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For more information, see Republic of Estonia and the IMF
February 11, 2000
Dear Mr. Camdessus:
The attached Memorandum of Economic Policies describes the policies the Government and the Bank of Estonia intend to follow in 2000 and in the first half of 2001. The currency board arrangement is a corner stone to our policies and fully consistent with providing a strong foundation for rapid and sustained economic growth through maintaining macroeconomic stability and increasing the efficiency and competitiveness of the Estonian economy. We will reduce the budget deficit, and initiate a number of key long-term reforms, including in public finances and administration, the pension system, and the financial sector as well as further restructuring and privatization of the few large infrastructure companies still in state hands. This economic reform program will also be an integral part of our EU accession strategy. In support of these policies, we are requesting a stand-by arrangement in the amount of SDR 29.34 million for the period until September 2001. Our balance of payments has strengthened substantially in 1999 despite an adverse external environment, and we do not anticipate that a need for any purchases under the arrangement will arise.
We believe that the policies described in the attached memorandum are adequate to achieve the objectives of our economic program, but we will take additional measures to meet these goals should the need arise. During the period of the arrangement, we will consult with the Fund on the adoption of any such measures that may be appropriate in accordance with the Fund's policies on such consultations. Further, we will conduct with the Fund two reviews of economic developments and policies under the program, the first by end-June 2000, and the second by mid-December 2000. In addition to a comprehensive evaluation of economic performance under the program, the first review will focus particularly on the evolution of Estonia's fiscal position, and the pace of economic recovery and its impact on the balance of payments. The second review will focus on the budget for 2001. The program will also be evaluated on the basis of a number of quarterly quantitative as well as one structural performance criteria, and structural benchmarks (enumerated in the attached annexes to the Memorandum of Economic Policies). Performance criteria for end-March 2001 and end-June 2001 will be specified at the time of the second review.
AttachmentsMichel Camdessus
Managing Director
International Monetary Fund
Washington, D.C. 20431
Memorandum of Economic Policies
I. Recent Economic Developments
1. Economic developments in the second half of 1998 and for much of 1999 were dominated by fallout from the Russia crisis that broke in August 1998. The overheating of the economy in 1997, banks' exposure to the stock market and an asset price bubble, and excessive credit growth fueled by easy access to foreign financing, had left the Estonian economy, and particularly the banking system, vulnerable to shocks. Contagion from Asia and the stock market reversal in late 1997, the unexpected and sharp contraction of eastern export markets, and further disturbances in international capital markets triggered by events in the CIS imposed a heavy burden of adjustment on most sectors and regions, especially those that relied heavily on the Russian market (notably the agricultural sector). While the impact of events in late-1997 on the Estonian banking system and internal capital markets was short lived, it contributed to an acceleration of the restructuring of the banking system and a pronounced slowdown in bank lending. The latter reflected also a more cautious assessment by banks of the risk of lending to firms with exposure to CIS markets. In combination, these elements reinforced the slowdown in economic activity. After peaking at nearly 11 percent in 1997, real GDP growth declined to 4 percent in 1998, and real GDP is estimated to have fallen in 1999 by about 1 percent.
2. The pronounced weakening of economic activity in 1998, which was accompanied by an unexpectedly rapid decline in the rate of inflation, also served to invalidate the fiscal and financial program targets under the economic program of the government and the Bank of Estonia for 1997-1998 as outlined in the Memorandum of Economic Policies (MEP) of November 7, 1997. 1
3. The early reorientation of exports from Russia and other CIS countries toward Western and Central European markets has helped to limit the impact of the Russia crisis. While the agricultural sector has been severely affected by the downturn in Russia, export-oriented manufacturing has continued to do well, taking advantage of Estonia's low-cost business environment and its skilled labor force. In combination with a weakening of import demand on account of the economic downturn, this resulted in the current account deficit declining from a peak of 12 percent of GDP in 1997, to 9 percent of GDP in 1998, and an estimated 4 percent of GDP in 1999.
4. After a budget surplus equivalent to 2 percent of GDP in 1997, the general government registered a deficit of 0.3 percent of GDP in 1998 (EEK 0.2 billion) as a result of the impact of the economic slowdown on revenue collection and slippages on the expenditure side toward the end of the year. The general government fiscal position deteriorated further in early 1999 as continued weak revenue growth coincided with substantial increases in public sector wages and pensions. In addition to the weaker economy, a number of one time factors also contributed to a pronounced contraction of revenues in the first quarter of 1999 (faster VAT rebates, changes in the due dates for the payment of social insurance taxes, and the reorganization of the social tax collection system). However, the influence of these factors had faded by mid-year. To reverse the widening of the budget deficit, the government introduced a supplementary budget in June 1999 that reduced authorized spending in the second half of 1999 by about 1.3 percent of annual GDP (or EEK 1 billion). Together with additional expenditure restraint, the budget deficit in the second half of 1999 was kept to 3.0 percent of GDP and the deficit for the year to 4.8 percent of GDP. The deficit was largely financed through the use of the proceeds from the partial further privatization of Eesti Telekom in early 1999.
5. The practice of holding part of the government's cash balances abroad began in late 1997. The original objective was to sterilize the impact of the fiscal surpluses and privatization proceeds. Initially these balances represented the counterpart of fiscal surpluses accumulated in 1997 and early 1998, but these were later augmented by the transfer of about half of the privatization proceeds from the Eesti Telekom sale in early 1999. These resources are managed by the Ministry of Finance consistent with guidelines agreed with the Bank of Estonia that limit investments to assets of the highest quality. After the inflows associated with the Eesti Telekom receipts, the balances in the government accounts held abroad rose to EEK 2.8 billion in mid-1999, but then fell to EEK 2 billion (or 2.7 percent of GDP) at year-end, reflecting the use of these resources to finance the fiscal deficit in the second half of 1999.
6. Included in government deposits held abroad are the assets of the Stabilization Reserve Fund (SRF). The SRF was established mainly as a contingency reserve in case of macroeconomic emergencies. Legislation that became effective on January 1, 2000 further articulated the sources and uses of funds held in the SRF. It provided for the transfer into the SRF of, inter alia, all surpluses of the state budget, selected privatization receipts, and other one-off revenues (including dedicated transfers from the state budget). In addition, profit transfers from the Bank of Estonia may also be added to the SRF. The operations of the SRF are overseen by its Board which includes, inter alia, the Minister of Finance and the Governor of the Bank of Estonia. In the absence of exceptional and unexpected financing needs, the government foresees that the bulk of SRF resources would be used to finance the pension reform. The use of SRF resources for any purpose will require approval by parliament. In the period ahead, we are committed to add all further proceeds from the privatization of the remainder of Eesti Telekom to the SRF and to keep all SRF resources in accounts abroad.
7. Monetary and credit developments during late 1998 and 1999 reflected primarily the deterioration in the international financial environment following the Russia crisis, the subsequent slowdown in economic activity in Estonia, and the restructuring of the banking system. Weak demand for credit, combined with more cautious bank lending policies as a result of increased risk perception because of the economic downturn, has kept total credit to the private sector broadly unchanged in the year through mid-1999 after which some modest increase in lending was experienced. There has been a rebound in broad money growth since mid-1999, reflecting increased financial savings by households; part of this rebound served to offset the monetary contraction experienced in the second half of 1998. While there had been a pronounced increase in interest rates after the onset of the Russian crisis in August 1998, nominal interest rates began a steady decline late in 1998 and are now at historic lows.
8. During 1998, the banking system suffered the delayed consequences of excessive risk taking and weak management practices during the boom period of 1996-97. A number of banks, especially the smaller ones, experienced difficulties in dealing with the unexpected deterioration in the international financial environment and the weakening of their loan portfolio as a result of the impact of the contraction of Eastern export markets and the economic slowdown on their clients. As a result, in the period June-December 1998 a total of four banks failed (representing 14 percent of total bank assets at end-March 1998). Maapank, EVEA, and ERA Bank were declared bankrupt, while Forekspank was taken over by the Bank of Estonia and merged with the Estonian Investment Bank to form Optivabank. These adverse developments, however, were outweighed by two large mergers and the acquisition of strategic equity stakes by foreign investors in the two largest Estonian banks (Hansapank and Uhispank--with a combined share in total bank assets of 85 percent--that together materially strengthened the financial system. By end-1999 only six banks (including one new bank that was granted a license in September 1999)--plus one foreign branch--remained in operation in Estonia. We view this process of bank consolidation as healthy and a normal consequence of an accelerated transition to a market economy.
9. Since late 1997, the Bank of Estonia has been implementing a major long-term program of strengthening prudential regulations and improving banking supervision with technical assistance by the IMF. To address concerns regarding bank stability following a period of rapid credit expansion in 1997, late that year the Bank raised the capital adequacy ratio to 10 percent and the reserve requirement to 13 percent. These ratios have been kept at these relatively high levels despite the consolidation in the banking system mainly to ensure that confidence in Estonian banks remains unshaken. Prudential oversight was also strengthened through, inter alia, the inclusion of bank guarantees in the basis for the calculation of the capital adequacy ratio, the introduction of new limits on net open foreign exchange positions, and the application of prudential regulations on a consolidated basis for bank groups. As a result, Estonia's existing legal and institutional framework is consistent with full compliance with the Basle Core Principles on Bank Supervision. In addition, the Deposit Insurance Fund became effective in October 1998, the new Credit Institutions Law became effective in July 1999, and as of July 1, 1999, the Bank of Estonia has started to remunerate all commercial bank reserves at the European Central Bank deposit rate. Together these measures can be expected to contribute to creating a stronger and healthier regulatory environment.
10. With basic structural reforms completed for some time, the government's attention is now focused on the more complex and difficult second generation reforms. The process of restructuring and privatization of Eesti Energia (the electricity generation complex) continued with (i) the conversion of Eesti Polevkivi (oil shale mining) in April 1996 into a joint stock company and (ii) the establishment of a joint stock company (Narva Power Stations) in November 1999 combining the two major power stations (with a majority interest in Eesti Polevkivi to be added in the first half of 2000). The privatization of other state enterprises, including Estonian Railways and the alcohol producers (Liviko and Moe), was either completed or well advanced. A further 24 percent of Eesti Telekom was privatized in February 1999, leaving only 27 percent of shares in the hands of the government. Land reform is advancing with the restitution of land proceeding about as scheduled. In addition, amendments to the Competition Law became effective in October 1998 improving compliance with EU requirements, health reforms are well underway, and there has been substantial progress on pension reforms. (Reforms in these areas are described in more detail below.) Moreover, Estonia subscribed to the IMF's Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS) in September 1998.
II. Objectives and Strategy for 2000-2001
11. We have experienced the first significant cyclical slowdown since the beginning of Estonia's transition to a market economy largely on account of the Russia crisis and related events in CIS countries. However, CIS markets appear to be stabilizing and are even showing signs of recovery, while Estonia's main export markets in the EU are expected to grow relatively strongly in the period ahead. Moreover, disturbances in international capital markets have subsided. Against this favorable background, the main challenge during the program period will be to strengthen the fiscal position and to give new impetus to structural reforms. This will lay a good basis for economic recovery and sustained economic growth.
12. In these circumstances, the joint objectives of the government and the Bank of Estonia for 2000-2001 are to provide a strong foundation for rapid and sustained growth through: (i) maintaining external and macroeconomic stability and (ii) increasing the efficiency and competitiveness of the Estonian economy. To that end we will push ahead with a number of key long-term reforms, notably in public finances and administration, the pension system, and the financial sector as well as with further restructuring and privatization of the few remaining large infrastructure companies where state participation is still dominant. Over the medium-term, these measures should materially strengthen the working of market forces, improve resource allocation, and provide an important boost to private sector confidence.
13. This economic and reform program will also be an integral part of our EU accession strategy. The main goal of this strategy is to consolidate the substantial progress already made toward meeting the "Copenhagen criteria" for EU membership, particularly by maintaining a fully-functioning market economy and strengthening Estonia's capacity to cope with competitive pressures and market forces within the EU.
14. Our economic objectives will be pursued in the context of our long-standing currency board arrangement, which continues to provide a stable, transparent, and consistent policy framework. As demonstrated by the sharp improvement in our current account position and solid export growth to western markets, the current exchange rate peg remains appropriate. We intend to maintain the current fixed relationship between the kroon and the DM and euro until Estonia becomes a full participant in the EMU, at which point the euro will become Estonia's currency.
15. The main macroeconomic parameters and targets underlying our program for 2000 are as follows:
16. The fixed exchange rate and currency board leave fiscal policy as the only direct instrument for aggregate demand management. With signs of an onset of a moderate recovery and the current account deficit at a level that can very likely be sustained over the medium-term without significant increases in external debt, we believe that there is not a strong case for setting budgetary policies from a short-term perspective either to stimulate the economy or to restrain aggregate demand and the current account deficit. Instead, the primary objective of fiscal policy in the present economic circumstances should be to promote the medium-term sustainability of quality growth while safeguarding the progress already made in reducing the external current account imbalance. In our view, this objective would be well served by aiming at a budget, which, on average, is balanced over the medium term, while at the same time providing for a gradual decline in the tax burden from 2001 onwards. This approach would also be consistent with the harmonization of fiscal policy with EU requirements under the Growth and Stability Pact.
17. Estonia has made rapid progress in the implementation of structural reforms. Sustained structural reform effort will, however, be required to further improve productivity and maintain export competitiveness, boost the supply response of the economy, encourage domestic savings, and continue to attract foreign direct investment. Two key priorities in this regard are the pension reform program and the privatization of the energy complex. In addition, we intend to (i) make more transparent the structure of our public finances, inter alia, by consolidating into the state budget the utilization of foreign loans and grants, (ii) start the reform of public administration, including by increasing the transparency of public employment and remuneration, (iii) strengthen financial sector regulation and move cautiously toward consolidating financial sector supervision under one independent authority, and (iv) continue the reform of the public health care system.
III. Policies
Policy design and coordination
18. In the context of its EU accession program, the government approved Estonia's Medium-Term Economic Program (MTEP) for the period 1999-2003 in November 1999. The MTEP establishes broad quantitative macroeconomic priorities over its program period and outlines key structural reforms in the medium term. The policy framework set out in the MTEP is fully consistent with the policies set out in this Memorandum. The government and the EU Commission will conduct annual joint assessments of developments under the MTEP.
19. An essential element in the formulation of medium-term economic and reform policy is the harmonization of the fiscal policy framework with EU requirements, which, inter alia, call for Estonia's adherence to the Growth and Stability Pact, including taking effective action on receiving information indicating the risk of an excessive deficit (greater than 3 percent of GDP). Certain provisions in the new Basic Budget Law (see paragraph 28 below) will already go a long way toward meeting this goal. Notably, Estonia is already participating in a pilot project with the EU Commission and EUROSTAT, aimed at training and familiarizing officials from accession countries with policy making and control at the EU Commission level.
20. The government and the Bank of Estonia will by June 30, 2000 initiate an assessment of the extent of Estonia's compliance with the Code of Good Practices in Fiscal Policy and the Code of Good Practices on Transparency in Monetary and Financial Policies. Based on the conclusion of these assessments, an action plan will be formulated to bring the principles of policy making and reporting in full compliance with both codes. If necessary, technical assistance from the IMF will be sought to that end. In addition, Estonia has agreed to participate in the joint World Bank-IMF Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP) to help identify strengths and weaknesses in its financial system; preliminary work in this area is expected to get underway in February 2000.
Fiscal policy and public finance reform
21. The budget for 1999 had been formulated in mid-1998, during the run-up to the national elections, on the expectation of continued fast real and nominal growth of the economy. As noted earlier, however, the adverse external conditions facing the economy precipitated a significant contraction in economic activity beginning in the second half of 1998 and continuing through the first half of 1999. Together with the substantial increases in wages and pensions awarded under the 1999 budget, and also the negative impact on revenues (estimated at 1 percent of GDP) of the one-time factors noted in paragraph 4 above, this contributed to a marked widening of the public sector deficit to 8.6 percent of GDP in the first quarter of the year.
22. The new government coalition that was formed after the March 1999 national elections immediately took action to contain the fiscal deficit to 5 percent of GDP in the second quarter. It also cut expenditures in the second half of 1999 through a supplementary budget, and by deferring to 2000 about EEK 440 million of expenditures.
23. The budget for 2000, which was adopted by parliament on December 15, 1999, originally had two main objectives (i) to achieve fiscal balance; and (ii) to reverse the trend of a sharply increasing share of government in the economy. (Government expenditures reached nearly 44 percent of GDP in 1999, up from about 38 percent of GDP in 1997.) To that end, the 2000 budget provides for no general increase in nominal wages and pensions (following a 20 percent increase in real terms in 1999). Including deferred expenditures, spending on goods and services and transfers to households will show a moderate increase in real terms, whereas investment spending will be reduced somewhat in real terms (as it will be kept constant in nominal terms relative to the 1999 level). However, in accordance with our preparation for joining NATO, we increased defense outlays from about 1.2 percent of GDP in 1999 to about 1.6 percent of GDP in 2000. Taking into account the impact of deferred expenditures, total expenditures in 2000 will be less than 4 percent higher in nominal terms than the 1999 outcome, although expenditures in 2000 include self-financed outlays of government agencies.
24. With regard to revenue, the budget for 2000 incorporates a number of important tax policy measures. Effective January 1, 2000, we have taken the following measures:
In addition, excise rates for fuels were raised on average by about 25 percent effective December 1, 1999. We will also take the following measures during 2000:
We project that the above tax policy and administration measures will generate additional revenue in 2000 in the order of about EEK 1.9 billion (about 2.4 percent of GDP). This additional revenue will broadly offset the revenue loss from the abolition of the corporate profit tax and from the increase in the minimum personal income exempted from income tax, which together is estimated to amount to about EEK 1.8 billion.
25. While parliament has passed a formally balanced budget for 2000, the deferral of expenditure from 1999 to 2000 makes the goal of a balanced budget no longer attainable. Moreover, the budget excludes foreign financed investments and net lending of about EEK 310 million. In addition, we recognize that there is a considerable downside risk associated with our revenue projections for 2000. Specifically, it is difficult to estimate precisely the additional revenue that will be generated from the tax policy and administration measures outlined in the paragraph above. We are, however, firmly committed to keeping the fiscal deficit of the general government in 2000 to no more than 1.25 percent of GDP. To that end, we will monitor closely fiscal developments, in particular by establishing monthly expenditure targets, to ensure that the fiscal deficit path during the course of the year remains consistent with our target for the year as a whole. We also stand ready to take additional measures, if necessary, to contain the fiscal deficit. These measures could include (i) extending to the whole country the car tax that currently applies to Tallinn; (ii) introducing an excise tax on heavy heating fuels; and (iii) cutting end-year bonuses for public sector employees. Finally, in the event of unexpected developments leading to a significant widening of the fiscal deficit, the government will be prepared to submit to parliament a supplementary budget with corrective measures. In contrast, any excess in budget revenues over projected amounts will be used to reduce the general government fiscal deficit further.
26. With regard to 2001, we are aiming at a balanced budget, excluding any impact of further pension reforms. We intend to reduce general government expenditures (as a ratio to GDP) further by keeping the general government outlays constant in real terms. Over the medium term, we aim at broad budget balance, including the impact of the pension reform.
27. In the coming years, public expenditure priorities will be affected by a number of factors. First, the need to maintain a sufficient social safety net for vulnerable groups, e.g., pensioners, large families, the unemployed, and population located in less developed regions, will necessitate continued significant outlays. The pension increases given in 1999 have done much to strengthen the income of the retirees. In the long run, pension reform (described below) will contribute significantly to the welfare of the elderly. Second, preparation for EU accession will place an increasing burden on certain areas of public spending in the next few years, particularly transportation, energy, and the environment. The need for this spending is dictated by our primary strategic goal of joining the EU as quickly as possible. While these outlays will tend to widen the budget and current account deficits, we also expect to receive substantial financial support, much of it in the form of grants, in preparation for EU membership. Our foreign policy objective of integrating Estonia into NATO will also require some further increase in defense spending over the medium term. Nevertheless, we are determined to limit and even reduce further the share of government in GDP over time. We expect that this will become easier with a return to brisk and sustained economic growth.
28. During 2000-2001, we intend to continue modernizing our public finances and to address the existing structural weaknesses of the budgetary process. Some of these rigidities are dictated by our constitution--notably the significant degree of fiscal autonomy of local authorities--which restricts the ability of the central government to control general government finances. Nonetheless, there is room for improvement in a number of other areas. Specifically:
Monetary and Financial Policies
29. The government and the Bank of Estonia remain fully committed to the maintenance of the currency board and the current fixed relationship between the kroon and the DM and euro. We believe that this provides an appropriate framework for the preparation for accession to the EU and for full participation in ERM2.
30. The strategic aim of the Bank of Estonia over the medium term is to ensure the readiness of Estonia's monetary policy framework to join the European Union by January 1, 2003. To that end, the Bank of Estonia, will, in cooperation with relevant EU institutions, prepare during the course of 2000 a detailed analysis of Estonia's monetary legislation to guarantee full conformity with EU legislative requirements. Any necessary legislative changes will be submitted to parliament by December 31, 2000.
31. The Bank of Estonia's overall objective in managing the financial system is to guarantee that the banking system is well-managed, maintains sufficient capital and liquidity to withstand internal or external shocks, and that the Bank of Estonia is able to monitor developments in a timely and effective fashion so that it can take early remedial action should the need arise. To that end, the Bank of Estonia will, during the program period, strengthen the operation of the currency board and the financial system by reviewing the operation of the prudential framework, upgrading its monitoring and analytical capacities, and ensuring appropriate levels of central bank reserves in excess of currency board cover to help deal with any unforeseen shocks. Specifically, the Bank of Estonia will:
32. The Bank of Estonia established in October 1999 a framework for profit transfers to the state budget that takes account of the need to maintain sufficient medium-term central bank capitalization and provides for an adequate level of net international reserves over the minimum currency board coverage consistent with the Law of the Bank of Estonia. Within this framework, the profit transfer to the state budget will be limited to up to 25 percent of the Bank of Estonia's annual profits in the years ahead.
33. The difficulties faced by the banking system in 1997 and 1998 have strengthened our determination to improve further the regulatory and supervisory environment of our banking system and to make the financial system more transparent. To that end, we have taken the following measures to strengthen supervision:
To further raise standards of bank supervision, the Bank of Estonia will also take the following measures:
34. Although considerable strides have been made in bringing the supervision of the banking system up to international standards, the supervision of nonbank financial institutions--especially the securities industry--remains weak. The government and the Bank of Estonia have decided on a comprehensive strategy for the consolidation of financial sector supervision under one independent agency (the "agency") under the public law to ensure that supervision over all financial operations in Estonia is conducted at a high and uniform standard. With this objective in mind, and cognizant of the importance to the economy and the financial sector of ensuring that the legislative, institutional, and organizational foundations of the agency are well founded, the government and Bank of Estonia intend to take the following measures in preparation for establishing the agency:
35. The Compensation Fund was established in 1993 to serve as a mechanism for the redemption of restitution and national capital vouchers that were not used to acquire privatized housing, land, or equity in public share offerings. Under current legislation, these vouchers are due to expire on December 1, 2000. We expect that further Compensation Fund bond issues in the amount of about EEK 150 million will be made in the period through September 2000 after which no further issues will be made. The government thus deems that the work of the Compensation Fund will have been essentially completed and intends to terminate its operations. To that end, further transfers of privatization proceeds to the Compensation Fund have been halted effective January 1, 2000. The government will by June 30, 2000 complete a review of the financial and legislative consequences of winding up the Compensation Fund and will in due course propose legislation to parliament that would authorize the restructuring of the Compensation Fund. We intend to make adequate financial provision for the servicing of all Compensation Fund Bond issues through their final maturity. Allowing for the maintenance of a reserve to redeem at market value any outstanding vouchers at the end of the voucher program, it is estimated that the Compensation Fund will have assets in excess of its liabilities amounting to approximately EEK 500 million. The government's intention is that the bulk of these surplus resources will eventually be transferred to the Stabilization Reserve Fund.
36. In November 1998, the Bank of Estonia acquired at a cost of EEK 255 million a controlling interest in the Optivabank as part of a bank rescue and restructuring exercise. The Bank of Estonia believes that the interests of the Estonian banking system would be best served if its equity share in this bank were to be purchased by an appropriate strategic investor. The Bank of Estonia is firmly committed to the privatization of its equity stake and will continue its effort to seek a fitting buyer for Optivabank. Market conditions permitting, we expect that the sale will be concluded by June 30, 2000. In addition, the Bank of Estonia completed the disposal of its modest stake in Hansapank in December 1999.
Other structural policies
37. Estonia has benefited from its liberal trade policies since the beginning of transition. In particular, the absence of any import tariffs has minimized distortions in the domestic economy and has helped establish Estonia's reputation as a bold reformer. This policy was of considerable help in our accession to the WTO. Estonia was formally accepted into the WTO on November 13, 1999. However, as EU membership is drawing near, we need to prepare for harmonizing our trade policies with those in the EU. In part to demonstrate Estonia's ability to administer a comprehensive trade and tariff regime, the government has effective January 1, 2000 introduced tariffs that apply mainly to agricultural products. These tariffs do not apply to imports from EU countries or from those countries with which Estonia has concluded free trade agreements. Tariffs are at or below the binding limits agreed with the WTO (which are below EU tariff rates). Our next priority will be to prepare and announce our medium-term strategy of trade policy harmonization, so as to clarify our intentions vis-à-vis our trading partners, as well as to create a transparent, stable, and predictable policy environment for domestic producers and consumers.
38. Following a World Bank public expenditure review in 1997, we identified priority measures for rationalizing the public administration and increasing transparency in public employment and remuneration. We already established in December 1999 two departments within the Ministry of Finance that are charged with ensuring that spending by government units (including ministries) is consistent with budgetary objectives, making certain that these units are being managed in an appropriate fashion, and monitoring the use of EU resources. We also established in late 1999 an Administration Reform Bureau within the government responsible for developing and implementing its public sector reform strategy. The main goals of the Bureau are to streamline and rationalize the central government and to realize efficiencies in the structure of local authorities and other agencies of the government, including through mergers. Financial incentives will be employed where deemed appropriate to expedite this process. In addition we will also complete by September 30, 2000 a review of employment in the large education sector.
39. In 1997, we started the reform of our pension system with a view to creating a three pillar system: (i) the first pillar would be a modified version of the existing defined benefit program financed on a Pay-As-You-Go basis, (ii) the second pillar would be a compulsory and fully-funded defined contribution program, and (iii) the third pillar would be a voluntary private pension system, with contributions enjoying a tax advantaged status. The government is receiving technical assistance from the World Bank to help frame these reforms and has also sought assistance from the IMF.
40. In 1997, we launched a major reform of Estonia's health system with the assistance of the World Bank. In several areas, notably primary health care, significant progress has already been made: a family physician system has been introduced, and family physicians now provide about one-third of primary health care in Estonia and act as gatekeepers for specialized medical care. The next major step is the reform of the financial aspects of the health system, including the operation of the Medical Insurance Fund. The financial management of hospitals has started to improve already as subsidization of their utility bills has stopped. In addition, by June 30, 2000 we will formulate a restructuring and investment program for Estonia's hospital network with the aim of improving efficiency and reducing costs. This program would be subject to a phased implementation over the period 2001-2015.
41. Estonia is now at the final stage of its privatization program, with only a few large enterprises and public utilities remaining in state hands. The work of the Estonian Privatization Agency has therefore been deemed to have been completed and the government will wind up its operations by December 31, 2000. As regards the remaining equity the state holds in the enterprise sector, we intend to make further progress in the sale of these interests, while according the highest priority to the quality of privatization and the proper safeguarding of privatization receipts. In the nonenergy sector we intend to take the following steps:
42. Considerable effort has been devoted over the past several years to the rationalization and privatization of the Estonian energy complex. Some progress has already been made with the closure of several oil shale mines. However, more needs to be done. It is recognized that the need to resolve interrelated economic, social, and environmental issues has substantially slowed down agreement on a permanent solution. The government's broad objectives have been (i) to create a competitive market for the generation, transmission, and distribution of electric power to protect consumers and support the further development of Estonian industry through ensuring reliable energy supply at competitive prices, (ii) to address the substantial overmanning in power generation and oil shale production sectors, while protecting a region hit hard by the Russian crisis and already suffering from substantially higher unemployment than the rest of the country, and (iii) to reduce the intolerable pollution of the air, water, and land resources in the northeast of the country associated with the production of oil shale and the generation of electricity using existing technologies. To address these important concerns, the government has decided to implement an ambitious and integrated program with the following key elements:
IV. Performance Monitoring, Program Review, and Availability of Purchases
44. Progress in the implementation of the policies under this program will be monitored through quarterly quantitative performance criteria, structural performance criterion and benchmarks, and two program reviews. The first review is expected to coincide with the 2000 Article IV consultation discussions, and will focus particularly on the evolution of Estonia's fiscal position, the pace of economic recovery and its impact on the balance of payments. The review is expected to be completed with the Executive Board of the Fund by June 30, 2000. The second review would focus on the budget for 2001 and is to be concluded by December 15, 2000. Quarterly quantitative performance criteria will apply to (1) the minimum level of net international reserves; (2) the overall balance of the general government; and (3) contracting or guaranteeing by the general government of external borrowing, with separate subceilings on borrowing of maturities of two years or less, and from two to ten years. In addition, gross foreign reserves of the Bank of Estonia must equal (or be greater than) the currency board's liabilities at all times. Furthermore, the government undertakes not to accumulate any external payments arrears at any time during the program period. The structural performance criterion relates to the submission to parliament of the Basic Budget Law (paragraph 28 above). These performance criteria are elaborated in the Annex to this Memorandum, which also contains a listing of structural benchmarks under this program.


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Granite Quarry, Shuford School reunion honors integration pioneers
Published 12:00 am Sunday, March 31, 2013
GRANITE QUARRY — At nearly every job he has held, Dr. John Thompson was the first African-American.
That includes his position as a mathematics teacher and basketball coach at East Rowan High School, where he worked for one year starting in 1966.
Though Thompson didn't attend Shuford Memorial School, once known as Granite Quarry Colored School, he was recognized at its reunion banquet Saturday.
Granite Quarry/Shuford School has held a reunion every other year since 1987. This was the 14th, and it marks 45 years since the closing of the school. The Pink and Gray Banquet was the last of several events Friday and Saturday, including a "mix and mingle" party, a breakfast gathering and a memorial service.
Before the banquet began, Thompson said he didn't know exactly what he was getting into when he took the job at East Rowan, which had been segregated until just three years earlier.
"We knew integration was coming, but I didn't know what my role would be," he said. "When I showed up, I found out very quickly that I was the only black person in the school."
Thompson, who grew up in Graham, had taken the job at East Rowan High School soon after graduating from Livingstone College. He then took the same position at Reidsville junior and senior high schools in Reidsville. In 1974, he became assistant principal of Reidsville Senior High School.
Thompson, of Greensboro, would move on to become principal at Durham High School before serving as superintendent of three more school systems, as well as Deputy Commissioner for the Kentucky Department of Education. At all except for one superintendent position, he was the first African-American in the job.
"I refused to let people use me as just a symbol," he said. "I worked to be real part of what was going on."
Students who led integration in the Rowan County School System also were honored Saturday evening. They included Calvin Strawder, the first African-American student to enroll at East Rowan High — or any white school in Rowan County.
As he accepted his plaque, Strawder said it was the loving community that made it possible for him and other black students to begin the process of integration.
"It represents to me the joy and gratitude I have for my hometown, which is a special hometown," he said. "From any other place in the world, if you come to Granite Quarry, you know what I mean."
Strawder, who now lives in Mableton, Ga., thanked those who followed him to and from school, staying with him to make sure he was safe.
"You didn't think I knew you were back there, but I did," he said. "Those are the things that have lived with me for years."
Doug Trexler, a white classmate of Strawder's, said before the banquet that he attended the reunion to honor Strawder for his courage.
"I don't know if people realize how tense things were back then," he said. "He was a brave person to do what he did."
Rayfield Oglesby, Dolan Hubbard and John Hawkins (posthumously) also were recognized for being among the first students to integrate East Rowan High. They all enrolled the year after Strawder.
Oglesby, who lives in Granite Quarry, said before the banquet that he attends as many of these reunions as he can, because he and his classmates are friends for life. He said he was honored to receive recognition from them Saturday.
"I think it's fantastic," Oglesby said.
Granite Quarry Mayor Mary Ponds thanked the teachers of the town for giving valuable lessons, even though their students might not have seen that value until later.
"If you look at us now, and where we are now, the things they were teaching us were well worthwhile," she said.
The keynote speaker Saturday evening was minister Ronald Staley of Norfolk, Va.
He is the son of Montina K. Fox, a former student of Granite Quarry/Shuford School.
"You paved the way for me so I could be able to attend Salisbury High School — something you could not do," Staley said. "I reap the blessings from what you did for me. … Your work is not in vain, and it's not over."
His sermon focused on the idea of passing the baton — of knowledge, experience and faith — to the next generation and beyond. He said younger generations will be lost without their elders' guidance.
"I've got some knowledge, but it's nothing compared to what you've gone though," Staley said. "I need what you have. And my children — whatever I learn from you, my obligation is to share it with them. … Our job is to make sure the baton is passed, because they have to run it, too."
Contact reporter Karissa Minn at 704-797-4222.
Twitter: twitter.com/posteducation
Facebook: facebook.com/Karissa.SalisburyPost

subset: commoncrawl


text:
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"Columbus Space for Alternative Self Expression" is a community based education and event organization. Contact directors @ columbusspace.com


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Advancing flames of a wildfire have forced the evacuation of the hamlet of La Crete in northern Alberta.
"The wildfire is advancing quickly," reads a message on the Mackenzie County Facebook page Tuesday night.
"Everyone in the area must immediately evacuate. Crews will be going door to door. Please notify your neighbour."
There was no immediate word on how many people are affected by the order to leave.
But officials say more than 9,000 people have been forced from their homes due to out of control wildfires in the region.
The swelling numbers follow mandatory evacuation orders for communities including the Beaver First Nation, Dene Tha' First Nation, other parts of Mackenzie County and the Peerless Trout First Nation.
People in other communities remain on evacuation alert and could be told to leave quickly if the wildfire situation gets worse.
These communities include High Level, parts of the Municipal District of Lesser Slave River, Bigstone Cree Nation and the hamlets of Wabasca-Desmerais, Sandy Lake and Chipewyan Lake.
The province says the 9,000 number includes about 700 people from the Paddle Prairie Metis Settlement who had to leave the community on May 26.
The Chuckegg Creek, Jackpot Creek and McMillan complex wildfires together cover an area of about 6,750 square kilometres.
About 4,000 High Level residents who were forced to flee their homes last month were only recently allowed back.
The Canadian Press


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INDIANAPOLIS — Paul George put an emphatic 360-degree twist on the Pacers' latest blowout.
Lob City's stars just watched in amazement.
George scored 36 points, the last two on a reverse windmill dunk that brought fans to their feet and the Clippers to their knees in Indiana's 106-92 rout Saturday night.
"It was just instinctive," George said after helping to end the Clippers' five-game winning streak. "I wanted to put on a show for the fans."
The entire season has been a showcase for the Pacers (32-7), who have the NBA's best record, the league's best home record at 21-1 and a 31/2-game lead in the Eastern Conference over two-time defending champion Miami.
George's highlight-reel dunks and Lance Stephenson's increasingly commonplace poses are all becoming part of Indiana's normal routine.
George, last year's Most Improved Player, has six 30-point games and 27 20-point games this season. The 23-year-old emerging star is ranked among the league leaders in scoring, free throw percentage and steals, and he might be higher in rebounds and assists if the Pacers weren't blowing teams out with regularity.
Critics might contend the only real thing missing from his resume is pizazz. Those complaints disappeared with one dunk contest move that George saved for game time. Armed with a 20-point lead and a clear path to the basket, he leapt in the air, spun around, slammed the ball with one hand, stuck the landing and ran back to play defense. Fans and most of his teammates immediately jumped to their feet.
"I just wanted to celebrate," Stephenson said. "I didn't want to get back on defense. I've not seen one like that in a game I've been in."
Indiana fans haven't seen anything quite like this season, either, not even when Reggie Miller was running the show.
The Pacers have now won four straight, all by at least 14 points, and fell just short of winning four in a row by 20 or more points for the first time in franchise history.
All this came on a night Indiana wasn't even at full strength in the second half. Power forward David West was ejected at halftime after the officials gave him a flagrant 2 foul after a replay review. All-Star center Roy Hibbert and West's backup, Luis Scola, started the fourth quarter on the bench in foul trouble and wound up taking the rest of the night off.
Indiana didn't even need them. George barely missed, going 12 of 17 from the field, 5 of 6 on 3-pointers and 7 of 7 from the free throw line. He had six points and three steals, too.
Stephenson, who leads the NBA with three triple-doubles, settled for 22 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists.
Indiana's bench pitched in, too. Danny Granger added 12 points and now has nine double-figure games in 14 appearances this season, while C.J. Watson had 11 points.
The Clippers' bigger problem was Indiana's stout defense.
Indiana had a 48-39 rebounding edge, a 42-32 edge on points in the paints and limited the high-scoring Clippers to 39.8 percent from the field and six fast-break points.
Jamal Crawford finished with 22 points off the bench, while Blake Griffin had 19 points and rebounds and DeAndre Jordan finished with 12 points and 17 rebounds to lead Los Angeles (28-14).
That wasn't nearly enough to keep up with the Pacers, who ended the Clippers' run of four consecutive 109-point games.
"We didn't play well at all," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "I thought their defense really rushed us. We talked about how they tried to channel you into their bigs and we kept falling for it over and over again. We just didn't execute offensively."
Indiana led 28-18 after one, 45-27 midway through the second and by as much as 20 in the third quarter before the Clippers showed any indication they may rally. Crawford spurred a 9-3 run to end the third quarter and got the Clippers within 81-72 early in the fourth.
But a layup from Stephenson started a 17-4 run, capped by George's incredible dunk that gave the Pacers lots of momentum heading into a five-game West Coast swing that begins Monday at Golden State.
"It's just guys rising up to the occasion and stepping up," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. "Lance and Paul, they can do a lot of things."
Notes: Indiana completed its first season sweep of the Clippers since 2005-06. … The Clippers' five-game winning streak matched a season best. … Hibbert finished with five blocks, all in the first quarter. … Indiana has won 20 games this season by 10 or more points.


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Super Bowl: Officials planning to avoid repeat power failure
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The head of New Jersey's largest utility company and other officials involved in planning for February's Super Bowl said they have taken numerous measures to ensure there will be no repeat of the power failure that caused a delay at this year's game in New Orleans.
At a meeting with reporters at MetLife Stadium on Thursday, they laid out plans for the Feb. 2 game, which will be the first Super Bowl ever played outside at a cold-weather venue. Chief among their concerns was avoiding the type of system failure that occurred at the Superdome last February when a partial outage caused a 34-minute delay in the game between the Ravens and 49ers.
An outside expert hired by New Orleans utility Entergy and Superdome management concluded the outage was caused by a design flaw in an electrical relay device that had been installed specifically to prevent a power failure at the game.
Public Service Electric & Gas president Ralph LaRossa said the utility had tested the same type of relay device used in New Orleans with a high electrical load to make sure it wouldn't give a false signal to shut down as it did at the Superdome, and that the test was successful.
"The bottom line is we've taken every precaution and every lesson learned that we could from prior Super Bowls, from what happened with Entergy, and applied those best practices and lessons learned to the operation in New Jersey," LaRossa said.
Among the extra measures, LaRossa said, is a third PSE&G power line that will be added to two that already feed the electrical substation at the Meadowlands complex, which also includes the Izod Center arena and Meadowlands Racetrack. John Duffy, vice president of engineering and construction for the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, the entity that owns the land and the electrical substation, said each of the lines is capable of powering the complex on its own, so that even if two go down the third could provide enough power.
The third line will remain in place for future use, officials said.
In addition, PSE&G is supplying a temporary, mobile electrical substation to back up the on-site substation. Some of the events on the Meadowlands grounds will be powered by generators as well, LaRossa said.
It is a massive undertaking for a reason: LaRossa estimated that it will take about 18 megawatts of electricity to power the entire the complex for the game, or the equivalent of what would be needed to power 12,000 homes. Six of the 18 megawatts could potentially be shouldered by generators, he added.
MetLife Stadium already has experience with power problems. Two brief outages occurred during a Giants-Dallas Cowboys game in November 2010, the stadium's inaugural season. The problem was blamed on feeder lines from outside the stadium. Since then, the NJSEA has built a new electrical substation on the site.
"We have to operate this place every day, not just for the Super Bowl," Duffy said. "So it would have been done either way."


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Apple had a lot of ground to cover in its WWDC keynote, which might be why you might have missed some of iOS 7's other new features hidden inside Monday's presentation.
System improvements
System improvements aren't always the flashiest features, so they can get short shrift at keynotes. But they're often hidden gems.
Audio-only FaceTime calls: This little nugget actually got a few seconds during the keynote when Senior Vice President of Software Engineering Craig Federighi briefly mentioned its virtues. Audio-only FaceTime calls will let you voice-chat with others—no phone plan needed—but only over Wi-Fi. I'm sure Apple would love to implement this feature over 4G and LTE networks, but I'm also pretty sure AT&T and the other cellular providers would have something to say about it.
Given the short time spent on the topic, it's uncertain whether audio-only calls might also make their way to the Mac inside OS X Mavericks. We'll no doubt hear more as both iOS and OS X's fall release dates approach.
Inclinometer: Previous versions of iOS brought software support for the gyroscope and accelerometer; now it looks like iOS 7 will get the latest in 3D space-tracking technology: an inclinometer.
What might such a software instrument do? An inclinometer, by default, measures the angle of slope/tilt with regards to gravity; as such, you may see more apps in the future that incorporate awareness of up and down movements, rather than just side to side.
My personal hope: Developers will find a way to use the inclinometer to track floors climbed, a la the Fitbit One. Granted, the One uses a physical altimeter (which measures altitude) to accomplish its stair-counting, but it's possible some enterprising developer will find a way to make the inclinometer work for fitness-tracking.
Improved notification sync and natural language: Not only will iOS 7 sport "dismiss once, dismiss everywhere" notification sync between your devices and computers, but Notification Center will also sport a Siri- and Google Now-inspired Today pane that gives you an overview of your day's activities—in natural language, at that.
This means that, instead of seeing a ticker of your calendar activities, your iPhone will write up a nice paragraph letting you know exactly what your day's activities might entail.
Activation lock: Another feature that Federighi touched on briefly during the keynote, Activation Lock prevents would-be iPhone thieves from wiping your device clean and selling it to the highest bidder (or using it themselves).
Now, when you lose your iPhone and are forced to remote wipe it, the iPhone will stay in Lost Mode. Your lock screen message will remain, and anyone who attempts to use the phone after a reset will be required to enter your iCloud username and password before it unlocks.
Weirdly, the "Forgot your password?" prompt will still be available under this login screen, so unless you want thieves trying to brute-force your iCloud account, it might be a good idea to enable two-factor authentication or make your password hints hard to guess before iOS 7's release.
Smarter, faster downloading: While neither of these features have concrete descriptions attached to them, Apple's iOS 7 additional features slide boasts both "smart download of TV episodes" and "scan to acquire Passbook passes" as upcoming perks for the operating system.
If I had to venture a guess, I'd suspect that "smart downloads" will involve the iTunes app automatically downloading TV shows you have a season pass for as soon as they're posted to the store. Scan to acquire, meanwhile, sounds like Passbook might be getting a built-in QR code scanner for acquiring passes; the "barcode scanning" developer API listed during Monday's keynote would seem to confirm this.
No more updates tab: If you were watching our live blog or the live stream, we know you probably already cheered over this, but just in case you missed it: No more having to manually update your apps. They'll instead download in the background.
At the keynote, Apple didn't specify whether you'll be able to turn off this feature; I know a few folks who might prefer to manually update their apps, so as not to automatically upgrade to a potentially buggy version.
Wi-Fi HotSpot 2.0: One of the more-technical terms on iOS 7's additional features slide, Wi-Fi HotSpot 2.0 automatically seeks out Wi-Fi subscriber services (for instance, AT&T's hotspot network for an AT&T iPhone subscriber) and joins them when you're in the area. In theory, this feature should provide you with faster Internet access and fewer bandwidth constraints.
Change visibility on AirDrop: Apple's support for AirDrop on iOS 7 is pretty nifty: You can transfer photos to a friend nearby over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth—no wires, physical bumps, or extraneous emails needed.
But did you know AirDrop can support other file types? According to Apple's website, the service will also support sending Passbook passes and contacts; given that there's also a third-party API for AirDrop, I suspect you'll also be able to transfer other third-party files very soon.
One nice AirDrop security feature: The service, by default, only lets your contacts see your device, but you can disable it altogether (or, alternatively, let everyone in the area see you).
New Maps features
Maps will get a new interface in iOS 7 (and will be able to talk to its new OS X counterpart), but there are also a few other new features coming to the app.
Turn-by-turn walking directions: If you like to walk, but aren't always familiar with your surroundings, Maps's new turn-by-turn directions for walkers should be a delight. (And yes, if you're like me, it'll keep you from having to pull out your phone every five minutes to check that you were indeed supposed to take that right turn.)
Night mode for Maps: I am constantly adjusting my phone's brightness when I use it as a nighttime navigator. As such, night mode for Maps sounds like it might be right up my alley; while Apple didn't display exactly how it might be implemented, a brightness slider or black/white mode would be much appreciated.
Maps bookmark syncing: iCloud has offered bookmarks syncing with Safari since its inception, but iOS 7 marks the first time you'll get sync for your Maps bookmarks, as well. So if you add your favorite sushi joint's address to your iPhone, rest assured it should show up on your Mac and iPad, too.
The iPhone is first and foremost a phone, so communication updates in iOS 7 would seem to be a no-brainer. What sort of small tweaks can we expect in the fall?
Smart Mailboxes and improved Mail search: iOS has never had access to your Mac's Smart Mailboxes, but from the looks of the additional features slide in Monday's keynote, that might soon change. (Might this also indicate that Smart Mailboxes will soon also be synced as part of iCloud? This reporter certainly hopes so.)
Improved mail search is certainly vague, but I would love it if this meant that you could select a Search All Folders option when looking for a message; currently, there's no such option, and you must instead go to the folder you want to search in, then perform your search.
Long MMS support: There's not much information on Long MMS on the Web, but after a quick chat with Macworld editors, Senior Editor Dan Moren postulates it might mean that traditional SMS messages might have a longer character count before being sent as MMS messages.
PDF annotations: According to the More Features slide, you may be able to display annotations to your PDFs by default. In what application, though? iBooks is my best guess, as it's currently iOS's default PDF reader. This might also bring with it PDF annotation tools, but we'll have to wait and see.
Chat options: According to Apple's website, the Contacts app will display the services you can use to chat with your friends next to their contact cards. Have a friend with an iMessage-enabled email address? You'll see icons for both iMessage and email next to that address.
Call blocking: Someone's repeatedly calling or messaging you that you'd rather not talk to? iOS 7 will have support for blocking those pesky email addresses and phone numbers.
Do not track: Safari on OS X has had a Do Not Track option for awhile, which prevents advertisers from tracking you as you browse the web. In iOS 7, it looks like mobile Safari will gain that same feature.
Photos and video improvements
What's new in the Photos and Camera app beyond what Apple previewed? A few cool features, actually.
No more Faces and Places: The era of face-tagging and photo-maps is over, at least for iOS. The Faces and Places tabs are no more on iOS, replaced instead with Moments and Collections. Both of these still seem to be focused around location, and Moments includes map data for individual places; unfortunately for those who loved tracking friendly faces, from the keynote it doesn't look like Faces will have a prominent place in iOS for the future.
True photo-sharing: Shared Photo Streams has always been a little one-sided: You could send photos to your friends, and they could send photos to you, but you'd each have to make a separate stream for the process. No longer: Streams can now be collaborative instead of just read-only, and they can have video, too. This is a feature I've been clamoring for since Shared Photo Stream's release last year, and am glad to see being implemented in iOS 7.
60fps video: If you love shooting high frame-rate video, you'll love Apple's new camera app, which purportedly shoots video at 60 frames per second. (Will there also be a 24fps and a 30fps setting? We'll see in the fall.)
Siri's new tricks
We've written a bit about new Siri features already, but here's the skinny: Siri has some new and improved voices in the U.S., Germany, and France; it has a new interface that hovers over the home screen rather than slides down on top of it; you can search Wikipedia, Twitter, and Bing inline (goodbye, Safari search!); and you can give it a bunch of new commands.
What kinds of commands? Things like asking it to play back your voicemail, return your calls, control your settings, change your music (or iTunes Radio), as well as any of the queries you're used to asking of the assistant.
In addition, if you pick up an automobile in 2014 that incorporates Apple's iOS in the Car features, it looks like Siri might take a page from Google Now's predictive travel book: iOS knows where you might be heading and gets you traffic info and predicted journey times.
International features
Like iOS 6 before it, iOS 7 offers a few nice region-specific features for international iOS users. The operating system will come with new dictionaries for Italian, Korean, and Dutch speakers, as well as a Chinese-English bilingual dictionary; handwriting recognition for multiple Chinese characters; and support for Chinese microblogging service Tencent Weibo.
Developer APIs
Apple stated at Monday's keynote that developers would gain access to over 1500 new developer APIs in iOS 7. Given that most of Macworld's readers aren't highly interested in this nitty-gritty, however, here are a few interesting ones we caught off the developer slide.
iBeacons: Apple's iBeacons, in technical speak, use the Bluetooth Low Energy profile for microlocation. In plain speak, this means your iOS device may be able to use Bluetooth 4.0 devices to collect precise location data—like your location inside of a building—even though those devices don't have a GPS system installed. That said, I don't claim to be a Bluetooth or microlocation scholar, and Apple's APIs are under the confidentiality agreement, so the actual implementation might be slightly different.
Background downloading: We heard mention of this during the keynote: In short, it allows your apps to download information for you at certain times of day, even if they're not actively running. In practice, this might allow your Twitter feed to download and cache tweets for you to read before you hop on the subway or sit in an airplane, sans Internet access.
Third-party game controllers: There are a few pseudo third-party controllers for iOS games already (the iCade, for one), but it looks like Apple plans to offer more expansive support for those wishing to connect third-party controllers to their iOS devices.
More Apple Maps in your third-party apps: There are some who would prefer that Apple's Maps stay far, far away from their third-party apps. But if you like Apple's implementation, you may see more of it in your other apps in the form of directions and "map snapshots."
Xcode 5: While not mentioned during the keynote, the next version of Apple's iOS and OS X app builder, Xcode 5, is around the corner. A developer preview is available today, with the full app presumably to be released later this year. You can read about Xcode's new features on Apple's website.
And many more…
This seems like a lot, and it is. But really, these are just the features I spotted during Monday's keynote and on Apple's iOS 7 website. This version of iOS is clearly a major release from the company, and I bet there's a whole bunch of interesting new stuff hidden away for us to discover when it actually ships this fall.
Updated at 9:45 p.m. PT to correct a statement about needing a password for downloading in the background. Updated at 1:45 a.m. PT to clarify that no beta software was used to write up information about iOS 7, and clarify wording on iOS in the Car.


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Here's How to Stop Facebook From Snooping in Your Web History
Today, the social-media giant announced it was adding targeted advertising based on browsing patterns.
This week, Facebook announced it was
expanding its evil empire adding targeted advertising based on your browsing history. Thankfully, they also give you the option to avoid it.
While Facebook's new advertising setup allows you more control over how they use your data, it also allows Facebook to collect more of your data. While you can limit your digital habits and some settings, your data and history are still being cached and shared. To keep your browsing history safe from Facebook's advertisers, you have to actively opt-out.
Here's how to do that.
Note: In order to do this, please turn off AdBlock Plus or any other program you may be running that disables cookies. If you clear your cookies regularly, you will need to repeat the opt-out process, every time you do so.
1. Go to Digital Advertising Alliance.
2. Find Facebook on the long list of "Companies Customizing Ads For Your Browser"
Be patient. The tool can take some time to scan your browser.
3. Check off the box for Facebook (and any other sites you don't want following you) and press "Submit your choices"
4. Bask in the glory of not being (even more) monitored by Facebook
Or you can just welcome our new Facebook overlords and accept their constant presence in your life. I browse dolphin websites a lot, Zuckerberg. Enjoy.


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Today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe Honda has less miles than the worlds worst jazz collection. Does that lack of use however, make its price a deal by a country mile?
Before we get to today's Civics class, let's review how yesterday's 1970 Checker Marathon with an OM617 faired. First off, let's check through the list of likables: Station wagon? Yes sir. Quirky but inoffensive styling? Yep. Diesel of the gods? You betcha! Only its lack of a stick shift kept that Checker from being a complete Jalopgasm, but it did trundle slowly off with a respectable 63% Nice Price win nonetheless.
You know who hasn't been winning lately? Honda, that's who. For whatever reason, the Japanese brand that for decades was seen as the builder of that island nation's most engaging cars, has somehow lost their mojo. I don't know why, perhaps they offended a gypsy or used the number 4 too much, but for the past few years every model introduction has seemingly been accompanied by a metaphorical whaaa-waaaa horn.
Explorer 2-Person Inflatable Kayak
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Nnjoy the water but don't want to deal with the hassle of traditional kayaks? This is portable, lightweight, and easy to store when not in use.
There was a time however when Honda was at the top of their game, and one of the products that put them there was the first generation Civic, as represented by today's jaw-droppingly low-mileage 1975 hatchback.
When Honda introduced the Civic for the 1973 model year, the car literally scared the crap out of American industry execs. Small but decently equipped and exceedingly well engineered, the Civic became the poster child for the proper response to OPEC oil embargoes, sort of an eff-you to all the Sheiks wishing to deny us our precious go-juice.
If the Civic was a hit, the CVCC engine introduced in 1975 was a grand slam home run. That 1,488-cc 55-bhp mill managed to meet even California's stringent emissions standards without a catalytic converter. Running cat-less lowered the car's cost and allowed it to run on either the then new-fangled unleaded, or good old - and at the time more commonly available - leaded gas.
That was accomplished through the use of a fairly complicated three-valve head with the third valve drawing a small rich mixture in close to the plug, allowing the main intake to pull a much leaner mixture in at the same time. This created the now famous stratified charge combustion and hence the name: Compound Vortex Controlled Combustion (CVCC).
This Orange '75 features the CVCC as well as Honda's 5-speed gearbox, which had been introduced the year prior. What's remarkable about this car is its pristine condition, as it is for all intents and purposes brand-freaking-new. There's only 345 miles on the clock, and nothing on the trip odo. That's right, this vinyl-capped Honda has yet to take its first trip!
Wait, you can reset the trip miles? Well, you can't do anything much about the main odo, that's the law, and with so few miles under its houndstooth belt, you're going to be unlikely to find another car in such pristine showroom shape.
That's all the more likely as these Civics did have the tendency to rust like nobody's business, and those living in areas where roads are seasoned with salt became so holier than thou that Honda was forced by the FTC to replace fenders on their own dime.
This one apparently was protected from the harmful elements by having been squirreled away for decades. The dealer - how the hell did this car end up at a dealer? - claims it to be a barn find, but I doubt that as it seems to be free of dust, marks from old paint cans having been left on it, and the expected mouse turd mountains that typically plague even the best of barn finds. I'm thinking this was more a museum find.
Who would buy such a beast? Well, obviously another museum would be a prime candidate, as would a weirdo who does things like wear clothes without removing the tags/pins/etc, and is saving a Twinkie from his youth for 'just the right moment.'
Aside from that, the very thing that makes this Civic so unique and apparently fosters the seller's thought that they can make a killing on it - its almost complete lack of use - would be sullied if it were pressed into typical service. Also it should be pointed out that such efforts to introduce into society a shut-in rarely if ever work out for the best.
With that in mind, and in consideration of this tidy orange Civic's $18,995 price tag, I think the prudent decision is to say oh what the hell and eat that Twinkie, I mean drive the car. To that end, the question is, could you find and restore another Civic to comparable condition at less than this price?
You decide!
Prestige Import, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to si4ws89 for the hookup!
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Rita Rudner
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Rita Rudner (born 17 September 1953) is an American comedian and writer.
- We did long for the pitter-patter of little feet, so we decided to buy a dog. Cheaper, and… get more feet.
- When Dr. Katz asks whether she and her husband have discussed children
- Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist, "Real Estate" [2.02], 29 October 1995
- I love being married, I do. It's so great to find that one special person that you want to annoy for the rest of your life.
- Best of the Improv, Vol. 3 (2003)
- Well, the old theory was "marry an older man because they're more mature". But the new theory is "men don't mature — marry a young one".
- Best of the Improv, Vol. 3 (2003)
Naked Beneath My Clothes (1992)[edit]
- To me, life is tough enough without having someone kick you from the inside.
- On pregnancy
- Essay 2: "How Can I Have Morning Sickness When I Don't Get Up 'Til Noon"?, p. 6[1]
- [One of my friends] was in labor for 36 hours. (I don't even want to do anything that feels good for 36 hours.)
- On childbirth
- Essay 2, p. 7[1]
- Envy the kangaroo. That pouch setup is extraordinary; the baby crawls out of the womb when it is about two inches long, gets into the pouch, and proceeds to mature. I'd have a baby if it would develop in my handbag.
- On pregnancy and childbirth
- Essay 2, p. 7-8[1]
- I don't even know how this word came into being: "aerobics". I guess gym instructors got together and said, "If we're going to charge ten dollars an hour, we can't call it 'jumping up and down'."
- Essay 4: "Survival of the Fattest", p. 18[1]
- Nobody is really happy with what's on their head. People with straight hair want curly, people with curly want straight, and bald people want everyone to be blind.
- Essay 7: "Should I Get My Head Analyzed or Just My Hair?", p. 24[1]
- Why are women wearing perfumes that smell like flowers to attract men? Men don't like flowers. I have a great idea for a scent that will attract men — how about "New Car Interior"?
- Essay 16: "Flirting with Success", p. 61[1]
- I had teeth that stuck out so far, I used to eat other kids' candy bars by accident.
- Essay 42: "Fillings Nothing … More Than Fillings", p. 151[1]


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Man recalls mother's strength in the face of the Holocaust
The reminders are scattered throughout Michael Gruenbaum's Brookline home of 41 years. On one wall, there's a framed slip of paper with German writing, and a 65-year-old teddy bear usually sits on a second-floor dresser.
Together, they trace a story of unlikely survival during the Holocaust.
"It's an amazing story," said Rebecca Elberding, an archivist at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. "It's a mother saving her children, and there's something very human and basic about that."
Gruenbaum, 79, said he was "elated" to hear that the Holocaust Memorial is featuring his late mother, Margaret, on the November page of its 2010 calendar. The museum will be mailing the 2010 Membership Calendar to members at the end of this month.
"She really deserved it," he said, fighting back tears. "She had a lot of energy, and a lot of perseverance, and that's why I'm here today."
In 1942, when Gruenbaum was 12, occupying German authorities deported him from Prague in what's now the Czech Republic to the Terezin concentration camp, along with Margaret and Michael's older sister, Marietta.
Earlier, Michael's father had been arrested by the Gestapo and killed.
Conditions at Terezin in the Czech Republic were harsh. Out of 140,000 people who passed through the camp, 34,000 died of disease and malnutrition, according to Edgar Krasa, a Newton resident and Terezin survivor who lectures about the camp.
More than 84,000 people were deported to other camps, mostly death camps in the East, Krasa said.
"Luckily, no one knew what was going on in the East," said Krasa, recalling the years he lived in Terezin before he was deported to Auschwitz in Poland. "Living with this [knowledge] for months and months would have been terrible."
Margaret, however, suspected that the situation was dire in the East. Shortly after being deported to Auschwitz, her sister-in-law had sent Margaret a letter with downward-sloping handwriting. In the code that the two of them had created, that meant that Margaret needed to try anything in order to stay at Terezin.
For the time being, Margaret kept busy. An artistic woman, she was put in charge of making teddy bears for the children of German soldiers.
In 1944, Margaret received a notice informing her that she and her children would be transported elsewhere.
It was the news she had dreaded.
Margaret sensed that she had to act quickly. She tracked down her work supervisor, a Dutch Jew, and told him about the notice.
Her supervisor, whose son played soccer with Michael, approached the German officer in charge of the department and made a bold request.
"If you want these teddy bears, you better pull this lady out of the transport," Michael Gruenbaum recalled the supervisor saying.
The move paid off. The officer signed a slip of paper excusing Margaret from the transport. At the request of Margaret's supervisor, he excused Michael and Marietta Gruenbaum as well. But their troubles were far from over.
The authorities at the camp were under orders to deport 1,000 people. But after making exemptions to people like the Gruenbaums, they had only 950. That meant the "protected" Jews who had been excused from the transports — including the Gruenbaums — were no longer protected.
The day of the transport, the Jews who had been given reprieves waited in three rooms in one of the camp's assembly buildings.
"First, they went to the room that was right next to the stairway," Gruenbaum said. "You could hear soldiers giving loud orders, and they had dogs barking, and it was quite a scene. And they pulled everybody out of that room and sent them on a train.
"Then they went to the second room, and they still had some more people that they had to get out. So they took some people out of that room.
"Suddenly it was quiet," Gruenbaum recalled, lowering his voice. "We could hear the train leave, and suddenly everybody realized that we were saved for another day. You never knew what the next day would bring, but for that day, at least, we were saved."
The following year, the Russians liberated Terezin, and the Gruenbaums were free. They stayed in Czechoslovakia for two more years. In 1947, Margaret attempted to move the family to the United States, but because of immigration quotas, they needed to stay in Cuba for two years.
When the three Gruenbaums arrived in New York Harbor in 1950, they saw boats spraying water in the air and assumed the boats were welcoming their freighter into the country.
"We thought, 'Boy, what a reception!'" Michael recalled. Soon, though, the immigrants on the ship learned that it was Independence Day in their new country.
"July 4th is a big, big day for me," Gruenbaum said. "It's the beginning of a new life, really."
Once in the United States, Gruenbaum started a new life as an engineer. He married his wife, Thelma, in 1956, and their three sons each attended Heath School and Brookline High.
In 2004, after more than a decade of interviewing survivors around the globe, Thelma Gruenbaum published "Nesarim, Child Survivors of Terezin." The book profiles the 10 survivors, including Michael, from a group of 40 boys who played soccer together at Terezin.
Last year, the eight living members of the group reunited in Prague, bringing with them their wives and nearly 50 children and grandchildren. Among the crew of former soccer buddies is the son of Margaret's supervisor — the one who saved the Gruenbaums from the transport. Michael and the supervisor's son remain in touch, and Michael is flying to New Mexico next month to visit him.
Amazingly, Michael said, the group's supervisor at the camp, who was about 20 years old at the time, is still in contact with each of them.
"He calls each one of us about once a week [or] every other week and wants to know what's going on," Michael said. "We are his children."
Wicked Local Brookline


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Data open doors to financial innovation
We'll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest San Francisco news every morning.
The exposed brick walls, open work benches and large flat screens in the San Francisco office of Sasha Orloff's start-up make it feel like any other trendy young Californian internet company. But Mr Orloff is not tinkering with the photo-sharing apps or other consumer trivia that litter the start-up landscape: his company, LendUp, has just joined the payday loans business.
A practice at the bottom of the lending scale that turns on advancing unsecured money to people with little or no credit standing, this is an industry whose more familiar public face is a ramshackle store with large dollar signs over the door.
Some of Silicon Valley's brightest think they have a better approach. By logging in with their Facebook details, LendUp's customers have the option of exposing their online social behaviour to its data-crunching algorithms. Watching how you behave online with your friends, according to the company, is a good indicator of how likely you are to repay a loan.
"The hypothesis is that strong social ties and community are a benchmark for responsibility," says Mr Orloff, a former credit analyst at Citibank. "Are you in your community, or are you dabbling here and there?" The stronger and more active your social connections, the more likely you are to get a loan.
As new sources of data multiply and the cost of collecting and processing it collapses, ideas like this are springing up all over the financial landscape. With its core products founded on information, the financial industry is more open to disruption from heavy-duty data-crunching techniques than most, according to investors who have flocked to the business.
"Everything [in finance] really springs from data," says Roger Ehrenberg, a former hedge fund manager at Deutsche Bank who now makes investments in so-called big data companies.
The falling costs of computing and communications lie behind the explosion in data that is triggering this upheaval. The founder of Progressive Insurance, a US car insurer, first dreamt of collecting information about his customers' individual driving habits to help with risk assessment in the late 1980s. It was only in 2010 that the idea became cost-effective: since then, more than 1m customers have installed devices in their cars that report back how abruptly they brake or whether they are heavy on the accelerator.
"The network of sensors is opening a universe of data that previously you couldn't get at," says Richard Hutchinson, general manager of usage-based insurance at Progressive.
The architecture of the open web has also contributed, making it easier for newcomers to ingest feeds of digital information. Drawing on APIs, or open interfaces, from companies such as eBay and PayPal, Kabbage, an online lender to small businesses in the US, says it can track "thousands of data elements" that help reveal the health of a customer's business. Through a special deal with UPS it also gets parcel shipment data. Throw in Facebook, and it has become possible to get a detailed sense of how a small business is faring,says Kathryn Petralia, chief operating officer: "You can measure the level of reciprocal engagement between a company and its customers."
In the consumer field, strict laws in the US limit the use of data like this to make credit decisions that might hurt particular groups of individuals. But that hasn't stopped the experimentation. Besides information from traditional credit-rating bureaus and social networks, LendUp mashes up many other public sources: if a customer has changed cellphone numbers multiple times, for instance, it is probably an indicator of weak social ties and hence a bad credit risk, says Mr Orloff.
Number crunching on an epic scale is not new to consumer finance. The credit card industry has been among the most advanced when it comes to using data for market segmentation and database marketing. Nor is there anything unusual about the idea of an interloper using superior data analysis techniques to carve out a significant slice of an established financial market: CapitalOne managed the feat in the 1990s, becoming one of the largest US credit card issuers.
The new technologies of big data, however, are threatening to level the playing field with even the most data-intensive incumbents. Companies like LendUp and Climate Corporation, which analyses weather patterns to price crop insurance for farmers, say they run frequent massive simulations with their data, using technology platforms that were purpose-built for heavy-duty number crunching. Rivals with legacy platforms may not be able to respond as quickly.
The technologies of the cloud have also lowered the economic barriers to competition, says Zach Bogue, a founder of Data Collective, another group that invests in big data companies. Rather than facing significant upfront capital spending, start-ups can now tap into the processing power of companies like Amazon on a pay-as-you-go basis, he says.
Core disciplines like risk management, credit assessment and consumer marketing are all being influenced by this rise of data-intensive applications. But the next frontier stands to be more disruptive, as big data usher in a new level of product differentiation.
Dynamic pricing – or using real time data to price services on the fly – points to one of the areas of greatest potential, according to many investors and entrepreneurs.
For instance, Wealthfront, an online investment manager, says it adjusts its clients' holdings frequently to recognise losses that bring tax benefits. The technique, known as tax-loss harvesting, is usually only practised at periodic intervals: turning the practice into a dynamic activity stands to add 1 per cent to investment returns, according to Andy Rachleff, chief executive.
Progressive is also looking at ways of applying real-time data to create better services, says Mr Hutchinson. "When you start capturing data on a per-second basis, the expansion of the data is immense."
Among the new ideas are utility-style pricing, under which drivers would be charged based on how often they use their vehicles, and insurance plans for car-sharing services that adjust the policy depending on who is using a car. As always in finance, such innovations are likely to come first from the most forward-looking companies with the best number-crunching skills. The challenge for the rest, as the pace of innovation accelerates, will be to keep up.


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DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES–(Marketwired – Nov 21, 2013) – Bombardier Aerospace today concluded a successful week at the 2013 Dubai Airshow, having announced firm orders and commitments for up to 38 aircraft valued at up to $2.01 billion US. With three of its industry-leading business and commercial aircraft on static display, as well as the CSeries aircraft's full-scale passenger cabin and cockpit demonstrator, the airshow was an excellent opportunity for the Company to showcase a selection of its innovative aircraft and broad range of services to clients and prospects in the Middle East and Africa.
Throughout the event, executives from Bombardier Commercial Aircraft were joined by customers for a series of announcements related to its Q400 NextGen and CSeries aircraft programs. Air Cote d'Ivoire, Palma Holding Limited, Nok Air and Abu Dhabi Aviation signed firm orders and commitments for up to 22 Q400 NextGen turboprops, and Bombardier also confirmed that Nok Air was the launch customer for an extra capacity seating option that will allow the Q400 NextGen aircraft to accommodate up to 86 passengers. Alongside representatives from the governments of Canada and Northern Ireland, Bombardier also announced that Iraqi Airways signed a letter of intent for up to 16 CS300 aircraft, bringing the total number of orders and commitments for CSeries aircraft to 419.
Additionally, on November 18, Boeing announced that it had selected Bombardier's Challenger 605 business jet as the platform for its Maritime Surveillance Aircraft program on the basis of, among others, the aircraft's payload capacity, range and speed.
As part of its ongoing commitment to customer service, Bombardier further expanded its support services in Africa by welcoming Ethiopian Airlines as an Authorized Service Facility (ASF) for commercial aircraft on the continent. The airline can now perform line and heavy maintenance on Q400 and Q400 NextGen turboprop aircraft under the Bombardier ASF banner, and its maintenance facility joins a worldwide network of more than 60 facilities authorized to work on Bombardier commercial and business aircraft. Separately, Bombardier also announced that it had signed an eight-year repair agreement with Oman Air to undertake all repair work on Rolls-Royce Trent 700 inlet cowls for the carrier's fleet of Airbus A330 aircraft.
About Bombardier
Bombardier is the world's only manufacturer of both planes and trains. Looking far ahead while delivering today, Bombardier is evolving mobility worldwide by answering the call for more efficient, sustainable and enjoyable transportation everywhere. Our vehicles, services and, most of all, our employees are what make us a global leader in transportation.
Bombardier is headquartered in Montreal, Canada. Our shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (BBD) and we are listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America Indexes. In the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012, we posted revenues of $16.8 billion. News and information are available at bombardier.com or follow us on Twitter @Bombardier.
Notes to editors
Follow @Bombardier_Aero on Twitter to receive the latest news and updates from Bombardier Aerospace.
Please visit Bombardier's Web site dedicated to its activities at the Dubai Airshow: airshows.bombardier.com.
Bombardier, Challenger 605, CS300, CSeries, NextGen, Q400 and The Evolution of Mobility are trademarks of Bombardier Inc. or its subsidiaries.
Contact Information
Haley Dunne
Bombardier Aerospace


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- Water Resistance
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- Weight
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The Pioneer Spirit Lives On
The Pioneer Spirit Lives On
Historically, Longines has accompanied legendary pioneers as they conquer air, land and sea. Today, the winged hourglass brand has drawn inspiration from this heritage to create Longines Spirit, a collection with an impeccable pedigree. This collection links history with innovation by combining references to the glory days of aviation with present-day aesthetic and technical requirements. These resolutely contemporary timepieces are a testimony to the pioneering spirit that has inspired the brand since its earliest days. A glowing tribute to these exceptional men and women who, by a record, an exploit or a display of courage, have left their mark on history - pushing new generations to surpass themselves.
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Methodology: How we chose the best life insurance companies for high cholesterol
We don't get paid for our company reviews and use an extensive rubric of criteria covering policy details, price, financial confidence, third-party ratings, and customer experience to assign unbiased ratings out of five stars. Any recommendations we make are based on internal and external expert opinions and data from our Policygenius Price Index, which uses real-time rate data from leading life insurance companies to determine pricing trends.
Our ratings and reviews can help point you to an insurer you can rely on for your family's financial protection, but the best life insurance company for you is dependent on multiple factors. A licensed agent at Policygenius can work with you through the application process so you're getting coverage from the best insurer for your circumstances at the most competitive price.


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Srikhandi Surname Ancestry Results
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