text:
Arizona Governor Doug Ducey has vetoed a bill that would declare that inside the borders of Arizona, the term “animal” does not include livestock – and thusly ends our fun with the semantics lesson for the day … we hope … sincerely.

CAN WE ALL AGREE TO JUST CALL THINGS WHAT THEY ARE? K, THANKS.

The Colour Rainbow

H.B. 2150 sought to change the label given to livestock, which would have effectively put them in a weaker class of protective statutes. The bill also would have eliminated the crimes of “abandonment” and “medical neglect” for livestock and poultry, stripped municipalities and counties of their right to promulgate stronger animal welfare protection, and required that the Department of Agriculture must be notified prior to any investigation of reported livestock abuse, which would have slowed down and undermined law enforcement work.

“I know we all agree that animal cruelty is inexcusable, unacceptable, and absolutely will not be tolerated in the state of Arizona,” Ducey said in his veto letter. “No animal should be the victim of abuse. Moreover, perpetrators must be held to account and properly penalized to the fullest extent of the law.”

CRISIS AVERTED!

Ckricket

Public outcry against the bill was fierce; Ducey’s voicemail box filled up with messages voicing opposition before the bill had even reached his desk. Once the story got out, people from all across the country reached out to urge the Governor not to allow this to stand. At last count, nearly 20,000 people contacted his office!

Making our voices heard is the best way to ensure that the will of the people is taken into account when it comes to this type of legislation, and this scenario is proof positive that it can garner results.

While opponents of the bill are happy that such a misguided and poorly worded statute won’t be hitting the books, not everyone was satisfied with Governor Ducey’s decision. The bill’s primary sponsor, Brenda Barton, took to her Twitter account repeatedly on the day of the appeal in an effort to slam the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), one of the most vocal groups in opposition of the bill.

MAN, THESE GRAPES ARE SOUR. MAYBE IF WE RENAME THE GRAPES THEY WON’T TASTE SO BAD?

Twitter

In the meantime, livestock can now continue to eat at the table with the cool kids (in this instance, dogs and cats) since they get to keep calling themselves animals and all. While cows were unavailable for comment at the time the story went to press, we’re pretty sure they’d like to thank Governor Ducey for doing the right thing and for letting them be referred to as, you know, what they actually are.

We mean, really, it’s not like they didn’t have enough problems with being called “burgers” and “steaks” all the time, they surely didn’t need further name confusion, are we right?

_Lead image source: HD Wallpapers Inn_

question: What is H.B. 2150?

answer: A bill that states that by law, livestock are not considered as animals.

question: How does H.B. 2150 change the way the law treats livestock?

answer: Livestock are chickens, cows, and any other animal grown for livestock purposes. By making them separate from animals, all laws that protect animals no longer apply to them.

question: What was the reaction of the public towards H.B. 2150?

answer: There was a public outcry against it. About 20,000 people reached out to the Governor voicing their opposition to to the bill. When the bill was not going to be turned into a law, the primary sponsor of the bill, Brenda Barton used her Twitter account against the Humane Society of the United States.

question: Is there any advantage to having the bill?

answer: Based on the information presented in the article, there are no advantage that can be inferred from having the bill.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: A bill that would declare livestock as separate from 'animal' is vetoed by Arizona Governor Doug Gucey in reaction to a massive public outcry against it. The bill would effectively remove animal rights from livestock -thus allowing abuse to happen by making it difficult to investigate, prosecute, and ultimately, prevent.


split: train

text:
The first day of the revolution was not a happy one.

Many of my neighbors were grey with anxiety as we lined up outside City Hall. It had been less than an hour since the military police had thrown down their weapons and surrendered. About a dozen men emerged from the destroyed police station with their arms raised. None were spared. For many of my friends, it was their first time committing murder. You could see it on their faces. Their lips quivered and their eyes sunk under the weight of their Catholic guilt. Despite all their talk, my friends did not yet have the stomach for murder. But I did.

There are many reasons why I was the de facto leader that day as we marched on City Hall. I had always been vocal dissident. I had lost my family and my farm to the regime. There was an American reporter in the village and I spoke the best English. Despite this, I suspect that I was able to lead because I was the only one in the village who had killed before. The thought makes my mouth go dry, but I fear it is true. Numbness to violence may be all a leader needs.

When we arrived at City Hall, I had the men of the town form an orderly line in front of the building. They stood ready with makeshift weapons; mostly gardening equipment. The men who had not fired a shot at the police station were placed closest to the door. They needed to share the responsibility of the revolution. They needed to taste murder.

The mayor and his staff did not leave the building immediately. My friends and neighbors grew impatient under the Latin American sun that beat down on them. I heard them muttering to each other, “Why don’t we drag them out?” or “Can’t we just burn this building down?” I continued to wait. It would be better this way.

After some time, the mayor emerged. He exited the building alone but, as he closed the doors behind him, we could see his staff waiting inside with terrified faces. I stood closest to the door, away from the ranks of townspeople standing before the building. The mayor dabbed the sweat from his light-brown forehead and approached me. He was dressed in his best clothes. I had forgotten that it was Sunday.

As the fat man came to a stop before me, I addressed him by his fist name, “Good afternoon, Guillermo.”

“And to you, Señor Alvaro,” he replied in a calm, subdued voice.
The only other man near us was the American reporter. He scribbled in his notepad, trying to translate despite his weak grasp on the Spanish language.

“It is a lovely day, isn’t it,” the mayor said, as if to himself.

“They are waiting,” I said, pointing to the crowd.

“They do not look very eager, Señor Alvaro. They seem more afraid than I am.”

“Then I will give them strength. That is what a true leader does.”

“A true leader,” Guillermo said thoughtfully. “Tell me, Señor Alvaro, are there any members of the military police still alive?”

I shook my head.

“Once the capital hears of this, they will burn this village to the ground. No amount of leadership can save you from their army. They will destroy each of those men and their farms. They will rape their wives and slaughter their children.”

“These are desperate times, Guillermo. You have pushed us to this level.”

Guillermo nodded sadly. “I am sorry you think that.” The mayor looked up at the gentle clouds and asked, “Is there any way I could convince you to spare the rest of the men in City Hall?”

I shook my head again.

“I didn’t think so.” Guillermo sighed before speaking again. “Very well. Give me a moment to prepare myself and I will go.”

“The people have waited long enough,” I said. “You go now.”

“You arrogant child,” Guillermo said, looking at me with scorn, “thinking you can command a dead man.”

The mayor looked at the crowd for a few seconds. Nobody spoke. Even the wind was silent.

“Are you ready?” I asked after almost a minute had gone by.

“No,” Guillermo said. “But I will go anyway. I encourage you to spare the rest of the men in City Hall. The army may be more lenient if you make this compromise.”

“There will be no compromise,” I declared with conviction. “Maybe greed has corrupted your judgment, Guillermo, but we will not show compassion for evil men. As long as we fight for a just cause, no army in the world can defeat us. That is something you can never understand.”

He did not look at me with disgust, anger, or disdain. Looking into his eyes, I saw sadness.

“Tanto orgullo,” he said to me. “Te destruirá, hijo.”

Without another word, he walked towards the crowd. The men raised their weapons, but none wanted to take the first swing. The mayor did not slow. It looked as if he would walk right through the crowd. At last, one man brought a shovel down on Guillermo’s head. He fell to one knee as blood shot from the wound. Another man struck him in the side and the mayor was on his back. The mob began to form a circle around him.

“What was the last thing he said?” the American reporter said behind me.

“Such pride,” I said as I watched the bloodlust spread through the crowd. “It will destroy you, child.”

title: Such Pride (<900 words)

question: Why does the narrator want his followers to kill?

answer: He thinks they need to kill to share in the responsibility of the revolution. Psychologically speaking, committing such an act would also ensure they are a lot less likely to give up the cause in the future.

question: Why is the narrator leading the revolution?

answer: He thinks it's mostly because he has killed before and has the necessary cruelty to lead a violent revolution. There are a few minor reasons like his English being good as well.

question: Explain the mayor's last comment.

answer: He says the narrator's complete disdain for compromise is arrogant, and it will eventually hurt him a lot more than it helps. Such a severe lack of diplomacy usually ensures one's enemies also dig in.

question: Why aren't the general populace more willing to kill in the name of the revolution?

answer: They are new to murder. It's normal to feel uneasy about it even if it's for their own freedom.

question: Write a ~10 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator leads his neighbors toward the City Hall, an hour after the military police had surrendered. None of them were spared. His neighbors and friends looked guilty, having committed murder for the first time. He thinks he's the leader of the local revolution because he killed before. He also thinks his followers need to kill to share in the revolution. They wait for the mayor to get out on his own, and he eventually does. He asks the narrator to spare the other men inside City Hall, cautioning him about the army, saying they will crush the little village when they hear about the revolution. The narrator is adamant that there will be no compromise. The mayor proclaims that the narrator's pride will destroy him and starts walking toward the crowd. After a bit of hesitation, the pitchforks and shovels start hitting him.


text:
_THE LOVE HAS NEVER GONE: TRIBUTE TO EARTH, WIND & FIRE_ is a tribute album to the R&B band Earth, Wind & Fire by jazz group the Lenny White Project which was released in 2004 upon Trauma Records.[1]

Overview

With Kaz Hori as its executive producer, the album was also co-produced by Dave Burrell and Lenny White altogether.[2]

Track listing

1.  “Evil” (Bailey, White) 4:51
2.  “Fantasy” (Barrio, White, White) 8:46
3.  “Earth, Wind & Fire” (Scarborough, White) 7:06
4.  “After the Love Has Gone” (Champlin, Foster, Graydon) 7:49
5.  “See the Light” (Bailey, Dunn, Hardy) 7:11
6.  “Runnin'” (DelBarrio, Dunn, White) 5:44
7.  “Spirit” (Dunn, White) 6:23
8.  “Getaway” (Cor, Taylor) 6:59

Personnel

-   Steve Boyer - Engineer
-   Dave Burrell - Producer
-   Kaz Hori - Executive Producer
-   Bireli Lagrene - Guitar
-   Antoine Roney - Saxophone
-   Wallace Roney - Trumpet
-   Vanessa Rubin - Vocals
-   Patrice Rushen - Arranger
-   Kelvin Sholar - Arranger
-   Lenny White - Arranger, Drums, Producer
-   Scott Young - Assistant Engineer

[1]

[2]

title: The Love Has Never Gone: Tribute to Earth, Wind & Fire

question: Who is the song by?

answer: The song is by the jazz group, the Lenny White Project.

question: Who produced the song?

answer: The song's executive producer was Kaz Hori and it was also co-produced by Dave Burrell and Lenny White.

question: When was the song released?

answer: 2004

question: Who is the song dedicated to?

answer: The song is dedicated to the R&B band Earth, Wind & Fire.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer:
Love Has Never Gone is a tribute album to the R&B band Earth, Wind & Fire. The song is by the jazz group Lenny White Project and was released in 2004.

Kaz Hori is the song's executive producer and it was co-produced by Dave Burrell and Lenny White.


text:
image copyrightReuters

image captionThere have been anti-government protests in Bamenda in recent months

THREE WEEKS AFTER REPORTS THAT CAMEROON HAD BLOCKED THE INTERNET IN ENGLISH-SPEAKING PARTS OF THE COUNTRY, RESIDENTS SAY SERVICES HAVE YET TO BE RESTORED. SO WHAT IS GOING ON?

Cameroonians have little doubt that pulling the plug on internet services for about 20% of the population is an intentional act by the government.

The two regions affected, South-West and North-West, have seen anti-government protests in recent months.

Just a day before services disappeared, the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications issued a statement in which it warned social media users of criminal penalties if they were to "issue or spread information, including by way of electronic communications or information technology systems, without any evidence".

The statement also confirmed that the authorities had sent text messages direct to mobile phone subscribers, notifying them of penalties, including long jail terms, for "spreading false news" via social media.

A number of Cameroonians have posted screenshots on Twitter showing the various warnings they were sent.

There has been no official comment about the internet since then (or any credible reports of technical faults) leading many Cameroonians to conclude that the severing of services is part of government attempts to stifle dissent.

What do the mobile phone companies say?

In criticising their government, some Cameroonians have also taken aim at the mobile phone companies who provide the services through which many access the internet.

These firms may not have been able to prevent the outage, since they all rely on fibre-optic infrastructure provided by a state-owned company, but nor have they been objecting publicly about the interruption to their services.

The biggest provider, MTN Cameroon, denied it had violated customer privacy by forwarding the ministry's warning texts and added that all its services remained accessible. That was on 15 January and since then it has not commented.

Some subscribers say they have since received messages referring to "circumstances beyond our control".

There has been no comment by Orange Cameroun, Nexttel or Vodafone Cameroon.

What has been the effect of cutting internet services?

Much of Cameroon's digital economy is located around the South-West capital, Buea - an area known as Silicon Mountain.

Some entrepreneurs and their workforces are reported to have relocated temporarily to Douala or Yaounde where the internet is available.

Less mobile, digital-dependent businesses will be suffering.

The outage is also reported to have hit the banking system, causing cashflow problems for businesses and individuals.

A week ago campaign group Internet Sans Frontieres estimated that blocking access to the internet over the previous two weeks had cost businesses up to $723,000 (£570,000).

That may not sound very much now, but the long-term cost of damaging the area's digital ecosystem could be very much higher.

And then there are the unquantifiable social costs entailed in cutting channels of communication and entertainment.

The United Nations has said internet access is now a basic human right. Cameroonians with access to Twitter have been tweeting their opposition to the outage using the hashtag #BringBackOurInternet.

Why is this an issue only in English-speaking areas?

It follows a period of rising tensions in which long-held grievances of English speakers against the government have erupted into protests and strikes.

The protesters say that Anglophones are discriminated against by Cameroon's French-speaking majority.

Last November, more than 100 people were arrested and at least one person was shot dead in demonstrations over the use of French in courts and schools.

In January, lawyers and teachers in Bamenda went on strike over the issue, turning the main city in Cameroon's North-West region into a ghost town.

image captionNorth-West and South-West are Cameroon's two English-speaking regions

The government responded by arresting activists and warning against protests and "malicious use of social media".

English speakers in Cameroon say they are often excluded from top civil service jobs and that many government documents are published only in French, even though English is an official language.

English-speaking lawyers object to the employment of French-trained court workers who do not understand the English common law system.

Residents also object to the posting of teachers who do not speak good English to the region's schools.

Why is the country divided along language lines?

The official language or languages of African nations are usually a legacy of their colonial past.

Cameroon was colonised by Germany in the 19th Century and then split into British and French areas after World War One.

Later, areas controlled by Britain and France joined to form Cameroon after the colonial powers withdrew in the 1960s.

In 1961, a referendum was held in the previously British areas - Southern Cameroons voted in favour of joining a unitary Cameroonian state, while Northern Cameroons decided instead to become part of neighbouring, English-speaking Nigeria.

A secessionist movement, the Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC), emerged in the 1990s and has been banned.

How widespread are internet shutdowns in Africa?

There have been many other partial or full internet shutdowns by African governmentsin the past 12 months, including in Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Morocco and Uganda.

This is generally seen as an attempt to stop opposition activists from using social media to mobilise protests, although governments say it is to prevent violence, or to stop people circulating false election results.

Human rights groups have said such action probably violates international law and should "never be allowed to become the new normal".

Deji Olukotun, senior global advocacy manager at Access Now, said in December: "As more people use the internet and social media, they are also increasingly enjoying the freedom and opportunity these provide to organise themselves and advocate for what they want.

"In response, it seems governments are shutting down the net more often to stop this practice."

-   Cameroon
-   Internet
-   Censorship

-   -   -

question: Why is there a language divide in Cameroon?

answer: It's an artifact of their colonial heritage. The area was occupied by the French and English. The English-speaking portion's one half decided to join also English-speaking Nigeria while the other one formed the nation of Cameroon by joining the French-speaking side.

question: Summarize the official statements regarding the internet outage by the Cameroon government.

answer: They claim to have acted in this way to prevent violence and stop the proliferation of false election results as well as preventing "fake news" on social media.

question: Summarize the legality of the internet outage.

answer: While each sovereign nation can decide whether cutting the internet is legal or not, the united nations regard internet access as a basic human right.

question: Briefly explain the concerns of the English-speaking Cameroonians.

answer: They want the state to accommodate English-speaking citizens. They claim to be overlooked for higher official positions, state documents being published only in French, and being assigned teachers who can't speak English well.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: It's been three weeks since Cameroon cut internet access in English-speaking parts of the country. There were official warnings and SMS messages to individuals in the region, warning them about long jail times and other penalties for "spreading false news" via social media. The affected region had outbreaks of protests regarding the state's neglect toward its English-speaking citizens such as limiting promotions, French-only state documents, officials, and teachers who can't speak English well.


text:
LARRY DWIGHT HALL is a longtime member of the North Carolina House of Representatives who was appointed in 2017 to the position of Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs by Governor Roy Cooper.[1]

A Democrat, he has served in the North Carolina House of Representatives as the member from North Carolina's 29th House district, Durham, North Carolina, since 2006. Hall was first appointed to the position in 2006 by then-Governor Mike Easley. District 29 is the home of North Carolina Central University, Duke University, Durham Technical Community College, Lincoln Community Health Center, the historic Black Wall Street, the American Tobacco Historic District, and the Durham Performing Arts Center.

Hall is chair of the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus Scholarship Foundation and served as an officer in the United States Marine Corps.

Biography

Larry D. Hall is currently serving as the Secretary for the North Carolina Department of Military & Veterans Affairs. Secretary Hall represented Durham County, North Carolina's 29th District in the House of Representatives, since 2006 and he led House Democrats since 2012. Born and raised in his district and a student of public schools, Secretary Hall earned a B.S. with Honors in Political Science and Business from Johnson C. Smith University and a J.D. from the School of Law at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Upon undergrad graduation, he was commissioned as an Officer in the United States Marine Corps. A decorated officer, Secretary Hall served 16 years in the United States Marines and Marine Corps Reserves and served in the support of the Operations in the Middle East in Lebanon and Iran.

Hall has been awarded the Navy Achievement Medal, the Marine Corps Reserve Medal, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal, and a Meritorious Unit Citation from the United States Marine Corps. He served as a Rifle Platoon Commander, Weapons Company Executive Officer, Training Officer, Battalion Area Security Officer, Staff Judge Advocate, Communications Security Officer and Logistics Officer. Secretary Hall also served as Legal Officer and was formerly Commandant for the Marine Corps League Detachment, which assists Marines transitioning from active duty to civilian life in locating employment, housing and educational opportunities for their families.

Secretary Hall is an active member of the community. He has served as an Executive Committee Member and Economic Committee Chairman of the Durham Branch of the NAACP, as Secretary and Chairman of the Durham Business and Professional Chain, and served on the Durham Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. He has also served as Executive Officer of the Young Marines Program, Board Chairman of the Durham Companions Mentor Program, and as an instructor and training officer teaching youth leadership, discipline, custom, courtesies, and traditions of the Marine Corps.

Secretary Hall's service to North Carolina continues to be merited, receiving the NAACP's President's Award, Equality in Legislation Leadership Award, and Excellence from the Courtroom to the Capital Community Service Award. Secretary Hall has been featured multiple times in Governing magazine and has been honored as a Champion of NC Working Families, a 100% Environmental Champion, and a Defender of Justice for his commitment to safeguarding voting rights, expanding opportunities throughout the state for individuals and communities of low incomes, and protecting vulnerable families and members of the military from predatory lending.

As House Democratic Leader, Secretary Hall served on the state's Economic Development Board, the state's Innovation Council, The North Carolina Courts Commission—Chairperson, The Duke Medical Center Advisory Board, the Homeland Security, Military, and Veterans Affairs Committee—Chairman, and has been inducted as a Toll Fellow by the National Conference of State Governments. He was elected to the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) 2015 Board of Directors to devise and execute nationwide election strategy in state legislatures. Secretary Hall also is Chair of the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus Foundation.[2]

Secretary Hall has received many awards and recognitions, including the Outstanding Service Award from the Alliance of North Carolina Black Elected Officials, the Keeper of the Flame Award from the Durham UNCF Steering Committee, the Green Tie Award and the Joe Award from the North Carolina League of Conservation Voters, the Friend of Education Award from the North Carolina Association of Educators, the Legislative Leadership Award from Equality NC and the Political Achievement Award from the African American Caucus of the Wake County Democratic Party.

Notes

[1] WRAL: Cooper adds veteran lawmaker, Medicaid expert to cabinet

[2] https://www.milvets.nc.gov/secretary-larry-d-hall

title: Larry Hall (North Carolina politician)

question: What does the text say about Larry Dwight Hall's constituents?

question: What does the text say about why Hall was appointed to the position of Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs by Governor Cooper?

answer: Hall was appointed to the position because he knows what it means to be a U.S. military veteran. He served as an officer in the United States Marine Corps for 16 years in the support of Operations in the Middle East, namely Lebanon and Iran. Hall is a decorated Marine having been awarded the Navy Achievement Medal, the Marine Corps Reserve Medal, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal, and a Meritorious Unit Citation from the United States Marine Corps.

question: What does the text say about Hall's other services to North Carolina that have been merited by the community?

answer: Secretary Hall received the NAACP's President's Award, Equality in Legislation Leadership Award, and Excellence from the Courtroom to the Capital Community Service Award. He was been honored as a Champion of NC Working Families, a 100% Environmental Champion, and a Defender of Justice for his commitment to safeguarding voting rights.


text:
WASHINGTON -- Four Democratic super PACs announced in a joint statement on Friday that they had raised a combined $25 million in the second quarter of 2012. The groups -- Priorities USA Action, Majority PAC, House Majority PAC, and American Bridge 21st Century/American Bridge 21st Century Foundation -- increased their fundraising by two and a half times from their first-quarter haul.

Priorities announced on Friday that it had raised $6 million in June, pushing its second-quarter fundraising number to $11.7 million to lead the four Democratic super PACs. The Senate-focused Majority PAC raised $5.4 million, House Majority PAC raised $4.3 million and American Bridge 21st Century raised $4.1 million.

"Karl Rove, the Koch Brothers, and their right wing allies are preparing to spend overwhelming amounts of money to flood Washington with supporters of their extreme agenda," the groups said in their joint statement. "Together we're ensuring that Democrats will have the resources to level the playing field and fight back against the right's attacks in order to keep the White House, maintain a majority in the Senate and take back the House.”

A _New York Times Magazine_ article recently detailed the extent to which Priorities USA Action has ramped up its fundraising operation in recent months. That has included a renewed push for big-dollar donors giving $500,000 or more. According to the _Times_ article, and confirmed by The Huffington Post, Priorities has received commitments of $20 million in future contributions.

As of Friday, three of the four super PACs had yet to file their second quarter reports (or in the case of Priorities USA Action, which files monthly, the report for the month of June). Those reports will help illuminate the donors who are powering the surge in fundraising for the Democratic super PACs.

One bright sign for the super PACs came in a disclosure by the joint fundraising vehicle Unity 2012, which raises money for Priorities, Majority PAC and House Majority PAC. The disclosure, released on Friday, showed a $1 million contribution from Haim Saban, a Hollywood producer best known for the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Saban, a major Democratic donor in the past, was seen as being on the fence this year, as he had been critical of Obama's policy towards Israel. Saban's $1 million contribution has been split three ways by the groups connected to Unity 2012.

House Majority PAC is one of the two super PACs that has disclosed all of its contributions for the second quarter. The group received big contributions from many now-familiar faces in Democratic super PAC donor circles.

These include $750,000 from Donald Sussman, a hedge fund investor and husband to Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine); $500,000 each from famed hedge fund investor James Simons and Amber Mostyn, wife of trial lawyer Steve Mostyn; $250,000 from heiress Anne Earhart and the Laborers' International Union, each; and smaller but still substantial contributions from AFSCME ($105,000), SEIU ($71,000), DRIVE PAC ($50,000) and Kareem Ahmed ($50,000), a major donor to Priorities USA Action.

American Bridge 21st Century, the opposition research depot created by Media Matters head David Brock, raised $2.8 million in the second quarter of this year. Nearly one-third of that money came in the form of a $1 million contribution by billionaire financier and right-wing bogeyman George Soros. The group also received big contributions from Amy Goldman ($250,000), Lee Fikes ($150,000), Win McCormack ($150,000) and Wayne Jordan ($150,000). The group's sister nonprofit -- American Bridge 21st Century Foundation -- raised $1.3 million in the second quarter, but is not required to disclose its donors.

The Senate-focused Majority PAC pulled in big contributions from media magnate Fred Eychaner ($800,000), the public employee union AFSCME ($500,000), the ophthamology company Vitreo-Retinal Consultants ($400,000), National Air Traffic Controllers Union ($350,000), American Federation of Teachers ($300,000) and the law firm McHugh & Wilkes ($250,000).

The Democratic groups are still likely to be outraised by their counterparts on the Republican side. The pro-Mitt Romney Restore Our Future is expected to report a $10 million contribution from billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, in addition to other contributions. American Crossroads, the Karl Rove-linked super PAC, is likely to raise millions more, and the Congressional Leadership Fund could also equal or surpass its Democratic rivals.

BELOW, A LIST OF TOP SUPER PAC DONORS IN THE 2012 ELECTION CYCLE:

PHOTO GALLERY

Donors Giving $500,000-Plus To Super PACs

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question: What is the year this article is about?

answer: 2012

question: What is the main topic of this article?

answer: The main topic of this article is about Democratic super PACs.

question: According to the article, which four super PACs combined raised $25 million?

answer: Priorities USA Action, Majority PAC, House Majority PAC, and American Bridge 21st Century/American Bridge 21st Century Foundation

question: Who did the Democratic super PACs say was "preparing to spend overwhelming amounts of money..."

answer: Karl Rove, the Koch Brothers, and their right wing allies.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The main topic of this article is about Democratic super PACs. Priorities USA Action, Majority PAC, House Majority PAC, and American Bridge 21st Century/American Bridge 21st Century Foundation together raised $25 million in the second quarter of 2012.


text:
The CLEVELAND CONVENTION CENTER LABOR DISPUTE OF 1963 was a dispute between the United Freedom Movement (UFM) and four local unions belonging to the AFL-CIO over the unions' institutional racism against African Americans. The dispute occurred during the construction of the Cleveland Convention Center in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. The dispute erupted on June 25, 1963, when the UFM (a coalition of African American civic groups and their supporters) threatened to begin picketing the convention center construction site. After a series of preliminary stop-gap agreements, a final agreement was reached on July 20 in which the unions agreed to admit blacks as members. This agreement collapsed within four days, and a new, more extensive agreement was reached on August 4 after intervention by the United States Department of Labor. Difficulties ensued implementing this agreement, but the threat of picketing ended on September 15. The August 4 agreement was hailed by civil rights groups and the government as a breakthrough in race relations in the American labor movement.

Approving a convention center in 1960

After four years of effort, the Cleveland City Council approved on June 6, 1960, construction of a $10 million ($ in dollars), convention center beneath the northern sections of the Cleveland Mall. The project also included a reception pavilion, which would be erected against the west side of the existing Public Auditorium.[1] On November 9, 1960, Cleveland voters approved the bond levy to build this convention center.[2]

Groundbreaking for the convention center occurred on July 17, 1961,[3] and site preparation began on July 19.[4] The foundation neared completion on May 25,[5] and the underground convention center's floor and walls were completed at the end of July 1962.[6] Structural work on the exhibit hall, roof, and reception pavilion began in August 1962.[7][8]

Structural steel for the roof began arriving in the spring of 1963.[9] Work was progressing so well, in May 1963 construction officials estimated that the convention center—whose total cost was now estimated at $14 million ($ in dollars)—would be completed in August 1964.[10] The roof of the convention center began to be erected in early summer.[11]

Conflict erupts

On June 24, 1963, the United Freedom Movement (UFM), a local civil rights organization, announced it would begin picketing the convention center construction site within five to seven days.[12] The issue was racism: Some labor unions, which controlled all the work at the site through what was effectively a closed shop,[13] refused to permit African Americans as members.[14] The UFM and NAACP[15] pointed out that there were just 27 African Americans at work on the site out of a total workforce of 300. The Cleveland Community Relations Board, supported by Cleveland Mayor Ralph S. Locher, Chamber of Commerce president Curtis Lee Smith, and Cleveland Federation of Labor president Patrick J. O'Malley, met with UFM representatives on Friday, June 28, in attempt to head off Monday's picketing.[16] At the meeting, the UFM demanded that four unions which had no African American members—Electricians' Local 38, Plumbers Local 55, Sheet Metal Workers Local 65, and Structural Iron Workers Local 17—hire minority workers immediately.[17] The four unions claimed they were not discriminating, but simply could not find workers qualified to pass the licensure tests required by union rules.[18] The talks failed, and it was unclear if the UFM would picket prior to the next planned meeting, on July 11.[19][20]

On July 2, plumbing contractor Smith & Oby Co. agreed to hire to black plumbers from the union list. Plumbers Local 55 agreed to meet on July 19 to screen applicants.[21] Cleveland Urban League executive director Ernest C. Cooper called the decision a “major breakthrough”, a “decision [that] would set a national precedent”.[22] The UFM and unions continued to meet daily until July 14. While the Iron Workers pledged to put African Americans on the job, the plumbers and electrical workers only pledged to screen applicants for union membership. Mayor Locher admitted that this was not progress. As the UFM called for “thousands” picketers to show up at the site on July 15, Thomas E. McDonald, president of the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Department, AFL–CIO (BCTD), asked the organization to back off on its demand for immediate change.[23]

UFM agreed to postpone its planned July 15 picketing, but refused to any additional meetings unless outside help was brought in. Mayor Locher subsequently called for help from AFL-CIO national president George Meany and President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity chairman Hobart Taylor, Jr. The UFM also demanded that the plumbers local admit and place on the job at least two journeymen plumbers, and that the electrical workers admit and place on the job at least three journeyman electricians. As the UFM and local unions waited Meany and Taylor's response, the plumbers and sheet metal workers agreed to admit African Americans as journeymen. The UFM praised these decisions, and agreed to a July 19 meeting. But that meeting would be the last if no final agreement was reached, it said.[24] It would seek to stop construction completely through mass picketing, and Mayor Locher worried that critical bond issues already scheduled for the November ballot would fail if that happened. Meany sent Donald S. Slaiman, director of the Civil Rights Division of the AFL-CIO, to sit on the July 19 meeting.[25]

At its membership meeting on July 19, Plumbers Local 55 voted to halt processing of African American applications for examination, and to refuse to allow African Americans whose application had been accepted to be examined.[26]

July 20 agreement by unions to admit blacks

No final agreement was reached on July 19,[27] but the electrical workers union agreed to admit two African American apprentices.[28] The iron workers and sheet metal workers agreed to take similar action.[29] The talks were productive enough that the parties agreed to meet on July 20.[30] At a six-hour session, attended by Slaiman and Cicero Scott of the U.S. Department of Labor, the plumbers union agreed to process 15 or 16 journeymen applications for craftsman membership. Plumbing contractor Smith & Oby agreed to hire at least two black journeymen as well.[31]

On Monday, July 22, Smith & Oby hired two African Americans, William R. Baker and Theodius Hilliard, Jr. But Plumbers Local 55 refused to allow the two to join the union despite the agreement reached on Saturday. The union claimed it had agreed to only “further process” 15 applications, not to grant membership to anyone.[32] On July 23, 55 plumbers, pipefitters, and asbestos workers walked out on strike to protest the hiring of the two non-union workers. An early morning meeting with Locher proved fruitless. At midday, Edward F. Domas, general organizer for the United Association (UA; the national plumbers union), flew to Cleveland. He met with local union leaders and Locher in the afternoon, at which time the local's leaders agreed to admit two African Americans as members. Domas emerged from the meeting blaming inadequate notice from the contractor for the labor dispute.[33]

After the July 23 concessions, Frank Evans, labor consultant to the UFM, said the body would seek to end all federal aid to all projects which discriminated.[34]

Collapse of the July 20 agreement

On July 24, the 55 striking plumbers went back to work after Domas threatened to import UA members from other areas to replace them if they did not. But the July 20 agreement began to fall apart. IBEW Local 38 reneged on its agreement to put two black apprentices on the job. Sheet Metal Workers Local 65 had admitted to membership the lone African American to apply, but the contractor refused to hire him for fear of violating union seniority rules.[35] At an emergency meeting called on July 25 by Locher, IBEW local 38 backed down and agreed to process two African American applications for apprenticeships on July 26 (effectively affirming the agreement reached July 20). The local also agreed to employ at least two black apprentices at job sites in the city thereafter.[36]

On July 26, the agreement further eroded after Plumbers Local 55 refused to admit any African Americans as journeymen. Local union officials said that while it would process applications for journeyman, applicants were required by union rules to have at least five years of experience as an apprentice. Furthermore, the application processing committee only met quarterly. If accepted by the processing committee, applicants would need to pass a manual and written examination, which was administered only when there were enough applicants (about 15 or so) to justify administering the exams.[37] But the UFM countered that past racist practices by the local meant that, even if a black person were admitted to apprentice or journeyman status, it would be years until they were admitted to full master craftsman status—even though they might be fully qualified today.[38]

Domas, city and UFM officials, and Local 55 officers met for three hours on July 27 to discuss the situation. The meeting ended with no agreement. Afterward, Local 55 officers declared a “holiday”, announcing that no members of the union needed to report to work until the “holiday” was declared over.[39][40] The walkout affected plumbers across the region, and stopped work on a wide range of large, important projects.[41] The Cleveland Plumbing Contractors Association said its members would fire anyone who didn't report to work.[42] Domas supported that decision,[43] and said the international union was bringing plumbers in from other areas to keep work going. He also hinted that the international union might fine the local's leaders, or impose a trusteeship on the local.[44] The “holiday” lasted until the evening of July 29, when Local 55 officers ordered their members back to work. During the walkout, at least 90 percent of all plumbers on commercial jobs in the greater Cleveland area were on strike.[45] The back-to-work order was only partially successful. While plumbers returned to most jobs, none did so at the convention center construction site, where 30 percent of the plumbing work remained incomplete. Locher, Domas, and representatives from Smith & Oby met in a 45-minute emergency session that evening.[46]

On July 31, Smith & Oby discovered that no union plumbers were working at any of its jobs throughout the area.[47] Leaders of Local 55 met with Smith & Oby officials on the morning of July 31 for two-and-a-half hours. After the meeting ended, the company agreed to fire Baker and Hilliard. The company and Local 55 then jointly asked Baker and Hilliard to submit applications to be apprentices. The UFM denounced these actions and threatened to begin picketing. Locher called Smith & Oby's decision “wrong”, while Domas declared it was the contractor's responsibility to hire the two men. The dispute now threatened the entire project. Other contractors at the convention center construction site said layoffs might occur if the plumbers did not return to work.[48] Domas also appeared to withdraw his threat of trusteeship.[49]

The situation deteriorated on August 1. During the day, the UFM said it would station 150 to 200 pickets in front of the construction site's six entrances on Monday, August 5, blocking trucks from entering or leaving.[50] The UFM began working with groups such as the American Jewish Committee, Americans for Democratic Action, Congress of Racial Equality, National Council of Negro Women, the Urban League, Negro American Labor Council, and several local neighborhood associations to recruit picketers.[51] The International Brotherhood of Teamsters said it would not honor the picket lines, raising the specter of clashes between white union workers and black civil rights protesters. Mayor Locher said he would take action if the local did not back down, either by cancelling Smith & Oby's contract, appealing the union's conduct to the National Labor Relations Board, or refusing to pay Smith & Oby. Late in the afternoon, nine of the 11 plumbers working on the convention center site returned to work. That evening, Local 55 leaders accused Locher of favoring the UFM, and demanded that Hilliard and Baker follow procedure by applying as apprentices and not journeymen.[52]

Early on August 2, Under Secretary of Labor John F. Henning flew to Cleveland along with Donald Slaiman.[53][54] Henning suggested that Baker and Hilliard be admitted as third-year apprentices (a proposal the UFM rejected outright), and scheduled a meeting with Local 55 and UA national officers for August 4.[55]

August 4 agreement

Henning's meeting with Locher, Slaiman, and officials from Local 55, the UFM, and Smith & Oby on August 4 lasted nine hours.[56] All sides reached a new agreement, whereby African American-owned plumbing companies would be unionized by Local 55. This would allow their highly-experienced African American workers to be examined and admitted as journeymen, bypassing the apprenticeship process.[57][58] Lesser skilled workers in these shops could apply as apprentices, if they passed the apprenticeship exam. Local 55 agreed to stop discriminating against African American apprenticeship applicants on August 7. Applicants who felt they had been unfairly treated by the examiners could appeal to a review committee whose three representatives would be appointed by the Department of Labor, the UFM, and the UA. For its part, Smith & Oby agreed to subcontract part of its job to black-owned plumbing companies, which would permit the immediate rehiring of Hilliard and Baker. The agreement was signed by Henning, Locher, Slaiman, and officials of Local 55, Smith & Oby, and the UFM, as well as 24 others. The UFM immediately called off its pickets.[59]

The August 4 pact won extensive praise. Herbert Hill, labor director at the NAACP, called the agreement “the most significant breakthrough we have had so far anywhere in the country”.[60] Hill said the NAACP would recommend that all locals implement similar settlements in their areas. Officials at the U.S. Department of Labor also lauded the pact, noting that it had the potential to bring large numbers of African American workers into the skilled building trades immediately, avoiding case-by-case fights. DOL also noted that the agreement was good for black-owned businesses, which will now be able to compete for large jobs, and good for workers, who would now receive Davis-Bacon union wages on federal jobs. DOL also pointed out that the pact helped avoid a situation where black workers competed against whites for jobs.[61]

At first implementation of the August 4 agreement seemed to go well. An African American apprentice electrician, Frequette Pursley III, started work on August 5 without incident, and another began work on August 6.[62] Four black youths applied for plumbers' apprenticeships without incident on August 8,[63] and another electrician apprentice started work on August 12 without incident.[64] By August 16, Plumbers Local 55 had admitted four African American men as journeymen and two as apprentices after unionizing the black-owned Consolidated Heating & Plumbing Co.[65]

Sheet metal union controversy, and the end of pickets

A major controversy over the August 4 agreement erupted the day after it was signed. An African American sheet metal worker, Gilbert Foster, began work, which led to rumors that white workers would strike in protest. Despite an emergency meeting by federal and city officials with leaders of Sheet Metal Workers Local 65,[66] 14 white sheet metal workers walked off the job on August 6. The workers argued that Foster was not a union-accredited sheet metal worker, and that union rules required him to work for at least seven days to prove his skills.[67] Paul Ristau, business agent for Local 65, agreed that Foster had not yet become a union member, but said his application was being processed. The UFM threatened to picket if Foster was not employed, so A. Nabakowski Co., the sheet metal contractor, offered to keep Foster on the job and pay him if he reported to work.[68] The following day, Nabakowski paid Foster to sit in a trailer. Local 65 ordered its men back to work,[69] and 11 of them did so (under protest) on August 7.[70] Foster himself agreed to perform whatever non-work, makework, or sheet metal work the company wanted, which short-circuited the UFM's demand that he work solely on sheet metal projects.[71]

As the first week of Foster's employment came to an end, rumors swirled that he would be denied union membership on grounds that he did not work for seven days (his makework did not count) and because he had not completed the union's required four-year apprenticeship program. UFM officials said any refusal of Foster's application “dishonors our agreement”, and pickets were again threatened. Local 65 leaders proposed that Foster be admitted as fourth-year apprentice and at 90 percent pay.[72] At a two-and-a-half hour union membership meeting on August 14, Foster's application for membership was rejected. Union officers agreed that Foster's application was in order and that he was obviously qualified, but that no further action could be taken until a regularly scheduled union executive board meeting on August 28. Foster attempted to obtain a temporary work card from the union, but union offices were inexplicably closed each time he went there.[73] Lacking a union card, Foster was laid off on August 15. Despite the previous day's statements by union leaders, a union business agent declared on August 15 that Foster had to follow the standard four-year apprentice process before he could join the union. The earliest his application for apprentice could be accepted was the middle of September. This outraged the UFM, which said it would begin picketing and refused to meet with representatives from city hall.[74]

Mayor Locher was able to convince UFM leaders to attend a meeting with union officials on August 16 after N. Thompson Powers, a special assistant to U.S. Secretary of Labor Willard Wirtz, made an emergency flight to Cleveland to assist with the talks. UFM officials said they appeared only as a courtesy and not to negotiate. At the end of the two-and-a-half hour meeting, at which BCTD and Nabakowski representatives also appeared, Locher ruled that the August 4 agreement permitted Foster to submit an application for membership in the sheet metal workers union only by following regular procedures. This required him to wait until August 28 to submit his application. Under union rules, this would allow the union executive board to consider his application on September 4, and (if successful before the board) for the membership to vote on his membership on September 11.[75] UFM leaders were divided on whether to accept Locher's reading of the agreement.[76] After a one-and-a-half hour membership meeting on August 19, they agreed to postpone any decision on picketing until after the September 11 union membership meeting.[77]

The situation began to resolve itself on September 4. After submitting his membership application on August 28, Foster took the next step, which was a four-hour written and manual examination by Industrial arts instructors at the Max Hayes Trade School (a Cleveland public high school).[78] Foster failed the tests.[79][80] On September 11, the union declined to admit Foster as a member. After a stormy three-hour membership meeting, UFM officials demanded to see the tests and test scoring results, and threatened to picket on August 19 if UFM leaders felt the test was inaccurately administered or graded.[81] Local 65 agreed to show UFM officials the test and test results, per the August 4 agreement. At a five-hour meeting on September 13 in Mayor Locher's office,[82][83] UFM's representative (George A. Oden, chair of the industrial arts department as Patrick Henry Junior High School) found that Foster was tested fairly.[84] Concerns were raised about the test administration, however. Ellsworth H. Harpole, executive secretary of Cleveland Community Relations Board and a former sheet metal worker, agreed to retest Foster on the manual test. To ensure a fair administration of the test, Thomas E. McDonald, business manager for the BCTD; Emile Bourge, a representative from the President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity; and George Doler, a representative of the Sheet Metal Workers' International Association, were permitted to attend the manual retest.[85] Local 65 membership agreed to the retest.[86]

By now, it was clear that Foster's skill level was not high enough to win him membership in the union at the level the UFM wanted. On the evening of September 15, the 40-member UFM steering committee met in a public session for three hours before 300 UFM members. The steering committee debated the test administration, grading of the test results, Foster's skills, and other issues. Despite jeers from the crowd, the steering committee voted overwhelmingly against further picketing.[87]

The UFM steering committee's decision effectively ended the crisis.

1964 completion of the convention center

The Cleveland Convention Center opened on May 11, 1964. Ohio Governor Jim Rhodes and Mayor Locher were joined at the ribbon-cutting by Herbert C. Jackson, Executive Vice President of Pickands Mather and president of the American Mining Congress.[88] The 1964 American Mining Congress Coal Show was the first event ever held in the new convention center.[89]

The Cleveland Convention Center was formally dedicated on August 28, 1964. More than 5,000 people attended the opening ceremony.[90]

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title: Cleveland Convention Center labor dispute of 1963

question: When did the dispute begin?

answer: June 25, 1963

question: How was the dispute resolved?

answer: The US Department of Labor intervened and the unions agreed to admit black people as members

question: What was the cause of the dispute?

answer: Four local unions belonging to the ALF-CIO had racist policies against African Americans, and so the United Freedom Movement threatened to picket the construction of the Cleveland Convention Center

question: When was the center completed?

answer: It opened on May 11, 1964

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The Cleveland Convention Center Labor Dispute of 1963 was a dispute between the United Freedom Movement (UFM) and four local unions over their institutional racism against African Americans. It began on June 25, 1963 when UFM threatened to picket the construction of the Cleveland Convention center, and it was resolved by an agreement on August 4 in which the unions agreed to admit black members.


text:
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text:
She made her way down a nameless street alone with her thoughts.  Not one other pedestrian lay in sight and every business had long since closed.  Occasionally a car would drive by, but to her it was but an empty shell.  Where had the time gone?  Her meditations always lasted longer than she planned.

The dry air scratched at her throat as it always did.  It was one thing in this desert town that she would never get used to.  “If only it could rain” she thought to herself imagining the fresh clean air that would come with it.  For a split second she forgot herself.  Her world was simply the soft pitter patter of rainfall.  No longer alone, no longer merely human, she became a multitude of raindrops.

“Why hello there miss lady” said a man with a very comically terrible southern accent.  She was startled as if woken from a dream, but she did not stop walking.

“Oh…hello” she barely whispered.  As she spoke she turned her head towards the voice to get a look at him.  Before facing forward once more she noticed a large jacket, a floppy hat, and scruffy facial hair.  “Homeless” was the first word to pop into her head.  Her eyes wide open she was obviously taken aback.  Slowly her thoughts crawled back into reality.  She was on her way home and a strange man had just spoken to her.

He stood up but did not follow her. “Pardon me ma’am, could you spare just a moment of your time” begged the homeless man while extending his arm and index finger.

She stopped and turned to face him.  Her furrowed brow gave away her curiosity as she looked him over.  The giant smile on his face seemed to show an inner struggle.  He was trying so very hard not to laugh at himself.  Her face softened and she allowed a slight smile.  This exact moment had crossed her mind so many times on these late night walks.  However she never imagined the homeless man to be so incredibly non-threatening.

“Um…can I help you with something?” she said barely resisting the temptation to laugh at his ridiculous form.  This man was lanky, and dirty, and it seemed that his face was permanently stuck in a goofy too big for his face grin.

“Well you see here, I was actually hoping that I could be of service to you.  You see I am quite famished and this empty stomach of mine has been preventing me from any truly peaceful rest.  I will do anything within my power to help and I will do it for a very small fee.”

“By fee you mean food?”

“Why yes of course.  An apple, a sandwich, whatever you see fit.” He paused here shoulders shrugged and with both arms palm up waiting for her response.

She stared at him trying to think what use he could be if any to her.  Still in thought she absent mindedly glanced at her watch to see what time it was.  “It’s late and I’m wasting time” she thought to herself.

“Walk me home and I’ll give you a sandwich.”

“Very well ma’am I accept most graciously” he responded with a deep bow.

Without warning she turned and continued on her way.  With a quick skip the awkwardly lanky man caught up to her and followed closely by her side.  “What are you doing out here so late?”

“I was meditating.”

“Is that some kind of East Asian voodoo magic?” answered the obviously confused homeless.

When she finally gained control of her laughter she answered, “No not really.  It’s kind of like praying while simultaneously controlling your breathing.”

“So you’re worshiping God?”

“I don’t believe in God and I’m actually trying to train my mind.  You see I’m trying to implant myself into a global conscience in order to live forever.”

“But everybody lives forever.  We are made out of matter.  And matter can neither be destroyed nor created.”

“Maybe not, but when you die your brain stops functioning.  You lose your identity as an individual.”

The homeless stopped for a second and gave her a questioning look.

“Look here missy.  Nobody has an ‘individual identity,’ we are one.  There is no you and me or mine and yours.  The entire universe is a collection of atoms randomly moving about.  It is only due to our ignorance that we perceive ourselves as individuals.”

At this point the girl had stopped as well.  She was staring at the homeless lips slightly parted in surprise.  “Then what happens when you die?”

“Death is simply an example of the dynamic properties of matter.  If you must look at us as individuals, then you can think of it as an evolution or even a realization.  We finally stop seeing a separation of things and lose all of our misguided thoughts and emotions.  The result is ultimate harmony with the universe.”

The homeless ended this with a smile.  He believed in his truth so whole heartedly that he saw no possible rebuttal.  This last statement had to have convinced this girl of the true nature of things.

“I’m sorry but that’s bull shit.  If what you say is true we should just nuke the world and kill every living thing so that we can bring harmony to the universe.”

The homeless lost control of his jaw.  It dropped open while his eyes simultaneously tried to pop out of his sockets.  He began to realize that this girl was simply another ignorant monster trying to disrupt his flow of positive energy.

After he didn’t respond for some time she started up again, “If death is an evolution than what is life?  Why does the universe allow us to continue to multiply and expand?  It should know what’s good for it and call it quits.”  She finished with her arms flailing and her own eyes bulging outwards.  But luckily the homeless realized what must be done.

He lunged forward and tackled her to the ground.  She landed face down with the homeless man on top of her.  Before she could scream or cry out for help he put both hands on the back of her head and grabbed two fistfuls of hair.  With his grip locked in place he began to smash her face repeatedly into the ground.  Every muscle in his body tightened.  His teeth were grinding away at each other, but he did not stop even when her body went limp.

After a minute or two he was out of breath.  He finally relaxed his grip, leaned back and sat on top of her with his arms hanging loosely by his sides.  After catching his breath he opened her purse and found the promised sandwich.  Payment in hand he walked into the darkness guided only by the eerie reflection of the sun.

title: [RF] Delusional homeless philosopher spreads word to one pedestrian at a time (he may have a few flaws)

question: Why did the homeless man attack the woman he was accompanying home?

answer: The woman had just finished meditating and was on her way home. A homeless man asked her for help, wanting food in return for anything he can do to help her out. The lady tells him to walk her home and, in return, will give him a sandwich. As they walk home the two argue about life and what it means to live forever. The woman says she is trying to implant her mind into a global conscience to live forever. The homeless man says everyone already lives forever for we are all made out of matter. The woman disagrees, ridiculing the man's perspective. The homeless man got angry and killed the woman.


text:
KAMAL VORA () is a Gujarati language poet and editor from Mumbai, India. He is an editor of _Etad_, a quarterly Guajarati literary magazine.[1]

Life

He was born in 1950. Since 2010, He co-edits, with Naushil Mehta, a Gujarati quarterly journal _Etad_, founded by Suresh Joshi. He was a member of the Gujarati advisory board of Sahitya Akademi.[2][3]

Works

His poem started appearing in magazine from 1971. His first anthology of poem _Arav_ was published in 1991,[4] followed by _Anek Ek_ (2012) and _Anekanek_ (2014). His poems have been translated in Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Kannada and English and appeared in Indian Literature, Chicago Review, Anthology of Asian Poets, Muse India etc.[5]

Awards

He received Sahitya Akademi Award (2016) for Gujarati for his book _Anekanek_ (2014).[6] His book _Arav_ was awarded the Umashankar Joshi award. He has also written few short stories.[7]

[1]

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[7]

title: Kamal Vora

question: Who is Kamal Vora?

answer: A poet and editor.

question: What is the main language of Vora's work?

answer: Gujarati.

question: Where is Vora based?

answer: Mumbai, India.

question: Of which publication is he the editor?

answer: Etad.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: Kamal Vora, born in 1950, is a Gujarati poet and editor of Etad, a quarterly Gujarati literary magazine.


text:
_AFRIKA RISING_ is an album by jazz flautist Nicole Mitchell with her group Black Earth Ensemble. It was released in 2002 by Dreamtime, Mitchell's own label.[1]

Reception

The _Exclaim!_ review by David Dacks says “_Afrika Rising_ builds on Mitchell's successful debut, _Vision Quest_, a year ago and is forward-thinking jazz that swings like crazy.”[2] _JazzTimes_ wrote: “The music is deeply informed by African rhythm and counterpoint as well as by big-band jazz of both the classic and eccentric (à la Sun Ra) varieties. Mitchell uses many voices masterfully, none more so than her own”.[3]

Track listing

All compositions by Nicole Mitchell except where noted.

1.  “Afrika Rising Mvmt I: The Ancient Power Awakens” –8:34
2.  “Afrika Rising Mvmt II: Metemorphosis” – 7:33
3.  “Afrika Rising Mvmt III: Intergalactic Healing” – 5:39
4.  “Peaceful Village Town” – 5:17
5.  “Emerging Light” – 0:53
6.  “Umoja (intro)” – 1:01
7.  “Umoja” – 5:42
8.  “Bluerise” – 10:49
9.  “Goldmind” (melody from “Wade in the Water”, traditional) – 2:07
10. “Wheatgrass” – 7:57
11. “Toward Vision Quest” – 3:21

Personnel

-   Nicole Mitchell – flute, piccolo, vocals
-   David Boykin – saxophone, clarinet, vocals
-   Tony Herrera – trombone, shells, vocals
-   Steve Berry – trombone
-   Savoir Faire – violin, vocals
-   Edith Yokley – violin
-   Tomeka Reid – cello
-   Miles Tate III – piano
-   Jim Baker – piano
-   Wanda Bishop – piano, vocals
-   Darius Savage – double bass
-   Josh Abrams – bass, vocals
-   Hamid Drake – drums
-   Isaiah Spencer – drums
-   Arveeayl Ra – drums, vocals
-   Jovia Armstrong – percussion
-   Coco Elysses – percussion

[1]

[2] Dacks, David. _Afrika Rising_ review at _Exclaim!_

[3]

title: Afrika Rising

question: Who is the creator of the album?

answer: The jazz flutist Nicole Mitchell's band, Black Earth Ensemble.

question: Summarize the overall reception to the album.

answer: It was received well, garnering praise for its variety of sounds and forward-thinking swings.

question: What instruments are present in the album?

answer: Flute, piccolo, saxophone, clarinet, trombone, shells, violin, cello, piano, double bass, drums, and percussion.

question: Who are the publishers and writers of the reviews of Afrika Rising?

answer: The Exclaim! review is authored by David Dacks. The JazzTimes review isn't attributed to an author.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Afrika Rising is an album by jazz flutist Nicole Mitchell with her group Black Earth Ensemble. It was released in 2002 by Dreamtime, Mitchell's own label. It was received well, garnering praise for its variety of sounds and forward-thinking swings.


text:
New York.
December, 1946.
The Swing Era.

America was awash with good tidings-not all due to the holiday season. The war had been won, celebrations had, and the jukebox jive strains of the Chordettes and Django Reinhardt floated from coast to coast. Even in New York, the freshly fallen snow radiated the golden glow from shop windows onto the hopeful faces of children and parents alike.

But Frank Campbell didn't see any of it.

He was stuck in a soggy cardboard box, in a miserably cold alley just off of Times Square. All he could do was try to keep warm and beg as much as he could off of random passers-by. God, he hated the begging-it made him feel about as equal as a stray. But that's all he really was now, a "no-good," down-on-his luck stray without a home, forgotten out alone in the cold.

Footsteps.

Footsteps and crunching snow- someone was coming.

He scrambled to a sitting position and did his best to make himself presentable- straightening his coat, adjusting his collar, attempting a hopeful smile.

Franky looked up at the stranger as he passed.

Up into eyes that were less than human.

A laugh, a smile, and the sound of metal gliding through air were the last things Frank Campbell saw before black.
His blood splashed a deep scarlet against the harsh, stark white of the snow.

Poor Franky.

Never knew what hit him.

title: Christmas Swing

question: What was Frank Campbell doing in an alley off of Times Square?

answer: Begging as much as he could off of random passers-by.

question: What was America celebrating in December, besides Christmas?

answer: The war that had just been won.

question: Why was Frank scrambling out of his cardboard box?

answer: He heard footsteps meaning someone was coming and scrambled to sitting a position.

question: Explain what happened to Frank after the stranger passed him.

answer: He was hit and his blood splashed into the snow.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: It was December 1946 in New York and the war had just been won. Frank Campbell was living out a cardboard box in an alley off of Times Square. As he begged as much as he could, he was struck and his blood splashed on the snow.


text:
[Places and Companies are fictional] It was just like any other day. I had my morning coffee at 6:30 before heading off for work. I do IT for a regional company called ExpressPark. They build parking meters for cities all across the Midwest. I live in Zionsville, Indiana. It’s a small suburb north of Indianapolis. Nothing ever happens there. It’s a grey smattering of office buildings and chain restaurants. It is just a reflection of my personality, an uneventful state of apathy. Is it ironic or sad that I am indifferent about that?

Work is work. Again, just like Zionsville, there is no variety in day to day activities. I am doomed to an unending cycle of computer problems and printer malfunctions. I’m just the IT geek to everyone. No one gives it a second thought. Not that I mind. I would rather eat lunch alone than talk sports with the former high school quarterback still stuck in his glory days.

Still, although I am content with my life, I feel like it lacks something. I ponder this thought on the way home. As I stop at a red light, I look out and see two twenty-somethings smoking cigarettes in front of a drug store and listening to music on a boom box. Their heads are banging up and down to the heavy guitar, their long hair whipping back and forth. They didn’t care about the damages to their lungs that the cigarettes would cause or the fact that a boom box is comically outdated in 2014.

I wished I could let go like that. Listen to music from a boom box. Headbang. Smoke. Quit my job. Drop all of my dress clothes off at Goodwill and get some wax black skinny jeans, and a leather jacket. Meet up with these two and rock out in front of the drug store. It could break me out of the constant indifference that haunts me. I could feel alive. It’s been so long since I’ve felt true happiness, or had fun. There’s so much I’ve never done. There’s so much I’ll never do, if I continue to live this way. I’ve never been to a crazy party, been drunk and in love, kissed someone in the rain, smoked pot, or pulled an all-nighter with a friend. Do I even have friends? I take a long look at the headbangers.

Something holds me back. Something tells me not to do this. My job is safe. There is no risk in keeping it. Just keep saving money. I can use it later in life. I can retire, have some good years at a beach house in Florida before I die. That sounds good, right? Before I can answer my own question, the light turns green and I drive off, always left to wonder what might have been.

title: Apathy

question: Who is the narrator?

answer: That information can't be found

question: List the main characters.

answer: The narrator

question: Where does the story take place?

answer: Zionsville, Indiana, mostly at a stoplight

question: In what time period does the story take place?

answer: The present

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator works doing IT for a company in Zionsville, Indiana. They feel apathetic about the town and their job, and they feel like their life lacks something. As they drive home, they see a group of twenty-somethings listening to music and smoking, and they wish they could let go like that, but they know their job is safe and it's less risky to continue doing it. The stoplight turns green and they drive off, left to wonder what might have been.


text:
MARCO DONNARUMMA (born 1984 in Naples) is an Italian performance artist, new media artist and scholar based in Berlin. His work addresses the relationship between body, politics and technology. He is widely known for his performances fusing sound, computation and biotechnology.[1][2][3] Ritual, shock and entrainment are key elements to his aesthetics. Donnarumma is often associated with cyborg[4] and posthuman[5] artists and is acknowledged for his contribution to human-machine interfacing through the unconventional use of muscle sound and biofeedback.[6] From 2016-2018 he was a Research Fellow at Berlin University of the Arts in collaboration with the Neurorobotics Research Lab at Beuth University of Applied Sciences Berlin.[7]

Life and education

Donnarumma was born in Naples, Italy. Between 2003 and 2004, he studied painting at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts in Milan[8] before moving to the Venice Academy of Fine Arts, Italy, and completing his BA in New Technologies for the Performing Arts in 2007.[9]

He obtained a Master in sound design from the Edinburgh College of Art in 2012,[10] and a PhD in performing arts, computing and body theory from Goldsmiths, University of London in 2016.[11] His supervisors were performer Atau Tanaka and media theorist Matthew Fuller.[12]

Career

2004–2010

Originally a musician and sound designer,[13] Donnarumma's early artworks include sound and video compositions for fixed media,[14] web-based sound installations[15][16] and participative concerts. In 2007, a collaboration with a butoh project by Latvian dance company I-Dejas[17] created the foundations for his shift to body performance. Between 2007 and 2010, he explored hybrid forms of performance with computers and new musical instruments, playing multimedia performances with an augmented electric bass guitar, interactive software and live visuals in various configurations.[18]

_XTH Sense_

In 2010, feeling increasingly constrained by the conventional ways of interacting with computers on stage, such as digital interfaces and hand-held instruments, Donnarumma began exploring wearable body technologies.[19] In 2011, for his Master in sound design at the Edinburgh College of Art, he created the XTH Sense as a new instrument for music and body performance.[20] The XTH Sense is a wearable electronic musical instrument that amplifies and manipulate muscle sounds (known as mechanomyogram), blood flow and bone crackles from within the human body to make music and sound effects. As a performer moves, the sounds from within the body are captured by a chip microphone worn on arm or legs. Those sounds are then live sampled using a dedicated software program and a library of modular audio effects driven by physical gestures; the performer controls the live sampling parameters by weighing force, speed and articulation of the movement.[21]

In 2012, the Georgia Tech Center for Music Technology named the XTH Sense the “world's most innovative new musical instrument” and awarded Donnarumma with the first prize in the Margaret Guthman Musical Instrument Competition.[22] He later released the schematic and the software of the XTH Sense to the public under open source licenses (GPL and CC similar to the ones used by the Arduino project) sparking widespread interest in the international media and the artistic scene.[23][24][25] Since then, several artists and researchers have been adopting the XTH Sense as a creative and learning tool in different field of practice, such as dance, music, theatre and engineering.[26][27][28][29]

2011–present: The body series

Donnarumma gained international recognition with a series of works focused on the interaction between human body, sound and technology,[30][31] including _Music for Flesh II_ (2011), _Hypo Chrysos_ (2012), _Ominous_ (2012), _Nigredo_ (2013), _0-Infinity_ (2015) and _Corpus Nil_ (2016). Key to these works is the new kind of human-computer interaction afforded by the XTH Sense and the other technologies developed by the artist himself, such as interactive algorithms, artificial intelligence software and psychoacoustic systems.[32] These custom technologies allow the artist to use the human body as an instrument by amplifying human bodily sounds and capturing physiological and corporeal activity.[33]

Aesthetically, Donnarumma's body series integrates performance art, computer music, light and sound design into surreal, intense and confrontational performances.[34] Conceptually, they are influenced by a critical approach to technology, which emphasises the relations of machines to ritualism and body politics.[35] These works are based on a combination of choreographed and improvised movements exploring physical tension and bodily constraint. The series marked a new step in performance and new media art, paving the way for a new, transdisciplinary form of live art known as biophysical music,[36][37] and contributed to the field of human-computer interaction, by creating unconventional computing techniques to physically interface human and machine.[38]

In _Hypo Chrysos_ (2012), a work inspired by Dante's Inferno,[39] Donnarumma pulls two heavy concrete blocks in a circle for twenty minutes. His blood flow, muscle sound bursts and bone crackles produced during the action are amplifyed as surround sound through an eight-channel sound system and visualized as abstract organic forms through a panoramic video projection. The extreme strain of the body is thus diffused in the space and forces the audience to participate in the performer's vexation. “This process encourages tuning in to the inner state of the other and finding resonating states in one's own body.”[40]

The interactive installation _Nigredo_ (2012–2013) offers a private experience in a black booth. The visitor's body is fastened to a chair and wired to biosensors; the acoustic signals from her own heart, muscles and veins are captured and feed back to her body in the form of new sounds, vibrations and light patterns. Light and sound dynamics vary according to the unique properties of the visitor's body, thus providing an individual experience of the work. The feedback creates an acoustic phenomena known as standing waves inside the visitor's body thus altering self-perception, body & mind awareness and experience of the self.[41]

In _Corpus Nil_ (2016), the performer's tattooed body slowly mutates from an amorphous shape to an animal-like form by contracting and quivering as if struggling against powerful constraints. The body is wired to an artificial intelligence software which autonomously generates light and sound patterns in response to the performer's body signals. As a result, white pulsing lights illuminate the scene while synchronised computer-processed sound fill the theatre space. “The performance evokes a sense of a psychedelic and alien reality, at the border between physical and virtual.”[42]

Works

Solo performances

-   Music for Flesh II (2011)
-   Hypo Chrysos (2012)
-   Ominous (2012-2013)
-   Corpus Nil (2016) with Baptiste Caramiaux

Stage productions

-   Eingeweide (2018) with Margherita Pevere
-   Alia: Zǔ tài (2018) with Nunu Kong

Installations

-   Nigredo (2012-2013)
-   0-Infinity (2015) with 4DSOUND
-   Amygdala (2017-2018) with Ana Rajcevic
-   Calyx (2019)

Other collaborations

-   [radical] Signs of Life (2013) with Heidi J. Boisvert and Double Vision
-   The Moving Forest (2012) by Shu Lea Cheang and Martin Howse

Web-based and participative installations

-   High Spheres (2007–2010)
-   Golden Shield Music (2009)
-   The Invisible Suns Project (2010)

Early video and performance works

-   In-Side (2004)
-   6 Giugno 1999 (2004)
-   Risveglio n.1 Venezia (2005)
-   I C::ntr::l Nature (2007–2010)

Collaborations

Donnarumma collaborated with a range of artists across disciplines including performance art, cyberart, spatial sound, and live cinema. In 2012, together with cyberfeminist artists Francesca da Rimini (of VNS Matrix collective) and Linda Dement, Donnarumma performed in the 12-hour saga _The Moving Forest_, conceived by new media artists Shu Lea Cheang and Martin Howse. The work expanded the last 12 minute of Kurosawa’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, _Throne of Blood_ (1957), into a sonic performance saga.[43] In 2014, he collaborated with computer science researcher Baptiste Caramiaux to create a new work, _Septic_, commissioned by transmediale festival's Art Hack Day.[44] In 2015, the spatial sound collective 4DSOUND commissioned him a new monumental work, _0-Infinity_, which premiered at TodaysArt Festival in The Hague within the program _Circadian_.[45] In 2016, he collaborated with experimental filmmaker Vincent Moon in a series of live shows during the Michelberger Music event in Berlin.[46]

Main exhibitions

Donnarumma's work has appeared in numerous exhibitions and festival worldwide including, among the others, Venice Biennale (Venice), Steirischer Herbst (Graz), ZKM Center for Art and Media (Karlsruhe), Sónar+D Advanced Music Festival (Barcelona), ISCM World Music Days (Antwerp), ISEA International Symposium on Electronic Art (Albuquerque), Electronic Language International Festival (São Paulo), RPM: Ten Years of Sound Art in China (Shanghai), Laboratorio Arte Alameda (Mexico City), La Gaîté Lyrique (Paris), Némo International Biennal of Digital Arts (Paris), transmediale Festival for Art and Digital Culture (Berlin), CTM Festival for Adventurous Music and Art (Berlin).

Awards and distinctions

Selected awards include:

-   2017 : Prix Ars Electronica Award of Distinction in Sound Art.[47]
-   2016 : Berlin University of the Arts Research Fellowship.
-   2014 : CynetArt Award for Computer Based Art, Transmedia Hellerau.[48]
-   2014 : TransitioMX Award for New Media Art, Centro Nacional de las Artes.[49]
-   2012 : Margaret Guthman New Musical Instrument Competition, Georgia Tech Center for Music Technology.[50]
-   2012 : Creativity + Technology = Enterprise Fellowship, Harvestworks and The Rockefeller Foundation.[51]
-   2012 : Alt-w Festival Award, New Media Scotland.[52]
-   2010 : Golden Shield Music & The Invisible Suns Project, Finalist, Screengrab New Media Art Award.[53]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19] Udvardyova, 2015

[20]

[21]

[22] Georgia Tech News Center. “Marco Donnarumma's Xth Sense Named World's Most Innovative New Musical Instrument”, 5 February 2012.

[23]

[24]

[25]

[26]

[27]

[28]

[29]

[30] Debatty

[31] Bortolotti

[32]

[33]

[34]

[35] Udvardyova, 2015

[36]

[37] Brent

[38]

[39]

[40]

[41]

[42] Boggia, 2016

[43]

[44]

[45]

[46]

[47]

[48]

[49]

[50] Georgia Tech News Center

[51]

[52]

[53]

title: Marco Donnarumma

question: What is Marco Donnarumma education?

answer: Marco Donnarumma studied painting at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts in Milan and the Venice Academy of Fine Arts, completed his BA in New Technologies for the Performing Arts, obtained a Master in sound design from the Edinburgh College of Art, and a PhD at the University of London in 2016.

question: What are the key elements of Donnarumma'e aesthetics?

answer: The key elements of Donnarumma's aesthetics are ritual, shock, and entrainment.

question: How did Donnarumma gain international recognition?

answer: Donnarumma gained international recognition with a series of works focused on the interaction between the human body, sound, and technology, including 'Music for Flesh' and 'Hypo Chrysos'.

question: What is XTH?

answer: XTH a wearable electronic musical instrument made by Donnarumma that amplifies and manipulates muscle sounds, blood flow, and bone crackles from within the human body to make music and sound effects.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: Marco Donnarumma is an Italian performance artist based in Berlin, a new media artist, and a scholar. His work addresses the relationship between body, politics, and technology. He uses biomedical and sound technologies,  computer software, and sensors to amplify sounds from his body. Biophysical sensors attached to a person’s body feed body voltage to a machine, setting various light and sound signals.


text:
With a football audience of more than 40 million viewers serving as its lead-in, CBS newsmagazine “60 Minutes” — whose stories included Charlie Rose’s interview with Sean Penn — surged to some of its best ratings in years Sunday. Also of note Sunday was a solid showing by the Democratic debate on NBC, which drew more than 10 million viewers.

Reliable time zone-adjusted ratings won’t be available for a day or two, but last night’s “60 Minutes” averaged roughly a 4.7 rating/14 share in adults 18-49 and 20.3 million viewers overall. These preliminary Nielsen averages are based on how the network’s affiliates performed in the 8 p.m. hour and don’t accurately reflect West Coast viewing, where the program aired at its regular 7 p.m. time, but they figure to be a decent approximation of the show’s performance.

SEE MORE: ‘El Chapo’s’ Lawyer Accuses Sean Penn of Making False Trafficking Claim

It’s been at least five years since “60 Minutes,” which usually sees its highest numbers on nights when CBS has a national NFL lead-in, topped the 20-million viewer mark for an installment. The show’s previous highs this season came Nov. 15 (18.13 million), and its high in the last few years came in December 2012 (19.63 million).

Based on the prelims, last night’s “60 Minutes” appears to be the show’s most-watched episode since November 2008. That night, an interview with President Elect Barack Obama and his wife Michelle drew 25.1 million.

The show’s top demo score in recent years (4.9) also came in December 2012 with an edition that was devoted to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that had occurred two days earlier.

Last night’s “60 Minutes” included Rose’s interview with Penn, who defended his own Rolling Stone interview with Mexican drug lord “El Chapo.” In the sit-down, the actor told Rose he assumed Mexican officials were aware of what he was doing and that the meeting was a risk to himself.

As for football, the second-round NFL playoff game between the Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh averaged a monster 26.2 household rating/44 share in Nielsen’s metered-market overnights — up 3% vs. the comparable Indianapolis-Denver game of last year (25.4/41, also from 4:45-8 p.m. ET) and making it the top-rated AFC second-round playoff game in 21 years (since Miami-San Diego in 1995 on NBC, 26.8/46.

The Broncos’ 23-16 victory over the Steelers now stands as the highest-rated NFL game of the season.

NBC scored big Saturday night with its wild and wacky NFC matchup between the Green Bay Packers and Arizona Cardinals, which averaged a 20.3 household rating/34 share — the second best overnight ever for a primetime second-round NFL playoff in the overnights. And in total viewers, the Cardinals’ 26-20 overtime victory drew 33.7 million, up 9% from last year’s NFC game on the same night (Carolina-Seattle on Fox) and the largest audience ever for a second-round primetime NFL playoff game.

Last night’s Democratic debate on NBC averaged 10.16 million viewers from 9 to 11 p.m., making it the second highest-rated of four Democratic debates this election cycle. The first Dem debate, on CNN in October, remains the highest-rated to date with 15.79 million viewers.

Last night’s debate also attracted nearly 1.2 million viewers who streamed the event live on NBC News digital platforms including the NBC News YouTube channel, NBCNews.com, and apps for iPhone, Android, Amazon, Apple TV, Fire TV and Roku. And a quickie repeat at 11 p.m. ET on MSNBC averaged 552,000 viewers.

In the key news demo of adults 25-54, Sunday’s debate from Charleston, S.C., did a 2.7 rating, well ahead of the prior broadcast Democratic debates (1.8 on CBS in November, and 1.7 on ABC in December). The first CNN debate last October did a 4.2 in the demo.

question: How many viewers did "60 Minutes" have?

answer: 40 million

question: How many views did the interview with Barack Obama and his wife have?

answer: 25.1 million viewers.

question: How many views did the Democratic debate have on NBC?

answer: 10.16 million viewers.

question: Which is the highest-rated Democratic debate?

answer: The Democratic debate on CNN in October remains the highest-rated to date with 15.79 million viewers.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer:
Last night's "60 Minutes" whose stories included Charlie Rose's interview with Sean Penn topped the 20-million viewer mark. The show has 40 million views and averaged roughly a 4.7 rating/ 14 share in adults 18-49. In the interview, Penn defended his own Rolling Stone interview with Mexican drug lord "El Chapo."

Last night's episode appears to be the show's most-watched episode since November 2008. That night, an interview with President-Elect Barack Obama and his wife Michelle drew 25.1 million views.