title: Rakshita

text: Rakshita was brought up in Bangalore. Her father B. C. Gowrishankar was a cinematographer and mother Mamatha Rao, an actress, both of whom worked in Kannada films. Rakshita underwent an acting course under Krishnamurthy Kavathar's tutelage for about 15 days before entering films. Pursuing a bachelor's degree in computer applications (BCA) from Sri Bhagawan Mahaveer Jain College in Bangalore at the time, she discontinued during the first year before enrolling in a correspondence course for a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2001. During this time, she was signed to play the lead opposite Puneeth Rajkumar in "Appu" (2002) by producer Parvathamma Rajkumar who gave her the name Rakshita.


title: Rakshita

text: Rakshita started her career with the Kannada movie "Appu" with Puneeth Rajkumar. She also acted in remakes of the same movie in Telugu titled "Idiot" and in Tamil titled "Dum" alongside Silambarasan. She became a top Kannada heroine when "Kalasipalya" became a big hit. Apart from Puneeth Rajkumar, she formed a successful pair with all the top Kannada heroes of the time - Upendra, Sudeep, Darshan and Aditya. She has also acted with big time heroes such as Chiranjeevi, Nagarjuna Akkineni,Mahesh Babu, Jr NTR, Jagapathi Babu, Vishnuvardhan, V. Ravichandran, Shivarajkumar, Vijay, Ravi Teja, and Silambarasan


title: Rakshita

text: After her marriage to director Prem, she cut down on her acting assignments and took over film-making. She turned producer for the prestigious "Jogayya" directed by Prem, starring Shivarajkumar in the lead (100th movie).


title: Rakshita

text: Rakshita announced that she had joined the Badavara Shramikara Raitara (BSR) Congress in March 2012, after politician B. Sriramulu announced of founding it, which eventually happened in 2013. She served as the President of the women's wing of the BSR Congress till April 2013, when she quit the party citing differences with the party members over contesting elections from a constituency of her choice at the Karnataka Legislative Assembly election. In the same month, she joined the Janata Dal (Secular). She again had differences with the party over its ignoring her plea for a ticket to contest from Mandya at the 2014 general election, and quit in March 2014, joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Following this, she became subject to media and public ridicule, and was called a "party-hopper", having changed 3 political parties in two years.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: Kurt Heinrich Debus (November 29, 1908 – October 10, 1983) was a rocket engineer and NASA director. Born in Germany, he was a member of the Schutzstaffel (SS) during World War II, where he served as a V-weapons flight test director. Following the war, he was brought to the United States via Operation Paperclip, and directed the design, development, construction and operation of NASA's Saturn launch facilities. He became the first director of NASA's Launch Operations Center (later renamed as the Kennedy Space Center), and, under him, NASA conducted 150 launches of military missiles and space vehicles, including 13 launches of the Saturn V rocket as part of the Apollo Moon landing program.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: Born to Melly F. (née Grauchlich) and Heinrich P. J. Debus in Frankfurt, German Empire, in 1908, Debus received all his academic education and credentials in Germany during the interwar period. He attended Technische Hochschule Darmstadt where he earned his initial and advanced degrees in electrical engineering. He served as a graduate assistant on the faculty for electrical engineering and high-voltage engineering while studying for his master's degree.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: In 1939, he obtained his engineering doctorate with a thesis on surge voltages, and was appointed assistant professor at the university. During World War II, Debus was a member of the Nazi Party, and joined the SA in 1933 and the SS in 1940 [No 426.559].


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: Debus was appointed by Hitler as the V-weapons flight test director and was actively engaged in the rocket research program at Peenemünde and the development of the V-2 rocket, Debus led the Test Stand Group personnel at Peenemünde and was the engineer in charge at Test Stand VII.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: At the end of the war, Debus and a small group of the V-2 engineers led by Wernher von Braun's brother sought out the advancing American 44th Infantry Division near Schattwald on May 2, 1945. Debus was detained by the U.S. Army with the rest of the Peenemünde scientists at Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Debus served as both a technical and diplomatic liaison between German rocket engineers and the British during Operation Backfire, a series of V-2 test launches from an abandoned German naval gun range near Cuxhaven, Germany, in October 1945.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: In late 1945, Debus was transferred to Fort Bliss, Texas, under contract as a "special employee" of the U.S. Army, as were the other German rocket specialists. He was brought to the United States as part of Operation Paperclip, a secret United States intelligence program in which more than 1,600 German scientists, engineers, and technicians were brought from former Nazi Germany to the U.S. for government employment after the end of World War II in Europe. He was deputy director at the Guidance and Control Branch through December 1948, when he was promoted to assistant technical director to von Braun at the Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: The arsenal became the focal point of the Army's rocket and space projects; larger rockets were launched first from White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and later from Cape Canaveral. The Army assigned von Braun as chairman of a Development Board, and Debus supervised the development program of the Guided Missile Branch until November 1951. The Army Ordnance Department reorganized the team and called it the Ordnance Guided Missile Center. By November 1951, the pace had picked up and a new missile program, the Redstone, was taking shape. Von Braun named Debus to lead a new Experimental Missiles Firing Branch. Debus' organization also launched the first U.S. missiles carrying atomic warheads in the Pacific Ocean area during a series of tests.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: Starting in 1952, Debus supervised the development and construction of rocket launch facilities at Cape Canaveral for the Redstone, Jupiter, Jupiter-C, Juno and Pershing military configurations continuing through 1960. The organization he directed was transferred from the Army to NASA.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: Beginning in 1961, Debus directed the design, development and construction of NASA's Saturn launch facilities at the north end of Cape Canaveral and adjacent Merritt Island.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: On July 1, 1962, the Florida launch facility at Cape Canaveral was officially designated as NASA's Launch Operations Center (renamed to honor President John Kennedy after his assassination in 1963) and Debus was officially named its first director. In October 1965, he became responsible for NASA unmanned launch operations at the Eastern and Western Ranges, assuming the additional title of Kennedy Space Center (KSC) director of launch operations until Rocco Petrone took the post in 1966.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: Under Debus' leadership, NASA and its team of contractors built what was hailed as the Free World's Moonport — KSC's Launch Complex 39 — as well as tested and launched the Saturn family of rockets for the Apollo and Skylab programs. Debus retired as KSC director in November 1974.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: Debus married Irmgard Brueckmann on June 30, 1937; they had two daughters while still in Germany: Siegrid and Ute.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: A small lunar crater on the far side of the Moon to the east-southeast of the crater Ganskiy, past the eastern limb, is named for Debus; as is The Kurt Debus Conference Center at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Debus was inducted into the National Space Hall of Fame in 1969.


title: Kurt H. Debus

text: Since 1990, the National Space Club of Florida has presented its annual Debus Award to recognize significant aerospace achievements in Florida, including individuals associated with launch vehicles, spacecraft operations, ground support services, range activities, space education and spaceport research and development. The award was conceived as an adjunct to the Goddard Award given each year by the National Space Club in Washington, D.C. to an individual in the aerospace field on a national level.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: Wire in the Blood is a British crime drama television series, created and produced by Coastal Productions for Tyne Tees Television and broadcast on ITV from 14 November 2002 to 31 October 2008. The series is based on characters created by Val McDermid, including a university clinical psychologist, Dr Anthony "Tony" Valentine Hill (Robson Green), who is able to tap into his own dark side to get inside the heads of serial killers. Working with detectives, Hill takes on tough and seemingly impenetrable cases in an attempt to track down the killers before they strike again.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: ITV cancelled the series in 2009, citing high production costs (which were estimated at up to £750,000 per episode) and the large number of new series being broadcast on the network.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: The series is set in the fictional town of Bradfield, which is assumed to lie within West Yorkshire. It follows the Major Incident Team (MIT) of Bradfield Metropolitan Police's CID and the assistance provided to the detectives by clinical psychologist and serial offender profiler Dr. Tony Hill. All of the main episodes revolve around a serial killer whom Hill helps to track down by means of a profile, based on the killer's actions.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: From Series 1 to 3, the MIT is headed by Detective Inspector (Chief Inspector from Series 2) Carol Jordan. The two develop a close relationship, which is further explored in McDermid's novels, in which Jordan is always head of the MIT. In the first episode of Series 4, Jordan is replaced—without real explanation—by Detective Inspector Alex Fielding, who (despite being initially hesitant to accept Tony's support) eventually develops an equally close relationship.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: A constant theme is Carol's, and later Alex's, struggle with their senior officers, who are often less trusting of Tony's eccentric methods and far-fetched theories than Carol and Alex. There is also a romantic storyline showing a growing development in Tony's relationships with both Carol and later Alex. Whilst starting as friendships, both detectives begin to develop romantic feelings for Tony, although these feelings never develop into a relationship.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: Only the first two episodes of the first series, "The Mermaids Singing" and "Shadows Rising", the second episode of series four, "Torment", and the second episode of series six, "Falls the Shadow", are based on McDermid's books; the rest are original plots written by others.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: Filming took place from 22 October 2001 to 14 February 2002 in various locations around Newcastle upon Tyne, Durham and Northumberland, including Bollyhope Quarry (Durham), Chopwell Woods (Gateshead) and Eshott Hall (Northumberland) which was used for the Vance residence.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: The series was filmed in locations in and around Newcastle including the main location of the old Bank of England building in Pilgrim Street, Newcastle. Also used: Finchale Priory, Durham Cathedral, Calder's Brewery near the Newcastle Arena plus various temporary (daily) locations. Every episode of series two was the leader in its time slot.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: Hermione Norris does not return as D.C.I. Carol Jordan, having accepted the role of Ros Myers in "Spooks". Simone Lahbib joins the cast as her replacement, D.I. Alex Fielding. Jordan is explained as having emigrated to South Africa.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: Filming for this series took place between January 15 and April 20, 2007. "Prayer of the Bone" was filmed in and around Austin and La Grange, Texas.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: The series has appeared in the United States on the cable channel BBC America, in Australia on the public channel ABC, and in New Zealand on TV 1. As of May 2014, the show is screening on British televisions on the channel ITV3. The show is currently available on the Hulu Streaming service in the U.S. It began running on Acorn TV in 2018. The show is also now available on the streaming service BritBox.


title: Wire in the Blood

text: Region 2 is distributed by Revelation Films, Region 1 by Koch Vision and Region 4 by Magna. In 2019, Via Vision Entertainment obtained the rights to the series in Australia, Region 4.


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: The UEFA Fan's Team of the Year is a football award given by UEFA through a poll on its official website. This award started in 2001 and allows users of the organization's website to choose their own eleven players and a coach based on their overall performances in European club football and international competitions.


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: Until 2011, the writers at the website had constructed a short-list of sixty footballers and coaches who have performed well in European club competitions, domestic competitions and international tournaments for that particular year. Users then cast their vote of a line-up consisting of eleven players (including a goalkeeper, four defenders, four midfielders, and two forwards) and a coach based on who they believed excelled in European football. After the selection is made, the user also has to select one of the players to be the captain of their team.


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: The format of the vote was changed in 2012 – now users first choose their preferred formation (4–4–2, 3–5–2, 3–4–3, 4–3–3 or 5–3–2), and then choose the relevant number of players for each position. The voters have a choice between 4 goalkeepers, 12 defenders, 12 midfielders and 12 forwards. The voting for best coach was discontinued.


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: The player with the most appearances in the team is Cristiano Ronaldo, having appeared fifteen times. Second is Lionel Messi, having appeared twelve times. Sergio Ramos has the third-most appearances with nine, which is also the record for a defender. The most consecutive appearances in the team is fourteen for Cristiano Ronaldo (2007–2020), followed by Sergio Ramos (2012–2018) and Lionel Messi (2014–2020) with seven each, and Iker Casillas (2007–2012) with six.


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: The teams with the most player appearances (not including manager appearances) are Real Madrid and Barcelona with 49, followed by Bayern Munich (21) and Juventus (20). Barcelona is the team with the most players selected in a single season, with six players in both 2009 and 2010. The only other teams with more than three players in one season are Bayern Munich (four in 2013 and five in both 2014 and 2020), Liverpool (five in 2019), and Real Madrid (five in both 2017 and 2018 and four in 2003, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016).


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: The manager with the most appearances is José Mourinho, with four appearances (one with Internazionale, two with Porto and one with Chelsea). He is followed by Alex Ferguson, who has two appearances.


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: In November 2015, UEFA published their Ultimate Team of the Year, composed of the 18 players (11 starters and 7 substitutes) with the all-time most appearances in the UEFA Team of the Year, since its inception in 2001.


title: UEFA Team of the Year

text: In November 2017, UEFA published an UEFA all-time XI of the century so far, their second Ultimate Team of the Year, composed of the 11 players with the all-time most appearances in the UEFA Team of the Year, since its inception in 2001.


title: Noah Webster

text: Noah Webster Jr. (October 16, 1758 – May 28, 1843) was an American lexicographer, textbook pioneer, English-language spelling reformer, political writer, editor, and author. He has been called the "Father of American Scholarship and Education". His "Blue-backed Speller" books taught five generations of American children how to spell and read. Webster's name has become synonymous with "dictionary" in the United States, especially the modern Merriam-Webster dictionary that was first published in 1828 as "An American Dictionary of the English Language".


title: Noah Webster

text: Born in West Hartford, Connecticut, Webster graduated from Yale College in 1778. He passed the bar examination after studying law under Oliver Ellsworth and others, but was unable to find work as a lawyer. He found some financial success by opening a private school and writing a series of educational books, including the "Blue-Backed Speller". A strong supporter of the American Revolution and the ratification of the United States Constitution, Webster later criticized American society for being in need of an intellectual foundation. He believed that American nationalism was superior to Europe because American values were superior.


title: Noah Webster

text: In 1793, Alexander Hamilton recruited Webster to move to New York City and become an editor for a Federalist Party newspaper. He became a prolific author, publishing newspaper articles, political essays, and textbooks. He returned to Connecticut in 1798 and served in the Connecticut House of Representatives. Webster founded the Connecticut Society for the Abolition of Slavery in 1791 but later became somewhat disillusioned with the abolitionist movement.


title: Noah Webster

text: In 1806, Webster published his first dictionary, "A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language". The following year, he started working on an expanded and comprehensive dictionary, finally publishing it in 1828. He was very influential in popularizing certain spellings in the United States. He was also influential in establishing the Copyright Act of 1831, the first major statutory revision of U.S. copyright law. Whilst working on a second volume of his dictionary, Webster died in 1843, and the rights to the dictionary were acquired by George and Charles Merriam.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster was born in the Western Division of Hartford (which became West Hartford, Connecticut) to an established family. His birthplace is the Noah Webster House which highlights Webster's life and is the headquarters of the West Hartford Historical Society. His father Noah Webster Sr. (1722–1813) was a descendant of Connecticut Governor John Webster; his mother Mercy (Steele) Webster (1727–1794) was a descendant of Governor William Bradford of Plymouth Colony. His father was primarily a farmer, though he was also deacon of the local Congregational church, captain of the town's militia, and a founder of a local book society (a precursor to the public library). After American independence, he was appointed a justice of the peace.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster's father never attended college, but he was intellectually curious and prized education. Webster's mother spent long hours teaching her children spelling, mathematics, and music. At age six, Webster began attending a dilapidated one-room primary school built by West Hartford's Ecclesiastical Society. Years later, he described the teachers as the "dregs of humanity" and complained that the instruction was mainly in religion. Webster's experiences there motivated him to improve the educational experience of future generations.


title: Noah Webster

text: At age fourteen, his church pastor began tutoring him in Latin and Greek to prepare him for entering Yale College. Webster enrolled at Yale just before his 16th birthday, studying during his senior year with Ezra Stiles, Yale's president. He also was a member of the secret society, Brothers in Unity. His four years at Yale overlapped the American Revolutionary War and, because of food shortages and the possibility of British invasion, many of his classes had to be held in other towns. Webster served in the Connecticut Militia. His father had mortgaged the farm to send Webster to Yale, but he was now on his own and had nothing more to do with his family.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster lacked career plans after graduating from Yale in 1779, later writing that a liberal arts education "disqualifies a man for business". He taught school briefly in Glastonbury, but the working conditions were harsh and the pay low. He quit to study law. While studying law under future U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth, Webster also taught full-time in Hartford—which was grueling, and ultimately impossible to continue. He quit his legal studies for a year and lapsed into a depression; he then found another practicing attorney to tutor him, and completed his studies and passed the bar examination in 1781. As the Revolutionary War was still going on, he could not find work as a lawyer. He received a master's degree from Yale by giving an oral dissertation to the Yale graduating class. Later that year, he opened a small private school in western Connecticut that was a success. Nevertheless, he soon closed it and left town, probably because of a failed romance. Turning to literary work as a way to overcome his losses and channel his ambitions, he began writing a series of well-received articles for a prominent New England newspaper justifying and praising the American Revolution and arguing that the separation from Britain would be a permanent state of affairs. He then founded a private school catering to wealthy parents in Goshen, New York and, by 1785, he had written his speller, a grammar book and a reader for elementary schools. Proceeds from continuing sales of the popular blue-backed speller enabled Webster to spend many years working on his famous dictionary.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster was by nature a revolutionary, seeking American independence from the cultural thralldom to Europe. To replace it, he sought to create a utopian America, cleansed of luxury and ostentation and the champion of freedom. By 1781, Webster had an expansive view of the new nation. American nationalism was superior to Europe because American values were superior, he claimed.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster dedicated his "Speller" and "Dictionary" to providing an intellectual foundation for American nationalism. From 1787 to 1789, Webster was an outspoken supporter of the new Constitution. In October 1787, he wrote a pamphlet entitled "An Examination into the Leading Principles of the Federal Constitution Proposed by the Late Convention Held at Philadelphia", published under the pen name "A Citizen of America". The pamphlet was influential, particularly outside New York State.


title: Noah Webster

text: In terms of political theory, he de-emphasized virtue (a core value of republicanism) and emphasized widespread ownership of property (a key element of Federalism). He was one of the few Americans who paid much attention to French theorist Jean-Jacques Rousseau. It was not Rousseau's politics but his ideas on pedagogy in "Emile" (1762) that influenced Webster in adjusting his "Speller" to the stages of a child's development.


title: Noah Webster

text: Noah Webster married Rebecca Greenleaf (1766–1847) on October 26, 1789, New Haven, Connecticut. They had eight children:


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster married well and had joined the elite in Hartford but did not have much money. In 1793, Alexander Hamilton lent him $1,500 to move to New York City to edit the leading Federalist Party newspaper. In December, he founded New York's first daily newspaper "American Minerva" (later known as the "Commercial Advertiser"), which he edited for four years, writing the equivalent of 20 volumes of articles and editorials. He also published the semi-weekly publication "The Herald, A Gazette for the country" (later known as "The New York Spectator").


title: Noah Webster

text: As a Federalist spokesman, he defended the administrations of George Washington and John Adams, especially their policy of neutrality between Britain and France, and he especially criticized the excesses of the French Revolution and its Reign of Terror. When French ambassador Citizen Genêt set up a network of pro-Jacobin "Democratic-Republican Societies" that entered American politics and attacked President Washington, he condemned them. He later defended Jay's Treaty between the United States and Britain. As a result, he was repeatedly denounced by the Jeffersonian Republicans as "a pusillanimous, half-begotten, self-dubbed patriot", "an incurable lunatic", and "a deceitful newsmonger ... Pedagogue and Quack."


title: Noah Webster

text: For decades, he was one of the most prolific authors in the new nation, publishing textbooks, political essays, a report on infectious diseases, and newspaper articles for his Federalist party. He wrote so much that a modern bibliography of his published works required 655 pages. He moved back to New Haven in 1798; he was elected as a Federalist to the Connecticut House of Representatives in 1800 and 1802–1807.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1799. He moved to Amherst, Massachusetts in 1812, where he helped to found Amherst College. In 1822 the family moved back to New Haven, where Webster was awarded an honorary degree from Yale the following year. In 1827, Webster was elected to the American Philosophical Society.


title: Noah Webster

text: As a teacher, he had come to dislike American elementary schools. They could be overcrowded, with up to seventy children of all ages crammed into one-room schoolhouses. They had poor, underpaid staff, no desks, and unsatisfactory textbooks that came from England. Webster thought that Americans should learn from American books, so he began writing the three volume compendium "A Grammatical Institute of the English Language". The work consisted of a speller (published in 1783), a grammar (published in 1784), and a reader (published in 1785). His goal was to provide a uniquely American approach to training children. His most important improvement, he claimed, was to rescue "our native tongue" from "the clamour of pedantry" that surrounded English grammar and pronunciation. He complained that the English language had been corrupted by the British aristocracy, which set its own standard for proper spelling and pronunciation. Webster rejected the notion that the study of Greek and Latin must precede the study of English grammar. The appropriate standard for the American language, argued Webster, was "the same republican principles as American civil and ecclesiastical constitutions." This meant that the people-at-large must control the language; popular sovereignty in government must be accompanied by popular usage in language.


title: Noah Webster

text: The "Speller" was arranged so that it could be easily taught to students, and it progressed by age. From his own experiences as a teacher, Webster thought that the "Speller" should be simple and gave an orderly presentation of words and the rules of spelling and pronunciation. He believed that students learned most readily when he broke a complex problem into its component parts and had each pupil master one part before moving to the next. Ellis argues that Webster anticipated some of the insights currently associated with Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development. Webster said that children pass through distinctive learning phases in which they master increasingly complex or abstract tasks. Therefore, teachers must not try to teach a three-year-old how to read; they could not do it until age five. He organized his speller accordingly, beginning with the alphabet and moving systematically through the different sounds of vowels and consonants, then syllables, then simple words, then more complex words, then sentences.


title: Noah Webster

text: The speller was originally titled "The First Part of the Grammatical Institute of the English Language". Over the course of 385 editions in his lifetime, the title was changed in 1786 to "The American Spelling Book", and again in 1829 to "The Elementary Spelling Book". Most people called it the "Blue-Backed Speller" because of its blue cover and, for the next one hundred years, Webster's book taught children how to read, spell, and pronounce words. It was the most popular American book of its time; by 1837, it had sold 15 million copies, and some 60 million by 1890—reaching the majority of young students in the nation's first century. Its royalty of a half-cent per copy was enough to sustain Webster in his other endeavors. It also helped create the popular contests known as spelling bees.


title: Noah Webster

text: As time went on, Webster changed the spellings in the book to more phonetic ones. Most of them already existed as alternative spellings. He chose spellings such as "defense", "color", and "traveler", and changed the "re" to "er" in words such as "center". He also changed "tongue" to the older spelling "tung", but this did not catch on.


title: Noah Webster

text: Part three of his "Grammatical Institute" (1785) was a reader designed to uplift the mind and "diffuse the principles of virtue and patriotism."


title: Noah Webster

text: Students received the usual quota of Plutarch, Shakespeare, Swift, and Addison, as well as such Americans as Joel Barlow's "Vision of Columbus", Timothy Dwight's "Conquest of Canaan", and John Trumbull's poem "M'Fingal." He included excerpts from Tom Paine's "The Crisis" and an essay by Thomas Day calling for the abolition of slavery in accord with the Declaration of Independence.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster's "Speller" was entirely secular by design. It ended with two pages of important dates in American history, beginning with Columbus's discovery of America in 1492 and ending with the battle of Yorktown in 1781. There was no mention of God, the Bible, or sacred events. "Let sacred things be appropriated for sacred purposes", Webster wrote. As Ellis explains, "Webster began to construct a secular catechism to the nation-state. Here was the first appearance of 'civics' in American schoolbooks. In this sense, Webster's speller becoming what was to be the secular successor to "The New England Primer" with its explicitly biblical injunctions." Later in life, Webster became intensely religious and added religious themes. However, after 1840, Webster's books lost market share to the "McGuffey Eclectic Readers" of William Holmes McGuffey, which sold over 120 million copies.


title: Noah Webster

text: Vincent P. Bynack (1984) examines Webster in relation to his commitment to the idea of a unified American national culture that would stave off the decline of republican virtues and solidarity. Webster acquired his perspective on language from such theorists as Maupertuis, Michaelis, and Herder. There he found the belief that a nation's linguistic forms and the thoughts correlated with them shaped individuals' behavior. Thus, the etymological clarification and reform of American English promised to improve citizens' manners and thereby preserve republican purity and social stability. This presupposition animated Webster's "Speller" and "Grammar".


title: Noah Webster

text: In 1806, Webster published his first dictionary, . In 1807 Webster began compiling an expanded and fully comprehensive dictionary, "An American Dictionary of the English Language;" it took twenty-six years to complete. To evaluate the etymology of words, Webster learned twenty-eight languages, including Old English, Gothic, German, Greek, Latin, Italian, Spanish, French, Dutch, Welsh, Russian, Hebrew, Aramaic, Persian, Arabic, and Sanskrit. Webster hoped to standardize American speech, since Americans in different parts of the country used different languages. They also spelled, pronounced, and used English words differently.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster completed his dictionary during his year abroad in January 1825 in a boarding house in Cambridge, England. His book contained seventy thousand words, of which twelve thousand had never appeared in a published dictionary before. As a spelling reformer, Webster preferred spellings that matched pronunciation better. In "A Companion to the American Revolution" (2008), John Algeo notes: "It is often assumed that characteristically American spellings were invented by Noah Webster. He was very influential in popularizing certain spellings in America, but he did not originate them. Rather ... he chose already existing options such as "center, color" and "check" on such grounds as simplicity, analogy or etymology." He also added American words, like "skunk", that did not appear in British dictionaries. At the age of seventy, Webster published his dictionary in 1828, registering the copyright on April 14.


title: Noah Webster

text: Though it now has an honoured place in the history of American English, Webster's first dictionary only sold 2,500 copies. He was forced to mortgage his home to develop a second edition, and for the rest of his life he had debt problems.


title: Noah Webster

text: In 1840, the second edition was published in two volumes. On May 28, 1843, a few days after he had completed making more specific definitions, to the second edition, and with much of his efforts with the dictionary still unrecognized, Noah Webster died. His last words were, "I am entirely submissive to the will of God." He died later that evening. The rights to his dictionary were acquired by George and Charles Merriam in 1843 from Webster's estate and all contemporary Merriam-Webster dictionaries trace their lineage to that of Webster, although many others have adopted his name, attempting to share in the popularity. He is buried in New Haven's Grove Street Cemetery.


title: Noah Webster

text: Lepore (2008) demonstrates Webster's paradoxical ideas about language and politics and shows why Webster's endeavors were at first so poorly received. Culturally conservative Federalists denounced the work as radical—too inclusive in its lexicon and even bordering on vulgar. Meanwhile, Webster's old foes the Republicans attacked the man, labeling him mad for such an undertaking.


title: Noah Webster

text: Scholars have long seen Webster's 1844 dictionary to be an important resource for reading poet Emily Dickinson's life and work; she once commented that the "Lexicon" was her "only companion" for years. One biographer said, "The dictionary was no mere reference book to her; she read it as a priest his breviary—over and over, page by page, with utter absorption."


title: Noah Webster

text: Nathan Austin has explored the intersection of lexicographical and poetic practices in American literature, and attempts to map out a "lexical poetics" using Webster's definitions as his base. Poets mined his dictionaries, often drawing upon the lexicography in order to express word play. Austin explicates key definitions from both the "Compendious" (1806) and "American" (1828) dictionaries, and finds a range of themes such as the politics of "American" versus "British" English and issues of national identity and independent culture. Austin argues that Webster's dictionaries helped redefine Americanism in an era of highly flexible cultural identity. Webster himself saw the dictionaries as a nationalizing device to separate America from Britain, calling his project a "federal language", with competing forces towards regularity on the one hand and innovation on the other. Austin suggests that the contradictions of Webster's lexicography were part of a larger play between liberty and order within American intellectual discourse, with some pulled toward Europe and the past, and others pulled toward America and the new future.


title: Noah Webster

text: In 1850 Blackie and Son in Glasgow published the first general dictionary of English that relied heavily upon pictorial illustrations integrated with the text. Its "The Imperial Dictionary, English, Technological, and Scientific, Adapted to the Present State of Literature, Science, and Art; On the Basis of Webster's English Dictionary" used Webster's for most of their text, adding some additional technical words that went with illustrations of machinery.


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster in early life was something of a freethinker, but in 1808 he became a convert to Calvinistic orthodoxy, and thereafter became a devout Congregationalist who preached the need to Christianize the nation. Webster grew increasingly authoritarian and elitist, fighting against the prevailing grain of Jacksonian Democracy. Webster viewed language as a tool to control unruly thoughts. His "American Dictionary" emphasized the virtues of social control over human passions and individualism, submission to authority, and fear of God; they were necessary for the maintenance of the American social order. As he grew older, Webster's attitudes changed from those of an optimistic revolutionary in the 1780s to those of a pessimistic critic of man and society by the 1820s.


title: Noah Webster

text: His 1828 "American Dictionary" contained the greatest number of Biblical definitions given in any reference volume. Webster said of education,


title: Noah Webster

text: Webster released his own edition of the Bible in 1833, called the Common Version. He used the King James Version (KJV) as a base and consulted the Hebrew and Greek along with various other versions and commentaries. Webster molded the KJV to correct grammar, replaced words that were no longer used, and removed words and phrases that could be seen as offensive.


title: Noah Webster

text: In 1834, he published "Value of the Bible and Excellence of the Christian Religion", an apologetic book in defense of the Bible and Christianity itself.


title: Noah Webster

text: Initially supportive of the abolitionist movement, Webster helped found the Connecticut Society for the Abolition of Slavery in 1791. However, by the 1830's he began to disagree with the movement's arguments that Americans who did not actively oppose the institution of slavery were complicit in the system. In 1832, Webster wrote and published a history textbook titled "History of the United States", which omitted any reference to the role of slavery in American history and included racist characterizations of African Americans. The textbook also "spoke of whiteness as the supreme race and declared Anglo Saxons as the only true Americans." In 1837, Webster criticized his daughter Eliza for her support for the abolitionist movement, writing that "slavery is a great sin and a general calamity—but it is not "our" sin, though it may prove to be a terrible calamity to us in the north. But we cannot legally interfere with the South on this subject. To come north to preach and thus disturb "our" peace, when we can legally do nothing to effect this object, is, in my view, highly criminal and the preachers of abolitionism deserve the penitentiary."


title: Noah Webster

text: The Copyright Act of 1831 was the first major statutory revision of U.S. copyright law, a result of intensive lobbying by Noah Webster and his agents in Congress. Webster also played a critical role lobbying individual states throughout the country during the 1780s to pass the first American copyright laws, which were expected to have distinct nationalistic implications for the young nation.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy Kumar Ghose (27 August 1931 – 11 October 2007), better known as Sri Chinmoy, was an Indian spiritual leader who taught meditation in the West after moving to New York City in 1964. Chinmoy established his first meditation center in Queens, New York, and eventually had 7,000 students in 60 countries. A prolific author, artist, poet, and musician, he also held public events such as concerts and meditations on the theme of inner peace. Chinmoy advocated a spiritual path to God through prayer and meditation. He advocated athleticism including distance running, swimming, and weightlifting. He organized marathons and other races, and was an active runner and, following a knee injury, weightlifter.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy was the youngest of seven children, born in Shakpura, Boalkhali Upazila, in the Chittagong District of East Bengal, British India (now Bangladesh). He lost his father to illness in 1943, and his mother a few months later. Chinmoy began his serious practice of meditation at the age of 11. In 1944, the 12-year-old Chinmoy joined his brothers and sisters at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, where his elder brothers Hriday and Chitta had already established a presence. It was Chitta that gave Chinmoy his name which means "full of divine consciousness".


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In the ashram he spent the next 20 years in spiritual practice, including meditation, study in Bengali and English literature, athletics, and work in the ashram's cottage industries. Chinmoy claimed that for about eight years, he was the personal secretary to the General Secretary of the ashram, Nolini Kanta Gupta. Chinmoy translated his writings from Bengali into English.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: According to Chinmoy, in 1964 he was prompted to move to the United States in response to a "message from within" to be of service to people in the West searching for spiritual fulfillment. With the help of Sam Spanier and Eric Hughes, American sponsors connected with the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, he emigrated to New York City.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: He successfully applied for a job as junior clerk at the Indian consulate, despite his lack of formal education. He received support and encouragement from his colleagues and bosses and was invited to give talks on Hinduism. He started to give talks at universities and later, at the United Nations.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Chinmoy continued giving lectures and talks at universities around the U.S. on spiritual topics. In 1974, he gave lectures in 50 states at 50 universities, and these lectures were published as a six-part book series entitled "50 Freedom-Boats to One Golden Shore" (1974). In the 1970s and 1980s he traveled around Europe, Asia, and Australia lecturing at universities, resulting in the publication of "The Oneness of the Eastern Heart and the Western Mind". Chinmoy has also published books, essays, spiritual poetry, plays, and commentaries on the Vedas.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In 1966 Chinmoy opened a Sri Chinmoy Center in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Up until the late 1970s the main Chinmoy study centers were in New York, Florida and the West Indies. Over the next few decades Sri Chinmoy Centers were opened and established in multiple cities in the US, Europe, Australasia, South Africa and South America eventually totaling 350 centers worldwide. In 1973, the "New York Times" wrote that Chinmoy was "revered in India as one of the few holy men to have reached Nirvikalpa Samadhi, the absolute highest level of consciousness".


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: During the 1970s Chinmoy began playing and composing on the flute and esraj. In 1984, he started giving free 'Peace Concerts' around the world. The largest ever concert was in Montreal, for 19,000 people.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: While in America in the 1970s, Chinmoy attracted followers such as musicians Carlos Santana, John McLaughlin, Narada Michael Walden, Roberta Flack, Clarence Clemons, and Boris Grebenshchikov. Chinmoy offered the musicians a disciplined spiritual path that forbade the use of drugs and alcohol and encouraged music and poetry as expressions of thankfulness to the Divine.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Santana and McLaughlin stayed with Chinmoy for a number of years before leaving. In 1973 they released an album based on Chinmoy's teachings, titled "Love Devotion Surrender". McLaughlin was a Chinmoy follower from 1970 to 1975. In 1971 he formed the Mahavishnu Orchestra, named for the spiritual name Chinmoy had given him. McLaughlin introduced Santana to the guru, and Santana and his wife Deborah were subsequently Chinmoy followers from 1972 to 1981. Santana said, "Without a guru I serve only my own vanity, but with him I can be of service to you and everybody. I am the strings, but he is the musician. Guru has graduated from the Harvards of consciousness and sits at the feet of God." Santana released three albums under the spiritual name "Devadip" – meaning "Lamp of God", "Eye of God", and "Light of God" – that Chinmoy gave him: "Illuminations" (1974), "Oneness" (1979), and "The Swing of Delight" (1980). In 2000, he told "Rolling Stone" that things soured between him and Chinmoy in the 1980s. Santana emphasized that he took much that was good from his years with the guru, even though when he left, Chinmoy "was pretty vindictive for a while. He told all my friends not to call me ever again, because I was to drown in the dark sea of ignorance for leaving him." In 2017 Santana told "Rolling Stone", "I'm really grateful for those 10 years I spent with that spiritual master."


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Spiritual teacher Frederick Lenz became a follower around 1972, but in 1981 he broke with Chinmoy and became a guru on his own. Spiritual author Lex Hixon was a member of the Sri Chinmoy Centre in the 1970s.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy advocated "self-transcendence" by expanding one's consciousness to conquer the mind's perceived limitations, and this was often applied to athletics. Olympic gold-medalist runner Carl Lewis was advised by Chinmoy. He learned to meditate from Chinmoy, and practices the techniques regularly. A devoted Christian, Lewis stated that his involvement with Chinmoy was a step forward to spiritual fulfillment which strengthened his Christian beliefs. In 2011 Lewis appeared in the short documentary "Challenging Impossibility", which features the feats of strength demonstrated by Chinmoy.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: According to the team's website, members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team have swum the English Channel over 40 times. Other Chinmoy-sponsored athletic events include ultra-distance running, including the Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race; mountain climbing; and long-distance cycling. In 2010 Ashrita Furman, who holds over 150 Guinness World Records, stated that "the meditation he learned from Sri Chinmoy helps him to perform beyond his expectations."


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In 1987 Sri Chinmoy inaugurated the Sri Chinmoy Oneness Home Peace Run, a symbolic relay style run for peace through many countries of the world where runners carry a flaming torch representing harmony. Sri Chinmoy described his concept as a "grassroots effort for peace". The 'Oneness Home' theme of the Peace Run, is that people are all peace-longing citizens on one single planet.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In 1991 Chinmoy initiated the 'Oneness Heart Tears and Smiles' humanitarian service which sends food and medicine to those in need. The organisation, which as of 2007 served 136 countries, began with members of the Sri Chinmoy Centre distributing humanitarian aid to needy children and adults worldwide. It works with NGOs or governments, and provides health, medical, and educational supplies to recipient nations. It is served by health professionals and private volunteers on five continents, in programs which provide disaster relief, regional development, and health and medical supplies. The 'Kids to kids' program sponsored by the Oneness Heart Tears and Smiles encourages school children to prepare packs of school supplies and toys for disadvantaged children in other communities.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy travelled widely, and dedicated his many activities and the events he founded to peace. He met with world figures, and was often described as an ambassador of peace. Chinmoy met Mother Teresa on five separate occasions. On their second meeting in Rome, Italy during October 1994, Chinmoy presented her with an award. During the ceremony, Mother Teresa said to Sri Chinmoy: "I am so pleased with all the good work you are doing for world peace and for people in so many countries. May we continue to work together and to share together all for the glory of God and for the good of man." Chinmoy met with Diana, Princess of Wales, at Kensington Palace on 21 May 1997.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: He did not charge fees for his spiritual guidance or music performances. He was respectful towards all religions and religious figures of the world. He attracted an estimated 7,000 students in his lifetime. His path was a contemporary spiritual system of yoga, practised under the guidance of a guru, or spiritual teacher. Chinmoy advocated brahmacharya – celibacy – for both married and unmarried devotees, and focusing on experiencing inner spiritual joy rather than pleasure. According to a 1987 article in "Hinduism Today", Chinmoy as a yoga spiritual master was an unmarried celibate. Unlike in some other older traditions, Chinmoy taught that a complete withdrawal from the world was not necessary for spiritual progress, but rather "a gradual and total Illumination of life".


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Until his death in late 2007, Chinmoy was the spiritual leader to thousands of devoted followers worldwide. From the mid-1960s he lived in his world headquarters in Queens, New York City, surrounded by hundreds of his followers who moved to the area. The Chinmoy group was considered to be a cult by some. The 1994 book "The Joy of Sects" stated that "some of his followers left, however, amid accusations that Chinmoy was making sexual advances towards the wives of his disciples", and in 2005 and 2014 "San Diego CityBeat" and "Salon.com" each posted a profile of a different female former disciple who alleged inappropriate sexual conduct. In February 2016 PIX 11 News in New York did two segments on Chinmoy, in which one former follower alleged sexual impropriety, while others praised Chinmoy and the Sri Chinmoy Center's spokesperson stated in a written response that "Our founder and teacher, Sri Chinmoy, led a life of the utmost purity and integrity". Chinmoy was never sued or charged with any crime, and his lawyer denied the 2004 allegations at the time. Some journalists and former followers have criticized what they view as Chinmoy's obsessive or aggressive self-promotion. In 2009, Jayanti Tamm published an account of life as a Chinmoy disciple, "". Tamm, who was born into Chinmoy's organisation, claimed that Chinmoy predicted she would become his perfect disciple. She was banished from the group when she was 25. The book describes her life in the guru's inner circle and her efforts to break free from his influence. According to the book, Chinmoy banned sex, and most disciples were directed to remain single. The book also states that the guru disparaged secular education, and his prohibitions included the consumption of alcohol, caffeine, and meat; dancing; dating; socializing with outsiders; and owning pets, although he kept a collection of exotic pets in his Queens basement. Tamm notes however that the 7,000 other followers around the world, and others who encountered Chinmoy, are likely to have had different experiences and perceptions.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy died from a heart attack while at his home in Jamaica, Queens, New York on 11 October 2007. Mikhail Gorbachev wrote that his death was "a loss for the whole world" and that "in our hearts, he will forever remain a man who dedicated his whole life to peace."


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy taught that rapid spiritual progress could be made by following a path of love, devotion, and surrender. He described divine love as self-offering and self-expansion. This practice of love and devotion to God is known as Bhakti Yoga. His path was not one of earthly renunciation or asceticism, but a middle path where the seeker has the opportunity to renounce, or transform, the negative qualities which stand in the way of union with the Divine. Chinmoy taught that meditation on the heart brings the light of the soul forward to reach the highest reality as soon as possible.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy stated: "We are all seekers, and our goal is the same: to achieve inner peace, light and joy, to become inseparably one with our Source, and to lead lives full of true satisfaction."


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: An integral element of Chinmoy's teachings is the understanding of 'self-transcendence'. Self-transcendence is the practice of having a new goal and going beyond our previous capacities and limits which inevitably gives us joy. Self-transcendence is the goal of making progress in life by becoming a better human being rather than competing with the rest of the world. Chinmoy believed that we are all truly unlimited in spirit.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy's philosophy he explains is the acceptance of life. By sharing goodwill and inspiration to others and serving mankind the world can be transformed and peace can be achieved.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: He asked his disciples to adopt a vegetarian diet, abstain from recreational drugs including alcohol, and lead a pure and celibate lifestyle. Although influenced by Hinduism, his path catered to an international community of seekers from diverse backgrounds.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy taught a range of techniques for meditation, especially those for calming and bringing silence to the mind, purifying the thoughts of the mind and meditating on the spiritual heart. Chinmoy explains that by keeping your mind calm and quiet for ten or fifteen minutes, a new experience can begin to dawn within you and this practise of stilling the mind is the root of all spiritual progress.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy recommended meditation during the quiet atmosphere of the early morning, before starting daily activities. As the traditional Hour of God, between three and four a.m., known as the "Brahma Muhurta", may not suit the western lifestyle of keeping late hours, Chinmoy recommended for those newer to meditation to ideally meditate before seven a.m. Chinmoy taught that both prayer and meditation are important, but there is a difference in the result. Prayer is a process of rising up to God and speaking to Him, and meditation is a practice of stilling the mind so that the God-presence can envelop us and commune with us. He also taught that reading spiritual writings or singing soulful songs was useful to prepare for meditation or to remain in a meditative mood after practising meditation. Chinmoy believed that running and physical fitness were a help to the inner spiritual life as well as to the outer life of activity, and encouraged his followers to run daily. Chinmoy regarded the benefits of running as keeping the body fit and clearing the mind; he felt it can also be a form of external meditation.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In 1970, Chinmoy began giving twice-weekly non-denominational peace meditations at the United Nations for UN delegates, staff, and NGO representatives. In 1976, he stated, "The ideas of the United Nations are universal peace and universal brotherhood, and the ideals of the United Nations are a oneness-world-family and a oneness-heart."


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: After directing the peace meditations, which had been attended by many UN employees and diplomats, for 37 years, more than 700 UN officials, ambassadors, members of the U.S. Congress, and representatives of various religions, paid tributes to Chinmoy following his death during a posthumous celebration at the UN headquarters in New York. During the ceremony at the UN, Daw Aye Aye Thant, the daughter of former UN Secretary-General U Thant, said in her speech:


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy's efforts to promote inter-faith harmony resulted in him being invited to open the Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago (1993) and Barcelona (2004) with a silent meditation. During the 2004 Opening Meditation, he said: "During my opening meditation I am praying for the oneness of all religions."


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy said that although he was brought up in the Hindu tradition, he felt that his only religion was the "Love of God".


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy began painting in 1974 during a visit to Ottawa, Canada. He called his artwork "Jharna Kala", which in Bengali means "Fountain Art". Chinmoy's artwork is inspired by the themes of universal oneness and universal peace.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: His abstract paintings are a mixture of acrylics and pen drawings. Chinmoy used a wide variety of sponges, brushes and colors to paint in a unique spontaneous mystical style with a lot of vigour, strong movement and rhythm. Chinmoy has said that when he paints he finds a spontaneous flow of creativity from the stillness of his meditation that allows him to follow an inner inspiration or 'streak of light' to follow.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In December 1991 Chinmoy started a new series of art-work entitled "Dream-Freedom-Peace-Birds" or 'Soul Birds'. The bird drawings are often simple zen like sketches that have either one bird or in some paintings hundreds of birds in one large drawing. The soul bird drawings, Chinmoy stated, symbolize humanity's heart cry for freedom.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: His art has been displayed in the UNESCO offices in Paris, London's Victoria and Albert Museum, the Mall Gallery in London, the Museum of Modern Art in St. Petersburg, John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, and the United Nations Headquarters.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: According to his followers, Chinmoy composed thousands of short musical compositions, written with lyrics primarily in Bengali and English. Many of these have been published online under a Creative Commons license at Sri Chinmoy Songs (lyrics and sheet music) and Radio Sri Chinmoy (audio). He released two albums in Jamaica on the Studio One subsidiary label Port-O-Jam. In 1976, Chinmoy released a meditative album on Folkways Records entitled "Music for Meditation".


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy also gave hundreds of peace concerts, many of them free. He gave concerts in notable venues around the world, including London's Royal Albert Hall, New York's Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall, Tokyo's Nippon Budokan, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and the Sydney Opera House. Chinmoy played a number of different instruments at his concerts including the flute, esraj, piano, cello and other Eastern and Western instruments.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: According to the Sri Chinmoy Centre, Chinmoy published over 1,300 books including 120,000 poems. Many of these poems are aphorisms – a short but complete spiritual poem or verse, such as "We are all truly unlimited, if we only dare to try and have faith." Chinmoy also published some volumes of longer more classical style poetry. In 2001, Chinmoy recited his poetry at the United Nations, as part of a UN sponsored event of promoting "Dialogue Among Civilizations Through Poetry".


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy's inspirational writing has been praised by many, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who wrote: "These sweet gems of wisdom written by my dear friend Sri Chinmoy are timeless truths full of encouragement, love and goodness. ... These chapters fill us with indomitable hope and enthusiasm for life."


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In 1977 the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team was founded; it holds running, swimming, and cycling events worldwide, from fun runs to ultramarathons. Its precursor was the 1976 Liberty Torch Run, a relay in which 33 runners marked America's bicentennial by covering 8,800 miles in 7 weeks through 50 states. This concept was expanded in 1987 to become the Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run. The Peace Run is generally held every two years, and the first was launched in April 1987 at the World Trade Center in New York City.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In 1985 Chinmoy, with the then Mayor of Oxford, inaugurated the first "Sri Chinmoy Peace Mile", which is a measured mile in Cutteslowe Park, Oxford giving joggers something against which to measure their progress. There are now numerous "Peace Miles" around the world.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Many of Chinmoy's followers run daily for health and physical fitness. Chinmoy himself continued to enter races until his 60s when a knee injury hampered his ability to run; afterwards he turned his attention to tennis and weightlifting.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy also founded the Self-Transcendence 6- & 10-day Races, which run concurrently in Queens each April, and the Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race, described by "The New York Times" as the "Mount Everest of ultramarathons".


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: The Self-Transcendence Marathon is a marathon around the shores of Rockland Lake State Park, located in Congers, New York, north of New York City. Inaugurated in 2002, the event attracts around 900 international runners. The Marathon takes place in the last week of August.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Chinmoy began weightlifting in 1985, at the age of 54. His weightlifting included a creative array of objects and machinery designed to challenge his strength and ability. His message to the public in his weightlifting endeavours was that anything is possible if one is able to put aside the limitations of the mind. Bill Pearl, former Mr. Universe, acted as Master of Ceremonies at many of Chinmoy's strength exhibitions. Introducing one of Chinmoy's weightlifting exhibitions in 1999, Bill Pearl wrote: "Today you are going to see some amazing feats of strength that I myself – and I have been in the industry for fifty-five years – would not even attempt to perform." Chinmoy said his motivation for lifting was to inspire others, especially those of an older generation. In 2006 he stated, "If I can inspire anybody in this world, then I feel that my life is meaningful. With my weightlifting, I am offering my physical strength to inspire people."


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In a program created in 1998 known as 'Lifting up the world with a Oneness Heart', Chinmoy lifted people of inspiration while they stood on a platform overhead. Chinmoy described his motivation: 'I lift them up to show my appreciation for their achievements,' Among some of the 7000 people he lifted include: Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu, Muhammad Ali, Sting, Eddie Murphy, Susan Sarandon, Roberta Flack, Yoko Ono, Jeff Goldblum, Richard Gere, and Helen Hunt. Twenty Nobel laureates and a team of sumo wrestlers were also lifted.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: In April 2011, a documentary film about Chinmoy's weightlifting titled "Challenging Impossibility" was featured at the Tribeca Film Festival.


title: Sri Chinmoy

text: Terry Todd, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Texas, concluded that Chinmoy misrepresented the type and weight of some of the lifts he claimed to have completed.


The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) is an Indian government ministry. This ministry is headed by Secretary Rank senior most IAS officer. The ministry portfolio is currently held by Bhupender Yadav, Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.


title: Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

text: The ministry is responsible for planning, promoting, coordinating, and overseeing the implementation of environmental and forestry programmes in the country. The main activities undertaken by the ministry include conservation and survey of the flora of India and fauna of India, forests and other wilderness areas; prevention and control of pollution; Indian Himalayan Environment and its sustainable development;afforestation, and land degradation mitigation. It is responsible for the administration of the 1947 national parks of India.


text: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change is the cadre controlling authority of the Indian Forest Service (IFS), one of the three All India Services.


text: Environmental debates were first introduced into the national political agenda during Indira Gandhi's first term as Prime Minister of India. The 4th Five-Year Plan (1969–74), for example, proclaimed "harmonious development [...] on the basis of a comprehensive appraisal of environmental issues." In 1977 (during the Emergency) Gandhi added Article 48A to the constitution stating that: "The State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country." The same decree transferred wildlife and forests from state list to concurrent list of the constitution, thus giving the central government the power to overrule state decisions on that matter. Such political and constitutional changes prepared the groundwork for the creation of a federal "Department of Environment" in 1980, turned into the "Ministry of Environment and Forests" in 1985.


text: Although tackling climate change was already a responsibility of the ministry, its priority was raised when in May 2014 the ministry was renamed to the current title of "Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change".


text: The forest administration is based on demarcation of states into Forest Divisions which consists of Forest Ranges. Forest Beats under Ranges are the smallest unit of administration hierarchy. Natural features on the field form the boundaries of each beat which has an average area of around 16 km square.


text: In August 2019 Ministry of Environment released the Draft National Resource Efficiency Policy. It is a set of guidelines which envisions a future with environmentally sustainable and equitable economic growth. The policy is guided by principle of reduction in primary resource consumption; creation of higher value with less material through resource efficient circular approach; waste minimization; material security and creation of employment opportunities and business model beneficial to cause of environment protection and restoration. It was based on the report of NITI Aayog and European Union titled, "The strategy on resource efficiency". The policy seeks to set up a National Resource Efficiency Authority with core working group housed in the Ministry. It also plans to offer tax benefits on recycled materials and soft loans to set up waste disposal and material recovery facilities.


text: As of 8th December 2021, some states have received more than Rupees 47,000 crore for afforestation. The states are directed to channel this amount as compensatory afforestation which shall be used for plantations, assisted natural forest regeneration, forest fire-prevention, pest and disease control in forest, and expedite soil and moisture conservation works.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Martial law in Poland () existed between 13 December 1981 and 22 July 1983. The government of the Polish People's Republic drastically restricted everyday life by introducing martial law and a military junta in an attempt to counter political opposition, in particular the Solidarity movement.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Since the late 1970s, communist Poland was in a deep economic recession. Edward Gierek, First Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR), had obtained a series of large loans from foreign creditors to achieve better economic output, but they instead resulted in a domestic crisis. Essential goods were heavily rationed, which acted as a stimulus to establishing the first anti-communist trade union in the Communist Bloc, known as Solidarity, in 1980. Gierek, who permitted the trade union to appear per the Gdańsk Agreement, was dismissed from his post less than a month later and confined to house arrest. Following countless strikes and demonstrations by employees of chief industrial regions, Poland was heading towards bankruptcy. The new First Secretary, General Wojciech Jaruzelski, was determined to put an end to the demonstrations by force if necessary.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: On 13 December 1981, Jaruzelski announced the introduction of martial law in a televised speech, following the vote of the Council of State the previous day which formally authorised its introduction. An extraconstitutional military junta, the Military Council of National Salvation (WRON), was formed to rule Poland during the time. The Polish People's Army, Citizens' Militia (MO), ZOMO special paramilitary units, and tanks were deployed on the streets to demoralize demonstrators, begin regular patrols, control strategic enterprises, and maintain curfew. Intercity travelling without a permit was forbidden, food shortages intensified, and censorship was placed on all media and correspondence. The secret services (SB) wiretapped phones in public booths and state institutions. Thousands of opposition activists were imprisoned without trial, and although martial law was lifted in 1983, many political prisoners were not released until a general amnesty in 1986. The crackdown on the opposition led the Reagan Administration to introduce economic sanctions against Poland and the neighbouring Soviet Union, further worsening the former's economy.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Some protests appeared in response to the introduction of martial law. On 16 December, the ZOMO squads pacified the pro-Solidarity miners' strike in the Wujek Coal Mine in the industrial city of Katowice, killing nine demonstrators. Other demonstrations across Poland were dispersed by the military or paramilitary units, which utilized water cannons, tear gas, batons, truncheons, and clubs, killing 91 people in total, though this figure is uncertain and is still debated among historians. Martial law succeeded in marginalising the Solidarity movement, which would largely remain on the sidelines until the late 1980s. As fewer people engaged in anti-government demonstrations, martial law was suspended on 31 December 1982, and was formally lifted on 22 July 1983, a state holiday.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: When Edward Gierek succeeded Gomułka as the head of state in 1970, he took decisive measures to boost economic growth and develop modern infrastructure. Gierek, a more liberal figure than his predecessor, was determined to make Poland the wealthiest and most economically significant communist country of the Eastern Bloc. However, these ideas prompted resistance from hardline communist leadership as the reform would effectively abandon the fundamental principles of a centrally planned Marxist economy. The grip and emphasis on state-owned enterprises and state-controlled prices or trade were eventually loosened. Small private businesses began to appear and Poland recorded temporary growth in GDP and an improvement in living conditions.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Gierek maintained close ties with the United States, which he subsequently used for diplomatic and economic purposes. In order to continue with the reforms, large sums of money were borrowed from creditors in the Western Bloc. These sequential and uninterrupted loans were primarily targeted at establishing heavy industry, mines or manufacturing facilities that would produce goods for export. The projected income from the exports would then be used to pay off the debt. Apart from financing the economic sector, the money was spent on social housing and on expanding road connections, for example the first fully operational highway linking Warsaw with industrial Silesia was opened for traffic in 1976. Furthermore, over 1.8 million plattenbau flats were constructed to house the growing population. Agricultural output rose by nearly 22% between 1971 and 1975, and industrial production by 10.5% annually. Gierek also initiated the construction of Warszawa Centralna, Europe's most modern railway station at the time.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: As expenditures increased and debts accumulated, foreign creditors refrained from granting Poland loans. Moreover, the 1973, June 1976 protests and 1979 oil crises affected the fragile economy. Due to previous GDP growth, higher income and expanded industries, the demand for certain goods and consumption surged. New factories and state enterprises required imported fuel, materials and a workforce to operate production lines. Soon, the country started exporting locally-produced stock designated for the Polish populace, thus resulting in widespread shortages. Because the remaining assets were directed at production, exports and debt repayment, the state also reduced imports to minimize expenses.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: In 1976, the communist government introduced ration cards for sugar, meat, processed food and dairy followed. Confectionery, cocoa, coffee, rice, tobacco and other goods not produced in Poland were so heavily rationed that they were almost permanently unavailable. Due to the constant lack of tobacco, ordinary cigarettes became a form of new currency on the black market. The living standards began to sharply decline; the supply of imported goods was kept to a low minimum and the country was forced to export everything it could, including coal necessary for basic heating and power plants. Power outages were commonplace. By 1980, the debt accounted to over US$23 billion, then almost half of Poland's nominal GDP.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: At the same time, the newly-founded Solidarity movement encouraged farmers to refrain from selling agricultural products (wheat, grain, fruit and others) to the state as a sign of protest. The actual shortage of goods on the market and in stores was caused by the fact that production was occasionally halted due to the strikes organized by Solidarity. In 1980, the national income fell by 6% compared to previous year, and in 1981 by 12%. The number of exports declined by 4.2%. Mismanagement and wastefulness were abundant.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: On 6 September 1980, Gierek was dismissed from his office, expelled from the Polish United Workers' Party (possibly under the pressure from the Soviet Union) and falsely charged with corruption. A year later, on 10 September 1981, the Soviet authorities informed the Polish government that in connection with the prevailing situation in Poland the USSR would cut oil supply to Poland by 64% and gas by 47%. The import of diesel from the Soviet Union was terminated immediately. This action was intended to force the Polish communist authorities to suppress the demonstrations and dissolve Solidarity. The situation was already dire and gradually worsened, which only fueled anti-communist sentiment. A civil war was hanging by a thread.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: In 1981, Poland notified Club de Paris (a group of Western-European central banks) about its insolvency, which caught the attention of the entire world.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: After the short tenure of Stanisław Kania, General and Minister of Defence Wojciech Jaruzelski was chosen as the new first secretary. Before assuming office, Jaruzelski ordered the Polish General Staff to update plans for a nationwide martial law on 22 October 1980. In November 1980, the Ministry of Internal Affairs planned to potentially facilitate thousands of oppositionists in state prisons and places of internment.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: On 5 December 1980, Kania spoke of the preparations relating to martial law at the Warsaw Pact Summit in Moscow. He presented his own view of how to weaken Solidarity and insisted that a "psychological-operational method" would be most appropriate to prevent violence. This method entailed strong propaganda against the movement and deploying secret services (SB) to go undercover and infiltrate Solidarity headquarters in the hope of creating internal conflicts within the opposition. General Jaruzelski was not fully satisfied with the plan, and, in case of failure, already planned radical actions involving the army. Stanisław Kania warned Brezhnev that an armed intervention from the Soviet side to aid Jaruzelski would be met "with a violent reaction, or even with a national uprising" that would shake the politics of the Eastern Bloc.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Zbigniew Brzezinski, chief security advisor to US president Jimmy Carter, stated that if the Soviet Union would undertake an armed intervention in Poland, the US would strike back in a riposte manner. According to historian and publicist Paul Kengor, then-US president Ronald Reagan considered sending American troops to Poland to scare off the Soviets. This claim was not supported by Brzezinski nor by Richard Pipes from Harvard University. Kengor then elaborated that Reagan eventually abandoned the plan after he was convinced by his own advisors that the US army stationed across Europe was less capable and much weaker than the Soviet forces. The United States eventually struck back with economic sanctions against Poland and the USSR.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: In February 1981, the Ministry of National Defence and Ministry of the Internal Affairs carried out a training scenario, the purpose of which was to explore how martial law would be introduced. The ministries agreed that martial law should be preceded by appropriate propaganda calling for its support, and the decision itself should be based on a pretext that it would bring peace and stability for the society. It was also highlighted that martial law must occur before the fully mobilized Fighting Solidarity and its allies organize a general strike that would paralyze the entire country. By March, the situation escalated after the Bydgoszcz events, in which local Solidarity delegates invited for a regional national council meeting in Bydgoszcz to discuss potential strikes were beaten and abused by the citizens' militia (MO). The event, which was to feature in newspapers as a provocation, was concealed by censors. On 27 March, Solidarity organized a warning strike directed at the government, but, on 30 March, Lech Wałęsa met with Mieczysław Rakowski and a compromise was achieved. The general strike was called off and the situation stabilized for a short period.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: In July, the Soviets increased their military presence in the military base at Borne Sulinowo, where the Red Army stationed per Warsaw Pact agreement as in all other Eastern Bloc countries. Without notifying the Polish authorities, the Soviets unexpectedly sent over 600 tanks to Borne Sulinowo. A month later, commander-in-chief of the Warsaw Pact, Viktor Kulikov, requested that Soviet military advisors be placed in the Polish General Staff and assigned to nearly all Polish regiments. It is suspected that Kulikov, acting on behalf of the Soviet Union, was tasked with sending undercover KGB agents to monitor the situation in Poland from the Polish military's perspective. His request, however, was immediately denied by the Polish government.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Over 25,000 posters announcing martial law were secretly printed in the Soviet Union, transported to Poland by airplane and hidden in the large building housing the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The full extent of the actions undertaken by Jaruzelski to instigate martial law was not known by even some of the highest notables in the Central Committee of the Polish United Workers' Party or the Polish Sejm.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: On 12 December 1981, shortly before midnight, the Polish Council of State gathered in Warsaw's Belweder Palace and approved nationwide martial law. Simultaneously, the Military Council of National Salvation (WRON – "Wrona" is translated as "Crow") was founded and its members were high-ranking generals or military officers in the Polish People's Army, who were in charge of the military junta. The generals and officers later became known to the public as evil "Crows", in relation to the Polish name of the council.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: At precisely 00:00 (12:00 a.m.), the Motorized Reserves of the Citizens' Militia (ZOMO) began "Akcja Jodła" (English: Operation Fir) and arrested the first members of Solidarity who were at close reach. They were then placed in previously-prepared detention facilities. In total, between 70,000 and 80,000 soldiers of the People's Army and 30,000 functionaries of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (including SB, ZOMO and the militia) were deployed for action. Around 1,750 tanks, 1,900 armoured combat vehicles, 500 militarized transport units, 9,000 cars and several helicopter squadrons were in service. Twenty-five per cent of all units concentrated in the capital, Warsaw, or in surrounding localities.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Preceding Jodła was "Akcja Azalia" (English: Operation Azalea), which began at around 22:30 (10:30 p.m.) on 12 December. Per Azalea, the SB secret services, paramilitary troops, the Militia, ZOMO and Border Protection Troops stormed 451 telecommunications exchange facilities and cut telephone lines to allegedly prevent the spread of misinformation. However, the operation's true purpose was preventing Solidarity from contacting its branches in other cities to mobilize protesters. Radio and television stations were also besieged. Any volunteers wishing to assist in the arrests were drafted into ORMO.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: The Polish Radio informed about martial law being imposed at a 06:00 (6:00 a.m.) audition, and transmitted the speech made by General Jaruzelski. Telewizja Polska network and its chief news program "Dziennik" (English: Journal) aired the speech in a slightly modified version. The declaration was watched by millions of Polish citizens despite the early hour.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Three days after restrictions were imposed, miners at the Wujek Coal Mine in the industrial city of Katowice began striking against the declaration of martial law by General Jaruzelski. Most of the miners and workers at Wujek were allied with the Solidarity Movement, with its leaders boycotting the state industries. Furthermore, coal was a precious fuel source that was used for generating electricity and heat, but also a major export material. By selling and exporting coal, the communist government obtained enough money to gradually pay off the outstanding debt. However, as Solidarity boycotted the mines in Silesia and demonstrations became more frequent, the production level dropped considerably along with revenue.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Jaruzelski perceived this as a threat to both state security and the economy. The forces used in the thrust consisted of eight ZOMO squads supported by ORMO, seven water cannons, three regiments with infantry combat vehicles and one tank regiment. It was decided that the situation was far too serious for adopting the principles of morality to appropriately deal with the miners. Instead, the well-equipped ZOMO and army troops fired at the protesters with a "shoot to kill" technique. 21 were wounded, 8 were killed on the spot and 1 died in hospital, with the youngest victim being only 19 years old. The remaining crowd was violently dispersed. The miners repeatedly fought back with their work tools and, in retaliation, wounded dozens of soldiers and militiamen. It was one of the deadliest single incidents during the martial law period.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: On the same day as Wujek was pacified, a 30,000-strong demonstration was held in the northern port city of Gdańsk. Clashes with ZOMO continued until 17 December and over 324 individuals were injured. The Militia used firearms and machine guns when the crowd approached the Polish United Workers' Party headquarters in Gdańsk. A short and presumably cautionary gun salvo from the building's roof hit several people and wounded four. One participant was killed. The southern city of Kraków was also witnessing heavy demonstrations, with thousands marching on the street demanding an end to the martial law and communist rule.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: On the night of 29–30 April 1982, local miners in Wodzisław Śląski planted a bomb and blew up a monument dedicated to Soviet soldiers who took control of Poland from the Nazis in 1945. It was the only incident involving explosives and the caught perpetrators became subsequently known as "Bombers from Silesia" (Polish: "Bombowcy ze Śląska"). The operation was a success as the monument was never reconstructed, though the bombers were sentenced and jailed soon after. Other suspects and hundreds of other miners across Silesia were sacked and removed from their job posts, which further weakened the economy.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: In May 1982, the protests convened by Solidarity were receiving less attention and the struggle against the government was evidently weakening. However, by August, the social unrest again surged. On 31 August 1982, demonstrations took place in around 66 towns and cities, with at least 18 in the southwestern province of Lower Silesia. In Wrocław, one of the main centers of Fighting Solidarity, several thousand people for many hours clashed with ZOMO units. One demonstrator was killed by a bullet.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: The copper-mining town of Lubin also became a hotspot for Solidarity-led rallies. On that day, the gathered people sang the Polish national anthem and chanted slurs and slogans against the communist regime, against the military junta with Jaruzelski as its head and against the Soviets. After approximately 30 minutes, the rally of 2,000 was surrounded by the Militia, armed with AK-47 assault rifles. In response, agitated protesters shouted slurs such as "pigs", "bandits", "Gestapo", "murderers" and "servants of Brezhnev". An unsuccessful attempt was made at building a barricade, but the government units were able to pass through and dispersed the first group with tear gas. When the demonstrators regrouped and formed a second wave, ZOMO opened fire and wittingly murdered 2 men. The now infuriated crowd began continuous attacks and the Militia shot several more times, injuring one more man at the back of his head. He died in hospital a few days later. Reinforcements were sent from Legnica and the new deployees were organized into so-called "raid groups" in Nysa vans. These groups roamed the streets, often attacking casual passers-by. Immediately after the protest was pacified, security forces began the destruction of any evidence to conceal the crime. During the night of 31 August – 1 September, the streets were cleared, with all shells and bullets taken for analysis. On 2 September, authorities ordered the repairs of damaged buildings; broken windows were replaced and traces of bullets on the walls were covered with plaster. The investigation, despite consistent statements made by witnesses of the massacre, was closed.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: To avoid further escalation, on 14 November, Lech Wałęsa was released from custody in a detention camp. Following his release, no major demonstration took place.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: From the very beginning in December 1981, a strict curfew was imposed from 19:00 (7:00 p.m.) until 6 in the morning. The time of curfew was later adjusted to 22:00 (10:00 p.m.)–06:00. Night walks or escapades were forbidden and street patrols were commonplace. The WRON Military Council sealed off the country's borders, closed all airports and road access to main cities was restricted. Special permission passes were issued for individuals in extraordinary cases. Telephone lines were disconnected, mail was subjected to renewed postal censorship, all independent political organizations were criminalized and lessons in schools and universities temporarily suspended.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: The government imposed a six-day workweek while the mass media, public services, healthcare services, power stations, coal mines, seaports, railway stations, and most key factories were placed under military management, with employees having to follow military orders or face a court martial. As part of the crackdown, media and educational institutions underwent "verification", a process that tested each employee's attitude towards the regime and to the Solidarity movement; as a result, thousands of journalists, teachers and professors were banned from their professions. Military courts were established to bypass the normal court system, to imprison those spreading fake news. In an attempt to crush resistance, civilian phone lines were routinely tapped and monitored by government agents.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: During the initial imposition of martial law, several dozen people were killed. Official reports during the crackdown claimed about a dozen fatalities, while a parliamentary commission in the years 1989–1991 arrived at a figure of over 90. Others were also killed and wounded during a massive second wave of demonstrations on 31 August 1982.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: At the invitation of Jaruzelski, a delegation of the ruling Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party visited Poland between 27 and 29 December. The Hungarians shared with their Polish colleagues their experiences on crushing the "counterrevolution" of 1956. Earlier in the autumn of 1981, Polish television had broadcast a special film on the 1956 events in Hungary, showing scenes of rebels hanging security officers etc.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Even after martial law was lifted, a number of restrictions remained in place for several years that drastically reduced the civil liberties of the citizenry. It also led to severe economic consequences. The ruling military dictatorship instituted major price rises (dubbed "economic reforms"), which resulted in a fall in real wages. The resulting economic crisis led to even more rationing of most basic products and materials.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: As a consequence of the economic hardships and political repressions, an exodus of Poles saw 700,000 migrate to the West between 1981 and 1989.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: A number of international flights were even hijacked in attempts to flee the country and its economic problems. Between December 1980 and October 1983, 11 Polish flights were hijacked to Berlin Tempelhof Airport alone.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Around the same time, a group calling themselves the "Polish Revolutionary Home Army" seized the Polish Embassy in Bern, Switzerland on 6 September 1982, taking several diplomats as hostages. However, this turned out to be an apparent provocation by the communist Polish secret services aiming to discredit the Solidarity movement.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: After the "Wujek" Coal Mine incident in Katowice on 23 December 1981, the United States imposed economic sanctions against the People's Republic of Poland. In 1982, the United States suspended most favored nation trade status until 1987 and vetoed Poland's application for membership in the International Monetary Fund.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Pope John Paul II wrote a letter to the Primate of Poland, Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński, in which he called for peace talks between the state and the workers, supporting the Poles' "undeniable right to resolve their problems by themselves".


title: Martial law in Poland

text: After the fall of Communism in Poland in 1989, members of a parliamentary commission determined that martial law had been imposed in clear violation of the country's constitution, which had authorized the executive to declare martial law only between parliamentary sessions (at other times the decision was to be taken by the Sejm). However, the Sejm had been in session at the time when martial law was instituted. In 1992 the Sejm declared the 1981 imposition of martial law to be unlawful and unconstitutional.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: The instigators of the martial law, such as Wojciech Jaruzelski, argue that the army crackdown rescued Poland from a possibly disastrous military intervention of the Soviet Union, East Germany, and other Warsaw Pact countries (similar to the earlier interventions in Hungary in 1956 and Czechoslovakia in 1968). Public figures who supported the introduction of martial law (including some of the right-wing figures like Jędrzej Giertych) would also refer to that threat.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: In 2009, archive documents hinted that in a conversation Jaruzelski had with Viktor Kulikov, a Soviet military leader, Jaruzelski himself begged for Soviet intervention as his domestic control was deteriorating. Jaruzelski responded by claiming the document was 'just another falsification' and denied all charges.


title: Martial law in Poland

text: Led by General of the Army Wojciech Jaruzelski, the Military Council of National Salvation ("Wojskowa Rada Ocalenia Narodowego", WRON) usurped for itself powers reserved for wartime, hence the name. The plan was presented to the government of the Soviet Union before the declaration in March 1981.


title: Martial law in Poland

text:
Today I address myself to you as a soldier and as the head of the Polish government. I address you concerning extraordinarily important questions. Our homeland is at the edge of an abyss. The achievements of many generations and the Polish home that has been built up from the dust are about to turn into ruins. State structures are ceasing to function. Each day delivers new blows to the waning economy./.../
The atmosphere of conflicts, misunderstanding, hatred causes moral degradation, surpasses the limits of toleration. Strikes, the readiness to strike, actions of protest have become a norm of life. Even school youth are being drawn into this. Yesterday evening, many public buildings remained seized. The cries are voiced to physical reprisals with the 'reds', with people who have different opinions.
The cases of terror, threats and moral vendetta, of even direct violence are on the rise. A wave of impudent crimes, robberies and burglaries is running across the country. The underground business sharks' fortunes, already reaching millions, are growing. Chaos and demoralization have reached the magnitude of a catastrophe. People have reached the limit of psychological toleration. Many people are struck by despair. Not only days, but hours as well are bringing forth the all-national disaster./.../
Citizens!
The load of responsibility that falls on me on this dramatic moment in the Polish history is huge. It is my duty to take this responsibility – concerning the future of Poland, that my generation fought for on all the fronts of the war and for which they sacrificed the best years of their life. I declare, that today the Military Council of National Salvation has been formed. In accordance with the Constitution, the State Council has imposed martial law all over the country. I wish that everyone understood the motives of our actions. A military coup, military dictatorship is not our goal./.../
 In longer perspective, none of Poland's problems can be solved with the use of violence. The Military Council of National Salvation does not replace constitutional organs of power. Its only purpose is to keep the legal balance of the country, to create guarantees that give a chance to restore order and discipline. This is the ultimate way to bring the country out of the crisis, to save the country from collapse./.../
I appeal to all the citizens. A time of heavy trials has arrived. And we have to stand those in order to prove that we are worthy of Poland.
Before all the Polish people and the whole world I would like to repeat the immortal words:


title: Wilfrid Hyde-White

text: Wilfrid Hyde-White (12 May 1903 – 6 May 1991) was a British character actor of stage, film and television. He achieved international recognition for his role as Colonel Pickering in the film version of the musical "My Fair Lady" (1964).


title: Wilfrid Hyde-White

text: Wilfrid Hyde White was born in Bourton-on-the-Water in Gloucestershire, England in 1903 to the Rev. William Edward White, canon of Gloucester Cathedral, and his wife, Ethel Adelaide ( Drought). He was the nephew of actor J. Fisher White. He attended Marlborough College and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, of which he said, "I learned two things at RADA - I can't act and it doesn't matter."


title: Wilfrid Hyde-White

text: He made his stage debut in the farcical play "Tons of Money" on the Isle of Wight in 1922 and appeared in the West End for the first time three years later in the play "Beggar on Horseback". He then gained steady work on the stage in a series of comedies produced at the Aldwych Theatre in London. He joined a tour of South Africa in 1932 before making his film debut in "Josser on the Farm" (1934) where he was credited as "Wilfrid Hyde White" (without the hyphen). He also appeared in some earlier films as plain "Hyde White". He later added the hyphen, as well as his first name.


title: Wilfrid Hyde-White

text: Following a supporting role in "The Third Man" (1949), he became a fixture in British films of the 1950s. His other films of this period include "Carry on Nurse" (1959) and the Danny Kaye film "On the Double" (1961). "Two-Way Stretch" (1960) displays a more roguish side than some of the characters he played in this period. He continued to act on the stage and played opposite Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh in the repertory performance of "Caesar and Cleopatra" and "Antony and Cleopatra" in 1951. He also appeared on Broadway and was nominated for a Tony Award in 1956 for his role in "The Reluctant Debutante". His first Hollywood appearance came alongside Marilyn Monroe in the film "Let's Make Love" (1960), followed by other films, including "My Fair Lady" (1964).


title: Wilfrid Hyde-White

text: Between 1962 and 1965, Hyde-White starred in the BBC radio comedy "The Men from the Ministry". In the 1970s and 1980s, he featured on the "Battlestar Galactica" pilot episode "Saga of a Star World" and "The Associates". He was a series regular on the revamped second season of "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century" playing one of the crew of the Starships Searchers primary characters Doctor Goodfellow. He continued to appear on Broadway, and earned a second Tony nomination for his performance in "The Jockey Club Stakes".


title: Wilfrid Hyde-White

text: He appeared in two episodes of the mystery series "Columbo", starring Peter Falk as the rumpled detective. Although the first, "Dagger of the Mind" (1972), was set in Britain and concerned Columbo paying a visit to Scotland Yard, Hyde-White's ongoing UK tax problems meant that, unlike American actors Falk and Richard Basehart, and British actors appearing in the episode, Honor Blackman, Bernard Fox, John Fraser and Arthur Malet, he was unable to take part in location filming in the UK. His scenes as a butler were therefore filmed in California. His second appearance on "Columbo" was in the episode "Last Salute to the Commodore" in 1976.