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Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
Last week's hike along the ridge above the Secret Canyon trail was very pleasant and far surpassed my expectation. No sooner was I home than I was thinking about the rock dome I'd seen from that ridge. After consulting my map, I discovered that the ravine above the dome is the eponymous Secret Canyon, possibly even the source of an earlier Secret Canyon trail. I checked the surrounding landscape on google earth. The southern facing slope of the Secret Canyon ravine looked hikeable and I so I'd hike it.
Thursday I arrived at an empty parking lot. It was about 9 am. I got my things together and headed down Espinosa trail with a feeling of exuberance. It had been months and months since I'd hiked something entirely new, and not just new - intriguing, mysterious.
Pine Creek was all mine; not another soul anywhere. I'd just gotten on the Secret Canyon trail when I met my first snake - practically tripped over it stretched out across the trail. My eye darted to its tail; no rattle. So what snake was this? Its small, shiny scales were grey and patternless, its body was thick and it had a rather narrow head. It was clearly aware of me and, tongue darting, double around and languidly slid up and around a rock beside the trail. I stepped to the other side and went on. The next three miles passed quickly and soon I was eying the slope of the Secret Canyon ravine, looking for a route up. My first thought was to go further along the trail, since it rose to meet the ridge, to see if there were any user trails. As I hiked along, though, I could see that the brush on the foot of the ridge was getting denser the farther north I went. I turned around and went back to where the trail crossed the dry creek. There was still no sign of an obvious way so I shambled into the undergrowth. It turned out not to be too bad and within a few minutes I'd gotten out of the creek bed and was up onto the southern slope where the chaparral became lower and thinner. Rather than follow the creek I headed up, assuming that I'd find some sort of track along the spine of the ridge. The first outcrop of boulders, not more than 20 yards from the trail below, showed signs of having been used by migrants as a camp area. In fact, when I got around to the east side of the rocks I found a sort of cave affair. I was tempted to climb in, since there was a little ledge at the back that I was curious about, but I noticed there were rocks at the top of the crevice and I was concerned they might tumble in, so I just took a picture. I surmounted the outcrop and started my hike up the ridge. The southern facing slope below me was dry and rocky but along the crest there was a mix of laurel sumac, manzanitas, many of which had been chopped back, and chaparral. Though there was no trail, it was obvious that the ridge had always been a natural connector between the highlands above and Pine Creek below. I kept weaving my way up, sometimes dropping down a bit on along the slope, sometimes meandering among the manzanitas. All along the way there were rock spines and I kept my eyes peeled and ears perked. I was about half way up the ridge, and had just cleared a set of boulders and was about to go around another when I heard a sound like a muffled drill. I stopped and looked around my feet. I was standing on a small slab of rock about two foot square. No snakes visible. Then I saw some movement under a low rock overhang three feet away. I stood quietly and the rattling stopped. I could see three or four inches of the rattlesnake's back moving like a brown disk spinning beneath the rock. I turned and found a different way to go.
On my right, across the ravine, the rock dome was getting closer. I decided the best access to the dome would be from above rather than from below in the ravine where there thick brush and trees crowded around its base. As the ridge rose it got steeper and the ravine below deeper. I was about to climb through another spine of cracked boulders the color of dark chocolate when I noticed something unexpected. In the dirt at the foot of these rocks was a rusted, well-worn horse shoe. A nail poked from it like a single tooth. The find seemed to confirm that at some time there had been a trail along this ridge. I climbed up through the rocks. The ridge was now rising to meet the peak above. To my right a ledge of white rock cut laterally across the face of the looming hill. I made my over to the ledge and started hiking along it. This brought me above and around the backside of the dome. Unfortunately, up close the ledge turned out to be more weathered and eroded than it looked from a distance and I was forced to hike up above it. I was not along in this choice. A robust deer trail rose from the ledge and made its way across to the southern corner of the hill, just below a scarp mid-way up the slope. From here I could now see upper Secret Canyon, which lay hidden behind the hill. In fact there were two ravines that converged just below the scarp. One came straight down while the other curved around the eastern side of the hill and continued on to drain two further peaks to the north. I decided to stick with my original plan and go as far as I could along the ridge, now heading north. I climbed to the top of the hill and then hiked along another couple of hundred yards. From there, the ridge line dipped down again and then climbed up to another somewhat higher peak. However in the intervening dip the brush was fairly dense and green. I was sure I could make it out to the next peak but it would be a lot of work. Instead I decided to go back to where the upper ravines met and explore the dome.
Soon I was back at the scarp. From here looking east I could see the back side of Corte Madera. On the far side of the first ravine, the one that came straight down from above, there were several open grassy areas and I suspected these could be Indian camping spots. I scanned the ravine, looking for a reasonable way to cross but couldn't see one. I then turned my gaze to the dome just below me. The approach looked straight forward although there was a formidable manzanita grove at the near end. In a couple of minutes I was standing at the edge of the grove. There was no obvious path skirting the grove so I had to just jump in. The manzanitas were well over my head and once in the bushes I made pretty good headway. At times it was a bit like climbing through a jungle-jim, but there was very little undergrowth and the manzanitas were reasonably spread out. It might have taken me 15 minutes to cross beneath the 20 yards of canopy. When I finally pushed through the last branches, I was a couple feet from a ring of rocks, possibly left there by hunters. I wandered around the dome, whose surface was crisscrossed by large cracks. There were many interesting things there. I was getting ready to leave and had just come around the far side of a large oak bush growing from one of the cracks when I noticed something poking out of the pile of leaves beneath it. I crawled to it; a large pestle protruded from the duff. I cleared away the leaves and uncovered a deep mortar. Finding the pestle propped in the mortar, as if its user was called away and never returned, gave me an eerie, melancholy feeling.
I elbowed my way through the mazanita braches and back under the grove's canopy. I took a little more time now as I climbed through the bushes, looking around and enjoying the grove. Though I hadn't planned it, I emerged at virtually the same spot I'd first entered. I headed for the slope of the hill and then for the white ledge. I undershot it and had to scramble up twenty yards; it was gratifying when I found the deer trail I'd followed earlier. Soon I was descending the ridge, often stepping in my own foot prints. After an hour or so I was back down to the Secret Canyon trail and started heading south. Now that I was down in the canyon I realized how low the sun was. When I got on a fairly even part of the trail I started, for lack of a better term, loping or trotting - a kind of walk/run with my knees bent, my shoulders squared, and my arms kept down at my sides. This gliding stride was much faster than walking and I could do it without breathing hard. Keeping my arms down and shoulders squared prevented the pack from bouncing back and forth. I was able to keep this up for nearly half the five miles back. When I arrived at the car the sun had already descended behind the Alpine hills. It was 7 pm; a ten hour hike.
Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
Less than meets the eye.
You'd think disappointed expectation and resentment at having been imposed upon would dissuade people from buying this product more than once. Certainly it has that effect on me. Yet countless products which use the same ruse to give us less than we think we're getting, seem to generate repeat orders and enjoy healthy sales. So perhaps we've only ourselves to blame, for allowing ourselves to be made fools of.
The main selling tool here is exploitation of neurosis. The "organic" aspect of the product preys upon anxieties about health, or, properly understood, about fear of death ...this during an age in which almost everyone lives to advanced years in good health. The "fairtrade" business exploits guilt about exploitation of fashionably "ethnic" peoples. It's the oldest trick in the book; first get people worried, then sell them the means of allaying their fear.
It could be argued ...and is indeed argued here and now by me... that the modern "healthy living" fetish was deliberately promoted as a means of selling things to impressionable people. I once worked in a warehouse where hundreds of yards of shelving contained "lite", "lo-cal" and "diet" drinks, not to mention ...this'll make you laugh... bottled water which is less pure than the stuff that comes out of the tap virtually free. None of these products had existed twenty years before ...it was all additional consumption.
Advertising and marketing are the Devil's work. In our age they attract some of the very best, most intelligent people. Those who are most successful at their diabolical craft, that is to say those who deceive us most effectively, are admired for their creativity, innovativeness &c. Makes me glad to live in the 21st century.
Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
Photo by Erin Jenkins of the exhibit "Renate Aller: The Space Between Memory and Expectation" on view at Brattleboro Museum & Art Center October 22, 2022 - February 12, 2023. www.brattleboromuseum.org
My best Friend;))
Part II...I think rest of the series will be only for her..and her Family..:))
Have a nice weekend!
The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV (A22) was a heavy British infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple bogies, and its use as the basis of many specialist vehicles. It was one of the heaviest Allied tanks of the war.
The origins of the design lay in the expectation that war in Europe might be fought under similar conditions to that of the First World War and emphasized ability to cross difficult ground. The Churchill was rushed into production in order to build up British defences against a possible German invasion and the first vehicles built had flaws that had to be overcome before the Churchill was accepted for wide use. After several Marks had been built a better armoured version - the Mark VII - entered service.
The Churchill was used by British and Commonwealth in North Africa, Italy and North-West Europe. In addition many were supplied to the USSR and used on the Eastern Front.
The hull was made up of simple flat plates which were initially bolted together and were welded in later models. The hull was split into four compartments: the driver's position at the front, then the fighting compartment including the turret, the engine compartment, and the gearbox compartment. The suspension was fitted under the two large "panniers" on either side of the hull, the track running over the top. There were eleven bogies either side, each carrying two 10-inch wheels. Only nine of the bogies were taking the vehicle weight normally, the front coming into play when the vehicle nosed into the ground or against an obstacle, the rear acting in part as a track tensioner. Due to the number of wheels, the tank could survive losing several without much in the way of adverse effects as well as traversing steeper terrain obstacles. As the tracks ran around the panniers, escape hatches in the side could be incorporated into the design. These were retained throughout the revisions of the Churchill and were of particular use when the Churchill was adopted as the AVRE.
The Bedford Vehicles engine was effectively two engines in horizontally opposed configuration ("flat twelve") on a common crankshaft. There were four Solex carburettors each on a separate manifold that fed three cylinders formed as a single cylinder head. The elements of the engine and ancillary components were laid out so they could be reached for maintenance through the engine deck covers. Air for the engine was drawn from the fighting compartment through air cleaners. Cooling air was drawn into the engine compartment through louvres on the sides, across the radiators and through the engine compartment by a fan driven by the clutch. This fan blew the air over the gearbox and out the rear of the hull. By opening a flap between the fighting compartment and the engine compartment this airflow could be used to remove fumes produced by firing the armament. The 1,296 cubic inch capacity engine was rated at 350 bhp at 2,000 rpm delivering 960 lb·ft (1,300 N·m) over an engine speed range from 800 to 1,600 rpm.
The gearbox featured a regenerative steering system that was controlled by a tiller bar instead of the more commonplace brake levers or a steering wheel. The tiller was connected with servo assistance, hydraulically to the steering brakes. The Churchill was also the first tank to utilise the Merritt-Brown gearbox, which allowed the tank to be steered by changing the relative speeds of the two tracks; this effect became more pronounced with each lower gear, ultimately allowing the tank to perform a "neutral turn" when no gear was engaged where it could fully turn on its own axis. There were final reduction gears, of the planetary type, in the driving wheels.
The first turrets were of cast construction and were rounded in shape, providing sufficient space to accommodate the relatively small 2 pounder gun. To fulfil its role as an infantry support vehicle the first models were equipped with a 3 inch howitzer in the hull in a layout very similar to the French Char B. This enabled the tank to deliver a useful high-explosive capability while retaining the antitank capabilities of the 2 pounder. However, like other multi-gun tanks, it was limited by a poor fire arc - the entire tank had to be turned to change the aim of the hull gun. The Mk II dispensed with the howitzer and replaced it with a bow machine gun and on the Mk III, the 2 pounder was replaced with the 6 pounder, significantly increasing the tank's anti-tank capabilities. The tank underwent field modification in North Africa with several Churchills being fitted with the 75 mm gun of destroyed M4 Shermans. These "NA75" variants were used in Italy. The use of the 75 mm, which was inferior as an anti-tank weapon to the 6 pounder but better as an all-around gun was soon made standard on successive versions.
Churchills made use of the Vickers Tank Periscope MK.IV. In the Mark VII, the driver had two periscopes as well as a vision port in the hull front that could be opened. The hull gunner had a single periscope as well as the sighting telescope on the BESA mounting. In the turret the gunner and loader each had single periscope and the commander had two fitted in his hatch cupola.
The armour on the Churchill, often considered its most important feature, was originally specified to a minimum of 16 millimetres (0.63 in) and a maximum of 102 millimetres (4.0 in); this was increased with the Mk VII to a range from 25 millimetres (0.98 in) to 152 millimetres (6.0 in). Though this armour was considerably thicker than its rivals (including the German Tiger I tank, but not the Tiger II) it was not sloped, reducing its effectiveness. Earlier models were given extra armour by the expedient of welding extra plates on.
On the Mark VII, the hull front armour was made up of a lower angled piece of 5.5 in (140 mm), a nearly flat 2.25 in (57 mm) plate and a vertical 6 inch plate. The hull sides, were for the most part, 3.75 in (95 mm). The rear was 2 in (51 mm) and the hull top 0.525 in (13.3 mm). The turret of the Mark VII was 6 in (150 mm) to the front and 3.75 in (95 mm) for the other sides. The turret roof was 0.79 (20 mm) thick. Plate was specified as IT 80, the cast sections as IT 90.
The A22F, also known as "Heavy Churchill" was a major revision of the design. The most significant part was the use of welding instead of riveted construction. Welding had been considered earlier for the Churchill but until its future was assured this was no more than testing techniques and hulls at the firing ranges. What welding reduced in the overall weight (estimates were around 4%), the thicker armour of the A22F made up for. Welding also required fewer man-hours in construction. The hull doors changed from square to round which reduced stresses. A new turret went with the new hull. The sides, which included a flared base to protect the turret ring, were a single casting while the roof which did not need to be so thick was a plate fitted to the top.
Since the engines on the Churchill were never upgraded, the tank became increasingly slower as additional armour and armament was equipped and weight increased; while the Mk I weighed 39,118 kg (40 long tons) and the Mk III weighed 39,626 kg, the Mk VII weighed 40,643 kg. This caused a reduction in maximum speed of the tank from its original 26 kilometres per hour (16 mph) down to 20.5 kilometres per hour (12.7 mph). The engines also suffered from many mechanical problems.
Another problem was the tank's relatively small turret that prevented the use of powerful weapons; definitive versions of the tank were armed with either the QF 6 pounder or the derivative QF 75 mm gun, both having reasonable powers against armoured and soft targets respectively but with limited performance against the other. Although earlier Churchills could outgun many contemporary German medium tanks, like the Panzer IV with the short-barrel 75 mm gun and the Panzer III's 50 mm gun, with its 6 pounder, and the thick armour of all Churchill models could usually withstand several hits from any German anti-tank gun, in late war Germans had 75 mm high-velocity cannons as their main armament and increased protection, against which the Churchills' own guns often lacked sufficient armour penetration to fight back effectively.
The Churchill had many variations, including many specialised modifications. The most significant change to the Churchill was that it was up-gunned from 2 pounder to 6 pounder and then 75 mm guns over the course of the war. By the war's end, the late model Churchill Mk VII had exceptional amounts of armour - considerably more than the German Tiger tank. However, the firepower weakness was never fully addressed. The Mark VII turret that was designed for the 75 mm gun was of composite construction - cast with top and bottom plates welded into position.
It is important to note that, despite its weaknesses, the Churchill had a significant advantage that was apparent throughout its career. Due to its multiple bogie suspension, it could cross terrain obstacles that most other tanks of its era could not. This feat served well, especially during the fighting in Normandy particularly the capture of Hill 309 between the 30 and 31 July 1944 in operation Bluecoat conducted by VIII Corps
(Text Wikipedia)
The plaque reads in Dutch:
Monotoon maar vol beloften
Klonk de zang der luchtvloot in het oor
Bracht, hunkerend naar onze vrijheid,
Ronkend nieuwe hoop daarvoor
Jac van Someren, 2006
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Translated to English:
Monotonous but full of promises
Sounded the singing of the air fleet
Brought, hankering for our freedom
Throbbing new hope for that
Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
.... in expectation of the arrival of float of St. Agatha ....
.... in l'attesa dell'arrivo della vara di Sant'Agata ....
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Fear of the unknown, the fear of losing own physical or mental health, or worse, having already lost it, possible problems with work (if a work has it), old age advancing, awareness of the existence of a Higher Being, are just some of the reasons that push people to search for a contact with the Divine, with the supernatural, leading them to plead for help, but this is not enough to completely explain the close link fact of absolute devotion and enormous affection that the people of Catania (province) have towards their young martyr Agatha; an entire city partecipate in these days to ceremony and procession, one can not help but ask this question, what binds in such a profound and peculiar citizens to their Patron Saint Agata? Maybe I was lucky enough to capture photographically what is a partial response: a child at a very early age is brought to the window from her mother while passing the float of St. Agatha, so it's easy to understand... the devotion and attachment to the Martyr starts very young , transmitted by their parents as a treasure to be preserved and grow throughout their lives, which leads you in the days of the feast to a great collective.
This is a short-long report I did this year 2016, in the city of Catania (Sicily) in occasion of the feast of her patron saint Agatha, which took place on the 3, 4 and 5 February (this dates commemorates the martyrdom of the young Saint), and on 17 August too (this date celebrates the return to Catania of her remains, after these had been transferred to Constantinople by the Byzantine general Maniaces as war booty, and there remained for 86 years), when the Sicilian city is dressed up to feast, with a scent of orange blossom and mandarins, and its citizens show that they possess an extraordinary love and bond with the young martyr saint Agatha.
The religious sicilian feast of Saint Agatha is the most important feast of Catania, its inhabitants from five centuries, during the three days of the feast in honor of her "Santuzza" (young Saint), create a unique setting, with celebrations and rituals impressive, which means that this event is regarded as the third religious festival in the world (some say the second ...) after the "Semana Santa" in Seville and the "Corpus Christi" in Cuzco, Peru. Unlike other religious holidays, more sober, to Sant'Agata highlights a vocation exuberant typical of the south Italy, who loves to combine the sacred with the profane.
The cult of the young Santa dates back to the third century, when the teenager Agatha was martyred for refusing the roman proconsul Quintiziano. One year after the death of the young Agatha, on 5 February of the year 252, his virginal veil was carried in procession, and it is said it was able to save Catania from destruction due to a devastating eruption of Mount Etna.
The festivities begin with the procession of Candlemas (this year were in greater number, perhaps 14 instead of the 11 years of the other years); the "Candlemas" are giant Baroque wooden "candlesticks" paintings in gold, each representing an ancient guild (butchers, fishmongers, grocers, greengrocers, etc.), which are brought by eight devotees; the "cannalore" (candlemas) anticipate the arrival of the "float" of Saint Agatha during the procession. Devotees, men and women, wearing a traditional garment similar to a white bag, cinched at the waist by a black rope, gloves and a white handkerchief, and a black velvet cap, and it seems that such clothing evoke nightgown with the qule the Catanese, awakened with a start by the touch of the bells of the Cathedral, welcomed the naval port, in 1126, the relics of the Holy which fell from Constantinople. On float, consisting of a silver chariot sixteenth of thirty tons, which is driven by a double and long line of devotees with the robust and long ropes, takes place the bust of Saint Agatha, completely covered with precious stones and jewels. On February 4, the parade celebrates the so-called "external path" that touches some places of martyrdom in the city of Catania; the next day, the 5 instead the procession along the "aristocrat path", which runs along the main street, Via Etnea, the parlor of Catania. On this day the devotees carry on their shoulders the long candles of varying thickness, there are some not very big, others are fairly heavy, but some skim exceptional weights.
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La paura dell’ignoto, il timore di perdere la salute fisica o psichica, o peggio, averla già persa, possibili problemi col lavoro (per chi un lavora l’ha) o peggio non averlo dovendo così “inventarsi” la giornata, la vecchiaia che avanza, la consapevolezza dell’esistenza di un Essere Superiore, sono solo alcuni dei motivi che spingono gli uomini a cercare un contatto col Divino, col Sovrannaturale, portandoli ad invocare il Suo aiuto, ma tutto ciò non basta assolutamente a spiegare lo stretto legame fatto di assoluta devozione ed enorme attaccamento che gli abitanti di Catania (e provincia) hanno nei confronti della loro “Santuzza” la giovanissima martire Agata; nel vedere partecipare quella che sembra essere una città intera a questi giorni di rito e processione, non ci si può non porre questa domanda, cosa lega in maniera così profonda e peculiare i cittadini Catanesi alla loro Santa Patrona Agata? Forse ho avuto la fortuna di cogliere fotograficamente quella che è una risposta parziale e certamente non unica alla domanda: un bimbo in tenerissima età viene portato alla finestra dalla sua mamma mentre passa la vara di S.Agata, ecco… la devozione e l’attaccamento alla giovanissima Martire inizia da piccolissimi, trasmessa dai propri genitori (e non solo…) come un tesoro da custodire e coltivare per tutta la vita, che porta che nei giorni della festa ad un fantastico rito collettivo al quale nessun Catanese sembra non possa o non voglia rinunciare.
Questa è un breve e lungo report, da me realizzato nel febbraio di quest’anno 2015, nella città di Catania (Sicilia) in occasione della festa della sua giovane santa patrona Agata, che ha avuto luogo come ogni anno il 3, il 4 ed il 5 di febbraio (questa data commemora il martirio della Santa giovinetta), festa che viene ripetuta anche il 17 agosto (questa data rievoca il ritorno a Catania delle sue spoglie, dopo che queste erano state trasferite a Costantinopoli da parte del generale bizantino Maniace come bottino di guerra, spoglie che ivi rimasero per 86 anni); per questa occasione la città siciliana è vestita a festa con profumi di fiori d'arancio e mandarini, coi suoi cittadini che mostrano di possedere uno straordinario amore e legame con la giovane martire Agata.
Gli abitanti di Catania, oramai da cinque secoli, nei tre giorni della festa in onore della "Santuzza", danno vita ad una scenografia unica, con celebrazioni e riti imponenti, che fanno si che questo evento sia considerato come la terza festa religiosa al mondo (qualcuno dice la seconda ...) dopo la "Semana Santa" di Siviglia ed il "Corpus Domini" a Cuzco, in Perù. A differenza di altre feste religiose, più sobrie, quella di Sant'Agata mette in luce una vocazione esuberante tipica del meridione, che ama unire il sacro col profano.
Il culto della giovane Santa risale al terzo secolo, quando l'adolescente Agata fu martirizzata per aver rifiutato il proconsole romano Quintiziano. Un anno dopo la morte della giovane Agata, avvenuta il 5 febbraio dell'anno 252, il suo velo virginale venne portato in processione, e si narra esso riuscì a salvare Catania dalla sua distruzione a causa di una devastante eruzione del vulcano Etna.
I festeggiamenti iniziano con il corteo delle "candelore", queste sono dei giganteschi e pesanti "candelabri" in legno, in stile barocco, dipinti in oro, ognuna rappresentante una antica corporazione (macellai, pescivendoli, pizzicagnoli, fruttivendoli, ecc.), che vengono portati da otto devoti, le quali "cannalore" durante la processione anticipano l'arrivo della "vara" di Sant'Agata. I devoti, sia donne che uomini, indossano un tipico indumento simile ad un sacco bianco, stretto in vita da una cordicella nera, guanti ed un fazzoletto bianchi, ed infine una papalina di velluto nero, sembra che tale abbigliamento rievochi la camicia da notte con la quale i Catanesi, svegliatisi di soprassalto dal tocco improvviso delle campane del Duomo, accolsero al porto navale, nel 1126, le reliquie della Santa che rientravano da Costantinopoli. Sulla vara, costituita da un carro argentato cinquecentesco di trenta quintali, trainata da una doppia e lunghissima fila di devoti tramite delle robuste e lunghe funi, prende posto il busto di Sant'Agata, completamente ricoperto di pietre preziose e gioielli. Il 4 febbraio, il corteo compie il cosiddetto "giro esterno" che tocca alcuni luoghi del martirio nella città catanese; il giorno dopo, il 5, il corteo percorre il "giro aristocratico", che percorre la strada principale, la via Etnea, salotto buono di Catania. In questo giorno i devoti portano in spalla dei lunghi ceri di vario spessore, ce ne sono alcuni non molto grossi, altri sono discretamente pesanti, ma alcuni sfiorano pesi eccezionali.
The strong look of this comparse of the Chiocciola's (Snail) contrade catch my attention.
Tree days before Palio's race and Siena is in this guise!
I really love the snail in his hat!!
This July winner: The ISTRICE (porcupine) contrade! Congratulations!!
Go here if you want to see this horse and jokey couple in action!
La mirada de concentración de este comparsa de la contrade del caracol (Chiocciola ) me llamó la atención. Y me encanta el caracol en el gorro!
A tres días del Palio y Siena era ya una fiesta!
Los ganadores de este año: la contrada del puerco espín (Istrice).
Seguid este enlace si queréis ver una foto del caballo y el jinete en acción.
Please don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without explicit permission. © All...
You can contact me through Flickr mail.
Por favor, no usen ninguna de mis imágenes sin mi permiso EXPLICITO. Pueden contactar conmigo enviándome un mail a través de Flickr.
with high expectation - only to find that their expressions killed the atmosphere completely. Maybe I should have asked them to pose :-))))
I praise my great luck to frame this Green Bee Eater. Standing right next to it was a sizzler really, trust me. What is most exciting is that all my shots are hand-held hence was the problem of shaking hands in excitation. Man I was lucky at my best!! Pics was taken from Nal Sarovar, Gujrat, India.
In this episode, Brooke and Ashley talk about the impact that unknown exceptions has on us, especially during the current Pandemic!
click for more info : sparkcurriculum.org/coronavirus-the-expectation-tunnel-of...
Dîner pour 672 calories: carotte, brocoli, tomate et oeuf 😋 #postworkout#eatforabs#eatclean #healthy #gymaddict #bodybuilding #allnatural #expectation #fitness #fitnessaddict #lifestyle
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Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
.... in expectation of the arrival of float of St. Agatha ....
.... in l'attesa dell'arrivo della vara di Sant'Agata ....
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Fear of the unknown, the fear of losing own physical or mental health, or worse, having already lost it, possible problems with work (if a work has it), old age advancing, awareness of the existence of a Higher Being, are just some of the reasons that push people to search for a contact with the Divine, with the supernatural, leading them to plead for help, but this is not enough to completely explain the close link fact of absolute devotion and enormous affection that the people of Catania (province) have towards their young martyr Agatha; an entire city partecipate in these days to ceremony and procession, one can not help but ask this question, what binds in such a profound and peculiar citizens to their Patron Saint Agata? Maybe I was lucky enough to capture photographically what is a partial response: a child at a very early age is brought to the window from her mother while passing the float of St. Agatha, so it's easy to understand... the devotion and attachment to the Martyr starts very young , transmitted by their parents as a treasure to be preserved and grow throughout their lives, which leads you in the days of the feast to a great collective.
This is a short-long report I did this year 2016, in the city of Catania (Sicily) in occasion of the feast of her patron saint Agatha, which took place on the 3, 4 and 5 February (this dates commemorates the martyrdom of the young Saint), and on 17 August too (this date celebrates the return to Catania of her remains, after these had been transferred to Constantinople by the Byzantine general Maniaces as war booty, and there remained for 86 years), when the Sicilian city is dressed up to feast, with a scent of orange blossom and mandarins, and its citizens show that they possess an extraordinary love and bond with the young martyr saint Agatha.
The religious sicilian feast of Saint Agatha is the most important feast of Catania, its inhabitants from five centuries, during the three days of the feast in honor of her "Santuzza" (young Saint), create a unique setting, with celebrations and rituals impressive, which means that this event is regarded as the third religious festival in the world (some say the second ...) after the "Semana Santa" in Seville and the "Corpus Christi" in Cuzco, Peru. Unlike other religious holidays, more sober, to Sant'Agata highlights a vocation exuberant typical of the south Italy, who loves to combine the sacred with the profane.
The cult of the young Santa dates back to the third century, when the teenager Agatha was martyred for refusing the roman proconsul Quintiziano. One year after the death of the young Agatha, on 5 February of the year 252, his virginal veil was carried in procession, and it is said it was able to save Catania from destruction due to a devastating eruption of Mount Etna.
The festivities begin with the procession of Candlemas (this year were in greater number, perhaps 14 instead of the 11 years of the other years); the "Candlemas" are giant Baroque wooden "candlesticks" paintings in gold, each representing an ancient guild (butchers, fishmongers, grocers, greengrocers, etc.), which are brought by eight devotees; the "cannalore" (candlemas) anticipate the arrival of the "float" of Saint Agatha during the procession. Devotees, men and women, wearing a traditional garment similar to a white bag, cinched at the waist by a black rope, gloves and a white handkerchief, and a black velvet cap, and it seems that such clothing evoke nightgown with the qule the Catanese, awakened with a start by the touch of the bells of the Cathedral, welcomed the naval port, in 1126, the relics of the Holy which fell from Constantinople. On float, consisting of a silver chariot sixteenth of thirty tons, which is driven by a double and long line of devotees with the robust and long ropes, takes place the bust of Saint Agatha, completely covered with precious stones and jewels. On February 4, the parade celebrates the so-called "external path" that touches some places of martyrdom in the city of Catania; the next day, the 5 instead the procession along the "aristocrat path", which runs along the main street, Via Etnea, the parlor of Catania. On this day the devotees carry on their shoulders the long candles of varying thickness, there are some not very big, others are fairly heavy, but some skim exceptional weights.
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La paura dell’ignoto, il timore di perdere la salute fisica o psichica, o peggio, averla già persa, possibili problemi col lavoro (per chi un lavora l’ha) o peggio non averlo dovendo così “inventarsi” la giornata, la vecchiaia che avanza, la consapevolezza dell’esistenza di un Essere Superiore, sono solo alcuni dei motivi che spingono gli uomini a cercare un contatto col Divino, col Sovrannaturale, portandoli ad invocare il Suo aiuto, ma tutto ciò non basta assolutamente a spiegare lo stretto legame fatto di assoluta devozione ed enorme attaccamento che gli abitanti di Catania (e provincia) hanno nei confronti della loro “Santuzza” la giovanissima martire Agata; nel vedere partecipare quella che sembra essere una città intera a questi giorni di rito e processione, non ci si può non porre questa domanda, cosa lega in maniera così profonda e peculiare i cittadini Catanesi alla loro Santa Patrona Agata? Forse ho avuto la fortuna di cogliere fotograficamente quella che è una risposta parziale e certamente non unica alla domanda: un bimbo in tenerissima età viene portato alla finestra dalla sua mamma mentre passa la vara di S.Agata, ecco… la devozione e l’attaccamento alla giovanissima Martire inizia da piccolissimi, trasmessa dai propri genitori (e non solo…) come un tesoro da custodire e coltivare per tutta la vita, che porta che nei giorni della festa ad un fantastico rito collettivo al quale nessun Catanese sembra non possa o non voglia rinunciare.
Questa è un breve e lungo report, da me realizzato nel febbraio di quest’anno 2015, nella città di Catania (Sicilia) in occasione della festa della sua giovane santa patrona Agata, che ha avuto luogo come ogni anno il 3, il 4 ed il 5 di febbraio (questa data commemora il martirio della Santa giovinetta), festa che viene ripetuta anche il 17 agosto (questa data rievoca il ritorno a Catania delle sue spoglie, dopo che queste erano state trasferite a Costantinopoli da parte del generale bizantino Maniace come bottino di guerra, spoglie che ivi rimasero per 86 anni); per questa occasione la città siciliana è vestita a festa con profumi di fiori d'arancio e mandarini, coi suoi cittadini che mostrano di possedere uno straordinario amore e legame con la giovane martire Agata.
Gli abitanti di Catania, oramai da cinque secoli, nei tre giorni della festa in onore della "Santuzza", danno vita ad una scenografia unica, con celebrazioni e riti imponenti, che fanno si che questo evento sia considerato come la terza festa religiosa al mondo (qualcuno dice la seconda ...) dopo la "Semana Santa" di Siviglia ed il "Corpus Domini" a Cuzco, in Perù. A differenza di altre feste religiose, più sobrie, quella di Sant'Agata mette in luce una vocazione esuberante tipica del meridione, che ama unire il sacro col profano.
Il culto della giovane Santa risale al terzo secolo, quando l'adolescente Agata fu martirizzata per aver rifiutato il proconsole romano Quintiziano. Un anno dopo la morte della giovane Agata, avvenuta il 5 febbraio dell'anno 252, il suo velo virginale venne portato in processione, e si narra esso riuscì a salvare Catania dalla sua distruzione a causa di una devastante eruzione del vulcano Etna.
I festeggiamenti iniziano con il corteo delle "candelore", queste sono dei giganteschi e pesanti "candelabri" in legno, in stile barocco, dipinti in oro, ognuna rappresentante una antica corporazione (macellai, pescivendoli, pizzicagnoli, fruttivendoli, ecc.), che vengono portati da otto devoti, le quali "cannalore" durante la processione anticipano l'arrivo della "vara" di Sant'Agata. I devoti, sia donne che uomini, indossano un tipico indumento simile ad un sacco bianco, stretto in vita da una cordicella nera, guanti ed un fazzoletto bianchi, ed infine una papalina di velluto nero, sembra che tale abbigliamento rievochi la camicia da notte con la quale i Catanesi, svegliatisi di soprassalto dal tocco improvviso delle campane del Duomo, accolsero al porto navale, nel 1126, le reliquie della Santa che rientravano da Costantinopoli. Sulla vara, costituita da un carro argentato cinquecentesco di trenta quintali, trainata da una doppia e lunghissima fila di devoti tramite delle robuste e lunghe funi, prende posto il busto di Sant'Agata, completamente ricoperto di pietre preziose e gioielli. Il 4 febbraio, il corteo compie il cosiddetto "giro esterno" che tocca alcuni luoghi del martirio nella città catanese; il giorno dopo, il 5, il corteo percorre il "giro aristocratico", che percorre la strada principale, la via Etnea, salotto buono di Catania. In questo giorno i devoti portano in spalla dei lunghi ceri di vario spessore, ce ne sono alcuni non molto grossi, altri sono discretamente pesanti, ma alcuni sfiorano pesi eccezionali.
Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
There is no doubt a growing pressure to be the perfect mother - to hand make all food, breastfeed, and above all else, for your life to be all about your children needs. The social expectation from the minute you give birth is to essentially put yourself on pause until the child allows you to hit play ten or so years down the line (if you're lucky).
I'm not advocating a swing in the polar opposite direction, but I do feel we need to get our children in perspective. They are members of a family, not the head of it. The birth of the child feels very much like the death of a mother as an individual to me. Her needs are no longer valid and any attempt to validate them herself are frowned upon by a patriarchal social system and perhaps worse, other women (see also: pro-lifers value of the fetus vs the female).
From the second the child is born, this switch is apparent. There is an Agar score, there are schools of physicians around testing and monitoring the child (assuming you birth in a hospital) but why is there no score for the mothers well being?
As a new mom, there is just the innate belief that whatever more is to come, will not replace what is, but will only be heaped onto everything else. And the question you immediately raise to yourself is how as a new mom, you will continue to keep your head above water when you are barely keeping afloat already is not only a mystery but feels dauntingly impossible. There are millions of women who give birth every single day in this world, it is not a unique experience, it is not really even a miracle, and yet it is the most lonely experience in the world.
Everyone focuses on the pregnancy but much like a wedding, there is an entire marriage which follows that often no one prepares you for. It is emotionally and physically exhausting to become a mother. You become invisible. I keep hoping the deficiency lies not within me but within the support (or lack of support) around me. I may wish for something different, but still find I have no real options or solutions.
There is a widespread assumption that we as mothers have to do it all alone, that we enjoy doing it alone, and if we don't know something or can't manage it, or heaven forbid, don't want it, there is something lacking in our makeup. If you are lucky enough to have them in your life, the chauvinist males will also remind you of this any time you do 'fail'. Almost everyone in older generations tells you, you should be able to handle this 'its in your nature'. I have been surprised, especially- and almost without exception- by the men. I felt if anyone would get this, it would be the fathers. However, when I ask for anything that can be interpreted as 'a break' they immediately come back with why that is a bad bad idea and the implications that will have on the child. Meanwhile, they whisk off to their (full) day jobs and personal trainers, often without a second thought to their own families.
It is so painful to try to give from an empty source yet as new mothers we are expected to do exactly that. It 'takes a village to raise a child' but when you don't have a village anywhere near you, you are expected to not only be the entire village but do it without complaining and with the expectation that your life is now the child's life. Your life ends. End of story.
So what are my options? I can hand the child off. Raised essentially by nannies. Children are often given whatever they want, not taught manners or anything other then self indulgence and shown a world view which revolves around their every whim. From what I have observed, children mollycoddled to this degree end up being selfish and unable to cope with not being the center of attention. They grow up to be socially retarded adults, with tempers, who manipulate, as if they are professionals. They often grow up with dysfunctional relationships and a narcissistic view of the world. But, on the other hand, if we go back to a distant, emotionally-retarded way of raising children we will end up with distant, emotionally-retarded adults (if in doubt of this, please read Prince Charles' biography). There has to be a middle ground.
In fact, it seems to me that the major problem with our child-rearing culture is not that women are slaves to their children or to their work. The problem is that our society seems to think that all women are the same, with the same needs, desires and goals. This one size fits all attitude is what forces women to try and do everything, and why so many women feel that they are failing. Popularly, mothers are censured for poor career performance, working women are criticized for being bad parents and deliberately childless women are thought strange - or, if under thirty, are patronizingly considered not to have seen the error of their ways yet.
...If this is having it all, you can have it back.
When you expect something to happen you aren't just waiting.
What you are really doing is dreaming your future, the nearest one.
This should lead us to the question:
How can we dream bigger than now?
Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
...is his girl friend suddenly show up in front of him.
Project 262/365
Taoyuan Road, Nanning, Guangxi, China
Olympus Pen E-P2 + Panasonic Lumix 20mm F/1.7
Police officers spend their professional lives trying to play down the public order implications of demonstrations - it's in their interests to keep things calm
But the enormous logistical challenges of providing the world's leaders with security, amid widespread expectation of substantial protests, has led the capital's top officers to issue exceptional warnings about this week's G20 meeting in London.
Last week, Commander Simon O'Brien, one of the senior officers involved in planning the events, said the capital was about to see an "almost unprecedented level of activity" with seven officially notified demonstrations - and potentially many more they don't know about.
It's little wonder that Scotland Yard is describing the G20 policing plan as one of the largest, most challenging and complicated public order operations it has ever devised.
If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response
Commander Simon O'Brien
Metropolitan Police
Events begin on Monday with the three-day state visit to the UK by the President of Mexico.
At the same time, thousands of officials from the other G20 delegations will be arriving in London.
On Wednesday, large "direct action" events are predicted in the Square Mile (although by no means guaranteed) in the shape of the over-lapping "Fossil and Financial Fools Day" protests and the "G20 Meltdown".
At the same time the seemingly well-resourced Climate Camp group says its supporters will try to build a tent city in the middle of one of London's busiest roads to protest against the carbon trading market.
Meanwhile, a couple of miles away, the Stop the War coalition will march from the US Embassy to Trafalgar Square.
And then as evening approaches, there's the small matter of Wembley turning on the floodlights for England's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine.
As for Thursday, the day of the G20 itself, all police can honestly say at the moment is that the picture is "still emerging".
And did we mention that London is a city where there might be a few people trying to get to work and back?
So when officers describe this coming week as a "fluid and dynamic situation", that's something of an understatement.
Click here for a map of expected protests
The security strategy for all of this boils down to something that resembles a three-dimensional ever-changing puzzle. The Met needs to be prepared for a virtually unlimited number of scenarios.
Some 84,000 police man-hours have been allocated to the entirety of Operation Glencoe, the G20 security strategy. All police leave has been cancelled in London for Wednesday and Thursday.
OFFICIAL ADVICE TO CITY FIRMS
Cancel meetings
No entry without ID
Check ID outside buildings first
Minimise entry and exits
Review external smoking areas
Check CCTV equipment
Don't antagonise protesters
Source: City of London Police
Six police forces are part of the £7.5m security plan. The Metropolitan Police is naturally leading - but also calling in colleagues from the City of London and British Transport Police.
Outside of the M25 motorway, officers from Bedfordshire, Essex and Sussex will have critical roles in securing the arrival and transfer of delegations to their virtual bunkers in embassies and hotels.
Don't expect to see President Barack Obama waving from his bomb-proof limousine; he'll walk down the steps of Airforce One at Stansted Airport and board his presidential helicopter for the short hop to the West End.
Inside the capital, police will co-ordinate the movement of these entourages and create a sterile environment at the Excel centre, base for the talks in East London's Canning Town.
The security arrangements at Excel are so rigorous that Newham Council is warning some residents will find it difficult to get into their own homes.
Three Docklands Light Railway stations will close, along with the roads nearest the centre. Pedestrian access will be severely limited and residents will need to carry two forms of identification.
Old faces
Police intelligence suggests the return of "some old faces" to the protest scene - although officers will not be drawn publicly on what that means.
G20 Meltdown poster
Police want "dialogue" with groups planning demonstrations
The level of activity on the net, and its style, suggests a re-emergence of groups which share the aims and tactics of some of the anti-globalisation protesters who turned to violence in 2000 and 2001.
While the Met has tried-and-tested tactics to deal with violence, its strategy for the street occupation promised by the Climate Camp is more difficult to call.
Scotland Yard will not be drawn on how it will respond if the camp turns into something significant, other than its commanders have "flexible plans".
It admits that its overall plans are being informed by the wealth of information now being posted online by the protest organisers.
This internet activity is also helping City firms decide how to prepare. Firms spoken to by the BBC were reluctant to go on the record about any of their specific plans.
Many have turned to private security consultants, who, in turn, are keeping a watchful eye on any specific threats that emerge online. At present, City of London Police are telling firms to cancel unnecessary meetings and deliveries, beef up building security and keep a low profile.
Unpredictable
Each year the Met deals with about 4,500 events requiring visible public order policing. They range from innocuous Boy Scout marches through to the recent angry scenes outside Israel's embassy.
The Genoa 2001 protests
Officials hope to avoid the violence of the 2001 G8 in Genoa
Police believe that if there is a big turn-out on Wednesday and Thursday, the vast majority of people will peacefully make their voices heard.
Past experience suggests unorthodox and imaginative street events can be inconvenient - but also benign.
The unknowable factor is the demonstrator bent on violence.
The police will be determined to avoid the internationally embarrassing scenes of the 2001 G8 in Genoa in which one protester was killed and hundreds more injured.
So with three days to go, the police say their message to protesters is clear.
"Come forward and make contact with us so we can make sure that your [legitimate] aims are achieved," says Commander O'Brien.
"But there are groups that by their very ethos won't talk to us. The groups which enter dialogue with us, we will facilitate [their events].
"We will not tolerate anyone breaking the law, be it by attacking buildings, people or our officers.
"We are looking to police peaceful protest. We don't talk in terms of riots. If anyone wants to come to London to engage in crime or disorder, they will be met with a swift and efficient policing response."
Konstanzer Seenachfest
This is a firework kinda-festival, i think biggest in Germany, which is going on in this beautiful city on Bodensee with its neighbouring Swiss city Kreuzlingen...Every year in August and it lasts about 30-45 minuntes.
I have seen it couple of times, now it seemed so much photographic to see how expectant everyone was waiting for it!...hope the processing is good enough!