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In their documentary McQueen, directors Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui craft a lovely portrait of idiosyncratic fashion designer Alexander McQueen. Through archival footage, interviews with friends and collaborators, and elegant filmmaking techniques, the filmmakers in many ways evoke the emotions provoked by McQueen’s art. The film is filled with moments where violence and beauty become partners in a sensuous dance, and they study the late designer’s ascent within the English class system in a manner that would make Ken Loach proud. At the center of McQueen’s work was a constant battle between life and death, and in the documentary we learn about the pivotal moments in the designer’s life that might have inspired most of his work, but rather than going for facile psychological interpretations, the filmmakers let the art speak for itself, directly to us.
We spoke with self-proclaimed, fashion non-connoisseurs Bonhôte and Ettedgui about what attracted them to McQueen’s story, their relationship to nonfiction filmmaking, and Michael Nyman’s breathtaking music.
The Film Stage: Do you remember when you first became aware of Alexander McQueen?
Ian Bonhôte: I moved to the UK in September 1997 and by October he had taken over Givenchy, so he appeared everywhere in the news. So I became aware of him as my own creative career got started in my late teens, early 20s.
Peter Ettedgui: For me it was around 1994 or 1995 when McQueen was starting to get headlines about the bumsters and the shopping shows and all that. He was a very controversial figure in the press. My father, who was a fashion designer and retailer in London, worked with him for a bit and knew him and he told me “this guy is a genius.” He told me how Lee [Alexander McQueen] was a very talented tailor who came from nowhere from the East End, made an apprentice on Savile Row. Even though back then I didn’t think of making a film about him, I was very intrigued.
Lee was always in the tabloids and we all have a media-made idea of who he was. What was the biggest challenge for you as filmmakers when trying to show a different side of him in your documentary?
Ian Bonhôte: Our challenge was to ignore all that sensationalistic side of him and go back to refocus on his work. Lee said, “If you want to know me look at my work,” so we took him to his word. That was our main interest, we wanted to go behind the person, behind the genius in a respectful way. We felt that him taking his life still is very new in a lot of people’s minds, so we knew if there was any other direction we took we would alienate people and they wouldn’t collaborate with us. So we wanted to put the work at the center.
Peter Ettedgui: I would only add that to some extent the portrait that you make is conditioned by the interviews, archive and what that gives you. What we found when we interviewed people is that there was this extraordinary well of love for him. When we looked at the archives we saw him having fun, with this ebullient character, with his dogs, with his parents. We knew there was another Lee beyond the one presented by all of the controversial press.
During the studio era women were editors because studio heads thought they were like seamstresses who were great at sewing film together. In many ways I believe fashion is the art form that most resembles filmmaking: you have this visionary who recruits a team to make it come to life. Did you find any parallels between fashion and filmmaking while making McQueen?
Ian Bonhôte: I really like this question. I agree with you, there’s a conductor, a director at the center. Making the film we came up with the metaphor of Lee being the tip of a spear and right behind him were all the collaborators including the people in the atelier who helped push that single vision forward. Lee was a great talent spotter. He also combined lots of influences and I agree his work was like that of a director. As a director you take inspiration from music, photography, a show, another movie, nature, movement, dance… I get inspired by choreography all the time. The way we approached the documentary was not as journalists but as filmmakers. We wanted to put emotion over information. We wanted to create an emotionally involving experience.
Peter Ettedgui: We looked very carefully at Lee’s work and what we really responded to was the juxtaposition of classical structures with rule breaking details. We wanted to bring that approach into the film, a classical five-act structure, with a spirit of improvisation found by stitching together very violently different kinds of archival material: home movies, photography. We thought we could make the sequences iconoclastic and great fun, within this structure. I love your analogy of film and fashion.
You mentioned Lee used to say he was in his work, can we say the same about your work? If people look at McQueen can they see Ian and Peter?
Peter Ettedgui: I think it does because inevitably you gravitate towards the subject because it speaks to you. In the case of Lee’s story we were moved quite profoundly, but there were things within it that we responded to. For example, the way he scraped his way to the top of the industry and broke all the rules. Also the spirit of him being the tip of the spear but this group of friends all coming together like a movement and taking Paris by storm together. That’s not something we’ve done but something we dream of doing, establishing yourself on that kind of stage with a group of close friends who are genius collaborators. It also spoke to us because it’s such an emotionally profound story and we’re both emotional filmmakers. We want audiences in the cinema to go on a bit of a rollercoaster ride. We’re attracted to stories where you’re laughing one minute and welling up the next. That’s the kind of stories we want when we’re in an audience, and with McQueen we thought we could express that side of ourselves.
Ian Bonhôte: Our collaboration happened naturally too. We didn’t set out to make the film together. So that similar strong sense of emotions brought us together and whatever decision we had to make we always put the audience first. When you make films they can be an extension of yourself, but they also have to respect who you’re working for in a way. We don’t want to tell stories that are just us. We want to reach out, break out and touch people.
Lee himself said that he wanted people to be exhilarated or repulsed by his collections. As an audience member there’s nothing worse than films that just make you go “eh.”
Peter Ettedgui: In a sense this was a film we weren’t supposed to make. Lee broke all the rules and our experience was uncannily similar in that nobody in the fashion world wanted us to make this film.
Ian Bonhôte: We were not granted permission by fashion insiders. There’s a sense if you do something about a fashion designer you need to be knowledgeable of fashion. We thought it was better we didn’t know anything, so we saw Lee as a man first, very much like an audience who didn’t know about fashion.
Peter Ettedgui: We had to be guerrilla filmmakers and use our charm and begging abilities to have access to archives, to convince people to come on board and do interviews, and we had to do it very quickly because those people were prohibited from being part of our journey.
In terms of the cinematic elements of Lee’s work, I knew he liked Michael Nyman’s music but I never imagined I’d get to see his collections set to Nyman’s scores. The way you use “Fish Beach” with McQueen’s “La Dame Bleue” collection was probably the saddest any movie has made me this year.
Peter Ettedgui: Well, thank you–that was our intention. There’s also one piece of music Michael composed for a Lee show that Lee never actually used. When we first met Michael he played it for us and we used it three times in our film. It’s called “Lee’s Sarabande” and we were so moved by it we knew we needed to have it in the film. Lee’s music choices for his shows were great, but they don’t work in a movie. Some of the music has been dated a little bit, but as soon as we started experimenting with Michael’s music the material came to life. Even if the archival footage wasn’t great, as soon as you paired it with Michael’s music it felt like a movie.
Ian Bonhôte: Sometimes due to budget restrictions filmmakers forget how important music is to the process. What I love with Nyman is that many people might recognize the tracks but they don’t know where they know them from, so they’re comforting but also throw people out of their comfort zones. When people find out every single track in the film is by Michael Nyman they’re surprised. At one point we tried getting a Sinead O’Connor song, but they made it quite difficult for us, but the minute we tried that scene with Michael’s music we asked ourselves why did we even bother with Sinead?
Peter Ettedgui: I think Michael was absolutely thrilled with how we used his music. He was a fantastic collaborator. Even though it was all pre-existing material he made suggestions, criticisms and as he said himself, “The final film is as much a portrait of Michael Nyman as it is of Lee McQueen.”
Annabelle Neilson, another of Lee’s muses, passed away the week the movie opened in the States. She’s not really in your film much, but I wonder if you have any insight on what their relationship was like?
Ian Bonhôte: They had a very strong relationship, she was a very important part of his life. She’s also in the film more than you can imagine. The Fairlight section was actually filmed by Annabelle’s then boyfriend, she spoke to us about Lee and granted us permission to use the footage. We had some conversations with her while we were making the film, but she never felt comfortable enough to sit down for an interview. She said the emotions were too raw. She was supportive of the film without taking part. We were sad to hear news of her passing. We hope she rests in peace.
Peter Ettedgui: I’m sure she’s up there with Lee. She was actually introduced to him by Isabella Blow, and a big element of the story is her friendship with Lee. Perhaps it would’ve been difficult for us to also incorporate his friendship with Annabelle. We wouldn’t have been able to make it full justice. We would’ve needed another film just about their relationship. Her presence is in the film. She gave us her blessing and that was very important to us.
Peter, when I realized you co-wrote Listen to Me Marlon, I thought it made perfect sense that you directed McQueen. They both challenge what nonfiction films look like. What are some tropes of documentaries that you wish would disappear altogether?
Peter Ettedgui: In a sense Ian and I are the same. This is his first documentary and I’ve come to the form recently. Five years ago we probably would have said we’re not interested in making documentaries.
Ian Bonhôte: I would’ve said that a year and a half ago.
Peter Ettedgui: I suppose the association people make is of a bunch of people sitting in a chair talking to a camera, or historical reconstructions, it’s kind of putting information over emotion in storytelling.
Ian Bonhôte: There’s a lot of documentaries that go for the journalistic side, while I tend to really fall in love with people. All the people in our documentary shared these experiences with Lee, so even though he’s our protagonist, they are actors in it. The other thing I liked about doing this film was that it’s like a mosaic of the arts. I could only suggest that new filmmakers experiment with the art form. It seems to me the only kind of films where there are no rules whatsoever. You can do a film only with archival footage for example. If you do interviews the right way, like with extreme close-ups, you can read so many emotions. All those elements are very exciting.
Peter Ettedgui: Working on Marlon was a revelation to me. We had his voice, so you have a certain authenticity. This is when I first started experimenting with documentaries. In the old days of editing you couldn’t do this, but with a non-linear timeline you can put together all these different kind of imagery that collide and contrast. Happy accidents often occur during this. Sometimes by juxtaposing images like this you can get results more powerful than in traditional storytelling.
Can you each pick your absolute favorite piece McQueen designed?
Ian Bonhôte: All the looks in “Plato’s Atlantis” are extraordinary. McQueen made a sci-fi movie almost. He created aliens. The shoes, makeup, how he transformed the girls is extraordinary. In terms of clothes though, some of the looks in “Highland Rape” are amazing. They have that punk, iconoclastic, anarchist style of Lee that spoke to everyone.
Peter Ettedgui: This is quite difficult. I might answer this a million different ways on a million different days, but as soon as you asked today I thought of one particular dress in the “Voss” collection. It wasn’t meant to be worn, it was a showpiece made out of razor clamshells that he and his then-boyfriend found on a beach in Norfolk. It’s just an extraordinary dress that shows his imagination. It goes into that love of the sea and nature that’s also present in “Plato’s Atlantis.” The way the dress is almost destroyed in the show has that taste of decay and death in it, that makes this less about the dress and more about the moment. There was another dress he made out of flowers that decayed during the show. It was from “Saraband,” and I’m not a great lover of fashion per se…
Ian Bonhôte: …that’s true, I have to tell him what to wear every day.
McQueen is now playing in limited release.

domain: entertainment


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Adult Dog Training
Adult Dog Training
The Adult Novice class is a beginners class for dogs over the age of 5 months and it runs for 6 weeks on 33 acres of private land in East Horsley. Each class runs for 1 hour and is not suitable for dogs who are in any way uncomfortable or reactive towards dogs or humans. This is an ideal starting point for adult rescue dogs, older dogs who have done little or no training, or who need help in certain areas.
As well as showing you how to teach your dog a variety of behaviours which are important in day to day life (sit, down, stand, eye contact and focus, loose lead walking, leave an item when asked, drop an item when asked, stay and wait), we also introduce important life skills.
Our training is centred around creating a strong bond between dog and owner, which is the foundation of good behaviour. Classes will include theory on certain subjects and we will discuss how to tackle common problems such as jumping up. You will be given homework to work on each week, which will be backed up with emailed handouts on new behaviours learned.
Once you have completed this course we would encourage you to continue training (after all, training your dog is a continuous process!) and move onto our Intermediate class, start some scentwork classes or even have some fun with a tricks class or platform training class!
The Intermediate class runs for 6 weeks on 33 acres of private land in East Horsley, Surrey. and is the next step after the puppy or the adult novice class. It is also suitable if you have done previous training elsewhere.
The focus of this class is to progress behaviours learned in the puppy or novice class, and start to work on various behaviours around increasing levels of distractions and therefore proof the reliability of behaviours, introduce new behaviours such as the send away, distance control, proofing release words, and work on improving our recall and loose lead walking.
The Advanced class is the next step after the Intermediate class. This runs for 6 weeks and works on further progressing and proofing behaviours, introducing new exercises such as discriminating send aways, hind leg awareness, and we often work on some platform training. Specific exercises will depend on members of the class and what level they are at.
Angela is an official Scent Imprint For Dogs Instructor, as well as a recognised trainer for Scentwork UK.
Scentwork is where a dog uses their sense of smell to identify and locate a scent that they have been trained to detect.
Scentwork helps build the bond between dog and handler, assists in your ability to read your dog’s body language, and is open to all dogs, all ages, all breeds and all abilities. Scentwork is a natural behaviour for dogs and, as a training activity it is fun, rewarding and very mentally tiring for your dog!
The Beginners class is run over a 6 week course (with necessary homework inbetween each class), at the end of which you should be at the level to compete at Detection Dog Trials or Scentwork UK Trials, should you wish to do so. Each course will be strictly limited to an absolute maximum of 6 dogs per class.
Dogs will learn to search for food initially, and then search for scent (usually clove, but if dogs are not motivated by clove we will suggest an alternative scent for that dog to work for) hidden in a variety of locations
We also run scent detection workshops at a variety of locations – a private farm and woodland in East Horsley, Dorking Halls theatre, a local feed merchants and country store and a local football ground to name a few. These workshops are open to all dogs once they are confidently searching for odour.
Workshop cost: £35 per dog
Teaching your dog tricks is not only great fun, but it provides important mental stimulation, builds an excellent bond between dog and handler, can increase flexibility and body awareness, teaches your dog new skills, and enables you to truly see exactly what your dog is capable of! Plus it can be a really fun way of showing off to your friends!
We run classes working towards the various levels of the National Canine Trick Star Awards !
Among the tricks we teach are ‘simple’ ones such as “paw” and “spin/twist” (from the Apprentice Award level) to “bow”, chin target, leg weaves and a crawl (from the Graduate Award Level), progressing to more complex tricks such as “pray” and “tidy up” (moving through Master and Pro Awards levels).
Our beginners tricks classes run for 6 weeks and are currently running online very successfully.
£120 (online) and £150 (in person)
Once you have completed the beginners course, you would be able to continue working towards the awards by attending the PAYG Tricks classes.
These currently run on alternate Wednesday nights ONLINE at the moment. Booking is necessary.
Ready to book or have a question?
You can find all the ways you can get in touch with me on my contact page.

domain: pet


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domain: sociology


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The aim of our study is to review the most important concepts in the prosthesis technique fixation. The elements for a successful prosthesis implantation are due to the prosthesis design, the pattern of fixation, the articular tribology, and the surgical accuracy. Also other factors like osteonecrosis, toxicity of the implanted materials, the early stability and the time and the bearing of the implanted prosthesis, affect deeply the implant-bone surface and therefore the quality of fixation. The cemented fixation is based on the acrylic cement and is commonly considered the easier, the most effective and the less expensive fixation technique. The uncemented fixation allows a lower surgical time due to the implantation technique. This technique more difficult than the cemented fixation, is based on the osteointegration. The hybrid fixation presents components each with different fixation techniques. On the contrary, the polyurethane prosthesis does not use a real fixation, but fits on the articular surfaces in which they are inserted. However the elements that should always lead to treatment choice are the specific surgical aptitude and knowledge of the literature results based on the scientific evidence.
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domain: literature


Rising West Yorkshire trio Lost Winter are releasing new single Run Away on Monday.
The track is a haunting electro ballad featuring the vocals of Charlotte Francis. Run Away has a darker edge than the previous releases from the band and is an ode to unfulfilled dreams and escape.
Run Away will be available to download from Lost Winter’s Bandcamp page (https://lostwinter.bandcamp.com) and available to stream on digital services.
This is the first new material from the band since the release of their Spring EP earlier in the year.
Take a listen to Run Away below:


CRANKWORX LES GETS OPENS DOWNHILL REGISTRATION
Loic Bruni sets the stage for another epic showdown on iconic World Championship course
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Whistler, B.C., April 15, 2006—Crankworx will open registration for its Crankworx Les Gets Downhill presented by iXS today in the town where Fabien Barel created history.
Barel is one of only three riders to win a World Championship on home soil and his 2004 victory over dominant downhill race-force Steve Peat (GBR) is the stuff of legends, films and videos.
“It was massive…I can’t imagine where (his mind) was at when he was at the start gate,” says Dirt Magazine’s Steve Jones in MTBcut’s recent retrospective on Barel’s career, My Way – the Story of His World Championship Victories.
Barel managed a clean run before 60,000 rabid French and British fans, then stood at the finish line to watch Peat tear up the course. With a lightning-fast time, the Brit deftly lived up to his status as the fastest qualifier and last man down the track, appearing destined for certain victory and his first World Championship, when he fell, closing in on the finish line, and handed the moment to Barel.
Les Gets was already known as a hot spot for downhill racing and the fervor of watching two racers, each without a Championship to their name, each with a massive home-country fan base on the sidelines, chase their dreams with such abandon, solidified the status of this area among DH fans.
That was then, this is now. Fast forward to 2016 and Les Gets is set to host the world’s largest mountain biking festival.
Two-time Crankworx Rotorua Downhill presented by iXS winner, Loic Bruni, who also won the Crankworx Les 2 Alps Downhill presented by iXS and is the current leader of the Crankworx DH Championships, will be in attendance, and ready to take on an international start list. This field will read like a who’s who of the international mountain biking scene. The 2015 Crankworx DH Series Champ, Sam Blenkinsop, who narrowly lost out to Bruni in March, will be on deck, as will Steve Smith, the most decorated downhill athlete in Crankworx history.
“Loic is clearly one of the biggest stars in the sport right now. He’s racing at such a high level and is the reigning World Champ, so we know the French fans will stop at nothing to ensure he has a huge crowd cheering him on from the sidelines. We also know he’s facing what could very well be the deepest field a Crankworx downhill event has ever drawn, so this is definitely going to be a showdown,” says Darren Kinnaird, Crankwrox General Manager.
Now just two months from opening day, Crankworx Les Gets is expecting a huge fan draw, as well, for its inaugural event. The festival brings several participatory events to the Crankworx experience, including its first E-bike race, a mini-bike race, Mini Bikes Challenge by P2V, a VIP ride with Bruni and a full Kidsworx program.
Registration is now open for the Crankworx Rotorua Downhill presented by iXS on Crankworx.com. Registration details for the e-bike race, mini-bike race, VIP Ride with Loic Bruni, and the Kidsworx programming will follow shortly. Check back on Crankworx.com for details.
VIP packages are also available at Crankworx.com
Crankworx Communications Manager
Chrystelle Felisaz / Gaëlle Le Coz
Media Crankworx Les Gets
+33 (0)6 10 23 77 47
Media images: http://bit.ly/1JB158w
*Please provide photo credit as marked
Featured image: Loic Bruni won the first round of the Crankworx DH Championships in Rotorua mid-March, ripping down the Skyline Rotorua Gravity Park with a time of 2:38.55 over Kiwi George Brannigan who pulled in a time of 2:41.20.
Mountain biking’s defining celebration descends on the French Alps for the fourth year from June 15-19, 2015, bringing MTB stoke to the country renown as the centre of cycling.
Through dirt, sweat and cheers, Crankworx celebrates the epic endurance, supreme flow, monster air and heart-stopping drops of gravity mountain biking. Anointed by dirt, powered by passion, the Crankworx World Tour travels to Rotorua, New Zealand, Les Gets, France and culminates in its Canadian home base of Whistler, B.C.
Tread among the gravity-fed. Join the bike-minded.


Joe here. You’re minding your own business, checking your law school email in lieu of listening to the lecture, when an invitation catches your eye. It’s from the local Federalist Society chapter and they’re hosting an event on marriage equality. Fed Soc puts on good events, and unlike a lot of the issues out there, marriage equality is an issue where the organization might have a fair and respectful debate. After all, this is the organization of Ted Olson and Richard Posner as much as it’s the organization of Antonin Scalia and Samuel Alito. There’s room under that ideological tent. But you open the email to see an oversized Chick-fil-A logo. Shock jock tactics.
Now imagine the event were not about marriage equality. Would it be acceptable to serve Chick-fil-A at a talk on gun control? On eminent domain? Is there ever a time where Chick-fil-A is a “content neutral” noshing option?
I say no. David says yes. We let you in on our argument about this….
Every year, law students find themselves at odds with each other thanks to the convenience of school-wide listservs. Where else can you spew all of your vitriol at classmates with just the click of a button? Welcome to law school, folks.
Perhaps the most storied law school listserv belongs to Northwestern University School of Law, where the “PC Police” live to serve. As we’ve noted in the past, “[t]he school seems to have a number of students who are easily offended. Some of the kids there overreact at the slightest provocation.”
So what happens when something that’s actually offensive occurs? For example, what do you think would happen if a conservative student group like the Federalist Society were to host a debate on same-sex marriage, with food catered by Chick-fil-A? As you can imagine, students lost their minds…
Last night’s event will be tough to top. Justice Clarence Thomas, speaking with Judge Diane Sykes of the Seventh Circuit, delivered remarks that were “equal parts hysterical, poignant and inspiring,” as Texas Supreme Court Justice Don Willett noted on Twitter.
I was lucky enough to attend, seated just one table away from the stage. Here’s my account of the evening (plus a few photos)….
* Just in time for Halloween, here’s a real Night of the Living Dead scenario. In Ohio you only have 3 years to challenge a ruling that you’re legally dead. After that, regardless of how f**king “alive” you are, you have to stay dead. [WTAE]
* Remember the epic Ninth Circuit benchslap oral argument? Well, the government read the writing on the wall and has confessed error and vowed to use the video of the oral argument as a training tool for its attorneys. We hope they’ll consider using the ATL write-up as supplemental reading material. [The Volokh Conspiracy]
* Corporette offers some good advice on how to write great cover letters. A good start is not writing one like this guy we profiled awhile ago. [Corporette]
* The Ole Miss FedSoc has readopted Colonel Reb, the now departed Ole Miss mascot, who the student body rose up and tried to replace with Admiral Ackbarsolely because the collected student body figured out this was racist (prompting one of my friends to create this brilliant image). So as Elie asks, “Is it really news that the Ole Miss FedSoc is raceist?” [Ole Miss]
* More about the Stephentown incident in which 300 kids broke into a guy’s house and live-tweeted the $20,000 in damage they did. Some parents have threatened to sue him for identifying the kids who ruined his house — because blaming the victim is awesome! [IT-Lex]
* Today in contrarian arguments, fracking could solve the global water crisis. [Breaking Energy]
Earlier this week, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation announced this year’s roster of MacArthur Fellowship recipients — the winners of the so-called “Genius Grants.” According to the Foundation, it awards the prestigious grants to those who “have shown extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and a marked capacity for self-direction. There are three criteria for selection of Fellows: exceptional creativity, promise for important future advances based on a track record of significant accomplishment, and potential for the fellowship to facilitate subsequent creative work.” MacArthur fellows receive $625,000 stipends, with no strings attached . . . except, you know, continuing to be brilliant.
Past MacArthur Genius Grant winners include minds as diverse as paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould; computer scientist and physicist Stephen Wolfram; writers like Cormac McCarthy, David Foster Wallace, Susan Sontag, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie; filmmaker Errol Morris; cognitive scientist Amos Tversky; dancer and choreographer Twyla Tharp; philosopher Richard Rorty; drummer and jazz composer Max Roach; statistician Persi Diaconis; literary critic Harold Bloom; and composer John Zorn. Basically, it’s a hell of a fantasy dinner-party guest list.
One of this year’s MacArthur geniuses is a lawyer. Who is it?
Several organizations filed a Complaint of Judicial Misconduct against Fifth Circuit Judge Edith Jones earlier this week. The complaint charges Judge Jones with a variety of offenses, but the headline-getter is the claim that she made racist remarks during her speech on February 20, 2013, hosted by the University of Pennsylvania’s chapter of the Federalist Society.
With no transcript or recording of the event, the 12-page complaint relies on the affidavits of a few individuals who attended the speech, including Marc Bookman, the Director of the Atlantic Center for Capital Representation. Bookman’s affidavit serves as the primary account, with the other affiants agreeing and adding relatively few details. About a week before the Penn Fed Soc speech, Bookman published an essay in Mother Jones titled “How Crazy Is Too Crazy to Be Executed?”, about Texas murderer Andre Thomas. Whether Bookman intended ahead of time to use his account of the Fed Soc event as the basis of a misconduct complaint or not, he was likely expecting to be offended when he attended a Federalist Society speech called “Federal Death Penalty Review” by a pro-death-penalty, Texas-based judge. Just a guess….
* “I don’t know whether the Lord Himself could get confirmed at this point.” It looks like poor Attorney General Eric Holder doesn’t have very many people left to turn to thanks to executive and congressional inaction. [Bloomberg]
* When it comes to recent diversity efforts in Biglaw there’s an ebb, but not really a flow, and it’s all being blamed on the recession. Also, “diversity fatigue” is apparently a thing now. [New York Times]
* The $200 million gender discrimination suit filed against Greenberg Traurig over the firm’s alleged “old boys club” has been settled for an undisclosed amount. You go girl! [Thomson Reuters News & Insight]
* According to Judge Murray Snow, Arizona’s most beloved sheriff, Joe Arpaio, has been violating the constitutional rights of all of the Latinos whom he supposedly “hadn’t” been racially profiling. [Reuters]
* My, how things change: David Blankenhorn, a man who once testified as an expert witness in support of Proposition 8 at trial, has come forward to condemn anti-marriage equality laws. [Los Angeles Times]
* Law schools tend to be “bastions of liberalism,” which makes it hard for students to find intellectual diversity. It’s a good thing we’ve got the Federalist Society to balance things out. [Washington Times]
* People who think Washington needs another law school propose one for students “who can’t afford to … go into debt … to get their legal degree.” This won’t sit well with the legal academy. [News Tribune]
* With Lindsay Lohan stuck in rehab, Amanda Bynes decided it was her turn to go wild. The retired actress says she’s suing the NYPD for unlawful arrest and sexual harassment. [New York Daily News]
* Alton Lemon, the Supreme Court plaintiff behind the eponymous Lemon test, RIP. [New York Times]
Jiminy jillickers! ATL editors are going all over the place over the next month or so. Or at least all over the Eastern Seaboard. If we aren’t heading to your neck of the woods on these trips, never fear, we may hit you up on the next time around. We’ve already hit up Houston, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles in the past year.
Kinney Recruiting’sEvan Jowers is currently in Hong Kong for client meetings and still has a few slots available through October 22. Evan will also be in Hong Kong November 14 to December 15. Further, Robert Kinney has been in Frankfurt and Munich this week and is available for meetings with our Germany based readers.
One of our key law firm clients has referred us to one of their important clients in the US, Europe and China – a leading global technology supplier for the auto industry – in order to handle their search for a new Asia General Counsel and Asia Chief Compliance Officer.
Kinney is exclusively handling this in-house search.
This position will have a lot of responsibility and include supervision of eight attorneys underneath them in the Asia in-house team. The new hire will report directly to the global general counsel and global chief compliance officer, who is based in the US. The new hire’s ability to make judgement calls is going to be as important as their technical skill set background.
The position is based in Shanghai and will deal with the company’s operations all over Asia and also in India, including frequent acquisitions in the region.
It is expected that the new hire will come from a top US firm’s Shanghai, Beijing or Hong Kong offices, currently in a top flight corporate practice at the senior associate, counsel or partner level. Of course, the candidate can be currently in a relevant in-house role.
The JOBS Act created new tools for companies to publicly advertise securities deals online. As a result, thousands of new deals have hit the market and hundreds of millions in capital has been raised, spurring a wealth of new business development opportunities for attorneys.
Fund deals, startup capital raises, PIPE deals and loan syndicates are just a handful of the transactions benefiting from the JOBS Act. InvestorID FirmTM is a platform designed to help attorneys equip their clients with the workflow, marketing and compliance tools to publicly solicit a securities offering online. By providing clients with the tools to painlessly navigate the regulatory landscape of general solicitation, InvestorID FirmTM helps attorneys add value above just legal services.
The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act) went into effect in 2013 and permits Regulation D offerings of securities to be advertised publicly. This means that funds and companies can now use social media, emails and web sites to market transactions to new “accredited” investors.
However, with these new powers come new pain points. InvestorID FirmTM provides a secure, fully hosted, cloud-based platform with a breadth of tools for your clients, including:


Multi-instrumentalist Bill Satek has been a constant presence in Chicago’s underground rock community since he first teamed up with drummer Ryan Scanlon to form experimental act Sen Di Na in the early aughts. Since then Satek has found himself involved in handfuls of local bands—Lechuguillas, Famous Laughs, Double Morris, Crisp Undos, Alien Shit—and in 2008 he started his own project, an experimental pop outfit called Mines. It’s been about five years since Satek brought his band to life, and next week local label Lake Paradise will release Mines’ debut, Just Another Thing That Got Ruined.
Lake Paradise cofounder Jake Acosta heaped a good amount of praise on the record when he first told me about it back in December, and he hasn’t been the only one eager to talk candidly about Satek’s band and album; in the passing months it seemed like I’d run into more and more people who would talk passionately about Mines’ music as if it was a well-kept secret they were tired of keeping to themselves. It took one track off Just Another Thing That Got Ruined to convince me—the lush, swirling “Mom ‘N’ Pop (militia) aka Big Girls Cry,” which has a knockout chorus that shoots skyward like a rocket.
I’m not the only one at Reader headquarters who admires the album—Luca Cimarusti is also quite taken by it, and wrote at length about Mines’ LP for the band’s record release show at the Hideout on Sunday. “On the new album Satek and company sound like a band that’s touring the national festival circuit, not one that’s been grinding in dank basements for the past five years.” Want to hear it for yourself? Well, you’re in luck! The Reader snagged the exclusive advance stream of Just Another Thing That Got Ruined. To prepare for the record’s release I recently met up with Satek at Logan Square’s Boiler Room to discuss what his musical catalog has in common with an iceberg, his career as a pipe fitter, and Will Smith’s “Parents Just Don’t Understand.” Read part of our conversation and listen to the album stream below.


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IAG set to acquire Air Europa for $1.1 billion
International Airlines Group (IAG), the parent company of Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia and low-cost carriers like LEVEL and Vueling, has announced that the group is set to acquire Air Europa, a Madrid-Barajas International Airport (MAD) based airline, for $1.1 billion (€1 billion). The move, pending approval by regulatory authorities, would help IAG to create a mega-hub in Madrid to compete with other major hubs in Europe.
The acquisition of Air Europa “would add a new competitive, cost effective airline to IAG, consolidating Madrid as a leading European hub”, as the addition of Air Europa to the group’s roster would result in “IAG achieving South Atlantic leadership”, according to IAG Chief Executive Officer Willie Walsh as cited in a press release.
If approved, the deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of 2020.
Air Europa’s American connections
According to the statement, under the Strategic rationale heading, the airline group believes that adding Air Europa would allow IAG to once again dominate the South Atlantic market, which connects Europe with South America and the Caribbean.
As of December 31, 2018, Air Europa generated $2.3 billion (€2.1 billion) of revenue, resulting in an operating profit of $111 million (€100 million). The airline has 68 aircraft to its name and is in the process of renewing its fleet – the Spanish carrier is slowly phasing out the Airbus A330 from its long-haul fleet, replacing the A330s with the 787 Dreamliners. The order for 14 Boeing 787-9 aircraft was announced on January 15, 2015, adding on to the previous order of eight Dreamliners dating 2007, with the first new wide-body arriving on March 15, 2016. As of October 30, 2019, the carrier has 14 787s in its fleet.
Air Europa mostly operates from its hub in Madrid-Barajas (MAD), with 69 destinations connecting Spain and the Americas, including flights to North and South America.
IAG’s preliminary plan indicates that the group is set to integrate Air Europe into Iberia’s operations at MAD and into IAG’s whole network, including sales, loyalty programs and schedules. Initially, the Air Europe brand would be retained and only the management side of operations would be taken over by Iberia’s executives. If the deal to acquire Air Europe is not approved by regulators, the group is committed to pay a $44 million (€40 million) fee to the Spanish airline.
Looking at the situation in air traffic in Spain, low-cost carriers dominate the market. AENA, the company which overlooks airports in the country, noted that “low-cost carriers are continuing to increase their share” in Spain, as they accounted for 55.4% of total passenger traffic in 2018, an increase of 1.1% compared to 2017. Meanwhile, IAG’s airlines alone accounted for 27.8% of the traffic, while Air Europa transferred 17.3 million passengers in 2018 – a market share of 6.6%, according to data presented by AENA.
Nevertheless, IAG acquiring Air Europe is not aimed at combating low-cost carriers on intra-European routes – from the group’s perspective, that job goes to Vueling and the recently established LCC, LEVEL.
If the deal goes through, IAG with Air Europa is looking at over 30% of the total passenger market in Spain, potentially even reaching 35% of the market share.
On July 23, 2019, Air Europa announced its H1 2019 traffic results and the airline’s passenger numbers grew by 14%. In addition, the airline announced several new routes in H2 2019 – flights to Fortaleza, Brazil and Iguazu, Argentina are some of them, as Air Europa further expands capacity from Spain to the South Atlantic market. Meanwhile, Iberia’s results as of September 30, 2019, indicate that the Spanish carrier has increased its passenger numbers by 7.3% year-to-date (YTD).
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domain: economics


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Prompt ~ “If one is lucky, a solitary fantasy can totally transform one million realities.” Said Maya Angelou.
Foolery always wins.
Fools in Shakespeare’s plays may have been simply intended as a relief from the harsh themes like the gravediggers in Hamlet, Porter in Macbeth just after the murder of the King; and as Cleopatra prepares herself for death in Antony and Cleopatra. The fool also acts as a narrator of events and is one of the characters who is fearless in speaking the truth. The fool often provides the wit in a bleak situation.
The secret of a successful fool lies in the fact that he is no fool.
Fools do not follow any ideology except that which is expedient. They reject all shams of law, justice, and morality and are subservient to brute force, cruelty and lust. They have no illusions and do not seek consolation in the existence of natural or supernatural order. As such they care little for the punishment of evil and the reward of good.
Crevantes a contemporary of Shakespeare wrote about an old buffoon – Don Quixote. He was a man who was essentially good hearted and by the end of the play he had subtly changed his surroundings in to …. what he ardently believed. Wit has little to do with being successful, but fantasy has.
Wise sans foolery
Solemn with weight of knowledge

domain: artistic


Team Sky’s Gianni Moscon has been disqualified from the Tour de France for hitting another rider during stage 15.
The Italian lashed out at Team Fortuneo-Samsic’s Elie Gesbert after 800 metres of Sunday’s stage, with television footage showing Moscon’s hand catching the Frenchman’s helmet.
Moscon was suspended by Team Sky for six weeks last year after racially abusing Kévin Reza at the Tour of Romandie. At the time, a Team Sky statement said “there is no excuse for his behaviour and that any repeat will result in termination of his contract.”
However, Moscon’s latest offence will be dealt with by the team upon the conclusion of the Tour de France, with Team Sky’s Geraint Thomas and Chris Froome currently sitting first and second in the general classification going into the second rest day.
“We support and accept the decision by the race organisers to exclude Gianni Moscon from the Tour de France,” said Team Sky principal Sir Dave Brailsford.
Brailsford added: “Gianni is desperately disappointed in his behaviour and knows that he has let himself, the Team and the race down.
“We will address this incident with Gianni once the Tour is complete and decide then if any further action should be taken.
“I would like to offer my sincere apologies to both Elie Gesbert and Team Fortuneo-Samsic for this unacceptable incident."


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Life, death and Don Quixote: Ana Veciana-Suarez writes it all
It takes a certain kind of courage to tap into one’s own history to write like Ana Veciana-Suarez.
It requires looking at your life honestly — it requires not looking away.
The novelist and a syndicated columnist has worked at the Miami Herald and the Palm Beach Post. She writes about family life — and where can we find more conflicting emotion than in family?
Ana has written about raising four sons and burying a daughter. She wrote about the challenges of caring for an aging parent, even when that parent was a public figure. Her father was the founder of the anti-Castro group Alpha 66 and a CIA operative.
She writes about becoming a grandparent and realizing what kind of parent you’ve been by watching your own children raise their own children.
Now, Ana’s writing from someone else’s history: Miguel de Cervantes. Her latest book, Dulcinea, tells the story of the woman who inspired Don Quixote.
It takes a certain kind of courage to write about one of the masters.
On the July 11 episode of Sundial, Veciana-Suarez joins us to talk about life, death and Don Quixote.
On Sundial's previous episode, Robert Requejo Ramosjoined us to talk about the evolution of shark fishing and how our culture views sharks.
Listen to Sundial Monday through Thursday on WLRN, 91.3 FM, live at 1 p.m., rebroadcast at 8 p.m. Missed a show? Find every episode of Sundial on your favorite podcast app, such as Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify.


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Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. Did you get any creating done? I wish I could say that I did.. but I didn't really get a chance to... Here is a layout that I did last week:
It is actually another layout that I started in a class from CKC Nashville. In it we used paper from a company that I had never heard of, Bisous b-zoo. I absolutely love these papers. The colors are bright and beautiful and there are a lot of accents that you can fussy cut out and use as embellishments.
I kept a few things the same on this layout as what was instructed in the class, but completely changed the embellishment grouping and added a few other accents as well.
Its a fun and silly picture and I love how the colors in the photo and the papers go so well together.
Here is a closer look...
In class we used white embossed cardstock. Using Distress Stain we colored it blue. We then ran Distress Ink in brown over it to color the embossed dots.
The blue and orange flower I cut out of the paper and then put Rock Candy Crackle Paint on them to spice them up a bit. The other flowers and bling are Prima. The really dark colored flower was actually a black flower. I used Adirondack Color Wash in Stream and then Perfect Pearls Mist in Turquoise to add the blue sheen to it. The butterflies where given to us in class. They are just little wooden accents. Using paint dabber I colored them and then added the copper wire to create their antennas.
Wishing you a creative day!


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Enjoy a trio of anime delights…
...with the Mini InvertMouse Bundle, featuring story-rich visual novels and puzzle adventures. Don't miss Fanatical's latest STEAM game collection.
This deal is part of Fanatical's current sale Take a look and don't miss their great deals ! 🙂
This game bundle contains
Without Within 2
Vinty is off to Melbourne to meet her idol, Excelia! Will Vinty learn the star's secrets and finally blossom into a celebrity?
The 5K Worm is on a rampage across cyberspace. As the top unhacker in Smash Security, it is your mission to bring an end to this virus. Join forces with AI companion Weedy and become an unstoppable duo!
Being able to control fate would be a blessing for many. To Miyon, it is her greatest curse.


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Japan-based Manufacturer enters U.S. market with 170 new jobs
(GWINNETT- METRO ATLANTA) October 2, 2014 – Haso Ltd., a market leader in the development and manufacturing of high-quality hygiene and household cleaning products, from Tokyo, Japan, joined Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development and the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) to announce the open of its U.S. manufacturing operations in Gwinnett County, metro Atlanta. The announcement represents 170 new jobs and $7 million in capital investment for the community.
Haso Ltd. will lease a 100,000 square foot facility, located at 2850 Colonnades Court, in the City of Peachtree Corners. The Gwinnett County facility will house all U.S. production operations for the company as well as serve as the corporate office for president, senior staff, human resources, accounting, marketing and maintenance.
“This is a great win for the City of Peachtree Corners and marks the second big global announcement this year, adding more than 150 local jobs to our community,” said Peachtree Corners Mayor Mike Mason. “I applaud Haso for its decision to grow here, a decision that will benefit our community.”
Haso’s strong focus on research and development and tradition of developing market defining technologies has enabled them to work with some of the largest supermarket retailers and consumer package goods companies in the world. The company is a leader in the private-label market and produces for some of the biggest brands in the industry.
Founded in Hong Kong in 2000, Haso is headquartered in Tokyo, with manufacturing facilities based in Taicang, China. With sales offices in Tokyo and Shanghai, the Gwinnett operation represents Haso’s first U.S. presence.
“In terms of choosing a location for our U.S. production facility, a large part of our decision to move to Metro Atlanta was based on the relationships we developed,” said Yuji Sogawa, President of Haso USA, Inc. “Yumiko Nakazono, GDEcD Managing Director in Tokyo, Joseph Huntemann, Project Manager on the international investment team at GDEcD, along with Troels Adrian, Senior Project Manager for Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development, teamed together to help us realize the benefits of locating our facility in Gwinnett County. It made perfect sense for us to begin our U.S. operations here.”
“Gwinnett is proud to be home to more than 110 Japanese businesses. Haso’s expansion comes on the heels of our 2013 global trade mission trip to Japan and speaks to the success of our global recruitment efforts,” stated Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners Chairman Charlotte Nash. “I want to congratulate Haso on their decision to invest in Gwinnett County and welcome them as a new member of our international business community.”
GDEcD Project Manager Joseph Huntemann represented the State of Georgia on this project. Troels Adrian, Senior Project Manager for Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development and Partnership Gwinnett, worked to recruit Haso Ltd. to Gwinnett County. Yumiko Nakazono, GDEcD Managing Director in Tokyo, also assisted the company. Day Lancaster with NAI Brannen Goddard represented the company in the real estate transaction, and Pat Murphy, with CBRE at the time of the transaction and now with Cassidy Turley, represented the owners of 2850 Colonnades Court.
“The Partnership Gwinnett initiative leverages Gwinnett County’s global community and diversity to attract companies from around the world,” said Troels Adrian, Senior Project Manager of Advanced Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management for Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development and Partnership Gwinnett. “A specific area of recruitment focus has been Japan, so I am delighted that Haso decided to locate their first U.S. facility here, becoming the 115th business from this major manufacturing economy. I look forward to assisting them in their growth here.”
To learn more about Haso, please visit www.hasoltd.com.
For more information, or to learn how to get involved in local economic development efforts, please visit www.gwinnetteconomicdevelopment.com.

domain: geography


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RAPPER Tyga has finally addressed the engagement bombshell dropped by ex Blac Chyna and Rob Kardashian last night.
The pair announced their engagement on Instagram yesterday with a simple picture of Chyna sporting a gigantic rock captioned with the word 'YES!!!'.
The artist, who is in a long-term relationship with Rob's sister Kylie Jenner, shares three-year-old King with ex-fiancee Blac.
He took to his Twitter to send a message to fans who were speculating if the news was true, writing: 'Everybody deserves 2 be happy. What some1 does for their happiness is not my concern, as long as it's not interfering wit my happiness.'
He continued: 'It makes me happy to see the mother of my son happy. My only concern in this situation is my son. I want him in happy environments.'
Blac Chyna posted a picture of a massive rock on her Instagram yesterday afternoon which has since been followed up with more images on her social feed and Rob's Instagram.
The Kardashian family have remained tight-lipped following news of the engagement, with no reference to the couple on their social media feeds.
The three-month relationship has caused numerous problems within the Kardashian-Jenner clan, as Blac's baby-daddy Tyga is Kylie Jenner's long-term boyfriend.
Kylie and Blac infamously exchanged digs over social media, and Blac has recently launched a make-up line, similar to the youngest Jenner's highly successful make-up bussiness.
We can't wait for this wedding!

domain: news


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We've had some wonderfully clear skies the last few nights - and with such little ambient light, The Island is the perfect place for stargazing. If you're a novice like me, but have a gps-enabled android smartphone, you'll find the Google Sky Map incredibly handy. It is one of the most amazing free downloads I've come across. For iPhone and iPad users, the Star Walk app is similar and is available on iTunes for USD $2.99 Either way, just lay back on your blanket and point your phone skyward and voila! - the stars, planets, constellations, etc. are all be labelled for you.
Speaking of snakes...
I did see this snake, which I think is an Olive House Snake, lurking in the garage about 18 months ago...
Watch your step...
Don't recall them being a problem previously, but word has it that puff adders have recently been seen on the beach at the end of Acacia Road.
TheIsland@GreatBrak features the occasional blogpost in between braaiing and beach walks - stay tuned or drop me a line.
Get the latest Island blog updates delivered direct to your inbox:

domain: hobby


Petrol engine Aurus Senat
The Aurus Senat is a luxury full-size car by Russian automaker Aurus Motors and developed by NAMI in Moscow, Russia. The armoured limousine is powered by a 4.4 litre V8 engine developed by NAMI, with a 6.6-litre V12 (634 kW [850 hp; 862 PS]) becoming available at a later date. It is the presidential state car of Russia. Development of the Senat started in 2013 with the car (in civilian S600 or official L700 versions) being put into production in 2021 at the Sollers JSC factory in Yelabuga.
The Aurus Senat is part of the Kortezh series, which will eventually include a van and an SUV. The Senat was shown publicly for the first time at the Moscow International Automobile Salon in September 2018.
Cars of the Kortezh series (also known in Russian: Единая модульная платформа, ЕМП, lit. ‘Unified Modular Platform’) were expected to be available for export to the Middle East and China in late 2018. A civilian version of the Senat is manufactured by a joint venture between the NAMI and LiAZ firms. Expected retail prices were increased in 2018 to 10 million rubles (300k).
Porsche and Bosch Engineering are reported to have been involved with the development of the engine.


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I told more than one friend I was going to Ski Dubai and in more than one case, their response was the same. “HOW is it possible that you’re going SKIING in the DESERT?”, and phrases to that extent. Ski Dubai is one of the world’s biggest and best fake snow experience centres, offering skiing, snowboarding, djdkdk and more, and it’s set right in the heart of one of Dubai’s greatest shopping malls of all places – Mall of the Emirates.
I’ve always loved food, but it’s only been in the last few years that I’ve *really* had something to say. Gaucho is an established name back in the UK and I’d heard so much about it. After one of my best friends visited for her birthday recently with me all the way over in the UAE, I decided to Google it… just to look. I was overjoyed to find that it had branched out to the Emirates and so I booked myself a table whilst on my trip to Dubai. Continue reading


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PBS also has it up on their streaming App. I have Roku but I figure PBS has it for other streaming devices. Mr. Tornado is a great documentary. They have just enough personal background for the general viewer, and a ton of science for us!
Apparently I missed meeting Dr. Fujita by a couple years at my first weather job. He visited WeatherData a couple years before I started. So I miss a guy I never even met. Timing is everything. Sounds like storm chasing, lol!
What an excellent documentary of Ted Fujita and his relentless pursuit of understanding tornado science as we know it today. I sure enjoyed it and think most who watch it will as well. It was really impressive how he took still pictures from the residents and made it into a film of the entire lifecycle of that tornadic incidence. Very inspiring to say the least.
I would love to have a print of that super detailed hand drawn analysis of the full super outbreak. Being a weather geek who went to design school, I'm in awe of that detail and skill in both the art and the science.
For some reason when I attempted to record this on my Spectrum box off my local PBS station, what was recorded was a documentary about the 4/27/11 outbreak that I'd already seen, despite the program guide info being correct.


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Are Smarties candy gluten free?
Smarties are a fun chocolate snack. With the rise of gluten intolerance and celiac disease, we need to ask: are Smarties gluten free?
I’ll be breaking down exactly what goes into making Smarties, helping you make an informed decision about whether or not they’re an option for your snacking needs when on a gluten free diet.
When I was a child I always received Smarties for Halloween. I even bought them at the concession stand when going to the movies. They’re so tasty!
To be honest, for a long time, I never questioned if they contained gluten because I assumed they were just chocolate with a candy coating.
What are Smarties?
In 1937 they were rebranded as Smarties. (Source)
The ingredients in Smarties are sugar, cocoa butter, skimmed milk powder, cocoa mass, lactose and protein from whey (from milk), wheat powder, butterfat (from milk), rice starch, Emulsifier: Sunflower lecithin, fruit and vegetable concentrates (carnauba wax, bees wax), natural vanilla flavoring, invert sugar syrup. (Source)
You might have noticed in the ingredients they have something listed as wheat powder.
What is wheat powder?
I couldn’t find an exact explanation of what wheat powder is. So I am going to assume it is wheat that is finely ground into a powder. So this ingredient would have gluten in it and would not be suitable for gluten free diets.
How are Smarties Made?
Smarties are made by mixing the ingredients together and then pouring the mixture into molds. The molds are then cooled and the candies are removed. They are then coated in sugar and food coloring.
Are Smarties Gluten Free?
Unfortunately, Nestle Smarties are not gluten free since they contain wheat powder. However, there are a few brands of candies that are similar to Smarties that are gluten free.
Gluten Free Smarties Brands
Don’t worry, if you love Smarties and want to eat them on a gluten free diet below are a few brands you can try that are not only gluten free but contain healthier ingredients.
- Yumearth Choco Yums (free of peanuts, gluten, tree nuts, milk, eggs, fish, shellfish and soy)
- UNREAL Milk Chocolate Gems (gluten free, soy free)
- No Whey Foods Choco No No’s (dairy Free, Peanut Free, Nut Free, Soy Free, Gluten Free)
Are Smarties vegan?
No, Nestle Smarties are not vegan. They contain whey, butterfat, and beeswax.
If you refer to the list of alternative Smarties brands above, you will find vegan options.DISCLOSURE: Not intended for the treatment or prevention of disease, nor as a substitute for medical treatment, nor as an alternative to medical advice. Use of recommendations is at the choice and risk of the reader. Ditch the Wheat is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. I only endorse products that I believe in.
Carol Lovett is the founder of Ditch the Wheat and a Globe and Mail bestselling author of the cookbook, Ditch the Wheat. She has been eating gluten free since 2010. She loves all things food, natural living, and spiritual. She’s also a reiki master and crystal healer.

domain: food


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Chelsea have lined up Christopher Nkunku for just €60 million next season; Manchester United dithered all summer and spent €100m on - an admittedly talented - Antony in much the same position.
Both clubs now have American ownership; Todd Boehly succeeding Roman Abramovich as Chelsea's head honcho in May, while the Glazer family has been in charge of Man Utd since their controversial buyout back in 2005.
And both spent big this summer, indeed, Chelsea out-spent everyone in Europe, dropping nearly €300m on the likes of Wesley Fofana, Raheem Sterling, Kalidou Koulibaly and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Manchester United weren't that far behind, spending €240m with Antony leading arrivals that also included Casemiro and Lisandro Martinez.
Whilst the season is too young to judge either side's new arrivals fairly, the Boehly era is just beginning, while the Glazer era has had the best part of a decade to prove itself, and Gary Neville's is perhaps the most vociferous voice demanding: "Glazer's out!"
While Casemiro's experience is anecdotal among the superstars outlined above, it does appear to suggest some disconnect between the club and its management. Erik ten Hag wanted Frenkie de Jong, United's board got fed up waiting for an answer and paid Real Madrid €80m for Casemiro instead. He is yet to start a Premier League game.
While Graham Potter is working out his best XI this season, Chelsea have already set about strengthening for next, and have reportedly agreed terms on the €60m transfer of RB Leipzig star Nkunku having completed a medical with him in Frankfurt this summer.
Nkunku scored 35 goals and assisted 20 more in 52 games last season, and his acquisition, ahead of the competition, is a shrewd one. Compare that to Antony, who had 12 and 10 in each column across 33 games for Ajax, and was only signed at the end of the window after going on striker, his price eventually climbing to €100m.
Nkunku is rated at €61 by Football Transfers' sophisticated in-house algorithm and will move for €60; Antony moved for €100 but is rated at €72m.
Getting your business done early keeps a players' price down, and it is something Chelsea have already proved willing to do under Boehly. United have had 17 seasons and 34 transfer windows to prove they can do the same under the Glazers, and they are yet to.
It remains to be seen which summer 2022 arrivals work out the better, but for summer 2023, Chelsea are already out in front.


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The Sta-Green Ready-to-Spray Mari garden finances. The cutter has 10” knives with 3 teeth, which is impressive quite. Whereas walk-behind comb second hand cutter are really best for greater locations and overgrown brushes. The SunSeeker Multi-Tool comes with four diverse attachments, including a brush cutter cutting tool and trimmer, to handle every gardening chore you may come across. Weed predators can come to be noisy, and may well build some strong vibrations pretty. No matter of which type of engine you choose, gas power tools are even so raucous, they require a total lot of maintenance and upkeep, and they’re not extremely kinds to the environment.


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KEY SCRIPTURE: Psalm 37:25. “I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread”.
We continue with our study on the rewards of Holiness.
18. The righteous shall not be forsaken, neither will his children go around to beg for food. Psalm 37:25 “I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread”. The Lord declares he would never forsake the righteous or holy man. The children of the righteous shall also never go around begging for food. Poverty is never the portion of the seed of the upright. The following is what God says about the seed of the holy man. Psalm 112:2&3
“His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed; Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endureth forever.”. Dear brother or sister do not trivialize your holy walk, for it is a financial security for your children after you. It says your children shall be mighty in the land. How will they be mighty? Through financial dominion, your children shall be mighty on the earth. It also applies naturally that those who cheat, rob in any form would destroy the financial security of their children.
This piece of advice goes to all persons, whether you are a pastor who extorts money from your congregation, you are a politician who takes kickbacks and inflate prices so you could get big margins, a doctor who aborts for money or charge excessively for profit at the expense of poor patients and what have you? Your unrighteous ways will fight the prosperity of your children, no matter how much you be quit to them. Those who are defrauding to get rich must also know they are sacrificing the financial blessings of their children. May we fear God and His word to humble ourselves and live uprightly. The Lord therefore admonishes all of us as follows, “Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore” (Psalm 37:27).
19. God loves judgement or justice. This is talking about fairness to all. Psalm 37:28
“For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off”. When we defined Holiness. We said it is, purity, absence of evil, perfect light, perfect love and perfect justice or righteousness. God is a God of justice. He is fair to all, at all times, and under all conditions. To be a person of justice or to judge rightly is the delight of the Lord. The unjust man is described as a wicked man. The lord declares once again that the seed or children of an unjust person shall be cut off. They would not be established in the Land.
20. The righteous shall inherit the land. Psalm 37:29
“The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein forever”. According to the bible, at the end of the ages, when God has finally judged all persons including satan and his demons, there would be a new heaven and a new earth. The righteous would inherit this new earth. Revelations 21:1. “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea”. Would you be counted worthy to inherit this new earth?
I am the righteous of the Lord. I walk in the path of righteousness. I forsake the evil way. My children are blessed and are mighty in the land. Their prosperity is forever more.
Psalm 37:31—33. “The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide. The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him. The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him.


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Manufacturer Code: 84202.1141.


It’s been a while since I’ve done a brake fluid change myself but as my Twizy is now 4 years old, and I wanted to improve braking, I gave it a go today.
All that was required was an 8mm spanner, a 10mm spanner, a syringe, a piece of tube (I used the outer sheath of some co-ax cable), an assistant, some brake fluid and a suitable container.
I found it easier to do the rears with the wheels removed but it’s just about manageable with them fitted. Turning the steering wheel gives easy access to the fronts.
My workshop manual specifies DOT4 ISO Class 6 brake fluid, which I bought from Halfords.
After draining the reservoir of the old fluid it was repeatedly topped up whilst each bleed nipple was opened and closed as the brake pedal was pressed and released.
I was slightly concerned by the new brake fluid seeming thinner and lighter in colour but this did make bleeding easier as I could clearly see when the new fluid came through. I read up about the fluid on the Comma website, which states “Low Viscosity properties provide improved braking and faster anti-skid reaction at low temperatures”.
On completion I tested the brakes, which do seem better, although I’ve also stripped and cleaned the calipers this weekend so not sure how much of the improvement is down to that!


President Joe Biden struck an optimistic tone in his first speech before a joint session of Congress, coming after a long pandemic year that has been marked by isolation, loss, and for far too many Americans, death.
“After just 100 days — I can report to the nation: America is on the move again,” Biden said during his speech. “Turning peril into possibility. Crisis into opportunity. Setback into strength.”
Biden’s address was not delivered over Zoom; a number of lawmakers, Cabinet members, Supreme Court justices, and guests sat spaced out in the cavernous US House chamber to hear him speak. But the room was far from full, and attendees fist-bumped rather than shaking hands, signals that the Covid-19 pandemic is not yet over.
The coronavirus is still surging around the world, notably in India, but things in the United States are improving; more than half of all adults have received at least one dose of the vaccine, cases and deaths are on the decline, and most economic forecasts predict booming growth.
Biden spent a good portion of his speech talking about what he already accomplished, including signing a $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package into law. He also previewed the next major phase of his presidency, introducing a two-pronged economic package: the $2.25 trillion American Jobs Plan, which invests in building roads and schools, green energy jobs, and supplementing long-term care; and the $1.8 trillion American Families Plan, which creates a paid family and sick leave program, and dedicates billions to affordable child care, universal pre-kindergarten, and two years of free community college. Biden also addressed economic competition with China and told the US Senate to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act by next month.
But the biggest emphasis of Biden’s speech by far was job creation.
“Some of you at home wonder whether these jobs are for you. You feel left behind and forgotten in an economy that’s rapidly changing,” Biden said. “The Americans Jobs Plan is a blue-collar blueprint to build America. And it recognizes something I’ve always said: Wall Street didn’t build this country. The middle class built this country. And unions built the middle class.”
Biden is presenting himself as a historically ambitious president. But many questions remain about whether his plans can pass Congress, and though Biden was technically addressing lawmakers, the president made sure to take his case to the American people directly. Biden’s administration has been using public opinion — rather than congressional Republican sentiment — as its guiding principle so far.
Biden must decide whether he will prioritize bipartisan compromise or use obscure Senate procedural rules to pass his economic agenda with just Democratic votes.
Here are the winners and losers from Biden’s first major speech since taking office.
Winner: Joe Biden
Biden dreamed of becoming president since grade school and ran for president three times, finally assuming the role at age 78. He took the helm at a particularly fraught time in the United States. Or, as he characterized it on Wednesday, he “inherited a nation in crisis.”
“The worst pandemic in a century,” Biden said. “The worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. The worst attack on our democracy since the Civil War. Life can knock us down. But in America, we never stay down. In America, we always get up.”
Throughout his speech, Biden seemed particularly suited for the current moment. He spoke with deep empathy about the hundreds of thousands of lives lost to the Covid-19 crisis and the millions of workers who lost their jobs during the resulting economic recession. As a president who took office right after a deadly insurrection at the US Capitol, fomented in part by his predecessor President Donald Trump, Biden spoke sternly about the need for a deeply polarized nation to come together.
“The insurrection was an existential crisis — a test of whether our democracy could survive,” Biden said. “Can our democracy overcome the lies, anger, hate, and fears that have pulled us apart? America’s adversaries — the autocrats of the world — are betting it can’t. They believe we are too full of anger and division and rage. They are wrong. And we have to prove them wrong.”
For someone who styled himself as a centrist for much of his career, Biden is clearly showing he wants to think bigger. Biden made the case for massive federal investment into America’s middle and working classes. He repeated the word “jobs” over 40 times throughout his speech, promising high-paying and unionized work in a new, clean-energy economy.
Biden’s proposals — and his plans to raise taxes on the wealthy and corporations to pay for them — are broadly popular with the public. But much as Biden believes he needs to win over public opinion to pass his policies, he also needs to win over Congress. As long as Democrats stay unified, Biden can still pass big pieces of his economic agenda without Republican votes using a procedure called budget reconciliation, but he and Democrats can’t pass anything related to immigration, policing reform, or universal background checks without Republican support. And that more than likely means none of these items will happen.
“I don’t want to become confrontational, but we need more Senate Republicans to join with the overwhelming majority of their Democratic colleagues, and close loopholes and require background checks to purchase a gun,” Biden said at one point, ad-libbing the “confrontational” part.
A president known for his years of bipartisan dealmaking in the US Senate may find himself confronting congressional Republicans soon enough. —Ella Nilsen
Loser: The Washington consensus on trade
Trump’s victory on an anti-China, protectionist platform upset the longstanding pattern of bipartisan support for free trade. But during the Trump presidency, the public was surprisingly open to international commerce. A 2020 Gallup poll found that 79 percent — the largest number in 25 years — thought that trade was more of an opportunity for the American economy than a threat. Under these conditions, it would seem reasonable that the Biden administration might steer policy back toward the pre-Trump consensus.
But during his speech Wednesday, Biden went out of his way to emphasize that his economic policy will focus on America first — the kind of nationalist rhetoric that would have been perfectly at home in the last administration.
“The investments in the American Jobs Plan will be guided by one principle: Buy American,” the president said. “American tax dollars are going to be used to buy American products, made in America, to create American jobs.”
The only section that explicitly discusses trade agreements focused not on the importance of economic globalization, but the damage China’s approach to commerce is doing to American citizens (a rhetorical emphasis consistent with Biden’s policy):
America will stand up to unfair trade practices that undercut American workers and American industries, like subsidies for state-owned enterprises and the theft of American technologies and intellectual property.
This is not the language of an administration looking to return to a broadly pro-globalization agenda. It’s language that reflects a post-Trump bipartisan consensus that calls for a tougher stance on trade liberalization — something both sides used to agree was an unalloyed good.
This approach to trade underscored how much of Biden’s approach exists in reaction to Trump’s political victory. Trump won by emphasizing protectionism and the interests of whites without college degrees. Biden is going to push a “blue-collar blueprint” that creates well-paying jobs that don’t require college degrees.
One can debate whether this is the right read of Trump’s rise; the evidence that economic distress was a key reason for his popularity among non-college whites is fairly weak. But there’s no doubt that this aspect of Trumpism has profoundly affected the way both parties approach politics and policy — especially when it comes to trade. —Zack Beauchamp
Winner: Children and families
Biden’s speech on Wednesday night was an opportunity to showcase to the American people what he’s already achieved in his first 100 days. But it was also a time for him to sell his latest proposal: the American Families Plan, which he formally introduced on Wednesday.
The plan puts children, parents, and caregivers front and center, with multibillion-dollar investments to make child care affordable for low- and middle-income families, create a new national program for paid family and medical leave, and incentivize universal preschool for all 3- and 4-year-olds. It would also extend the child tax credit, a move experts say would cut child poverty in America in half.
In his speech Wednesday, Biden emphasized how transformational his plan would be. “My American Families Plan guarantees four additional years of public education for every person in America, starting as early as we can,” he said, citing research showing that going to preschool enhances a child’s chances of graduating from high school.
“When you add two years of free community college on top of that, you begin to change the dynamic,” he said. “We can do that.”
Biden also addressed the crisis of care that has forced many Americans — the majority of them women — out of the labor force in the last year. “Two million women have dropped out of the workforce during this pandemic,” he said. “And too often, because they couldn’t get the care they needed to care for their child or care for an elderly parent who needs help.”
The relief in the American Rescue Plan, signed into law in March, will help some of those women by providing child care assistance as well as support to help care providers reopen. But advocates have long said more is needed to truly make child care affordable and accessible over the long term — and that’s what Biden hopes to do with the American Families Plan.
There were some odd moments in the speech, such as when Biden characterized the plan as necessary to compete with China, rather than simply to make life better for Americans, especially those with the fewest resources. But overall, it echoed Biden’s longtime strategy of treating family policy as inseparable from infrastructure and economic policy — and, in this case, perhaps even foreign policy — rather than treating it as a side issue.
It’s unclear whether that strategy will work to get the plan through Congress. But one thing is for certain: Children and families, and policies that would materially change their lives, were at the forefront on Wednesday night. —Anna North
Winner: The filibuster
When President Biden turned to his legislative agenda, he spent a good deal of time discussing his infrastructure plan and his new American Families Plan — and appropriately so, because those are the bills that Democrats can theoretically pass with their votes alone, through the special budget reconciliation process.
Yet in the second half of the speech, Biden rattled off a list of bills that he said he wanted Congress to pass: the PRO Act to strengthen union protections, a minimum wage increase to $15 an hour, the Paycheck Fairness Act, a comprehensive immigration bill, strengthening gun background checks, voting reform bills, and the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. The problem is what wasn’t mentioned, and what will likely prevent most if not all of those bills from passing — the Senate filibuster.
The filibuster isn’t the only obstacle to that list of priorities. Some, like the For the People Act, the PRO Act, and the $15-an-hour minimum wage increase, don’t yet have 50 Democratic Senate supporters. However, if not for the filibuster, advocates could at least hope to convince or pressure the remaining Democratic holdouts in the coming months. With the filibuster in place, 10 Republicans would be required to jump on board. Perhaps bipartisan agreement is possible on one or two of these priorities, but likely not on most of them.
Biden has a plan to pass the reconciliation-eligible parts of his agenda (though we don’t yet know whether that plan will be successful). He has no plan to pass any of the other items because the only realistic way to do so would be by changing Senate rules. It’s not Biden’s fault that Democratic senators like Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema have vowed to keep the filibuster. But the reality is that as long as it sticks around, Democrats are sharply limited on what they’ll be able to pass through Congress. —Andrew Prokop
Winner: Progressive tech optimism
In Democratic politics in recent years, tech has been out of vogue. Most notably, Sen. Elizabeth Warren shot to popularity pledging to break up Big Tech, a call Sen. Bernie Sanders also endorsed. Their stance reflected a growing distance between Democratic lawmakers and technological innovation as a tool for progressive outcomes.
New York Times columnist Ezra Klein noted this growing divide on a podcast last month: “Within the progressive movement I think there’s an understandable and quite deep skepticism of technology. ... But I think that to solve some of the big problems, you want to have a forward-looking theory of what technology can do, a forward-looking theory of how the government can direct funding and energy in that direction.”
Long before the 2020 presidential primary, America’s public investment in research and development had dwindled to record lows overall. The Wall Street Journal reports that while “funding for basic research has been relatively stable” as a share of GDP, government funding for the development of new technologies has dropped significantly.
In his speech Wednesday, Biden embraced a vision of what you might call “progressive tech optimism” — the idea that government investment in tech is the path forward to solving Democratic priorities like the climate crisis and developing treatments for illnesses like Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and cancer: “We have to develop and dominate the products and technologies of the future: Advanced batteries, biotechnology, computer chips, clean energy.”
That doesn’t mean that Big Tech should expect reconciliation. Public investment in R&D can go hand in hand with increased regulation of the private sector. According to economist Noah Smith, “the ‘tech’ industry as we know it only accounts for a third” of private R&D spending. But Biden’s speech was still a remarkable shift in tone from the Democratic Party which has largely abandoned tech optimism as a central tenet.
With the success of Operation Warp Speed in helping the private sector produce Covid-19 vaccines quickly, tech may again be back in Democrats’ good graces. —Jerusalem Demsas
In just 100 days of the Biden presidency, more than 800,000 people have signed up for health insurance through the 2010 health care law, as Biden touted on Wednesday. (His health department opened a special enrollment period during the pandemic after the Trump administration had refused to do the same.)
Obamacare is already a winner under the Biden administration, and Biden wants to do more in the American Families Plan he laid out in his speech.
The American Rescue Plan authorized a two-year expansion of the law’s tax subsidies for health insurance premiums. The law had previously cut off that assistance for people at 400 percent of the federal poverty line ($87,800 for a family of three) and higher, leaving an estimated 4 million people for whom insurance was unaffordable either uninsured or relying on short-term limited coverage. Those people are eligible for subsidies now, and the law also expanded subsidies for people already eligible for them. About 7 million uninsured people qualify for free coverage,
Biden said he wants to make that expansion permanent, as part of his American Families Plan, which Democrats may have to pass through party-line budget reconciliation this year.
“In addition to my Families Plan, I will work with Congress to address this year other critical priorities for America’s families,” Biden said. “The Affordable Care Act has been a lifeline for millions of Americans, protecting people with preexisting conditions, protecting women’s health.”
“And the pandemic has demonstrated how badly it is needed. Let’s lower deductibles for working families on the Affordable Care Act, and let’s lower prescription drug costs.” —Dylan Scott
Loser: Wall Street
“Good guys and women on Wall Street, but Wall Street didn’t build this country,” Biden said. “The middle class built this country, and unions built the middle class.”
Biden ticked off many of his ideas that, if enacted, would almost certainly harm corporate America’s and shareholders’ bottom lines. Among other items, he’s proposed increasing the corporate tax rate from 21 percent to 28 percent, raising the top individual tax rate, closing a capital gains loophole, and increasing the capital gains tax rate. His administration is also seeking to clamp down on companies skirting taxes internationally through tax havens such as Switzerland and Bermuda and pushing for funding for the IRS to be able to go after tax cheaters.
“We’re going to reform corporate taxes so they pay their fair share and help pay for the public investments their businesses will benefit from,” Biden said. We’re going to reward work, not just wealth.”
He was careful to say that he isn’t anti-billionaire, but he wants rich people to pay their fair share. “I’m not looking to punish anybody,” he said. He also mentioned skyrocketing CEO pay and noted that 650 billionaires in the US saw their net worth increase by more than $1 trillion during the pandemic — a stark contrast to the millions of Americans who found themselves without work.
Thus far, the investment class isn’t freaking out over Biden’s presidency. When Wall Street was reminded of his proposal to increase the capital gains tax rate last week, stocks declined slightly, but it wasn’t anywhere near a meltdown.
Indexes have traded at record highs throughout Biden’s young presidency, and the market is pretty jazzed about the post-pandemic economic growth many believe is on the horizon, brought about in part by many of Democrats’ economic and health policies. It’s not clear what, if anything, will shake Wall Street’s exuberance or how seriously investors are taking some of Biden’s proposals. But Wednesday was a reminder that CEOs should maybe be sleeping with one eye open. —Emily Stewart
Loser: Defund the police
There have been a lot of examples of police misconduct and violence in the past few weeks. Police shot and killed Daunte Wright miles from where Derek Chauvin was on trial for the murder of George Floyd, and officers shot and killed Andrew Brown Jr. in North Carolina.
This violence has led to new protests demanding change, but Biden’s position on policing has not changed. He reiterated the stance he took during his campaign, arguing that the problem with policing both is and is not systemic; that while it is a case of bad apples, there is also broad racism that must be dealt with.
“Most men and women in uniform wear their badge and serve their communities honorably,” Biden said, adding that Americans must also “root out systemic racism in our criminal justice system.”
Rhetorically, there was something for many in that position, but in policy, Biden offered little for the 63 percent of likely voters (according to a Vox/Data for Progress poll) who want to see more sweeping change.
Those voters said they’d like to see police budgets partially reallocated to “create a new agency of first-responders, like emergency medical services or firefighters to deal with issues related to addiction or mental illness” — they’d like to defund the police.
Biden, instead, advocated for more moderate changes, pressing the Senate to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which passed the House in March. The bill offers a range of reforms, including expanding access to body cameras, increasing racial bias training, ending qualified immunity, and demilitarizing police forces.
And even this more moderate bill has little chance of passing the Senate — it needs either the support of at least 10 Republican senators or for Democrats to unite around the idea of eliminating the filibuster, which would allow legislation to pass via a simple majority. This is something Biden didn’t mention in his speech — and he didn’t bring up the filibuster, a major barrier to many of his priorities, at all.
As Vox’s Li Zhou has reported, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) — the Senate’s only Black Republican — is working with Democrats on finding a compromise to make the Justice in Policing Act more palatable to Republicans. But it’s not clear this effort will succeed.
“Let’s get it done next month, by the first anniversary of George Floyd’s death,” Biden said.
Critics of the bill point to epidemics of police violence in cities like Minneapolis, where many of the legislation’s proposals (including universal body camera usage and stringent racial bias training) have already been enacted, as evidence it does not go far enough. And indeed, Minneapolis is now under federal investigation for potential unconstitutional and illegal policing.
Biden clearly indicated Wednesday that he does not agree. It was unlikely to hear Biden call for defunding; many moderate Democrats argued progressive support for the slogan hurt the party in congressional races in 2020, and the phrase itself remains unpopular in polling. For now at least, it would seem that while Biden wants to go big in certain areas, he’ll continue to take a more moderate approach to policing. —Sean Collins


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|IBA conservation status|
|Year of assessment (most recent)||State (condition)||Pressure (threat)||Response (action)|
|2001||not assessed||high||not assessed|
|For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here|
Site description (2001 baseline)
Merja Zerga is a tidal lagoon located 70 km north of Kenitra on the Atlantic coast. The outlet to the ocean lies at the seaside resort and fishing village of Moulay Bou Selham: hence the site’s alternative name of Lagune de Moulay Bou Selham. In addition to its tidal inflow, the lagoon receives fresh water from the Oued Drader and the underlying water-table, which is very close to the surface here. The lagoon itself covers 4,500 ha, of which 30% is open water, and has an average depth of 1.5 m. Large mudbanks are exposed at low tide, providing extensive feeding areas for waders and waterfowl. Around the lagoon and included within the limits of the IBA are areas of rough pasture and marshland, and the Dayet Roureg, a freshwater pond. Vegetation consists mainly of salt-tolerant plants and shrubs such as Spartina sp., Sarcocornia perennis and Juncus rigidus. The annual rainfall of 600–700 mm, coupled with the low-lying nature of most of the site, result in the inundation in winter of large areas of land surrounding the lagoon proper.
See Box for key species. Merja Zerga is internationally renowned as a passage and wintering site for Palearctic migrants, and is without doubt the most important wetland site in Morocco. In total, over 100 species of bird regularly use Merja Zerga. An average of 15,000–30,000 ducks of 11 different species overwinter, as do approximately the same number of mixed Fulica atra and F. cristata. The lagoon also regularly holds 50,000–100,000 waders (19 regular species) and 1,000–2,000 Phoenicopterus ruber. Numenius tenuirostris was last recorded in 1995. There are also many resident breeding species including Asio capensis.
Non-bird biodiversity: Three endemic Moroccan lizards occur: Acanthodactylus lineomaculatus, Chalcides mionecton and C. pseudostriatus.
BirdLife International (2023) Important Bird Area factsheet: Merja Zerga. Downloaded from http://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/merja-zerga-iba-morocco on 30/11/2023.

domain: biology


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