text:
ENES KANTER ()[1] is a Swiss-born stateless professional basketball player of Turkish origin for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was originally selected as the third overall pick of the 2011 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz.

Kanter is a political activist, critic of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and supporter of the Gülen movement, which is designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey.[2] A long-time professional wrestling fan, he briefly held the WWE 24/7 Championship for the first time in 2019.

Early life and education

Kanter was born in Zürich, Switzerland.[3] His father, Mehmet Kanter, received his M.D. from the University of Zurich. The family then returned to Turkey. Enes' father became a professor of histology and genetics at Trakya University.[4] His mother was a nurse. Kanter has three younger siblings: two brothers (including basketball player Kerem Kanter) and one sister.[5]

Starting in second grade, Kanter attended Hizmet-affiliated schools, part of the Gülen movement in Turkey.[6] He lived in Ankara and then moved to Istanbul to play professional basketball as a teen.[7]

At the age of 17, Kanter moved to the United States to play basketball. He attended Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nevada, and then Mountain State Academy in Beckley, West Virginia. He was not allowed to play high school basketball at both schools because of a Nike shoe contract while he was a professional basketball player. Kanter then attended Stoneridge Preparatory School in Simi Valley, California, where he was able to play basketball for a season.[8]

From 2010 to 2011, Kanter attended one year of college at the University of Kentucky, although he was declared permanently ineligible to play (or even practice) with the basketball team by the NCAA.[9]

Basketball career

Pre-college career

Before moving to the United States, Kanter played under Serdar Apaydın's management for the Fenerbahçe youth squad between 2006 and 2008[10] and then, during the 2008–09 season, Kanter was a seldom-used reserve for the Fenerbahçe senior team.[11] He played in at least nine games with the team: four in the EuroLeague and five in the Turkish Super League.[12] Fenerbahçe and the Greek League basketball team Olympiacos both offered Kanter professional contracts, but he declined because he wanted to play high school and college basketball in the United States.[13]

Prep school

In 2009, Kanter moved to the United States, where he enrolled at Stoneridge Preparatory School in Simi Valley, California, and played for the basketball team in 2009–10.[14] At the 2010 Nike Hoop Summit, Kanter played for the international team, recording 34 points and 13 rebounds.[15] His point total was a record for the event, breaking Dirk Nowitzki's record set in the 1998 game.[16] Both Rivals.com and Scout.com (now known as 247Sports.com) rated Kanter as a five-star prospect, the highest possible rating.[17][18]

College career

On 23 November 2009, Kanter verbally committed to play for the Washington Huskies.[19] Kanter chose Washington over UCLA, USC, Indiana and UNLV.[20] However, he re-opened his recruitment in February 2010, and on April 14, Kanter signed a National Letter of Intent to play college basketball for Kentucky.[21][22]

However, despite signing with the Kentucky Wildcats, the NCAA declared him permanently ineligible as a collegiate athlete because he received approximately $33,000 from Fenerbahçe in excess benefits. The NCAA ruled that this amount was above and beyond what was considered acceptable.[23][24][25] On 7 January 2011, the NCAA rejected Kentucky's appeal, upholding that Kanter was permanently ineligible.[26] Without Kanter, Kentucky still managed to reach the Final Four in the 2011 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

Professional career

Utah Jazz (2011–2015)

Kanter was drafted third overall by the Utah Jazz in the 2011 NBA draft. Upon being drafted, he said “I'm so happy, I'm so excited. I know the Utah Jazz fans are crazy and I love them. I will bring the team toughness and post moves, rebounding, everything. I will try to do everything to make the playoffs.”[27] On 9 December 2011, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Jazz following the conclusion of the NBA lockout.[28] In 2011–12, he became the 10th Jazz rookie in franchise history to appear in every regular-season game. He also recorded the most rebounds for a Jazz rookie on debut with 11 against the Los Angeles Lakers on 27 December. In the season, he averaged 4.6 points and 4.2 rebounds in 66 games.

[Kanter attempts to block Patrick Beverley's shot during a game in March 2014]

In 2012–13, Kanter improved his averages in every major statistical category, led the team in scoring three times and rebounding four times, and scored in double-figures 22 times. In 70 games (two starts), he averaged 7.2 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. On 1 March 2013, Kanter had the first 20-20 game of his career with career-highs of 23 points and 22 rebounds to lead the Jazz to a 98–68 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats.[29] He later missed the final 10 games of the season due to a dislocated left shoulder.

In 2013–14, Kanter appeared in 80 games (37 starts), averaging 12.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. On 3 March 2014, he scored a then career-high 27 points in a 114–88 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.[30]

On 16 December 2014, Kanter scored a then career-high 29 points in a 119–111 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.[31]

Oklahoma City Thunder (2015–2017)

On 19 February 2015, Kanter was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a three-team deal that also involved the Detroit Pistons.[32] Two days later, he made his debut for the Thunder, recording a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds in a 110–103 win over the Charlotte Hornets.[33] On 1 April 2015, he scored a then career-high 30 points in a 135–131 loss to the Dallas Mavericks.[34]

After the 2014–15 season, Kanter became a restricted free agent. On 9 July 2015, he received a four-year, $70 million offer sheet from the Portland Trail Blazers.[35] However, three days later, the Thunder exercised their right of first refusal and matched the offer sheet extended to Kanter by the Trail Blazers.[36] On 14 March 2016, he scored a then season-high 26 points in a 128–94 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.[37] On April 6, he recorded a career-high 33 points and 20 rebounds in a 120–115 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers,[38] becoming the first player in Thunder history to score at least 30 points and grab 20 rebounds in a game.[39] In Game 3 of the Thunder's first-round playoff series against the Dallas Mavericks, Kanter recorded a playoff career-high 21 points and a game-high eight rebounds in a 131–102 win, claiming a 2–1 series lead.[40] In Game 4 of the series, Kanter helped the Thunder go up 3–1 with 28 points on 12-of-13 shooting, setting a playoff career high for the second straight game.[41]

On 28 November 2016, Kanter recorded a season-high 27 points and 10 rebounds in a 112–103 win over the New York Knicks.[42] On 26 January 2017, he sustained a fractured forearm after punching a chair on the Thunder's bench during their game against the Dallas Mavericks. He was subsequently ruled out for six to eight weeks.[43] He returned to action on 24 February 2017 against the Los Angeles Lakers after missing nine games. He finished with four points on 2-for-12 shooting.[44]

When Kanter lost his passport and faced being trapped abroad his teammates, Russell Westbrook and Steven Adams, reached out to him to make sure he was okay.[45]

New York Knicks (2017–2019)

[Kanter with the New York Knicks in 2018] On 25 September 2017, Kanter was traded, along with Doug McDermott and a 2018 second-round pick, to the New York Knicks in exchange for Carmelo Anthony.[46] In his debut for the Knicks in their season opener on October 19, 2017, Kanter had 10 points and seven rebounds in a 105–84 loss to his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder.[47] Five days later, he recorded 16 points and 19 rebounds in a 110–89 loss to the Boston Celtics.[48] On 29 November 2017, after missing three games with back spasms, Kanter had 22 points and 14 rebounds in a 115–86 win over the Miami Heat.[49] On 25 December 2017, he had a season-high 31 points and tied a career best with 22 rebounds in a 105–98 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. He joined Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell and Bob Lanier as the only players with a 30-20 game on Christmas.[50] On 30 January 2018, he recorded 20 points, 20 rebounds and five assists in a 111–95 win over the Brooklyn Nets.[51] On 6 February 2018, in a 103–89 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, Kanter recorded 19 points and 16 rebounds for his sixth consecutive double-double, marking the longest streak by any Knick since David Lee had seven straight from 9–26 February 2010.[52] On 6 March 2018, he had 18 points and 11 rebounds in a 111–87 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. It was Kanter's 32nd double-double of the season, a career high.[53]

On 19 October 2018, Kanter scored 29 points in a 107–105 loss to the Nets.[54] A day later, he recorded 17 points and 15 rebounds in a 103–101 loss to the Celtics, becoming the first Knick since Zach Randolph (2007–08) to start the season with three straight double-doubles.[55] On 5 November he recorded 23 points and 24 rebounds in a 116–115 double-overtime loss to the Chicago Bulls.[56] On 11 November, he notched his fifth straight double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds in a 115–89 loss to the Orlando Magic.[57] On 25 November, recorded 21 points and a career-high 26 rebounds in a 103–98 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.[58] In late December, Kanter was demoted to a reduced role off the bench.[59][60][61] Kanter was waived by the Knicks on 7 February 2019.[62][63] During his last game at Madison Square Garden, Kanter ran out and kissed the court goodbye.[64]

Portland Trail Blazers (2019)

On 13 February 2019, Kanter signed with the Portland Trail Blazers.[65] He made his debut for the Trail Blazers on 21 February, recording 18 points and nine rebounds off the bench in a 113–99 win over the Brooklyn Nets.[66] In game one of the Trail Blazers' first-round playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Kanter had 20 points and a career playoff-high 18 rebounds in a 104–99 win, becoming just the third player in team history with at least 20 points and 18 rebounds in playoff game: Bill Walton did it three times and LaMarcus Aldridge once.[67]

Boston Celtics (2019–2020)

When free agency opened on 1 July 2019, Kanter and the Boston Celtics agreed to a two-year, $10 million contract.[68] He was officially signed on July 17.[69]

Return to Portland (2020–present)

On November 20, 2020, Kanter was traded back to the Portland Trail Blazers in a three-team trade that also includes the Memphis Grizzlies.[70]

National team career

Kanter made his debut for the Turkish national basketball team at the 2008 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship in Italy. He dominated throughout the tournament, averaging 22.9 points, 16.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 34.6 minutes per game. However, Jonas Valančiūnas was chosen as the MVP after he averaged 14.3 points, 11.1 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 23.5 minutes. Kanter went on to earn MVP honors at the 2009 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship after averaging 18.6 points and 16.4 rebounds while leading Turkey's junior national team to the bronze medal.[71] He declined to play for the senior national team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship which was being held in Turkey as the team went on to win the silver medal. His father claimed he did this in order not to miss the first month of classes at Kentucky.[72]

Kanter played with the Turkish senior team for the first time at the 2011 EuroBasket where he was the youngest player to make the team.[73] He appeared in eight games and averaged 9.6 points and 3.9 rebounds per game.[74] Kanter was left off the team's roster for EuroBasket 2015. Kanter alleged that the omission was due to his relationship with Fethullah Gülen and his support of the Gülen movement while coach Ergin Ataman said that Kanter was excluded because “he did not apologize to teammates for past incidents.”[75] Kanter also believes that if he were to go to Turkey to play he would end up in jail, killed by the national government, and a fake poisoning incident would be created.[76]

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

|- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Utah | 66 || 0 || 13.2 || .496 || .000 || .667 || 4.2 || .1 || .3 || .3 || 4.6 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Utah | 70 || 2 || 15.4 || .544 || 1.000 || .795 || 4.3 || .4 || .4 || .5 || 7.2 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Utah | 80 || 37 || 26.7 || .491 || .000 || .730 || 7.5 || .9 || .4 || .5 || 12.3 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Utah | 49 || 48 || 27.1 || .491 || .317 || .788 || 7.8 || .5 || .5 || .3 || 13.8 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Oklahoma City | 26 || 26 || 31.1 || .566 || .750 || .776 || 11.0 || 1.1 || .5 || .5 || 18.7 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Oklahoma City | 82 || 1 || 21.0 || .576 || .476 || .797 || 8.1 || .4 || .3 || .4 || 12.7 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Oklahoma City | 72 || 0 || 21.3 || .545 || .132 || .786 || 6.7 || .9 || .4 || .5 || 14.3 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| New York | 71 || 71 || 25.8 || .592 || .000 || .848 || 11.0 || 1.5 || .5 || .5 || 14.1 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| New York | 44 || 23 || 25.6 || .536 || .318 || .814 || 10.5 || 1.9 || .4 || .4 || 14.0 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Portland | 23 || 8 || 22.3 || .577 || .250 || .735 || 8.6 || 1.4 || .6 || .4 || 13.1 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| | style=“text-align:left;”| Boston | 58 || 7 || 16.9 || .572 || .143 || .707 || 7.4 || 1.0 || .4 || '''.7 || 8.1 |- class=“sortbottom” | style=“text-align:center;” colspan=“2”| Career | 641 || 223 || 21.7 || .543 || .287 || .776 || 7.6 || .9 || .4 || .5 || 11.6

Playoffs

|- | style=“text-align:left;”| 2012 | style=“text-align:left;”| Utah | 4 || 0 || 10.8 || .438 || .000 || .000 || 4.0 || .3 || .0 || 1.0 || 3.5 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| 2016 | style=“text-align:left;”| Oklahoma City | 18 || 0 || 18.0 || .551 || .143 || .844 || 6.2 || .3 || .3 || .6 || 9.4 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| 2017 | style=“text-align:left;”| Oklahoma City | 5 || 0 || 9.1 || .385 || .000 || 1.000 || 1.8 || .2 || .0 || .8 || 4.8 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| 2019 | style=“text-align:left;”| Portland | 16 || 14 || 28.8 || .514 || .250 || .756 || 9.7 || 1.2 || .7 || .6 || 11.4 |- | style=“text-align:left;”| 2020 | style=“text-align:left;”| Boston | 11 || 0 || 9.3 || .524 || 1.000 || .500 || 3.9 || .6 || .0 || .0 || 4.5 |- class=“sortbottom” | style=“text-align:center;” colspan=“2”| Career | 54 || 14 || 18.0 || .514 || .211 || .722 || 6.2 || .6 || .3 || .5 || 8.1

EuroLeague

|- | style=“text-align:left;”| 2008–09 | style=“text-align:left;”| Fenerbahçe | 4 || 0 || 7.8 || .429 || .000 || .667 || 1.5 || .0 || .3 || .0 || 2.0 || 1.8 |- class=“sortbottom” | style=“text-align:center;” colspan=“2”| Career | 18|| 0 || 7.8 || .429 || .000 || .667 || 1.5 || .0 || .3 || .0 || 24.2|| 1.8

Professional wrestling involvement

Kanter is a professional wrestling fan and has previously expressed interest in pursuing a professional wrestling career. Kanter has had online feuds with professional wrestlers including All Elite Wrestling's MJF.

On 9 September 2019, Kanter made a special appearance at a WWE _Monday Night Raw_ event at Madison Square Garden, where prior to _Raw_ going on the air he defeated WWE 24/7 Champion R-Truth to win the title, though he would lose it back to R-Truth moments later (all of which was shown later during the _Raw_ broadcast). Kanter established himself as a heel during the segment, when he revealed his Celtics jersey to the New York City crowd.[77]

Championships and accomplishments

-   WWE
    -   WWE 24/7 Champion (1 time)

Politics and activism

Kanter received primary and secondary education at Hizmet schools in Turkey[78] and reconnected with the movement's volunteers when Kanter arrived in the United States,[79] even forming a personal relationship with the movement's founder, Fethullah Gülen.[80] With regard to Gülen, Kanter has said, “His views on my religion, as well as ways to solve today's problems, were attractive to me.” “Gulen is promoting an Islam that highlights justice, respect and love for those who aren't like us. He believes that being a Muslim comes with some kind of duty, and that is to help others. These are principles that I feel strongly about.”[81]

Kanter said he became publicly critical of president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in 2013 due to the corruption scandal in Turkey.[82] After the failed 2016 _coup d'état_ attempt, Kanter criticised Turkish president Erdoğan on Twitter, calling him the “Hitler of our century”.[83] Soon after the coup attempt in July, his father and his family publicly disowned him due to his political views and his support for Gülen, imploring him to change his surname, on August 8. Kanter stated that he loves Gülen “more than his family”, informally changing his name to Enes Gülen.[84] His father was dismissed from his university position a few weeks later, via government decree numbered 272 on 1 September, as part of 2016–17 Turkish purges.[85][86][87] Also, Kanter has received backlash from former NBA player Hedo Turkoglu. Turkoglu has called Kanter’s comments “irrational”.[88]

In May 2017, while on a tour hosting basketball camps in Hong Kong and Japan and other parts of Asia, Kanter was in Jakarta, Indonesia. At 2:30 AM, Kanter's manager knocked on his door with alarming information.[89] He was told that two men identifying themselves as Indonesian government officials had visited the camp and wanted to speak to find out if Kanter was sleeping at the camp, which he often did.[90] Kanter, staying at a hotel with his manager, instead immediately left Indonesia,[91] going to Singapore, then Bucharest, Romania via Frankfurt, Germany.[92] On 20 May 2017, when trying to fly into Romania – where another camp was planned to be held – Kanter was not allowed into the country, and was told by officials there that his passport was cancelled by the Turkish embassy.[93][94][95] Kanter was temporarily stranded in Romania, but eventually flew to London, and then back to the United States.[96][97] While stuck in Romania, Kanter took to Twitter to explain his situation and the hashtag #FreeEnes went viral - this was all happening during Kanter's birthday.[98] Upon landing in the US, Kanter said the first thing he did was pray.[99]

In Turkey, Kanter's father was charged as a member of a terrorist group. He was arrested, then was released after being detained for five days.[100] Kanter believes his father has been targeted by the Turkish government and could face many years in prison.[101] Kanter is unable to contact his friends and family back in Turkey because he fears the conversations will be tapped and they will be harmed.[102] Six days after the cancellation of his passport, the Turkish government issued an arrest warrant for Kanter, accusing him of being a member of a “terror group”.[103] Turkey said that charged citizens who fail to come to Turkey during September 2017 face revocation of citizenship; in September 2017, Kanter described himself as stateless.[104] According to _Sports Illustrated_, “Although Kanter might dismiss the Turkish arrest warrant as toothless, he faces the more impactful problem of being a man without a country.”[105] It was reported on 20 December 2017, that Turkish prosecutors were seeking more than four years in prison for Kanter, who would be tried in absentia.[106][107]

In January 2019, he decided against travelling to London with the Knicks, fearing that his life could be in danger if he traveled to Europe.[108][109] Kanter did not travel to Toronto with the Portland Trail Blazers in March 2019 for the same reason.[110][111] According to a 2019 ESPN story, FBI agents have issued him a communications device that allows him to contact the organization at a moment's notice due to credible threats against his life.[112]

Also in January 2019, Turkey put an extradition request on Kanter and requested that Interpol put a red notice for his arrest. However, according to Interpol’s website no red notice had been issued.[113]

In 2019, Kanter was the subject of an E:60 ESPN documentary called _Enemy of the State_.[114] Kanter condemned the 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria against U.S.-allied Kurds.[115]

Personal life

Kanter is a practicing Muslim. In 2019, he wrote in _The Washington Post_ about the challenge of observing Ramadan during the NBA playoffs, which includes long periods of fasting while still playing NBA basketball games.[116]

Kanter has said that during college he learned English by watching _SpongeBob SquarePants_ and _Jersey Shore_.[117]

Kanter's younger brother, Kerem Kanter, played for the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay from 2014 to 2017.[118] After graduating from UW–Green Bay in 2017, he transferred to Xavier University under the NCAA's graduate transfer rule.[119] In July 2019, Kerem signed with Club Joventut Badalona.[120]

Kanter dated professional wrestler Dana Brooke until December 2019.[121][122]

Philanthropy

During the summer of 2018, Kanter held 16 free basketball camps in the United States. In the summer of 2019, 40 free basketball camps were initially scheduled, but he ultimately hosted 50.[123] Another 50 free camps are planned for the summer of 2020.[124]

Works and publications

-   -

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[21]

[22]

[23]

[24]

[25]

[26]

[27]

[28]

[29]

[30]

[31]

[32]

[33]

[34]

[35]

[36]

[37]

[38]

[39]

[40]

[41]

[42]

[43]

[44]

[45]

[46]

[47]

[48]

[49]

[50]

[51]

[52]

[53]

[54]

[55]

[56]

[57]

[58]

[59]

[60]

[61]

[62]

[63]

[64]

[65]

[66]

[67]

[68]

[69]

[70]

[71]

[72]

[73]

[74]

[75]

[76]

[77]

[78] https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/enes-kanter-nba-christmas-turkey-erdogan-1.5408418

[79]

[80]

[81] https://www.wrcbtv.com/story/41965216/a-fierce-critic-of-turkey-enes-kanter-has-more-than-just-losing-the-nba-season-on-his-mind

[82]

[83]

[84]

[85]

[86]

[87]

[88]

[89]

[90]

[91]

[92]

[93]

[94]

[95]

[96]

[97]

[98]

[99]

[100]

[101]

[102]

[103]

[104]

[105]

[106]

[107]

[108]

[109]

[110]

[111]

[112]

[113]

[114]

[115]

[116]

[117]

[118]

[119]

[120]

[121]

[122]

[123]

[124]

title: Enes Kanter

question: List three teams Enes Kanter has played for.

answer: The Utah Jazz, the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the New York Knicks

question: When did Enes Kanter make his professional debut?

answer: When he was drafted by the Utah Jazz in 2011.

question: What schools did Enes Kanter attend?

answer: Findlay Prep, Mountain State Academy, Stoneridge Preparatory School, and the University of Kentucky

question: What position does Enes Kanter play?

answer: That information can't be found.

question: Describe Enes Kanter's philanthropy efforts.

answer: He held 16 free basketball camps in the United States in 2018, hosted 50 in 2019, and another 50 in 2020.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Enes Kanter is a Swiss-born stateless professional basketball player of Turkish origin. He has played for the Utah Jazz, the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the New York Knicks and currently plays for the Portland Trail Blazers. He is also a political activist, a supporter of the Gülen movement, and 2019 WWE 24/7 Champion.


split: train

text:
SUDDENLY A STAR. SHE'S HEADLINING THE ØYA FESTIVAL, YET WONDERS IF ANYONE WILL SHOW UP AT HER NEXT CONCERT

(Translated from Norwegian by onelittlewarrior )

(Background story: The art of being oneself. «That’s what you want right there, that’s what you want right there!», talk show host Jimmy Fallon cried after Aurora had performed Conqueror for 8 million viewers in March this year. Aurora (Aksnes) had done what she usually does: dancing her way through the song in her characteristic and jumping manner. Unaffectedly and uninhibitedly. And suddenly a star. After I asked for a meeting it took two months before the girl from Lysefjorden had an hour of free time in her schedule. During the interview she was exactly like I'd pictured her: playful, honest and open-minded. That’s what you want right there.)

[]

IN A WORLD OF HER OWN.
Everyone wants a piece of her. Aurora herself dreams of living somewhere in the middle of nowhere.

Around the turn of the millennium the area around Lysefjorden consisted mainly of steep mountains, deep gorges and the natural phenomenon Aurora. She used to run around in her funny skirts and blond hair pondering over anything. When she was six she had a go at an electric piano and "found out how it worked". And that's basically what started what today is one of Norway's most characteristic music careers.

_In love._ - It was just magic how I could make sounds by just pressing the keys. And then to combine them. Four tones may become ten different melodies. I just fell in love and have never stopped playing the piano, says Aurora Aksnes. She continued to make music through her childhood - at the same time dreaming of becoming an author, pianist, astronomer, pediatrician or dancer.

- Haha, there are just so many exciting things to do - including subjects like physics, mathematics and chemistry. I love to figure out how things function.

[]

_- And then you ended up a musical artist?_

- Yes, I did. And it's fantastic. It really is. We've been on the road since Christmas. USA, Europe. It's just kind of exploded.

_- How did this really happen?_

Aurora laughs warily. She doesn't really now. It all happened so fast. A few songs were uploaded to Urørt in 2012, then there was the by:Larm festival, then the Øya festival in 2014 and then like a bang: the world. Including the Jimmy Fallon talk show earlier this year, with 8 million viewers.

- I never dreamt it would take off like that. But even if things have happened so fast, the journey has been a number of small steps. I can tell from my shoes; they're just worn out! It feels like I've been touring since last year, which is true, I suppose. Aurora laughs in wonder.

- Since 2 January we've travelled almost every day. I do so many shows so I notice that things are happening, yet it feels very strange and I'm still sometimes confused.

_Dressed in a carpet on stage._ Aurora did the Øya festival for the first time two years ago, a show that was so successful she decided to quit school as a consequence.

_- What's the difference between Øya of 2014 and now?_

_[]_

_-_

The last time I was quite nervous, and we did a lot of preparations for weeks and months. Now Øya is part a bigger tour of mine, and I'm really looking forward to it. It's such a beautiful festival and it'll be nice to be there now that I'm calmer. I'm much more confident and experienced now. Yet I have this tiny voice inside me that asks if _anyone_ will turn up. Believe me, I know there'll be people there, but maybe not that many? I can't really see why they'd want to listen to me. It's difficult to see the side of me that my fans do. Even in Belgium.

_- In Belgium?_

- Yes, we did a show there in early July. We played a festival at one o'clock at night. Our luggage had been misplaced at the airport and I had to do the show in the clothes I was wearing; a kimono and blanket combo. But I was like, it can't hurt when it's in the middle of the night in Belgium. I've not even been to Belgium before. And then there were 8,000 people there. 8,000! And it was streamed online with me wearing this blanket and my bass player only had his hawaiian shirt on. I guess we were quite the sight. But that's festivals for you. People hope to see something new.
_
- Are there any negative sides to your success?_

- Possibly that I haven't got time to do anything else. I miss reading books in quiet surroundings, hiking in the mountains, picking blueberries. I haven't got the time to do those things now. There are so many things happening and I'm too tired. And I miss my family. I have pictures of them with me. It's good of them not to send me messages and call me too often, that would've made things worse. They understand that I need to be where I am right now.

_- Will you ever move back to Lysefjorden?_

- To be honest I'd like to live somewhere even more remote. A place without people. Where I can pretend that I'm on my own little planet.

_[]_

_Fooled her piano teacher._

 Aurora Aksnes writes songs everywhere she goes. She has "at least seven" notebooks with her on tour, partly because she looses a couple along the way. In her books she jots down fragments of the world: a tramp, a hug, calm or chaos, a smell, you name it. Everything is churned through the Aurora filter and comes out in the other end as the fragile, broken and powerful report that we know from her first album.

_- Your music sounds very un-constructed. It sounds more like the track of a world that already exists - inside yourself?_

- Yes. That's exactly how it is. Spot on!

While travelling it all starts with the lyrics. At home the travel starts with the piano. She just plays. As far as sheet music goes it's just cumbersome.

- I _am_ able to read sheet music at a pinch. But it's like reading a book in French when you've had some French at school - it's very cumbersome and you have to consult your dictionary all the time.
_
- You fooled your piano teacher?_

- Yes, I did. I just learned the classical pieces by heart by listening to them. I'm good at playing by ear. But he found out when I played at this old people's home and I had forgotten the sheets at home but played regardless. Today I'm pleased I'm not very well schooled in music. I don't like it when it becomes too logical. The music looses its life.

_- In one song you sing that you it's a long time ago that you saw the world as beautiful. What do you mean by that?_

_[]_

Aurora pauses uncharacteristically.

- Well, you know, I come from this very beautiful place, peaceful and unspoilt. But now that I've travelled so much I've seen things that aren't very beautiful. It seems like the world is worse off now than it used to be, but then again we're flooded with all sorts or news, almost intravenously so. But we have to remember that there are very many good things happening as well. It's so nice when people manage to react calmly when awful things happen around us. It's beautiful to see that even the most awful things generate a lot of love.

_- If you were able to change things in the world, what would it be?_

- The tendency that we all seem to be driven by fear. It can ruin so much. Fear can influence how you regard people, how you regard a country. And it can stop you from doing what you'd really want to do. I'd remove man's need for power and the tendency to abuse power. Seeing how many create fear in others just to gain power themselves is just sad.

_Demon friends._ All My Demons Greeting Me As A Friend is the title of Aurora's first and so far sole album.

 _- How do you become friends with your demons at the young age of 20?_

- The title alludes to both the the external and the internal. I often see people around me who're looking, in some search of who and what they are. In such a phase people can act in a strange and hostile way. It's important then to remember the nice aspects of these people, remember that they go through this search phase. That way what they do doesn't drain you of your energy. You have to accept yourself the way you are. That way you're able to accept others.

[]

_- And the internal?_

- Everything that we have around us mirrors what's inside us so it's important to make friends with your inner demons as well. Make friends with the inner voice of yours that tells you that you're not good enough. It's important to remember that you too are a person in search of yourself, that you have positive qualities and that you can still make mistakes.     _- What are your current dreams now that you've achieved almost anything an artist could want?_
- That's a good question. I really didn't have time to dream about standing on stage and living off my music before I suddenly did it. Hm. So what I dream about now is making an album that is 100% the way I want it. No, not 100%, 98%. I have to learn to accept that not everything turns out the way I want. I have this strong vision with everything that I do but instead of focussing on details I have to accept what these songs - not 100% perfect they may be - mean to so many people. That people listen to them and feel love. Or grief. That's the important thing.

_- Can AURORA become so big, making Aurora Aksnes disappear?_

- No, never. I have deep roots that are difficult to unroot. AURORA Music is a cloud, otherworldly and magical. Aurora Aksnes is a tree.

(Original article at www.aftenposten.no/amagasinet/Aurora-Aksnes---Jeg-hadde-aldri-trodd-det-skulle-ta-sa-av-600553b.html)

question: Who performed on Jimmy Fallon, making the talk show host cry?

answer: Aurora.

question: Where is Aurora from?

answer: Norway.

question: When did her music career start?

answer: 2012

question: How did it take off?

answer: She uploaded some songs to streaming and sharing platforms.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Aurora is a musical artist from Norway whose career took up when she uploaded some songs to various local streaming platforms. She values natures and science greatly. A reporter interviews her to gain some insight.


text:
Global Soccer

[The German player Christoph Kramer was helped off the field after suffering a blow to the head during the World Cup 2014 final against Argentina in Rio de Janeiro in July.]

Credit...Chema Moya/European Pressphoto Agency

-   Sept. 9, 2014
-

DURHAM, England — Three months have passed since the World Cup in Brazil, and still FIFA seems unaware or unwilling to grasp that head trauma has become the most serious — and potentially most litigious — issue threatening all of sports.

The images of players’ apparently knocked senseless but then revived and allowed to stagger on in a confused state have marred some of soccer’s most-watched games. At the World Cup, those endangered players included Germany’s Christoph Kramer during the final, Argentina’s Javier Mascherano during a semifinal, and Uruguay’s Álvaro Pereira in a first-round game against England.

Pereira and Mascherano were in some quarters hailed as macho men who “persuaded” medical personnel that they were fit to continue.

Kramer couldn’t have persuaded anyone of anything because, he later admitted, he didn’t know where he was or what was happening around him after being struck in the head in the 17th minute in the final against Argentina.

Yet Dr. Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt, one of the most experienced physicians in sports, examined Kramer and deemed him fit to play on. After 15 minutes, a still groggy Kramer was removed and taken to the dressing room.

The alarm bells were ringing, but FIFA wasn’t listening.

One imagines that even the world governing body of soccer is cognizant of the situation in the N.F.L. and its efforts to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by thousands of former players over brain trauma linked to repeated hits to the head during play.

If FIFA sees no connection there, it cannot sidestep the implications after a group of soccer players and parents filed a class-action lawsuit accusing the soccer group of being negligent in its management of head injuries.

The initial response from Zurich, where FIFA is based, was that it could not address court proceedings about which it had no detailed information. But just days later, FIFA announced a new mental health research project while pointing out that “almost no scientific study has yet investigated the mental health among football players. To respond to this gap of knowledge, FIFA has established the new research area, so that those in the game feel more comfortable coming forwards to talk about issues and in order to ease access to treatment.”

This statement might seem 40 years too late to doctors and researchers who have been calling for such studies for decades. In the early 1970s, I collated reports of 44 deaths in English soccer that were related to trauma from heading the ball or from collisions between heads and the feet, knees and elbows of opponents.

While those reports were anecdotal and admittedly involved the heavy, old leather ball that went out of fashion many years ago, there was enough circumstantial evidence — compiled with the help of a leading neuropathologist and the then-medical officer of England’s Football Association — to inspire a later study led by Norwegian medical researchers.

Over time, the ball, the equipment and the professionalism shown by players have all advanced. But so has the speed of the game. So while the ball itself might be lighter and made of materials that do not soak up weight during play, players rarely are given a yard of space today to head the ball correctly. Instead, they are crowded and jostled so they cannot make clean or deliberate contact. That, in the modern game, would be deemed a dereliction of duty by the defenders, who are instructed to deny both the time and the space need to attempt what is called a “clean” header.

So FIFA’s research study will be complicated indeed. But it dare not be complacent with the findings.

Pereira graphically described what happened to him at the World Cup as “the lights going out” after he was concussed when his head collided with the knee of England’s Raheem Sterling.

That followed other televised incidents of head trauma, such as last November, when Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Hugo Lloris was knocked out during a Premier League match. Lloris and his coach, André Villas-Boas, overruled the club doctor, who advised that the keeper be taken out of the game and sent to a hospital for observation. Lloris played on.

As a consequence of that and other incidents, the English F.A. and the Premier League have ruled that from now on a third doctor, independent of the two teams, should be at games to make the final on-field assessment as to whether a player can continue.

Rugby, which unlike the N.F.L. is played without helmets and padding, has declared this summer that there will be “a zero tolerance approach to gambling with the welfare of players” regarding head injuries.”

There is no doubt that sports heavy on the physical contact — the N.F.L, soccer, rugby and Australian Rules football — are worried about litigation that could make them pay for life-altering injuries caused both by collisions and by outdated ideas that “manliness” means allowing concussed players to continue.

Officials from those four sports met in New York in August to discuss common ground and how they could join forces to respond to what some are calling a concussion crisis.

It is good that they are talking. It will be better if they get the word across that athletes must be saved, if necessary, from their own misguided bravery.

But if it is found out that the leagues have been gambling with — and profiting from — the welfare of so many sports heroes, the price will be heavy.

Already, a federal judge has rejected one proposal by the N.F.L., saying it did not include enough money to cover all the former players who might have been affected, and the league responded with a revised settlement that included an open-ended commitment to cover decades of care. And the lawsuit by the parents and players against FIFA is looking not for financial damages, but to change the rules of the game to make it safer.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter is now 78 and will seek fifth four-year term, most likely without opposition. His head has never been in danger, unlike so many others in his sport.

question: When was the article written?

answer: September 9, 2014.

question: What event(s) does the article discuss?

answer: The frequency and severity of concussions caused by contact play in sports, particularly football, and the responsibility FIFA has to the players.

question: Summarize everything relating to FIFA.

answer: The article criticizes FIFA for not prioritizing the physical safety and mental health of its players. It's noted that FIFA is run by people who do not have to place their health at risk to be involved in the sport, unlike the actual players.

question: Who is named in the article?

answer: Chema Moya is given photo credit. Christoph Kramer, Javier Mascherano, Álvaro Pereira, Dr. Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt, Raheem Sterling, Hugo Lloris, André Villas-Boas, Sepp Blatter.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: The article reports on German football player Christoph Kramer being put back into the game while concussed and criticizes FIFA for not prioritizing the physical safety and mental health of its players.


text:
"It might be good for Jameis," offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter said. "He is a film junkie. We have looked into that."

That last point is salient. As part of the hours and hours of background work the franchise did on Winston leading up to the draft, they know how he works best and what could help him improve at the rapid pace the NFL demands.

"I visualize the concept and go through my reads with no one out there," Winston told FOX Sports of his current methods. "I haven't done any virtual things. I know the Cowboys have got it."

The issue for the Bucs is they are behind the game. The team _wants_ to have virtual reality, but hasn't yet found the right system.

"What I tell vendors that come in to show us stuff is that we need it today," Koetter said. "Some people tell us, 'This will be ready in three months. I say, 'No, Jameis needs this tomorrow.'"

With visual reps a huge bonus for developing young quarterbacks off the field, virtual reality is likely something every team eventually buys into.

For now, the Bucs hope to implement it in time to escalate Winston's development.

question: Why do the NFL teams want to use virtual reality?

answer: It's a very practical way to develop young players off the field.

question: Why do the Bucs want VR for Jemeis?

answer: They know he's a film junkie, and they think that he'd benefit heavily from VR.

question: What problems does Koetter have with VR vendors?

answer: Koetter wants a VR system ready to use while the vendors say it will be ready in a few months.

question: How does Winston train?

answer: He visualizes the concept and goes through his reads with no one out there.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Offensive coordinator Koetter talks about VR, saying it'd be good for Winston because he's a movie buff. The young NFL player and the Bucs, in general, want VR, but Koetter wants a system that's ready - not something that will be ready in a few months like the vendors offer.


text:
Once upon a time, there were four angles that were best friends, there was Right Angle, and he always thought he was perfect since he added up to 90 degrees. Acute and her twin sister, they always complimented each other since they were both 45 degrees, perfect complementary angles. And Obtuse Angle, the big clown of the group, the other angles always pocked fun at him, saying he was a one angle supplementary, but they were wrong, he was only 179 degrees, so jokes on them. One day they decided they wanted to go to the great Plane. The Plane was a popular attraction for Angles all over the world; it was filled with beautiful sites, and extended on and on forever. All you had to do was take a right, then a left and you were at the door to the magical Plane.

The four friends set out on their journey and quickly reached the door to the grand and mystical Plane. This was the first time any of them had been to the great Plane, and they ran into a small problem. Obtuse was too big to get through the door! Acute teased him by dashing back and forth laughing. “See, you are so big you hit every Vertex of the door!” Acute joked.

“Well, I’m afraid we are going to have to cut you into two congruent pieces Obtuse if you want through” stated Right Angle. “What? No? I don’t want to be cut in half” exclaimed Obtuse, “there has to be another way.” Obtuse angle and Right angle argued about this for a good 10 minutes, Acute took this opportunity to make another joke and measured Obtuse with a Protractor and made more fun of his size. This sent Obtuse over the edge and he cried and cried. “I’m sorry” said Acute “it was mean of me to make fun of you.” But it didn’t help and Obtuse cried and cried some more, but the whole time, he got smaller and smaller, until he was just the perfect size to fit though the door. Right Angle saw the opportunity and pushed him through the door.

Just like that they were in the great Plane, it was beautiful, better than anything they could have imagined, it was completely white, extending on for as long as the eye could see, brightly colored points in space, every color and every shade you could ever think of, they light up the sky like fireworks. “What are those spots up there?” asked Obtuse. “Why those are Points, they litter the great Plane and are everywhere you look.” Explained Right Angle. Obtuse looked to the right and saw two colored lines shoot across the sky, “Oh my, what are those lines, they look like they are racing” said Obtuse. “Those lines are something called parallel lines, they travel across the great Plane, they travel in two opposite directions for as long as you can see, but will never ever meet” said Right Angle. “For some reason that makes me sad they will never meet” said Obtuse with a frown.

The four friends spent another hour or two taking in the sights, but suddenly, everything got a little dark, and some of the dots started disappearing. Looking up they saw the destroyer of the Plane. “What is that?” cried Acute. “Well that is the great eraser, and we better start running” stated Right Angle rather calmly, and so they ran, as quick as they possibly could, with dots and lines disappearing all around them, and the shadow of the great eraser slowly coming closer and closer. They could see the door in the distance but it was a long shot.

Obtuse was trailing slightly behind the rest; he had a drink since his big cry, and was back to his old 179 degrees. Almost all of the color dots were gone at this point, and the great and powerful eraser set its sights on the weak angles, chasing them with all its speed. Acute and her sister made it to the door first, and dove through it, followed by Right Angle, and bringing up the rear was Obtuse, with the great eraser right on his tail, he slammed in to the door but was just too big.

Obtuse turned around just in time to see the eraser not even a foot from him. He pushed with all his force and came flying through the door; the eraser had erased some of him, just enough to fit through the door. Obtuse didn’t mind however because the eraser had erased just enough of him to bring him to a perfect 90 degrees, no more jokes at his expense, looks like Right Angle isn't the only perfect angle in town anymore.

The four friends never returned to the great Plane, now that they knew how dangerous it was, but they were glad they got to see it, and the memory of the dancing bright lights will stay with them for the rest of their days, all they have to do is close their eyes and they see the sky light up with beautiful lights of every color. Something so wonderful will never be forgotten.
The end!

If you see any Grammatical errors please let me know!

title: Short kids story about Angles

question: Did Obtuse come back to his normal size?

answer: Yes

question: What did they do once they got to The Plane?

answer: They take in the sights of Points and Lines and are chased by the Eraser.

question: How did crying make him smaller?

answer: Information not found.

question: Will they come out of The Plane?

answer: Yes

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: Four angles that were best friends, the perfect Right Angle (90 degrees), Acute and her twin sisters (both 45 degrees), and Obtuse (179 degrees) decide to visit the Plane. When they get there they make fun of Obtuse for being too big and not fitting through the door. He cries until he gets small enough to fit through and Right Angle pushes him. Whilst there, they take in the sights of colorful Points and Lines until the Eraser appears and chases them back to the door. Obtuse gets stuck, but the Eraser erases 79 degrees of him and makes him a perfect 90 degrees angle, making him happy. They never go back to the Plane.


text:
I can see them.

They are usually fluttering around, some watching, some writing on their tablets. I always wonder what they are writing about; news, faces, people? What they see, or what we missed? I do not know, nope. I do not. And they move fast, really fast. Oh, and that one is smiling at me. I like it when they smile, it makes me feel warm and safe inside. They have very pretty smiles.

Describe them? Oh no, I couldn't, I shouldn't even try. They are the most amazing colors. Gold, red, blue, yes. And then some I have never seen in my life. Strange, swirling colors, like the color of joy. I do not know the color, but that's what color his robe is right now. They are big and strong, and small and unassuming, all at once. A living contradiction; yup, that's what they are. At least, I think they are alive. Do angels live? I'd like to think so. Nothing so beautiful could possibly be dead.

The other ones might be, though. I do not like them, no, not a bit. They scare me, very dark and eerie. They look like giant bats, always there, clinging to people. They are horribly, horribly ugly, with leather wings and distorted faces. Even scarier is when they pretend to be beautiful people. I am glad that they can't hide their flicking tail, or else no one would be able to tell the difference. When they smile, it's an evil, wicked smile. Sometimes they chase me. I run as fast as I can, but they are much faster. They make horrible faces and laugh like hyenas, and I scream and swing my arms and legs until they get bored and go away.

But they don't like the beautiful ones. That's why I stay near them, yup, that's why. I like to be where there are a lot of them, especially when they start singing. It's more beautiful than any choir I've ever heard before. They like to hang aroun the zoo. Always a lot of them there, and at the hospital near here. I don't have the money to go to the hospital though. Sometimes they help me, and point to a good spot to find food or a blanket, or a warm place to sleep at night. Yes, I like the beautiful ones a lot.

There are a whole bunch of them up ahead. They are all crowed around a building, fluttering around the roof and walls. Oh, good! I always like to find more spots where they hang out. They are almost covering the building, and I can't wait to go inside. That one is shaking his head at me. Why? I won't stay long, won't cause any trouble. Sometimes that bothers people, but I won't do that. I just want to go inside...

What happened? Oh no, this is wrong, this is very wrong. There aren't any beautiful ones in here at all. They are all looking in the windows and the skylight. But the ugly ones are everywhere, everywhere I look. They are crawling all over people sitting on the cushioned benches. There is a man up front talking to them. No, wait, it's not a man; it's one of the uglies. I almost missed his tail. That was close. None of the people are scared. Can't they see the uglies? Maybe they are used to it.

I am really scared. Maybe if I stand really still and quiet, they won't see me. The uglies begin hissing and smiling at me, and I'm afraid they are going to start chasing me. The people are lookinig back at me now too. They frown and glare, scooting further and further away. But I won't hurt them; it's the uglies they should be worried about. Can they really not see them? I just want to find more beautiful ones.

 I run back outside. The same beautiful one who shook his head at me earlier, he smiles at me, then looks in again. The colors have changed again. His robe is the color of sadness. He looks so very sad, and I start to cry. Why would people bring the uglies into such a beautiful place?

Why are the beautiful ones left crying outside?

title: Schizophrenic in Church

question: From the narrator's descriptions, what do the beautiful creatures look like?

answer: They are the most amazing colors, and they are both big and strong and small and unassuming. Their smiles are very pretty.

question: From the narrator's descriptions, what do the ugly creatures look like?

answer: They are horribly ugly, with leather wings and distorted faces. They have a tail and laugh like hyenas.

question: What are the places the narrator usually finds the beautiful ones?

answer: The zoo and the hospital.

question: What is the building in the last part of the story?

answer: It seems to be a church.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: The text is a short story about beautiful, kind creatures (presumably angels), and ugly, mean creatures (presumably demons). The narrator prefers the beautiful creatures and tries to find them whenever he can. At the end of the story, he finds a lot of them around a big building, looking in, but the building itself is full of the ugly creatures. It seems to be a church, and the beautiful creatures seem sad.


text:
The AUSTRALIAN SCRUB PYTHON (_Simalia kinghorni_) is a species of snake in the family Pythonidae. The species is indigenous to forests of northern Australia. It is one of the world's longest and largest snakes, and is the longest and largest in Australia. Recently, it has been reclassified to the genus _Simalia_ alongside a few other former _Morelia_ species, but there is still a bit of scientific debate over this.

Etymology

The specific name, _kinghorni_, is in honour of Australian herpetologist and ornithologist James Roy Kinghorn.[1]

Distribution and habitat

_S. kinghorni_ is found in Northern Australia, living within various forests and more densely vegetated parts of the Australian bush.

Description

_S. kinghorni_ has been known to attain a total length (including tail) up to approximately 7 meters (about 24 feet), with some field measurements claiming to be even longer, making this snake one of Australia's largest and longest snakes, if not, the largest and longest of Australia. This snake is commonly considered arboreal or tree-dwelling, making it one of the world's largest and longest arboreal species of snakes. This snake has an ornate back pattern consisting of browns and tans, with many different natural variations. Its belly is usually white, sometimes with some yellows.

Diet

All snakes are carnivores. _S. kinghorni_ predates on many different birds, mammals, and even other reptiles.

Pets

The Australian scrub python is still considered a fairly rare and uncommon pet. However, with captive breeding projects and hobbyists interested in the species, it is slowly becoming more available, with its New Guinea counterparts being much more available (especially in the United States).

[1] Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). _The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles_. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (_Morelia kinghorni_, p. 141).

title: Australian scrub python

question: Why did the Australian Scrub Python got reclassified into the Simalia genus?

answer: The scientific debate continues about its genealogy. The specific reasons aren't mentioned in the article, but the understanding of species evolves over time.

question: Who is the first known discoverer of this snake?

answer: James Roy Kinghorn is the man this snake is named in honor of. He's likely to be the discoverer.

question: Why do people want a seven-meter-long python as a pet?

answer: It's a hobby for some people.

question: Where does the Australian Scrub Python live?

answer: In the forests of Northern Australia.

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: The Australian Scrub Python (Simalia kinghorni) is a species of snake in the family Pythonidae. It's indigenous to northern Australia. It can attain a length of seven meters, making it one of the largest snakes in the world. It's an arboreal species, with an ornate back pattern consisting of browns and tans. It preys on different birds, mammals, and even other reptiles. There are some hobbyists interested in the species as a pet.


text:
All criticism is awesome! thanks
                 A Bad Suggestion
From the seventh floor balcony, I waited for the stars to rise and fall. Just as soon as they went up, they were greeted by another far away star, and together they would dance in a melancholy stupor until they met at a focal point of blackness, and subsequently collided leaving smolder and hot metal parading the sky. The 7TH floor of the abandoned children’s hospital was an ideal place to watch them, and I remember doing so with my older brother. Sometimes we would cheer for more rising stars, and sometimes we would recognize the stars for what they truly were. Our moods were interchangeable based on how we felt, and often, were just interpretations, for they never lasted. In the end it was the same old story. Genocide had swept our nation like a broom, and its only remaining duty was to sweep the rest of us under the rug. We were of the last ones there; the survivors. We were alone and had nothing to rely on but each other, and our father’s mandatory last advisement: “Trust No one.” This, of course, was months before his last and more imperative words: “Run!” On this particular night the moon was full, and whenever there was a hiatus in the back and forth of gunfire and floating bombs, we could still see our native Africa illuminate from the same light that had guided our ancestors. We got tired of listening to the clamor of bullets ricochet, and bored of watching the flares and missiles illuminate the sky. We were hungry, and had nowhere to sleep. It was time to begin our night’s usual routine of scavenging. My brother nudged me in the shoulder, “Come on, we have to go now.” We turned around from the balcony and sprinted down the concrete stairs of the hospital until we reached the bottom. When we made it out of the hospital stairs, the smell hit us. The stench of death is something that is overwhelming at first, but just like anything if you give it time, it will either take on the droll task of expected repetition or, it will haunt your every dream, and stalk your every move. It was most definitely stalking us and it scared us more than ever. We proceeded to run immediately to our right, through the cold sand, and past the huge tree. Usually, the task of running just on the outskirts of immediate war was enough to urge us to keep running. However, on this particular night, the leafless branches of the tree collided with the silver radiance of the moon in an utmost peculiar way. We stopped and watched the branches sway just for a moment. I don’t know why we stopped. Maybe it was just intuition telling us, but our intuition had been sidetracked for so long, we dared not to think that. Our momentary seconds of splendor were soon over, and we began to run again. The sand whistled beneath our cracked black feet as we ran. I remember the unusual chill in the air, and the warmness that would embrace my face each time a far- away missile would light up the sky, and leave its presence booming in the echoes of the barren desert. As we ran, the village where we used to live approached our immediate right, and just adjacent to them were the black windows and torn rubble that used to be our home. We didn’t dare look, for if we did we might have tried to decipher our home from the others, which of course would just perpetuate the fact that there were no homes left at all. It was important to us that we carry no baggage, we were free of emotion. We were no longer people, and I only say this because we had no characteristics of any normal person. We were too young to generate any logical conclusions on our non-generic personalities, so we just went with the notion that we had none. Our feet kept moving until we reached an old tire factory. The smell of burning rubber was still lingering in the air like a flame from an old wick, as we mechanically hopped over the only part of the fence that was not barb wired. There was a light on in the distance. If somebody was there we would rip them to shreds. We didn’t care who they were or why they were there. Trust no one. That was our motto, and we stuck to it like it was the law. Perhaps it was the sound of our tearing flesh on the rocks beneath us, or, perhaps it was the flickering shadow that left its impression so memorably on the hard dirt path. I don’t know what it was for sure, but somebody inside of that room heard us. We began to run faster as the room beyond us started to rumble with preparation. My brother pulled out a long blade that sparkled in the moonlight. Then, that door opened. He warned us to stop, but we kept on going. We were savages. As we neared, the outline of the man’s skull began to familiarize itself with the images of my mind. I paid no attention. The man pulled out a large assault rifle, and we stopped dead in our tracks. He shot my brother between the eyes and I locked mine with his. My brother was dead on the ground. He was only following the advice that my father had given him: Run, and trust no one. He did well. Then, it became clear to me and my shadowed counterpart just exactly who we were looking at. The man I was staring at was my father. As he dropped down in tears, I glanced at my brother’s bloody corpse, and soon after brought my head up to look at the battles in the distance. I took one hard glance at my father, and then remembered his last pieces of advice to me and my deceased brother. I proceeded to turn around and run as fast as I could.

title: Short Story-A Bad Suggestion

question: What is the narrator's relationship with the man who shoots the narrator's brother?

answer: The man is the narrator's father.

question: Why did the narrator's father advise his sons to run and trust no one?

answer: Because it's war.

question: Why are the narrator and his brother running?

answer: They follow their father's advice.

question: Why did the narrator's father kill his own son, the narrator's brother?

answer: He did not recognize him.

question: Write a ~9 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator and his brother are survivors of genocide. They are following their father’s advice: 'Trust No one' and 'Run'. They are running from bullets and missiles. They approach a building and realize someone is inside and begin to run faster. The door opens, and the man warns them to stop. However, they continue to run, as their father advised them. The man shoots and kills the narrator's brother. Then the narrator sees that the man is their father who drops down when realizes he killed his own son. The narrator still follows their father's advice and continues running.


text:
I just started writing this.
should I continue?

The legend goes like this, a long time ago, there lived a race of people, the Crunials. They looked like us, smelled like us, spoke like us, yet they were nothing like us. No one knew where they came from. Some say they came from beneath, sprung up like vegetables. Others say it was the gods’ wrath. People who believed the latter chose to throw themselves down a cliff for retribution. Stone and sea turned blood red, “cowards” Big daddy called them. “The gods abandoned us long before the crunials appeared. This wasn’t their doing. No, they didn’t care enough to punish us” he said. “Those fucking cowards claimed retribution when all they did was poison our water with their rotting bodies”. No one knows where they came from but everyone knows how to kill them. Drown them in fire. People say we have been fighting this war for thousands of years. They are wrong you see. War ends; this can only be genocide.

title: working title...

question: Why were the people opposed to the Crunials?

answer: They were seen as an abomination, a curse from the gods, and without a known origin.

question: How were the Crunials nothing like the people?

answer: That information is not known.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: According to the author, a race of people called the Crunials existed a long time ago and had similarities to humans. No one knew of their true origin, and many people had their theories as to how they came to exist. Because the people seemed opposed to their existence, they decided to get rid of them through genocide.


text:
The FOUNDATION FOR NEW ERA PHILANTHROPY was a notorious Ponzi scheme that operated from 1989 until its collapse in 1995 after having raised over $500 million from 1100 donors and embezzling $135 million of this. Most of the money was stolen from Christian religious organizations and charities in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area. The scheme was publicly discovered by an accounting teacher at a college in Michigan called Albert Meyer and the auditing firm Coopers & Lybrand working with its client, a local religious college in Los Angeles who suffered no loss in its participation.[1]

Origin

The Foundation was founded by John G. Bennett Jr., a Christian businessman from the Philadelphia area who had previously run a variety of different entities, including some Pennsylvania state drug education centers and a corporate training business.

In 1989, Bennett invited several friends to become “beneficiary donors” in a new organization he was founding. They were told that if they contributed at least $5,000 for three months, he would double it. He explained that he had identified secret donors who would match charitable contributions raised by his friends. So rather than donating $5,000 to charity, a sponsor gave the money to New Era Philanthropy for three months, then he or she could donate $10,000.

His friends obliged by giving him various amounts, which Bennett used to pay his bills. He was able to pay them their doubled funds in January 1990 by tapping a payment made to a consulting business he ran on the side. This was the last “real” income paid to investors. To have funds ready to pay off the climbing number of deposits, he increased the minimum “contribution” to $25,000 and lengthened the minimum waiting period. Different donors were told different things; over time the waiting period grew from six to nine to ten months. The number of anonymous donors, anonymous benefactors, and anonymous philanthropists also varied, though Bennett eventually settled on claiming to have nine of them.

John M. Templeton, Jr., son of John Templeton, Sr., the famous investor and philanthropist, was a friend of Bennett, and people believed that he was one of the anonymous donors. In addition, Prudential Securities was a prominent part of the setup (and became the subject of a $90 million lawsuit accusing them of complicity).

In 1994, Bennett expanded the program to allow “donations” by nonprofit organizations.

The program remained small until 1993, when the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences asked for a quarter-million dollar match. After successfully completing that match, many major organizations such as the Philadelphia Public Library and the University of Pennsylvania joined, along with churches and other Christian organizations. Like most modern pyramid or Ponzi schemes, Bennett's was an “affinity” scheme, in which he defrauded people of common interest: in this case, local nonprofit organizations and Christian charities. Using the swelling funds from these churches, Bennett expanded further, establishing offices in Radnor, Pennsylvania. He had glossy brochures and a staff to process all the money coming in.

He expanded his sales force by encouraging organizations to take a “finder's fee” from any money they raised. In other words, if a representative could convince donors to give $10,000,000, the agent could keep $1,000,000 for himself, give the remaining $9,000,000 to New Era and get back $18,000,000 for the nonprofit in six months.

By and large his donors did not ask many questions. When they wanted proof that the money they donated was not being stolen, he provided evidence that the Foundation owned government bonds. However, he was showing the same bonds to everybody, and they had been pledged as collateral on loans anyway. He also had prospective participants speak with supposed representatives of Prudential Bache Securities. One of the conditions of the participation was that various tranches had to be committed to. One of the schemes was to space out the participation over the course of one year in three tranches, with one being repaid and two tranches always being held by New Era. One of the tip offs of the fraud were the tax returns filed by the Trust, which were publicly available. The accounting for the numerous funds held by New Era were not evident in the financial statements. New Era used a small one-man CPA firm which had erroneous financial opinions on the financial statements which Coopers & Lybrand investigated. This was one of several red flags noted.

Bennett told prospects that his anonymous donors met several times a year, in person or by phone. Former U.S. Treasury Secretary William E. Simon, who ironically lost a lot of money to the scam, asked to be admitted to the donor panel. Bennett never responded to the request and Simon gave him money anyway.

With the cash flowing through his hands, Bennett made all sorts of private investments. He bought a share of a travel agency and ran all of New Era's travel business through it. He also purchased a publishing house and other businesses.

In early 1995, the Foundation for New Era Philanthropy was receiving praise in the press for giving money to religious organizations and involving high school students in charitable events. However, the end came swiftly.

On May 15, 1995, a skeptical article about the Foundation appeared on the front page of _The Wall Street Journal_. The same day, the Foundation capitulated in the face of a lawsuit demanding repayment of a $44,000,000 loan and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In filing, the foundation stated that its assets were worth $80 million with liabilities of $551 million.

A close examination of the documents filed in the subsequent lawsuits reveals that more than $354 million had passed through New Era's hands and that Bennett had taken $8 million of that for himself.

In the end, by liquidating all of Bennett's personal assets and reclaiming funds that had been paid to earlier participants, the court was able to bring the total loss down to $135,000,000, spread among all participants in the scheme. In other words, participants who got out early and suffered no losses were required to give the money back, to be shared with others who were less careful (or less lucky).

Bennett faced 82 federal counts of money laundering and wire, mail and bank fraud. He planned to claim in his defense that he had been possessed by “religious fervor”, but the judge did not allow this. In the end, Bennett pleaded no contest to all the charges in March 1997. Though federal sentencing guidelines indicated a sentence of 22 to 27 years, the judge gave him 12.

The scandal touched 1,100 individuals and charities, including more than 180 evangelical groups, colleges, and seminaries. A partial list appears below.

Reasons for collapse

All Ponzi schemes die sooner or later, as they are inherently unsustainable. Bennett's particular scam collapsed because of an investigation headed by Mary Beth Osborn, head of the Charitable Trust Section of the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office. She had received a letter in 1993 from a suspicious whistleblower within New Era. Her inquiry eventually resulted in New Era's registry with the IRS.

As Bennett started to disclose greater financial details, New Era caught the wary eye of Albert Meyer, a Spring Arbor University accounting professor, whose institution in Michigan had been drawn into the matching scheme. Meyer's research indicated that the Foundation was a scam, but Spring Arbor College successfully collected on its early investment. College officials told Meyer that he was going to endanger their ability to get matching grants if he kept asking so many questions. They went so far as to wave a check from New Era in Meyer's face before investing more money. Meyer however was sure he was right and alerted federal investigators and _The Wall Street Journal_ that New Era had all the features of a pyramid scam. After New Era collapsed, the president of Spring Arbor College called Meyer to apologize. “You were right all along. We should have listened to you,” he admitted.[2]

Partial list of investors

Charities

According to the Pennsylvania Attorney General's complaint, prominent victimized charities (listed without dollar amounts) included the Boy Scouts of America, the Environmental Defense Fund, Haverford College, Harvard University, Princeton University, The Nature Conservancy, One to One Partnership Inc., Planned Parenthood, the Philadelphia Orchestra, Stanford University Medical School, the United Way and Yale Law School. Some of the organizations with known involvement amounts included (in alphabetical order):

-   Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, $2.7 million
-   Biblical Theological Seminary, Hatfield, Pennsylvania, $5.8 million
-   CB International, Wheaton, Illinois, $4.6 million
-   Covenant College, Lookout Mountain, Georgia, $5 million
-   Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Michigan, $4 million
-   Houghton College, Houghton, New York, $4 million
-   John Brown University, Siloam Springs, Arkansas, $4 million
-   International Missions, Reading, Pennsylvania., $5 million
-   International Teams, Prospects Heights, Illinois., $5 million
-   King College, Bristol, Tennessee., $5 million
-   United World Mission, $1.45 million
-   University of Pennsylvania, $2.1 million
-   Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois, $4.6 million

Donors

-   George F. Bennett Jr., Boston, $3.3 million
-   Peter Ochs, ( address unknown ), $3.2 million
-   Buford Television Inc., Dallas, $3 million
-   Henry F. Harris, Wyndmoor, Pa., $3 million
-   Westwood Endowment, Indianapolis, $2.8 million (less than $280,000)
-   Don Soderquist, Rogers, Ark., $2.8 million
-   William Kanaga, Orleans, Mass., $2.4 million
-   Henry W. Longacre, Souderton, Pa., $2 million
-   Whitehead Foundation, New York, $2 million (about $1 million)
-   Amelior Foundation, Morristown, N.J., $1.9 million

[1]

[2]

title: Foundation for New Era Philanthropy

question: Why did the donors not look further into Bennett's account about the whereabouts of their money?

answer: Because they trusted the evidence (government bonds) that he showed them.

question: Who made the most profit from Bennett's fraud?

answer: No one. Those who made profit were made to pay them back so as to recoup the losses incurred by the others.


text:
RAFAILOVICH MANSION (__) — an old mansion in Taganrog, Russia. Situated in Frunze Street, 20, between Karaspasov mansion and Drossi mansion. It is considered to be a cultural monument and a valuable object of Russia's cultural heritage. Many people think that it is one of the most beautiful buildings in old part of Taganrog.[1][2]

History

The house was built in 1860s.[3][4]

Originally it belonged to Mikhail Karaspasov, who was a merchant, but then it was bought by a Turkish citizen Panas Constantinidi.[5]

At the end of 1880s Ekaterina Antonovna became owner of the house. She was married to merchant Nikolai Ivanovich Rafailovich (1850—1912). Their daughter, Zinaida, was forced by her father to marry Nikolai Nikolaevich Alafuzov, who was fifty-four years old, while she was only eighteen. The marriage was unhappy and they soon divorced. Together with her second husband Maksimov, who was a son of a wealthy bourgeoise from Rostov-on-Don, Zinaida went travelling abroad, particularly to Paris, France. In 1895 Maksimov inherited 65 thousand roubles from his father when he died. After the events of October revolution, the spouses never came back to Russia.[6]

In 1919, when HQ of Armed Forces of South Russia led by Anton Denikin was situated in Taganrog (that was from 8 August to 27 December), in Rafailovich mansion lived general Charles Mangin, the head of French mission. From 1920 to 1924 the house was occupied by political command of 1st Cavalry Army, served as editorial office of the journal «Listok krasnoarmeytsa» and an HQ of OSNAZ units that were involved in fighting crime, persecution of opposition and collecting food tax from local villages. In 1925 the mansion became a dwelling house again.[7][8]

At the same year in Taganrog authorities carried out global «municipalization» of private accommodations which had total area above 100 square metres. Former owners were either provided a small room in their own house, or relocated to other apartments. As part of this «municipalization», the mansion was divided into communal apartments. Without appropriate maintenance, it quickly lost its inner and outer look. Now ruined facade requires a complex restoration.[9]

Architectural features

The mansion was built in «Eclecticist» style. There are elements that can be considered to be of Classicism, but also of Baroque. Some experts classify such style as «Neobaroque». The house is one-story, yet it seems some higher because of high basement and decorations on the roof.[10][11]

Alexander Balandin, a priest, described outlook of the building in the following way: «Ten beautiful antique amphoraes above gates and house, at the highest point you can see the head of an ancient philosopher, five women's heads at the wall, three head of Satire — the spirit of the woods... The mansion looks somewhat austere, yet beautiful.».[12]

Gallery

image:Rafailovich_Taganrog_02_paradn.jpg|Main entrance, 2010 image:Rafailovich_Taganrog_03_venzel.jpg|Monogram, 2010 image:Rafailovich_Taganrog_04_fronton.JPG|Gable, 2010 image:Rafailovich_Taganrog_05_fasad.JPG|Facade, 2010

Famous dwellers

-   Charles Mangin (1866—1925) — French general, Head of French mission to Armed Forces of South Russia HQ.

[1] _Григорян М. Е., Решетников В. К._ Таганрог. История архитектуры и градостроительства конца XVII — начала XX века. — Ростов н/Д: Омега-Принт, 2013. — С. 236-237.

[2] _Лоханкин В._ Дом, который построил кто? // Новая таганрогская газета. — 2012. — 17 марта.

[3] Опись и оценка недвижимых имуществ г. Таганрога для раскладки государственного налога и других сборов на 1890 год. — Таганрог: Тип. А. М. Миронова, 1890. — С. 15.

[4] _Седова Н._ Таганрог. — М.: Научный мир, 2008. — 40 с. — .

[5] _Гаврюшкин О. П._ Мари Вальяно и другие (Хроника обывательской жизни). — Таганрог: МИКМ, 2001. — 544 с.

[6]

[7]

[8] _Андреенко С. А._ Таганрог. Познавательное путешествие по легендам и былям старого города. — Таганрог: Антон, 2004. — С. 48. — /

[9] _Борзенко В._ Боль и гордость старого Таганрога // АиФ на Дону. — 2008. — 26 марта.

[10]

[11] _Кукушин В.С._ История архитектуры Нижнего Дона и Приазовья. — Ростов-на-Дону: ГинГо, 1996. — 275 с. — .

[12]

title: Rafailovich mansion

question: What is the Rafailovich Mansion?

answer: an old mansion in Taganrog, Russia situated in Frunze Street, 20 that is considered a cultural monument and valuable object of Russia's cultural heritage

question: When was Rafailovich Mansion built?

answer: in the 1860s

question: How many stories of Rafailovich Mansion?

answer: one

question: What style is the Rafailovich Mansion built in?

answer: Eclecticist, meaning it combines features of Classicism and Baroque

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Rafailovich Mansion is an old mansion in Taganrog, Russia situated in Frunze Street, 20 that is considered a cultural monument and valuable object of Russia's cultural heritage. It is built in an Eclecticist style and has housed many famous Russians.


text:
Featured Articles

[A festive highlight on Dorset’s Farms]

A festive highlight on Dorset’s Farms

With the uncertainty of what Christmas might look like, some of our local farmers might not have the orders they might usually have this time of year as people wait to see how many family they can have over for Christmas.  So whilst we wait…

[Christmas Gifts 2020]

Christmas Gifts 2020

Dorset Foodie Feed Christmas Gifts 2020   Christmas is the time of year when our amazing food and drink producers dust off their festive recipe books and get making. Here are some of the fab products on offer this Christmas but do check out your…

[Heather’s Christmas Cake Recipe]

Heather’s Christmas Cake Recipe

Heather recently had this recipe published in the Blackmore Vale magazine and it is one of her favourites.  This recipe will provide you with that delicious deep Christmassy flavour whether you make it 2 months or 2 days before Christmas. The secret is cooking together…

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Our Favourite Recipe

[Recipe for a Dorset Apple Cake]

Recipe for a Dorset Apple Cake

Here is a hugely popular recipe for the wonderful Dorset Apple Cake and is the perfect thing to use up those Autumnal apples. This is from a hand written recipe that has been kicking around our recipe books for a long time. I could say it is the true recipe for Dorset Apple Cake, but I would be wrong, because everyone has their own version and much intolerance abounds. Dorset Apple Cake is just a cake that has apples, brown sugar and sometimes cinnamon. The apples can be in the cake, on top, both on top and in the cake; it’s entirely up to you! It is also equally as good as a pudding with a good dollop of homemade custard top.

IF YOU DO USE THIS RECIPE, PLEASE ADD COMMENT BELOW OR EVEN BETTER PLEASE SEND US A PHOTOGRAPH OF YOUR CAKE AND WE WILL POP IT ON OUR INSTAGAM PAGE. INFO@DORSET.FOODIEFEED.CO.UK

For the definitive on how to cook a perfect Dorset Apple cake, read Felicity Cloake’s article in The Guardian – we get a mention as well!

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/how-to-cook-the-perfect-dorset-apple-cake

Dorset Apple Cake

__ Servings: 12

__ Prep: 20 min

__ Cook: 45 min

__ Total: 1 hr 5 min

__ Difficulty: Easy

Our most popular recipe.

Ingredients

-   225g cooking apples, peeled, chopped, but remember to slice some for the top
-   Juice of ½ lemon
-   225g plain flour
-   1½ teaspoons baking powder
-   115g butter, diced
-   165g dark muscovado sugar for a dark Christmassy cake or light muscovado sugar for lighter cake or even golden demerara sugar will do (use 50g of this for the topping)
-   1 egg beaten
-   2–3 tablespoons milk
-   ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

-   Step 1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (gas mark 4).
-   Step 2 Grease and line a 7″, round cake tin. (How to line your tin video here)
-   Step 3 Toss the apple with the lemon juice and set aside. Sift the flour and baking powder together then rub in the butter, until the mix resembles breadcrumbs.
-   Step 4 Stir 115 g of the sugar, the apple and the egg, mix well, adding a little of the milk at a time to make a soft doughy mix.
-   Step 5 Transfer into your tin.
-   Step 6 In a bowl, mix the 50g of soft brown sugar, sliced apple and cinnamon, arrange on top of the cake mix.
-   Step 7 Bake for 45–50 minutes. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack.

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question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: A recipe for Dorset Apple Cake.


text:
[Martha Choe, 1992, as a member of the Seattle City Council]

MARTHA CHOE (born November 16, 1954) is an American banker, politician, and foundation executive. She was a two-term member of the Seattle City Council, elected to four-year terms[1] in 1991[2] and 1995.[3] Choe was the first Korean American elected to the city council[4][5] and the first to serve in a public office in the United States.[6] Choe succeeded retiring Filipino councilmember Dolores Sibonga and received her endorsement, which elicited controversy from Filipino community members.[7]

Choe served as the chair of the Transportation Committee and was also appointed as a Regional Transit Authority (RTA) boardmember during the early drafting of Seattle's future light rail and commuter train systems.[8] In her role on the committee, she oversaw the first public referendum on the citywide monorail project, a program that she personally opposed.[9][10] Choe was among a contingent of Asian American leaders and politicians tasked with organizing the 1993 APEC summit, hosted near Seattle on Blake Island.[11] Choe retired from the city council in 1998, having not run for re-election, but was named as a potential candidate in the 2001 mayoral election.[12]

After leaving the city council, Choe next served as director of the Washington State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (later Washington State Department of Commerce) under governor Gary Locke.[13] She left that position in 2004, at which time she became director of the Global Libraries initiative at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,[14] where she became chief administrative officer in 2008, a position she held until leaving the Foundation in 2014.[15] In that capacity, Choe had “considerable input” into the design of the Gates Foundation headquarters building.[16]

Beginning in May 2000 she served as one of the inaugural members of the White House Commission on Asian American and Pacific Islanders,[17] advancing in August to become its chair when initial chair Norman Mineta was tapped to be Secretary of Commerce.[18][19]

Future Seattle mayor Ed Murray served on Choe's staff for four years early in his political career.[20][21]

Personal life

Choe is the U.S.-born daughter of South Korean immigrants.[22] She graduated from Fairhaven College in 1977[23] and also has a B.A. from the University of Washington[24] and an M.B.A. from Seattle University.[25]

Prior to serving on the Seattle City Council, she was a board member of the regional Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Seattle Branch,[26] a vice president at the Bank of California in Seattle, and a member of the Board of Western Washington University.[27][28][29][30]

Choe also volunteered with the Seattle Chamber of Commerce and the Seattle Foundation.[31] In 2014, Seattle Business Magazine awarded her its lifetime achievement award.[32]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]  Interview date is _circa_ 1990, metadata is 2008 or later. This citation is from the metadata.

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

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[32]

title: Martha Choe

question: What roles does Martha Choe play?

answer: Banker, politician and foundation executive.

question: How many terms did Choe serve on Seattle City Council?

answer: 2.

question: When was Martha Choe elected to Seattle City Council?

answer: 1991 and 1995.

question: What foundation did Choe serve on?

answer: The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: The article is about Martha Choe, a politician in Seattle and an executive for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.


text:
Hey Reddit, I had to write a narrative for English class addressing a social injustice. Feed back would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys.

This is a story about a man, his name does not matter, the only thing important about him is how different he was. Different because of the way he was raised and brought up, different in a way in which he could do very little to control. He was not the only one like this, there were others, some still exist to this day. This man was every word in the book. He never accepted any help from anybody, instead he was rude and offended when they offered. He spat on those who had good intentions, and cursed those who did anything they thought would make him a better person. Living a sad and lonely life he kept his mind closed from the opinions possibly wiser than him, in fear of change in reality. His only defense was his caustic tongue from the ongoing barrage of kindness. He was raised from abusive parents. He never felt like he belonged or was loved so he shut out the world around him. He one day took a fall. A softening of his thick head. His frail old body broke on impact with the earth; his teeth cracked and tongue twisted, he lay there helpless and speechless. His eyes were clouded with tears but it was now clear what he had been missing. Ready to be reformed, to be reborn, he relaxed. Although no one would help him. The iron was hot but not a single hand was lent out to pick him up off the ground. So he would lay there to rot, like a piece of trash in the gutter. No redemption, just damnation. Everyone that passed to see the freak show just kept walking, they laughed and pointed as if it was his punishment. He was never heard from again; and no one thought twice about it. He grew to hate society even more. Bad turned worse. He never loved anything again. He blamed himself. When he died his body was only found because of the neighbors complaining about the smell.  With just one whiff  it burned their nostrils and made them sick to their stomachs. You can still smell it today, wafting around all of humanity.

title: A story I had to write for English, feedback would be appreciated

question: What could be the moral of this story?

answer: It could be implied that the moral of the story is to be kind to everyone.

question: What could be the reason behind the man being rude and offending when offered help?

answer: It may be implied that the reason for his behavior could be the abuse he suffered from his parents as a child.

question: How is the reader supposed to feel about the man?

answer: This information can't be found.

question: Why does the man feel like he has had a rebirth?

answer: It may be implied that after his fall he realizes what mistake he was making and how he should change his view on life, hence he considers his life from this moment onwards to be a new, better life.


text:
The bumblebee that Thomas had been following landed gracefully on one of his mother's daisies. Its feet connected with the center of the flower, and the miniature wings that had carried it there seized their movement. The stem of the daisy bent slightly under the pressure of the tiny creature. It began to sway. A cool breeze blew through the garden, and all of the other flowers swayed with it. The bee could have been a snake charmer, or the conductor of an orchestra. The garden continued to dance for a long time, and eventually Thomas lost interest in the bee.

Towards the other side of the garden was an apple tree, big enough to shade him if he lay on his back. Thomas walked over to it, and before lying down, he listened to the sounds around him. There were footsteps on the other side of the hedge, wind through the grass and leaves, and the ever-present sound of his mother weeping.

It had started four months ago, on Christmas of 1918. He had awoken earlier than ever, and had run into her bedroom expecting celebration and presents. Instead, she had told him to wait until later for the gifts. He had seen tears on her rosy cheeks, and had heard her crying upstairs while he sat waiting by the tree. Since then, she had never told him what was wrong, and it hadn't seemed to get better. He suspected that it had to do with her husband, Thomas' father - although he wasn't his father, really. The man had left his mother when Thomas was only four years old, and he had never known him. She had told him that his father had gone off to save the world, and would be back again soon. But after four years, he still hadn't returned.

His mother stopped crying, and the property was peaceful once again. Thomas tossed aside some twigs, and lay down in the shade.

The garden was Thomas' home - he spent more time here than in the house beside which it resided. He came when he was in a good mood, and had spent some of his happiest days here, chasing bumblebees and climbing the oak trees. He also came when things weren't at their best, because it helped him forget about the bad things that sometimes happened. When his mother cried, he came to the garden to keep his mind off of his father. Sometimes, he even liked to pretend that he was the man. If a bird landed on one of his favourite trees, Thomas would clap his hands and yell at it, as if he was the guardian of the house. He had trained himself to be attentive, which is why he sat upright instantly when he heard a noise close by.

The man that had been walking outside was now unlocking the gate, and Thomas' heart began to race. Who was this man, and what reason did he have to enter the garden? The stranger stepped through and began walking down the path towards the house. It wasn't anybody that he recognized, and the man seemed to have a limp, as if he had been injured. Thomas stood up to get a better view, but made sure to hide himself behind the massive trunk of the tree. The man was almost at the door, and was picking up his pace. All of the practice that Thomas had had protecting the garden was now shying from his memory, and he only felt a sickening worry that his mother was going to be taken from him too. The man stepped up onto the porch, and opened the door, letting it swing in slowly. He called something, which to Thomas sounded like "Anna", which was his mother's name. There was silence, and then he heard a different sound from his mother than all of the ones he had heard the past winter - she screamed.

Thomas felt his heart race faster, if that was possible, and was ready to run at the man. Then he saw his mother rush out the door and embrace him, with the most compassion Thomas had ever seen from her. She was crying again, and so was the man, but Thomas could tell that these were not tears of sorrow. They stood there like that for a long time, and then the wind died down, and everything was silent in the garden. Thomas didn't know who this man was, but he was thankful that his mother was better now. He looked across the yard at the field of daisies, which were pretty, and then at his mother, who was even prettier. She had noticed him standing there, and she was smiling.

title: I'm entering a short story contest at school, any feedback would be appreciated (I don't right much at all, so this might be a disaster)

question: Where did Thomas' father go?

answer: He went to serve as a soldier in the first World War.

question: Who has returned?

answer: Thomas' father.

question: What does Thomas like to chase?

answer: The bumblebees.

question: What does Thomas like to climb?

answer: The oak trees.

question: Why does the approaching man have a limp?

answer: It's like he was injured in the first World War.