Category Archives: Golden Rule

Tony Wellsis a pleasant,energeticfellow. Engaging in conversation with him is lively and animated. He has lots to share.

Not only does he writebooks,but his life reads likea compelling novel.Descriptions ofhiswork with the Navyandhistime spent flyingarethrilling.Wells is most keen on his time spent on the slopes but with a new year,at 76,he made the decision to retire.He is an accomplished author and will continue writing. What he wont be doing is careening down mountain slopesso frequently.

After four decades of service as a National Ski Patroller,Wells, a resident of The Plains,retired from spending timein the snow. He was also a National Ski Patrol instructor and examiner for 28 years.

Wellspassion for skiing started as a small childin the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland. Later at his high school in England he skied every Christmas and Easter holidays in Europe with his school ski club. When he became a Royal Navy officer,he skied on the Navy and Portsmouth Command ski teams, one yearwinningthe grand slalom trophy with three Royal Marine Commandos.Wells has a cheeky side to him and admittedlyfelt in good company with that win;theywere arctic warfare trained and spent winters in Norway skiing near the Russian border.

Wells immigrated to the United States in 1983. By that time, he had skied every major resort in Switzerland and Austria,several in France and Italy, and Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria in Germany. His favorite ski resort has always been Zermatt in Switzerland.

Stateside, Wells began patrollingat Massanutten. He later helped create and lead a new patrol, Cherokee, at Linden, Virginia, where he was thepatroltreasurer.He calledTimberline, WestVirginia,homefor a time; while there,he helped establish a new patrol at Whitetail in Pennsylvania when it opened. After several years of long weekends travelingwith his three children, he decided to move closer to home; hehas been at Bryce Mountain ever since.

I like Bryce Mountain because it is family-oriented, said Wells,and is very good for children and people who want to learn to ski and for more advanced skiers to develop their skills without the pressure of long lift lines and crowded slopes.

Wells enjoys being of service to others. Parallel with his duties on the National Ski Patrol, Wells is a life member with The Plains Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company,where he serves as president.Being a life member means that he has volunteered his time for a minimum of 20 years.

I trained originally at the Fairfax County Fire & Rescue Academy as anemergencymedicaltechnicianand ran on the Vienna Rescue Squad before moving from Oaktonto The Plains and joining The Plains Rescue Squad, said Wells. Whilehe has witnessed manyinjuries,hemanaged to remain unscathed during his time on patrol--although he did have a harrowing experienceat Mammoth Mountain inCalifornia where hefound himself precariously hanging on to a rock pinnacle before descending arms outstretcheddown achute sansskis. While losing his skis and poles, he ended hisnear 500-foot free fallwith minor burns to his arms.

Over the past decades,Wellsestimates that he has rescued about 1,000 injured skiers, treating them on the mountain and bringing them down on a special toboggan. Hes seen every kind of injury, from serious headandbackinjuriesand fractures requiringmedevac (medical air evacuation) to minor cuts,abrasions and sprains.

Wells is fortunate that he hasnt had to deal with a skiing fatality, although hes come close.

He has much to be proud of with his skiing prowess andencourages prospective skiers to put themselves in good hands.

My best advice is alwaystakeinstruction from an experienced and qualified instructor, fully registered as a Professional Ski Instructor of America, said Wells. Hesproud of his oldest son John,who is a National SkiPatrollerand alsoa PSIA instructor.He is at Wintergreen in Virginia, said Wells.

Hereflectedon how ski equipment has advanced over the decades.As a small child inKanderstegin Switzerland hevividlyremembers skiing on wooden skies, with bamboo poles and leather boots, with a very primitive binding.

The new short skis are the way to go, advises Wells,anddon't buy second-hand equipment unless you know its pedigree.

Wells offered his golden rule:Never ski alone in mountainous complex terrain,andin particular wherethere are few other skiers.

GPS tracking devices, often embedded in watches, will sound the alarm and allow rescue teams to find injured or lost skiers but Wells would hope thateveryonesskiing adventure would be without incident.

Never stop in the middle of a ski run, advises Wells. Also stop on the side, turn and look upwards to sight other descending skiers. The downward skier always has the right of way, added Wells notingthatthis ruleis not always respected. Skiers should always glance over their shoulder before turning.

Wells has written several books,including two novels (Black Gold FinaleandThe Golden Few). He recently returned from London where he was meeting with his U.K.literary agent. I have another book due to be published later this year by the U.S.Naval Institute Press in Annapolis,Maryland, said Wells.

His children are all accomplished skiers. His daughter Lucy lives near Denver, Colorado,and is teaching her three children the joys of skiing.

There are a lot of skiers in this area, said Wells,who hopesthat his eight grandchildren will follow the family ski tradition and acquire the expert epithet.

If youre fortunate enough to meet thispersonable and intelligentfellow, you wont be disappointed. He has lots of stories to share.

WhileWells has hadhis last run,thespirit that kept him on the slopes lives on.

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From the slopes to The Plains | News - Fauquier Times

"1776" is an assembly of independent voices who uphold our countrys authentic founding virtues and values and challenge those who assert America is forever defined by its past failures, such as slavery.

* * *

Under the guise of a venture called the 1619 Project, the New York Times is introducing revisionist history about race in America into classrooms across the nation without the normal peer review expected of educational materials.

The project began in August 2019 with publication of a collection of essays and artistic works to commemorate the 400-year anniversary of slavery in America. The project, a collaboration between the New York Times Magazine and the Pulitzer organization, has mushroomed into a movement to re-educate Americans with novel claims about how deeply racism is embedded at Americas core.

As of February 2020, five public school systems had adopted the 1619 Projects curriculum district-wide. Its free teaching materials had reached 3,500 classrooms. This rapid progression for distribution of teaching materials created by journalists and scholars has been done without proper vetting. There has been no standard review process or serious effort made to address the many concerns raised by distinguished subject-matter critics from elite universities. The rush to get these materials into Americas classrooms was simply reckless.

What has ensued is a new racial narrative that places black Americas current struggles at the feet of the nations white Founding Fathers. This requires a new birth date for the nation. Instead of July 4, 1776, when the Founders signed the Declaration of Independence pledging to risk their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor to found a new nation, the 1619 Project scholars place the inception of the nation more than 150 years earlier at 1619. Thats when the first Africans came to Virginia as indentured servants before becoming free blacks.

Curiously, and inexplicably, this revisionist narrative skips over the 42 years of indentured servitude, a system that enabled former slaves to gain freedom and the resources to become the foundation of the free black population in America.

Jake Silverstein of the Times has written that the arrival of enslaved Africans inaugurated a barbaric system of chattel slavery that would last for the next 250 years. But conspicuously absent from the dominant historical narrative is the fact that free blacks and Indian tribes were right there alongside whites, buying and selling slaves after slavery became legal in 1661.

Historian Philip Foner, in his book History of Black Americans, provides critical details that American students should know about the origins of slavery in America:

The fact that the early Negroes imported into Virginia held the status of indentured servants is shown by the records of some Negroes receiving the customary freedom dues in the form of land at the end of their term of service. Some obtained land after becoming free by importing servants under the head-right system, by which they obtained 50 acres for each servant imported. A small number of Negro landowners not only held black servants, but were sufficiently prosperous to pay the transportation costs of white indentured servants, through each of whom they could obtain 50 acres of land. Anthony Johnson, who was imported into Virginia in 1622, accumulated property after he ended his indentured period, and even though he lost all his holdings in a fire, was able by 1651 to import five black servants into the colony, for which he was granted 250 acres in Northampton County. About 1650, Benjamin Dole, a Negro, was granted 300 acres of land in Surry County for having imported six servants. Another Negro was granted 550 acres after importing 11 people.

This account differs substantially from the narrative advanced by the 1619 Project contributors. What some of them hope to do is to build a case for monetary reparations for descendants of slaves. This is a false hope that would neither address the problems many blacks have today nor acknowledge the enormous progress that black Americans have made overall.

Those who push white guilt and black victimhood ignore critical facts. One is that todays white Americans are not responsible for the sins of generations ago. Second, slavery was an institution that blacks, Native Americans, and whites participated in as slaveholders. Theres plenty of guilt to go around.

Critical race theory is an analytical framework to analyze institutions and culture. Its purpose is to divide the world into white oppressors and non-white victims. Instead of traditional forms of knowledge, it holds up personal narratives of marginalized minority victim groups (blacks, Hispanics, Asians) as evidence (considered irrefutably by its nature) of the dishonesty of their mostly white heterosexual oppressors. The ultimate goal of this theorys proponents is to remake society so that the victim class eventually displaces the oppressors and becomes the new ruling class.

Within this framework, white privilege and its unearned benefits become responsible for economic, health, and social disparities in minority communities. This system of thought advances a narrative of blame that declares white America guilty for the plight of blacks.

When it comes to education, members of the victim classes are to do all the teaching. It is a worldview and narrative that commands white people to sit in obedience and listen quietly to arguments about their unjust gains as well as their obligation to provide a remedy for them in this case, to black Americans, whether they are descended from slaves or not.

There is no way out for whites when it comes to race. Critical race theory assumes that racism is permanent and affects every aspect of society, including political, economic, social and religious institutions. The theory further advances the belief that being born with white skin, in itself, confers unearned privileges. Therefore, any societal attainment of colorblindness, in which race or ethnicity does not hinder opportunities, is impossible. Neutrality in law and decision-making is a pipe dream that can never be attained. Therefore, this mistaken reasoning goes, the oppressive system must be dismantled and destroyed.

This flawed theory suggests that race and ethnicity will always taint and pollute every decision, and, as a result, racial minorities will consistently lose out to whites because of structural racism. The message is clear: If you are unfortunate enough to be born with black skin, you are forever a second-class citizen who pays a race penalty. Under this rationale, the most affluent blacks rank below the poorest whites when it comes to privilege and opportunities. We are asked to believe that more than 50 years of affirmative action programs and race consciousness have done nothing to change the trajectory or opportunities of people born without white skin.

Critical race theory says that every dysfunctional condition in black urban communities can be traced to slavery and its aftermath. There is no place for individual choice or initiative.

Thats the theory. But what critical race theory actually accomplishes is to create anger, frustration, and despondency among persons in the victim categories, who internalize this destructive message.

Universities and colleges have created a cottage industry of people who profit from indoctrinating Americas future leaders with a dangerous and destructive ideology. These future leaders spread this diseased ideology, like a virus without antidote, into corporate boardrooms as well as K-12 public and private schools, both Christian and non-Christian.

Standards normally used to reward academic credentials are sometimes relaxed to give more authority to watered-down factors such as personal experience and the narrative of victim-class members. Less credence is given to whatever facts, science, and contrary data that persons from the oppressor class might dare to proffer.

Education is now about white privilege indoctrination. According to the narrative, all white Americans are guilty oppressors who have benefited from their white skin, even if their parents are, say, Appalachian poor or high school dropouts working at the local big box franchise store or unemployed. Once the oppressor label is applied, accepted, and internalized, a deadly silencing ensues. In some cases, animated videos with messages of white guilt and oppression shown to middle and high school students create damaging images, by which whites are taught to feel guilt and minorities are assigned permanent and debilitating victimhood.

One notorious example of the teaching materials for diversity and sensitivity training is a short YouTube video entitled, The Unequal Opportunity Race. It has had more than 1.3 million views as of this writing. Its crippling message is clear: White boys and girls have unfair advantages, and white-imposed roadblocks prevent black boys and girls from achieving success.

Last year, the office of instruction for Westfield (N.J.) Public Schools approved a course on Power, Privilege, and Imbalance in American Society. Learning objectives of the semester-long, two-credit course include how to:

The syllabus explains that critical race theory is a theoretical concept that emerged from the civil rights movement. The goal is to give voice to groups who have suffered from systemic oppression, and develop theoretical and practical ways for students to deconstruct the power structures.

The 1619 Project is a misguided effort that follows in these lines, whose aim is to keep open historical wounds while telling only half of the story. It is flawed because it is connected to critical race theory and a diversity-inclusion grievance industry that focuses on identity politics and division. To blame todays families for the mistakes of long-dead ancestors is not a prescription for unifying the country or empowering racial and ethnic minorities. But then, thats not really the goal.

We can do better. Within Christian communities, there is a basis for countering destructive narratives that have invaded our educational institutions and corporate world. The solution for hatred, bitterness, and distrust can be found in New Testament principles. Rather than wallow in the past and revisionists efforts to build a case for reparations, we, as Americans, need to move forward while practicing the forgiveness and love of neighbor that Jesus espoused.

We need not look any further than the golden rule -- do unto others as you would have them do unto you -- to find the tools that enable us to transcend racial and ethnic conflicts that keep us from working together and celebrating our victories.

The present approach -- that of critical race theory -- cripples members of the designated victim groups while creating new victims among those classified as oppressors. I speak from a personal perspective as someone who has watched the changes from many vantage points.

I reached my formative years before critical race theory and cultural Marxism had gained a dominant foothold in academia. Even though I was born and grew up in rural Southern poverty during the era of segregation, I was not taught to hate white people or to hate America. Instead, my black teachers stressed our need to work hard and excel. I grew up to be a proud American who never doubted she lived in the greatest country in the world.

No one around me encouraged me to see myself as a victim. I never fixated on the fact that I was black, poor, and female. Had I done so, I doubt I would have achieved anything.

Carol Swain, a former professor of political science and law at Vanderbilt University, hosts the Be the People podcast and sits on the advisory board of Black Voices for Trump.

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Critical race theory's toxic, destructive impact on America - Washington Examiner

Outreach to inmates is a growing trend that helps them normalize outside world ethics inside the prison.

February 13, 2020 by Stephen Marshal Leave a Comment

Generally, ethics are the distinct set of rules or guidelines that all you make consistent life decisions based on an internal belief system. This means that your daily actions are based on some broader set of beliefs. You believe broadly that it is more important to live a life of goodness. Therefore you may on a daily basis tip larger at restaurants or make it a point to say thank you more. The two daily actions are the ethics that you follow that stem from your larger inner belief of being a good person.

Ethics comes from the Greek word Ethos, which means custom or habit. The Roman politician Cicero gave the world the term morals as his equivalent word to ethics except it was the Latin version. So, generally, there is no difference. However, this isnt the current case. In the first example, arguably the broader inner belief that you should live a life of goodness is part of your morals. Your ethics are drawn from your morals, just as a poodle is a type of dog (Dog = Morals; Poodle = Ethics).

There are four primary justifications for the criminal justice system. The founding fathers believed that their morals justified the use of some punishment of crimes but they argued over the ethical considerations. In the United States the criminal justice system is set up for these four reasons:

One of the most important justifications in society is rehabilitation, because society wants inmates to return to society and be productive members of a community. However, they can only do this if they learn how to ethically live inside a prison environment. If they let themselves go and dont confine their actions to a set group of ethics they could leave worse than when they came in. Think of it this way. If you go to prison do you want to leave as a hardened criminal bound to return after committing another crime? Or do you want to leave after people call you a model inmate? There is a difference and the difference is an ethical code based on a solid moral code.

They should act ethically. That is easy to say, but what does ethically even mean? Above it is described as a set of actions. But that seems circular. What rules do you base your actions on? Your morals? This still isnt a very satisfying answer.

The real answer is that inmates ethics and actions should be based on a system of beliefs that they would use in the outside world to be successful. This doesnt mean that they by definition need to be religious. Though religion has had an amazing successful moral and ethical development, it isnt by definition necessary. What you call the moral code is a choice. It could be religion. It could be logic. It could be as simple as the Golden Rule. An inmate needs to act in the way he would if he were out of prison.

Completely. Outreach to inmates is a growing trend that helps them normalize outside world ethics inside the prison. You can do a federal inmate search easily on inmate-search.online to reach out or find a friend to help as an ethical coach. Think of it this way: The National Research Council recently released a study that coined and defined the term deeper learning. They stated the process through which a person becomes capable of taking what was learned in one situation and applying it to new situations in other words, learning for transfer.

So, it appears what is important about the act of learning isnt just about understanding something. An inmate can understand that they should be good in most situations. The key is that they are fully competent in acting in an ethical way in a new or unfamiliar circumstance or situation. If there is deeper learning based on practiced rules of ethics then an inmate is much more likely to be successful inside and outside the prison. An inmate will adjust better because their ethics are sound and based on a foundational understanding of situational morals.

At the end of the day, what is important is not what set of moral beliefs and ethical guidelines an inmate has, rather instead, what is important is that the inmate has a set of ethics and sticks to those ethics. In this way, rehabilitation can be successful and the criminal justice system can thrive.

Photo: Shutterstock

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What Are the Ethics of Inmates and the Prison System? - The Good Men Project

After surveying the wreckage of the Iowa caucus clown car, scattered in pieces by the side of the road to defeat, a liberal friend of mine asked, This has to be on purpose, right? Nobody is this incompetent. Do they want Trump to win again?

The answer to that pained rhetorical question is yes.

For a number of liberal authors, editors, speakers, professors, celebrities, organizations, unions, political action committees, newspapers and cable networks, hating President TrumpDonald John TrumpHillicon Valley: US hits Huawei with new charges | Judge orders Pentagon to halt 'war cloud' work amid Amazon challenge | IRS removes guidance on Fortnite game currency NASA astronaut reunites with dog after breaking record for longest space mission by a woman Trump says his 'life would've been a lot easier' if he picked Barr over Sessions MORE has become a cash cow on steroids. They cant rake in the money fast enough before the next pile crashesin front of them.

With regard to the embarrassing meltdown in Iowa, the companies tied to the fiasco Acronym and the Shadow app seem to be doing quite well for themselves, if not for Democratic voters, since Trumps election.

Thats exactly the point: Many liberal operatives have never made this much money, and, for that reason, some need if not want Trump to be reelected. The We Hate Trump gravy train must not be allowed to derail.

Will they ever acknowledge that to thedesperate base of the Democratic Party, the supporters of Sen. Bernie SandersBernie SandersYang: NYC should implement universal basic income Overnight Health Care: Nevada union won't endorse before caucuses after 'Medicaid for All' scrap | McConnell tees up votes on two abortion bills | CDC confirms 15th US coronavirus case Trump reveals he would vote for a gay presidential candidate MORE (I-Vt.), dubbed the Bernie Bros, or the progressives who have pledged allegiance to The Squad? Of course not.

Those entrenched elite liberals purposely manufacturing, manipulating and exploiting the hatred and rage directed at President Trump, for personal gain or that of their organizations, will continue to utter pejoratives against Trump and publicly wish him ill will. But privately? Theyre probably thanking their lucky stars that the most unorthodox, boastful political outsider in the history of the presidency came their way.

It is a relationship forged by King Midas.

If you are one of the millions of Americans liberals have conditioned to hate President Trump regardless of his positions or any verifiable successes hes had that may positively affect your life you need to remember the golden rule of politics: Follow the money.

Instead of parroting the rumors about collusion with Russia, the need for his impeachment or how the president is a national embarrassment, take a long, hard look at those who profess to have your back.

Liberal authors are getting six- and seven-figure book advances for hating Trump. Their liberal publishers make millions off those books. The liberal political action committees have enjoyed record-setting fundraising for the past three years. Marginal celebrities tweet self-serving hateful comments. Liberal speakers command thousands of dollars in fees. And the liberal cable TV hosts and their networks are realizing millions of dollars in profits from attacking Trump.

Do you honestly believethey want the riches money, career advancement, personal recognition to stop? Do you think any of them would sacrifice that gain to rectify the pain and suffering that might be plaguing downtrodden Americans?

Beyond that, look at the politicians who swear they are advocating on your behalf chief among them House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Reps.Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). Their public profiles and power bases grew exponentially with Trumps election and their constant vilification of the president.

Imagine where they would be now had Hillary ClintonHillary Diane Rodham ClintonDemocrats: The road to kumbaya New Hampshire Democratic primary did what it was supposed to do Fox's Napolitano: Roger Stone 'absolutely entitled' to new trial after juror's tweets revealed MORE won in 2016. They would be but a shadow of their manufactured selves.

Make no mistake: This same formula existed when former President Obama was in office and scores of conservatives and Republicans got rich by attacking and demeaning him. During the Obama years, the Republican Congress and elite GOP establishment did next to nothing for their base. We can only imagine how many of them secretly prayed for Obamas reelection in 2012.

As the Disney song tells us in Beauty and the Beast, its a tale as old as time.

And precisely because of that sort of fairy tale, Trump was elected president. Across the country, millions of Americans realized that both political parties and their respective power brokers have played them for chumps for years for their own gain. They decided to cast the elites aside and vote for Trump.

Its likely to happen again in November maybe even in greater numbers. And you can bet thatsome liberal Democrats who stand to profit from Trumps reelection will secretly root for that to happen.

Douglas MacKinnon, a political and communications consultant, was a writer in the White House for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, and former special assistant for policy and communications at the Pentagon during the last three years of the Bush administration.

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The betrayal of Democratic voters: Many 'liberals' need Trump to win | TheHill - The Hill

Taxing existing property ownership much more heavily would turn freeholders into leaseholders, weaken property rights, change the historic relationship between state and citizen, and mortally damage the foundations of British society. It would be toxic for capitalism and conservatism, the two systems that it is this Governments historic mission to save.

Most economists believe that taxing property is less economically damaging than taxing income. They are wrong. People and companies arent prisoners in one country or home. Imposing a meaningful wealth tax would lead to massive, negative behavioural changes.

It is true that longstanding homeowners have made vast, untaxed capital gains as prices have shot up; but the answer to housing affordability is to build a lot more homes and, when appropriate, hike interest rates. Taxing unrealised capital gains via a mansion tax would see equity-rich, cash-poor pensioners forced to extract equity, sell up, or roll over their liabilities into a whopping inheritance tax bill.

Council tax was higher in real terms in the 1970s and 1980s, but that is no reason to return to those sorry days. Its purpose is to contribute to local services, not to confiscate wealth. Adding extra bands one version of the proposals discussed in recent weeks would mean revaluing all homes. Millions would pay more: it will make the poll tax look like a tea party. Local government finances need to be overhauled, but not in this way.

Hitting the rich with higher taxes is popular, but the Government is doing lots of unpopular things: HS2, retaining foreign aid, banning petrol cars and gas boilers, Huawei. Johnson has rejected populism in these areas, rightly or wrongly, and he should do the same on tax. None of his Northern voters backed him because they thought he would hit the better off: they just want their own families to prosper. They bought into the Tory message of levelling up, and rejected Corbyns socialist levelling-down.

The Government grabbed 43.6 per cent of the vote last year; its potential market is even greater if it can unite the centre-Right from North to South, Brexiteers and Remainers, graduates and non-graduates. While these groups disagree on much, such as the environment or immigration, one policy could unite all of them: keeping taxes low. A similar approach has helped hold the Republican coalition together in the US and saved conservative parties elsewhere.

In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph last year, Johnson quoted Ibn Khaldun, a great medieval Arab intellectual and early supply-side economist. The PM paraphrased him beautifully: If you cut taxes on the olive harvest, or whatever it was in 14th-century Tunisia, actually people grew more olives, and tax yields went up. It doesnt apply in every case but he is making a valid point. Johnson should ask Mr Javid, who also understands the role of incentives, to order every Treasury bureaucrat to read Khaldun, and then tear up their daft plans. Here is another golden rule: there can be no such thing as a successful tax-raising Tory government.

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The Tories are courting disaster by flirting with a tax raid on wealth - Telegraph.co.uk

Jets CEO Christopher Johnson has one golden rule he sticks to: No playoff mandates.

It doesnt matter what happened the year before, nor what optimism the offseason brings. In his opinion, its counterproductive to tie someones job to the playoffs. So he refuses to do it.

Is it the right call? It doesnt matter. Thats how Johnson feels.

Still, its been nine long years since the Jets last made the postseason. Its the third-longest drought in the NFL behind just the Browns (17) and Bucs (12). Johnson has admitted hes an impatient man. Considering he now has GM entering his first full offseason in Joe Douglas, a second-year coach in Adam Gase, and a third-year quarterback in Sam Darnold, his already-low patience is undeniably wearing thin.

The Jets should begin free agency in a few weeks with roughly $80 million in cap space. Douglas will have four draft picks in the first three rounds of the draft.

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A 10-step plan to end the Jets' long playoff drought - The Athletic

Organized sports provide boys with what is probably the most influential education on masculinity.

There are plenty of good lessons being taught to our sons out on the field or the court. They learn focus, grit and the importance of teamwork.

There are also, sadly, a lot of bad ones too. Sports' informal curriculum on masculinity is often a crash course in machismo. It teaches boys to suppress vulnerability, and harness aggression and dominance. Winning is everything. Don't cry like a girl, don't throw like a girl, and don't run like a girl; do any of the above and you will, pejoratively, and maybe even violently, be called "gay." Also, don't be gay.

This education starts early. At the end of one of my first-grade son's soccer games this past fall, the opposing team aggressively chanted "we won" over and over again as they high-fived our team at the end of the game. No matter that this league doesn't keep score for this age group, nor that this goes against the most basic understanding of human decency. Neither their coach, nor a single one of their parents, told them to stop.

We are amid a much needed reckoning with masculinity, and have begun thinking hard about the way certain elements of the gender education boys receive can be harmful to them and others. As part of this reckoning, many coaches and parents (my son's former rivals notwithstanding), have begun to consider what they are getting right with young male athletes, and what they are getting wrong.

How to talk to young athletes

Dan Blitstein, a volunteer youth soccer coach and coach advisor, can easily recall the unsettling emotions he felt as a child while playing sports.

"There was this one time, before a soccer game, when a player on my team pushed me. I remember feeling these conflicting desires. On one hand, I want to beat the [you-know-what] out of him, because I was a boy and that is what I was supposed to do. But I didn't want to. Then I started crying because I felt so conflicted and confused, and didn't know how to articulate how I was feeling."

Today, Blitstein tries to make sure that the boys he coaches have a decent emotional vocabulary to avoid the jumble of rage and confusion he felt as a child. In addition to helping them express themselves, he also gives them the space and time to share their thoughts and feelings, and treats them as though these thoughts and feelings matter.

Such an attitude is increasingly common among youth coaches but not yet the norm, said Ruben Nieves, National Director of Training at the Positive Coaching Alliance, a national nonprofit aimed at making youth sports a more positive and character-building experience.

One of PCA's key messages is that coaches should value player growth over winning, and a big part of helping children grow as athletes -- and people -- is by listening to them.

"There should be no, 'Because I told you so,' which can teach kids not to worry about other people's feelings," Nieves said.

When it's time for a pep talk, he added, coaches should focus on character and team-building traits, rather than taking down the opponent.

"The modern coach is more willing to talk and engage with their players about kindness, friendship, love and empathy," he said, explaining that these touchy-feely subjects used to feel off-limits in the traditionally tough and stoic atmosphere of sports. "These coaches know that athletes who have a strong emotional intelligence are going to be more emotionally healthy and are going to perform better together."

Part of building emotional intelligence, Nieves said, is making room for crying. He's seen more tears in competitive sports in the past decade, and tries to tell the athletes in his life that when someone cries they are showing just how much they care and caring is a good thing.

Nieves also suggests keeping the pep talks gender-neutral. "Talk about being a better person, not a real man," he said. Doing this makes it less likely that they will see their worth as an athlete and worth as a male human being as one and the same. The fewer prescriptive messages boys hear about what it means to be a man, the less they will feel pressure to live up to certain masculine ideas and the less they will feel like a failure if they don't.

Also, keeping the language gender neutral makes sports a more hospitable place for LGBTQ boys and young men, who may not feel comfortable with binary gender labels, or the gender essentialism compressed into a phrase like "real man."

Though even as sports teams might shed some of their hierarchical elements, sports will always be, by nature, hierarchical. There are winners and losers; bests and worsts.

Lesle Gallimore, a former Division I women's soccer college coach and past president of United Soccer Coaches, an organization for soccer coaches of all levels, said there is a way to foment competition and facilitate confidence and even a little swagger, without excessive cockiness.

"You can teach kids to celebrate the win, without demeaning the other team," she said. What qualifies as demeaning? Gallimore suggests considering the Golden Rule. How would I want to be treated if my team lost?

Coaches can also, in the case of a hard match or a loss, use sports to teach boys about humility.

"The best thing about sports for me is the unpredictable nature of it. You can train and train, but there will always be an element that you can't control," Blitstein said. "You have to roll with it, work together, adjust, and keep going."

This is also, of course, the case with life, and it's a lesson that counteracts so much of what is often labeled as the "toxic" elements of masculinity. Boys need more opportunities to learn that we don't always get what we want; that it's okay to, fairly and respectfully, fight for things. But sometimes a loss is a loss, and "no" means "no," and those moments demand acceptance and even a little grace.

Coaches and parents need to watch their own behavior

Many of the lessons on masculinity taught in sports come not through what adults say to kids, but how adults act with one another.

Today, coaches and parents tend to treat youth sports as extremely high stakes -- never mind the absolutely tiny chance that any single kid will become a college (let alone professional) athlete.

Winning is everything to so many adults, and if getting there seems to demand rage, they will rage. Parents scream at coaches and other parents, and coaches scream at parents and other coaches. Everyone screams at referees.

"If you listen and look, it's questionable whether people are enjoying this," Nieves said about a number of recent youth sports matches he attended. "People are angry. The kids are crying ... because adults are yelling at them. Because mom is embarrassing me and making a scene on the sidelines, and the coach never lets me handle the ball," all because he or she only cares about winning.

When youth players see the adults getting angry, behaving disrespectfully and prioritizing winning above everything else, it gives them permission to behave the same way.

Another problem with today's coaches is that they are, in the case of male teams, rarely women. Sexism in the world of coaching is still ubiquitous; it's commonplace to see men coaching girls and women, but rare to see women coaching men.

"The more boys can be coached by women, the less toxic masculinity" you will see, Gallimore said. "With female coaches, they are typically held more accountable for the way they talk about the opposite sex."

When boy athletes are coached by women, they learn to respect women, and also might be exposed to different models of leadership.

Men are socialized to lead by force, whereas women are socialized to lead by way of relationship building. This latter model tends to involve more listening, and taking the time to understand who the athlete is outside of sports. Gallimore doesn't think these skills are limited to women by any means, but they could become more commonplace if more women were given high-level coaching jobs with both genders.

Until there are more women coaches, and fewer alpha-male ones, parents will have to take some of this into their hands. They might consider having the same behavioral expectations for their sons on the field or the court as they do off it. Excessive aggression or rudeness should be no more tolerated during a game than it is during family dinner.

They should also respect their children's feelings during or after a game, and encourage their kids to respect the feelings of others, be it their teammates, their opponents, coaches or referees. If the culture of the team makes any of this difficult, it's probably time to switch teams.

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Why sports can be so toxic to boys and how we unravel that culture - Henry Herald

KJ Apa in 'I Still Believe'

I dont write as much about IMAX as I used to four or five years ago, mostly because the notion of a big movie playing in the IMAX format is no longer enough of a rarity to justify commentary. It wasnt so long ago that it was unusual for a movie like American Sniper or Focus to get the IMAX treatment, but now the only impediment is usually competition, or (in rarer cases) a big movie with an extended engagement (Star Wars, a Chris Nolan movie, etc.).

Almost every big movie gets a week in the prized format, with plenty of big movies playing in IMAX and/or Dolby Vision, AMC Prime or other premium large format auditoriums. Even in a time when more movies get the IMAX Experience, I Still Believe qualifies as a special case.

The Lionsgate release, opening on March 13, will become the first faith-based drama to play in IMAX. Oh, and itll get a sneak preview of sorts in IMAX auditoriums alone on Wednesday, March 11. Directed by the Erwin Brothers, penned by Jon Erwin, Jon Gunn and Madeline Carrol, the Kingdom Story Company film is a Christian biopic about musician Jeremy Camp (played by Riverdales KJ Apa) and his relationship with his first wife (Brit Robertson) who fell ill shortly before their wedding.

I Can Only Imagine

While titled after Camps song, the film is hoping to remind interested viewers of I Can Only Imagine, which was a breakout hit two years ago. It, along with Peter Rabbit and Game Night, was among the few wide releases to thrive alongside Black Panther. That early 2018 release concerned the true-life story which led to MercyMes I Can Only Imagine, the best-selling Christian single of all time.

The Erwin Brothers directed that one, from a screenplay by Jon Erwin and Brett McCorkle, which went on to earn a robust $83 million domestic and $86 million worldwide on a $7 million budget. It is the fifth highest-grossing musical biopic and the sixth-biggest Christian flick in North America. Minus the Narnia movies and The Passion of the Christ, it is second only to Sony and Affirms Heaven Is For Real ($91 million and $101 million worldwide) in 2014.

Faith-based films had a moment in 2014, with Heaven Is For Real joining Foxs Son of God ($59.7 million domestic and $70 million worldwide on a $25 million budget) and Freestyle Releasings Gods Not Dead ($60 million domestic on a $2 million budget). Most of the Christian breakouts have been somewhat positive and inclusive dramas, with most of the persecution complex flicks (like Persecution, Saving Christmas or October Baby) have flopped or been budgeted to where $5 million is win.

Unplanned

Gods Not Dead and last years Unplanned ($21 million from a $6 million debut) are exceptions. Most hits come from major studios (like Lionsgate, Sony and Fox) and are closer in spirit to Veggie Tales (in terms of preaching the Golden Rule) than Gods Not Dead 2. We usually get at least one such biggie a year, such as Sonys Soul Surfer ($47 million) in 2011, the aforementioned hits in 2014, Sonys War Room ($73 million) in 2015, Sonys Miracles from Heaven ($73 million) in 2016, Lionsgates The Shack ($93 million) in 2017, Lionsgates I Can Only Imagine ($86 million) in 2018 and Foxs Breakthrough ($50 million) in 2019.

I will argue that Lionsgate is using IMAX to designate that I Still Believe is declaring itself to be the big mainstream faith-based drama of the year. Id be a little surprised if it isnt. For the first time in a while, a film is being designated as a major-league contender specifically because it will play in IMAX theaters.

The IMAX version (buy tickets HERE) will feature exclusive behind-the-scenes content and will, as noted above, open 24 hours earlier than the conventional domestic release. It is a way of designating that it, as opposed to STXs My Spy, Sonys Bloodshot or Universals The Hunt, will be the big movie of that specific weekend. And if history is any indication, it wont have to rely on faith to be the next mainstream faith-based theatrical hit. The IMAX engagement is essentially Lionsgate calling their shot.

Link:

Box Office: IMAX Positions I Still Believe As Next Big Faith-Based Hit - Forbes

Marc Gellman Published 3:05 a.m. CT Feb. 8, 2020

Rabbi Marc Gellman(Photo: Courtesy)

Of all the second-rank holidays that follow the big three ofPassover, Easter and Christmas my favorite isValentine's Day. I know it is a Christian holiday at root but so isHalloweenand I loveHalloweentoo. The combined joy of candy and trick or treating around your neighborhood that is suddenly transformed into a place of true communal celebration is enough for me to tolerate the spiritually suspect intrusion of ghouls and zombies.Valentine's Dayis much likeHalloweenin that respect. It is about cards and flowers and, yes, more candy but, of course, it is mostly about love and that is enough for me because love in our world right now is in very short supply.

In the old days at school inMilwaukee, whenValentine's Daycards were exchanged in class, I was able to feel the first stirrings of love and that was a glorious feeling. Even the formulaic giving of flowers and candy as I grew beyond Valentine's cards has not over the years quenched my ardor for a day that despite its clich goofiness remains a celebration of the highest human emotion and that is love.

There are several forms of love. Eros is romantic love. Agape is the form of love we hold in our souls for God. Philia is the form of love we have for dear friends and Storge is the form of love we have for our family. They are all types of love, but the self-emptying element of love unites them all. Love takes us beyond ourselves.

The main teaching of the Bible is that our love for each other is a reflection of God's love for each and every one of us. The Torah's commandment to love God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your might (Deuteronomy 6:5) is the essence of Judaism's understanding of our obligations to God. We are created and loved by God and so we love God in return. The Golden Rule of loving others as we would like to be loved (Leviticus 19:18) is the bond that unites all the faiths of the world east and west. The commandment to love God and love our neighbors is taught by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount as the two most important teachings of the Bible (Mark 12:28-34).

Love is the foundation of our lives as ensouled beings made in the image of a loving God. Love is the reason God gave us free will so that we could choose to love God and choose to love each other. Without free will love is impossible because we cannot choose anything. Free will makes love possible and love makes faith possible and faith makes a future for us all possible.

So, myValentine's Daycard to all of you, dear readers, is to love beyond flowers and candy and cards. Find a way to love others freely and joyously and without manipulations or expectations. Love the way Paul understood love in his letter to the Corinthians,

If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now, we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. (I Corinthians 13:1-13)

Happy Valentine'sDay!

Send questions and comments to The God Squad via email atgodsquadquestion@aol.com.Rabbi Gellmanis the author of several books, including "Religion for Dummies," co-written with Fr.Tom Hartman.

Read or Share this story: https://www.thenewsstar.com/story/news/2020/02/08/our-love-each-other-reflection-gods-love-us/4693959002/

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Our love for each other is a reflection of God's love for us - The News Star

FRANKFURT Daimler warned its earnings halved in 2019 and it faced further charges of up to 1.5 billion euros ($1.7 billion)related to diesel pollution, in the latest blow to the German luxury carmaker.

The profit downgrade, blamed on restructuring costs at the company's vans and mobility services divisions, is the third under new CEO Ola Kaellenius and the fifth in 19 months.

It comes despite record deliveries of Mercedes-Benz cars that saw the brand retain its title as the world's top-selling premium automaker last year.

Daimler announced preliminary 2019 results ahead of their full release on Feb. 11, saying earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) were expected to tumble to 5.6 billion euros ($6.2 billion) from 11.1 billion euros in 2018.

"The new management proves the golden rule that one profit warning never comes alone," Evercore ISI analyst Arndt Ellinghorst said in a research note.

"Whats truly remarkable is the fact that CEO Ola Kaellenius hasnt taken more action with respect to his divisional leadership teams," he added.

At 1235 GMT, Daimler shares were down 1.4% at 45.74 euros.

The company said earnings would be hit by 300 million euros of one-off costs for a review of its vans product portfolio.

The vans division, which has struggled to ramp up production at its plant in the United States, saw its return on sales plunge to minus 15.9% in 2019 from 2.3% in 2018, Daimler said.

It also announced a 300 million euro hit from a restructuring of its Your Now mobility services business. In December, Daimler said it was exiting the North American car-sharing market.

Daimler added its EBIT forecast did not include an estimated 1.0-1.5 billion euros of costs for ongoing government and court proceedings related to diesel pollution.

Analysts had previously been forecasting 2019 EBIT of about 6.8 billion euros, according to Refinitiv Eikon data.

'MAJOR CRISIS'

German carmakers, among global leaders in diesel technology, have been caught in the crosshairs of courts and regulators after Volkswagen admitted in 2015 to using engine control devices to cheat U.S. diesel emission tests.

Daimler's diesel pollution levels are being investigated by prosecutors in Stuttgart, Germany, where it is headquartered, as well as by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB).

Earlier this month, investors sued Daimler for $1 billion in Germany, accusing it of concealing the use of emissions cheating software. Daimler denies the allegations.

As well as tighter emissions rules, automakers are grappling with slowing demand and costly new technologies such as electric and self-driving cars.

Juergen Pieper, cars analyst at brokerage Metzler, said Mercedes' 4% margin was the weakest among German carmakers.

"Daimler is not getting its problems under control fast enough. The company is in the midst of a major crisis", he said.

Others saw scope for optimism.

"Daimler looks likely to benefit from the strong momentum of upcoming product launches from 2020 onwards, which should help achieve incremental cost savings and pricing power improvement versus peers", JP Morgan said in a note to client, adding its recommendation for the stock remained "overweight".

(Additional reporting by Ilona Wissenbach; Editing by Thomas Seythal and Mark Potter)

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Daimler Profits Halve on Diesel and Restructuring Charges - The New York Times