? This thread is great stuff for hand sewing. Click here for my favourite mark!). You can also see that the thread is labelled specifically for “quilting,” which means “hand quilting.”

believe me, you don’t want to use this waxed thread in your sewing machine – your machine will probably stop grinding, and the remaining wax will cover your gear, and you’ll hear CLUNK CLUNK noise.

During the hand quilting I hit the thread No. 8 for the DMC Pearl Cotton. Additional hand sewing brands and thread sizes are around 30wt. All would be too tiny and delicate than that and your stitches. You’ll also be quickly knotted and broken into the thread.

All-Purpose Piecing and Quilting Thread

For machine cutting and sewing, 40wt and up to 50wt are the favourite threads. If you want to think less about your thread and more about your pretty stash, buy 40wt for yourself. Thread and use it for any need you need to quilt. You’re going to be okay.

Thread Applied

You should stick to the classic 40wt, as I said earlier. Be happy and thread. Thread. But if you want the stitches to be as discreet as possible, consider 60wt. If you’ll stitch the appliqué bits. – 80wt. – 80wt. You might be in danger of a split, but for quilt, bit, application and broding, you can use 60 wt thread.

Cotton versus Polyester versus Silk – When

These three types of thread vary greatly, so that you can have all three at hand, depending on what sewing you want.

  • Cotton Thread is both soft and strong. The lack of stretch in a cotton thread makes it ideal for quilting projects because it won’t lose its shape. Cotton also holds up under heat better than polyester thread, so if you’re a speed quilter who puts the pedal to the metal, cotton will hold up under the heat of fast friction.
  • Polyester Thread has a little bit of stretch to it, so if you are planning to wear what you’re sewing, use polyester or nylon thread. Also, one major perk about the poly thread is that it sheds less lint than cotton.
  • Pure Silk Thread is really pretty and really durable. Although it comes in a variety of weights, it’s very fine and elastic, so it’s great for things that are just as pretty as it is: like lingerie.

And Now… the Best Quality Sewing Thread According to Moi

Aurifil: Aurifil is certainly one of the favourites with the exciting collaborations of designers who send us beautiful colour collections. This Italian Thread looks a little more fragile than the other ones I list, so before choosing between 50wt you may want to cut it a little. And 40wt. And 40wt. For your piecing. – For your piecing.
Back to the basics with a few common colours, a smooth, silk finish with its 100% cotton thread.

Mettler: This thread is renowned for its long, staples (therefore they are spun off from the mega-long strands of cotton) or tries the pure silk thread with the highest quality for a special project.

Gütermann: This is another brand that I know I can count on to walk without breaking down. Go with this polyester spool or stick your durable cheap cotton to low lint levels.

Coats & Clark: Many sewing crafters won’t visit their local Joann Fabrics but a “bonafide quilt store – and that is perfect because you will have great access to Joann’s even if you just have access to it. Coats & Clark: Come in with Clark and Coats. You probably heard of Coats & Clark, if you heard about the thread. I really like C & C because it’s inexpensive and the color I want can always be found.

I hope that this blog can help to detangle the big, often confusing thread universe. What are your favorites now that you know my go-to brands? Comment below!

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Sport premium

Primary P.E. and Sport Premium

The government has committed funding of £150 million, each year, until 2020, to be invested in Primary Schools throughout the UK. The aim is to improve the quality and breadth of P.E. and sport provision whilst increasing the participation and enjoyment of all pupils in P.E. and sport; the funding is ‘ring-fenced’ and can therefore only be spent on achieving these goals.

P.E. and Physical Activity Policy

Physical Activity Policy
Updated: 16/03/2020 418 KB
P.E. Policy
Updated: 16/03/2020 208 KB


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About Us

Shahroz Sports has been the leader of innovation and quality in manufacturing Custom Team Uniforms, Gym Apparel and Fitness Gear. We provide unique services, products and meet more than customers expectations. But commitment to the game goes beyond what we provide.

We never lose sight of our vision to make people feel good, through the products and the service we provide every day. We are dedicated to provide Total Customer Service.

Shahroz Sports manufactures fine quality Sportswear, Casual Wear , Gym Apparel as well as team uniforms including Hockey, Lacrosse, Football, Basketball, Volleyball, Rugby and Baseball.

  • The mission of the FAC is to be a leader in designing, developing, innovating & manufacturing the high-quality Sports Apparel and Gym Apparel for the complete satisfaction of the demands of world customers.
  • Meet or exceed our customers’ expectations for quality, design, durability, functionality and Value.
  • Efficient R&D team strive to be recognized as a successful market-leading international manufacturing company producing the best quality products in the market.
  • Focus on sustained profitability to ensure the Company’s and its employees’ future growth and Development.

We are using different Kind Of fabric such as Imported/Local Fabric, Knitted/Woven, Mix Cotton/polyester polyester/Cotton, Coated/Uncoated and special fabric on demand of our customers.

We always employ skilled worker Who are continuity engaged in producing high quality products for our customer satisfaction to maintain the standard from raw material to final products with latest machines and equipment so this is the reason we are working with famous brand in whole Europe.

Who is the KING and who eventually help pay the bill at he end of the day. If the company can keep her customer happy, all thing will go perfect as the all thing run around customer in the capital society.

Sales Dept
Shahroz Sports


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Fonseca: We should think only about winning

Saturday, August 6, 2016

Shakhtar head coach reflects on the Europa League draw

- We are not well familiar with Istanbul Basaksehir yet, but we already have some information. We know that they did farely well in the Turkish league. The opponents have a few players who we know very well. In particular, Mossoro spent many years in Portugal. Istanbul Basaksehir made it past the strong opponents Rijeka. Therefore, it is necessary to understand that the matches against them will not be easy. Turkish football, at the end of the day, is not easy. We still have time to scrutinise the opponents.

- Did you encounter any Turkish teams in your career?
- Yes. Last season, with we made it past Fenerbahce with Braga. Matches in Turkey are always tough, given the atmosphere in the stadium and pressure. The team like Shakhtar must always think only about winning, at the same time respecting our opponents.