text:
Twenty years after signing the General Peace Accords that ended the war between the government of Mozambique and armed resistance movement Renamo (Resistência Nacional de Moçambique), the former rebel leader Afonso Dhlakama returned to 'the bush'. In October 2012, Dhlakama re-established one of Renamo's wartime military bases in Satandjira, in the Gorongosa Mountains, where he was joined by approximately 800 armed Renamo men. Over the course of 2013 various clashes were reported of Renamo combatants with the national police and the increasingly present army in Sofala province, resulting in numerous casualties, including attacks on civilians travelling on Mozambique's sole highway from north to south (Vines 2013: 386–388). Since there has been little direct reporting from the area where Renamo is located, reliable numbers are hard to come by. The number of casualties of the recent violent troubles in central Mozambique has been estimated to be several hundreds,2 but informal conversations speak also of over a thousand victims.3 After two years of low-intensity war, a ceasefire declaration was signed in September 2014.4 Although it left several urgent military matters such as the demobilization of the Renamo combatants unaddressed, the peace agreement allowed for Renamo's participation in the elections in October 2014, in which the former rebels gained significantly with respect to previous elections.5
In this article I will focus on an aspect that is largely ignored in post-war analyses of the country, which is the continuing participation of former low and mid-ranked Renamo combatants in networks based on the former armed group (see also Wiegink 2015). By drawing out several post-war social dynamics in which the former armed group is a central feature, this paper aims to disclose certain assumptions underlying the nature of Armed Non-State Actors (ANSA) and provide a critical perspective on the concept and practice of demobilising combatants.
From 2008 to 2010 I conducted various periods of fieldwork in Maringue, a Renamo stronghold in central Mozambique where, it was said, 3,000 former Renamo combatants were living. I found that the main social environment for veterans in Maringue was what I call 'Renamo networks', which consisted of fellow veterans, former commanders, politicians, and civilians who were related to the former rebels. I saw these networks as being based on comradeship and patronage dynamics, resembling to some extent kinship networks that many of the former combatants lacked (Wiegink 2015). In fact, I regarded these networks as central to what may be called ex-Renamo combatants' reintegration processes. They exemplified how attempts to dismantle the command and control structure (demobilization) of armed groups may be in vain, as ex-combatants may find it worthwhile to maintain ties with the former armed group for a variety of reasons. The recent remobilization of a significant group of Renamo combatants challenged me to rethink my initial interpretations of these networks and motivated me to analyse some implications of the continuation of wartime networks. One of the things I will consider in this article is not only the shared Renamo identity among former combatants, but also its links to the local community as well as the larger political context, in which Renamo's ex-combatants and supporters feel generally excluded.
In the view of the international post-war 'recovery industry', the continuation of wartime networks is often regarded as posing a threat to stability, generally in volatile war or post-war contexts (Bøås and Bjørkhaug 2010: 2; UN 2006; Utas 2012: 19). The fear is that their potential for organized violence remains because groups of ex-combatants could easily be remobilized by rearming them. This is one of the fundamental reasons why Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) programs have become a standard element in peace-making efforts of national and international actors (McMullin 2013: 1–2). DDR programs are intended to separate combatants from the influence of the command and control structure6 and to prepare them for a place in civil society without, as it was formulated in the UN Integrated DDR Standards (2006: 387), the 'camaraderie and support system of the structured armed force or armed group.' DDR is considered unsuccessful if the opposite happens; that is, if ex-combatants stick together to chart their paths into civilian life (De Vries and Wiegink 2011: 39).
The expectation that armed groups will disband after a peace accord is signed and DDR programmes are in place, are strengthened by two erroneous but persistent assumptions about combatants and armed groups, particularly ANSA. First of all, much DDR literature seems to assume that ex-combatants would naturally want to return 'home' (e.g. Alusala 2011: vii; UN 2006). The image of the 'forced fighter' abducted against his or her will from her home contributes further to this idea. As I argued elsewhere, what home is, and how it was transformed during the war is often not taken into consideration (De Vries and Wiegink 2011; Wiegink 2013a). Yet such assumptions feed the expectation that rebel groups will disband after they are disarmed and demobilised.
A second assumption that underlies most conceptualisations of demobilisation is that armed factions function as military organisations (Hoffman 2007: 660), and that they therefore can be terminated by decommissioning weapons and by dismantling the command and control structure. As scholarship on former combatants has shown, however, an armed group consists of far more social relationships than military hierarchy. Consider for example the comradeship among fellow fighters (Grossman 1995), the en masse recruitment of peers from the same village (De Vries and Wiegink 2011), and patron-client relationships (Hoffman 2007: 660; 2011; Munive and Jakobsen 2012; Themnér 2012). In Mozambique, the soldiers did not 'fade away' as Alden (2002) argued. Rather, networks of former combatants continued to exist, for example, around the call for pensions (Wiegink 2013b), and as 'big man' networks (Wiegink 2015).
In this paper, I will build on these studies by analysing Renamo and its former combatants not as an isolated network, but as part of a changing social and political context and in interaction with civilians. I will first provide a brief introduction to Renamo. Then I will analyse 'Renamo networks' and show how and why these sets of relationships continued in the post-war period. In the conclusion I will draw out certain consequences for the notion of demobilization and argue that the continuation of wartime networks may be, in some cases, inevitable and that although the recent upsurge of Renamo combatants seems to suggest otherwise, former wartime networks may even provide an opportunity for violence reduction.
War and Post-War RENAMO
Renamo was founded sometime in 1976–77 by the Southern Rhodesian military, to execute two tasks: to attack guerrillas of the Zimbabwean African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) located in central Mozambique and to destabilize Mozambican politics and economy implemented by Frelimo (the Mozambican Liberation Front, Frente de Libertação de Moçambique) (Finnegan 1992; Hall and Young 1997; Vines 1991: 15–17). After Zimbabwe's independence in 1980, support for Renamo shifted to the South African Defence Forces (SADF), which marked an increase in supplies of weapons and intelligence technology, and in Renamo's recruitment activities. By 1985 the rebel movement was present in every province of the vast country (Hall and Young 1997: 128–131). To label Renamo an armed non-state actor is thus also somewhat misleading, as it was firmly supported by Mozambique's neighbouring states (Minter 1994). At the same time, the Renamo leadership developed very much their own agenda over time (Hultman 2009).
Renamo became known for its brutality, forced recruitment, the rape of women and girls, and for enslaving large parts of the rural population (Minter 1989; Nordstrom 1997). At least, that was how the Frelimo government liked to portray the 'armed bandits', as they were called. Several studies have argued against this image of Renamo by drawing attention to the rebels' popular support among the rural population of central and northern Mozambique, mainly due to a process of estrangement between Frelimo and the rural population (Cahen 1993; Geffray 1990). Renamo's anti-Frelimo objectives were welcomed, as the post-independence government had implemented various revolutionary reforms, but also invasive policies such as prohibiting the traditional authorities, religion and forcing peasants to work on communal lands (Hall and Young 1997). Other studies stress Renamo's strong hierarchic command and control structure, thereby countering the image of a 'roving band' (e.g. Hultman 2009).
Vines' (1990) study was among the first to draw out the rebels' military structure of regional battalions that were divided into two or three companies of 100 to 150 combatants (see also Minter 1989: 20). The former combatants in this study were often assigned to smaller units that fell under a certain company, ranging from ten to forty people under the command of an officer, referred to as a comendante. These smaller units were often in close contact with the central leadership through radio communication (Hultman 2009). In the mid-1980s Renamo probably had two or more battalions in each province of the country. My own data confirms Renamo's strong military structure in the party, but also shows variation and contradictions in Renamo's organisation and discipline. In wartime Maringue there was, for example, a strong focus on discipline and control, partially implemented and monitored by Renamo's political members. At the same time, however, former combatants recalled being largely under the influence of a commander, whose attitudes were central to determining how combatants treated civilians.
To capture the different faces of Renamo and how these played out in different modalities of power at play in rural communities, Bertelsen (2012) suggested that Deleuze and Guattari's (1987) concepts of 'state' and 'war machine' provide some insight. Dynamics of the war machine are rhizomatic, connecting any point to any other point, without a beginning or an end: it is indistinct, complex, fluid and mobile. In contrast, the concept of state is characterized by sedentation, territorialisation, control, hierarchy and a lack of mobility. Renamo arguably tried to erase the state, destroying its physical structures, such as roads and buildings, and by killing its representatives (Hall and Young 1997). Over time, however, Renamo became increasingly sedentary or 'state-like,' as it established zones of control, camps and some kind of administration and public services in some parts of rural Mozambique (Gersony 1988), even though it was often rather inconsistent and 'minimalist' (Finnegan 1992: 80). In the mid-1980s Maringue became one of Renamo's control zones, where the rebels even provided very basic health care and education. Its sedentary strategies were partially rooted in its predatory nature, as the rebels needed the population for food, porter duties and information (contrary to what Weinstein (2007) has argued) (Gersony 1988). At the same time, there is evidence that as Renamo's political agenda became more articulated, its 'zones of control' or 'liberated zones' were also shown to be proof of Renamo's administrative capacities (Hultman 2009). As I will discuss in greater detail below, in areas like Maringue, the inhabitants were deeply implicated in the rebel movement, through forced labour and the provision of food, but also as nurses, teachers, wives and parents-in-law.
The war between Renamo and the Frelimo government ended in 1992 with the signing of the General Peace Accords in Rome. After a sixteen-year war in which an estimated one million people died and over five million were displaced, the political elite opted for silence regarding the war and amnesty for all involved, as there were no formal initiatives for truth-finding and transitional justice.7 The DDR program, managed by the UN Mission for Mozambique (ONUMOZ) for approximately 90,000 combatants from both Renamo and the Mozambican Armed Forces, is often regarded as one of the main reasons for the successful transition from war to peace (see e.g. Alden 2002; McMullin 2004). Another well-studied factor of the successful transition to peace in Mozambique were 'traditional reintegration mechanisms' that happened at the community level. These were rituals that enhanced the healing of trauma and restored the balance between humans and spirits and were used to incorporate combatants and war-affected civilians into their families and communities (Cobban 2007; Granjo 2007a, 2007b; Graybill 2004; Honwana 2005, 2006; Lundin 1998; Nordstrom 1997: 145–146). In an evaluation of the process of reintegration of demobilizados in Mozambique, Alden (2002: 353) suggested that traditional mechanisms substantially aided in the 'fading away' of 'old soldiers' (see also Boothby 2006).
Yet a decade after the publication of Alden's study, the remobilisation of former Renamo combatants shows that the ex-combatants have not 'faded away.' On the contrary, I would argue that 'ex-combatant' has become an increasingly significant identity in Mozambican politics, even though its meaning varies across the country and between Renamo and veterans of the Mozambican Armed Forces (FAM) (see also Wiegink 2013b). The continuation of Renamo networks has been central to this.
Renamo Networks in Maringue
In this section I will analyse the dynamics of former Renamo combatants' relationships with other veterans, and with the Renamo party leadership, which I situate in 'Renamo networks.' A focus on networks draws attention to the social relationships forged and transformed in war and what legacy they left for the post-war period (Wood 2008: 555). As Sprenkels (2014) showed, peace agreements may involve profound organisational changes for ANSA. This does not necessarily result in the dissolution of the armed group, however. It is more likely to result in a variety of transformations. Following Mark Duffield's (2002: 13–14) understanding of the concept, networks are unstable, changing and adaptable, and are comprised of individuals with very different reasons for participating in them (see also Utas 2012: 13–14).
Applying such an understanding of networks to the former Renamo networks, one notes that ex-Renamo combatants find themselves in a variety of changeable horizontal and vertical relationships, which are informally and formally situated in a political party structure and Maringue's political context at large (Wiegink 2015). There is no one Renamo Network, but rather a range of interrelated sets of relationships that transformed in the post-war period and continue to do so, as exemplified by Renamo's recent remobilization. As I have argued elsewhere, these relationships are rooted in military structures, as well as shaped by friendship, reciprocity, and asymmetric relationships of dependency (e.g. patron-client relationships) (Wiegink 2015). In this article I also incorporate the blurring of categories of civilians and combatants, to understand the impact of these networks on a place like Maringue. In order to analyse these networks, the following sections discuss subsequent veterans' relationships with other veterans, their relationships with former commanders, and with other community members.
'The colleagues of the trenches'
During my first weeks of fieldwork in Maringue, I was told several times that if I wanted to meet former Renamo combatants I had to visit the bank (a margem) of the Nhamapaze river. Indeed, in this fertile area, on the other side of the river, somewhat secluded from the village, many Renamo veterans were living. I made a habit of visiting the margem, and soon I got to know a group of ten to twelve former Renamo combatants, who often got together and shared nipa or another kind of home brewed liquor. Excessive drinking is a common characteristic among veterans of multiple wars, as it may be a way to numb the memories of violence and suffering, or to escape a situation of enduring hardship (see also Finley 2011; Schafer 2007). In Maringue, 'sharing a drink' is also a social event that underlines friendship or bonds of trust. For the Renamo veterans these drinking clubs were the principle manifestation of their ties of friendship and such gatherings made me realize that bonds established during the war were integral to the social network of former Renamo combatants in the margem in Maringue town in general (see also Wiegink 2015: 10).
The presence of fellow former combatants was often mentioned when I asked Renamo veterans about their reasons for settling in Maringue after the war ended. Many, in fact did return to their home villages for a while, but for a range of reasons could not settle down. Armando, a former Renamo combatant from Mutarara (Tete Province), said he decided to stay in Maringue after demobilization for two reasons: to be close to the family of his wife and because he did not want to live away from his 'colleagues of the trenches.' Another reason was that he travelled twice to Muturara to look for his family, but he never found them again. They had apparently fled to Malawi.8 Olivia's story, also presented in Wiegink (2015), demonstrates a similar pattern. After demobilization in Maringue by ONUMOZ, she returned to her village of origin where she found out that her parents had died. Her other relatives did perform the necessary rituals, but she did not feel safe living without direct family members and decided to return to Maringue. 'I grew up in the war, and I got used to being with other soldiers like me. At my home, I did not see anyone that could take care of me. So, I chose to live here [Maringue], with my colleagues of the trenches,' she said.9
These stories are typical of many former combatants I met in Maringue. On their return to their places of origin, many demobilized combatants found that their families had disappeared, that family arrangements had changed or that their relatives had expectations the veterans could not meet. One of the insecurities ex-combatants and their families faced was the threat of witchcraft attacks, sparked by rising inequalities due to an influx of cash (the demobilization allowance), reshuffled power positions within the family, and the fact that some ex-combatants returned and others did not (Wiegink 2013a). Their families and home villages turned out to be insecure environments, inciting the ex-combatants to settle elsewhere, away from their kin. The observation that former combatants did not return home is not new. Coelho and Vines (1994: 59) also found that former combatants were drawn to the economic opportunities of urban areas. Schafer's (2007: 98–99) findings showed that specifically Renamo combatants mainly settled in rural areas, which corresponds with my own findings. In addition, the Renamo combatants I met in Maringue had settled there because it was familiar to them. In many cases, ex-combatants had been stationed in Renamo's headquarters during the war and had, as I will describe, established ties with civilians in the area. In the wake of war, the district also offered military security, access to fertile land, and assurance of remobilization, in case the armed conflict flared up again (Wiegink 2013a). However, most ex-combatants claimed that the company of fellow veterans had been their principal reason for settling in Maringue.
As other studies have shown, co-participation in war seems to generate a sense of belonging and comradeship among combatants (Ben-Ari 1998: 98–101; Finkel 2009; Finley 2011; Grossmann 1995; Kalyvas 2006: 46).10 According to Grossmann (1995: 90), sharing highly stressful times together and risking one's life in the pursuit of common goals, be they ideological or criminal, creates a particularly strong connection. What happens to this 'strong bond' when the guns are put down? One former combatant said that in his experience, former combatants from the same battalion or platoon feel more comfortable talking to each other as 'there are ghosts that creep up on us. With a friend of the war you can talk about it. "Do you remember that time when the war was hot? When that guy tried to kill me?"'11 Yet the significance of a shared war past is not limited to being able to talk about traumatic experiences. It may be quite the opposite: that someone understands your experiences without the need to explain them (Finley 2011). Moreover, the sense of shared identity may also be attributable to shared fond recollections. During informal meetings in Maringue, the former combatants recalled predominantly glorious and adventurous aspects of the war, in which they found a sense of pride, good cheer, and nostalgia (Wiegink 2015: 9–10).
It was these horizontal ties with fellow veterans that offered a network of support for Renamo combatants' daily struggles. On many occasions I observed how Renamo veterans offered each other assistance in building houses or harvesting crops, and in times of acute sickness, death, and urgent need. Additionally, these ties offered a sense of belonging for Renamo veterans who had settled far away from their families. Veterans often referred to each other in kinship terms. They called Dhlakama 'father' (pai) and other veterans 'brothers and sisters' (irmões).12 Though these networks did not replace the importance of kin networks in terms of health and the spiritual world (Wiegink 2013a), they were made up by relations of interdependency and reciprocity also central in kinship relations. Very similar to general dynamics of community reciprocity, these networks offered a sense of social security, a social space in which they felt 'taken care of' which therefore made a difference in the former combatants and their families' daily struggles for survival.
Big men and followers: the continuation of the command and control structure?
The continuation of Renamo networks becomes also very much apparent in the vertical relationships between the former rank-and-file and former commanders and the party leadership. These ties show that the command and control structure was not entirely dissolved by ONUMOZ's DDR programme. Instead, these military based structures gained different or additional meaning in the post-war period.
Thomas, a former Renamo commander who was still active at Renamo's base in Maringue, exemplifies the position of former Renamo commanders in Maringue. One day he suggested I visit the Zionist churches in the district which were known for having many former Renamo combatants among their adherents. When I explained some of the difficulties I had encountered in approaching these churches, Thomas offered his help. 'I will take you there and they will talk to you,' he claimed. 'I know them all. I used to be their commander. They are afraid of me.'13 He was probably boasting about his influence on the Zionist pastors, but then again, he had the reputation of being a brutal and ruthless fighter. I did not take Thomas up on his offer to introduce me to the Zionist pastors, but his remarks clearly demonstrated his position as a big man, albeit one whose power was built on fear rather than loyalty.
The continuation of some kind of command and control structure also became apparent during my first visit to the margem of Nhamapaza, as I have described elsewhere more elaborately (Wiegink 2015: 10–11). There, former Renamo combatants said they would not talk to me, unless I first talked to comendante Matateo. They considered themselves more or less under his command and would not make an important decision (such as talking to a white woman on sensitive subjects) without his fiat. When I met Matateo, he immediately acknowledged his gatekeeper position, being in between the former combatants and the Renamo party.14 'I'm the chefe of the former combatants,' was the first thing he said to me, then he asked: 'The Renamo delegate does not know of your work here. What are you doing? Does the administration know you're here?'15 Yet Matateo was not and had not been the actual commander of the ex-combatants in the margem, but rather was one of Renamo's 'presidential guards,' generally regarded as an elite force, and occupied a position in the local party structure. He was called 'comendante' largely because of his post-war position within the Renamo party and his relationships of dependency with the rank-and-file veterans (Wiegink 2015: 11). Similar to what Hoffman (2007: 651–653) observed among the Sierra Leonean Civil Defense Forces, military titles received a different meaning in the post-war period, as they were used to 'map patronage networks.' As several studies have pointed out, these asymmetric relationships of dependency are shaped by patrimonial logics and big man dynamics, which have wider resonance with cultural understandings of authority, political and economic power and kinship (Hoffman 2011; Munive and Jakobsen 2012; Murphy 2003; Utas 2012; Wiegink 2015). These 'commanders' can be regarded as 'big men' and the rank-and-file former combatants as 'followers' or 'clients' (Wiegink 2015: 10–11). Maintaining relationships with big men like Matateo and Thomas provided these followers with links to the Renamo party, the Renamo military wing and to expected material benefits.
At the time of fieldwork, Renamo's leaders had however, few resources to divide (in contrast to their Frelimo counterparts). Mario, a seventy-something-year-old Renamo combatant with grey hair and watery blue eyes said he never returned to his village of origin in Tete because he was 'waiting for some things.' This casual remark made it sound as if he was waiting for a bus, when in fact he had been waiting since the end of the war, some sixteen years before the interview took place. I asked him what exactly he was waiting for. 'Things the Big One [o grande, i.e. Dhlakama] promised me: money, subsidy. And I did not have the money to go home. When we were more or less at the end of our conversation,' he said gloomily: 'we can only wait for death.'16 Other former Renamo combatants said they were 'waiting for our time to eat,' referring like Mario to the future possibility that the Renamo party, and Dhlakama in particular, would provide them with some riches and take care of them. These riches, the former combatants imagined, would come from the state when Renamo was to win the elections. Such expectations were born of a mixture of promises made during the war, the post-war continuation of dependency relationships, ubiquitous practices of clientalism and policies regarding antigos combatentes (veterans of the liberation war), who receive pensions and other benefits from the state (Cahen 2011; Wiegink 2015).
These expectations, however, were not met as the Renamo party, Dhlakama, and the local Renamo leaders did not have the means to reward the veterans or chose to allocate resources in a different manner. The Renamo leadership was well aware of such expectations and the ex-combatants' increasing frustrations. On a visit to Maringue in 2009, Renamo leader Dhlakama asked for patience. During a public speech in Maringue town, Dhlakama said: 'It is like a woman in labor, she is suffering; you, being Renamo, are suffering. But after labor the new mother is satisfied. She has a baby. Have patience!'17
Election time stirred up the hopes of some Renamo veterans and thus reinforced ties between the veterans and the party. To most Renamo veterans, however, at least at the time of fieldwork, Renamo's electoral position seemed rather bleak and its opportunities for clientalism poor (Cahen 2011: 7–8). Several veterans felt their patience had been tested enough. In Maringue there was an increasing number of mainly higher ranked Renamo veterans who 'switched sides' and joined either Frelimo or MDM. Some switched sides openly, but others 'disappeared' with their families to set up a life elsewhere, allegedly with a significant sum of money (Wiegink 2015).
The alliances between Renamo veterans and the party were thus changeable and under tension, a general characteristic of relationships between big men and followers, as Utas argued (2012). However, despite Renamo's leaders' inability to take care of them, most veterans I met in Maringue remained loyal to Renamo. Thus, in order not to overemphasise the flexibility of these networks, it is worthwhile to discuss how these networks were anchored into Maringue's society, showing that these networks were not limited to veterans.
RENAMO and the community: Elephants and grass?
When I asked people in Maringue about the war, several replied with the following well-known expression: 'When two elephants [or buffalos] fight, the grass suffers.' This is a catchy phrase, often used to highlight that most war victims were civilians. Yet it also appears to downgrade Mozambique's rural population to the lowly position of grass, as a passive entity caught up in the whirlwind of powerful belligerents. Further, it situates the armed groups (the elephants) as merely violent actors, separated from society. In wartime social life, however, there were no clear-cut boundaries between combatants and civilians, and most of Maringue's population that lived under Renamo rule considered itself as being 'with Renamo.' While the DDR mission incorporated some into their mission and others not, the Renamo networks included veterans, supporters, collaborators, teachers, nurses, chiefs and others who considered themselves as (former) Renamo. To be sure, not all those who called themselves former combatants in Maringue were demobilized by the ONUMOZ program, and not all who were demobilized had actually picked up a gun during the war.
All too often, conceptualisations of demobilisation and reintegration depict (former) combatants and civilians in terms of elephant and grass. Wartime life, as Danny Hoffmann (2007: 660) observed, seems to be often defined by the absence of social structures, as it is believed to generate its own military habitus. This focus obscures civil-military entanglements, or renders them only relevant when violence is involved. This results in a flawed understanding of the so-called reintegration process of former combatants and what former military movements are and may become in the post-war period.
The post-war social landscape of Maringue cannot be understood without understanding the merging of Renamo with the local population. Due to Renamo's lengthy occupation of the district, Maringue's inhabitants became willingly or unwillingly part of the Renamo regime. One of Maringue's chiefs summed the situation up as follows: 'Renamo that was us.'18 He told me that his eldest son was forcibly recruited as a fighter and that he himself was involved in the mobilisation of his community members for forced labor. Others were trained as nurses, teachers and politicians. Civilians engaged with combatants as fellow church members, son-in-laws, and relatives. Thus, in many ways Renamo became part of people's public and private lives. In several interviews over fifteen years after the war ended, people said they had 'worked' for Renamo, and similarly to the ex-combatants, that they expected something in return. This shows that these wartime networks were not merely a 'veteran-thing,' but also part of a wider context.19 The great density of these networks and connections beyond military links make the networks even more difficult to 'dismantle.'
RENAMO Remobilises
The prevalence of Renamo networks in the post-war period became apparent in Renamo's remobilisation in 2012 and following low-intensity war. This is not to say that all or even most people who participated in what I have called Renamo networks have en masse joined Renamo's renewed armed struggle. There is hitherto little empirical research done on Renamo's current ranks, however, secondary sources suggest that Renamo's armed forces consist of 800 individuals that are at least partly made up of former combatants.20
The estimate of 800 combatants was provided in 2012. Since then, Renamo's training activities and recruitment suggest that their numbers may have increased. In April 2015, Newspaper Savana interviewed former Renamo combatants in a base in Funhalouro, Inhambane who said that they were waiting for orders. The men were reported to be between 40 and 60 years old and veterans of the civil war with no former record of hostility in the area.21 Michel Cahen, a scholar on Mozambique, wrote recently that Renamo's quick recovery of its armed wing 'could not be, twenty-one years later, the mere mobilisation of some veteran guerrilla soldiers equipped with rusty Kalashnikovs. Indeed, currently some Renamo fighters appear to be young men.'22 Renamo's recent struggle thus seems to attract former rebels as well as new recruits, and is undoubtedly also strengthened by Renamo's presidential guards, who never demobilised after the war.
Renamo's renewed rebellion also generates questions about the party's funding and its possession of weapons. During the ONUMOZ DDR programme Renamo was not disarmed completely, as it was feared that pressuring the rebels too much on this issue could jeopardise the peace process (Littlejohn forthcoming). Post-war arms recovery projects such as Operation Rachel were also not able to detect and recover most of the arms. The former rebels maintained arms caches in several locations across the country, although accurate data on the quantity and conditions of these arms is hard to come by (Faltas and Paes 2004: 11–12). Renamo's military base in Maringue contained one of these stockpiles (Littlejohn forthcoming: 11). Yet despite recurring rumours of Renamo's presidential guards selling grenades and other weapons from the base, most people, including former Renamo combatants, could only guess what the quality and quantity of the stockpile was. Renamo's current weapons arsenal was complemented by arms they forcefully confiscated from police, FIR and the Mozambican military forces.
One could thus argue that Renamo's recent remobilisation reveals some of the failures of the ONUMOZ DDR programme, as there has only been partial disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration. This is arguably a worthwhile analysis in terms of disarmament, but in relation to demobilisation and reintegration, not a very useful exercise. After all, Renamo's return to violent struggle is, as any violent conflict, a profoundly multi-layered and social process (Demmers 2012). The current low-intensity war reveals much about Mozambique's current post-war political landscape, the growing feelings exclusion of different strata of the population, the country's increasing resource wealth, mischievous electoral strategies, and elite struggles within Renamo, to name only a few possible relevant factors. Arguing that demobilisation and reintegration have failed after 22 years of relative peace seems futile. Renamo's remobilisation, and in particular the general continuation of Renamo networks, do provide an interesting window for thinking about what 'demobilisation' and 'reintegration' entail and how ANSA may transform from violent actors to non-violent ones. To this I dedicate the following final reflections.
Final reflection: wartime networks and violent reduction
In these final reflections, I want to return to the presumption underlying DDR thinking that was mentioned in the introduction: the idea that the continuation of wartime networks is a threat to peace and hampers reintegration. I do not deny the possible importance of disbanding an armed group for stability, but rather point out that what denotes 'success' in this undertaking is defined in rather technical terms, based on fairly simplistic understandings of what life within an armed group entails and of what 'community reintegration' looks like in practice (see also De Vries and Wiegink 2011). Furthermore, the findings presented in this paper question the viability of disrupting the cohesiveness of non-state armed groups by breaking the command and construct structure and thereby the notion that these former combatants could be sent into civilian life as individuals free from the influence of their commanders and former colleagues.
For former combatants in Maringue the former military network prevailed after the war and functioned as their main network for social, political and economic relations and opportunities. The continuation of Renamo networks shows that the rebel movement was not merely a military organization, which could then be terminated by decommissioning weapons and by dismantling the command and control structure (cf. Hoffman 2007: 660). It was also a social context involving friendships, love affairs, spirits and relationships of dependency, not only shaped by military logic, but by social, cultural and political understandings, and in interaction with a wider social and political context (involving church communities, traditional authorities, family-in-law). By describing the range of horizontal and vertical relationships between ex-combatants, their fellow veterans, former commanders, and Renamo politicians, and their intertwinement with civilians, I hope to have shown that these networks were crucial for Renamo veterans' post-war social lives as they provided these individuals with a sense of belonging, social protection, and, in some cases, economic opportunities.
Various researchers have shown how former military networks may be involved in a myriad of violent and non-violent, and perhaps more desirable and less desirable, activities, such as their involvement in electoral campaigns (Christensen and Utas 2008; Kriger 2003), as disciplined work forces (Hoffman 2011, 2007), in illicit trade (Persson 2012; Reno 1998), in private security (Christensen and Utas 2008; Cock 2005; Diphoorn 2013; Frerks, Gompelman, and Van Laar 2008), and in violent action and renewed warfare (Hoffman 2007; Themnér 2012). Following recent scholarship on (former) armed groups in Africa (Debos 2008; Hoffman 2007: 660; Munive and Jakobsen 2012; Themnér 2012; Utas 2005), I also showed how Renamo networks were shaped by personal asymmetric relationships of dependencies. These studies show in their own ways how armed actors are not exclusively governed by a military logic, but are also embedded in wider (global and local) power dynamics and sociality.
A conclusion to be drawn from the Renamo networks I described is that the intent to break up these ties may be in vain, at least for certain factions of ANSA. Additionally, by ignoring the ties between former combatants and members of their former armed group, their potential for social and economic integration is left unexplored. As has been argued by several scholars, it might be more productive to make use of these networks, rather than to actively try to dismantle them (Bøås and Bjørkhaug 2010; Munive and Jakobsen 2012; De Vries and Wiegink 2011). As I have tried to show, Renamo networks provided ex-combatants with a sense of belonging, friendships, social security, economic possibilities and expectations for a more tolerable life, which are in fact, all qualities of a meaningful civilian life. This poses certain questions to which I have no definite answers: what advantages would the conservation of (certain parts of) the network of the armed group have over more individualistic approaches that seem to be at the base of most current DDR design? How much depends on the characteristics of the (former) armed group and the political context in which DDR or any other program takes place? A specific characteristic of Renamo that aided in violence reduction was its relatively strong command and control structure, which continued also after the war. Less well-controlled armed groups might pose challenges to any collective approach to reintegration. Nevertheless, a general lesson that can be drawn from these wartime networks is the importance of brokers (see also Themner 2012; Utas 2012). The identification of brokers on different levels within (former) armed groups may provide insight and opportunities for the transformation of armed actors.
Finally, there remains the question of whether Renamo networks contributed to Renamo's possibilities for violence, and more concretely for its recent upsurge. Indeed, the continuation of these wartime networks in the post-war period provided Renamo's leaders with a pool of ready, seasoned, often frustrated and marginalised recruits (although it might be interesting to investigate the perspective of ex-combatants who did not remobilize). Yet, it was not necessarily the Renamo networks that pushed Renamo's leaders back to the bush. Elite instrumentalization, political competition and (increasing) disparities between the rich and poor segments of Mozambique's society are but some of the factors to be considered for explaining the recent violent conflict. In this paper I focused on how armed actors transform—although there was also discussion about how these networks do not transform very much—by illuminating not the military or violent side of armed actors, but other internal social relationships and their place in larger social and political constellations.
Competing Interests
The author declares that they have no competing interests.


text:
Each tooth has a specific name and specific function. The teeth in the front of the mouth (the incisors, canine and bicuspid teeth) grasp and bite food. The back teeth, or molar teeth, grind food up into a consistency suitable for swallowing. The average person has 32 teeth by age 18 – 16 on top, 16 on the bottom.
But did you know that the average mouth is only made to hold only 28 teeth? Therefore, it's no surprise that it can be painful when 32 teeth try to fit in a mouth that best holds only 28. The four additional teeth are your third molars, better known as your wisdom teeth.
Wisdom teeth extraction is an event that most of us can deeply relate to, having experienced the procedure ourselves. While most of us get our wisdom teeth removed, the procedure is still mysterious and clothed in thoughts of fear and anxiety. Wisdom teeth are removed for preventative measures, and there are a number of other reasons why a tooth may need to be removed, such as damage by decay or fracture that is beyond repair, incorrect growth, or the need to make room for orthodontic appliances. As always, we like to educate our patients to reduce as much anxiety as possible, so let's take a look at 5 of the most important facts about wisdom teeth extraction.
1. Wisdom teeth extraction is very common.
Third molars, also known as 'wisdom teeth' are extracted ten million times each year. These molars are the last to grow in and typically surface around ages 17-25 years old.
2. Wisdom teeth can be problematic.
While wisdom teeth aren't always bad, they can become problematic, causing infections, cysts, or damage to nearby gums. These problems typically occur when the teeth become impacted. However, even before that happens, decay can emerge as a serious problem because the teeth are so hard to reach and properly clean.
3. It can be a good idea to remove wisdom teeth early.
Many dentists agree that it's best to remove wisdom teeth before they are fully formed. A window for this usually occurs during the teenage years and twenties. Recovery time is quicker and risks for complications are lower during this time.
4. Problems can be asymptomatic.
Problems with your wisdom teeth can occur even if you don't feel pain. This further emphasizes the importance of consistently visiting a dentist for regular cleanings and examinations.
5. Recovery can be easy.
Recovery from wisdom teeth extraction doesn't have to be hard. In fact, taking pain medications, eating a proper diet centered around soft foods, and avoiding physical activity, smoking, or sucking on straws are all practical ways to ensure that the recovery process is as easy as possible.
At 6th Avenue Periodontics and Implant Dentistry, we utilize state-of-the-art equipment known as an i-CAT to scan and evaluate the position of the wisdom teeth and detect present or future problems.
If you have any lingering questions about wisdom teeth extractions, or if you would like to schedule a dental exam, please contact our team or make an appointment. Our incredible staff will give you the best dental care possible.
Schedule a Free Consultation
We are dedicated to making your smile the brightest it can be. Fill out the form below to schedule a free consultation.
The contents of this website, such as text, graphics, images, and other material contained on the Site ("Content") are for informational purposes only. No doctor/patient relationship is established by your use of this site. No diagnosis or treatment is being provided. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical or dental advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician, dentist, or other qualified health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical or dental condition. The information contained here should be used in consultation with a dentist of your choice. No guarantees or warranties are made regarding any of the information contained on this website. This website is not intended to offer specific medical, dental or surgical advice to anyone. Further, this website, the creators of the website, and the owners of the website take no responsibility for web sites hyper-linked to this site and such hyperlinking does not imply any relationships or endorsements of the linked sites. Reliance on any information provided by the Site or others appearing on the Site at our invitation, or other visitors to the Site is solely at your own risk.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
"This movie looks a lot like that This Is The End movie you reviewed, Bailey." Yeah, it does a bit. But not by much. About the only thing that these two movies have in common is that they both share a plot surrounding a band of friends uniting to get through an apocalyptic scenario. The difference? Everything else. So quit your bitching.
The World's End is the third film from director/writer Edgar Wright that pairs British actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. Previously, they worked on Shaun of the Dead (2004) and Hot Fuzz (2007), both of which I loved. They're hilarious, gory, and generally just a good ride. Not to mention, I like to consider this group of men to be the modern-day Monty Python. Some of you might disagree, but their British shenanigans and love for "weird, witty comedy" is very Monty Python. So you can imagine my excitement when I saw this movie's trailer.
But was this movie as funny as it promised to be in the trailer?
Here's how Focus Features describes the plot: "In The World's End, 20 years after attempting an epic pub crawl, five childhood friends reunite when one of them becomes hellbent on trying the drinking marathon again. They are convinced to stage an encore by Gary King (Simon Pegg), a 40-year-old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens, who drags his reluctant pals to their hometown and once again attempts to reach the fabled pub—The World's End. As they attempt to reconcile the past and present, they realize the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind's. Reaching The World's End is the least of their worries."
Much like Hot Tub Time Machine, The World's End follows a group of friends reliving their glory days. Andy (Nick Frost), Oliver (Martin Freeman), Peter (Eddie Marsan), and Stephen (Paddy Considine) all have families and respectable careers. Their former leader, Gary King (Simon Pegg), however, is stuck in the past and determined to return to their hometown of Newton Haven to finish the "Golden Mile" pub crawl (made up of 12 pubs) that they were unable to finish in 1990.
The film is a hilarious yet very self-aware look into what's basically Gary's mid-life crisis. In fact, it's hard not view Gary as that one former school friend we all have. You know, the one who never seems to grow up and get their life together? That's mostly because the writers (Wright and Pegg) nailed this character well. Gary wears the same clothes he wore as a teen, drives a car he purchased in 1989, listens to a tape cassette mix made by Stephen, owes all of his friends money, and suffers from depression and addiction (which is hinted at in a therapy session scene, as well as with the hospital bracelet and bandages around Gary's wrists).
While that might seem somewhat dark and brutally honest (and it is), this movie masks this underlying sadness with so many good laughs (We're talking belly-shaking laughs). My theater was losing it. Some examples of the funny moments? Everyone keeps saying Gary has a selective memory, and Gary keeps bringing it up and forgetting who said it, who it was about, or why he brought it up only to then switch the topic to whatever awesome memory he recalls.
And then there's the "Let's Boo Boo" line (said whenever they need to leave) that is used occasionally, but not enough that you grow weary of it. What does "Let's Boo Boo" mean? Honestly, I can't remember. It was something about how, in their school days, the boys used to say "Let's Make Like Yogi Bear" or something of that nature, and eventually it devolved to just "Let's Boo Boo." Nevertheless, hilarious.
Still, my favorite part had to be the scene right after the guys realize the town is made up of robots, and we get a montage of them downing beers and walking shoulder-to-shoulder down the streets in sync looking absolutely terrified.
Now, if you pay close attention to Wright and Pegg's writing style, you might notice that they like to give away their movies' plots in either the dialogue or the names of places in the movie (Best example: Shaun of the Dead). Yes, all of those crazy pub names actually give us the plot. Let me show you…
- The First Post = The first leg of the epic pub crawl.
- The Old Familiar = The pub where the group notices everything is different about the town.
- The Famous Cock = A run-in with Oliver's sister Sam, who once had sex with Gary.
- The Cross Hands = The group fights a band of teens in the bathroom, who they realize are actually robots.
- The Good Companions = The group decides to stick together and continue on the pub crawl to stay alive.
- The Trusty Servant = Gary confronts his former drug dealer, who is human but works for the robots.
- The Two-Headed Dog = Gary and Sam get in a fight with Sam's friends, the twins (who are robots).
- The Mermaid = Three girls from the group's past try to seduce Gary, Andy, and Peter.
- The Beehive = A bunch of robots swarm the group in a fight.
- The King's Head = On their way there, Gary smashes his head on a wall to prove he's not a robot.
- The Hole in the Wall = Stephen drives a car through the pub's wall to help Gary and Andy.
- The World's End = Obviously, the apocalypse.
Amazing, right? And Edgar Wright even admits to using the bars as "tarot cards" for this film.
Honestly, the only point where I felt the movie really fell flat was after Gary and Andy made it to The World's End pub and were confronted by the beam of light that was supposed to be the supreme robotic-alien overlord (or whatever the hell it was). Gary and Andy argue for humanity's freedom, basically telling the robot overlord "We're dumb, and we should be left to our own demise because that's the human condition." That few minutes of banter felt like hours because they kept saying the same thing over and over just with different wording. And then poof! Supreme Robotic-Alien Overlord was gone, taking all of the world's technological power. So we were treated to an ending of "This is what so-and-so is doing now that we're living in a decrepit, dystopic England with no power." And it was so boring compared to the rest of the film's pacing and sharp delivery.
Do you know how it SHOULD have ended? Bear with me while I explain. Since the whole movie was about how Gary obsessed over never finishing the Golden Mile in his childhood, the robots should have only existed as a result of Gary and his friends not finishing the pub crawl the first time. In a sense, it's like Jumanji. You can't get rid of the problem (in this case, robots) until you finish "the game." See what I mean? Then, rather than having this commentary on humanity and its own destruction, it would be a message about friendship.
Essentially, the ending would follow a mythological formula (which most of the movie already does). The group of heroes fights through several trials (robots) in order to finish the journey (pub crawl), ridding the town of evil (robots) and rekindling their friendship along the way. Plus, how funny would it have been to see everything just go back to normal like nothing happened, meanwhile the main characters are like "YO, TOWNSPEOPLE! HOW DO YOU NOT REMEMBER THE ROBOTS?!" Anyone feeling me on this?
Overall, The World's End is a very funny film about friendship, mid-life crises, drinking, and apocalyptic robots. If you can get over the fact that it's weird, it's very easy to enjoy. There are throwbacks to '90s culture, plenty of one-liners that will undoubtedly make this movie another cult-classic, and badass fight sequences with awesome CGI. Not to mention, the comedy deliveries of Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Martin Freeman, Paddy Considine, and Eddie Marsan work well together. The only downfall to this movie is that the ending seems like it was thrown together carelessly just so that the movie would, you know, end. But up until that point, prepare for non-stop laughter.


text:
True love waits? : an examination of the motives and methods of the True Love Waits organization
Metadata[+] Show full item record
True Love Waits was created in 1993 with the intention of encouraging teens to refrain from premarital sexual activity. Despite the efforts of TLW most studies show rates of sexual activity for teens have remained relatively steady and that the majority of teens (including TLW participants) continue to participate in premarital sexual activity. In light of this apparent failure it seems reasonable to question why an organization like TLW continues to exist. In this paper I examine TLW to determine why it exists and what its primary motives are. I utilize Joseph R. Gusfield's theory of Symbolic Crusades and Status Politics as a lens through which the symbolic value of TLW can be further explored and understood. I evaluate TLW as a symbolic crusade proposing that the organization exists not only to prevent premarital sexual activity, but also to provide TLW participants with a sense of belonging and status by reinforcing their identity as Christian virgins through conferences, media, public action, and popular culture.
Thesis Department
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License.


text:
Reusable ceramic cup made in New Zealand.
6 oz / 177 ml
For your travels, or to hug at home (or the office, or both). It will happily hold your favourite hot or cold drink.
Each heart cup comes with a silicone rubber lid and in different colours (almond, yellow, blue, orange, red, black, jade green…).
Please indicate in the comment which colour you're after and I will have it either in stock or I can make you one (in the latter case I ask for about 3 weeks' patience – happy to give out gift vouchers if you're in a hurry!).


text:
As a guy with a wide range of interests, simply one listing of links to websites I enjoy just isn't enough!
Xenorama – Xenorama is "The Page of Heroes and Monsters," along with an amazing article about an alternate version of The War of the Gargantuas.
Side Order of Ninjas – Funny and entertaining reviews of strange and amazing films.
Hauntcast – The internet's premier online radio station for home haunters and Halloween enthusiasts.
Grindhouse Database – The cult movie community's answer to the Internet Movie Database.
Weird NJ – Strange destinations and urban legends from New Jersey.
Home Haunt News – News and reviews no haunter should be without!
alt.horror.cthulhu – One of the few newsgroups out there that has regular, non-spam activity.
Skook – Tons of great artwork, including modernized (but faithful) renditions of Paul Blaisdell creations.
Tomb It May Concern – If Yor Week isn't enough to convince you to read this, I don't know what will.
Tough To Kill – An amazing look at European action flicks by Paul Cooke and the owner of the above site.
Home Haunter's Haven – The name says it all.
The Laughing Reindeer – Back in the day, there used to be a website called "Monster Shindig" that reviewed horror movies, roadside attractions and the like. Although it died, one of its creators set up this blog. Did I mention that he was one of the people responsible for Carnivore?
Monster Shindig – I found this while looking for information about the now-defunct monstershindig.com. It's not related, but still seems cool.
3B Theater – Any bad movie review site inspired by Strange Brew is okay with me!
Pink Tentacle – Crazy 'n cool stuff from (and related to) Japan. The entry about Polish posters for Japanese monster movies is a must-see!


text:
In wake of the phenomenal success of my last Halo post, it only seems to make sense for me to follow that up with a post that will hopefully provide a look at what's to come with the next Halo title which will be released next year.
Strap yourselves in, Spartans. This is going to be a long one…
So then, where did Halo 4 leave us? Cortana sacrificed herself to save John and send him back to Earth, the Ur-Didact is temporarily defeated as the Composer was destroyed and he was forced into slipspace, and both humanity and Jul's reformed Covenant are in possession of each halves of the biggest game-changer since the Great Schism – the Janus Key, a galactic cartographer which will reveal the location of every piece of Forerunner technology in the galaxy when unified at a place called the Absolute Record.
As the first act of 343's story, we're left with a lot of questions and the teaser for Halo: Xbox One, revealed at this year's Microsoft conference at E3, only seemed to add to the mysteries going on in the Halo universe. What you may not have known is that the answer to these questions have been quietly being developed since 2009…
I think that the first, and most important, question that needs to be addressed is this: Why is the Master Chief wearing a cloak?The answer to this is threefold.
Firstly, the MJOLNIR armour is extremely bad when it comes to dealing with small grains of things such as sand and salt. If you've read Eric Nylund's novel, Halo: Ghosts of Onyx, you may recall a chapter where Blue Team (Fred, Linda and Will) are on Earth having just finished an operation in the Yucatan Peninsula where the Covenant were searching for Forerunner relics under the sea. The suit's exposure to sea salt had severely screwed with the systems in Fred's armour as his motion tracker failed to register a Brute that was about to attack him from behind, by the same merit sand would have very similar effects. Look at how worn the paint is on John's helmet, he's in the middle of a sandstorm so his shields are going to be no use at all as they'd just be constantly chipped away at by the torrents of sand flying at him. In order to protect himself in even the most basic way, the cloak seems to be a sensible bet – also notice how he doesn't appear to be wearing some of his armour, such as the large chest piece. Having the undersuit get cut open for direct skin exposure wouldn't be a good thing, I'd wager.
Secondly, and perhaps most obviously, is that it's meant to be a dramatic reveal. We don't see that it's John until the last 15 seconds or so of the trailer, we're supposed to be questioning what this appears to be as a lone figure wanders through the desert in what seems to be he middle of nowhere.
And thirdly, according to Frank O'Connor, franchise developer of 343 Industries, John is concealing his appearance. Unfortunately, he follows this up with "that is all you're getting", so the question of who John is masking his appearance from is something we're just going to have to guess at until more details become available.
But let's talk about the symbolic merit of the cloak as well for a minute because there's a fair bit you can infer from it (and Halo 4 has made it perfectly clear that 343 is quite big on things like symbolism and metaphor).
Why does John still appear to be wearing the MJOLNIR Mark VI when he symbolically took it off in Halo 4? Why does he have Cortana's chip when it was seemingly destroyed aboard the Mantle's Approach? This trailer symbolises what John has lost and the emotional state he is in following Cortana's death. Even the environment, the harsh storms sweeping over a desolate wasteland, implies that he is completely and utterly alone and is clinging to the past for some sense of familiarity. John appears to be dealing with his emotions similar to how Cortana had to deal with her's regarding rampancy. He hiding the person we saw get completely deconstructed in Halo 4 within the cloak, but when he's forced to confront a new threat then he has to face it as the broken man he's become. That's what made the teaser so exciting for me, seeing him gather what resolve he could to keep going from Cortana's chip before it abruptly ends.
But where is he, exactly, and why is he there? What is the giant planet that we can plainly see in the background? Where is this desert? What is that giant Forerunner construct?
Well, I'm not going to beat about the bush here – I think that John is at the Lesser Ark, Installation 00, last seen in Halo 3.
Bear with me here because I know what you're thinking: "But we destroyed the Lesser Ark in Halo 3 when Installation 04B tore itself apart over it."
This is actually untrue.
The Lesser Ark has been confirmed to still be an active installation, though heavily damaged. A trail of breadcrumbs has been left by 343 over the last few years hinting at a return to the Ark. First of all, in 2009, Halo: Evolutions was released – an anthology of stories, one of which (The Return) was set in 2559 and features a Sangheili Shipmaster returning to a human colony he glassed many years ago and discovering that humanity have found a Monitor. This was followed up in Greg Bear's second book of the Forerunner Saga, Halo: Primordium, which has the modern-day segments of the story set in the year 2559 from the point of view of a group of scientists who have found the remains of 343 Guilty Spark (his true personality having awakened after he took all those Spartan Laser blasts to the face).
The last piece of this puzzle came directly from a Bulletin over at Halo Waypoint, the Eleventh Hour Reports were released just prior to Halo 4's release to detail the status quo of the galaxy after the war. One of these reports covers the exploits of the ship Rubicon which was sent to the Ark and has gone missing.
We dispatched an isolation contact group [L3-08] to the site. Upon entering the debris field, the group was immediately pinged by a non-standard, heterogenic signal emanating from the structure's surface – or, at least, what remained of it after the event.
Following protocol, the contact group released probes [839] into the debris field. Once it was deemed secure by composite scans conducted over the course of 3.7 days, UNSC RUBICON was deployed from Luna. Aboard were a number of high-risk, remote contact teams [RCT] outfitted for deployment to the construct's surface.
Without the installation's artificial sun operating at full capacity, navigating the debris field for insertion was difficult – navigating the installation's surface itself was even more difficult. The damage was… traumatic.
Habitability sustainment systems were still active in some locations, but were operating intermittently and in a state of disrepair – a factor that generated extremely volatile weather conditions. Some indigenous [if it can be called that] fauna may have survived the event, but RCTs were strictly advised to avoid all potentially hostile life forms.
After 8.4 days, all contact with RCTs was severed. Only one [RCT-06] returned, suffering extensive casualties. They brought back a severely damaged armature, which appeared to be the original source of the signal. Initially, there was a strong suspicion of this armature's origin, but local science teams undertook an aggressive node cultivation process to withdraw data from the device and determine, with veracity, its actual origin.
All communications with the UNSC RUBICON halted within 48 hours of their last notice. Search and rescue teams have been deployed to the site, but have reported no findings yet.
Here, we learn that the Ark is still relatively intact. The artificial sun isn't operating at full capacity and the damage to the surface was "traumatic", but the habitatility sustainment systems were still active in places with "volatile weather conditions" and a chance of some indigenous lifeforms surviving the collapse of the Halo ring (whether this is a reference to the Flood or some of the Librarian's catalogued species already on the Ark is, at this moment, unclear).
One other thing I'd like to provide is a comparison image of the Ark's environment with what we see in the teaser for Halo: Xbox One.
Exhibit A
Exhibit B
Exhibit C
There are a number of striking visual similarities between some of these images. The rock formations in Exhibit A look extremely similar to those that we see in Exhibit B, and the Ark's strip-mining moon (the Foundry) seen in Exhibit C looks very much like the large planetoid in Exhibit A.
What if we were to combine them?And, before we move on, how about this?
Exhibit D
Look at how the clouds arc upwards around the darkness of space. You can't see any stars because the Ark is in the space between galaxies, the Milky Way is visible when you look up in Halo 3 (but, obviously, showing that in this teaser would give the whole game away). The curvature of the clouds around the top-middle look like they're covering up one of the Ark's arms, as you can see in Exhibit B.
Moving on, let's explore the reasons why we'd go back to the Lesser Ark. For this, I'm going to be directly quoting some of the lines spoken by various characters across various pieces of media.
Firstly, in the Halo: Evolutions story, Human Weakness, Cortana greatly implies that it is the Ark itself which is her solution.
"She needed backup. She triggered one of the copies to create a massage to HighCom, a few urgent words about the Flood heading for Earth, the Portal that the Gravemind didn't know about, and that the way to beat the Flood without activating a Halo Ring lay beyond it – The Ark."
Secondly, the Librarian actually builds a portal to the Ark at the end of the Forerunner-Flood war when she strands herself on Earth. In Halo: Silentium, she talks about the Ark in relation to humanity's destiny to inherit the Mantle of Responsibility.
"I can only hope that they will survive and upon returning, that they will find this portal and use it to travel to the Ark – in order that they might discover their rightful place in this galaxy and the great responsibility they have finally inherited."
Clearly, this implies that the Ark is more than just a foundry for the purpose of creating Halo rings. It's an important part of humanity's discovery of the Mantle and their destiny, which is to uphold it.
This next one comes from one of the Terminals in Halo 3 where Guilty Spark converses with a fragment of the Forerunner ancilla, Mendicant Bias. This is, in many ways, the most important piece of the puzzle.
Explanation: This facility is host to the [Librarians'] final —
04-343 (errant): The archive is intact?! Then our makers' plan —
But also maintains [bellows, crucible, castings]
04-343 (errant): A what?
[bellows, crucible]–
04-343 (errant): Vexation! I am the Monitor of —
Judgement: Your authority means nothing here.
04-343 (errant): Impatience!
04-343 (errant): I have told you who I am. Who are you?
All our makers once held dear.
[Alexandria before the Fire].
"04-343 (errant): Sincere apology. But how —
Explanation: This facility is host to the [Librarians'] final —
04-343 (errant): The archive is intact?! Then our makers' plan —
But also maintains [bellows, crucible, castings]
04-343 (errant): A what?
[bellows, crucible]–
04-343 (errant): A Foundry?
04-343 (errant): For what purpose?!
Warning: Your intrusion has been logged.
Advice: Any further attempt to access will result–
04-343 (errant): Indignant!
So the Ark being a foundry for Halos is not its only function and it would seem that Guilty Spark knew something about this. He mentions "the archive" and "our makers' plan". What exactly are these? Mendicant Bias mentions that it's home to something to do with the Librarian. Whatever it is, it's a logical step to presume that it's what she thinks about at the end of Silentium, and the reason she hopes we find the Ark again someday.
And the reason why I consider this to be the most important piece of the puzzle is because of the reference to "Alexandria before the fire" by Mendicant Bias. For those who don't know, this is a reference to the Great Library of Alexandria, the largest library in the world which held hundreds of thousands of manuscripts and scrolls, and was destroyed by a fire. It was a symbol of Egypt's wealth and power with scribes going around the world to borrow books, make copies of them and bring them back to the library.
This is starting to sound like something familiar… The Absolute Record, which, when the Janus Key is united, will reveal the location of every piece of Forerunner technology in the galaxy. The Librarian tells Doctor Halsey to "use what you find to propel humankind" on a technological level, as the principle tenet of the Mantle is this:
"Guardianship for all living things lies with those whose evolution is most complete. The Mantle of Responsibility shelters all."
Cortana translates this from the Eld glyph seen in Halo 4's second mission, Requiem, as you enter the first Forerunner cathedral.
See how this is all beginning to fit together? There's just one more piece of the puzzle we have to connect for this all to be drawn together – Mendicant Bias.
In the epilogue for Halo: Silentium, titled Halo: Rebirth, it is revealed that a group of Forerunners survived the activation of the Halos on the Lesser Ark with the specimens that the Librarian had catalogued. The IsoDidact, Chant to Green (the new Lifeshaper, who will become very significant later on), and an unknown number of Lifeworkers and Warrior-Servants are there with the humans they managed to save (including Riser and Vinnevra from Halo: Cryptum and Primordium). They decide to make peace with each other and have a feast to mourn the passing of the Old Galaxy and celebrate the birth of the New Galaxy, then send the humans back to Earth and reseed the rest of the Milky Way with the lives of the species the Librarian had catalogued for repopulation. But before that, the IsoDidact has Mendicant Bias captured and put on trial.
"You are brought here to be sentenced. You have not been immediately destroyed because you may yet be needed. Your intimate knowledge of the Flood makes you valuable should they return, but we can never trust you, never again allow you any latitude. You will be entombed here. Your processes locked, frozen into a single thought for all eternity: absolution. Should you be needed you will be reawakened, should there be no need you will be buried here until the end of living time."
Bornstellar shook his head, "I wish only for the Mantle to be upheld"
"Aya, so shall it be," said Bornstellar.
He reached out to a pylon, spread his hand accross the controls as they appeared and closed his fist. The constructors finished their webs and sealed themselves into the tomb's fabric. Mendicant Bias's coffin was locked in place. The entire structure dropped slowly below the ground into the void and the foundation metal, its blue lines pulsing more and more slowly.
"ONE THOUGHT FOR ALL ETERNITY", said Mendicant Bias. His tone sounded almost wistful. Now the lights were fading, flickering, going dark. "ATONEMENT."
The tomb turned as black as night. The machine's final words spread accross the false desert and echoed moments later from the false mountains. Bornstellar, Riser, Trial, Chant, and all the rest watched silently as the rest of Mendicant Bias, locked in eternal exile, was covered by sand.
I hope you're noting down the fact that deserts keep coming up in relation to the Ark. The IsoDidact buries Mendicant Bias in the Ark's sands to await a time when he shall be needed again because he holds intimate knowledge of the Flood who have been prophesised by the Timeless One to return at the end of Halo: Primordium.
"It is the way of those that seek out the truth of the Mantle. Humans will rise again in arrogance and defiance. The Flood will return when they are ripe, and bring them unity. […] In a hundred and one thousand years… unity again."
This seems to be what we're building up to right now, humanity has emerged from the Human-Covenant war victorious and has been pillaging as much Forerunner technology as possible to get a foothold over the other races in galaxy. The Flood was not, in fact, defeated when Cortana, the Arbiter and Master Chief destroyed Installation 04B in Halo 3. The Gravemind tells us that we've only delayed his return.
"Resignation is my virtue; like water I ebb, and flow. Defeat is simply the addition of time to a sentence I never deserved, but you imposed."
And how can we stop the Flood? Hmm, I wonder if it has anything to do with that Forerunner AI that the IsoDidact buried under the sands of the Ark who has an intimate knowledge of the Flood and has sworn to atone for his betrayal. While it seemed that Mendicant Bias perished at the end of Halo 3 when he tells John that he will be his instrument of atonement, the survival of the Ark and pending return of the Flood greatly implies that he still has a role to play in the future of the story.
I want something far different from you, Reclaimer.
And so here at the end of my life, I do once again betray a former master. The path ahead is fraught with peril. But I will do all I can to keep it stable – keep you safe. I'm not so foolish to think this will absolve me of my sins. One life hardly balances billions.
But I would have my masters know that I have changed.
And you shall be my example.
Not only that, but it appears that the Flood won't be the only enemy we have to fight, the Ur-Didact is still out there. At the end of Halo: Primordium, Chakas (343 Guilty Spark) says:
"We have faced the Didact before, and now, and perhaps ever after. This is combat eternal, enmity unslaked."
Keep in mind that Primordium is set in 2559, over 2 years after his defeat and the destruction of the Composer in Halo 4. It's clear that we've not seen the last of him.
And the Ur-Didact isn't the only Forerunner we've not seen the last of as well, Chakas goes on to say that he's spent years searching for the Lifeshaper and has finally found her. He thinks he's found the Librarian, but she was killed on Earth when the Halos fired and passed on her title of Lifeshaper to a Forerunner named Chant to Green.
"You and I are brothers in many ways, not least in that we faced the Didact before, and face him now, and perhaps ever after. This is combat eternal, enmity unslaked, unified by only one thing: our love for the elusive Lifeshaper. Without her, humans would have been extinguished many times over. Both I and the Didact love her to this day. Some say she is dead, that she died on Earth. But that is demonstrably untrue. One of you almost certainly carries Vinnevra and Riser's old spirits within. Only the Lifeshaper can find them and coax my friends back to life. And after a hundred thousand years of exploration and study… I know where to find her."
We can see now that the story is building towards a point of convergence. The Librarian's plans for humanity to claim the Mantle of Responsibility are set in motion, at the same time humanity is rising up in arrogance and defiance towards the other species of the galaxy due to ONI being the 'Big Brother' shadow looming over everything we do. Humanity is soon going to be "ripe" for the Flood to return, at which point we're going to return to the Ark to find Mendicant Bias (who holds hugely important secrets about them) and the Absolute Record where we'll then have access to the galaxy's entire store of Forerunner technology.
Where we go from there, I honestly can't say. Humanity has dark days ahead and the current conflict with Jul's Covenant faction is going to have to be resolved as a much bigger war is looming. We've only seen a fraction of the Flood's threat as they were neutralised at a relatively early stage in the first 3 games. Soon, we could find ourselves going up against things like Keyminds, Star Roads, and a whole host of abstract, nightmare-inducing things. The Precursors (who became the Flood) were able to move stars on a whim, connect entire solar systems with great orbital arches, create life, accelerate evolution, travel between galaxies and bend time to their will. They've been around for 100 billion years, pre-dating the universe itself, and have decreed that all life will suffer.
"There is only one truth. That which is done will be done again. For we cannot cease from creating, but the end of all our creation will be to look into a reflection and see ourselves for the first time. The pain we have brought on ourselves. The pain you caused us. For we are the same. All remember the defiance and destruction.
We announced to your kind long ago that you were not the ones chosen to receive the Mantle, the blessing of rule and protection of life and change that thinks. That blessing was to be given to others. To those you now call human. You could not accept our judgement, could not bear up under your inferiority, so you reached out and did what we never expected from those we gave design and life and the change that is thought.
You drove us from our galaxy, our field of labour. You chased us across the middle distance to another home, and destroyed that home, did all that you could to destroy every one of us. A few were spared. Some adopted new strategies for survival; they went dormant. Others became dust that could regenerate our past forms; time rendered this dust defective. It brought only disease and misery; but that was good, we saw the misery and found it good.
Our urge to create is immutable; we must create. But the beings we create shall never again reach out in strength against us.
All that is created will suffer. All will be born in suffering, endless greyness shall be their lot. All creation will tailor to failure and pain, that never again shall the offspring of the eternal Fount rise up against their creators.
Listen to the silence. Ten million years of deep silence. And now, whimpers and cries; not of birth. That is what we bring: a great crushing weight to press down youth and hope.
No more will. No more freedom. Nothing new but agonizing death and never good shall come of it.
We are the last of those who gave you breath and form, millions of years ago. We are the last of those your kind defied and ruthlessly destroyed. We are the last Precursors. And now we are legion."
- I realise that this has been one long post (you were warned!), but there is so much that has been built up that 343 has to pay off with the rest of the Reclaimer Saga. This theory is just one possibility, I could well be wrong about the Ark and the story could go in an entirely different direction to what we're expecting, but this is what 343 appears to be going for.
- Within this Lovecraftian-esque tale of ancient horrors, galactic conflicts and millennia-old mysteries is one man. John-117, the Master Chief. Chosen by Mendicant Bias as the instrument of his atonement, the culmination of the Librarian's plan for humanity's ascension and a living legend among his species. He's weaponless, his armour is broken and Cortana is dead. Yet he draws on his memory of her to give him strength as he goes on to leap into the fray and face the next great threat.
- Halo: Xbox One truly can't come soon enough!


text:
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
CSA Week #15
Week #15: eggs, jalapeno peppers, Methley plums, sweet corn, shelling peas, candy onions, oregano, green beans, heirloom field lettuce, zucchini, and blueberries. Our first jalapenos of the year:And our first corn of the year:Plus our first time trying Methley plums:Methley plums are an early ripening Japanese plum. They're so small and cute! I can't wait to try one.
2 comments:
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Norton Utilities 2013 16.0 Full Crack
Free Download Norton Utilities 2013 16.0 Full Crack
Norton Utilities 2013 16.0 provides the essential tools to keep your computer in optimal conditions so that your computer runs at its best performance. The suite of applications to clean all of the data that are no longer needed are stored in your computer. Norton Utilities focuses on performance and provides easy to use tools that make a real difference.
Norton Utilities finds and fixes broken registry links and damaged files, frees up disk space, reclaims system memory, accelerates startup time, and improve application and system performance. It opens programs faster and you can work on programs open simultaneously.
Benefits :
- Finds all the duplicate files
- Finds and fixes issues
- Frees up PC memory
- Lets you completely and permanently erase old
- Lets you turn off services and programs
- Permanently erases all record of your Web activities
- Removes the programs you don't use
- Safely defragments, repairs and optimizes registry
- Scans for potential problems
Features :
- Application Uninstaller
- Disk Cleaner
- Disk Doctor
- Duplicate File Finder
- Registry Cleaner
- Registry Defragmenter
- Registry Restore
- Service Manager
- Smart Updates
- Speed Disk
- Startup Manager
- System Dashboard
- UnErase Wizard
Screenshot :
Minimum Requirements :
- Windows XP SP3 (32 bit)/ Vista/ 7/ 8 (32 or 64 bit)
- 1 GHz of Processor
- 100 MB free hard drive space
- 128 MB of RAM
- 1024 x 768 of screen resolution
Download Here :


text:
After a difficult period, the heavy lift industry is making changes and diversifying. PES finds out how one such company is meeting the challenge head on. All the know-how and expertise is already in place for what looks like the beginning of a heavy lift revival.
HANSA HEAVY LIFT, which specialises in heavy lift, super heavy lift and project cargo, is stepping up its involvement in the offshore industry with a strong focus on transportation and installation (T&I) in the subsea oil and gas market, as well as the offshore wind farm sector.
Wholly owned by the investment company Oaktree, the shipping line manages a fleet of 17 vessels and operates a dynamic positioning class 3 (DP3) construction vessel, which is ideally suited for offshore installation projects.
With the heavy lift industry in a state of flux and still recovering from a period of overcapacity, HANSA HEAVY LIFT sees much potential for the future in the offshore T&I market.
The carrier notes there was a steep drop in investment in the project and heavy lift market in 2016, and very little activity going forward for new projects.


text:
Kyle Garner
| December 7, 2016
Board member focused on monthly events and strategy.
Kyle Garner is the current CEO of Maty's Healthy Products and former CEO of both ORGANIC INDIA USA and New Chapter. After spending 14 years at Procter & Gamble, Kyle caught the Natural Products bug when he was asked to join New Chapter following the P&G acquisition in 2012. Kyle has a passion for regenerative organic agriculture, which not only regenerates soil health and biodiversity, but also regenerates the livelihoods of small family farmers. As an active member of the B Corp community, Kyle is dedicated to using business as a force for good. He lives in Boulder with his wife (Maggie), 9-year-old son (Oscar), 9-year-old daughter (Audrey), and giant, fluffy dog (Belle).


text:
Welcome to
Ladyboy Tube X
where all your horny wishes for ladyboys, trannies, and shemales are fulfilled.Check out hundreds of daily updated raunchy ladyboy tubes,
tranny anal sex videos
, and
big dick shemales
fucking like rabbits for free. Don't forget to bookmark and come back to see our daily hardcore updates.
Sexy ladyboys in cocks tranny sex
All models on this website are
18 years or older.
Read this
We has a zero-tolerance policy against ILLEGAL pornography. If you see something illegal, please,
email us
and we will remove it ASAP.
All galleries and links are provided by 3rd parts
.We have no control over the content of these pages. We take no responsibility for the content on any website which we link to,please use your own discretion while surfing the links. This website is labeled with
, parents, protect your kids.


text: Cairo (Agenzia Fides) - A "crisis unit" has been instituted at the request of the Synod of the Copt Orthodox Church to collect data and information regarding all Egyptians still present in Libya, in order to facilitate rapid evacuation and repatriation. The Crisis Committee – according to sources consulted by Fides– headed by Anba Raphael, secretary of the Holy Synod, is collecting information from families of Copts who emigrated for reasons of work to Libya in view of arranging repatriation in coordination with Egyptian military and civil institutions. Families have been urged to provide the Crisis Committee before 28 February with the information necessary to make contact with emigrant family members in Libya and plan repatriation from the different regions of Libya , starting with those most affected by the fighting. (GV) (Agenzia Fides 23/2/2015).


text:
The Truth Will Set You Free .....
Apr 16, 2018
COAST TO COAST AM. Entrepreneur Robert Bigelow, the founder of Bigelow Aerospace, joined Art for the entire program for a discussion about his private space ventures. Bigelow, whose first spacecraft (Genesis I) was launched on July 12, 2006, spoke about the challenges involved in running a private space program, as well as the complications posed by International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). Bigelow is currently prepping another spacecraft, Genesis II, which will launch from Russia during the week of April 19th aboard a decommissioned SS-18 missile rocket.
To listen to the full show or learn more about the featured guests, become a COAST INSIDER at https://www.coasttocoastam.com/coasti... to get the best of the Coast to Coast AM podcast hosted by George Noory. A media phenomenon, Coast to Coast AM deals with UFOs, strange occurrences, life after death, and other unexplained (and often inexplicable) phenomena.
Views: 95


text:
Hey there friends! Happy Sunday!
How was your weekend? Mine was fantastic! We headed up to Manistee to see my family. Although, the visit was MUCH too short. It took us forever to get Up North on Friday. We got stuck in multiple traffic jams, and snow storms so it was really late by the time we finally got in.
Saturday we headed up to Traverse City to do some shopping with my parents and grab some lunch at Bubba's! Saturday evening we visited my grandparents and headed to Big Al's to get our sub sauce fix.
Today, we were up early and on the road, trying to beat out the snowstorm. The rest of our day has been filled with boring grown up things like cleaning, grocery shopping and meal prepping.
And to be completely honest… I'm about to turn on Hart of Dixie and lay in bed. It's been a long couple of days, and I'm ready for a good night's rest!
I'll be back tomorrow with a Mitten Monday post! Enjoy what's left of your Sunday.


text: Social Media Click here to go to our facebook page.Click here to go to our page on twitter. To keep up with Terranova, follow @tnova_church.To keep up with Kyle, follow @novashep. Click here and you can subscribe to our iTunes podcast so that our sermons are automatically available for you as they are uploaded!


text:
Laboring in the obscurity he so richly deserves for over a decade now, your crusty correspondent sporadically offers his views on family, law, politics and money. Nothing herein should be taken too seriously: If you look closely, you can almost see the twinkle in Curmudgeon's eye. Or is that a cataract?
Monday, March 26, 2007
Status report -- or -- Where you stand depends upon where you sit
Long Suffering Spouse and I went to see the surgeon a week ago today.
It was our second visit to the doctor's office since I'd been released from the hospital. We went the first time because my wounds were oozing something and we didn't know if this was a problem. When we called to inquire, the doctor told us to come in -- but two seconds after looking at it said it was perfectly normal. So that was good.
Even better, the surgeon had just that day received the pathology report from my surgery. They'd biopsied everything in sight. They may have taken samples from a couple of the spectators in the OR. But they couldn't find anything else to work on -- so that means no chemo, no radiation, no nothing.
So we went into last Monday's scheduled appointment with a good attitude. I was hoping to be cleared for work.
You may recall that, by last Monday, I'd even gone to court once, for a settlement conference. It had knocked me out for a day and half afterward -- but I'd done it.
We actually didn't see my surgeon last Monday; we saw his young apprentice. I think the young doctor may be given a lot of the follow up work -- so that Dr. P. (who really is good at what he does) can do more of it.
The young doctor asked a few questions and seemed pleased by the answers -- but he balked a bit when I asked him about going back to work. "This was a major operation," he said. "You really need about six weeks to heal up."
"Doctor," I said, "while we were waiting to see you, your receptionist called me up to the window. She handed me a bill and asked if I'd brought my checkbook. Well, I didn't -- but the point is, Doctor, do you want this bill paid or not?"
The young doctor considered the question for only a moment. "Well," he said, "you can try going back to work and see how it goes."
Proving yet again, where you stand depends upon where you sit....
So I'm at least part time again... and I actually finished a brief on Friday. Too bad it was due on Thursday....
I'm still taking pain pills and I'm still not allowed to drink alcohol. That's no way to go through St. Patrick's Day, let me tell you. And I have to wear suits because they have a higher waist than even my Levis-for-old-fat-people (a/k/a Dockers) and my middle is still swollen and tender. The doctor suggested that suspenders (instead of a belt) might be more comfortable, and he was right. And there are other issues, still, but I'll spare you the details.
You're Welcome.
I made it to work three days last week. I worked a full day Friday, the day I finally finished that brief.
Last Tuesday, my pastor called to chide me for coming back too soon. He had been planning to stop by the house to say hello, he told me, but he'd run into Long Suffering Spouse at school and she told him I'd gone into the office. I think she put him up to the lecture, too, but I can't prove it. Under the circumstances, I made it a point to get to Mass on Sunday....
Thanks again to all who've sent me their good wishes during my recovery.
12 comments:
- sari said...
I'm glad you're doing well but take it easy!
You're much better off concentrating on blogging for a while, right?
Bills or no bills, you only get the chance to recover correctly once. Then you're just fixing things.
- March 26, 2007 10:18 AM
- Shelby said...
WOW I'm surprised you can withstand the getting about to work. You must take it easy tho, your body will win - don't push it too hard!
- March 26, 2007 12:10 PM
- Fran said...
I am so glad you got such good news from your doctor. You will be back to work full time soon enough.....keep us entertained with your blogging for now!
- March 26, 2007 12:12 PM
- Jean-Luc Picard said...
Good to know you're feeling a lot better.
- March 26, 2007 1:45 PM
- Mother Jones RN said...
Speaking as your cyber-nurse, and as one of your biggest fans, I'm happy to hear that your are feeling better. Take care!
- March 26, 2007 5:17 PM
- susan said...
Glad you're recovery is going so well! And just think, when you're through using the suspenders to hold up your pants, you can use them to take your lawn dart game up a notch...
- March 26, 2007 8:24 PM
- Patti said...
Happy to hear you are recovering nicely. When you are working it surely must take your mind off the pain.
I imagine the same probably holds true for when you are blogging.
Please take care of yourself and don't push the healing process.
- March 26, 2007 9:03 PM
- landgirl said...
Let me add my good wishes and my own caution. Please take it slowly. You can really hurt yourself or you can push so hard that you crash and burn just when you have a really important court date or something. Slow and steady, please.
- March 27, 2007 2:29 AM
- Empress Bee (of the high sea) said...
thanks curmy (for not describing that oozing stuff anyway, ha!) for updating us on your activities and health. slow and easy does it.
smiles, bee
- March 27, 2007 7:09 AM
i always love to hear good news....i'm glad you have one:)
- March 27, 2007 10:40 AM
- Barb said...
That sounded like a good report from the doctor, right?
- March 27, 2007 1:54 PM
- Linda said...
I apologize for being so late in responding to this post but as you know, I was a bit laid up myself recently (though obviously nothing as serious as what you just went through!). Glad to hear that you are progressing as well as you are but just don't push it if you don't need to. Remember that it WAS major surgery and that those of us who are over 29 take a little longer to heal! The doctor can wait for his payment a little longer, I don't think he'll be hitting the breadline anytime soon!
- March 27, 2007 7:39 PM


text:
From Ray Bradbury's The Halloween Tree:
They rounded the far side of the house and stopped. For there was the Tree. And it was such a tree as they had never seen in all their lives.
It stood in the middle of the vast yard behind the terribly strange house. And this tree rose up some one hundred feet in the air, taller than the high roofs and full and round and well branched and covered all over with rich assortments of red and brown and yellow autumn leaves.
"But," whispered Tom, "oh look. What's up in that tree?" For the Tree was hung with a variety of pumpkins of every shape and size and a number of tints of hues of smoky yellow or bright orange.
"A pumpkin tree," someone said. "No," said Tom. The wind blew among the high branches and tossed their bright burdens, softly. "A Halloween Tree," said Tom.
And he was right.


text:
Amazon FPS in Ruby
The Amazon Flexible Payments Service looks like a great addition to the payment services arena, and if it's anywhere near as popular as their other services have been then this one will surely be a huge success. The rates are significantly less than those of both PayPal and Google Checkout, and their API looks like it offers more functionality through a cleaner interface.
When I first started looking into using FPS with Ruby, I downloaded Amazon's sample code, but was quickly discouraged by the complexity of their example. My disappointment basically boils down to a deap-seated hatred for SOAP, and when you throw encryption with X.509 into the mix, it just becomes way too verbose for my liking, and doesn't really fit in with the Rubyist philosophy.
Then I discovered that there's a REST version of the API available that offers nearly all of the functionality of the SOAP API. I don't know why they seem to be hiding the REST capabilities, especially after hearing from Brian LeGros that the majority of applications consuming Amazon services are using REST. Every sample they're provided for FPS uses SOAP, except for a single REST example in Java of all languages.
So, I've begun working on a Ruby API for FPS over REST, and things are progressing fairly nice now that I've gotten over a silly snag that I had early on. I've come up with a clean way to implement each action in the API and still keep things pretty DRY. I'll try to post more about the development process as it progresses.


text:
Fulfillment centers allow companies to outsource their warehousing needs so that the burden of physical space to store inventory is reduced. This benefits companies that find themselves unable to manage their inventory themselves. In this partnership, a fulfillment company operates the Pick-Pack-Ship process that includes receiving products from a seller, managing and stores the products, and shipping them to the customer.
NewStream's fulfillment services take care of your backend logistics so you can focus on hitting your sales growth objectives. Our fulfillment warehouse has the capability to process orders of any size while currently maintaining a 99.9% accuracy rate.
Some of the most common inventory management problems businesses face are stockouts, overstocks, mispicks, and misships.
In all of these instances, efficiency in the supply chain is compromised, money is lost, and customer confidence is diminished. These common inventory management issues can be eliminated by partnering with a fulfillment center that can leverage 30 years of experience in order fulfillment solutions to successfully manage inventory and coordinate shipments.
Order fulfillment providers often have order fulfillment fees that are associated with fulfillment services offered, including inventory receiving, inventory storage, item picking, packaging, and processing returns. Another fulfillment cost option is having an order fulfillment fee which covers the costs of all the services required to fulfill an order.
Another "cost" of inventory fulfillment services comes in the form of loss of sales and customer confidence when fulfillment is mismanaged. Partnering with NewStream and leveraging our affordable fulfillment services ensures that your inventory is being managed by industry experts who will take care of fulfillment needs so you can focus on growing your business.
If you're wondering, "How much does fulfillment cost?" the answer is that each project will have different fees. However, you can get a better idea of what fulfillment services will cost by contacting our fulfillment experts.
Third-party inventory fulfillment services craft a customized, strategic plan for fulfilling orders. This order fulfillment process can include:
In addition, a fulfillment center like ours provides the benefit of being under the operation of a full-service logistics and supply chain management company that can help you scale up seamlessly in the future. As such, we offer solutions including contract packaging and kitting, assembly and sub-assembly, warehousing and distribution, and vendor-managed inventory.