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If you also feel that the sunrises and sunsets are interfering with one another ... ⁉️
You may be experiencing a hormonal imbalance⚖️ or untreated thyroid dysfunction or Unidentified hypothyroidism😦
אם גם את מרגישה שהזריחות🌞 והשקיעות🌙 מתערבבות לך...⁉️ אולי את חווה חוסר איזון הורמונלי⚖️ או תת פעילות בלוטת התריס שאינן מטופלת😦 התקשרי📞 09-7601440, במרפאת דר' נורברט קורלנד מטפלים בחוסר איזון הורמונלי ותת פעילות בלוטת התריס.
www.fibrokur.com/%D7%91%D7%9C%D7%95%D7%98%D7%AA-%D7%94%D7...
This isn't actually Gal Gadot.
What? Really? You were pretty sure about that to begin with?
The Mezco One:12 line is a relatively new toy line, popping up in recent years as a response to the various 1/6 figure companies becoming more and more expensive. Most of them retail for $80 USD, though of course there are probably come con exception.
Now, through the years I've read reviews of various figures, but never bought any due to the fact none of the characters were particularly appealing to me, and I had missed the Armoured Batman from the BvS movie.
I had ALMOST actually bought Wonder Woman here over Christmas during the Boxing Week sale at the Silver Snail, but held out, thinking that my $100 + tax would be better used towards what I thought was going my inaugural analysis, Hela, which still hasn't materialized yet.
Mezco, as far as I'm aware, is an American company. I don't typically purchase American toys, with the exception of Transformers, so I had no idea what to expect, though I know enough that in general that my expectations should be tempered as compared to Figma, Figuarts, or even the Storm Collectibles stuff.
At any rate, enough preamble - lets get on with the show. As this is my first One:12 product, I'm going to be whining about everything.
So the exterior box is shipped protected by various plastic tags and sheets to protect against scratching. The actual packaging itself was fairly functional, consisting of an inner windowed box with a slip cover. Graphics are clean and bright, though somewhat simplistic compared to the Hot Toys, Medicom, hell even the Figuarts and Figma boxes, though that glossy image of what I think is the Mezco logo is quite nice.
Actual cardboard is pretty average quality, being fairly lightweight with a natural matte finish. I understand that the convention exclusives and other more uncommon figures come in a metal tin, which reminds me very much of those metal tins you get Mooncakes in.
The actual contents of the box are mostly spelled out on the back of the box: the figure, an alternative head, four additional hands, coiled and uncoiled lasso, her Godkiller Sword, her shield, a base with arm for dynamic posing, as well as a Figma styled plastic bag for holding the various loose goodies in.
Actual cardboard is pretty average quality, being fairly lightweight with a natural matte finish. I understand that the convention exclusives and other more uncommon figures come in a metal tin, which reminds me very much of those metal tins you get Mooncakes in.
The actual contents of the box are mostly spelled out on the back of the box: the figure, an alternative head, four additional hands, coiled and uncoiled lasso, her Godkiller Sword, her shield, a base with arm for dynamic posing, as well as a Figma styled plastic bag for holding the various loose goodies in.
The figure is, as one would guess, a 1/12 figure, putting it roughly 6 inches high. The only other competition the Mezco figure has is that Mafex BvS Wonder Woman that I picked up last year. I'll make this as painless as possible - with the exception of one factor, albeit a very important one, the Mezco destroys the Mafex I own.
Off the bat, I'd like to note that with the exception of the very fine detailing on her face and maybe some smaller metallic features, the overall paint work is actually pretty good. No areas where overspray caused me to gawk, nor was there any areas with obviously poor masking or line work, though I will admit that the lines on her bracers come awfully close. Her skin tone is a bit on the bronze side, which can make photographing her using yellow lighting challenging.
It goes without saying that the work here is significantly better than that of your Marvel Legends figures, and probably even the Black series stuff. Of course, these do cost almost 4 times as much.
Her sword is seems about the right length and girth, but the shield is definitely smaller than what the prototype picture on the box itself shows.
Grasping hands were all of a soft rubber which is easily malleable, allowing for easy manipulation to hold the sword without fear of constant breakage. Fingers look kind of muddled on these hands, and there are concerns on my mind about overall longevity of painted rubber parts (i.e. the split head on my Microman Chun Li) but only time will actually address that.
One of the key selling points of the One:12 line are the tailored outfits that the characters wear. Wonder Woman, unfortunately, really only has fabric skirt, and as such, much like the Hot Toys version, her armour is a moulded and painted piece of plastic.
The bracers and her leather strap are separate pieces, which is nice. I couldn't find any instructions included with my figure, so I'm guessing they never made a way for you to actually strap the shield and her sword to her back.
Her lassos are functional, though to be honest i didn't play around with the uncoiled one at all.
The box proclaims over 30 points of articulation. I didn't bother counting them because my point is this - it certainly didn't feel like there were that many. Her outfit effectively removes the waist as a point of articulation, nor are there any any ab crunch options. Shoulders do not collapse, which basically makes doing the cross armed pose impossible. Legs can at most be raised 90 degrees from a vertical position thus making kneeling poses with the figure very unnatural looking. Similarly, crossing her legs isn't happening either, making more stylish or elegant poses very hard to pull off. Thigh swivel joints are quite unsightly.
Now that I think about it, the elbows didn't bend more than 90 degrees either.
All in all, the various other high end 1/12 ish Wonder Woman figures offer better articulation than this one. I'm hoping this body is not the base one used for their various figures, but rather like the Hot Toys seamless body, one they developed specifically for Wonder Woman. But looking at preview pictures for all of the other One:12, articulation may be limited like this for all of their product.
While we're on the subject, if this is a custom body, then Mezco needs to improve the silhouette a bit, and really improve their game on the muscle tone, particularly on the arms and her back.
We now come to one of the greatest points of controversy for this figure, the face/head. From what I have read, release of this figure was significantly delayed due to Mezco fiddling with the heads, and many accounts I read said the final product was a marked improvement over the prototypes. Some even claim that the sculpt looks exactly like Gal Gadot.
Hence "This is not actually Gal Gadot".
No matter which way I stare at it, I honestly don't see any aspect of her at all in any of these, and still stick with my original analysis of "she looks like Olivia Munn".
Another hot topic is "why the hell does she look like she has chipmunk cheeks?". Several factors.
First off, to my eye, the base of the back of the neck for the default head sculpt is way too thick, and as such, this serves to widen her already problematic face. To my eye, the back of the neck on the alternate sculpt (one where she has no bangs) is slimmer in this area which helps to given a more streamline look.
Secondly, the sculptors really didn't emphasize her cheek bones that well. It's there, but you really need to have the light shining the right way for them to appear. Because these cheek bones are not emphasized, her jaw looks like a continuation of a blob that starts from her forehead. I also feel a dash of contouring paint apps would have helped with this issue, and allowed for easier photographs.
Sculpting of the hair is pretty good, but I think they missed an opportunity to have one sculpt feature a head of hair that is blowing sideways as opposed to having one that is all behind her head.
So that was my first foray into the One:12 line. A bit of a mixed bag, with my real disappointment being the surprisingly limited articulation, particularly given what Figma, Figuarts, and Mafex figures can do at a slightly smaller size. I'm going to wait for Hela to tell me how good their tailored costumes are, and hopefully see why people are highly excited about these products.
A little preamble here, to explain my technique when shooting the moon. My Sigmonster doesn't have image stabilization, so I mount my camera on the tripod, set the timer for 10 seconds, and lock up the mirror. I use live-view at 10x magnification to fine-adjust the focus, before pressing the shutter and stepping back. I then watch the screen as the camera beeps its little countdown.
I also have a Yongnuo MC36b remote shutter release doohickey, but I rarely use it. Or at least, I didn't in the past. Here's why I'll be using it in future: I was following my routine as above. I watched the screen on the back of my camera as the timer beeped down: 4... 3... 2... ...and then a plane passed right in front of the moon! RIGHT IN FRONT OF IT!!!! And I missed it! Gaaaaaaaaahhh!!!!
I'm uploading this pathetic little normal moonshot, just so I have space underneath to moan about my missed opportunity. And if you're reading this in the few hours after I uploaded it, I'm likely back outside, remote timer in one hand, and smartphone in the other where I'm watching my FlightRadar24 app. Of course, that means I have no free hands to clasp together, so I can offer a fervent prayer to the Photography Gods for one more chance. Just one. Please? Pretty please?
This isn't actually Gal Gadot.
What? Really? You were pretty sure about that to begin with?
The Mezco One:12 line is a relatively new toy line, popping up in recent years as a response to the various 1/6 figure companies becoming more and more expensive. Most of them retail for $80 USD, though of course there are probably come con exception.
Now, through the years I've read reviews of various figures, but never bought any due to the fact none of the characters were particularly appealing to me, and I had missed the Armoured Batman from the BvS movie.
I had ALMOST actually bought Wonder Woman here over Christmas during the Boxing Week sale at the Silver Snail, but held out, thinking that my $100 + tax would be better used towards what I thought was going my inaugural analysis, Hela, which still hasn't materialized yet.
Mezco, as far as I'm aware, is an American company. I don't typically purchase American toys, with the exception of Transformers, so I had no idea what to expect, though I know enough that in general that my expectations should be tempered as compared to Figma, Figuarts, or even the Storm Collectibles stuff.
At any rate, enough preamble - lets get on with the show. As this is my first One:12 product, I'm going to be whining about everything.
So the exterior box is shipped protected by various plastic tags and sheets to protect against scratching. The actual packaging itself was fairly functional, consisting of an inner windowed box with a slip cover. Graphics are clean and bright, though somewhat simplistic compared to the Hot Toys, Medicom, hell even the Figuarts and Figma boxes, though that glossy image of what I think is the Mezco logo is quite nice.
Actual cardboard is pretty average quality, being fairly lightweight with a natural matte finish. I understand that the convention exclusives and other more uncommon figures come in a metal tin, which reminds me very much of those metal tins you get Mooncakes in.
The actual contents of the box are mostly spelled out on the back of the box: the figure, an alternative head, four additional hands, coiled and uncoiled lasso, her Godkiller Sword, her shield, a base with arm for dynamic posing, as well as a Figma styled plastic bag for holding the various loose goodies in.
Actual cardboard is pretty average quality, being fairly lightweight with a natural matte finish. I understand that the convention exclusives and other more uncommon figures come in a metal tin, which reminds me very much of those metal tins you get Mooncakes in.
The actual contents of the box are mostly spelled out on the back of the box: the figure, an alternative head, four additional hands, coiled and uncoiled lasso, her Godkiller Sword, her shield, a base with arm for dynamic posing, as well as a Figma styled plastic bag for holding the various loose goodies in.
The figure is, as one would guess, a 1/12 figure, putting it roughly 6 inches high. The only other competition the Mezco figure has is that Mafex BvS Wonder Woman that I picked up last year. I'll make this as painless as possible - with the exception of one factor, albeit a very important one, the Mezco destroys the Mafex I own.
Off the bat, I'd like to note that with the exception of the very fine detailing on her face and maybe some smaller metallic features, the overall paint work is actually pretty good. No areas where overspray caused me to gawk, nor was there any areas with obviously poor masking or line work, though I will admit that the lines on her bracers come awfully close. Her skin tone is a bit on the bronze side, which can make photographing her using yellow lighting challenging.
It goes without saying that the work here is significantly better than that of your Marvel Legends figures, and probably even the Black series stuff. Of course, these do cost almost 4 times as much.
Her sword is seems about the right length and girth, but the shield is definitely smaller than what the prototype picture on the box itself shows.
Grasping hands were all of a soft rubber which is easily malleable, allowing for easy manipulation to hold the sword without fear of constant breakage. Fingers look kind of muddled on these hands, and there are concerns on my mind about overall longevity of painted rubber parts (i.e. the split head on my Microman Chun Li) but only time will actually address that.
One of the key selling points of the One:12 line are the tailored outfits that the characters wear. Wonder Woman, unfortunately, really only has fabric skirt, and as such, much like the Hot Toys version, her armour is a moulded and painted piece of plastic.
The bracers and her leather strap are separate pieces, which is nice. I couldn't find any instructions included with my figure, so I'm guessing they never made a way for you to actually strap the shield and her sword to her back.
Her lassos are functional, though to be honest i didn't play around with the uncoiled one at all.
The box proclaims over 30 points of articulation. I didn't bother counting them because my point is this - it certainly didn't feel like there were that many. Her outfit effectively removes the waist as a point of articulation, nor are there any any ab crunch options. Shoulders do not collapse, which basically makes doing the cross armed pose impossible. Legs can at most be raised 90 degrees from a vertical position thus making kneeling poses with the figure very unnatural looking. Similarly, crossing her legs isn't happening either, making more stylish or elegant poses very hard to pull off. Thigh swivel joints are quite unsightly.
Now that I think about it, the elbows didn't bend more than 90 degrees either.
All in all, the various other high end 1/12 ish Wonder Woman figures offer better articulation than this one. I'm hoping this body is not the base one used for their various figures, but rather like the Hot Toys seamless body, one they developed specifically for Wonder Woman. But looking at preview pictures for all of the other One:12, articulation may be limited like this for all of their product.
While we're on the subject, if this is a custom body, then Mezco needs to improve the silhouette a bit, and really improve their game on the muscle tone, particularly on the arms and her back.
We now come to one of the greatest points of controversy for this figure, the face/head. From what I have read, release of this figure was significantly delayed due to Mezco fiddling with the heads, and many accounts I read said the final product was a marked improvement over the prototypes. Some even claim that the sculpt looks exactly like Gal Gadot.
Hence "This is not actually Gal Gadot".
No matter which way I stare at it, I honestly don't see any aspect of her at all in any of these, and still stick with my original analysis of "she looks like Olivia Munn".
Another hot topic is "why the hell does she look like she has chipmunk cheeks?". Several factors.
First off, to my eye, the base of the back of the neck for the default head sculpt is way too thick, and as such, this serves to widen her already problematic face. To my eye, the back of the neck on the alternate sculpt (one where she has no bangs) is slimmer in this area which helps to given a more streamline look.
Secondly, the sculptors really didn't emphasize her cheek bones that well. It's there, but you really need to have the light shining the right way for them to appear. Because these cheek bones are not emphasized, her jaw looks like a continuation of a blob that starts from her forehead. I also feel a dash of contouring paint apps would have helped with this issue, and allowed for easier photographs.
Sculpting of the hair is pretty good, but I think they missed an opportunity to have one sculpt feature a head of hair that is blowing sideways as opposed to having one that is all behind her head.
So that was my first foray into the One:12 line. A bit of a mixed bag, with my real disappointment being the surprisingly limited articulation, particularly given what Figma, Figuarts, and Mafex figures can do at a slightly smaller size. I'm going to wait for Hela to tell me how good their tailored costumes are, and hopefully see why people are highly excited about these products.
The email message from a puppet-collector friend arrived on Sunday without greeting or preamble, so I knew he was worried.
. . . . . . .
I thought we might "inherit" some wood crates full of an old stage presentation, STORM AT SEA. I think maybe as many as 8 versions of this existed at some time---I think this was the last one.
Greyhound will NOT ship wood crates. Xxxxx Xxxxxxxx of Yyy Yyyyy MA had fussed with the material for years until his passing recently. I met him in 1979, stayed at his home one weekend while preparing the touring PofA exhibit (1980-83).
His daughter lives in Florida, where her life is centered. Closing her parents' estate has been a burden for her and she was in a hurry to get back to Florida, After finding that Greyhound culd not ship the crates to me in California, it sounded like she just dumped the material. A e-mail from her today says it is temporarily stored in a barn or equivalent until the real estate property is sold. So there is still possibly time to preserve some theater history which is related to puppetry.
Paul McPharlin I think makes mention of Storm at Sea---sort of a recreated stage "news reel" presentation of storm-tossed ships, probably something sinks?? Big-time disaster?
Anyway, as far as I know, what Xxxxx Xxxxxxxx was tryng to restore is most likely the last surviving example, even in incomplete form. I have not seen the material---only heard about it since 1979. Someone in England expressed interest too, but Zzzzzzzzzz Zzzzzzzz Zzzzzz (daughter of Xxxxx Xxxxxxxx) is clearly not up to preserving her dad's efforts. Would ANYONE in the Boston area be willing to look into this and perhaps keep this stuff from being dumped when the building is sold?
I should think grant funds MIGHT be available to restore and preserve this material, or at least preserve PARTS that survived.
For a month I thought this stuff had already been dumped. Maybe there is still time?
ALAN
. . . . .
I suppose I shouldn't describe Alan Cook as merely a collector of puppets. He's actually THE PREMIERE collector of and authority on historic puppetry in this country. For years he kept the puppets and puppetry ephemera he'd collected in his house... and then also his mother's cottage after her death. I never saw the houses myself, but those who did tell tales of marionettes hanging from the shower head in the bathroom and hand puppets sitting next to the corn flakes in the kitchen.
Finally several years ago some good folks who live near Alan in southern California decided enough was enough, and they began raising funds to establish a museum- the Conservatory of Puppetry Arts "COPA"- where these important artifacts can be properly cared for and displayed. Establishing the non-profit was relatively easy, but finding funding and affordable space has proven tricky. The collection is currently housed in its third home- a small building on the grounds of a church where there is a LITTLE display space, but with an all-volunteer staff, progress on fundraising and finding a proper permanent home is glacially slow. Given the quality, size, and importance of the collection, it should be very possible to find grant funding and corporate sponsorships for COPA. I'm actually a fairly successful grantswriter and fundraiser myself, so I often I wish I was independently wealthy so I could devote some of my time to doing that for them. Meanwhile, I help in the small ways I can.
Undaunted by lack of facilities, Alan- one of the most delightfully eccentric and knowledgeable people I've ever known- continues to collect everything important that he can get his hands on, And, ever anxious to make sure the public gets to see these wondrous pieces of "art and history", he's constantly traveling around the country to mount exhibits in museums, libraries, theatres, and at puppetry festivals.. So when Alan indicates it's important to save something... I believe him.
Luckily my great good friend Dave has a van and was taking a "lets get chores around the house done" kinda vacation, so it wasn't too hard to talk him into a little adventure. After a quick visit to mapquest and our favorite coffee shop, we headed north on Route 1 toward the address we'd been given by Xxxxx's daughter. I had talked briefly to Alan on Monday, and it was clear he feared that barn the pieces were being stored in might be damp and rickety. Nothing could have been further from the truth.
It's not that the barn was so fancy- it was definitely a working barn- but more for a gentleman farmer than someone doing hard-scrabble truck farming. There were two stalls that had housed horses at one time. Possibly when the modest house abutting it had had fewer and farther neighbors than the suburban style homes nearby. It had obviously not been used for horses for a while, because in the pathway where horses would once have left the barn was a modern gazebo. Aimed at the road where the electric horses now travel.
We found the boxes housing the "Storm at Sea" mechanics and scenic elements quite easily, and it was easy to tell a lot about Xxxxx both from the way he kept his barn- with its lovely lovely bones- neat and tidy, and also from his abiding interest in the contents of those boxes. The show had been built in the late 1800's, when craftsmanship was at a zenith. The scenery and mechanics for the show were built into custom made boxes that were marvels of engineering and efficiency. Built so that one would stack onto another for easy travel, with their wood pegs and hand-sanded planes, they were a delight to examine and touch. As I was examining the contents of the boxes, Dave found the box that contained all the schematics and news clippings and notes about the production, along with a careful journal of Xxxxx's work on the project. This man was a historian's best friend.
Not much else to say. After oohing and aahing over everything, Dave and I each spent an hour on our own pleasurable pursuits. He relocated to the gazebo to devour the box of documentation in the cool shade, and- once I'd taken photos and made guestimates about the weight of thee boxes so I can find the right shipper for them- allowed myself to turn away from duty toward the pleasure of photographing the barn. Ah, heaven.
We'll be making another trip out to the barn soon, with a friend whose van is better suited to the size and weight of the boxes, Meanwhile, yesterday was the BEST of days for this artful brush with history, and our unexpected adventure.
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
Former home of:
John Foster Dulles (Secretary of State under Eisenhower)
Bert Lance (Director of the Office of Management and Budget under Carter)
Harold Ickes (White House Deputy Chief of Staff under Clinton)
3107 Dumbarton Ave. NW
---Republican John Foster Dulles travelled so much by plane that people said he took to the air to avoid being a sitting duck for Congressional Democrats
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
John Foster Dulles (February 25, 1888 – May 24, 1959) was an American statesman who served as Secretary of State under President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1953 to 1959. He was a significant figure in the early Cold War era, advocating an aggressive stance against communism around the world. He advocated support of the French in their war against the Viet Minh in Indochina and famously refused to shake the hand of Zhou Enlai at the Geneva Conference in 1954.
Born in Washington D.C., he was the son of a Presbyterian minister and attended public schools in Watertown, NY. After attending Princeton University and The George Washington University he joined the New York City law firm of Sullivan & Cromwell, where he specialized in international law. He tried to join the United States Army during World War I but was rejected because of poor eyesight. Instead, Dulles got an Army commission as captain in the War Industries Board.
Both his grandfather John W. Foster and his uncle Robert Lansing served as Secretary of State. He was also the older brother of Allen Welsh Dulles, Director of Central Intelligence under Eisenhower. His son Avery Robert Dulles converted to Catholicism and became the first American priest to be directly appointed to Cardinal, although his advanced age prohibited him from voting in the College of Cardinals in 2005 following the death of Pope John Paul II.
Political career
In 1918 Woodrow Wilson appointed Dulles as legal counsel to the United States delegation to the Versailles Peace Conference where he served under his uncle, Robert Lansing, then Secretary of State. Dulles made an early impression as a junior diplomat by clearly and forcefully arguing against imposing crushing reparations on Germany. Afterwards he served as a member of the War Reparations Committee at the request of President Wilson. Dulles, a deeply religious man, attended numerous international conferences of churchmen during the 1920s and 1930s. In 1924, he was the defense counsel in the church trial of Rev. Harry Emerson Fosdick, who had been charged with heresy by opponents in the denomination, a case settled when Fosdick, a liberal Baptist, resigned his pulpit in the Presbyterian Church, which he had never joined. Dulles also became a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell. In the 1930's, according to Stephen Kinzer's 2006 book "Overthrow", Dulles was an active supporter and collaborator with the Nazis.
Dulles was a close associate of Thomas E. Dewey who became the presidential candidate of the United States Republican Party in the U.S. presidential election, 1944. During the election Dulles served as Dewey's foreign policy adviser.
In 1945 Dulles participated in the San Francisco Conference and worked as adviser to Arthur H. Vandenberg and helped draft the preamble to the United Nations Charter. He subsequently attended the United Nations General Assembly as a United States delegate in 1946, 1947 and 1950. Dulles was appointed to the United States Senate as a Republican from New York on July 7, 1949, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Democrat Robert F. Wagner. Dulles served from July 7, 1949, to November 8, 1949, when a successor, Herbert Lehman, was elected, having beaten Dulles in a special election to fill the senate vacancy.
In 1950, Dulles published War or Peace, a critical analysis of the American policy of containment, which at the time was favored by many of the foreign policy elites in Washington. Dulles criticized the foreign policy of Harry S. Truman. He argued that containment should be replaced by a policy of "liberation". However, he still carried out Truman's policy in neutralizing the Taiwan Strait during the Korean War in the Treaty of Peace with Japan of 1951. When Dwight Eisenhower became President in January, 1953, he appointed Dulles as his Secretary of State.
Secretary of State
Dulles with president Eisenhower in 1956As Secretary of State Dulles spent considerable time building up NATO as part of his strategy of controlling Soviet expansion by threatening massive retaliation in event of a war. In 1950 he helped instigate the ANZUS Treaty for mutual protection with Australia and New Zealand. One of his first major policy shifts towards a more aggressive posture against communism, Dulles directed the CIA in March of 1953 to draft plans to overthrow the Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh in Iran [1]. This led directly to the Coup d'état via Operation Ajax which installed Mohammad Reza Pahlavi as the Shah of Iran.
Dulles was also the architect of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) that was created in 1954. The treaty, signed by representatives of the United States, Australia, Britain, France, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines and Thailand, provided for collective action against aggression.
Dulles was one of the pioneers of Mutually Assured Destruction and brinkmanship. In an article written for Life Magazine Dulles defined his policy of brinkmanship: "The ability to get to the verge without getting into the war is the necessary art." His critics blamed him for damaging relations with Communist states and contributing to the Cold War.
Dulles upset the leaders of several non-aligned countries when on June 9, 1955, he argued in one speech that "neutrality has increasingly become an obsolete and, except under very exceptional circumstances, it is an immoral and shortsighted conception."
Dulles provided some consternation and amusement to the British, Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand ambassadors by his repeated attempts to tell substantially different versions of events to them. Apparently unbeknownst to Dulles the men had all in attended Cambridge together and followed up meetings with Dulles by comparing notes and reporting the discrepancies to their home countries.
In 1956 Dulles strongly opposed the Anglo-French invasion of the Suez Canal, Egypt (October-November 1956). However, by 1958 he was an outspoken opponent of President Gamal Abdel Nasser and stopped him from receiving weapons from the United States. This policy seemingly backfired, enabling the Soviet Union to gain influence in the Middle East.
Dulles also served as the former Chairman and Co-founder of the Commission on a Just and Durable Peace of the Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America (succeeded by the National Council of Churches), Chairman of the Board for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a former Trustee of the Rockefeller Foundation, and a founding member of the Council of Foreign Relations.
Death and legacy
Suffering from cancer, Dulles was forced by his declining health to resign from office in April 1959. He died in Washington, D.C. on May 24, 1959, at the age of 71, and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1959.
The Washington Dulles International Airport (located in Dulles, Virginia) and John Foster Dulles High School (Sugar Land, Texas) were both named in honor of Dulles.
Carol Burnett first rose to prominence in the 1950s singing a novelty song, "I Made a Fool of Myself Over John Foster Dulles"; more recently, Gil Scott Heron commented "John Foster Dulles ain't nothing but the name of an airport now" in the song "B-Movie".
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thomas Bertram Lance, known as Bert Lance, (Born June 3, 1931 in Gainesville, Georgia) is an American politician and businessman.
Lance was a close adviser and friend to candidate for President Jimmy Carter, during Carter's successful 1976 campaign. After Carter's victory, Lance was named director of the Office of Management and the Budget (OMB). Within six months of Lance's assuming this position, questions were raised by the press and Congress about mismanagement and corruption when Lance was Chairman of the Board of Calhoun National Bank of Calhoun, Georgia. He became an embarrassment to Carter's administration, especially given the reputation that Carter had tried to build of uncorruptablity in the wake of the Watergate scandal of the Nixon administration earlier in the 1970s. Lance resigned as OMB director on September 21, 1977. In the very public trial that followed, Mr. Lance was subsequently acquitted of all charges.
In 1981, Lance returned to the Calhoun National Bank, again as Chairman. He left in 1986.
Press reports have suggested that Lance was involved in the BCCI scandal of the 1980s and early 1990s.
Popular references
Shortly after Lance's resignation as OMB Director, on the Saturday Night Live television show, John Belushi (playing Lance) and Dan Aykroyd (playing Jimmy Carter) performed an advertising parody. The skit was a commercial for the "National Express" credit card, a parody of then-current American Express commercials.
One famouse press article that contributed greatly to the groundswell against Bert Lance in 1976 was an article by William Safire, called Carter's Broken Lance, for which Safire earned a Pulitzer Prize.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Harold McEwen Ickes (born September 4, 1939) was deputy White House chief of staff for President Bill Clinton. He is the son of Harold L. Ickes, who was Secretary of the Interior under Franklin D. Roosevelt. Ickes chaired Clinton's presidential campaign in New York in 1992. Before that, he was a senior advisor to David Dinkins' successful mayoral election in 1989. In 2000, he was a senior advisor to Hillary Clinton's Senate campaign. He now heads the Media Fund, a 527 committee. . He was also an initial contender against Howard Dean for the chairmanship of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
As a member of the DNC's Rules committee he was a proponent of adding other states besides Iowa and New Hampshire early on in the Presidential nominating calendar. He was unsucessful in his promotion of Alabama as the second primary state, behind New Hampshire, which lost to South Carolina.
Since 2005 Ickes has been associated with a George Soros funded Democratic data collection and voter file organization called "Data Warehouse".
* A 117Mby MP4 Video, which is 7mins 26secs long.
* NB: As this is longer than the fixed 3 minute viewing in the Flickr interface, the Video must be downloaded to the desktop to see the full length.
* Right-click on the down-arrow option, the last of the three options to the lower right of the video frame. Select 'Save-As' and view..
** It has just come to my notice (10/12/23) that the Download option below and to the right of the media _does not_ allow you to download the full version, only the 3 minutes available here. So, I am going to try and 'fix' this for all videos lasting more than 3 minutes, this is the link to obtain the full version shown here-
www.flickr.tightfitz.com/Video/Rotherham_Town_Centre_Chan...
* A series of shots taken on 24th November, 2021, and around 6 months later on 3rd June, 2022.
This forms a sequence of pictures showing the on-going development at the Forge Island site, between the River Don and the Rotherham Cut of the Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigation, in the centre of Rotherham. It follows on from 2 earlier pieces, the first one-
taken on March 6th, 2020 (stills 5878->6007)-
www.flickr.com/photos/vinc2020/49627149422/
doesn't really bear on the current and later piece from 2021, except that it shows what happens when the River Don is in full flood and within the town centre and what is being undertaken to prevent the effects of this having a very serious impact on the new housing and business development which is currently underway. The 2nd of the three pieces was taken a year after the above one in April, 2021 (stills 7196->8593)-
www.flickr.com/photos/vinc2020/51018829325/
and just over a year after that one, this was the status in early June this year; it is mow almost mid-August so the scene will have changed once more.
* Preamble
I well remember coming back into town late on a Sunday evening, on the 69 Sheffield bus, from my grandmother's which was a simple 2-up-2-down terraced house on the aptly named 'River Street' in the old Bradmarsh area on Sheffield Road. This was not far from the exotically named, 'Bromley Sands'; all of which was very close to the vast Iron & Steelworks, comprising the, then named, 'Steel, Peach & Tozer Ltd.' which ran all the way along Sheffield Road, to Templeborough. All this has now disappeared under new road tarmac, several round-abouts and the Bradmarsh Industrial Estate. My grandmother's house would have been along the first part of Centenary Way as it exits the roundabout near the large Citroen Garage, the old position of the house in the middle of the road carriageway, would now overlook the garage itself! Not far from the house were two G.C.R. 'mineral lines' which were conveyed over the River Don, side-by-side, one crossing Sheffield Road into a large area of high-level sidings which were atop what is now the Bradmarsh Industrial area; this area was flattened to make room for the Industrial site. The other line over the river terminated in what was once the Ickles Hall area between the River and the housed and, there was a low, grilled aperture in the high wall at the end of Marsh St. with River St. close by allowing anyone to easily view the two mineral lines and their trains without any obstruction. The aperture in that wall, miraculously, can be seen on one of the 'Britain From Above' aerial views, taken in 1953 here-
www.britainfromabove.org.uk/en/image/EAW048630
and here-
www.britainfromabove.org.uk/en/image/EAW049660
the aperture being right next to the end house on the partially still extant, Marsh Street. Note it is better to view these having created a free account at
there is no fee unless you wish to use the views commercially. Having obtained an account, you can zoom in and scroll around the images in this area taken in the 1930s and 1950s, the aperture can be seen close to the parallel River Don and Tinsley Canal waterways in the lower left and middle left of the views, respectively. Enough of this I think, looking through those excellent views, and many of the others in the same area, will take up hours of your time, it has mine!
Moving now along Sheffield Road passing by the new housing developments at the side of the River Don in the Westgate area, or 'quarter' as it's now known, the other development area are to receive the same 'accolade' once the work is finished; all this forming part of the £42 million redevelopment of Rotherham town centre, yet again.
* The Video Sequence
As an introduction this time, the stills footage shows 12 pictures from the middle part of the last century, the 1950s/60s, in the area bordered, to the west and east respectively, by the 'Rotherham Cut' of the 'Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigation', and the River Don, to the south by Main Street and to north by Chantry Bridge. The 12 shots illustrate just how 'full' the area used to be with heavy industry, the chief one being the 'Rotherham Forge & Rolling Mill' and its very noisy steam hammer, located right in the centre of the town, was easily heard everywhere...
* The B/W 'Yesteryear' Introduction. The first 6 of these 12 pictures are related to the canal cut at the south end of Rotherham Lock with the 'Rotherham Forge & Rolling Mill' standing gaunt alongside the waterway. The very first shot shows the old canal house which was responsible for comings and goings on the canal as well as controlling the railway swing bridge across the cut and into the Rolling Mill site. The base of this bridge is still in-situ and has been featured here in the last video, from 2021, 1min 52 secs in, and indeed, before that, the 2020 video, 1min 12 secs in from the beginning, see appropriate links above.
The tracks on the swing bridge can be seen at the other side of the railings and the bridge support channel at the other side of the cut. There is a rake of wagons parked in the sidings in Rotherham Central Station, on the bank above the main lines and, to the far right, and in business at this time, the 'Phoenix Hotel', demolished only in recent years. In the next shot, 'Boston Castle' can be seen in the background, immediately above the canal footbridge which also has only just recently been removed during the on-going redevelopment. Canal barge 'Harmony', I think, has just exited the Rotherham Lock and is turning downstream, everything looking black, grimy and unkempt. In the third shot 'Harmony' heads away towards Kilnhurst and Doncaster and in the next shot, passes two companion river craft, barge 'Serenity' next to 'Gratitude'. The Rotherham coal-fired power station is in the background and a HGV behind the barges appears to be off-loading its cargo into another barge. There's also a rake of 1950s/60s cars parked on the Rolling Mills access road to the right, but the quality of the picture precludes reading any number plates etc. though I guess the models may be identifiable. The next, 5th, shot shows a more open aspect with no traffic about of any sort. Rother Central is over on the left with the 'Phoenix Hotel' at far left, Rotherham Power Station stands dominant in the background and now 'Rotherham Forge & Rolling Mills Co. Ltd.' can be seen though the bulk of the works are out-of-shot, to the right. MOving on to shot 7 and now looking south along Don Street from the Main Street road bridge which borders the site to the south, and yet more heavy industry resides alongside both banks of the River Don. In the distance is the 'Hovis Factory' as it used to be known as, the flour mill of the R.H.M., 'Rank-Hovis Mcdougall Flour Mill' building, this totally demolished starting in early 2012. To the right, another prestigious building, that of 'Guest & Chrimes Ltd.' and now currently, after a long period where it was up for sale, grade II listed, but now being demolished though, as this video shows, the work appears to have been halted. The next shot, 8, looks back over the other side of the Main St. bridge and shows, to the left 'Rotherham Forge & Rolling Mills Co. Ltd.' at the top end of Forge Island, the canal cut veers off to the left and the River Don heads towards Rotherham Weir on the right, in the centra of the town; none of the riverside buildings now exist of course. All Saints PArish Church stands prominent in the right background and shows how close everything was to the noisy Forge.
* The last four of the set from the 1950s/60s, show various aspects of the Central Station area, the 1st, picture 9, a grand vista of the front aspect of the station and the car park/waste ground which stood in front; some of the vehicles there will be easily identifiable in this clearer shot. MAin St is to the left, 'Joseph Green's Timber Yard' is behind the station, the latter having its doors open for business, so this must be before the closing year of 1966. Looking back the other from the timer yard and the slightly elevated sidings stand on this side of the lines, some of the wagons containing covered wood supplies with the station's typical G.C.R. style lattice footbridge above the covered wagon. Rotherham Central had staggered platforms, the down line, nearest the camera was to the left of the footbridge and the up line, visible in the picture, to the right. There looks to be a freight working on the down line but the loco isn't visible. The space at the front of the station, between the station and Forge Island, was used once a year, for the visiting, yearly, Statute Circus, operated by Billy Smart. Here we see the space which was vacant in the earlier shot now totally filled with Circus paraphernalia, including some of the 'live type', 3 large elephants.. those were the days, but I was never very fond of circuses, though clearly, in this shot, a lot of others area, it was a very well-attended and popular event. The lock-side house controlling canal activities, at the lower end of 'Rotherham Cut', is also visible above the tents and crowd of people on the left. The connecting line from the station, over to Forge Island, crossing the canal next to the house, came off the up line where the two large gate-posts can be seen at left. And the last of the 12 B/W shots shows a general view of the area of the station, looking north, the timber yard on the left has now been modernised but there is no connection to the main line. A freight working, with its guards van can be seen on the down line, heading north and the 'Phoenix Hotel' is once more visible in the background. This looks to be a latter day shot as the Power Station has gone, the down platform is derelict and the station buildings have been demolished, to the right there is a different sort of canal-side activity so this is well past the 1966 period when the G.C.R.'s line was finally closed.
* November 2021 & March 2022. The November shots first, show the scene on the 21st with the high reach crane doing its stuff just in front of the site access road. The refurbishment of Rotherham Lock can be seen with now a flood defence wall running alongside it and the age-old footbridge across the lock now having been removed; it is assumed this will be replaced. At this time, the new flood barrier portcullis-style lock gate had not been installed but the foundations at either side are evident. The age-old Main St. bridge is to the right in the 3rd shot with the crane lifting materials in for the new lock gate. 'Rotherham Minster', All Saints Parish Church stands sentinel in the background and over-seeing yet more changes to the town centre; it has done so for over 500 years.
* The next 20 shots, 6-13 from November 2021 & 14-25 from March 2022, show the changes which have taken place along Don Street at the other side of the Main St. bridge. The large, once listed, 'Guest & Chrimes' building has been under demolition for a while now but at this time, and the following March when I re-visited, the work looks to have been halted, with no contractors at the site at all. The end walls of the building have been taken off, vegetation has sprung up inside the red perimeter fence and the whole place looks rather forlorn. In the 2020 video there are some pictures which I took in 2008, when this building was up for sale, the link is above, the pictures start at 3m 40secs in. As a matter of historical interest...
'... These shots from 12 years ago, were taken on 7th September, 2008 when the Grade II listed building was being offered 'For Sale' by 'G.V.A. Grimley' and I bet that was a hard thing to sell in the year of the great financial down-turn; it never did sell. The second of the shots shows the distinctive front with white stone features which in around 1959/1960, I could see from my grandparent's house which was situated on an elevated position on Moorgate over-looking the Rother Valley, in Rotherham. At night, when visiting them, I used to watch steam hauled passenger services slowly making their way up from Tinsley & Templeborough to vanish behind this lit building, on the still extant line of course, and on into the old Rotherham Central Station; the white stonework making the building easy to pick out in the dark...'
* The next two shots show the work on-going with the outlet of the 'Holmes Tail Goit', this carried water from the River Don further upstream near the Holmes Rolling Mill just this side of Holmes Lock, the water then being carried through the Alma Works at Holmes and on into the London Works, the Brinsworth Iron & Wheel Works and the Oxygen Works, in this locality, all on the site of of which is now 'C.F. Booth Metal Recyclers Ltd.' The water then finally exiting to outflow back into the River Don, not far from Main Street Bridge. 'Goit' appears to be a language peculiarity associated with the two counties of the Roses; Red & White, for Lancashire and Yorkshire. It looks as if the works are to remedy blockages which occur with the water course in times of flooding as the River Don the pushes water back up the culvert, causing problems on the site. A picture from Main St. bridge shows the works on-going on 21st November, 2021 with the culvert blocked off and pipes installed to carry any water into the river; shots from 2022 follow later on in the video. Shots 14-25, taken in March, 2022. In brighter and challenging conditions, the scene along Don St. looks much the same. I have taken the liberty of enhancing the views inside the end of the building. so that some of the internal structure can be seen, there still looks to be quire a bit of asbestos around the place, but the pigeons don't seem to mind! It was always a very imposing building, set out from a main block at the front with 4 'arms', extending back from the river, turning this into apartments would have been a very welcome addition to the area... One shot looks across the river to a new development, the 'Westgate Quarter' showing houses now replacing the once stark industrial buildings which populated the site all along here. It looks like there has been a bit of a land-slip just where the bank reinforcement stops; a salutary lesson maybe? Looks like the bank will have to be reinforced to stop further flooding issues for the properties right on the bank side! Following o n from that, shot 22 shows a view looking towards the now completed 'Holmes Tail Goit' water works, sadly, the distinctive old cast-iron bridge wall, seen in the 2021 video at the link above, 1m 2secs in from the beginning, has been removed and a new, and perfectly presentable, stone bridge put in its place; would have been nice if the old metal bridge wall had been re-used for something here...
* The next 51 shots, 26-76, show a tour around the site, starting back at the Main St. road bridge at the south end and then circulating around through the town centre and lastly coming back at the north end of the site and looking over the development from the Chantry Bridge area. The very first shot in this sequence, reveals the now completed Portcullis Lock Flood Gate, the original Rotherham Lock top gate, a standard wooden structure, is still present. The new addition does look rather graceful however, the view shows the 'Rotherham Cut', or 'Browns Lock' on the left, the tip of Forge Island at centre and the River Don at right, with its string of orange 'beads', warning of the approach to the Weir. The, now old, access road bridge stands next to the 10 year old block of flats development, the owners must have a grand view from there and wouldn't be surprised if all this new development doesn't increase the value of their properties. The next shot shows the information board on Main St. right next to the S.Y. Police Headquarters. the site now effectively closed off while work is undertaken, apart from the access road down the side of the Police H.Q. Several shots follow the first showing a round-robin view of the new Portcullis Lock gate, can't imagine it won't stand out as a go-to feature of the new development of houses, shops and cinema on the Forge Island site. Shot 31 follows which shows the view around the back of the Police H.Q. looking along Station Road where once the old Rotherham Central Station stood, long before the H.Q. was built. This would have been been the end of the station building, with the lattice footbridge seen in the first of the 'Yesteryear' shots, over at the far left. The lines are now electrified, at 750VDC, for the Sheffield Tram/Train system and the overly dominating O.H.L. equipment can be seen on the left, the Tram stop being just about where the 2nd of the O.H.L. supports can be seen. Station Road is now blocked off during the canal-side development so its a walk back passed the information board, now shown more clearly, indicating the level of flood defence work which is on-going in the Rotherham area; it will be interesting to see how all this copes when the river is in flood again, if it ever will in these days of very hot, August weather. Picture 33 in this section shows the view from the old Market Street area looking west over to the 'new' Rotherham Central Station and, at right, the old footway from the town centre over to what used to be 'Tesco Supermarket'. Tesco found a new site in the town centre after the awful 'blockhouse', the library on Nottingham Street, was demolished, not before time, along with 2 large car parks, and Tesco re-opened a much larger store there, with replacement underground car parks. Following demolition of Tesco on the Forge Island site, and other clearances, a large car park included, ready for the new redevelopment, there seemed little point in having the old footway bride across the river and, on July the 14th, just over a month ago, the bridge was removed, see-
www.rothbiz.co.uk/2022/07/news-7812-tesco-bridge-removed-...
A new, better designed footway, is planned to replace this during the course of the development work.
From the Forge Island site, the next 22 pictures, 35-56, show views whilst walking in the town, along Corporation St., parallel to the River Don/Forge Island site. The are some impressive building in Rotherham and, it has to be said, some way less impressive ones, this shot is of the former type and was the old 'Williams Deacons Bank', latterly 'Nat West' and now clearly up for rent. An impressive door arch has 'BANK' prominently shown under the arch and it certainly looks the part, the rest of the structure looks like it needs some T.L.C. Next follows some impressive views of 'Rotherham Minster' at this time under some maintenance work but even so the fine weather and blossom helped to make for a good shot. Following that, a walk and some views along Corporation St. with the access to Forge Island, at left where the purple billboards are located, now gone, but with plans to replace the bridge with something new. This is the location, just beyond the billboards, where the 69, Sheffield to Rotherham bus terminated to let off its passengers at the lower end of Corporation St around 10pm at night, and was the spot where I and my family got off after a visit to River St. and my grandparents house, in the late 1950s. This is where the almighty 'forge-hammer of the gods' rhythmically pounded, at about one crash-down per minute, not far away over behind 'L. A. Ratcliffe the Stationers' shop, at 31, Corporation St., just 200m away on the island site. In now deem 'Ratcliffe the Stationer' was situated in what is now the demolished section of buildings, the access across the river was here and that has all now gone. 'Ratcliffe's the Stationer' subsequently moved up Corporation St. to a premises, No.8, on Church St. near the bank shown earlier, I went in a few years ago to buy pen refills; it moved out of town to the Wickersley area when the 'All Saints Buildings' shopping area, to be seen in the last shots in this video, were all finally demolished a few years ago. The next shot in the sequence shows the still extant footbridge, to left of centre, between the town centre and what was the Tesco Supermarket, the latter has now gone of course and, as mentioned earlier, the bridge was removed on July 14th.
The next four shots show the billboards along Corporation St. along to the top side of the 'Wilco Supermarket' retailer and then 5 views show the scene on the other side of the road. The relative 'mess' which has existed there for a number of years, a section of the 'mess' created when a fire broke out at the 'Muskaan Indian Cuisine' restaurant on July 18th, 2011, see-
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zlkls2KQsrM
Prior to this in 2007, there was also a malicious fire which gutted the upper floor of 'Club Envy', right next door to the restaurant, see-
www.rothbiz.co.uk/2018/11/news-6023-rotherham-property-ow...
This area now appears not to be of any interest to anyone, the lower half of that side of Corporation St. having been left in a state of dereliction all that time; what a place! The five views look along Corporation St. to the bottom and Chantry Bridge on the left and the newly refurbished Bus Station on the right. The extent of the fire damage to the upper floors of the lower 3 buildings is evident and there has been no owner intervention in the ensuing years, one can't imagine that this state of affairs will be allowed to continue with the ongoing multi-million pound redevelopment going just behind the building at the other side of the road! at the other side of the road, immediately opposite the 3 fire-damaged buildings, stands one of the towns most iconic buildings, the old 'ODEON' cinema, but which opened as the 'Regal Cinema' on December 22nd, 1934, see-
cinematreasures.org/theaters/18509
This became the 'ODEON' in 1946 when it was leased to the 'Rank Organisation' chain, in 1975 it was sold by them to an Independent outfit who renamed it once more to the 'Scala Cinema'. It finally closed on 23rd September, 1983 with the last film being, 'Porky’s II': The Next Day'. It then subsequently became a Bingo Hall and renamed once more, to 'The Ritz' and late 'The Mecca'. It was put up for auction in February, 2020, for £600,000+, amazingly though it reached £590,000 and failed to sell. A year or so later, with the threat of demolition, it became Grade II listed in November, 2021 and, as these two shots of it on lower Corporation St., next to Chantry Bridge, it thankfully still stands. Its 'rising organ'! was sold separately and is currently under refurbishment with the 'East Midlands Cinema Organ Association'.
The 'ODEON' of course was named such after 'Oscar Deutsch', a British businessman who founded the 'Odeon Cinemas' in 1928 and was the son of a successful Hungarian, Jewish scrap metal merchant, Leopold Deutsch. see-
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Deutsch
Oscar Deutsch was blown out of bed when a bomb landed on his house in 1941 and later that year, died of Cancer; his wife subsequently sold 'Odeon Cinemas' to the 'Rank Organisation'.
* The next 5 pictures, 52-56, show views of the Chantry Bridge area, at the north-end of the Forge Island redevelopment site. Some information related to this age-old structure-
'... 'Rotherham Bridge' crosses the River Don in central Rotherham, South Yorkshire. It is known for its bridge chapel, considered the best preserved in England. A document of 1385 refers to Bridgegate in the town, which implies that a previous bridge existed on the same site. The road it carries was originally the main route from London to Richmond. The current bridge was erected by 1483, when the Chapel of Our Lady of Rotherham Bridge was added. It is of ashlar sandstone and is built on three piers, each with a cutwater. John Leland, writing around 1540, described a "fair Stone Bridge of 4 arches" and "a Chapel of Stone well wrought". The chapel was dissolved in 1547 and converted into first an almshouse, then the town gaol and finally a shop. The bridge was altered in 1768–69 by John Platt, working for John Carr of York, but was restored to its original dimensions by Reginald Blomfield in 1927, when Chantry Bridge was built alongside. The chapel was restored at the same time. Chantry Bridge is Grade I listed and is a Scheduled Ancient Monument...'
At the other side of the river from the chapel and in similar style, is 'The Bridge Inn', some information related to this almost equally age-old structure-
'... Formerly 'Nellie Denes'. Recently internally restyled in a Goth decor. The original home of Rotherham CAMRA, the pub reverted to its original name after a spell as Nellie Denes. It is an Old Mill tied house, originally built for the Mappin Brewery, opposite, in 1930 using stone from the original Bridge Inn, which dated back to the 1700s. up to four real ales from Old Mill are on the bar. There is live music most Friday and Saturday evenings with open mic on Thursday evenings. Upstairs, two function rooms are used. The nearby Chantry Bridge has one of only three Bridge Chapels still existing. There is a wall mural by Phil Padfield in the outside yard area that was done for the 125th anniversary of Arthur Wharton's signing for Rotherham Town FC. Arthur was the first professional black player in the UK.
Historic Interest. Originally built for the Mappin Brewery, opposite, in 1930 using stone from the original Bridge Inn, which dated back to the 1700s...'
* The next 10 shots, 57-66, shows views from the north-end of the site looking over the development and the large expanse of land which constitutes Forge Island now that all the peripheral buildings have been swept away and the site cleared. The extent and size of the metal flood barrier walls can now be seen, in several places there being water-tight gates, which will be closed in times of flood, presumably with the occupants having left the area or, holding tight in their properties.. The block of flats on Market St. are in the background at left with the S.Y. Police Headquarters at centre and Rotherham Central Station at right, next to the canal. The 3rd & 4th in this set show the view towards the new Portcullis Lock gate on the right and the rear of the ex-'ODEON' cinema on the left, with 'Rotherham Minster' just to its right. The next shot shows a canal boat, 'Cool Jazz', moored in the distance at right and, just to its left, the old exit of the 'Rotherham Cut' can be seen, this was where the canal formation was once situated but it was diverted away at Ickles Lock by the M.S.L. so they could use the canal bed for the railway formation which appears at right. A lengthy, updated, description of all this can be found here-
www.flickr.com/photos/vinc2020/51902949333/
Pictures 7 and 8 in this section show 2 area near both the station and canal, the 1st is the old, now gated off, access along the canal to Aldwarke and beyond, the owner of the old canal-side building, subject to some controversy regarding the legality of shutting off a public access way... The second picture shows an old S&R, 'Sheffield & Rotherham Railway', commemorative plaque made of stone and was originally at Westgate Station, see-
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotherham_Westgate_railway_station
Rotherham's very first station. One of the local councillors rescued it from where it had been moved, Boston Castle, after Westgate Station closed on 4th October, 1952. It was then placed in museum storage in the mid-1990s and had been there until the new Rotherham Central Station was refurbished a few years ago at which time, it was re-located here. The commemorative plaque needs to have some 'gardening' done around it and a more visible space cleared so that folk can see the stone more clearly, it is after all, around 180 years old, and needs a bit more 'reverence' than what is being given to it at the moment, it ought to be on a plinth, at the very least. The last two of this sequence of shots shows the view along the canal with the boat, 'Cool Jazz', moored near the old canal exit in the 1st of the two, with the headroom of the old canal now much reduced by contemporary building. The 'new' canal formation is seen next looking up into 'Brown's Lock', Rotherham Lock, with the lower gates closed and beyond, the new Portcullis Flood Gate, the old upper gates are also closed; the micro-wave tower in the background, above the lock gates, is situated in Boston Castle.
* The last 10 shots, 67-76, show views walking back from the north end to the south through the town centre once more. The first view shows the style of old metal-sided bridge over the canal and is reminiscent of the side of the old bridge over the exit from 'Holmes Tail Goit', that bridge recently replaced. The canal-side warehouse, latterly a pine furniture shop, stands at left, and is now a private residence. 'The Bridge Inn', with George St. on the left and the access to the town's multi-storey car park, whilst on the right, the back of the town centre shopping area. The third shot has a 'remarkable', not, piece of sculpture on view, visible in the left corner, which was designed at Rotherham Art School in the late 1960's and placed there, and representative of I know not what!! The building behind it used the be the Millgate Steak House and have to confess to going in there on one notable occasion in around 1970 or 1971! Although the Steak House has been closed for a long while, the metal, rotating, well, it used too, sculpture has survived but looks a bit of a mess... All Saints Parish Church stands on the right amid the March verdure. Looking back up Corporation St. in the next shote, and as mentioned earlier, the large 'All Saints Buildings' shopping area on the left was demolished in 2009 a while leaving just the separate section, visible at centre, still standing and home to several flourishing businesses. The old, and impressive, Talbot Lane Methodist Church can be seen in the background, now, partly 're-purposed' but still open to visitors. A better view of the upper part of Corporation St. shows the new businesses, in the top section of 'All Saints Buildings' with their distinctive green finishes and refurbished windows. The grey building poking out from the right in the background, was one of the other cinemas in Rotherham, 'The Essoldo', then renamed 'The Cannon", see-
cinematreasures.org/theaters/18508
It is now split as a nightclub and a snooker club. Opposite 'All Saints Buildings' on the right and another fine building, is the old 'Co-Operative Store' building, now with multi-purpose usage. Turning off to the right here, coming off Corporation St. and walking back along Market St. next to the River Don over-looking the Forge Island site, the last 5 views show the redevelopment work on-going to also re-purpose much of the fine old buildings between Domine Lane going off left and Main St. at the other side of the buildings on the right. A piece of work by the artist, "Jo Peel' is at right and thankfully it appears to be surviving the current changes occuring all around it. The last views look up Main St. to Westgate and standing on the right, the old Y.E.B., 'Yorkshire Electricity Board' building with its 'USE ELECTRIC' neon sign under the arch at the top, once faintly visible, now not showing at all; 'Revolution', the club, appears to have usurped its place. The upper parts of all the buildings on the left are now under redevelopment as housing, this now being part of the 'Westgate Quarter' whilst the ground floor are all business; the far left one having once been the old G.P.O., General Post Office'. The space to the right, out-of-shot, is now a Postal Sorting office but was once the 'Rabbit Hutch', as Rotherham Westgate Station was once know as. It was the most convenient and central of the 3 Rotherham stations, Westgate, Masbrough & Central, but Westgate never developed into a serious looking building, its original wooden structures surviving until final closure in 1952. The scaffolding seen on the left at the top of Main St. is where the Rotherham Co-operative used to be and as the last shot in the video shows, my Mother's 'divi', 'Dividend Number' was 14097 and in those days, it was a very respectable periodic payout.. As the last two shots show the whole area is now at last looking rather better than it has for a number of years, with businesses coming and going and changing the shop fronts and little happening on the upper two floors apart from the odd 'club' or bar type usage, which soon disappeared along with other attempts to make good use of the space; this all seems to be changing with the push coming from, what looks to be a new era brought on by the new multi-million pound, 'Forge Island Development'...
State of the Vatican City, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, the capital city of Italy. It has an area of approximately 44 hectares (110 acres) (0.44 km2), and a population of just over 800.[5][12]
Vatican City is a city-state that came into existence in 1929. It is distinct from the Holy See, which dates back to early Christianity and is the main episcopal see of 1.147 billion Latin and Eastern Catholic adherents around the globe. Ordinances of Vatican City are published in Italian; official documents of the Holy See are issued mainly in Latin. The two entities even have distinct passports: the Holy See, not being a country, only issues diplomatic and service passports; the state of Vatican City issues normal passports. In both cases the passports issued are very few.
The Lateran Treaty in 1929, which brought the city-state into existence, spoke of it as a new creation (Preamble and Article III), not as a vestige of the much larger Papal States (756-1870) that had previously encompassed central Italy. Most of this territory was absorbed into the Kingdom of Italy in 1860, and the final portion, namely the city of Rome with a small area close to it, ten years later, in 1870.
Vatican City is an ecclesiastical or sacerdotal-monarchical state, ruled by the bishop of Rome—the Pope. The highest state functionaries are all Catholic clergymen of various nationalities. It is the sovereign territory of the Holy See (Sancta Sedes) and the location of the Pope's residence, referred to as the Apostolic Palace.
The Popes have resided in the area that in 1929 became Vatican City since the return from Avignon in 1377. Previously, they resided in the Lateran Palace on the Caelian Hill on the opposite side of Rome, which site Constantine gave to Pope Miltiades in 313. The signing of the agreements that established the new state took place in the latter building, giving rise to the name of Lateran Pacts, by which they are known.
The name "Vatican" is ancient and predates Christianity, coming from the Latin Mons Vaticanus, meaning Vatican Mount. The territory of Vatican City is part of the Mons Vaticanus, and of the adjacent former Vatican Fields where St. Peter's Basilica, the Apostolic Palace, the Sistine Chapel, and museums were built, along with various other buildings. The area was part of the Roman rione of Borgo until 1929. Being separated from the city, on the west bank of the Tiber river, the area was an outcrop of the city that was protected by being included within the walls of Leo IV (847–55), and later expanded by the current fortification walls, built under Paul III (1534–49), Pius IV (1559–65) and Urban VIII (1623–44). When the Lateran Treaty of 1929 that gave the state its present form was being prepared, the boundaries of the proposed territory were influenced by the fact that much of it was all but enclosed by this loop. For some tracts of the frontier, there was no wall, but the line of certain buildings supplied part of the boundary, and for a small part of the frontier a modern wall was constructed. The territory includes St. Peter's Square, distinguished from the territory of Italy only by a white line along the limit of the square, where it touches Piazza Pio XII. St. Peter's Square is reached through the Via della Conciliazione which runs from the Tiber River to St. Peter's. This grand approach was constructed by Benito Mussolini after the conclusion of the Lateran Treaty.
According to the Lateran Treaty, certain properties of the Holy See that are located in Italian territory, most notably Castel Gandolfo and the major basilicas, enjoy extraterritorial status similar to that of foreign embassies. These properties, scattered all over Rome and Italy, house essential offices and institutions necessary to the character and mission of the Holy See.
Castel Gandolfo and the named basilicas are patrolled internally by police agents of Vatican City State and not by Italian police. St. Peter's Square is ordinarily policed jointly by both.
In this originally uninhabited area (the ager vaticanus) on the opposite side of the Tiber from the city of Rome, Agrippina the Elder (14 BC – 18 October AD 33) drained the hill and environs and built her gardens in the early 1st century AD. Emperor Caligula (37-41) started construction of a circus (AD 40) that was later completed by Nero, the Circus Gaii et Neronis, usually called, simply, the Circus of Nero. The Vatican obelisk was originally taken by Caligula from Heliopolis, Egypt to decorate the spina of his circus and is thus its last visible remnant. This area became the site of martyrdom of many Christians after the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64. Ancient tradition holds that it was in this circus that Saint Peter was crucified upside down. Opposite the circus was a cemetery separated by the Via Cornelia. Funeral monuments and mausoleums and small tombs as well as altars to pagan gods of all kinds of polytheistic religions were constructed lasting until before the construction of the Constantinian Basilica of St. Peter's in the first half of the 4th century. Remains of this ancient necropolis were brought to light sporadically during renovations by various popes throughout the centuries increasing in frequency during the Renaissance until it was systematically excavated by orders of Pope Pius XII from 1939 to 1941.
In 326, the first church, the Constantinian basilica, was built over the site that early Roman Catholic apologists (from the first century on) as well as noted Italian archaeologists argue was the tomb of Saint Peter, buried in a common cemetery on the spot. From then on the area started to become more populated, but mostly only by dwelling houses connected with the activity of St. Peter's. A palace was constructed near the site of the basilica as early as the 5th century during the pontificate of Pope Symmachus (reigned 498–514)
Popes in their secular role gradually came to govern neighbouring regions and, through the Papal States, ruled a large portion of the Italian peninsula for more than a thousand years until the mid 19th century, when all of the territory of the Papal States was seized by the newly created Kingdom of Italy. For much of this time the Vatican was not the habitual residence of the Popes, but rather the Lateran Palace, and in recent centuries, the Quirinal Palace, while the residence from 1309–77 was at Avignon in France.
In 1870, the Pope's holdings were left in an uncertain situation when Rome itself was annexed by the Piedmont-led forces which had united the rest of Italy, after a nominal resistance by the papal forces. Between 1861 and 1929 the status of the Pope was referred to as the "Roman Question". They were undisturbed in their palace, and given certain recognitions by the Law of Guarantees, including the right to send and receive ambassadors. But they did not recognize the Italian king's right to rule in Rome, and they refused to leave the Vatican compound until the dispute was resolved in 1929. Other states continued to maintain international recognition of the Holy See as a sovereign entity. In practice Italy made no attempt to interfere with the Holy See within the Vatican walls. However, they confiscated church property in many other places, including, perhaps most notably, the Quirinal Palace, formerly the pope's official residence. Pope Pius IX (1846–78), the last ruler of the Papal States, claimed that after Rome was annexed he was a "Prisoner in the Vatican". This situation was resolved on 11 February 1929 between the Holy See and the Kingdom of Italy.
The treaty was signed by Benito Mussolini on behalf of King Victor Emmanuel III and by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Gasparri for Pope Pius XI. The Lateran Treaty and the Concordat established the independent State of the Vatican City and granted Roman Catholicism special status in Italy. In 1984, a new concordat between the Holy See and Italy modified certain provisions of the earlier treaty, including the position of Roman Catholicism as the Italian state religion.
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Nikon D5100 50mm f/1.2 Manual Focus Lens.
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Nikon D5100 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom
Please respect copyright! All images are protected under UK copyright law and the Berne international copyright convention and are visibly and/or invisibly watermarked. No images are within the public domain. images may not be reproduced, copied, used or altered in any way, by any method, without written permission
* Preamble...
Its been a long time a-coming both in terms of venue and posting any pictures here, the last ones, taken during the first of 4 weekend possessions at Dore & Totley Station, were a month ago. And, in that ensuing month, we moved home and have had to temporarily decamp to the east coast pending the property being finished.. a rather large, and expensive, disturbance...
Anyway, enough of that, I am currently on with 3 pieces for up-loading to Flickr, the 1st, in an advanced stage, is a video piece related to the on-going development at the Forge Island site in the centre of Rotherham, a 'Then & Now' piece related to the N.E.R. line here in Bridlington, but both these have been put on hold for the steam event which took place last Thursday, in Scarborough. This was the 2nd of only 3 runs of the well known 'Scarborough Spa Express' and had 'Galatea' been on the charter again, I may well have not bothered as I have shots of this loco there for a year or two ago. In this 2nd of only 3 runs by W.C.R.C from Carnforth, ex-L.M.S. class 7P 'Scots Guardsman' was in charge of the run over from the west, and in very wine weather, looked very good indeed, alas that self-same fine weather meant, not much in the way of any steam.
First off, some examples of the local passenger traction, in the form of class 170s, a 158 and 3 class 68s, the latter in York of course as these don't run south on the N.E.R.'S 'Hull & Scarborough Line' through Bridlington.The first of 2 sets of 3 shots show, at far left, the train arriving to whisk me away northwards to the old Spa town of Scarborough, a Northern Rail class 170, 170477 on the 1W41, Sheffield, via reversal at Hull, to Scarborough service, slowing to pick up quite a crowd also heading for the same place. The train was crowded and noisy but I still managed to get a window seat whilst almost everyone else were either in the 'hung-head' pose, looking at their phones, or eating and drinking and talking and having a rather good time! The 'green tunnel', which is what it feels like, out of Bridlington Station at this time of year, persists quite a way north until the view opens out to the open spaces of farmland and 4 'wayside stations', Bempton, Hunmanby, Filey and Seamer before terminating in Scarborough. Two are waiting for the impending arrival on platform 4, platforms 1, 2 & 3 having long ago been removed and the land given over to a small housing estate at the other side of the wall. On arrival at Scarborough onto platform 4, one can't help but notice the presence of T.P.E. with their class 68 locos, the one in the centre, on platform 3, being the D.V.T., 'Driving Van Trailer' end of the train, with power car 68030, 'Black Douglas', at the front; the train will depart shortly, with the D.V.T leading, at 12:34 on the 1F66, Scarborough to York service. The right-hand picture shows the just arrived Northern service, 1W41, the one I came in on, on platform 4 with the power car of a T.P.E. unit, 68030, 'Black Douglas', ready for departure, next to it. Some extensive roof work is on-going at the station over platforms 3, 4 and, at far left, platform. Parked next to 68030, a class 170, 170477, the unit I came in on from the Sheffield, Hull and Bridlington direction, the hourly service to here, this one 1W41.
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
STEREOSCOPIC PHOTOGRAPHS: "DER KAMPF IM WESTEN"
Illustrated German propaganda book and 3-D viewer with 100 images, Der Kampf im Westen, (Otto Schonstein: Munich), 1940. A 70pp. 4to. hardbound propaganda piece aimed at honoring the victorious Wehrmacht which had recently completed the utter destruction of the French army and had forced the British to flee via Dunkirk as it swept through Belgium to Paris. With 100 stereoscopic photos of Hitler and Goring at Versailles, Dunkirk, destroyed towns and villages, coastal and field artillery, tanks, surrendered arms, blasted vehicles, etc. which one may view through the metal collapsible pair of stereoscopic slide viewers provided.
From Wikipedia
When Adolf Hitler received word from the French government that they wished to negotiate an armistice, Hitler selected Compiègne Forest as the site for the negotiations. As Compiègne was the site of the 1918 Armistice ending the Great War with Germany's conflict cessation, Hitler used this place as a supreme moment of revenge for Germany over France. Hitler decided that the signing should take place in the same rail carriage, the Compiègne Wagon, where the Germans had signed the 1918 armistice. However, in the last sentence of the preamble, the drafters inserted "However, Germany does not have the intention to use the armistice conditions and armistice negotiations as a form of humiliation against such a valiant opponent", referring to the French forces. Furthermore, in Article 3, Clause 2, the drafters stated that their intention was not to heavily occupy North-West France after the cessation of hostilities with Britain.
William Shirer, who was present on that day, reports, "I am but fifty yards from him. […] I have seen that face many times at the great moments of his life. But today! It is afire with scorn, anger, hate, revenge, triumph."[2] Then, in the same railway carriage in which the 1918 Armistice had been signed (removed from a museum building and placed exactly where it was in 1918), on 21 June 1940, Hitler sat in the same chair in which Marshal Ferdinand Foch had sat when he faced the representatives of the defeated German Empire. After listening to the reading of the preamble, Hitler – in a calculated gesture of disdain for the French delegates – left the carriage, as Foch had done in 1918, leaving the negotiations to his Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (High Command of the Armed Forces) Chief, General Wilhelm Keitel. Then negotiations lasted one day, until the evening of 22 June 1940: General Huntzinger had to discuss the terms by phone with the French government representatives who had fled to Bordeaux, mainly with the newly nominated defence minister, General Maxime Weygand.
Title Lobby Card & Lobby Card (11" X 14")
Starring Anthony Hall, Joyce Taylor, John Dall, Bill Smith, Edward Platt, and Frank DeKova. Directed by George Pal.
youtu.be/zDCWnvBk-DI?t=9s Trailer
Some films just barely qualify for inclusion on sci-fi movie lists. George Pal's Atlantis, The Lost Continent is clearly one of them. It is 90% sword-and-sandal fantasy adventure flick. A casual viewer could easily miss the few sci-fi bits. Pal and MGM put on a grand show, though the result doesn't achieve greatness. The pretty-but-wooden acting by the leads did not help. Pal's Atlantis does, at least, steer the movie tradition back in line with the Greek legends.
Synopsis
Following some intriguing preamble about why the old world and new had similarities, the movie begins. Greek fisherman Demetrios discovers an unconscious woman floating on a raft. She turns out to be Princess Antillia of Atlantis. She demands to be taken back home. En route, she falls in love with Demetrios. They met by a fish-shaped submarine which takes them to Atlantis. Once there, Demetrios is imprisoned in the mines by Zaren, Antillia's pre-fiancee and aspirant to the throne. Demetrios, thinking that Antillia betrayed him, is miffed. His miffdom brings out her surly side and the two fail to reconcile. Zaren thinks to get rid of Demetrios with a gladiatorial fight, but Demetrios wins and is free. Zaren is using the slaves to mine a huge solar crystal which will power a heat beam weapon. With it, he plans to rule the world. Azor, the high priest, warns Demetrios that the one true God is angry at Atlantis for their cruelty and idolatry. Amid much palace intrigue and a slave revolt, the end does come. The volcano erupts, sending lava flows into the city. Earthquakes crumble the classic architecture. Demetrios and Antillia find each other and flee to a waiting boat. Zaren is about to roast them with the heat beam, but is stabbed by Azor. While Demetrios, Antillia and other refugees watch from their boats, Atlantis does in fact, sink into the sea. The End.
Pal's production has an impressive epic quality to it. The sets are luxurious with details. For a sci-fi fan, the fish-sub and crystal heat beam are high points. Hearing Paul Frees do narration and some voice-overs is fun too.
Note that the solar crystals can be used for either heating and lighting homes, or as a destructive weapon. Sounds like nuclear power. Zaren and his regime are a model of despotism. They plan to attack peaceful nations on the presumption of preventing an attack. Nationalist paranoia.
1961 was a year for Nemo revivals. Robur, in Master of the World was a Nemo-type. The cool fish-shaped submarine in Atlantis was very reminiscent of Nemo's Nautilus. Later in the year, Mysterious Island will revive the character of Nemo himself and Nautilus.
It was a hallmark of Pal's productions, that his Christian faith would enter the story somewhere. After his long career, Pal was feeling less subtle. He has Azor, perhaps on the model of Melchizedek, come to believe in "the one true God," and not all the usual Atlantean idols. Azor gives Antillia the gospel and later pronounces that God will judge (destroy) Atlantis for their wickedness and wantonness. All this brings an air of Biblical epic flavor to his movie (as in The Ten Commandments, etc.
George Pal produced and directed several big sci-fi movies, When Worlds Collide ('51), War of the Worlds ('53), Conquest of Space ('55) and Time Machine ('60). The screenwriter, David Mainwaring, wrote for the classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers (’56)
In a dark take-off of a trope from Pinocchio, the sinister chemists of Atlantis are turning slaves into bull-men, complete with snouts, ears and horns. The motive is apparently a strong-like-bull labor force who don't question commands. While not explored much within the script, such tampering is yet another reason for God's justice upon Atlantis.
Previous films about "Atlantis" had the place far from any ocean. Pierre Benoit's novel had been made into several films. L'Atlantide, 1921, Queen of Atlantis 1932, and Siren of Atlantis 1949. All of these used Benoit's notion that Atlantis was actually a city under the sands of the Sahara desert. The '32 film starred Bridgette Helm (from Metropolis as Antinea, Queen of Atlantis. In 1961, Edgar Ulmer directed yet another remake of Benoit's novel, using the earlier title, L'Atlantide. At least in Pal's version, Atlantis bore a closer resemblance to the ancient Greek legends. There was water.
Bottom line? Unless you happen to like sword-and-sandal movies, Atlantis will likely disappoint a sci-fi fan fond of rockets or saucers or aliens. There is precious little for the usual sci-fi fan beyond the cool sub (which only gets a few minutes of screen time) and the crystal heat beam. It has an historical niche, however.
Papua New Guinea (PNG; Tok Pisin: Papua Niugini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands (the western portion of the island is a part of the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua). It is located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, in a region defined since the early 19th century as Melanesia. The capital is Port Moresby.
Papua New Guinea is one of the most culturally diverse countries on Earth. According to recent data, 841 different languages are listed for the country, although 11 of these have no known living speakers. . (A detailed series of language maps of Papua New Guinea may be found at Ethnologue) There may be at least as many traditional societies,out of a population of about 6.2 million. It is also one of the most rural, as only 18% of its people live in urban centres. The country is one of the world's least explored, culturally and geographically, and many undiscovered species of plants and animals are thought to exist in the interior of Papua New Guinea.
The majority of the population live in traditional societies and practise subsistence-based agriculture. These societies and clans have some explicit acknowledgement within the nation's constitutional framework. The PNG Constitution (Preamble 5(4)) expresses the wish for "traditional villages and communities to remain as viable units of Papua New Guinean society",and for active steps to be taken in their preservation.
After being ruled by three external powers since 1884, Papua New Guinea gained its independence from Australia in 1975. It remains a Commonwealth realm of Her Majesty Elizabeth II, Queen of Papua New Guinea. Many people live in extreme poverty, with about one third of the population living on less than US$1.25 per day
CBS war correspondent William L. Shirer in Compiegne, France, reporting on the signing of the armistice between Germany and France on June 22, 1940. The building in the background enshrines the railroad car in which Marshal Foch accepted the German request for an armistice ending WWI on November 11, 1918.
“Der Kampf im Westen”;Bild-Nr. 98;Die Auslandspresse in Compiegne. Im Hintergrund die Halle, in der der Wagen Fochs stand;PK-Aufnahme: Kriegsberichter Jager;Oberkommando der Wehrmacht;Raumbild-Verlag Otto Schonstein K. G. Munchen 23; Alle Rechte vorbehalten
STEREOSCOPIC PHOTOGRAPHS: "DER KAMPF IM WESTEN"
Illustrated German propaganda book and 3-D viewer with 100 images, Der Kampf im Westen, (Otto Schonstein: Munich), 1940. A 70pp. 4to. hardbound propaganda piece aimed at honoring the victorious Wehrmacht which had recently completed the utter destruction of the French army and had forced the British to flee via Dunkirk as it swept through Belgium to Paris. With 100 stereoscopic photos of Hitler and Goring at Versailles, Dunkirk, destroyed towns and villages, coastal and field artillery, tanks, surrendered arms, blasted vehicles, etc. which one may view through the metal collapsible pair of stereoscopic slide viewers provided.
From Wikipedia
When Adolf Hitler received word from the French government that they wished to negotiate an armistice, Hitler selected Compiègne Forest as the site for the negotiations. As Compiègne was the site of the 1918 Armistice ending the Great War with Germany's conflict cessation, Hitler used this place as a supreme moment of revenge for Germany over France. Hitler decided that the signing should take place in the same rail carriage, the Compiègne Wagon, where the Germans had signed the 1918 armistice. However, in the last sentence of the preamble, the drafters inserted "However, Germany does not have the intention to use the armistice conditions and armistice negotiations as a form of humiliation against such a valiant opponent", referring to the French forces. Furthermore, in Article 3, Clause 2, the drafters stated that their intention was not to heavily occupy North-West France after the cessation of hostilities with Britain.
William Shirer, who was present on that day, reports, "I am but fifty yards from him. […] I have seen that face many times at the great moments of his life. But today! It is afire with scorn, anger, hate, revenge, triumph."[2] Then, in the same railway carriage in which the 1918 Armistice had been signed (removed from a museum building and placed exactly where it was in 1918), on 21 June 1940, Hitler sat in the same chair in which Marshal Ferdinand Foch had sat when he faced the representatives of the defeated German Empire. After listening to the reading of the preamble, Hitler – in a calculated gesture of disdain for the French delegates – left the carriage, as Foch had done in 1918, leaving the negotiations to his Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (High Command of the Armed Forces) Chief, General Wilhelm Keitel. Then negotiations lasted one day, until the evening of 22 June 1940: General Huntzinger had to discuss the terms by phone with the French government representatives who had fled to Bordeaux, mainly with the newly nominated defence minister, General Maxime Weygand.
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
* The second in a series of 'look-back' mosaics using pictures recently made available to me from Adrian Wynn's archive.
Regarding Adrian Wynn's picture collection.
--------------------------------------------
22/2/23
Note: I am currently seeking the higher resolution material from Adrian's photographic collection, both negative and digital. His partner, Annie, has offered to let me use them as I wish, and I hope she is able to find this material in Adrian's extensive collection.
26/2/23
This has now occurred and I have both her permission to use original PSD files and negatives and so I have therefore up-dated the mosaic material here, with the higher resolution originals. Our meeting also resulted in my both getting some of Adrian's collected negatives and his digital camera files, from over the last 40 & 20 years respectively, and agreement to use them with due credit to him, which is what I always do here of course.
---------
* Preamble
This second in the series of 'A Window on the Past' looks at the area of the Masbrough Station site, in the left two pictures around 50 years ago before the station was finally closed and the building subsequently sold. The infra-structure on the platforms was all demolished which, very fortunately, features in the lower of the two historic pictures shown here and by 1987 Rotherham's only station was changed from Masbrough to Central, the old Central station having also been demolished after its closure in the late 1960s. This meant a new station had to be built, and in doing so, it was moved about half a mile north of the old one, making it more accessible to the town centre and the nearby bus station. To permit access to and from the Sheffield Lines a new, single line, chord was built from Holmes Junction, using the old track-bed of the Masbrough South Curve, the new curve now deviating away from the original path to Masbrough South Junction and instead, the curve joined the G.C.R. lines from Woodburn Junction, near the River Don at New York. And this is how it has remained ever since, Rotherham Central was upgraded twice after its initial construction, the first time to bring it up-to-date after its initial opening in 1987 and latterly in recent years, to accommodate the new Sheffield Tram/Train system, new low-level platforms being installed at the south end of the station; it is now a very much different place, to the old Rotherham Central of G.C.R. days, when it stood at both sides of the Main Street bridge.
This set of 2 pairs of shots shows, as well as I was able to do, contemporary pictures of my own, taken on 18th October, 2012, at upper right and 14th July, 2018, at lower right. I have repeatedly tried to obtain up-to-date comparisons with the 1970/8s shots provided by Adrian's negatives, at left. But, times have changed and what was once a frequent use of the Sheffield passenger lines on the left, is now much reduced with the bulk of freight on the North Midland's Barrow Hill lines, the 'Old Road', over on the right. Scanning back through my archives from the last 12 years, revealed only about 20 suitable candidates, freight & special moves, for the Sheffield lines on the left and of those, only 5 with the same view-point, as shown in the left pictures.
At upper left, at a 'Rotherham Masbrough' station as it was then known, still in tact and operating as normal, just look at the barrows over on platform 4 full of parcel bags awaiting collection to go south on the Barrow Hill line, to Derby and beyond. Whilst over on the far left, at the back of the station, the goods line which took moves north onto the main lines beyond the station. Whilst to the left of that line is the line into the 'Midland Iron Works' with its white painted access gate and exit semaphore, the gate actually still being there, though in need of re-painting! Apart from the loco driver who isn't visible in the cab of the approaching class 40, is the only railwayman in the picture and can be seen walking along the down goods line in the lower left corner of the picture; no hi-vis or other safety gear, just wearing his duffel coat and a cap. The single line into and out of the 'Midland Iron Works' allowed goods trains to move south into the Holmes West Sidings, at the other side of Coronation Bridge. From there these moves could be marshalled/shunted and then head-off to their destination back north along the down goods line at the back of the station and onto the down fast at Masbrough North Junction; there doesn't appear to have been any access from the Holmes West Sidings, south towards Sheffield. The class of loco approaching looks to be of class 40 type with separate 'headcode blinds', this one reading 8E10, and is clearly, well almost, hauling a short rake of old mineral type wooden-bodied wagons from the north. I have no idea what the 8E10 working would be though the '8'(formerly H) signified 'through freight or ballast trains not running under C, D, E or F conditions', the 'E' signified Eastern Region and the '10' would be the exact diagram on which the train was running. There are 6 fire buckets on the central platform between the two pairs of lines, a 'water crane' at this end of the central and a splitting main signal for the south-bound passenger line along platform 2 next to the water crane. This signal shows that the south bound Barrow Hill line has higher priority than the Sheffield line, the respective signal being higher on the post and both signals are also showing the respective lines are 'track-circuited', hence the 'white diamond' panels below the semaphore arms. I suspect that the signal on the white post just beyond the water-crane is a sign of things to come, this looks like the back of a colour light signal with direction 'feather' for the Sheffield line and this signal replaced one on the left which was close to the white replay box on platform 1, the signal similar to the ones on the goods lines on the right; already the future order beckons. A full barrow crossing completes the central area platform view. Towering over the scene at upper right, the very dour looking 'St John's Church' rising above the railway formation and its 'blackness' dominating the scene here for many years, see-
discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/c4f4632d-e9f5...
and
www.rotherham-images.co.uk/rotherham%20then.now%20547.jpg
What a wonderful vista this is, much to enjoy and remember pity the quality of the negative wasn't a bit better but I have done my best in the restoration process, thankfully Ade saw this for sale on eBay and bought it, what a find. Unfortunately, the wonderful array of double semaphores at the south end of the station are just out of the photograph at the bottom...
My comparison picture over on the right, matches the scene quite well and the stark changes are obvious though, as will be seen by taking a glance at the lower left shot, these changes started to happen only 10 or 15 years after the upper left photograph was taken. The only shot I had which really matched the aspect of the B/W picture was taken just over 10 years ago on 18th October, 2012, and shows E.W.S. class 66, 66115, on the 6M96, Drax Power Station to Tunstead Sidings empty aggregates working. The station 'goods line is still extant but overgrown but at that time, still connected at both ends, the station platform buildings and over-bridge have long gone, see lower left picture, the station awnings have gone over on the right. All the station semaphore signalling has also gone of course and there are now only 3 colour lights at the north end, S0421, S0423 & S0425, only the latter two now serving their proper function for north bound workings off the Sheffield line and 'Old Road', respectively; S0421 is lit red, but at the end of the goods line it now serves no useful purpose, interestingly, the goods line is now disconnected but the signal is still there, and lit red!
At lower left, the next from the collection, and shows class 37 heading north, the view now taken looking south along the down fast line towards Sheffield. There's a Rotherham Corporation double-decker bus making its way over Coronation Bridge towards the junction of Ferham and Kimberworth Road to the right and one of the lighting stands at the Rotherham United Football Club at Millmoor, stands over in the left background. What draws the attention most of course, apart from the loco and its train, is the state of the station infrastructure, the demolition process having already begun means the station was closed a while ago, 3rd October 1988 in fact, with the demolition starting in the early 1990s, so I suspect this photograph was taken at about that time. What is also evident is the fact that the two pairs of lines, the Sheffield ones to the right and the 'Old Road' goods lines to the left, have now been disconnected so there is no crossing over of trains from one set of lines to the other. The large Midland Masbrough Station South Box was closed in 1980 and the structure demolished at that time, so before this picture was taken. The class 37 is leading a train along the Sheffield lines and this may well be an aggregates working from the Hope Valley or Peak Forest, and these still run today, in fact one from Peak Forest to Selby ran this afternoon but I was unfortunately otherwise engaged so couldn't get out to take a shot of it.. The station now has only a limited time left so this is an excellent capture and the only one I have seen showing the actual demolition in progress. By 1987 Rotherham's passenger station had moved from here, to a newly built structure on the G.C.R.'s line from Woodburn Junction to Mexborough, Rotherham Central Station, the name of the old now demolished one, was re-used but the site was shifted about 500m to the north next to College Road. To enable passenger trains to use that line, a chord was built using the track-bed of the old Masbrough South Curve, connecting the Midland Main Lines passing through Holmes Junction, just west of Masbrough Station, to a junction just outside Rotherham near the R.U.F.C football ground at New York. What a sorry state the once great Masbrough Station looks, there are no workers there on the day this picture was taken so the place looks even more forlorn, maybe it was a Saturday. All the brickwork of the station has been demolished and all that remains is the metalwork and awnings, the pedestrian, covered, footbridge just being a skeleton of its former self; and to think I once crossed that bridge around a dozen times in the late 1960s and early 1970s... The station lighting, once belonging to Sheffield Midland and re-used here I believe, does not appear to have 'Masbrough' displayed on the fittings... The station goods line over on the right appears in good order but by this time, its unlikely that its ever used, and around this time, the land which the Holmes West Sidings occupied, just around the corner, where the goods line commenced, had been sold off for housing, leaving only this single line passing into the area.. it is now disconnected at both ends and very overgrown. In a few years, the existing station red-brick building over on the left will be sold off, in the early 2000s, and will be re-developed into the 'Oriental Express - Asian Cuisine' restaurant, as it still is today.
Once again, my comparison picture over on the right, matches the scene quite well but the stark changes are once again obvious with just the separated double track sections all that is now left. As this is now a July shot, the goods line at the back of the station on the right, is full of vegetation growth though, interestingly, this whole section of line was cleared out recently from the north side of the bridge, all along to the Holmes West Sidings which were also cleared, this is partially visible here-
www.flickr.com/photos/vinc2020/51177097464/
over on the left, this shot taken in October 2020, about a year after it was all cleared, then abandoned. On this bright, warm July morning in 2018, a complete contrast in traction type to that seen in the corresponding 1970s picture over on the left, this time its the Network Rail 'Yellow Banana', H.S.T. Test Train set. Operated by Colas Rail on behalf of N.R., on that day it was class 43s 43062, 'John Armitt' at the front and at the rear, 43013, on the regular running, at that time, 1Q34, Derby RTC to Hull working with coaches, 975984, 977994, 977993, 975814 and 977984, the 'MENTOR', ''Mobile Electrical Network Testing, Observation and Recording' coach set. Since the complete removal of all vegetation took place in 2016 in the piece of land between the two sets of tracks over the other side of Coronation Bridge, a new Birch Tree forest has yet again sprung up, as may be seen, and very shortly after this picture was taken, it was all removed once more.. it hasn't returned with so much vigour this time. The station building over on the left looks remarkably devoid of graffiti artwork, but that didn't last long and the walls are the same as ever; the yellow station milepost, indicating the distance from London is still extant and shows this to be 162 miles...
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
When General Motors became a sponsor of the American Freedom Train, they wanted a GM locomotive to lead the Preamble Express. Union Pacific E-9 engine 951, traded in by the UP, was repainted in a special red, white and blue paint scheme and took over duty pulling the Preamble Express at Omaha in August of 1974. Preamble Express 951 appeared at Tampa Union Station on October 16, 1974. Courtesy Stan Jackowski
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
soundimageplus.blogspot.com/2011/06/nikon-d5100-part-2-in...
soundimageplus.blogspot.com/2011/06/nikon-d5100-part-1-pr...
Nikon D5100 18-55mm zoom. Rode microphone Manfrotto tripod.
Please respect copyright! All images are protected under UK copyright law and the Berne international copyright convention and are visibly and/or invisibly watermarked. No images are within the public domain. images may not be reproduced, copied, used or altered in any way, by any method, without written permission
This is an edited talk I presented at Trampoline 2 [0] in Melbourne [1], Australia, Saturday 24th of October, 2009 entitled: "Hacking People, Hacking Bullies".
Several months later
It has now been several months since I presented the talk at Trampoline. The idea, a simple hypothesis, "is there a better way to identify and disrupt Cyber Bullies?".
I know for example the current best detection and prevention systems we have, the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) [2] by Dan Olweus [3], manually identify bullies by peer association in their social networks. [4] Could this technique be extended to on-line social networks? I wanted to explore the idea of using network science techniques using maths and computers to identify hidden bully clusters in social networks.
The talk was divided into three parts: a) "Know your Enemy, Hacking humans"; b) "In the field: real life examples" and c) "Hacking Bullies". [5] I tend to write about these ideas to look for new insights into problems I see. [6] Bullying is a problem. I've experienced it first hand. It is the prime motivation for exploring these ideas. Bullying on-line is an even bigger problem and in an age of "social software" worth exploring further.
Preamble
My name is Peter. I'm a programmer. One of those gen-X slackers you hear about. My second computer was an Apple 2e clone shipped from Singapore in parts and hand assembled.
I'll be as lo-tech as you can get and read from sheets of paper. Occasionally I'll digress from the script. I tried to Kevin Bacon to stand in but he was busy and suggested Derek Zoolander and as soon as I mentioned to Derek there would be lots of big words and no cat-walk - Derek bailed, so you're stuck with me.
My talk is on bullies and what happens when they discover computers. If you want to use twitter and hash tags try #hackbully [7] I'll probably read the comments later. I'm not a psychologist, I'm a technologist with crap social skills. I'm interested in how bullies are adapting to computers and network, how to identify and neutralise them.
Hacking Bullies
The Internet is a big network. Bullies now have a much bigger playground and audience to choose from. So lets look at some real world examples. Some people collect stamps, others prefer spore, moulds and fungus mine is on-line behaviour.
Here's a few examples of cyber-bullying I've found. Gretel was on live national television and Will Anderson (ATTACKER) decided that Gretel Kileen was good TARGET and posted live insults on twitter taunting OUTSIDERS to join in on the fun. Gordon Ramsey, a known ATTACKER gets lots of attention these day when OUTSIDERs look for images of "fat Gordon Ramsey", for fun. Is this a case of OUTSIDERs fighting back? Erin Andrews, a news sports reporter in the US was ATTACKED by having video footage of her walking around after coming out of a shower posted on Youtube. Then had trouble convincing police she was TARGET.
Bullies have discovered computers and networks. Even Mika uses the power of song writing to asymmetrically attack bullies from his childhood. I think it's time to use our powers for good. What can we do?
Network science 101
Now we are almost up to the fun bit, where we use out knowledge of network science to hack bullies. But first a short diversion into Network science theory. Understanding networks allows us to understand markets, societies, species, corporations. Networks can be biological man made or social.
If we understand the rules of networks it give us the theory to create tools to hack bullies. There are four ideas that make hacking bullies possible: Small world networks, hubs, how information spreads and mapping networks.
1) Small world networks
Steven Strogatz and Duncan Watts are both mathematicians who succeeded in understanding the properties and structures of small worlds. Strogatz/Watts started asking basic questions about connections and relatedness of nodes in networks and realised understanding the "relatedness" of nodes and how each node is connected to another node is an important problem.
Strogatz/Watts, first tested their ideas on a network model of Hollywood actors and their relationship to "Kevin Bacon". They had a theory but no confirmation. The problem to solve? If an actor plays a part in a film, what is the chain of actors to reach Kevin Bacon. How many links is there in the chain? Lets try an example. How is Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller) related to Kevin Bacon?
"Ben Stiller" was in "Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny" (2006) with "John C. Reilly" who was in "The Wild River" (1994) with "Kevin Bacon"
Strogatz/Watts discovered two structural properties of what we now call "small world systems". The first, there are relatively few related nodes in a small world. The second, small world systems tend to cluster together closely. The cluster close enough to find another node in a distant small world via minimal hops.
2) Hubs
Albert-Laszlo Barabasi looked over the results of Watts/Strogartz data and made an interesting discovery, networks are not connected randomly. Barabasi found the mechanism that lets small world link together. The idea he observed is that some nodes in a network have many more links to them than other nodes. We call these super nodes, hubs. The two most important insights Barabasi has made: a) Networks are robust. If individual nodes are knocked out, the network survives. b) The hub is the weak spot. Knock a hub out, the network is severely interrupted.
3) Spread of information
Alessandro Vespignani is a physicist who specialised in understanding how disease spreads in biological systems. By reading Barabasi work on networks, Vespignani observed transmission of disease in a network is not random. Diseases moves quickly and spreads far via hubs. Conclusions: Small changes in the network have an effect on the whole system because the network is inter-related. But a virus, disease or information will not be eradicated in a network unless you take into account hubs. Understanding Hubs is the key.
4) Marc Vidal and genetic maps
Marc Vidal is a geneticist interested in looking at the inter-connectedness of cells. After reading the research by Barabasi decided to look at disease as a network. Instead of looking at the connected cells one by one Barabasi suggested to Vidal to look at the connections of disease and genes to create a map. A map of related diseases and genes. This idea is significant. It means you can now see how diseases are related. An idea made possible because it was redefined as a network science problem.
Now we come to our ultimate aim. Can we hack bullies who inhabit our electronic networks? Can we use network science for example in the same way terrorist cells are identified and disrupted?
Predicting behaviour
Could we use network science to predict where bullies might be operating? If so, how might we go about this? Lets think about what we know about bullies.
- bullies inhabit small world social networks online and offline
- bullies have identifiable negative behavioural characteristics
- bullies attract followers who attack,defend or remain neutral
- bullies exhibit hub like behaviour
- bullies have victims
What would happen if on a social network service we looked at reported behaviour and people at the same time. Just like Marc Vidal and genetic maps. What if we mapped the behaviour of social networks to look for related behaviour and hubs? What we would be looking for is the hubs of bad behaviour. Could we identify bullies by their associations to HENCHMEN, OUTSIDERs who observe an ATTACK? We know from Barabasi that if we ignore the hubs the problem remains.
A network of bad behaviour is stable because the hub remains intact. Can we knock out hubs and interrupt bad behaviour? There is nothing to stop any of the big social software site doing this. We now have enough theory to create the tools to disrupt bullies in networks. We know from Vespignani that small changes in the network make a difference and that if we redefine the problem and think of bullying and bad behaviour as a network science problem, we can tackle it successfully with maths instead of ignoring it.
Reference
[0] Trampoline 2, "my images of Trampoline 2 taken on the day on flickr"
www.flickr.com/photos/bootload/collections/72157622546767...
[1] Melbourne, "my flickr set of Melbourne"
www.flickr.com/photos/bootload/sets/72157608350016296/
[2] olweus.org, "Olweus Bullying Prevention Program"
www.olweus.org/public/bullying_prevention_program.page?me...
[3] Dan Olweus, "History of Dan Olweus"
www.clemson.edu/olweus/history.htm
[4] Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, "The Olweus Bullying Prevention Program Overview: (Research_OBPP_Effective.pdf) Black, S. A., & Jackson, E. (2007). Using bullying incident density to evaluate the Olweus Bullying Prevention Programme. School Psychology International, 28, 623-638."
www.olweus.org/public/document/obpp_effective_research
[5] Paul Graham, "What you can't say"
[6] seldomlogical.com, "Don't read this: Don't think I write for anything, other than for my own selfish reasons. So stop reading, right now. Stop!"
seldomlogical.com/2009/08/27/don-t-read-this
[7] #hackbully, "a twitter hashtag for responses on the talk. I was interested to see what kinds of responses I would get on the back channel"
twitter.com/#search?q=#hackbully
Credit: Thanks to Trace and the attendees at Trampoline 2 for corrections and listening.
next >>>
I was in DC last week again to visit the Bahamas embassy to pick visas for a upcoming cruise – decided to carry my camera in the hopes of finding a stranger during my 5-10 minute walk from the parking to the visa office. I am glad I did since I ended up with meeting and photographing more than one. I will be using the same preamble for Stranger 18, 19 and 20 – each of who I met on that short walk. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a lot of information about these strangers – something that I need to definitely work on. However each of these definitely involved approaching an interesting stranger, explaining the purpose, and having them let me do some pictures – so I guess it qualifies
This picture is #20 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page
For my other pictures on this project: www.flickr.com/photos/vijaybrittophotography/sets/7215764...
Cassandra was my 3rd stranger for the day after Mary (Stranger #18) and Audrey (Stranger #19) - a tall lady almost towering above me – but walking ever so quietly about to light a cigarette almost deep in though. Her almost meditative demeanor was what stood out in the hustle and bustle of the DC streets. Turns out that she was for a quick break – worked with handling scholarships for students from Saudi Arabia. Cassandra was definitely a woman of few words, but I really like the nonchalant air about her as well as the strong features and intense eyes. I had to request her to lean into the glass wall along the shops – to get an eye level shot which she was very helpful with. I liked quite a few of the pictures I shot with Cassandra though I am picking this since I liked the reflection and the reflective mood. Other pics of this very interesting stranger at:
www.flickr.com/photos/vijaybrittophotography/sets/7215765...
Thanks a ton for agreeing to be a part of the project Cassandra despite being on a short rest break - all the very best.
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
Iis a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, the capital city of Italy. It has an area of approximately 44 hectares (110 acres) (0.44 km2), and a population of just over 800.
Vatican City is a city-state that came into existence in 1929. It is distinct from the Holy See, which dates back to early Christianity and is the main episcopal see of 1.147 billion Latin and Eastern Catholic adherents around the globe. Ordinances of Vatican City are published in Italian; official documents of the Holy See are issued mainly in Latin. The two entities even have distinct passports: the Holy See, not being a country, only issues diplomatic and service passports; the state of Vatican City issues normal passports. In both cases the passports issued are very few.
The Lateran Treaty in 1929, which brought the city-state into existence, spoke of it as a new creation (Preamble and Article III), not as a vestige of the much larger Papal States (756-1870) that had previously encompassed central Italy. Most of this territory was absorbed into the Kingdom of Italy in 1860, and the final portion, namely the city of Rome with a small area close to it, ten years later, in 1870.
Vatican City is an ecclesiastical or sacerdotal-monarchical state, ruled by the bishop of Rome—the Pope. The highest state functionaries are all Catholic clergymen of various nationalities. It is the sovereign territory of the Holy See (Sancta Sedes) and the location of the Pope's residence, referred to as the Apostolic Palace.
The Popes have resided in the area that in 1929 became Vatican City since the return from Avignon in 1377. Previously, they resided in the Lateran Palace on the Caelian Hill on the opposite side of Rome, which site Constantine gave to Pope Miltiades in 313. The signing of the agreements that established the new state took place in the latter building, giving rise to the name of Lateran Pacts, by which they are known.
History
Please go to
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_States
Geography
Please go to
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Vatican_City
Other info
Flags
Oficial name:
Sancta Sedes Civitas Vaticana-Latim
Santa Sede Stato della Città del Vaticano-Italien
Independence:
11 February 1929
Area:
0.44 km2
Inhabitants:
783
Languages:
Italian [ita] 1,000 in Vatican State (2004). Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Italo-Dalmatian
More information.
Latin [lat] Alternate names: Latina. Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Latino-Faliscan
More information.
Monastic Sign Language [mzg] Monastic communities, especially in Europe. Dialects: Anglo-Saxon Monastic Sign Language, Augustinian Sign Language, Benedictine Sign Language, Cistercian Sign Language, Trappist Sign Language. Classification: Sign language
Capital city:
Citta del Vaticano
Meaning country name:
"Vatican" from the Latin vaticinari, "to prophesy", by way of the name of the hill "Mons Vaticanus" of which the Vatican City forms a part. Fortune-tellers and sooth-sayers used the streets beneath in Roman times.
Description Flag:
The flag of the Vatican City consists of two vertical bands of gold (hoist side) and white with the crossed keys of Saint Peter and the Papal Tiara centered in the white band. It is one of only two square country flags in the world, the other being the flag of Switzerland.
The flag was adopted on June 7, 1929, the year when Pope Pius XI made the treaty with Italy, setting up a new independent state governed by the Popes, who in 1870 had lost their territorial sovereignty with the final incorporation into Italy of the previously existing much larger Papal States. The Papal States used a purple and gold flag, which resembled the Vatican City one.
The square flag is vertically divided into two halves, the half closer to the flagpole is yellow, the other is white. The Vatican City coat of arms can be found in the white half. The coat of arms consists of:
the papal tiara (as used under the pontificate of Pius XI);
the two keys which represent the keys to Heaven (according to the Gospel of Matthew 16:19) given by Jesus Christ to St. Peter. The popes are regarded as the successor of Peter, and the gold and silver keys have been significant elements in the symbolism of the Papal State since the 14th century. The gold represents spiritual power, while the silver key represents worldly power.
a red cord connecting the keys.
The yellow and white of the flag also refer to the keys – in heraldry yellow represents gold, while white represents silver.
Coat of arms:
The Coat of Arms of the Holy See is blazoned gules, two keys in saltire or and argent, interlaced in the rings gules/or, beneath a tiara argent, crowned or. Thus it is simply the emblem of the Papacy displayed on a red field. It is here represented with a gold cord instead of the usual red, so as to contrast with the red of the shield.
The coat of arms of the Vatican City State differs only the position of the two keys, which are interchanged
The crossed keys of gold and silver symbolise the keys of the kingdom of heaven promised to Saint Peter, with authority to bind and loose (Matthew 16:18-19).
The triple crown (the tiara) represents "the three powers of the Supreme Pontiff: Sacred Orders, Jurisdiction and Magisterium",[2] in other words: his functions as "supreme priest", "supreme pastor" and "supreme teacher".
The gold cross surmounting the triple crowns symbolizes the crucifixion of Jesus.
National Anthem: Inno e Marcia Pontificale
O felix Roma - O Roma nobilis.
Sedes es Petri, qui Romae effudit sanguinem,
Petri, cui claves datae sunt regni caelorum.
Pontifex, Tu successor es Petri;
Pontifex, Tu magister es tuos confirmas fratres;
Pontifex, Tu qui Servus servorum Dei,
hominumque piscator, pastor es gregis,
ligans caelum et terram.
Pontifex, Tu Christi es vicarius super terram,
rupes inter fluctus, Tu es pharus in tenebris;
Tu pacis es vindex, Tu es unitatis custos,
vigil libertatis defensor; in Te potestas.
Tu Pontifex, firma es petra, et super petram
hanc aedificata est Ecclesia Dei.
O felix Roma - O Roma nobilis.
Ancient latin Words
(Evaristo D'Anversa)
Roma, alma parens, Sanctorum Martyrumque,
Nobile carmen, te decete, sonorumque,
Gloria in excelsis, paternae maiestati
Pax et in terra fraternae caritati
Ad te clamamus, Angelicum pastorem:
Quam vere refers, Tu mitem Redemptorem!
Magister Sanctum, custodis dogma Christi,
Quod unun vitae, solamen datur isti.
Non praevalebunt horrendae portae infernae,
Sed vis amoris veritatisque aeternae.
Salve, Roma!
In te aeterna stat historia,
Inclyta, fulgent gloria
Monumenta tot et arae.
Roma Petri et Pauli,
Cunctis mater tu redemptis,
Lumen cunctae in facie gentis
Mundique sola spes!
Salve, Roma!
Cuius lux occasum nescit,
Splendet, incandescit,
Et iniquo oppilat os.
Pater Beatissime,
Annos Petri attinge, excede
Unum, quaesumus, concede:
Tu nobis benedic.
English Translation of Latin Words
O happy Rome - O noble Rome
You are the seat of Peter, whose blood was shed in Rome,
Peter, to whom the keys of the kingdom of heaven were given.
Pontiff, You are the successor of Peter;
Pontiff, You are the teacher, you confirm your brethren;
Pontiff, You who are the Servant of the servants of God,
and fisher of men, are the shepherd of the flock,
linking heaven and earth.
Pontiff, You are the vicar of Christ on earth,
a harbor amidst the waves, You are a beacon in the darkness;
You are the defender of peace, You are the guardian of unity,
watchful defender of liberty; in You is the authority.
You Pontiff, you are the unshakable rock, and on this rock
was built the Church of God.
O happy Rome - O noble Rome.
Italian Words
INNO
Roma immortale di Martiri e di Santi,
Roma immortale accogli i nostri canti:
Gloria nei cieli a Dio nostro Signore,
Pace ai Fedeli, di Cristo nell'amore.
A Te veniamo, Angelico Pastore,
In Te vediamo il mite Redentore,
Erede Santo di vera e santa Fede;
Conforto e vanto a chi combatte e crede,
Non prevarranno la forza ed il terrore,
Ma regneranno la Verità, l'Amore.
MARCIA PONTIFICALE
Salve, Salve Roma, patria eterna di memorie,
Cantano le tue glorie mille palme e mille altari.
Roma degli Apostoli, Madre e guida dei Redenti,
Roma luce delle genti, il mondo spera in te!
Salve, Salve Roma, la tua luce non tramonta,
Vince l'odio e l'onta lo splendor di tua beltà.
Roma degli Apostoli, Madre e guida dei Redenti,
Roma luce delle genti, il mondo spera in te!
English Translation of Italian words
HYMN
O Rome immortal, city of martyrs and saints,
O immortal Rome, accept our praises.
Glory in the heavens to God our Lord
And peace to men who love Christ!
To you we come, angelic Pastor,
In you we see the gentle Redeemer.
You are the holy heir of our Faith,
The comfort and pride of those who believe and fight.
Force and terror will not prevail,
But truth and love will reign.
PONTIFICAL MARCH
Hail, O Rome, eternal abode of memories;
A thousand palms and thousand altars sing your praises.
O city of the Apostles, mother and guide of the elect,
Light of the nations, and hope of the world!
Hail, O Rome! Your light will never fade;
the splendour of your beauty disperses hatred and shame.
O city of the Apostles, mother and guide of the elect,
Light of the nations, and hope of the world!
Internet Page: www.vaticanstate.va
Vatican in diferent languages
eng | fra | frp | fur | jnf | lld | oci | roh | ron | rup | wln: Vatican
bre | cor | dan | dsb | est | fao | hat | hrv | hsb | jav | mlt | nor | slv | tur | vor | zza: Vatikan
ast | glg | ina | ita | por | spa | srd: Vaticano
aze | bos | crh | gag | kaa | slo | uzb: Vatikan / Ватикан
epo | eus | pap | swa: Vatikano
ces | hun | slk: Vatikán
deu | ltz | nds: Vatikan / Vatikan
bam | csb: Watikan
kal | sqi: Vatikani
kin | run: Vatica
lim | nld: Vaticaan
mlg | smo: Vatikana
afr: Vatikaan
arg: Baticano
cat: Vaticà
cym: Y Fatican
fin: Vatikaani
fry: Fatikaan
gla: An Bhatacain
gle: An Vatacáin / An Vatacáin
glv: Ard-Valley yn Phaab
ind: Vatikan / ۏاتيكان
isl: Vatíkanið
kmr: Vatîkan / Ватикан / ڤاتیکان
kur: Vatîkan / ڤاتیکان
lat: Vaticanum
lav: Vatikāns
lin: Vatikáni
lit: Vatikanas
mol: Vatican / Ватикан
msa: Vatican / ۏاتيكان
nrm: Vaticaun
pol: Watykan
que: Watikanu
rmy: Vatikan / वातिकान
scn: Vaticanu
sme: Vatikána
smg: Vatikans
som: Faatikaan
swe: Vatikanen
szl: Watykon
tet: Vatikanu
tuk: Watikan / Ватикан
vie: Va-ti-căng
vol: Vatikän
abq | alt | bul | che | chm | chv | kbd | kir | kjh | kom | krc | kum | mkd | mon | oss | rus | tyv | udm | xal: Ватикан (Vatikan)
bak | srp | tat: Ватикан / Vatikan
bel: Ватыкан / Vatykan
kaz: Ватикан / Vatïkan / ۆاتيكان
tgk: Вотикон / واتیکان / Votikon
ukr: Ватикан (Vatykan)
ara: الفاتيكان (al-Fātīkān); الفاتكان (al-Fātikān); الفتيكان (al-Fatīkān); الفتكان (al-Fatikān)
fas: واتیکان / Vâtikân
prs: واتیکان (Vātīkān)
pus: واتيکان (Wātīkān)
uig: ۋاتىكان / Watikan / Ватикан
urd: ویٹیکن (Væṫīkan)
div: ވެޓިކަން (Veṫikan)
syr: ܦܬܝܟܢ (Patīkan); ܒܬܝܟܢ (Batīkan)
heb: וטיקן / ווטיקן (Vaṭîqan); ותיקן / וותיקן (Vatîqan)
lad: ב'אטיקאנו / Vatikano
yid: װאַטיקאַן (Vatikan)
ell-dhi: Βατικανό (Vatikanó)
ell-kat: Βατικανόν (Vatikanón)
hye: Վատիկան (Vatikan)
kat: ვატიკანი (Vatikani)
hin: वैटिकन (Væṭikan); वेटिकन (Veṭikan)
nep: भेटिकन (Bʰeṭikan)
ben: ভ্যাটিকান (Bʰæṭikān)
pan: ਵਾਟੀਕਾਨ (Vāṭīkān)
kan: ವ್ಯಾಟಿಕನ್ (Væṭikan)
mal: വത്തിക്കാന് (Vattikkān)
tam: வத்திக்கான் (Vattikkāṉ); வாடிகன் (Vāṭikaṉ)
tel: వాటికన్ (Vāṭikan)
zho: 梵蒂岡/梵蒂冈 (Fàndìgāng)
jpn: ヴァチカン (Vachikan); バチカン (Bachikan)
kor: 바티칸 (Batikan)
mya: ဗာတီကန္ (Batikã)
tha: วาติกัน (Wātikân)
khm: បូរីវ៉ាទីកង់ (Vātīkăṅ); វ៉ាទីកង់ (Vātīkăṅ)
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
When the going gets tough, lofty Christian passages and the New Testament take a backseat. The utterances of Jesus and his apostles are not the prescription on a billboard in rural Kentucky. But rather, it is a passage from the roots of Judaism in the Old Testament; specifically, the codified laws of the Ten Commandments of Chapter 20, Book of Exodus, Old Testament, Bible that are offered as a solution to society’s ills.
Judaism typically calls these the Ten Declarations, Ăsereṯ haDəḇārīm in Hebrew, which literally means ten words, not the Ten Commandments that Christianity refers to them as–although "Ten Commandments" is an easier term to use to be understood by the larger non-Jewish community. These ten utterances are generally regarded by a broad spectrum of Judaism as a preamble to 613 commandments of a larger constitutional covenant set down by God in the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh–what Christians call the Old Testament.
The decalog is immediately elaborated upon once introduced in the Bible. For example, it is commanded in the Ten Commandments (Declarations) of Chapter 20: "Thou shalt not kill." Chapter 21 paradoxically says when to kill: "23 And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, 24 Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. 25 Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe." Regarding respecting parents: "17 And he who curses† his father or his mother shall surely be put to death." Concerning other gods and religions, Chapter 22 elaborates: "20 He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the Lord only, he shall be utterly destroyed." Or in verse 18: "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live."
When Moses revealed the Ten Commandments††, low self-esteem and killing (death) seemed to be on the minds of the Hebrews who had miraculously escaped slavery in Egypt and the pursuit of the mighty Egyptian army. The verses that follow the Ten Commandments admonish the Israelites to be not fearful but still to fear:
Exodus 20: 19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. 20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. 21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.
---
†TRANSLATION NOTE: The word "curses" is from the New King James version. The old word "smiteth" is used in the KJV while the NIV uses the word "attacks"–i.e. if a child attacks their parents, they are to be put to death.
††HISTORICAL NOTE: The Ten Commandments against killing, stealing, false witness, filial disrespect, et al. sound in tone similar to an earlier Babylonian code, the Hammurabi Code, recorded on basalt stone in the 18th Century B.C. and among ancient history's best preserved legal texts. The Hammurabi Code has numerous death sentences for violations of the law. e.g. "If a man practices robbery and is captured, that man shall be put to death." Steal from the temple? Yep, death. So don't steal. Unfaithful wife? Execution (of the wife). False witness to ensnare someone? Death. Similar to the verses of explanation after the Ten Commandments, the Hammurabi Code also literally spells out an eye for an eye. Another example of the similarity is that the Code of Hammurabi declares with less severe consequences than Exodus: "If a son strikes his father, they shall cut off his hand."
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
Emei mountain, Sichuan, China. i started at the bottom feeling hot in a t shirt and pair of salapettes. arriving at the top next morning i had added a pair of longjohns an undershirt a jumper a jacket a scarf and some mittens and still felt cold. others it would appear were not so well equipped...!
--------------------------------
So tomorrow i'm off to the wildlife photographer of the year exhibition in the natural history museum in london. i quite like the comp as its one of the few exhibitions that i can look at the winners and understand how they're good and why they deserve to be displayed (even last year's winner). i occasionally go to other photo exhibitions when i'm in town but often i find myself lookin at a blurry black and white image of a piano for example wondering how much of photography is just luck and being able to 'sell' (by which i mean convincing others) a photo as good or if im just some pleb who couldn't tell a picture of a piano from a masterful commentary of the state of emotions as represented by blah blah blah you get the point.
so all that preamble was to set up a question. how do you guys decide whether you like a photo? i suspect i'm moving away from the majority opinion (=does it look good) in that i reckon it should be a technique i could learn by reading in a book or learning from an experienced teacher and not necessarily based on what my uneducated eyes currently consider good*. does anyone think books/teachers like this exist or am i just failing to acknowledge we cant all agree and i will inevitably and unavoidably find myself in the frustrated minority of seeing photos i consider to be crud lauded and vice versa with no objectivity either way? (and if the former what books do you recommend!)
(*i'm thinking along the lines of how art aficionados seem to be able to agree on what's good based on their studies, i'd be damned if i could figure out what's good in tracy emin's or other modern artists' works to be honest but am prepared to accept it's my lack of understanding and not because of a misguided art community.)
hmmmm, that all reads a bit long winded and pretentious. well if you don't fancy tackling that can of worms feel free to comment on the photo!
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
... a brainstorming confab about "innovation to accelerate transformation" with a bunch of large company executives. (past years)
Instead of corporate transformation within, I focused on the transformation of an entire industry (e.g., automotive and aerospace) and the transformation of the social fabric of humanity and the physical fabric of reality.
I also challenged them with the provocation that they will never perform this kind of transformation... within their core business. Meaningful change is always led by new entrants, with no exceptions in history. I have become fond of saying this and then asking if anyone knows of a counter example.
Sure, big companies can lead meaningful change... by becoming a new entrant themselves in some new area adjacent to their historical core, like the oft-mentioned Apple (music, phones) or HP (printers).
I had to give the preamble that I might lose my audience... but stick with me. I also said it is not Silicon Valley exceptionalism. Larry Ellison famously announced that innovation is dead in a WSJ op-ed, just before the transformation of cloud computing, led by others, not to mention all of the innovation outside of enterprise software. When Jobs returned to Apple, Michael Dell proclaimed that his best strategy would be to shut Apple down and dividend the cash.
And I provided a coda to my warning to Castrol management that their business (internal combustion engine lubricants) would go to zero.... In the 12 years that followed, they are more profitable than ever as the installed base of engines grew greatly in China... for now. But those executives will all be retired before they face the inevitable future.
Oh, the transformation theme that seemed to be on the mind of every big company is AI/ML... and so I plugged MosaicML as way to stay competitive.
Copyright held by: Pickering And Inglis, 24-26 Bothwell Street, Glasgow, Lanarkshire G2 6PA
MAASTRICHT TREATY
The role of the Western European Union and its relations with the European Union and NATO
Introduction 1.
WEU Member States agree on the need to develop a genuine European security and defence identity and a greater European responsibility on defence matters.
This identity will be pursued through a gradual process involving successive phases. WEU will form an integral part ofthe process of the development of the European Union and will enhance its contribution to solidarity within the Atlantic Alliance.
WEU Member States agree to strengthen the role of WEU, in the longer term perspective of a common defence, compatible with that of the Atlantic Alliance.
2. WEU will be developed as the defence component of the European Union and as a means to strengthen the European pillar of the Atlantic Alliance.
To this end, it will formulate common European defencepolicy and carry forward its concrete implementation through the further development of its own operational role. WEU Member States take note of Article J.4 relating to the common foreign and security policy of the Treaty on European Union which reads as follows:"
1. The common foreign and security policy shall include all questions related to the security of the Union, including the eventual framing of a common defence policy, which might in time lead to a common defence.
2. The union requests the Western Union (WEU), which is an integral part of the development of the Union, to elaborate and implement decisions and actions of the Union which have defence implications. The Council shall, in agreement with the institutions of the WEU, adopt the necessary practical arrangements.
3. Issues having defence implications dealt with under this Article shall not be subject to the procedures set out in Article J.3.
4. The policy of the Union in accordance with this Article shall not prejudice the specific character of the security and defence policy of certain Member States and shall respect the obligations of certain Member States under the North Atlantic Treaty and be compatible with the common security and defence policy established within that framework.
5. The provisions of this Article shall not prevent the development of closer cooperation between two or more Member States on a bilateral level, in the framework of the WEU and the Atlantic Alliance, provided such cooperation does not run counter to or impede that provided for in this Title.
6. With a view to furthering the objective of this Treaty, and having in view the date of 1998 in the context of Article XII of the Brussels Treaty, the provisions of this Article may be revised as provided for in Article N(2) on the basis of a report to be presented in 1996 by the Council to the European Council, which shall include an evaluation of the progress made and the experience gained until then."A. WEU's relations with European Union3.
The objective is to build up WEU in stages as the defence component of the European Union.
To this end, WEU is prepared, at the request of the European Union, to elaborate and implement decisions and actions of the Union which have defence implications.
To this end, WEU will take the following measures to develop a close working relationship with the Union:-
as appropriate, synchronization of the dates and venues of meetings and harmonization of working methods;-
establishment of close cooperation between the Council andSecretariat-General of WEU on the one hand, and the Council of the Union and General Secretariat of the Council on the other;- consideration of the harmonization of the sequence and duration of the respective Presidencies;-
arranging for appropriate modalities so as to ensure that theCommission of the European Communities is regularly informed and, as appropriate, consulted on WEU activities in accordance with the role of the Commission in the common foreign and security policy as defined in the Treaty on European Union;-
encouragement of closer cooperation between the Parliamentary Assembly of WEU and the European Parliament.The WEU Council shall, in agreement with the competent bodies of the European Union, adopt the necessary practical arrangements.B.
WEU's relations with the Atlantic Alliance
4. The objective is to develop WEU as a means to strengthen the European pillar of the Atlantic Alliance.
Accordingly WEU is prepared to develop further the close working links between WEU and the Alliance and to strengthen the role, responsibilities and contributions of WEU Member States in the Alliance.
This will be undertaken on the basis of the necessary transparency and complementarity between the emerging European security and defence identity and the Alliance.
WEU will act in conformity with the positions adopted in the Atlantic Alliance.-
WEU Member States will intensify their coordination on Alliance issues which represent an important common interest with the aim of introducing joint positions agreed in WEU into the process of consultation in the Alliance which will remain the essential forum for consultation among its members and the venue for agreement on policies bearing on the security and defence commitments of Allies under the North Atlantic Treaty.-
Where necessary, dates and venues of meetings will be synchronized and working methods harmonized.-
Close cooperation will be established between the Secretariats- General of WEU and NATO.C. Operational role of WEU5.
WEU's operational role will be strengthened by examining and defining appropriate missions, structures and means, covering in particular:-
WEU planning cell;-
closer military cooperation complementary to the Alliance in particular in the fields of logistics, transport, training and strategic surveillance;-
meetings of WEU Chiefs of Defence Staff;- military units answerable to WEU.Other proposals will be examined further including:-
enhanced cooperation in the field of armaments with the aim of creating a European armaments agency;-development of the WEU Institute into a European Security and Defence Academy.
Arrangements aimed at giving WEU a stronger operational role will be fully compatible with the military dispositions necessary to ensure the collective defence of all Allies. D. Other measures
6. As a consequence of the measures set out above, and in order to facilitate the strengthening of WEU's role, the seat of the WEU Council and Secretariat will be transferred to Brussels.
7. Representation of the WEU Council must be such that the Council is able to exercise its functions continuously in accordance with Article VIII of the modified Brussels Treaty.
Member States may draw on a double-hatting formula, to be worked out, consisting of their representatives to the Alliance and to the European Union.
8. WEU notes that, in accordance with the provisions of Article J.4(6) concerning the common foreign and security policy of the Treaty on European Union, the Union will decide to review the provisions of this Article with a view to furthering the objective to be set by it in accordance with the procedure defined.
The WEU will re-examine the present provisions in 1996.
This re-examination will take account of the progress and experience acquired and will extend to relations between WEU and the Atlantic Alliance.II.
DECLARATIONby Belgium, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Luxembourg, theNetherlands, Portugal and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland which are members of the Western European Union.
"The Member States of WEU welcome the development of the European security and defence identity.
They are determined, taking into account the role of WEU as the defence component of the European Union and as the means to strengthen the European pillar of the Atlantic Alliance, to put the relationship between WEU and the other European States on a new basis for the sake of stability and security in Europe.In this spirit, they propose the following:
States which are members of the European Union are invited to accede to WEU on conditions to be agreed in accordance with Article XI of the modified Brussels Treaty, or to become observers if they so wish.
Simultaneously, other European Member States of NATO are invited to become associate members of WEU in a way which will give them the possibility of participating fully in the activities of WEU.
The Member States of WEU assume that treaties and agreements corresponding with the above proposals will be concluded before 31 December 1992."
The draft Federal Constitutionof the European Union
Index
Chapter I: General Articles
Chapter II: The Legislature
Chapter III: The ExecutiveChapter IV: The Judiciary power
Chapter V: The competences of the Union
Chapter VI: Amendments to the Constitution
Chapter VII: Changes to the Territory of the Union-Preamble
We, the peoples of the European Union,
* acknowledging our commitment to co-operation, solidarity, tolerance and respect for our diversity and different identities,
* recognising the importance of regional co-operation and understanding for peace and prosperity in Europe,
* believing that the peoples of Europe, having shown how ancient enmities and hatreds can be replaced by peace and friendship, must complete their progress towards an all-European federation, and that in doing so they will set an example to the world,
* knowing that the only path forward for our continent is one of ever deeper integration and of ever closer union between the peoples of Europe,
* convinced that many of the biggest problems confronting us today, such as social exclusion, pollution, unemployment and racism can no longer be adequately dealt with by our individual states, and therefore need a transnational solution,
* believing that a truly democratic and federal European Union respects and protects our different identities and cultural heritage and has the necessary legitimacy to lead us into the next century,
* supporting the objective of bringing democracy as close as possible to the citizens by placing the competences at their most appropriate level, according to the principle of subsidiary,
CONSTITUTION
Chapter I: General ArticlesArticle
1The European Union, hereafter called "Union", is formed by the following Member States, Belgique-België-Belgien, Danmark, Deutschland, Ellas, España, France, Ireland, Italia, Luxembourg, Nederland, Österreich, Portugal, Suomi-Finland, Sverige, United-Kingdom of Great-Britain and NorthernIreland.Article
2The Union derives all its powers from the shared sovereignty of its Member States and the citizens of the Union.Article
3No citizen of the Union can be discriminated against on the basis of one's beliefs, religion, race, nationality, language, gender or sexual orientation.
Article 4A citizen of the Union is a person holding the citizenship of a Member State.
Article 5 Any citizen of the Union, any permanent legal resident or any Member State has the right to petition the Court of Justice to hear its case under European law.
Article 6All citizens of the Union, which have reached the age of 18, have the right to vote and stand for office in all elections in their State of residence in the same way as citizens of that State.
Article 7Any official language in a Member State is an official language of the Union.
The citizens of the Union may use these languages in all communication with the institutions of the Union.
The Union flag is described as such : "Against the background of blue sky, twelve golden five-pointed stars form a circle, representing the union of the peoples of Europe.
The number of stars is invariable, twelve being the symbol of perfection and entirety."
The European Anthem is the "Ode to Joy", arranged from the last movement of Ludwig van Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.
The European feast day is the 9th May.
Chapter II: The Legislature
Article 8The European Assembly is the legislature of the Union. It consists of two chambers, the European Parliament and the Senate of the Union, hereafter called "Senate", both having the same powers.
Either chamber, as well as the Commission following the procedure laid down in article 21 of this Constitution, has the right to propose legislation and a simple majority in both chambers is necessary to make the laws of the Union, except in the cases foreseen by this Constitution.
All laws of the Union have direct effect and are directly applicable.
Article 9 After a proposal for legislation receives the necessary majority in either chamber of the European Assembly, it shall be submitted to the other chamber.
This latter will indicate to the originating chamber within sixty days whether it rejects or accepts the proposal with or without amendments.
If it fails to do so, the proposal will become law. If it rejects the proposal, the proposal is defeated.
If the two chambers of the European Assembly reach the necessary majority on two differing versions of a proposal for legislation, their versions are brought before the Conciliation Committee of the European Assembly, consisting of an equal number of representatives of each chamber.
The Conciliation Committee will endeavour to make a common version from the two differing versions.
If such a common text is agreed upon by a majority within the representation of both chambers, it will return for a final vote in the two chambers.
If the vote fails in either chamber, the proposal is defeated.
Article 10The European Parliament consists of 650 members, elected every five years by a uniform election procedure, laid down in the electoral laws of the Union.
No member of the European Parliament shall be in the same time member of the Senate, or member of the Commission, or member of the Court of Justice, or member of the parliament or of the government of a Member State.
The electoral laws of the Union may provide for more incapabilities.
Article 11The Senate consists of one member per Member State, hereafter called "Senator".
The Member States shall decide the mode of election of their Senator. Each Senator has one vote.
Article 12 When the Union makes a proposal for the harmonization of the legislations of the Member States, following the procedure laid down in Article 35 of this Constitution, the Senate shall be replaced by the Council of Ministers, hereafter called "Council".
The Council shall consist of one member per Member State, appointed by the government of its Member State, notwithstanding the provisions of the following alineas of this article.
Representatives of regional authorities invested with legislative and executive powers over the subject concerned by the Council may fully participate in the decision-making process of the Council.
The representatives of regional authorities only represent their regional
Their votes are relative to the number of inhabitants they represent.
This number and any future changes to it are notified to the Council.For the determination of the majority of Member States, they will be counted not as one Member State but as a fraction, representing the number of their citizens divided by the total number of inhabitants of the Member State of which they form a sub-entity.
Article 13 A simple majority in the Senate is a majority of its members.A qualified majority in the Senate is a three quarter majority of its members.
A simple majority in the European Parliament is a majority of the members present and voting, without counting abstentions.
A qualified majority in the European Parliament is a three quarter majority of the members present and voting.
Neither chamber of the European Assembly can vote on legislation, without a majority of its members voting.
The Council always takes its decisions by a three quarter majority of its members.
Article 14 All sessions of the European Assembly are open to the public and the agendas, minutes and voting records of all plenary sessions are to be published and available to the public.
Chapter III: The Executive Article 15
The executive powers are vested upon the Commission, which is composed of a maximum of fifteen members.
The Commission may not count more than one member coming from the same Member State.Article 16The European Assembly elects the members of the Commission among the members of the European Parliament by a simple majority after each integral renewal of the European Parliament.
The members of the Commission which put an end to their function get back their mandates of members of the European Parliament.
Article 17 The European Assembly elects the President of the European Union, hereafter called "President", and the Vice-President of the Commission, hereafter called "Vice-President", by a simple majority, among the members of the Commission, for a term of one year.
These mandates are not renewable for the following year.
The leaving President may not be elected Vice-President.If the President is not able to assume its function, in cases of disease, death, or impeachment, the Vice-President shall take office and shall continue the term.
If he assumed the function of President for more than 6 months, the Vice-President may not be elected as President, the following year.
Article 18 The Commission can only be dismissed by the European Assembly by the appointment of a new Commission.
The European Assembly may force one or several members of the Commission to resign upon a proposal of one third of the members of either house of the European Assembly.
Article 19 The Commission takes all decisions collectively.
Article 20 The Commission represents the Union in external relations, in the implementation of its foreign, security and defence policies and in international organisations.
Article 21The Commission has the right to propose legislation.
A proposal by the Commission has to be presented to the European Parliament.
Article 22 The President negotiates and concludes all treaties on behalf of and within the areas of exclusive competence of the Union.
Treaties concluded by the Commission enter into force after ratification by the European Assembly, by a simple majority.
Article 23 The President shall have the right to engage European Union military forces outside the territory of the Union, if a qualified majority in the European Assembly gives it the mandate to do so, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 24.
Article 24The President shall be in command of the European Union military forces. No military unit can be engaged outside of the territory of the Union over the objections of the Member State to which this unit belongs.Chapter IV: The Judicial power
Article 25The judicial power of the Union is vested upon the Court of Justice. It extends to all cases in law, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the Union and the treaties established under this Constitution.
Any dispute over the competences of the Union and the competences of its institutions will be resolved by the Court of Justice.
Article 26 The Court of Justice will be composed by a number of judges equal to the number of Member States, appointed by the European Assembly by a simple majority vote in each chamber.
Those chosen will be selected from among the most eminent jurists for a mandate of nine years.
A judge can only serve for one mandate.
The mandate of a judge can only be terminated before its expiration, for cause of death, resignation or by a ruling of the Court of Justice.
The Court of Justice can only rule on the termination of a judge's mandate for violations of the laws, criminal conviction or behaviour which could lead to the disrepute of the Court.
Article 27 The judges of the Court of Justice will choose from amongst their midst a president for a renewable mandate of three years.
The president chairs the meetings of the Court of Justice and represents the Court of Justice in its dealings.
Article 28 The rulings of the Court of Justice will be binding within the territory of the Union.
They shall take precedence over and the Court of Justice can annul all legislative acts, which it finds in conflict with this Constitution.
Article 29 The Court of Justice has the right to hear any case on Union legislation brought before it.
Article 30 The European Assembly has the right to establish, by a qualified majority, lower courts, without prejudice to the competences of the Court of Justice as set out in this Constitution.
Article 31 This Constitution and the laws and treaties adopted, or to be adopted, under it will be the supreme law of the Union and judges in every Member State will be bound hereby, any thing in the constitutions or laws of the Member States notwithstanding.
Article 32 The Union is a party to the European Convention of Human Rights and the Convention and its covenants will take precedence over all laws of the Union.
Article 33A ny conflict arising between this Constitution, the legislation and treaties made under it or the constitutions or laws of any of the Member States and the European Convention on Human Rights, will be decided upon by the European Court for Human rights and its verdicts will be binding on all courts within the territory of the Union.
Chapter V: The competences of the Union
Article 34 The Union shall be competent to the exclusion of its Member States in the following areas:I.
Within the field of Economic and Commercial Policy for:
The creation, the maintenance and the adaptation of a single market, with free movement of goods, persons, capital and services, within the European Union, including:
Copyright and trademark legislation; Competition Policy; State aids; Fisheries; Agricultural policy; Energy and nuclear power; Trans-European networks; Mutual recognition of diplomas of higher education; Monetary policy and the management of a single currency; Customs union and tariffs, antidumping legislation, external trade and commercial policyII.
Within the field of Foreign and Security Policy for:
Defence of the territory of the Union and its outside frontiers, upholding of the principles of the United Nations around the world.
The making of treaties on behalf of the European Union within its exclusive competences.III. Within the field of Justice and Home Affairs for: Immigration and border controls;
The fight against organised, transnational crimeIV. Environmental legislation in cases where more than one Member State is affected.
This does not preclude the European Assembly to entrust the Member States with the execution of the laws it passes within its exclusive competences, under the supervision of the Commission.
Article 35 The Union and the Member States have shared competences in the fields of:I. Within the field of Economic and Monetary Policy for: Consumer protection; Social policy; Research and technology; Natural resourcesII.
Within the field of Foreign and Security Policy for Foreign aidIII.
Citizenship and Human Rights
IV.
Culture and Higher EducationV.
Tourism
Within these areas the Union has the right to harmonise the legislations of the Member States and to pass legislation providing a framework within which its Member States can act.
The implementation of this legislation shall be supervised and co-ordinated by the Commission acting in co-operation with the governments of the Member States, represented in the Council, as provided in Article 12.
Article 36 The Member States shall have exclusive competence in all areas not foreseen in this Constitution and not entering in the scope of Article 37 of this Constitution.
Article 37 The European Assembly shall have the power to make all laws, which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution its competences and all other competences vested by this Constitution into the institutions of the Union.
In all areas that do not affect the interests of more than one Member State, the Member States, or the appropriate regional or local authorities shall have the right to pass legislation in as far as this legislation does not impinge upon an overriding interest of the Union.
Article 38 The European Assembly promulgates the laws of the Union and the Commission executes them, unless this Constitution decides otherwise.
Article 39 The budget of the Union is voted by a simple majority in the European Assembly, in as far as it does not exceed 3% of its gross domestic product.
A budget rise of the Union beyond 3% of its gross domestic product, has to be approved by the European Assembly with a qualified majority in both Houses.Chapter VI:
Amendments to the Constitution
Article 40 Any of the institutions which have the right to propose legislation, or a number of citizens of the Union practised in the electoral laws of the Union have the right to submit to the European Parliament, their proposals for amendments to the Constitution.
At the end of its mandate, the European Parliament can then by a simple majority propose to the next European Assembly amendments to the Constitution.
The newly elected European Parliament and the Senate can then amend the Constitution by qualified majority in both chambers.
Article 41 The current Constitution will enter into force after a three quarter majority of the Member States, by a procedure laid down by the Member State, approve it and the European Assembly ratifies it by a qualified majority.
The Union will take over the acquis communautaire.
Chapter VII: Changes to the Territory of Union
Article 42 Any European state which respects the principles of democracy, rule of law and human rights has the right to become a Member State of the Union, if its accession agreement is approved by a qualified majority in both houses of the European Assembly, or by the citizens of the Union and the Member States, by a procedure laid down in article 45.
Article 43 Any Member State shall have the right to secede from the Union if its citizens expresses itself for secession from the Union.
One year after notification of the European Commission the seceding Member State will be freed from all obligations towards the Union and its membership will terminated.
Article 44 Any change to the number of Member States shall be accepted by the concerned Member States, and by the citizens of the Union and the Member States, following a procedure laid down in article 45.
Any territorial change between the Member States shall be accepted by the concerned Member States and their citizens.
Article 45 Acts submitted to the vote of the citizens of the Union are accepted by the majority of the voters.
Acts submitted to the vote of the citizens of the Union and the Member States are accepted when the majority of voters and the majority of Member States approve them.
The result of a referendum in a Member State is the voice of the Member State.
Starring Anthony Hall, Joyce Taylor, John Dall, Bill Smith, Edward Platt, and Frank DeKova. Directed by George Pal.
youtu.be/zDCWnvBk-DI?t=9s Trailer
Some films just barely qualify for inclusion on sci-fi movie lists. George Pal's Atlantis, The Lost Continent is clearly one of them. It is 90% sword-and-sandal fantasy adventure flick. A casual viewer could easily miss the few sci-fi bits. Pal and MGM put on a grand show, though the result doesn't achieve greatness. The pretty-but-wooden acting by the leads did not help. Pal's Atlantis does, at least, steer the movie tradition back in line with the Greek legends.
Synopsis
Following some intriguing preamble about why the old world and new had similarities, the movie begins. Greek fisherman Demetrios discovers an unconscious woman floating on a raft. She turns out to be Princess Antillia of Atlantis. She demands to be taken back home. En route, she falls in love with Demetrios. They met by a fish-shaped submarine which takes them to Atlantis. Once there, Demetrios is imprisoned in the mines by Zaren, Antillia's pre-fiancee and aspirant to the throne. Demetrios, thinking that Antillia betrayed him, is miffed. His miffdom brings out her surly side and the two fail to reconcile. Zaren thinks to get rid of Demetrios with a gladiatorial fight, but Demetrios wins and is free. Zaren is using the slaves to mine a huge solar crystal which will power a heat beam weapon. With it, he plans to rule the world. Azor, the high priest, warns Demetrios that the one true God is angry at Atlantis for their cruelty and idolatry. Amid much palace intrigue and a slave revolt, the end does come. The volcano erupts, sending lava flows into the city. Earthquakes crumble the classic architecture. Demetrios and Antillia find each other and flee to a waiting boat. Zaren is about to roast them with the heat beam, but is stabbed by Azor. While Demetrios, Antillia and other refugees watch from their boats, Atlantis does in fact, sink into the sea. The End.
Pal's production has an impressive epic quality to it. The sets are luxurious with details. For a sci-fi fan, the fish-sub and crystal heat beam are high points. Hearing Paul Frees do narration and some voice-overs is fun too.
Note that the solar crystals can be used for either heating and lighting homes, or as a destructive weapon. Sounds like nuclear power. Zaren and his regime are a model of despotism. They plan to attack peaceful nations on the presumption of preventing an attack. Nationalist paranoia.
1961 was a year for Nemo revivals. Robur, in Master of the World was a Nemo-type. The cool fish-shaped submarine in Atlantis was very reminiscent of Nemo's Nautilus. Later in the year, Mysterious Island will revive the character of Nemo himself and Nautilus.
It was a hallmark of Pal's productions, that his Christian faith would enter the story somewhere. After his long career, Pal was feeling less subtle. He has Azor, perhaps on the model of Melchizedek, come to believe in "the one true God," and not all the usual Atlantean idols. Azor gives Antillia the gospel and later pronounces that God will judge (destroy) Atlantis for their wickedness and wantonness. All this brings an air of Biblical epic flavor to his movie (as in The Ten Commandments, etc.
George Pal produced and directed several big sci-fi movies, When Worlds Collide ('51), War of the Worlds ('53), Conquest of Space ('55) and Time Machine ('60). The screenwriter, David Mainwaring, wrote for the classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers (’56)
In a dark take-off of a trope from Pinocchio, the sinister chemists of Atlantis are turning slaves into bull-men, complete with snouts, ears and horns. The motive is apparently a strong-like-bull labor force who don't question commands. While not explored much within the script, such tampering is yet another reason for God's justice upon Atlantis.
Previous films about "Atlantis" had the place far from any ocean. Pierre Benoit's novel had been made into several films. L'Atlantide, 1921, Queen of Atlantis 1932, and Siren of Atlantis 1949. All of these used Benoit's notion that Atlantis was actually a city under the sands of the Sahara desert. The '32 film starred Bridgette Helm (from Metropolis as Antinea, Queen of Atlantis. In 1961, Edgar Ulmer directed yet another remake of Benoit's novel, using the earlier title, L'Atlantide. At least in Pal's version, Atlantis bore a closer resemblance to the ancient Greek legends. There was water.
Bottom line? Unless you happen to like sword-and-sandal movies, Atlantis will likely disappoint a sci-fi fan fond of rockets or saucers or aliens. There is precious little for the usual sci-fi fan beyond the cool sub (which only gets a few minutes of screen time) and the crystal heat beam. It has an historical niche, however.
Starring Anthony Hall, Joyce Taylor, John Dall, Bill Smith, Edward Platt, and Frank DeKova. Directed by George Pal.
youtu.be/zDCWnvBk-DI?t=9s Trailer
Some films just barely qualify for inclusion on sci-fi movie lists. George Pal's Atlantis, The Lost Continent is clearly one of them. It is 90% sword-and-sandal fantasy adventure flick. A casual viewer could easily miss the few sci-fi bits. Pal and MGM put on a grand show, though the result doesn't achieve greatness. The pretty-but-wooden acting by the leads did not help. Pal's Atlantis does, at least, steer the movie tradition back in line with the Greek legends.
Synopsis
Following some intriguing preamble about why the old world and new had similarities, the movie begins. Greek fisherman Demetrios discovers an unconscious woman floating on a raft. She turns out to be Princess Antillia of Atlantis. She demands to be taken back home. En route, she falls in love with Demetrios. They met by a fish-shaped submarine which takes them to Atlantis. Once there, Demetrios is imprisoned in the mines by Zaren, Antillia's pre-fiancee and aspirant to the throne. Demetrios, thinking that Antillia betrayed him, is miffed. His miffdom brings out her surly side and the two fail to reconcile. Zaren thinks to get rid of Demetrios with a gladiatorial fight, but Demetrios wins and is free. Zaren is using the slaves to mine a huge solar crystal which will power a heat beam weapon. With it, he plans to rule the world. Azor, the high priest, warns Demetrios that the one true God is angry at Atlantis for their cruelty and idolatry. Amid much palace intrigue and a slave revolt, the end does come. The volcano erupts, sending lava flows into the city. Earthquakes crumble the classic architecture. Demetrios and Antillia find each other and flee to a waiting boat. Zaren is about to roast them with the heat beam, but is stabbed by Azor. While Demetrios, Antillia and other refugees watch from their boats, Atlantis does in fact, sink into the sea. The End.
Pal's production has an impressive epic quality to it. The sets are luxurious with details. For a sci-fi fan, the fish-sub and crystal heat beam are high points. Hearing Paul Frees do narration and some voice-overs is fun too.
Note that the solar crystals can be used for either heating and lighting homes, or as a destructive weapon. Sounds like nuclear power. Zaren and his regime are a model of despotism. They plan to attack peaceful nations on the presumption of preventing an attack. Nationalist paranoia.
1961 was a year for Nemo revivals. Robur, in Master of the World was a Nemo-type. The cool fish-shaped submarine in Atlantis was very reminiscent of Nemo's Nautilus. Later in the year, Mysterious Island will revive the character of Nemo himself and Nautilus.
It was a hallmark of Pal's productions, that his Christian faith would enter the story somewhere. After his long career, Pal was feeling less subtle. He has Azor, perhaps on the model of Melchizedek, come to believe in "the one true God," and not all the usual Atlantean idols. Azor gives Antillia the gospel and later pronounces that God will judge (destroy) Atlantis for their wickedness and wantonness. All this brings an air of Biblical epic flavor to his movie (as in The Ten Commandments, etc.
George Pal produced and directed several big sci-fi movies, When Worlds Collide ('51), War of the Worlds ('53), Conquest of Space ('55) and Time Machine ('60). The screenwriter, David Mainwaring, wrote for the classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers (’56)
In a dark take-off of a trope from Pinocchio, the sinister chemists of Atlantis are turning slaves into bull-men, complete with snouts, ears and horns. The motive is apparently a strong-like-bull labor force who don't question commands. While not explored much within the script, such tampering is yet another reason for God's justice upon Atlantis.
Previous films about "Atlantis" had the place far from any ocean. Pierre Benoit's novel had been made into several films. L'Atlantide, 1921, Queen of Atlantis 1932, and Siren of Atlantis 1949. All of these used Benoit's notion that Atlantis was actually a city under the sands of the Sahara desert. The '32 film starred Bridgette Helm (from Metropolis as Antinea, Queen of Atlantis. In 1961, Edgar Ulmer directed yet another remake of Benoit's novel, using the earlier title, L'Atlantide. At least in Pal's version, Atlantis bore a closer resemblance to the ancient Greek legends. There was water.
Bottom line? Unless you happen to like sword-and-sandal movies, Atlantis will likely disappoint a sci-fi fan fond of rockets or saucers or aliens. There is precious little for the usual sci-fi fan beyond the cool sub (which only gets a few minutes of screen time) and the crystal heat beam. It has an historical niche, however.
Repository: California Historical Society
Creator: Sonora (Calif.). Citizens
Date: 1850
Publication Note: [Sonora, Calif.: Sonora Herald Off., 1850]
General Note: Indexed in Greenwood, California Imprints, 251
Call Number: Vault B-013
Digital object ID: Vault B-013.jpg
Preferred citation: Preamble and resolutions read and adopted at the mass meeting held in the town of Sonora, on Sunday, July 21, 1850, Vault B-013, courtesy, California Historical Society, Vault B-013.jpg.
For more CHS digital collections: digitallibrary.californiahistoricalsociety.org
Probably time for a brief recap on what this particular album is all about. In the spiel that accompanies this album I explained what wealthy Roger de Haan hoped to achieve by heading various projects designed to make Folkestone a more attractive place to live and work.
To this end there is no doubt in my mind that what he has achieved in the harbour arm itself and in the Old High Street has been a success. Photos I’ve posted document the changes made over the past few years.
What is more controversial however is his plan to build houses and apartments right along the beach to the harbour itself. The theory, put simply, goes like this –
Like many day-trip destinations, Folkestone lost popularity on the advent of cheap package holidays abroad. Attractions like the funfair
www.flickr.com/photos/134633393@N02/31530923115/in/album-
72157682283437685/
and the boating lake were closed leaving just a concrete base and a shingle beach.
www.flickr.com/photos/134633393@N02/33762892821/in/album-...
It’s worth repeating part of my preamble to this album : A recent think-tank said on key measures of poverty - school failure, teenage pregnancy, fatherlessness and lone parenting, and worklessness - some resorts now had problems as severe as deprived inner-city areas. Over half the inhabitants of Folkestone belonged to the lowest 20% of the population according to the government's deprivation index.
The solution to the above, so the theory goes, is to attract more money to the town in the form of “the right class of person”, presumably professional or similar folk with money in their pockets. So build homes [on the beach] that will attract these desirable people. To overcome objections from the natives an ice rink was promised, also restaurants and other amenities. The houses didn’t look to bad either, so we locals thought that overall, it would be a good thing for the town. My picture is of the original proposal.
State contract
State Treaty: Foreign Minister L. Figl shows the signed contract from the balcony of the Belvedere in Vienna.
© Copyright Votava, Vienna, for AEIOU.
Regarding the reestablishment of an independent and democratic Austria, concluded between the Allied Powers USSR, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, USA and France on the one hand and Austria on the other hand, signed on 15. 5. 1955 by the foreign ministers of the signatory powers WM Molotow, JF Dulles, H. Macmillan and A. Pinay and the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold Figl at the Belvedere Palace in Vienna. The State Treaty concluded at the 354th Session of the Delegations of the Allied Powers coming into force on July 27, 1955, 12 years after the Moscow Declaration of October 30, 1943, in which the United Kingdom, the USSR and the USA aspired the liberation of Austria from the German rule, since Austria was considered the first victim of Hitler's attack policy.
Closely related to the State Treaty is the Federal Constitutional Law on the Neutrality of Austria on the model of Switzerland, which was adopted after the withdrawal of the occupation soldiers from Austria by the Austrian Parliament on October 26, 1955. After the Soviet Union had dropped the coupling of the German question with Austria for many years, the Moscow Memorandum of 15 April 1955 settled controversial points between the Soviet Union and Austria, which made it possible to conclude the State Treaty.
The main political provisions relate to the restoration of Austria as a free and independent state, the preservation of Austria's independence and territorial integrity by the Allies and the recognition of Austria's independence by Germany. In addition, the political provisions include the ban on the political or economic unification of Austria and Germany (ban on connection), the recognition of human rights and the rights of Slovene and Croat minorities. The commitment to the preservation of democratic institutions stands in the face of the dissolution of Nazi and fascist organizations and the prevention of reactivation.
The State Treaty consists of a preamble and 9 parts
political and territorial provisions
military and aviation regulations
withdrawal of the Allied forces
claims arising from the war
property, rights and interest
general economic relations
settlement of disputes
different economic provisions
final provisions
Staatsvertrag
Staatsvertrag: Außenminister L. Figl zeigt den unterzeichneten Vertrag vom Balkon des Belvedere in Wien.
© Copyright Votava, Wien, für AEIOU.
Betreffend die Wiederherstellung eines unabhängigen und demokratischen Österreichs, abgeschlossen zwischen den Alliierten Mächten UdSSR, Großbritannien und Nordirland, USA und Frankreich einerseits sowie Österreich andererseits, unterzeichnet am 15. 5. 1955 von den Außenministern der Signatarmächte W. M. Molotow, J. F. Dulles, H. Macmillan und A. Pinay sowie dem österreichischen Außenminister Leopold Figl im Schloss Belvedere in Wien. Der in der 354. Sitzung der Delegationen der Alliierten Mächte abgeschlossene Staatsvertrag trat am 27. 7. 1955 in Kraft, 12 Jahre nach der Moskauer Deklaration vom 30. 10. 1943, in der Großbritannien, die UdSSR und die USA die Befreiung Österreichs von der deutschen Herrschaft anstrebten, da Österreich als erstes Opfer der Angriffspolitik Hitlers betrachtet wurde.
In enger Verbindung mit dem Staatsvertrag steht das Bundesverfassungsgesetz über die Neutralität Österreichs nach dem Muster der Schweiz, das nach Abzug der Besatzungssoldaten aus Österreich vom österreichischen Parlament am 26. 10. 1955 beschlossen wurde. Nachdem die Sowjetunion die jahrelange Koppelung der deutschen Frage mit Österreich fallengelassen hatte, regelte das Moskauer Memorandum vom 15. 4. 1955 strittige Punkte zwischen der Sowjetunion und Österreich, was den Abschluss des Staatsvertrags ermöglichte.
Die wichtigsten politischen Bestimmungen beziehen sich auf die Wiederherstellung Österreichs als freien und unabhängigen Staat, die Wahrung der Unabhängigkeit und territorialen Unversehrtheit Österreichs durch die Alliierten und die Anerkennung der Unabhängigkeit Österreichs durch Deutschland. Außerdem enthalten die politischen Bestimmungen das Verbot der politischen oder wirtschaftlichen Vereinigung von Österreich und Deutschland (Anschlussverbot), die Anerkennung der Menschenrechte und die Rechte slowenischer und kroatischer Minderheiten. Dem Bekenntnis zur Wahrung demokratischer Einrichtungen steht das Gebot gegenüber, nazistische und faschistische Organisationen aufzulösen und die Wiederbetätigung zu unterbinden.
Der Staatsvertrag besteht aus einer Präambel und 9 Teilen
politische und territoriale Bestimmungen
militärische und Luftfahrtbestimmungen
Zurückziehung der Alliierten Streitkräfte
aus dem Krieg herrührende Ansprüche
Eigentum, Rechte und Interesse
allgemeine Wirtschaftsbeziehungen
Regelung von Streitfällen
verschiedene wirtschaftliche Bestimmungen
Schlussbestimmungen
austria-forum.org/af/Wissenssammlungen/Chronik_%C3%96ster...
Frame : *surly* preamble
wheel : *velo orange* disc hub × *velo orange* voyager rim
Tire : *panaracer* gravel king sk
Headset : *velo orange* grand cru headset
Handle : *NITTO* b355 kite bar
Stem : *NITTO* MT-32 low stack stem
Grip : *herrmans* primergo jet cork
Crankset : *blue lug* rmc-Ⅱ multi speed crank/*blue lug* ox chain guard
Brake lever : *tektro* fl750 brake lever
Brake : *avid* bb7 road
Saddle : *brooks* b17 softened
Seatpost : *bl select* aero seatpost
Pedal : *mks* rmx
Bag:*ULTRA ROMANCE* fabio's abs
Starring Anthony Hall, Joyce Taylor, John Dall, Bill Smith, Edward Platt, and Frank DeKova. Directed by George Pal.
youtu.be/zDCWnvBk-DI?t=9s Trailer
Some films just barely qualify for inclusion on sci-fi movie lists. George Pal's Atlantis, The Lost Continent is clearly one of them. It is 90% sword-and-sandal fantasy adventure flick. A casual viewer could easily miss the few sci-fi bits. Pal and MGM put on a grand show, though the result doesn't achieve greatness. The pretty-but-wooden acting by the leads did not help. Pal's Atlantis does, at least, steer the movie tradition back in line with the Greek legends.
Synopsis
Following some intriguing preamble about why the old world and new had similarities, the movie begins. Greek fisherman Demetrios discovers an unconscious woman floating on a raft. She turns out to be Princess Antillia of Atlantis. She demands to be taken back home. En route, she falls in love with Demetrios. They met by a fish-shaped submarine which takes them to Atlantis. Once there, Demetrios is imprisoned in the mines by Zaren, Antillia's pre-fiancee and aspirant to the throne. Demetrios, thinking that Antillia betrayed him, is miffed. His miffdom brings out her surly side and the two fail to reconcile. Zaren thinks to get rid of Demetrios with a gladiatorial fight, but Demetrios wins and is free. Zaren is using the slaves to mine a huge solar crystal which will power a heat beam weapon. With it, he plans to rule the world. Azor, the high priest, warns Demetrios that the one true God is angry at Atlantis for their cruelty and idolatry. Amid much palace intrigue and a slave revolt, the end does come. The volcano erupts, sending lava flows into the city. Earthquakes crumble the classic architecture. Demetrios and Antillia find each other and flee to a waiting boat. Zaren is about to roast them with the heat beam, but is stabbed by Azor. While Demetrios, Antillia and other refugees watch from their boats, Atlantis does in fact, sink into the sea. The End.
Pal's production has an impressive epic quality to it. The sets are luxurious with details. For a sci-fi fan, the fish-sub and crystal heat beam are high points. Hearing Paul Frees do narration and some voice-overs is fun too.
Note that the solar crystals can be used for either heating and lighting homes, or as a destructive weapon. Sounds like nuclear power. Zaren and his regime are a model of despotism. They plan to attack peaceful nations on the presumption of preventing an attack. Nationalist paranoia.
1961 was a year for Nemo revivals. Robur, in Master of the World was a Nemo-type. The cool fish-shaped submarine in Atlantis was very reminiscent of Nemo's Nautilus. Later in the year, Mysterious Island will revive the character of Nemo himself and Nautilus.
It was a hallmark of Pal's productions, that his Christian faith would enter the story somewhere. After his long career, Pal was feeling less subtle. He has Azor, perhaps on the model of Melchizedek, come to believe in "the one true God," and not all the usual Atlantean idols. Azor gives Antillia the gospel and later pronounces that God will judge (destroy) Atlantis for their wickedness and wantonness. All this brings an air of Biblical epic flavor to his movie (as in The Ten Commandments, etc.
George Pal produced and directed several big sci-fi movies, When Worlds Collide ('51), War of the Worlds ('53), Conquest of Space ('55) and Time Machine ('60). The screenwriter, David Mainwaring, wrote for the classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers (’56)
In a dark take-off of a trope from Pinocchio, the sinister chemists of Atlantis are turning slaves into bull-men, complete with snouts, ears and horns. The motive is apparently a strong-like-bull labor force who don't question commands. While not explored much within the script, such tampering is yet another reason for God's justice upon Atlantis.
Previous films about "Atlantis" had the place far from any ocean. Pierre Benoit's novel had been made into several films. L'Atlantide, 1921, Queen of Atlantis 1932, and Siren of Atlantis 1949. All of these used Benoit's notion that Atlantis was actually a city under the sands of the Sahara desert. The '32 film starred Bridgette Helm (from Metropolis as Antinea, Queen of Atlantis. In 1961, Edgar Ulmer directed yet another remake of Benoit's novel, using the earlier title, L'Atlantide. At least in Pal's version, Atlantis bore a closer resemblance to the ancient Greek legends. There was water.
Bottom line? Unless you happen to like sword-and-sandal movies, Atlantis will likely disappoint a sci-fi fan fond of rockets or saucers or aliens. There is precious little for the usual sci-fi fan beyond the cool sub (which only gets a few minutes of screen time) and the crystal heat beam. It has an historical niche, however.