title: Graphology

text: Medical graphology is probably the most controversial branch of handwriting analysis. Strictly speaking, such research is not graphology as described throughout this article but an examination of factors pertaining to motor control. Research studies have been conducted in which a detailed examination of handwriting factors, particularly timing, fluidity, and consistency of size, form, speed, and pressure are considered in the process of evaluating patients and their response to pharmacological therapeutic agents. The study of these phenomena is a by-product of researchers investigating motor control processes and the interaction of nervous, anatomical, and biomechanical systems of the body.


title: Graphology

text: "The Vanguard Code of Ethical Practice", amongst others, prohibits medical diagnosis by those not licensed to do diagnosis in the state in which they practice.


title: Graphology

text: This is the pseudoscience of changing a person's handwriting with the goal of changing features of his or her personality, or "handwriting analysis in reverse." It originated in France during the 1930s, spreading to the United States in the late 1950s. The purported therapy consists of a series of exercises which are similar to those taught in basic calligraphy courses, sometimes in conjunction with music or positive self-talk.


title: Hamish Blake

text: Hamish Donald Blake (born 11 December 1981) is an Australian comedian, television and radio presenter, actor and author. Since 2003, he has worked with Andy Lee as part of the comedy duo Hamish and Andy. The pair have performed live and on television and radio, most notably with their drive-time radio program "Hamish & Andy". As a solo performer, Blake has appeared on various Australian television programs, including the Melbourne International Comedy Festival's televised 2008 Great Debate, and has been a regular guest on "Spicks and Specks", "Rove" and "Thank God You're Here".


title: Hamish Blake

text: In April 2012, Blake and Lee won a Logie Award for their television program "Hamish and Andy's Gap Year". Individually, Blake also won the Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television. In 2022, Blake was the recipient of the TV Week Bert Newton Award for most outstanding presenter.


title: Hamish Blake

text: Blake grew up in the Melbourne suburb of Glen Waverley. He is a middle child; his older brother, Lachlan, is a solicitor, and his sister, Sophie, has completed an arts degree. His parents, Noel and Kerry, separated when Blake was 17, with his father eventually remarrying. As a child, Blake says he was a fan of British comedy such as "Monty Python", "Fawlty Towers" and "Blackadder"; as a teenager he "worshipped" comedians Tony Martin and Mick Molloy. Blake was a member of the National Boys Choir of Australia during the late 1980s. He attended primary school at Glen Waverley South Primary, high school at Caulfield Grammar School and later at St Leonard's College, graduating in 1999.


title: Hamish Blake

text: After a gap year, Blake enrolled at the University of Melbourne in a Science/Commerce double degree. "I'm interested in artificial intelligence and computer science. That stuff still fascinates me," he says. However, a few weeks into the semester, he met Andy Lee: "That was the turning point. The wheels quickly fell off my academic career." Blake eventually dropped out of university to pursue a career in comedy alongside Lee. Blake's first experience with comedy was when he entered a competition at university. He was broke at the time, and hoped to win the $500 first prize. His stand-up performance earned him third place and qualified him for a statewide universities' final, which he did win.


title: Hamish Blake

text: Hamish Blake has collaborated with fellow comedian Andy Lee as the duo Hamish and Andy since 2003, when they performed their breakout show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, a stage production about a trip they had taken to North Queensland in Blake's old car. Soon after, they trained with SYN Radio, gaining a drive-time shift, and created a show called "Radio Karate" for RMITV on community-access television station Channel 31, which they created in collaboration with Ryan Shelton and several other school friends. "Radio Karate" won an Antenna Award for best comedy program at the inaugural National Community Television Awards in February 2004, and one month later were offered a national comedy program on Australia's Seven Network.


title: Hamish Blake

text: "The Hamish and Andy Show" premiered on the Seven Network in March 2005, but failed to achieve ratings success and was cancelled after two weeks. Reviewers acknowledged the duo's talent, but criticised the show as "poorly executed". Blake says that while working on the show was a fun experience, they had little control over what happened and the way it went forward. Following the cancellation of "The Hamish and Andy Show", they created a short mockumentary titled "The Greystone 2800" about a couple who accidentally bought an open display home after failing to read the fine print on a housing purchase. The film won the Melbourne Comedy Festival Short Film competition and attracted the attention of comedian Rove McManus. This led to some small spots on McManus' Network Ten show "Rove Live".


title: Hamish Blake

text: McManus's company, Roving Enterprises, also helped the duo develop "Real Stories", a mock current affairs show that aired on Network Ten in 2006. Blake says that the experience of creating "Real Stories" was much more enjoyable than "The Hamish and Andy Show" because they had greater control over the series. Blake and Lee wrote, acted, directed, filmed, and produced the show with input from Ryan Shelton and Tim Bartley.


title: Hamish Blake

text: In 2006, Blake and Lee debuted a national drive-time radio show titled "Hamish & Andy" on the Today Network. The show quickly gained popularity, finishing 2006 with almost one million Melbourne listeners, ahead of 3AW's popular radio host Derryn Hinch. As of August 2008, Blake and Lee's show was rating number one in four out of Australia's five major capital cities. As of the beginning of 2009, the show is broadcast in all capital cities as well as many regional centres across the country.


title: Hamish Blake

text: In September 2008, it was announced that they would make a guest appearance on Ten's "Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?", which is hosted by Rove McManus. In the same year they also made a guest appearance on the Australian soap opera "Neighbours".


title: Hamish Blake

text: On Wednesday 19 November at 7.30 pm, 2008, Hamish and Andy aired their own one-time episode, brought to you by "Rove": "Hamish & Andy Re-Gifted: A Very Early Christmas Special". This was to re-present everything they had accomplished in 2008 on Rove.


title: Hamish Blake

text: Hamish and Andy have also appeared on Channel Ten's "Good News Week" and "The 7PM Project" several times.


title: Hamish Blake

text: He is a founding member of a "rock-insult" band, Coolboys and the Frontman, along with Andy Lee and Jack Post.


title: Hamish Blake

text: Blake has appeared on various Australian television series, including "Spicks and Specks", "Thank God You're Here", "Twentysomething", "Australia's Brainiest Comedian", "The Librarians", "The Panel", "Rove", "Talkin' 'bout your Generation" and "The Footy Show". He has also featured in the British version of "Thank God You're Here". In 2008 he was a speaker for the negative team in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival's annual televised Great Debate.


title: Hamish Blake

text: He has a monthly column in the Australian women's magazine "Cosmopolitan". He was also the winner of the TV Fugly Award for Spunkiest Male TV Personality in 2008.


title: Hamish Blake

text: Hamish Blake was voted the comedian of the year in 2007 by the Eather corporation. His compatriot Andy Lee was placed 14th for 2007.


title: Hamish Blake

text: Hamish, along with his wife Zoë Foster Blake, has written a book on dating called "Textbook Romance".


title: Hamish Blake

text: After scaling back his daily radio show to a weekly radio show and podcast, Hamish took on several new side projects. In 2011, Blake made an appearance in the ABC comedy "Twentysomething", starring real-life best friends Jess Harris and Josh Schmidt. He also co-starred in his first feature film with Bret McKenzie of Flight of the Conchords, "Two Little Boys", shot in New Zealand


title: Hamish Blake

text: Hamish joked: "I don't feel comfortable about cheating on Andy but now it's all out there. We've always had an open comedic relationship, but it was for one-night stands only, with no exchange of phone numbers. I've heard them [Andy and Jemaine Clement, Bret's comedic partner] whispering on the phone, plotting to do their own movie to release on the same day to sink ours."


title: Hamish Blake

text: In 2008 and 2009, Blake and working partner Lee played in the "EJ Whittens Legends Game". Lee played for Victoria and Blake played for the All Stars. Blake scored the winning goal for the All Stars in 2008, and two goals in 2009.


title: Hamish Blake

text: As part of a stunt for the TV series "Hamish and Andy's Gap Year", Andy entered Hamish into the Mr. New York State bodybuilding competition in the Heavyweight division. Due to a technicality in which Blake was the only contestant over 200 pounds (the minimum requirement for a Heavyweight contender), he was awarded the title of Mr. New York State 2011 in the Heavyweight division.


title: Bruce Arena

text: Bruce Arena (born September 21, 1951) is an American soccer coach who is the head coach and sporting director of the New England Revolution.


title: Bruce Arena

text: He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame and the NJCAA Lacrosse Hall of Fame. Arena has had a long and distinguished coaching career and is considered to be one of the most successful coaches in North American soccer history, having won five College Cup titles and five MLS Cup titles. He was the United States national team head coach at the 1996 Summer Olympics, the 2002 FIFA World Cup and the 2006 FIFA World Cup, head coach of the New York Red Bulls, D.C. United, LA Galaxy, and the New England Revolution in Major League Soccer, and coached Virginia Cavaliers men's soccer to several college soccer championships. He is the U.S. soccer team's longest-serving head coach.


title: Bruce Arena

text: Before beginning his coaching career, Arena was a goalkeeper for Cornell University, and earned one cap with the United States men's national soccer team.


title: Bruce Arena

text: Arena was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Italian immigrant parents (from Alicudi, Sicily), and grew up in the Long Island town of Franklin Square, New York, where he attended Carey High School. While he excelled at several sports, he was too small for American football, so he joined the school's soccer team as a defender. He moved into the goal when the starting goalkeeper was suspended after hitting another school's player during a game. While in high school, he also played a single season with local club Hota S.C. of New York City's Cosmopolitan Soccer League.


title: Bruce Arena

text: After graduation, he began his collegiate athletic career playing both lacrosse and soccer at Nassau Community College, a two-year college near his home. Arena was a 1970 and 1971 Honorable Mention All-American lacrosse player and an All-American soccer player. He was inducted into the National Junior College Hall of Fame in 2008. While at Nassau, he played soccer for head coach Bill Stevenson and goalkeeper coach Shep Messing, a future New York Cosmos goalkeeper. At the end of his two years with Nassau, Arena transferred to Cornell University in upstate New York where he was a 1972 Honorable Mention All American and a 1973 Second Team All American in lacrosse. He did not originally intend to play soccer, but injuries to the school's first and second string goalkeepers led to the men's soccer coach, Dan Wood, to recruit Arena into the team as its goalkeeper. Arena backstopped the Cornell Big Red soccer team to the 1972 NCAA Soccer Championship Final Four and earned Most Valuable Defensive Player honors for the tournament.


title: Bruce Arena

text: After Arena's graduation from Cornell, New York Cosmos drafted him in the fifth round of the North American Soccer League college draft. The Cosmos released him before the season. Arena then signed to play professional lacrosse for the Montreal Quebecois, spending a single season with the team in 1975. The National Lacrosse League folded at the end of the 1975 season, leaving Arena unemployed. At the same time, Dan Wood, who had recruited Arena to play for the Cornell soccer team, had been named the new head coach of the expansion Tacoma Tides which played in the American Soccer League. Wood contacted Arena and convinced him to move to the Pacific Northwest in 1976 to play for him. While Arena was the second string goalkeeper behind starter Jamil Canal, the move to Tacoma was significant in that it introduced Arena to coaching. That year, in addition to playing for the Tides, Arena coached the men's soccer team at the University of Puget Sound, where he compiled a 5–7 record.


title: Bruce Arena

text: In 1973, he earned his only national team cap as a second-half substitute for Bob Rigby in a 2–0 loss to Israel. National team coach, Gordon Bradley, had called Arena into the national team for an earlier game against Haiti, but Arena could not get time off from his job teaching at a local junior high school. In addition to his single cap with the U.S. soccer team, Arena also played for the national lacrosse team which won the 1974 World Lacrosse Championship and finished runner up in 1978.


title: Bruce Arena

text: In 1977, Arena moved back to teach at Cornell and act as the school's assistant lacrosse coach. While he was there, the University of Virginia (UVA) advertised for two open coaching positions – head soccer coach and assistant lacrosse coach beginning the 1978 season. Arena took that opportunity and went on to coach both the UVA lacrosse and soccer teams for seven years, before becoming the school's dedicated soccer coach in 1985. Arena was the head coach of the Virginia program for eighteen years, during which he won five national championships (including 4 straight from 1991 to 1994) and amassed a 295–58–32 record, for a career NCAA mark of 300-65-32. Additionally, he coached and developed many players at Virginia who would go on to play significant roles in the United States national team, including Claudio Reyna, Jeff Agoos, Ben Olsen, John Harkes and Tony Meola. In addition to coaching, Arena served as the ACC soccer coaches chairman as well as two three-year terms on the NCAA Division I soccer committee from 1989 to 1995.


title: Bruce Arena

text: On January 3, 1996, Arena left UVA to become the coach of D.C. United of Major League Soccer. The 1996 season would be both the team's and the league's inaugural season, so Arena needed to build a team from scratch just like the other 9 MLS club managers. To make his position even more difficult, he had agreed to coach the U.S. U-23 national team at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, where it went a disappointing 1–1–1. Despite the distraction of the Olympics, Arena managed to form his team and lead United to an improbable comeback victory in the first MLS Cup at Foxboro Stadium. In addition to the MLS title, Arena also took United to the 1996 U.S. Open Cup championship. Arena and United continued to experience success in 1997. The heavily favored team won its second MLS Cup at RFK Stadium defeating the surprise Western Conference champion Colorado Rapids 2–1. Arena's success led to his selection as the 1997 MLS Coach of the Year. This year, Arena took United to the semi-finals of the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. In 1998, Arena took United to its third consecutive MLS Cup only to see his team fall to the expansion Chicago Fire led by his protégé Bob Bradley. However, while Arena failed to add another MLS championship to his resume, he guided United to the CONCACAF Champions' Cup title with a 1–0 victory over Toluca on August 16, 1998. He followed that with a defeat of Brazilian club Vasco da Gama to take the Interamerican Cup title. Arena was also the 1997 and 1998 MLS All-Star head coach.


title: Bruce Arena

text: Arena was hired by the U.S. national team to replace Steve Sampson as head coach in October 1998 following the team's disastrous showing in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. His first game in charge was a friendly against Australia in San Jose, California on November 6, 1998. He then forged the team into a successful international side, and is the most successful coach in United States history: most international wins; longest home shut-out; best World Cup showing since 1930, reaching the quarterfinals at the 2002 World Cup, before a defeat against Germany; and all-time best international FIFA Ranking (4th place, April 2006). Arena also won two Gold Cup championships in 2002 and 2005, with a third-place finish in 2003.


title: Bruce Arena

text: The 2002 World Cup was the high point of Arena's career as the U.S. coach. Heavy underdogs coming into the tournament, they stunned the world by beating a respected Portuguese team 3–2 in their opening game. Arena was lauded afterward for instilling in his players the confidence to play aggressively against an international powerhouse. A hard-fought tie against host nation South Korea was enough to qualify for the second round, despite a poor loss against Poland in the final group game. Arena and the U.S. met old nemesis Mexico in the Round of 16, and Arena adapted his tactics to secure a 2–0 victory and a quarterfinal berth. The U.S. switched from their usual 4–4–2 to a 3–5–2, and it paid dividends almost immediately when Josh Wolff, who Arena had brought in to fill out the formation, set up Brian McBride for the winning goal early in the first half. Arena switched the team back to a 4–4–2 for their quarterfinal against Germany, and the team continued to surprise many by dominating stretches of the game. However, they lost 1–0 on a Michael Ballack header, and there was a controversy with a penalty not awarded to the U.S. for a handball in the German penalty box.


title: Bruce Arena

text: The U.S. national squad fell short of expectations at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, finishing last in Group E with losses to the Czech Republic and Ghana. The United States scored only twice in its three games, a tie against eventual champion Italy on an own goal by Italian Cristian Zaccardo and a goal from Clint Dempsey against Ghana. Some, including former team member and ESPN analyst Eric Wynalda, have blamed the poor performance on questionable coaching decisions by Arena, including not playing Clint Dempsey and putting DaMarcus Beasley on the right wing instead of his favored left against the Czechs, and using a defensive 4–5–1 in the must-win match vs. Ghana which the U.S. eventually lost. Another questionable decision was made when Claudio Reyna became injured after the first goal when Arena subbed in defensive midfielder Ben Olsen to replace Reyna.


title: Bruce Arena

text: During his time as national team head coach, the United States rose in the FIFA world rankings from nineteenth to fourth, to the surprise, even, of U.S. players. Arena's 75 wins from 1998 to 2006 are by far the most in U.S. history. Nevertheless, three weeks after the Americans' disappointing first-round exit from the World Cup in Germany, the U.S. Soccer Federation announced that Arena's contract would not be renewed when it expired at the end of 2006. U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati explained Arena's dismissal, stating that the U.S. was seeking a "fresh approach."


title: Bruce Arena

text: Arena was eventually replaced as national team coach by his close friend and former assistant at Virginia and D.C. United, Bob Bradley.


title: Bruce Arena

text: After the US. national team, Arena pursued other coaching opportunities. That led to his being hired by Major League Soccer team New York Red Bulls. Arena's first match with the club came on August 12, 2006, in a friendly against FC Barcelona. On November 5, 2007, Red Bulls and Arena decided mutually to part company. During his year-and-a-half with the club, he went 16–16–10. He had two years remaining on his contract with the club.


title: Bruce Arena

text: On August 18, 2008, Los Angeles Galaxy hired Arena to replace Ruud Gullit as head coach and Alexi Lalas as general manager. He inherited a team that had failed to make the playoffs since 2005 and would finish the 2008 season at 8–13–9, finishing next-to-last in the league and letting in a league-high 62 goals. During the offseason, Arena reshaped the defense, drafting Omar Gonzalez and A. J. DeLaGarza who became fixtures on the backline and bringing in Donovan Ricketts as the goalkeeper. Although the team scored only 36 goals in 2009, they also let in only 31. This led to a 12–6–12 record and second-place finish in the league standings. The Galaxy went to the playoffs and Arena was selected as the MLS Coach of the Year Award.


title: Bruce Arena

text: The 2011 Major League Soccer season went extremely well for Bruce's Galaxy. His club won the Supporters' Shield for the second straight season, became only the third team in league history to reach the 60-point plateau, and won the 2011 MLS Cup in a 1–0 victory over the Houston Dynamo. Los Angeles also advanced to the elimination round of the CONCACAF Champions League. The Galaxy was, however, eliminated from the U.S. Open Cup in the quarterfinal stage. The club was undefeated in competitive matches at the Home Depot Center in 2011.


title: Bruce Arena

text: The 2012 Galaxy repeated winning the championship, again over Houston, despite a slow start to the year. He would win a third championship with the Galaxy in 2014 over the New England Revolution.


title: Bruce Arena

text: On November 22, 2016, Arena was appointed as coach of the United States national team for the second time, replacing Jürgen Klinsmann after two disastrous losses in the first two matches of Hex qualifying round for the 2018 World Cup. On March 25, 2017, Arena led the USMNT to a trouncing 6–0 win over Honduras, followed by a 1–1 draw with Panama. On June 9, Arena led the USMNT to an important 2–0 win in a qualifying match against Trinidad and Tobago, followed by the USMNT's 3rd ever WCQ draw at Estadio Azteca against Mexico. In July, the U.S. won the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup 2–1 over Jamaica. Arena's team fell 0–2 to Costa Rica on September 1, but he coached the team to an impressive 4–0 rout of Panama on October 6 to get back into the qualifying third-place spot during the fifth round.


title: Bruce Arena

text: On October 10, the U.S. men's national team needed a draw against Trinidad and Tobago to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. The U.S. were heavy favorites coming in as Trinidad and Tobago had lost six straight games, but the team fell into a 0–2 hole with an Omar Gonzalez own-goal and an Alvin Jones goal. While Christian Pulisic pulled one back, the U.S. could not score again and lost to Trinidad and Tobago 1–2. With this loss, along with both Panama and Honduras beating their opponents, the U.S. fell to fifth place in the CONCACAF region's final qualifying round and failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1986. Three days after the team failed to qualify, Arena resigned from his position as men's national team head coach. He said, "We have no excuses, we failed today. We should have walked off this field with at least a point."


title: Bruce Arena

text: Following his resignation from the national team, Arena was floated as a potential candidate for several coaching and managing positions, including for the Columbus Crew and the Scotland national team. He was named the head coach and sporting director of the New England Revolution on May 14, 2019, replacing Brad Friedel. His first game in charge came on June 2, in a 2–1 win over his former team, LA Galaxy. This win began an 11-match unbeaten run for New England, spurring them to their first MLS Cup Playoff appearance since 2014. The Revolution were eliminated in the first round of the 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs, in a 0–1 loss to Atlanta United. Arena’s Revolution then advanced to the Eastern Conference Final in the 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs, losing 1-0 to the Columbus Crew.


title: Bruce Arena

text: Arena has resided in the Los Angeles area with his wife Phyllis since taking over as LA Galaxy head coach, having previously been based out of Charlottesville, Virginia during most of his coaching career.


title: Bruce Arena

text: He has a brother, Michael, and a son, Kenny Arena, who played with the U.S. youth national team and in Major League Soccer before becoming a coach.


title: Rydel Lynch

text: Rydel Mary Lynch (born August 9, 1993) is an American singer and actress. She is one of the founding members of the pop rock band R5.


title: Rydel Lynch

text: Lynch was born August 9, 1993, in Littleton, Colorado, the daughter of Stormie and Mark Lynch. She is the second oldest child and only girl of five siblings. Her brothers are Riker, Rocky, Ross, and Ryland Lynch. She learned to play the keyboard, double shaker and the tambourine, as well as learning how to dance. She has appeared in several commercials. Her second cousins are entertainers Derek and Julianne Hough, their maternal grandmothers being sisters.


title: Rydel Lynch

text: She made her acting debut in "Sunday School Musical" as a Crossroads Choir Member. She appeared in "School Gyrls" as a cheerleader along with her brother Riker Lynch. She appeared in "A Day as Holly's Kids" as Holly's Actual Kid 2. She appeared in the pilot episode of the television series "Bunheads" as a Vegas Showgirl. Rydel told Teen Ink about "Bunheads", "I'm one of the dancers and if it gets picked up, it'll air on ABC Family." She also appeared in an episode of "Violetta" in 2015 and performed "Heart Made Up on You" with R5.


title: Rydel Lynch

text: In 2009, R5 was formed with Rydel, her brothers Riker, Rocky and Ross Lynch, and family friend Ellington Ratliff with her younger brother Ryland Lynch as their manager. In April 2012, R5 signed a deal with Hollywood Records. They went on a 10-day tour entitled West Coast Tour in which she regularly performed a cover of "Call Me Maybe". In early 2013, R5 released a four-song EP entitled "Loud".


title: Rydel Lynch

text: Their first studio album, "Louder" was released on September 24, 2013. Rydel spoke about the album, saying "We wanted to put out a fun album." Rydel was featured as the lead vocalist in the songs "Never" from R5's debut EP "Ready Set Rock" and "Love Me Like That" which was featured on "Louder". The song, "Love Me Like That" is described as the "cheerleader hip-hop jammer" and "an irresistible party track that's a whole lotta rhythm and a little bit blues". The song received generally positive reviews. R5 went on their fifth tour titled Louder Tour with Rydel regularly performing "Love Me Like That" and covers of songs such as a duet of "Sleeping with a Friend" by Neon Trees with Ellington Ratliff. Rydel and along with R5 won the special award "Radio Disney Showstopper" at the Radio Disney Music Awards. On July 22, 2014, R5 released their new EP called "Heart Made Up on You".


title: Rydel Lynch

text: Lynch had two songs on R5's second studio album, "Sometime Last Night". The first, "Lightning Strikes", was performed regularly on the "Sometime Last Night" tour. The second, "Never Be The Same", was on the deluxe version of the album, titled "Sometime Last Night Special Edition". In 2012, R5 appeared as Ross Lynch's band for the music video of the song "Heard It on the Radio". Also in 2012, Lynch made an appearance in Taylor Mathews's "Head Over Feeling" music video. She was featured in the R5 movie "All Day, All Night" which was released to limited theaters on April 16, 2015. The film was shot documentary style and showed the band living and working together while writing and recording "Sometime Last Night".


title: Rydel Lynch

text: Lynch cites All Time Low, Neon Trees and The Script as musical influences, and cites Neon Trees and Walk the Moon as her favorite bands.


title: Rydel Lynch

text: On February 9, 2020, Lynch became engaged to YouTuber Capron Funk. They were married on September 12, 2020, in Phoenix, Arizona. They have a son who was born in 2021 and a daughter born in 2022.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: Permanent residency (PR) in Canada is a status granting someone who is not a Canadian citizen the right to live and work in Canada without any time limit on their stay. To become a permanent resident a foreign national must apply to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), formerly known as Citizenship and Immigration Canada, under one of several programs. In addition to the conferred right of abode in Canada, a primary benefit of permanent residency is the eligibility to apply for Canadian citizenship after a certain period of permanent residency.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: A Permanent Resident holds many of the same rights and responsibilities as a Canadian citizen, including the right to live, work (subject to some restrictions), and study in any province or territory of Canada. Permanent residents participate in many of the same social benefits that Canadian citizens receive, including becoming contributing members of the Canada Pension Plan and receiving coverage by their province or territory's universal health care system. All Permanent Residents may avail themselves of the rights, freedoms, and protections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, other than those exclusively granted to citizens.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: Permanent Residents may apply for Canadian citizenship after living in Canada for a certain amount of time. Currently, a person must have been living in Canada as a Permanent Resident for three years (1095 days) out of the five years preceding their application (with up to one year of the time before becoming a permanent resident included). They also have the right to sponsor relatives for permanent residence, subject to fulfilling residence criteria and assurance of support requirements.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: Permanent residents do not have the right to vote in elections in Canada nor can they run for elected office in any level of government. Several municipal governments in Canada—including Toronto, Vancouver, Halifax, and Calgary—have proposed giving permanent residents the right to vote in municipal elections but that would require approval from their respective provincial governments. For national security reasons, permanent residents also cannot hold jobs in either the public or private sectors that require a high-level security clearance. Additionally, citizenship is required to join the Canadian Armed Forces.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: As non-citizens, permanent residents must use the passport of their current nationality in combination with a permanent resident card for international travel because they cannot be issued Canadian passports. Some countries will grant visa-free entry to Canadian permanent residents even if their current nationality would not typically qualify. To re-enter Canada on a commercial carrier (flight, bus, etc) a permanent resident must present either their permanent resident card or a Permanent Resident Travel Document issued by a Canadian diplomatic office.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: A permanent resident must live in Canada for two years out of every five, or risk losing that status. Time spent travelling with a Canadian spouse, on a business trip for a Canadian business, or working for a federal or provincial government office abroad can be included in the calculation.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: Permanent residents also risk loss for serious crimes (those that may be punished by more than 10 years in Canada or actually being imprisoned for more than 6 months in Canada), being a security risk or associated with organized crime.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: Failing to meet the residency or admissibility requirements above results in loss of permanent residence status when the finding becomes final without appeal, if the finding is made outside Canada, and upon the person being issued a departure order from Canada, if the finding is made inside Canada.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: A permanent resident may also voluntarily renounce their status if the person possesses a citizenship or right of abode in another country. A person who gives up their status inside Canada must depart the country or apply for a temporary resident visa.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (then known as Citizenship and Immigration Canada) began issuing the permanent resident card, commonly known as a "PR card", to all new Canadian permanent residents in 2002 as part of security improvements following the September 11 attacks. All existing permanent residents were given the option of applying for a permanent resident card at a cost of $50, though possessing a card is not mandatory except in the case of international travel. From December 31, 2003, every permanent resident must be able to present his or her permanent resident card upon boarding a commercial carrier (aircraft, train, bus or boat) in order to travel to Canada. As the permanent resident card may be issued only in Canada, those permanent residents who are outside Canada and without a permanent resident card may apply for a single-use Permanent Resident Travel Document from the nearest Canadian diplomatic office.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: The permanent resident card expires every five years, and then may be renewed by making application and proving that the applicant has been physically present in Canada for the requisite time period, or has otherwise satisfied the residency requirements. Although an individual may meet the residency requirements by living outside of Canada with a Canadian citizen spouse, or working outside Canada for a Canadian business, the Permanent Resident Card cannot be renewed without being present in Canada and having a Canadian address.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: While the PR card was introduced to facilitate ease of travel for permanent residents, it can also be used as a convenient method of proving status to government authorities, employers and school.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: Landed immigrant () is an old classification for a person who has been admitted to Canada as a non-Canadian citizen permanent resident; the classification which is now known simply as "permanent resident". The term "landed immigrant" has been in use for so long that it is still (15 years later) part of the Canadian vocabulary and still appears in some government publications and forms.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: To become a landed immigrant from outside Canada, one had to legally enter Canada, or 'land', at one of the designated ports of entry. Upon entry, the immigrant's passport was to be stamped with the words "Immigrant "Landed"". Once the immigrant had landed, an IMM 1000 form (Record of Landing or Confirmation of Permanent Residence) was to be given to provide an official record of landed status.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: A person can become a Permanent Resident either by applying outside Canada or inside Canada. While the "Application Status" web application on the IRCC website reflects this by showing different processing times, the differences and consequences for the applicant are not clearly identified.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: In January 2015, the Government of Canada opened a new system for managing economic applications for permanent residence: Express Entry. Canada’s Express Entry system is an online system managing Canadian permanent residence applications from foreign skilled workers.


title: Permanent residency in Canada

text: The skilled workers are chosen taking into account their skills and how far they can make a positive contribution to the Canadian economy.


Pyaar Ka Dard Hai Meetha Meetha Pyaara Pyaara is an Indian drama television series produced by Rajshri Productions. It aired from 18 June 2012 to 1 November 2014 on Star Plus. It starred Disha Parmar and Nakuul Mehta as Pankhuri Gupta Kumar and Aditya Kumar.


title: Pyaar Ka Dard Hai Meetha Meetha Pyaara Pyaara

text: Pankhuri Gupta is a small town simple girl from Kullu. Aditya Kumar, a rich boy in Mumbai has grown up cynical about relationships having seen his parents Avantika and Harish separated for 20 years.


text: Purushottam Deewan (Aditya's maternal grandfather), a wealthy business tycoon, visits the Guptas in Kullu, determining to get Pankhuri married to Aditya.


text: Instead, Avantika fixes Aditya's engagement to the Mumbai-based Latika Bafna who only wants the Deewans money. Latika frames Aditya for taking advantage of her but Pankhuri saves him. Aditya and Pankhuri become best friends. Anuj and Sheela fix Pankhuri's marriage to Shivam Mehta. Latika tries to ruin the wedding prompting Shivam to leave. Aditya steps in and marries Pankhuri, and Avantika eventually accepts her.


text: Rubal (Anuj's son) comes to India. He is a spoiled brat and just hates Aditya and wants the family business and property.


text: Rubal marries Latika in a contract marriage for the property. Sheela, Latika plan and successfully brainwash Anuj for property and make him acquire the power of attorney. They together plot against Aditya and Pankhuri and make them oust the Deewan house. They later fire Shanky. Kaira (Anuj's daughter) hates Purushottam thinking he killed his wife Kaushalya. This misunderstanding is cleared after many complicated truths.


text: At a young age, Aditya was accidentally responsible for the death of Kaushalya who was in a state of coma. After learning the truth, Kaira apologises to Purushottam. The Deewans are reunited after many ups and downs. Anuj starts showing love and cares for his father Purushottam and sisters Avantika and Preeti by handing the reins of the business to Avantika and Aditya, that he'd usurped. Preeti gets married to Sameer Deshpande.


text: Purushottam passes away peacefully after uniting his family with Pankhuri's painstaking efforts. Purushottam's younger brother Manik and his family invite themselves to live in Deewan Mansion after the former's death.


text: Latika joins Manik and his wife Manorama in their ulterior plans and undergoes an abortion but feigns a miscarriage blaming Pankhuri. Aditya is jailed, framed for possessing fake notes and illegal drugs, and is compelled by the wicked Manorama to divorce Pankhuri. Manik and Manorama reform. Rubal divorces Latika, and falls in love with, and marries Payal. Pankhuri and Aditya remarry; Kapil (Manik's son) gets arrested, Kaira marries Varun.


text: The family reunites with Aneesha (the late Kaushalya's younger sister) who returns from Australia after decades. Vikram (Varun's elder brother) wants to use Kaira for revenge on Deewans as a decision by Avantika affects him negatively. The family eventually settles the problem. Aditya and Pankhuri argue. While she goes off to Kullu, they patch over the phone just before disappearing in a landslide.


text: Harish meets Pankhuri's lookalike Ayesha on a trip in Lucknow and uses her to bring Aditya out of the belief that Pankhuri is still alive but the plan flops. Aditya realises Ayesha isn't Pankhuri and still believes that Pankhuri is alive. Ayesha falls in love with him. Ayesha's mother Nilofer forces Aditya to marry her.


text: He marries her; she is soon accepted by Avantika. Alive, Pankhuri is in a state of coma. On waking up, she reveals being abducted for jewellery. The culprits are caught. Ayesha leaves to pursue her dream of becoming a designer. Aneesha accompanies her. Avantika's past affair is revealed when her illegitimate son Ayush comes to live with the Deewan family.


text: Eventually, Harish accepts Ayush as his stepson. The show ends on a happy note with Pankhuri turning pregnant and everyone in the family reuniting and rejoicing: thus, fulfilling the dream of being a united and happy family that the late Purushottam Deewan had always dreamt of.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: An international mobile subscriber identity-catcher, or IMSI-catcher, is a telephone eavesdropping device used for intercepting mobile phone traffic and tracking location data of mobile phone users. Essentially a "fake" mobile tower acting between the target mobile phone and the service provider's real towers, it is considered a man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack. The 3G wireless standard offers some risk mitigation due to mutual authentication required from both the handset and the network. However, sophisticated attacks may be able to downgrade 3G and LTE to non-LTE network services which do not require mutual authentication.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: IMSI-catchers are used in a number of countries by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, but their use has raised significant civil liberty and privacy concerns and is strictly regulated in some countries such as under the German "Strafprozessordnung" (StPO / Code of Criminal Procedure). Some countries do not have encrypted phone data traffic (or very weak encryption), thus rendering an IMSI-catcher unnecessary.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: A virtual base transceiver station (VBTS) is a device for identifying the temporary mobile subscriber identity (TMSI), international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) of a nearby GSM mobile phone and intercepting its calls, some are even advanced enough to detect the international mobile equipment identity (IMEI). It was patented and first commercialized by Rohde & Schwarz in 2003. The device can be viewed as simply a modified cell tower with a malicious operator, and on 4 January 2012, the Court of Appeal of England and Wales held that the patent is invalid for obviousness.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: IMSI-catchers are often deployed by court order without a search warrant, the lower judicial standard of a pen register and trap-and-trace order being preferred by law enforcement. They can also be used in search and rescue operation for missing persons. Police departments have been reluctant to reveal use of these programs and contracts with vendors such as Harris Corporation, the maker of Stingray and Kingfish phone tracker devices.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: In the UK, the first public body to admit using IMSI catchers was the Scottish Prison Service, though it is likely that the Metropolitan Police Service has been using IMSI catchers since 2011 or before.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: Body-worn IMSI-catchers that target nearby mobile phones are being advertised to law enforcement agencies in the US.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: The GSM specification requires the handset to authenticate to the network, but does "not" require the network to authenticate to the handset. This well-known security hole is exploited by an IMSI catcher. The IMSI catcher masquerades as a base station and logs the IMSI numbers of all the mobile stations in the area, as they attempt to attach to the IMSI-catcher. It allows forcing the mobile phone connected to it to use no call encryption (A5/0 mode) or to use easily breakable encryption (A5/1 or A5/2 mode), making the call data easy to intercept and convert to audio.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: The 3G wireless standard mitigates risk and enhanced security of the protocol due to mutual authentication required from both the handset and the network and removes the false base station attack in GSM. Some sophisticated attacks against 3G and LTE may be able to downgrade to non-LTE network services which then does not require mutual authentication.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: Every mobile phone has the requirement to optimize its reception. If there is more than one base station of the subscribed network operator accessible, it will always choose the one with the strongest signal. An IMSI-catcher masquerades as a base station and causes every mobile phone of the simulated network operator within a defined radius to log in. With the help of a special identity request, it is able to force the transmission of the IMSI.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: The IMSI-catcher subjects the phones in its vicinity to a man-in-the-middle attack, appearing to them as a preferred base station in terms of signal strength. With the help of a SIM, it simultaneously logs into the GSM network as a mobile station. Since the encryption mode is chosen by the base station, the IMSI-catcher can induce the mobile station to use no encryption at all. Hence it can encrypt the plain text traffic from the mobile station and pass it to the base station.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: A targeted mobile phone is sent signals where the user will not be able to tell apart the device from authentic cell service provider infrastructure. This means that the device will be able to retrieve data that a normal cell tower receives from mobile phones if registered.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: There is only an indirect connection from mobile station via IMSI-catcher to the GSM network. For this reason, incoming phone calls cannot generally be patched through to the mobile station by the GSM network, although more modern versions of these devices have their own mobile patch-through solutions in order to provide this functionality.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: The difference between a passive IMSI-catcher and an active IMSI-catcher is that an active IMSI-catcher intercepts the data in transfer such as spoke, text, mail, and web traffic between the endpoint and cell tower.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: Active IMSI-catchers generally also intercept all conversations and data traffic within a large range and are therefore also called rogue cell towers. It sends a signal with a plethora of commands to the endpoints, which respond by establishing a connection and routes all conversations and data traffic between the endpoints and the actual cell tower for as long as the attacker wishes.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: A passive IMSI-catcher on the other hand only detects the IMSI, TMSI or IMEI of an endpoint. Once the IMSI, TMSI or IMEI address is detected, the endpoint is immediately released. The passive IMSI-catcher sends out a signal with only one specific command to the endpoints, which respond to it and share the identifiers of the endpoint with the passive IMSI-catcher. The vendors of passive IMSI-catchers take privacy more into account.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: False base station attacks are prevented by a combination of key freshness and integrity protection of signaling data, not by authenticating the serving network.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: To provide a high network coverage, the UMTS standard allows for inter-operation with GSM. Therefore, not only UMTS but also GSM base stations are connected to the UMTS service network. This fallback is a security disadvantage and allows a new possibility of a man-in-the-middle attack.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: Some preliminary research has been done in trying to detect and frustrate IMSI-catchers. One such project is through the Osmocom open source mobile station software. This is a special type of mobile phone firmware that can be used to detect and fingerprint certain network characteristics of IMSI-catchers, and warn the user that there is such a device operating in their area. But this firmware/software-based detection is strongly limited to a select few, outdated GSM mobile phones (i.e. Motorola) that are no longer available on the open market. The main problem is the closed-source nature of the major mobile phone producers.


title: IMSI-catcher

text: The application Android IMSI-Catcher Detector (AIMSICD) is being developed to detect and circumvent IMSI-catchers by StingRay and silent SMS. Technology for a stationary network of IMSI-catcher detectors has also been developed. Several apps listed on the Google Play Store as IMSI catcher detector apps include SnoopSnitch, Cell Spy Catcher, and GSM Spy Finder and have between 100,000 and 500,000 app downloads each. However, these apps have limitations in that they do not have access to phone's underlying hardware and may offer only minimal protection.


title: Gavel

text: A gavel is a small ceremonial mallet commonly made of hardwood, typically fashioned with a handle. It can be used to call for attention or to punctuate rulings and proclamations and is a symbol of the authority and right to act officially in the capacity of a presiding officer. It is often struck against a sound block, a striking surface typically also made of hardwood, to enhance its sounding qualities. According to tradition, Vice President of the United States John Adams used a gavel as a call to order in the first U.S. Senate in New York in 1789. Since then, it has remained customary to tap the gavel against a lectern or desk to indicate the opening and closing of proceedings and, in the United States, to indicate that a judge’s decision is final. It is also used to keep the meeting itself calm and orderly.


title: Gavel

text: In Medieval England, the word "gavel" could refer to a tribute or rent payment made with something other than cash. These agreements were set in English land-court with the sound of a "gavel", a word which may come from the (meaning "tribute"). "Gavel" would be prefixed to any non-monetary payment given to a lord (for example: "gavel-malt") and can be found as a prefix to other terms such as "gavelkind", a system of partible inheritance formerly found in parts of the UK and Ireland. A "gavel" may also have referred to a kind of mason's tool, a setting maul that came into use as a way to maintain order in meetings.


title: Gavel

text: A gavel may be used in meetings of a deliberative assembly. According to "Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised", the gavel may be used to signify a recess or an adjournment. It may also be used to signify when a member makes a slight breach of the rules.


title: Gavel

text: "Demeter's Manual of Parliamentary Law and Procedure" states that, in addition to an optional light tap after a vote, there are three other uses of a gavel:


title: Gavel

text: Improper uses include banging the gavel in an attempt to drown out a disorderly member. In this situation, the chair should give one vigorous tap at a time at intervals. Also, the chair should not lean on the gavel, juggle or toy with it, or use it to challenge or threaten or to emphasize remarks.


title: Gavel

text: The chair should not be "gaveling through" a measure by cutting off members and quickly putting a question to a vote before any member can get the floor (in this connection, the chair should not use the gavel to improperly signify the end of consideration of a question). The expression "passing the gavel" signifies an orderly succession from one chair to another.


title: Gavel

text: In addition to the use above during business meetings, organizations may use the gavel during their ceremonies and may specify the number of taps of the gavel corresponding to different actions.


title: Gavel

text: The gavel is used in courts of law in the United States and, by metonymy, is used there to represent the entire judiciary system, especially of judgeship. On the other hand, in the Commonwealth of Nations and Republic of Ireland, gavels have never been used by judges, despite many American-influenced TV programs depicting them. An exception is the Inner London Crown Court, where clerks use a gavel to alert parties in court of the entrance of the judge into the courtroom.


title: Gavel

text: The unique gavel of the United States Senate has an hourglass shape and no handle. In 1954, the gavel that had been in use since at least 1834 (and possibly since 1789) broke when Vice President Richard Nixon used it during a heated debate on nuclear energy, despite silver plates that were added to strengthen it in 1952. The Senate was unable to obtain a piece of ivory large enough to replace the gavel, so they appealed to the Indian embassy. Later that year, India's Vice President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan visited the Senate and presented a replica of the original gavel to Nixon. In response to widespread awareness of elephant poaching and illegal ivory trades, a white marble gavel has been in use since at least 2021.


title: Gavel

text: The gavel of the House of Representatives, by contrast, is plain wood with a handle and is used more often and more forcefully than in the Senate. It has been broken and replaced many times. The instrument is so associated with the Speaker of the House that the word "gavel" itself has become a metonym for the post.


title: Gavel

text: In 1955, Icelandic sculptor Ríkarður Jónsson carved the Icelandic birch gavel and striking board used at the United Nations.


title: Orange Is the New Black (season 6)

text: The sixth season of the American comedy-drama television series "Orange Is the New Black" premiered on Netflix on July 27, 2018, at 12:00 am PDT in multiple countries. It consists of thirteen episodes, each between 50 and 84 minutes. The series is based on Piper Kerman's memoir, "" (2010), about her experiences at FCI Danbury, a minimum-security federal prison. The series is created and adapted for television by Jenji Kohan.


title: Orange Is the New Black (season 6)

text: This season takes place in a maximum security prison, after the inmates incite a riot at Litchfield Penitentiary during the previous season, and the season deals with the fallout from the riot. The main story arc of the season involves a gang-like war between two cell blocks which is sparked by the feud between two sisters. Meanwhile, the guards play a fantasy sport game called "fantasy inmate". Several supporting characters who appeared throughout the first five seasons are absent in this season due to change in setting, but this season introduces several new characters featured in maximum security.


title: Orange Is the New Black (season 6)

text: In February 2016, Netflix gave the series a three-season renewal, which included its sixth season. For the sixth season, Laura Gómez, Matt Peters and Dale Soules were promoted to series regulars.


title: Orange Is the New Black (season 6)

text: The sixth season received positive reviews from critics, with most critics noting its improvement over the previous season. On Metacritic, it has a score of 69 out of 100 based on 14 reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an 83% rating with an average score of 7.3 out of 10 based on 35 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "Brutality and humor continue to mesh effectively in a season of "Orange Is the New Black" that stands as a marked improvement from its predecessor, even if some arcs are more inspired than others."


title: Orange Is the New Black (season 6)

text: For the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards, Laverne Cox received a nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series.


title: Forensic Files II

text: Forensic Files II is a revival continuation of the long-running American documentary true crime series "Forensic Files", which originally aired from 1996 to 2011 on various networks. Premiering on February 23, 2020, "Forensic Files II"'s first season consisted of 16 episodes and was broadcast on HLN, with voiceover narration by Bill Camp. The original "Forensic Files" broadcast over 400 episodes during its original run.


title: Forensic Files II

text: On May 12, 2020, the series was renewed for a second and third season. The second season premiered on July 11, 2021. The third season of "Forensic Files II" premiered on the HLN Television Network Sunday, Feb. 27, at 10 p.m. Eastern time.


title: Forensic Files II

text: The last episode of the original "Forensic Files" series ("Expert Witness") originally aired on June 17, 2011. After the 2016 death of "Forensic Files" narrator Peter Thomas, the show's executive producer Paul Dowling ruled out the possibility of reviving the series, as he considered Thomas to be "irreplaceable". In October 2019, it was announced that the show would be revived with new episodes to air first-run on HLN in early 2020, with Bill Camp later announced as the new narrator.


title: Forensic Files II

text: The revival was clarified as being the first season of a new show, rather than the 15th season of "Forensic Files", explained by series producer Nancy Duffy as having been done to "differentiate the new episodes from those that came before". Duffy explained: "When we talked about bringing back "Forensic Files", a lot of people thought we just meant that we were gonna be [airing] old shows that we didn't previously air on HLN and there seemed to be a confusion about that, so [we changed the title so] there could be no confusion." Series creator Paul Dowling confirmed on Twitter that "Forensic Files II" was a new, separate show from the original "Forensic Files".


title: Forensic Files II

text: Unlike in the original "Forensic Files" program, actors were not hired to participate in reenactments of the cases dramatized in "Forensic Files II". Instead, various employees of CNN and HLN were utilized to portray victims, suspects, and other individuals for dramatic recreations of real life events. Series producer Nancy Duffy explained that the reenactments are filmed in a more "impressionistic" way than in the original series, so that the individuals used in the recreations "don't have to look identical" to the people they are portraying. As a result, faces are not shown in the recreations in the first season, only bodies from the neck down. The second season occasionally shows faces similar to the people involved in the depicted events with the camera out of focus. Duffy elaborated that employees would approach her and ask to participate in the reenactments, saying that many were "excited" at the prospect of portraying individuals involved in killing, hiding, kidnapping, or the use of physical restraint.


title: Forensic Files II

text: The series premiere began with two back-to-back new episodes on February 23, 2020 beginning at 10:00 p.m. Eastern time. Two new episodes aired back-to-back each Sunday, with the final episode of the first season airing on April 12, Easter Sunday.


title: Forensic Files II

text: Like the first season, this season will begin with two back-to-back new episodes on July 11, 2021 beginning at 10:00 p.m. Eastern time.


title: Forensic Files II

text: This season began with two back-to-back new episodes on February 27, 2022 beginning at 10:00 p.m. Eastern time. After a five month hiatus, the season resumed with two back-to-back new episodes on July 31, 2022 beginning at 10:00 p.m. Eastern time.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: The historic Town of Fairplay is the Statutory Town that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Park County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 724 at the 2020 United States Census. Fairplay is located in South Park at an elevation of . The town is the fifth-highest incorporated place in the State of Colorado. Fairplay is now a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: A historic gold mining settlement, the town was founded in 1859 during the early days of the Pike's Peak Gold Rush. The town was named by settlers who were upset by the generous mining claims given to the earliest prospectors and promised a more equitable system for its residents. The town of Fairplay was incorporated in 1872.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: It is the largest community in the grassland basin of Colorado known as South Park, sitting on the west edge of the basin at the junction of U.S. Highway 285 and State Highway 9. It is on a hillside just east of the Middle Fork South Platte River, near where Highway 9 ascends the river valley northward to Alma and Hoosier Pass. It is a quiet town, and the roads surrounding it have a low volume of traffic. Although it was founded during the initial placer mining boom, the mines in the area continued to produce gold and silver ore for many decades up through the middle of the 20th century.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: The town consists of modern retail businesses along the highway, as well as a historic town on the bluff above the river along Front Street. The northern extension of Front Street along the river has been preserved and has become the site of relocated historic structures as an open-air museum called South Park City, intended to recreate the early days of the Colorado Gold Rush. Most of the residences in town are located on the hillside west of US Highway 285 and east of State Highway 9, in the vicinity of the schools and Park County Courthouse. The majority of the streets in town were finally paved in 2005.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: The Town of Fairplay is the visual basis for the Town of South Park in the television series "South Park". The people in the show are influenced by Boulder, Colorado, where creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker attended college at the University of Colorado.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: From 1966 to 1984, the McNamara Building in Fairplay, now demolished, had been the community hospital. It was named for Dr. Edward Bradley McNamara, a former U.S. Army doctor in World War II, who moved to Fairplay in 1962 from Michigan. He died working in the emergency room of his namesake hospital in August 1973. The hospital, built with Hill-Burton Act funds, had financial woes from the start. Before it was condemned (for asbestos issues) and vacated in 2009, it had been used by several successive clinics and by Park County for office space. A previous eight-bed Park County Hospital had operated in Fairplay as early as 1892 and preceded the McNamara Hospital. Both facilities had been mainly for emergencies, obstetrics, and minor surgery, and later for nursing home care.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: In 1874, the Presbyterian missionary Sheldon Jackson built in Fairplay the still-standing Sheldon Jackson Memorial Chapel, since renamed the South Park Community Church, a one-room Victorian Gothic Revival structure which was listed in 1977 on the National Register of Historic Places.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: Fairplay has a subarctic or subalpine climate (Koppen: Dfc) given its elevation, with short cool summers, and long, snowy, cold winters. Temperature ranges between day and night are large, due to the high elevation, low cloud cover, and dryness of the air.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: As of the census of 2000, there were 610 people, 259 households, and 169 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 337 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 93% White, 1.3% African American, 1.0% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 2.8% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.9% of the population.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: There were 259 households, out of which 32% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51% were married couples living together, 8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34% were non-families. 26% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.8.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: Approximately 24% of the town under the age of 18, 8% from 18 to 24, 37% from 25 to 44, 25% from 45 to 64, and 5% 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 110 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112 males.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: The median income for a household in the town was $50,385, and the median income for a family was $51,980. Males had a median income of $34,290 versus $26,430 for females. The per capita income for the town was $21,740. About 6.6% of families and 9.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.4% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: The Burro Days festival is held on the last weekend of July. The event celebrates the town's mining heritage. The main feature of the festival is a 29-mile (46.7 km) burro race over rough terrain and approximately 3,000-ft (914 m) elevation gain from downtown Fairplay to the 13,000-ft (3962 m) summit of Mosquito Pass. Teams consist of one person and one burro. The race takes about five hours to complete; first prize is $1,000. Previously, the first prize included an ounce of gold. There are several other burro races in Colorado, the most notable takes place in Leadville.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: The Fairplay event is the World Championship of Burro Racing, an ultra-marathon and the longest burro race in the state. For many years (in the 1960s and early 1970s) the Burro race took place from Leadville to Fairplay, or vice versa, crossing over Mosquito Pass. This followed the route that Father John Lewis Dyer of the Methodist Episcopal Church used for circuit riding and for carrying mail. With time, the rivalry between the two cities ended this cooperative endeavor.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: The town has become mildly famous in recent years as the town depicted in the South Park animated television series on Comedy Central. Although the geographical references contained in several episodes imply that Fairplay is the model for South Park, it is much smaller and more rustic than its fictional counterpart, which has a more suburban character. Co-creator Trey Parker grew up in Conifer and went to high school in Evergreen, both of which are somewhat more affluent mountain communities immediately west of Denver in Jefferson County. Co-creator Matt Stone lived in the Denver suburb of Littleton.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: Because the town is a regional center of government and commerce, the term "South Park" has historically been used in the town in the naming of institutions and business, including South Park High School (the namesake of which appears in the series). The elementary school is Edith Teter Elementary and the middle school is South Park Middle School.


title: Fairplay, Colorado

text: Although the town of South Park is based upon the real life town of Fairplay, the latter is mentioned by Gerald Broflovski in the episode "Night of the Living Homeless" and described as "4 miles away" in "Jakovasaurs", which implies that it is a separate town in the show. The county seat offices in Fairplay are seen, though not mentioned by name, in the episode "Stanley's Cup". In "T.M.I." the Pissed Off and Angry Party invade a FedEx Office location which the news reporter reports as the Fairplay FedEx.


title: American Basketball Association (2000–present)

text: The American Basketball Association (ABA) is an American semi-professional men's basketball minor league that was founded in 1999.


text: The ABA has teams based in the United States and previously had international teams based in Canada and Mexico. In the past, there were traveling teams from countries such as Australia and Japan who played in the ABA. Additionally, there were players from other countries that were on a U.S. team to showcase other talented athletes in the country.


text: The current ABA bears no relation to the original American Basketball Association (1967–1976) that was considered a major league, and merged with the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1976.


text: The current ABA was started by Joe Newman and Richard Tinkham. Tinkham was an executive with the Indiana Pacers when they were in the original ABA. They licensed the ABA name from the NBA.


text: The league started in 2000 with eight teams. During its initial years of operation, the league focused mainly on teams in larger cities. To attract fans, the ABA encouraged its members to fill rosters with former NBA players and past college basketball stars with local ties.


text: In 2002–03, the league suspended operations for reorganization. The league continued to play for the 2003–2004 season, but the focus had shifted from a few teams in large cities to numerous teams in both large and medium-sized cities. Franchise fees were lowered from $50,000 to $10,000 and the bond requirement was removed in order to attract new teams. The subsequent reduction in initial operating costs allowed the formation of several teams that might otherwise not be possible. However, it resulted in some under-financed ownership groups. Since 2004, several new teams have failed to complete their inaugural season due to financial insolvency.


text: Also, teams were organized into regional groups to facilitate interest and reduce travel costs starting with the 2003–2004 season.


text: The 2004–05 season was the first under this new format, with 37 teams playing that season. Among the league's coaches that season was the Nashville Rhythm's Ashley McElhiney, the first woman to be the head coach of a men's professional basketball team. Subsequent seasons brought drastic expansion. Some teams had proved to be successful in their early years, but others did not complete their initial seasons. At times, the ABA had 50+ teams playing each season. Some of the more successful expansion franchises during this era included the Arkansas RimRockers in 2004 and the Rochester RazorSharks in 2005. Both teams won the ABA title during their first seasons in the league.


text: The 2006–07 season saw the nominal cost for a new expansion franchise raised to $20,000, but many still sold for $10,000 – $5,000 or less. In some cases, teams were sold for as little as $1. One notable 2006–07 expansion franchise was the Vermont Frost Heaves, owned by "Sports Illustrated" writer Alexander Wolff. Also in 2006–07, former NBA player John Salley was named league commissioner, and Maryland Nighthawks owner Tom Doyle was named chief operating officer.


text: Following the league's first public offering in 2006, it was reported that Joe Newman was voted out of his position as league CEO. The league's required Securities and Exchange Commission filings in February 2007 indicated that the ABA Board of Directors removed Newman as CEO on January 31, 2007. The filings further stated that Newman's actions as CEO would be reviewed to ensure that they were performed with the board's permission. The same filing also claimed that Newman and other shareholders plotted to remove Tom Doyle, John Salley, and David Howitt from the board and to elect Paul Riley as its director. Newman denied his removal ever occurred, and continued as acting CEO. The lawsuits were settled in March 2007 with Doyle's and Salley's resignations from the league's Board of Directors.


text: The 2006–07 season saw many franchises fail to travel to road games or to play a full schedule. When weather-related issues did not allow defending champion Rochester Razorsharks to travel for a playoff game against the Wilmington Sea Dawgs, the league attempted to force Rochester to forfeit rather than reschedule. Instead, Rochester chose to withdraw from the league. These several incidents caused some league owners to perceive instability within the league. These frustrated owners separated from the ABA to form the Premier Basketball League (PBL) in late 2007.


text: Nearly twenty teams folded within the first five weeks of the 2007–08 season, and several remaining teams left the ABA to join other existing leagues. According to "Our Sports Central", approximately 35% of the games scheduled for the season were played. The teams that played the highest percentage of games were Vermont, the Manchester (NH) Millrats, and the Quebec Kebs. At the conclusion of the season, all three of these teams left to join the PBL.


text: Another unique franchise for the 2008–09 season was the Beijing Aoshen Olympians, which had previously been kicked out of the Chinese Basketball League and played only home games in the ABA. All Olympians' games were played in Singapore. The Beijing franchise paid $3000 and all team flight accommodations to Singapore for each 2-game home-stand.


text: Following the 2007–2008 season, the league's most successful franchise by attendance, the Halifax Rainmen, left the ABA. Halifax ownership cited growing frustration with teams that did not show for scheduled games, as well as a biased ranking system. Sports media began to openly criticize the league and question its ability to be taken seriously.


text: The 2008–09 season saw the league conduct interleague play with the Continental Basketball Association.


text: The 2009–10 season was scheduled to have over 50 teams. The season ended with several teams folding in early December, including the entire Northwest Division. The league canceled several playoff games due to the inability of teams to afford travel. The playoffs ended with Southeast Texas Mustangs defeating the Kentucky Bisons in a three-game series.


text: On April 25, 2010, as part of their ABA Global Initiative, the league hosted the 2010 ABA Friendship Games, in which the Philippine National Basketball Team competed against several ABA teams.


text: The 2010–11 season was expected to field over 60 teams, including a new Canadian Division. In the summer of 2010, the league announced its first Haitian professional basketball team, the Haitian Relief. In total, the ABA planned to host over 800 games throughout the season.


text: However, the 2010–2011 campaign ended similar to previous seasons, with several teams folding either before or during the season. Instead of the promised 60 teams, the league fielded fewer than 50 full-time franchises that actually played games.


text: The 2011 ABA All-Star Game resulted in a 123–122 Eastern Conference win over the Western Conference in front of a crowd of 4,488 at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. The playoffs started the following weekend, with the last four teams playing a double-elimination tournament at the home of the Southeast Texas Mavericks. The Mavericks won their second ABA title two games to none over the Gulf Coast Flash.


text: Despite continued instability, the league announced plans to form a new Women's American Basketball Association (WABA), unrelated to the original Women's American Basketball Association, which existed for one season in 2002. The new league's first squad was to be located in Greenville, North Carolina.


text: The league failed to launch the WABA in the 2011–12 season and announced new plans to launch for the 2012–2013 season. The second attempted launch was pushed back to the 2013–2014 season with nine initial teams set to play: the Philly Love, New Jersey Express, New England Stormers, Hampton Roads Lightning, Lake City Kingdom Riderettes, Fayetteville Lady Cadets, Columbus Lady Road Runners, McAllen Queens, and Chicago Lady Steam. As of February 2019, the WABA has yet to report any game results.


text: March 23, 2015 the ABA announced the launch of a new Media & Entertainment Division to be headed by hip hop mogul & ABA team owner Antjuan "Tjuan Benafactor" Washington.


text: On June 22, 2015, the ABA announced a multi-year partnership with Sports Radio America. "The ABA on SRA Game of the Week" will showcase some of the best matchups in the ABA.


text: October 9, 2015, the ABA announced online live streaming partnerships with both LiveSportsCaster and WatchIDSN, two independent live sports streaming platforms based in Louisville, Kentucky, and Chicago, Illinois, respectively.


text: On April 9, 2016, the Jacksonville Giants won the ABA championship, their third, with a 93–90 win over the Windy City Groove. They had previously defeated the Groove 92–80 on April 8, 2016, to take the best-of-three series in straight games.


text: On February 10, 2017, the Hawaii Swish, owned by Geremy Robinson and a member of the Far West Division, debuted at Neal Blaisdell Arena with a game against the Yuba City Goldminers.


text: On April 13, 2019, the Jacksonville Giants captured their fourth straight and sixth overall ABA championship title with a 116–112 win over South Florida Gold.


text: The ABA policy of awarding a franchise to anyone who is willing to pay the ABA franchise fee, with no consideration given to whether the franchisee can afford to operate the team, resulted in over 200 folded franchises as of the beginning of the 2008 season. As of summer 2014, the number was over 350.


text: Former CEO Joe Newman started Bully-Free ABA! after his grandchildren became victims of bullying. The program features players visiting schools to share stories about their own experiences with bullying and how such issues can be solved.


text: Team coaches are involved as well, in 2012, Kitsap Admirals coach Chris Koebelin was an active leader in the program. Koebelin mentioned to the students during his visits that he was bullied as a child. Following the visits, time is usually allowed for the students to interact with the team on the court.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: The economy of Georgia is an emerging free market economy. Its gross domestic product fell sharply following the dissolution of the Soviet Union but recovered in the mid-2000s, growing in double digits thanks to the economic and democratic reforms brought by the peaceful Rose Revolution. Georgia continued its economic progress since, "moving from a near-failed state in 2003 to a relatively well-functioning market economy in 2014". In 2007, the World Bank named Georgia the World's number one economic reformer, and has consistently ranked the country at the top of its ease of doing business index.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Georgia's economy is supported by a relatively free and transparent atmosphere in the country. According to Transparency International's 2018 report, Georgia is the least corrupt nation in the Black Sea region, outperforming all of its immediate neighbors, as well as nearby European Union states. With a mixed news media environment, Georgia is also the only country in its immediate neighborhood where the press is not deemed unfree.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Since 2014, Georgia is part of the European Union's Free Trade Area, with the EU continuing to be the country's largest trading partner, accounting for over a quarter of Georgia's total trade turnover. Following the EU trade pact, 2015 was marked by further increase in bilateral trade, whereas trade with the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) decreased precipitously.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Georgia's modern economy has traditionally revolved around Black Sea tourism, cultivation of citrus fruits, tea and grapes; mining of manganese and copper; and the output of a large industrial sector producing wine, metals, machinery, chemicals, and textiles.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Like many post-Soviet countries, Georgia went through a period of sharp economic decline during the 1990s, with high inflation and large budget-deficits, due to persistent tax evasion. In 1996 Georgia's budget deficit rose to as much as 6.2%. During that period international financial institutions played a critical role in Georgia's budgetary calculations. Multilateral and bilateral grants and loans totaled 116.4 million lari in 1997; they totaled 182.8 million lari in 1998.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Economic recovery had been hampered by the separatist disputes in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, resistance to reform on the part of some corrupt and reactionary factions, and the Asian financial crisis of 1997. Under the leadership of President Shevardnadze (in office 1995–2003), the government nonetheless made some progress on basic market reforms: it liberalized all prices and most trade, introduced a stable national currency (the lari), and massively downsized government.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: During the late 1990s more than 10,500 small enterprises had been privatized, and although privatization of medium- and large-sized firms had been slow, more than 1,200 medium – and large-sized companies had been set up as joint stock companies. A law and a decree establishing the legal basis and procedures for state property privatization reduced the number of companies controlled by the state.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: The United States began assisting Georgia in the process of reform soon after the country gained independence from the Soviet Union. Gradually, the focus shifted from humanitarian to technical and institution-building programs. Provision of legal and technical advisors was complemented by training opportunities for parliamentarians, law enforcement officials, and economic advisers.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Over the last few years Georgian economy has been one of the fastest in the FSU. Since 2003's Rose Revolution, the new Government of Georgia implemented broad and comprehensive reforms, that touched every aspect of the country's life. Economic reforms were addressed to liberalization of the economy and provision of sustainable economic growth, based on the private sector development. Establishment of an attractive business environment led to significant inflow of Foreign Direct Investment in the country, facilitating high economic growth rates.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: In 2013, Georgia ranked in the top ten countries in the Emerging Market Energy Security Growth Prosperity Index, according to an article published by "CISTRAN Finance" news. The index identifies emerging nations that have strong growth potential based on energy reserves and GDP.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Following reforms, Georgia's economy successfully diversified and began showing rapid upward growth, averaging over 10% annual real GDP growth from 2004–2007, peaking at 12.3 percent in 2007. Overall, from 2004-2007, the economy of Georgia expanded by 35%.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Georgia's economic liberalization policy demonstrated some resilience to external shocks – war with Russia in 2008 and the global financial crisis. Despite this, in 2008 Georgia economy grew by 2.3%. After contracting in 2009 (−3.8%), the economy recovered soon after, growing 6.3% in 2010 and 7.0% in 2011. The unemployment rate shrunk from 16.9% to 16.3% between 2009 and 2010.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: In 2013 the annual inflation rate in Georgia equaled 2.4%. It has been decreased significantly after 11.2% in 2010. Growth of inflation rate was the result of increasing food prices in the world and essential share of the inflation fluctuations came on variability of food prices, as far as the share of food is relatively high in consumer basket of Georgia.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: In 2011, IMF estimated current account balance of Georgia was −1.489 BN USD. Georgia has moderate deficits among the European and Transcaucasian Post-Soviet states. The trade with Georgia's major partners continued growing. As an example, in 2016, Georgia exported $87,263.53 worth of products to Armenia, and imported $144,931.92 worth of products from Armenia. Deficits in current account have been more than offset by strong foreign capital inflows, allowing the Georgian currency to appreciate.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: The government has managed to preserve financial stability thanks to the considerable aid provided by the US and international institutions. EBRD analysts believe that substantial international financial support and remittances from workers living abroad will cover the current account deficit in the medium term. IMF positively evaluated government's economic policy.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Large inflows of Foreign direct investment (FDI) have been a driving factor behind a rapid economic growth in Georgia since 2003.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: An attractive and liberal investment environment and equal approach to local and foreign investors makes the country an attractive destination for FDI.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Stable economic development, liberal and free market oriented economic policy, 6 taxes only and reduced tax rates, reduced number of licenses and permissions, dramatically simplified administrative procedures, preferential trade regimes with foreign countries, advantageous geographic location, well developed, integrated and multimodal transport infrastructure, educated, skilled and competitive workforce presents a solid ground for successful business in Georgia. In addition to other advantages, Georgia has Free Industrial Zones, where companies are exempt from all the corporate taxes.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: From 2003 to 2011, FDI in Georgia amounted to US$8511.5 million. The highest volume of FDI – 2,015.0 million USD was reached in 2007, with 69.3% yearly growth. High rate of investment was maintained until 2008. In 2007, the EC27 accounted for over 56% of FDI inflows and in 2008 the EC, UAE, and Turkey accounted for nearly 60%. In 2009, FDI inflows were characterized by decreasing trend. The main reasons of decreasing were external shocks – Russian-Georgian war and the influences of global financial crisis.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: In the first half of 2017, Armenian Investments to Georgia nearly doubled year-on-year to $5.6 million, while investments from Azerbaijan dropped by 20.3% year-on-year to the overall $224.18 million.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: • In 2009–2011 the largest share of FDI felt on Industry sector (31.2) amounted to US$765 million, real estate sector (15.8%) amounting to US$389 million.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: The table below shows FDI stock as a percentage of GDP in selected FSU countries. For statistical purposes, FDI is defined as a foreign company owning 10% or more of the ordinary shares of an incorporated firm or its equivalent for an unincorporated firm.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Since 2014, Georgia is part of the European Union's Free Trade Area, with the EU continuing to be the country's largest trading partner, accounting for over a quarter of Georgia's total trade turnover. Following the EU trade pact, 2015 was marked by further increase in bilateral trade, whereas trade with the Russian-led Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) decreased by 22%.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: As of 2015, in the order of magnitude, Georgia's main exports were: copper ores and concentrates, ferroalloys, hazelnut, medications, nitrogen fertilizers, wine, crude oil, mineral water, non-denatured ethanol and spirits.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: In 2015, Georgia's main imports, in the order of magnitude, were: oil products, vehicles, hydrocarbons, copper ores and concentrates, mobile phones and other wireless phones, wheat, cigarettes, iron tubes and pipes, structures and parts of structures of iron.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: In 2019, Georgian exports to Armenia grew by 2% compared to previous year, while imports decreased by 7%. Georgia exported 98.3 million $ worth of products to Armenia (4% of total exports), and imported 46.9 million $ (1% of total imports) in 2019.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Money transferred from abroad to Georgia in 2019 amounted to USD 1.73 billion, according to figures released by Georgia's central bank. Money transfers from Russia, which has been the largest source of remittances for Georgia for many years already, stood at USD 428.89 million in 2019.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Among other largest sources of remittances for Georgia are: Greece with USD 192.56 million in 2019, Italy – USD 239.17 million; the United States – USD 178.41 million; Ukraine – USD 47.3 million; Spain – USD 30.9 million; Turkey – USD 94.85 million; Kazakhstan – USD 26.63 million; the UK – USD 16.89 million; Israel – USD 162.55 million; Azerbaijan – USD 22.17 million; Germany – USD 49.81 million; France – USD 26.37 million; Canada – USD 14.21 million.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Under the Saakashvili administration, Georgia undertook a number of profound institutional reforms aimed at modernizing the economy and improving business climate. Kakha Bendukidze (1956–2014) was one of the most notable team members during his governance, coordinating the Ministry of Economical Reforms of Georgia. Implemented institutional reforms created an effective, professional and transparent public sector, motivated to protect the principles of democracy. Due to the economic deregulation policy, number of state regulated spheres sharply decreased, as well as regulation procedures were simplified.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Georgia succeeded in fighting against corruption, that was the one of the main obstacles for development. Success of Georgia is recognized by different rating agencies. According to the Transparency International, Georgia is the top country in the post-Soviet region in terms of fighting corruption. According to the Corruption Perception Index published by Transparency International, Georgia ranked 50th in 2014 (up from 113rd in 2004). "Global Corruption Barometer 2010" ranks Georgia the first among world countries in the term of decrease corruption level. According to International Finance Corporation Business Perception Survey 2012 only 0.11% of surveyed (1 respondent out of 920) named corruption as a problem in relations with public organizations.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Georgia has the most liberal tax jurisdiction in Europe. The number of taxes is decreased from 21 to only 6, tax rates were reduced also. In addition, significant procedural and institutional reforms was implemented – simplified system of tax disputes was established, tax administration system was streamlined and most of taxes currently are paid on-line.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Due to the customs reform customs procedures were dramatically simplified. Customs tariffs reform significantly simplified and sharply reduced the costs connected to the foreign trade. Number of import tariffs was abolished on approximately 90% of products and only 3 tariff rates exist instead of previous 16. Currently 86% of tariff lines are duty-free compared to 26% in 2005. Modern Customs Clearance Zones were established and customs clearness procedures could be made starting from 15 minutes only.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Modernization of system of licenses and permits resulted in decrease of number of licenses and permits and simplification of related administrative procedures.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Privatization of state property – Starting from 2004, provision of transparent privatization policy was one of the important reforms of the Government of Georgia, that was addressed to denationalization of the remained state property in order to attract foreign investments, increase and develop the private sector and effective use of country's resources.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Liberal labour legislation simplified the relations between employers and employees. As a result of the reform, ”Heritage Foundation” and other analytical centers named Georgian Labour Code as one of the most liberal in the world, because it significantly reduced hiring and firing expenses.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Georgia offers the most simplified procedures for registration of business, property, for getting different documentations via “One-Stop-Shops”, where the most procedures could be done on-line. Doing Business 2012 report (WB) places Georgia 16th in terms of Ease of Doing Business index (up from 112 in 2006), naming Georgia as the top reformer amongst the 174 countries over the last 5 years. Georgia is amongst the leaders in other ratings, namely, registering property – first place; Dealing Construction Permits – 4th place, Starting a Business – 7th place; Getting Credits – 8th place.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Due to the reform of the system of licenses and permits, the number licenses and permits was reduced by 90%. Currently, licenses and permits are only used in the production of highly risky goods and services; also usage of natural resources and specific activities. The procedures of issuing licenses and permits were significantly simplified, the “One-Stop Shop” and “Silence is Consent” principles were introduced which implies that if person is not notified with argumentation rejection about issuance of license in limited framework, the license is considered as issued from the relevant body.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: The procedures for getting a construction permits was dramatically simplified and it requires just 3 procedures. The time for getting the construction permits was sharply reduced. According to Doing Business 2012 (WB) Georgia is the best performer in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region and places on 4-th position in the world. The number of procedures and days, the cost (% of income per capita) is much more lower, than in ECA region and OECD countries.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Things have changed after new Law on Issuance of Licenses and Permits was introduced in 2005. The approval process for building a warehouse in Georgia is now more efficient than in all EU countries except Denmark.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Since January, 2011 the new Tax Code came into force. It unifies the old Tax and Customs Codes. The new Tax Code increased confidence towards the Georgian tax system and enhanced trust in the Georgian tax authorities, by improving communication between taxpayers and the tax authorities, by protecting the taxpayers’ rights, by making administration more efficient, and by harmonizing the Georgian laws with the best international tax practices and EU directives.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Only 6 taxes exist in Georgia with law tax rates: Income Tax (personal income tax) 20%; Profit Tax (corporate tax) – 15%; Value Added Tax – 18%; Excise – varies; Property Tax up to 1% of the self-assessed value of property; Customs Tax – 0%; 5%; 12%. In addition, significant procedural and institutional reforms were performed, simplified tax dispute settlement, streamlined tax administration decreased the time and cost of paying taxes. Georgia made paying taxes easier for firms by simplifying the reporting for value added tax and introducing electronic filling and payment of taxes.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Number of import tariffs was abolished on approximately 90% of products and only 3 tariff rates (0%, 5%, 12%) exist instead of previous 16. Georgia sets Import Taxes on only several kinds of agricultural and manufactured goods . In addition, there are no quantitative restrictions (quotas) on imports and exports.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: With unemployment around 16% and many jobs in the informal sector, Georgia undertook a far-reaching reform of labour regulation. The new Labour Code was adopted on 17 December 2010. The new law eases restrictions on the duration of term contracts and the number of overtime hours and discards the premium required for overtime work. It also eliminates the requirement to notify and get permission from the labour union to fire a redundant worker. The new law provides for 1 month's severance pay at least, replacing complex rules under which required notice periods depended on seniority and the manager had to write long explanations to labor unions and the relevant ministry. In general, new regulation makes Georgian labor market much more flexible.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Coupled with the fact that Georgia also reduced the social security contributions paid on wages by businesses from 31% to 20% in 2005, and abolished them entirely starting January 2008, these changes make Georgia the sixth easiest place to employ workers globally.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Reducing corruption in courts was one of the chief priorities of the new government. Since 2004, when the Saakashvili administration came in, seven judges have been detained for taking bribes and 15 brought before the criminal courts. In 2005 alone the judicial disciplinary council reviewed cases against 99 judges, about 40% of the judiciary, and 12 judges were dismissed. At the same time judges’ salaries were increased fourfold, to reduce dependence on bribe money.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: According to Global Property Guide index, Georgia currently holds 40 points out of 100. That stands for "The court system is highly inefficient, and delays are so long that they deter the use of the court system. Corruption is present, and the judiciary is influenced by other branches of government. Expropriation is possible."


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Some unsatisfied responses concerning the judiciary system may be found among Georgian websites, though its genuineness is controversial.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Unemployment has been a persistent problem in Georgia ever since the country gained independence in 1991. According to National Statistics Office (Georgia) unemployment rate stood at 16.9% in 2013 and it has been decreased at 11.6% in 2019.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Nearly a half of Georgia's population lives in rural areas, where low-intensity self-sufficient farming provides the principal source of livelihood. Georgian statistics service puts individual persons into the category of self-employed workers. As of 2007 416,900 persons were listed as self-employed in agriculture. For large families, heads of households are typically described as "individual entrepreneurs", members of the family that help to cultivate land are classified as "unpaid family business workers". The use of this methodology produces relatively low unemployment rates for rural areas rather in urban areas and in Tbilisi.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: Neighbouring countries show somewhat similar results. For example, Armenia in 2015 had 18.26% unemployment rate, which is 532.644 people.


title: Economy of Georgia (country)

text: In recent years Georgia has fully deregulated its electricity sector, and now there is free and open access to the market.