#ALSO!!! we have a huge chart with all the different forms of ID and what they can be used for

[dykeredhood]

Today at work we had someone use a google ai search result for how to notarize a document for a real estate loan as part of completing an auto loan signing. 😐

The ai search results included: “if ID is not provided, two credible witnesses who can vouch for the person’s identity can be used instead”

We ran into issues because this was for an auto loan, not a real estate loan, and we have a comprehensive chart of what different forms of ID can be used for different things (opening an account, withdrawing cash, notarizing a document in the state of Arizona). The person in question wasn’t able to provide a suitable form of ID that followed our own guidelines, but that didn’t stop the branch manager from completing the notary anyway because she found a convenient result through google instead of keeping in line with our detailed established policies

[ripjaws]

Ben 10 Survey Results!

Huge thank you to everyone who submitted a response, it was really fun looking through them all and I was genuinely surprised by the results of some of the questions.

Hopefully this will work under a read more because it's quite long and I don't want people to have to scroll a hundred years to get past it.

If anyone has any questions or anything please feel free to ask! :)

Thanks again!

General

Q1. How would you describe your gender?

36% - Female 25.3% - Male 24% - Non-binary 8% - Prefer not to say 4% - Agender 2.7% - Genderfluid

Q2. How would you describe your sexuality?

32% - Bisexual 20% - Heterosexual 20 % - Asexual 8% - Lesbian 6.7% - Prefer not to say 5.4% - Pansexual 4% - Gay 1.3% - Demisexual 1.3% - Questioning 1.3% - Polysexual

Q3. Current age

48% - 20-24 39% - 15-19 13.3% - 25-30 1.3% - Older than 30 1.3% - Younger than 15

Q4. Age when you first became interested in Ben 10

86.7% - Younger than 15 9.3% - 15-19 2.7% - 20-24 1.3% - 25-30

Episodes and season

Q1. Which series did you watch first?

88% - Original Series 9.3% - Alien Force 1.3% - Omniverse 1.3% - Reboot

Q2. Rank the series in order of preference

[IMAGE ID: Five separate groups of five vertical bar charts. The individual columns for each group are coloured in the same order and corresponds to what ranking they recieved on that question of the survey. According to the key at the top of the image the order is; blue = 1, red = 2, orange = 3, green = 4 & purple = 5. The Y axis of the graph goes from zero to thirty in intervals of ten.

The first group is labelled ‘Original Series’ and shows that it got twenty votes in blue, seventeen votes in red, sixteen votes in orange, ten votes in green & twelve votes in purple.

The second group is labelled ‘Alien Force’ and shows that it got nine votes in blue, eighteen votes in red, twenty-one votes in orange, twenty-two votes in green & five votes in purple.

The third group is labelled ‘Ultimate Alien’ and shows that it got thirteen votes in blue, ten votes in red, fourteen votes in orange, twenty-two votes in green & sixteen votes in purple.

The fourth group is labelled ‘Omniverse’ and shows that it got eighteen votes in blue, fifteen votes in red, seventeen votes in orange, fifteen votes in green & ten votes in purple.

The fifth and final group is labelled ‘Reboot’ and shows that it got fifteen votes in blue, fifteen votes in red, seven votes in orange, six votes in green & thirty-two votes in purple. END IMAGE ID]

Q3. Favourite season (Original Series)

40% - Season 1 18.7% - Season 2 18.7% - Season 3 17.3% - Season 4 5.3% - Don’t like/Haven’t watched

Most popular episodes were Ken 10 (S4E10) & Kevin 11 (S1E7)

Q4. Favourite season (Alien Force)

52% - Season 2 28% - Season 1 16% - Season 3 4% - Don’t like/Haven’t watched

Most popular episodes were Alone Together (S2E2) & Save the Last Dance (S2E4)

Q5. Favourite Season (Ultimate Alien)

36% - Season 1 25.3% - Season 3 20% - Don’t like/Haven’t watched 18.7% - Season 2

Most popular episodes were Forge of Creation (S1E16) & Duped (S1E2)

Q6. Favourite Season (Omniverse)

18.7% - Don’t like/Haven’t watched 18.7% - Season 2 16% - Season 5 12% - Season 6 10.7% - Season 1 9.3% - Season 8 8% - Season 4 5.3% - Season 3 1.3% - Season 7

Most popular episodes were And Then There Were None (S6E1) & And Then There Was Ben (S6S2)

Q7. Favourite Season (Reboot)

60% - Don’t like/Haven’t watched 17.3% - Season 4 10.7% - Season 3 6.7% - Season 1 5.3% - Season 2

Most popular episodes were Omni-tricked (S1E37) & Innervasion (S2E36)

Q8. Which live action movie did you prefer?

40% - Alien Swarm 22.7% - Race Against time 22.7% - Didn’t like either 14.7% - Haven’t watched either

Characters and aliens

Q1. Favourite main character

45.3% - Ben Tennyson 28% - Kevin Levin 17.3% - Rook Blonko 9.3% - Gwen Tennyson

Some ‘Why’ responses:

Ben -

I know it's a really basic pick but I enjoy Ben alot as a character. Even though I feel like he took an extremely sharp turn into immaturity in the final season of Alien Force onward (from what I've heard it was due to ratings), it still fit well after a bit of time of adjustment. Him being rash and selfish at times while still having a good heart feels...very human. I'm a huge fan of flawed protagonists and Ben is a prime example of such, imo! Plus I hradcanon that he has autism and it's a big comfort for me :)

I love his potential as a character and the way he hands having such power and responsibility thrust upon him. Ben has done so much for the people in his life and the universe, and I absolutely adore him.

I think of him like a kind person who tries his best to the right thing, he's pretty chill and optimist and in my mind he's a chaotic bi and i can relate to that

Kevin -

I like that he's always been an antihero in the original series. And in the reboot I really like the direction the showrunners are taking his character. He has a different backstory, motivations and I'm really enjoying his character development. It's a fresh take on his story and they're treating it with care, which I really appreciate. His Antitrix aliens also have some really incredible designs.

Cool powers, uncommon character in children's media, especially as a primary character often cast in a good light (ex con, high school dropout, masculine, not emotionally mature). His character development is some of the best in the series.

Gods, we could be here forever... Okay, short version- 1) I can relate to him on a mental health level, especially in the OG series we seemed to have similar issues and to handle them in similar ways 2) there's a lot of depth and variance to his character, he's angry and aggressive and dangerous but also a dork, a sweetheart, and very affectionate once he lets his walls down, he loves cars and supernatural romance, violence and magical girls, he'll rescue an aggressive dog for no reason other than it needed help but also he might consider how much he could get for selling you, he's a complex character and he's allowed to be in a way the Tennysons can't because of how firmly they sit in the Hero seat 3) for all of this, we never really know all that much about him and his experiences, at least in comparison to what we know is there- we never learn about his time traveling the galaxy, we haven't heard anything about his time stuck in time, it's only in the reboot we're getting trustworthy information about his background and even then it's rare tidbits- he's ripe for exploring in fic, headcanon, and so-on 4) his powers in the OG series, his status as mutant or alien or both who knows anymore leaves a lot of doors open to play and to look at the world through different angles 5) dude has turned into six different monstrous chimera forms over the course of the franchise and honestly you have to support that sort've shit in media otherwise they might stop

Rook -

Alien catboy with a glorious voice and have you seen those arms??? And he's so polite while also being hilarious when he gets a little rude/snarky and his character development is amazing!!

While I would normally say Ben himself, Rook is his only friend that hasn't tried to kill him. Additionally, he provides Ben with guidance as well as support the Gwen and Kevin are fickle about.

Having an actual alien joining the cast and serving at Ben's foil worked well to me.

Gwen -

Smart, talented, funny, snarky, confident, and super cute. Jock-prep-nerd energy all in one. Deserves the world. Criminally ignored by the majority of the fandom. Knows karate and judo?? College at 16?? Icon.

Angel, can do no wrong, was capable of so much more than the show let her do, potential to be the most powerful member of the team if they'd just let her go a lil feral sometimes :/

She was a good voice of reason most of the time. Her powers were really interesting and overall I think she had a lot of wasted potential having to be sidelined since the series was about Ben ultimately

Q2. Favourite minor characters

40 votes - Paradox

22 votes - Max Tennyson

18 votes - Tetrax

17 votes - Argit

16 votes - Julie Yamamoto

15 votes - Azmuth

12 votes - Ester

10 votes - Looma Red Wind

9 votes - Glitch

9 votes - Kai Green

7 votes - Alan Albright

6 votes - Jimmy Jones

4 votes - Cooper Daniels

3 votes - Eunice

3 votes - Helen Wheels

2 votes - Elena Validus

2 votes - Manny Armstrong

1 vote - Cash Murray

1 vote - Driba

Other votes went to Penny Bennyson, Kenny Tennyson/Spanner, Lucy Mann, Rook Shar, Eddie Grandsmith, Myaxx and Pakmar.

Q3. Ship or Zed

64% - Ship 36% - Zed

Q4. Favourite main antagonist 

20% - Albedo 13.3% - Kevin 11 12% - Vilgax 10.7% - Charmcaster 10.7% - Zs’Skayr 9.3% - Malware 5.3% - Forever Knights 5.3% - Eon 4% - Highbreed & DNAliens 4% - Aggregor 1.3% - Servantis & Rooters 1.3% - Khyber 1.3% - Dagon & the Esoterica

Some ‘Why’ responses for top 3:

Albedo -

When I first saw him during the airing of Good Copy, Bad Copy, I was scared that Albedo might be a one-and-done evil clone that doesn't get much development. These fears went away, and I was pleased to find out about his backstory and motives, just a sour soul in an unpleasant situation. Even in Ultimate Alien with his reappearance episode, he tries to work on his own to cope in a horrid human world. He isn't necessarily malicious until Ben gets in his way, he just wants to return to his own body and leave, even stating that he wasn't going to fight Ben anymore while he had temporarily returned to his Galvan form. I know DJW stated in some interview that Albedo could never be redeemed, but I believe there's some hope if he gets help. And I'm a sucker for those redemption arcs :)

Tragic frog man that could have been helped but nobody helped him and he doubled down on his hatred which led to him getting stuck in a cycle of revenge and punishment and it's the tragedy of how much better things could have been for him if someone just helped him that I love so much!!

Kevin 11 -

He’s very dangerous and has a terrifying power to absorb electricity and living DNA to have the same powers of who he absorbed it from and even turn himself into a mutant with all those powers combined leading to destructive power 

Kevin was a good antagonist and a good protagonist, although i feel the transition was rushed. Anti-hero kevin in the reboot is great!

Vilgax -

He was always the endgame villian for Ben, despite how many battles they've had, despite countless losses, he always tried to stay one step ahead, and plan everything.

"Speak with care, Psyphon. Your counsel is valuable...not irreplaceable."

Q5. Favourite minor villains 

38 votes - Animo 20 votes - Hex 18 votes - Michael Morningstar/Darkstar 14 votes - SixSix 13 votes - Zombozo 9 votes - Vreedle family 9 votes - Vulkanus 8 votes - Rojo 5 votes - Inspector 13 5 votes - Billy Billions 5 votes - Will Harangue 4 votes - Fistrick 4 votes - Nyancy Chan 3 votes - Lord Decibel 3 votes - Simian 3 votes - Subdora 3 votes - Viktor 2 votes - Addwaitya 2 votes - Fistina 2 votes - Kraab 2 votes - Psyphon 2 votes - Steam Smythe 2 votes - Sunder 1 vote - Liam 1 vote - Ssserpent

Other votes went to Maurice & Sydney, Bugg Brothers, Alternate evil Bens, and the Mummy.

Q6. Favourite canon relationship

66.7% - Gwen & Kevin 13.3% - Max Tennyson & Verdona 5.3% - Ben & Kai 4% - Rook & Rayona 1.3% - Julie & Herve 1.3% - Max & Xylene

Q7. Favourite non-canon ship

36% - I don’t have one 30.7% - Ben & Rook 6.7% - Ben & Kevin 4% - Ben & Julie

Other responses included Ben & Rex, Kai & Julie, Looma & Attea, Alan & Cooper, Ben & Looma, Kevin & Manny, Gwen & Cooper, Ben & Ester, Max & Phil, Azmuth & Paradox, Cooper & Elena, Kai & Ester, Ben & Zak Saturday, Ben & Eddie, Ben & Albedo, Ben & Kevin & Gwen, Kenny & Devlin, OC & canon, and Ben & a therapist. 

Q8. Favourite alien introduced in the Original Series

18.7% - XLR8 17.3% - Upgrade 13.3% - Ghostfreak 10.7% - Diamondhead 9.3% - Heatblast 8% - Wildmutt 6.7% - Ditto 2.7% - Blitzwolfer 2.7% - Snare-oh 2.7% - Grey Matter 1.3% - Cannonbolt 1.3% - Four Arms

Q9. Least favourite alien introduced in the Original Series

22.7% - Eye Guy 18.7% - Spitter 8% - Articguana 8% - Frankenstrike 6.7% - Upchuck 6.7% - Stinkfly 5.3% - Buzzshock 5.3% - Snare-oh 4% - Four Arms 2.7% - Blitzwolfer 2.7% - Ditto 2.7% - Wildmutt 2.7% - Grey Matter 1.3% - Cannonbolt 1.3% - Diamondhead 1.3% - Ghostfreak

Q10. Favourite alien introduced in Alien Force

46.7% - Big Chill 17.3% - Rath 8% - Goop 6.7% - Lodestar 5.3% - Swampfire 4% - Chromastone 4% - Spidermonkey 2.7% - Alien X 2.7% - Echo Echo 1.3% - Humungousaur 1.3% - Jetray

Q11. Least favourite alien introduced in Alien Force

18.7% - Lodestar 17.3% - Brainstorm 13.3% - Alien X 10.7% - Humungousaur 10.7% - Spidermonkey 8% - Jetray 8% - Chromastone 5.3% - Goop 5.3% - Echo Echo 2.7% - Rath

Q12. Favourite alien introduced in Ultimate Alien

18.7% - Juryrigg 16% - AmpFibian 14.7% - Clockwork 12% - NRG 8% - Armodrillo 8% - Shocksquatch 8% - Terraspin 8% - Water Hazard 2.7% - Chamalien 2.7% - Fasttrack 1.3% - Eatle

Q13. Least favourite alien introduced in Ultimate Alien

30.7% - Fasttrack 18.7% - Eatle 13.3% - Juryrigg 9.3% - Chamalien 8% - Shocksquatch 6.7% - Terraspin 5.3% - Water Hazard 4% - Clockwork 1.3% - AmpFibian 1.3% - Armodrillo 1.3% - NRG

Q14. Favourite Ultimate Form

38.7% - Echo Echo 24% - Big Chill 10.7% - Swampfire 9.3% - Way Big 8% - Wildmutt 6.7% - Spidermonkey 1.3% - Cannonbolt 1.3% - Humungousaur

Q15. Favourite alien introduced in Omniverse

29.3% - Feedback 13.3% - Pesky Dust 12% - Gravattack 9.3% - Ball Weevil 8% - Bullfrag 6.7% - Whampire 5.3% - Bloxx 4% - Atomix 4% - Walkatrout 2.7% - Gutrot 1.3% - Crashhopper 1.3% - Kickin Hawk 1.3% - Toepick 1.3% - The Worst

Q16. Least favourite alien introduced in Omniverse

24% - The Worst 14.7% - Bloxx 12% - Mole-Stache 8% - Bullfrag 6.7% - Astrodactyl 6.7% - Kickin Hawk 5.3% - Atomix 5.3% - Gutrot 4% - Crashhopper 4% - Walkatrout 2.7% - Toepick 1.3% - Ball Weevil

Q17. Favourite alternate Ben timeline

29.3% - No watch Ben 24% - Gwen 10 17.3% - Ben 10,000 8% - Mad Ben 6.7% - Dimension 23 6.7% - Eon 4% - Nega Ben 2.7% - Benzarro 1.3% - Bad Ben

Misc.

Q1. Favourite watch design

37.3% - Original Series 29.3% - Omniverse 17.3% - Alien Force 9.3% - Ultimatrix 6.7% - Reboot

Q2. Favourite alternate watch design

29.3% - Biomnitrix 20% - Gwen 10 18.7% - Negatrix 17.3% - Antitrix 8% - Power Watch 6.7% - Hero Watch

Q3. Favourite planet visited

32% - Anur Transyl 20% - Revonnah 13.3% - Mykdl’dy 10.7% - Galvan Prime 9.3% - Vilgaxia 6.7% - Piscciss 5.3% - Petropia 2.7% - Khoros

Q4. Favourite locations

34 votes - Undertown 23 votes - Ledgerdomain 23 votes - Null Void 22 votes - Bellwood 19 votes - Friedkin University 18 votes - Mr. Smoothy 16 votes - Forge of Creation 15 votes - Los Soledad 7 votes - Burger Shack 7 votes - Plumber Headquarters 4 votes - Incarcecon 2 votes - Mt. Rushmore Plumber base 2 votes - The Perplexahedron 1 vote - Plumber Academy

Q5. Favourite Vehicle

33.3% - Kevin’s car (Original) 25.3% - Rustbucket 18.7% - Proto-TRUK 13.3% - DX Mark 10 5.3% - Kevin’s car (Omniverse) 4% - Glitch

Q6. Favourite Kevin mutation

40% - Original series 20% - Ken 10 future 12% - Ultimate Alien 8% - Omniverse 8% - Alien Force 6.7% - Omniverse flashback 5.3% - Reboot

Q7. Favourite Omniverse redesign

66.7% - Ben 26.6% - Kevin 6.7% - Gwen

Q8. Least favourite Omniverse redesign

76% - Gwen 18.7% - Kevin 5.3% - Ben

Thoughts

(Putting every single response here would make this insanely long so I’ve just put the most detailed/most echoed responses & include all sides of opinions when possible.)

Q1. Thoughts on the Osmosians retcon?

Okay, first up, do you know how much work I had already put into building shit surrounding those fuckers by the time of the retcons? I had been working on this crap since AF season 2! But no, they gotta go ruin that in one fell swoop, thank you, much appreciated. Second up, I wibble on it? Like, working with mutants is fun and interesting and I've done plenty of shit with them as well, but in the end I'm always going to be a pro-Ossys person. Mostly the retcons left more questions than they gave answers (how, if Osmosians never existed, did everybody and their mother know Kevin was an Osmosian? why, if Osmosians never existed, did none of the people not-involved in this whole disaster with Servantis's mindfuckery look at Aggregor being reported as an Osmosian and go 'wtf that's not a thing'? do they really mean to tell me that not only did Kevin never bother to look into his heritage, but neither did research-happy Gwen? or am I expected to believe the Rooters made enough fake information and put it out publicly that they fooled literally everyone? and if they did then why? when it would've done the same thing with less effort if they'd just, let Kevin be a mutant with a Plumber father who died) and I feel like they didn't really give enough to justify them. One of those cases of 'making your work less interesting to make it more 'accurate''. Personally, I forever keep working on Osmosians (where's the line where it just starts becoming your shit, I think I may be heading there) and I love on mutants and I flip between or combine the two as needed for whatever story I want to tell.

While the fake memories plot isn't great I think it's for the best because the original series meant for Kevin to be a mutant while UAF changed it to alien. I like him better as a mutant human. Too much alien connections in UAF.

I could scream for hours. Easily one of the worst decisions they ever made. Omniverse picks and chooses what canon to follow from AFUA + the original run and throws it in without care or concern to what it means for the timeline. Retconning something and keeping the effect it had is just bad writing. Kevin coming to terms with not being human and that’s okay was important to me when I was a kid. Knowing that he’s just been on an unending series of brainwashed nonsense all his life deprives him of his agency. I hate this decision more than several dozen essays could ever convey.

I wasn't mad about it. Mainly because I liked the idea of Kevin being a mutant than an alien. Alien Force really was pushing that aspect even with Gwen. To the point where she called her powers 'not spells' because of her heritage. Stupid that the rooters and fake memories were a thing, but necessary.

I was never a big fan of the Rooters Arc, but this doesn't bother me too much. It makes UA a little weird with Aggragor, but again, it doesn't really bother me, as most of Omniverse didn't explore Kevin (While UA Did), and was mostly about Ben.

Osmosians were such a cool idea, and it would've allowed for more exploration into what Mike Morningstar was as well, but just writing them off as mutates is so boring. As well as it makes Aggregors whole part not really make sense, like who is he then.

While well executed, it was unnecessary. You could have had the same story line where Kevin was used to mutate other kids and still had him an Alien. You could have had it where it was another alien species that used Osmosians to morph other species to theirs; a call back to the DNAliens if you want.

Q2. Thoughts on how the Ultimate Kevin situation was dealt with in UA?

Terrible. They wanted to go far. They wanted to go dark. But they didn't think their viewership could handle it so they dialed it back. I will always be curious to know what they would have written if they didn't have those constraints. Because the final product was a mess of contrasting tone and unsure footing about how far to go with questioning our hero's moral compass. They wanted to push Ben to see what he would do and apparently, we got that he would kill Kevin and maybe Gwen if she got in the way of saving the universe.... but not really because he didn't. And then the gang is happy all back together like none of it ever happened. They wanted to explore dark themes but have it leave no consequences on the characters. Also... it was so ableist and awful and Kevin deserved better than how Ben and Max (and the writers) treated him.

If they did everything the same but the argument was 'we need to capture him and lock him away' instead of 'we need to kill him'? I would be fine. It's the fact that they slipped so quickly into murder, into murder by his 16-yo bestfriend, that gets me. Like, there's apparently no space between 'recklessly risk our safety trying to talk him down' and 'Ol' Yeller his ass' and that just does not sit right with me.

Ben should have looked for alternate solutions before jumping on the "Let's kill Kevin" train. I understand why he did (this took place immediately post-Aggregor so Ben was still traumatized about having lost so many people and because he failed and "let" Kevin get turned into Ultimate Kevin, he felt as though every person Kevin hurt would be on him) but I wish he hadn't.

Pretty good actually. I like Gwen's emotions becoming a hindrance to the job, I like Ben putting on his big boy pants and I like Kevin going up to Aggregor and saying "y'know, I was a big boy villain once and I'm tried of just getting kicked around" (obviously paraphrasing)

Other than the scenario being overplayed, I think Ben was right. Kevin was eventually going to end up killing Gwen and he'd already put others in the hospital. He needed to be stopped.

Ben jumping straight to murder, yikes. Kevin dismissing Gwen to hang out with Ben almost as soon as he turned back to normal, yikes. Otherwise, it was an interesting plotline.

Really bad. Really shows how awful max and the plumbers really are. I mean , the guy saved the universe and now he clearly needs help but all they wanted to do was kill him.

it really felt like Ben just wanted to murder Kevin because he saved the universe that one time and Ben couldn't stand someone else being the hero for once

The worst, Max straight away wanting to put him down makes u wonder how long he's been waiting for that kind of opportunity.

I'm fine with it, maybe they could have spent some time dealing with the consequences of Kevin's actions, possibly even the ramifications it had on Ben and Kevin's friendship, but overall I'm ok with it.

Q3. Thoughts on the Plumbers

Plumbers ain't shit. Individuals can be acceptable or not but the organization as a whole has too much power, not enough oversight, utilizes child labor, uses a deathtrap of a hellscape dimension as a penal colony, has been shown onscreen sentencing people to imprisonment in said dimension without a trial, and I'm sorry the fact that a Plumber official could walk into a base with his team, assault several members of staff, attempt to kidnap a boy, admit to having and planning to continue to run illegal experiments on him and others, admit to having altered the memories of other Plumber officials, all in front of the entire base, and nothing was done until he tried to kill the golden child Ben 10 and failed, got his ass kicked by one of his victims, and in a place where presumably there were security cameras? And that the response was, again, to sentence him and his team without trial, take all the evidence, and peace out without so much as looking at nonetheless apologizing to his victims? Yeah, that don't fly. Doesn't sound like an organization that has it's shit together. Either the Plumbers don't have their shit together or the higher ups were in on it until it became something that could actually damage their reputation, and either way I Do Not Approve.

They're pretty cool. I know everyone's talking about how Plumbers are space cops and therefore absolutely corrupt and bad but this is a fictional universe in which corruption in organized forces isn't a necessity. Plumbers don't function the same way real cops do, they don't follow they same chain of command, they don't have the same motivations and they definitely don't have the same biases. Plumbers perform an essential function in the Ben 10 universe, which is to capture and contain aliens who aim to hurt anyone (or those who Ben defeats).

My knowledge of the Plumbers' unfortunately doesn't go beyond UA. They're not my favorite thing ever. Some of my least favorite episodes were the ones where the Plumbers or Plumbers' kids are involved, except for the episode "Everybody Talks About the Weather". The way Alan is introduced is really cool and very X Files-esque, and it ties into the DNAlien plot very well. But throughout the series I stopped caring about the Plumbers in general and I think that concept was given too much attention.

They don't do what they're meant to. They act like heros yet I don't think I've ever seen them do anything heroic. The DNAliens situation, the aggregor situation, dagon etc etc. Where were they??? Why did they leave the fate of the universe in the hands of a 16 year-old boy? Ben has the omnitrix sure , but he's still just one guy, how much can he fight? They showed up every once in a while but that's it. They were useless.

Of course the Plumbers have their problems, but looking at most characters we've met that were plumbers seem to be pretty good people. Max, Patelliday and Rook (and even Kevin, technically) are great examples of Plumbers, Servantis being a bad example of one.

Honestly liked it when it was disbanded. It’s cool they introduced Rook but like there’s so much wrong with how they run most things. My favorite version of the plumbers was tbh the first live action movie. Where it was just a bunch of old people watching out for Ben cause they actually cared about the people they protected (in this case Ben).

Q4. Thoughts on Grandpa Max

(The responses to this one were way more divided than I thought they would be omg)

He said Kevin was a mad dog that needed to put down. He's terrible. Military. Secretive. Kept his kids out of the loop and probably told the grandkids not to tell them about a huge and extremely dangerous part of their lives. Thus creating a gap between them and their parents that didn't need to be there. Child endangerment. Other than that....? He's important to Ben and Gwen so I tolerate him and he had some good life lessons to share. Also legendary adult figure in a kids cartoon who had relationships with multiple aliens.

He’s incredible, he worked in the Air Force, was going to be one of the first people on the moon (But he refused because he joined the Plumbers) had children with an Energy Being, he has a few grandchildren, and not to mention knows how to still kick butt despite him being in his 60s and was there to help Ben grow

He’s a complicated old man. Love him to bits in the original run and I love him in AF! He’s a utilitarian doing what needs to be done and suffering the consequences when need be. He does what he thinks is going to lead to the best possible outcome for the most people in any situation.

Needs to get knocked off his pedestal more often, both in and out of canon. He's got good traits, they're very nice, but there's other shit that gets glossed over, ignored, brushed aside, too easily forgiven, and just. They really needed a character who served double duty being a counterforce to him. Somebody to go 'wtf is wrong with you?' or 'yeah, no'. Ideally this would've been Patilidae, but no. We couldn't be so lucky.

Conflicted. Was he grooming Ben for plumber work, or just trying to support him in a situation he knew would be dangerous? It’s not made very clear...

I think he's got some sort of narcissistic personality disorder. I just can't forgive him for making Ben carry the burden of the Omnitrix at the age of 10 without ever explaining anything, and for not letting Ben and Gwen know he was alive after the Null Void grenade incident in AF. He clearly could have, if Helen could reach Gwen so easily. I think he views Ben more as an asset than a grandson at this point and that's really sad.

I love him! The progression from family hero to questionable old man felt kinda natural, like learning about a family member as you grow older and realizing they aren't perfect

He's awesome. He was a good role model for Ben and he was very supportive to both his grandkids. I hate that they made him mute in Omniverse and changed his design so drastically. I loved Max in every season from the original till Ultimate Alien. After that, he was pretty much just a prop.

Q5. And finally, give me your most controversial Ben 10 opinion!

It seems to be the worst thing to say that Ben isn't perfect and that Kai isn't demonic. And it's pretty standard for the women of color characters in every fandom to get the most hate so to me all the hate towards Kai when her personality is so close to Ben's AND she's also more hated than the ex-villain and the actual villains that tried to kill Ben multiple times just seems- hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. But really, and really I've needed to say this for a long time but I'm afraid of being strangled. Some fans will denounce incest/pedo shippers and people that interact with them and then reblog from a proud Bwen shipper with no self-awareness. Please I have the tags blacklisted are you safe to interact with and you just don't know? Or you're just saying you hate Bwen shippers to give yourself an out for reblogging their content????? Or are you all closeted incest shippers trying to maintain a public image???? I'm at my limit.

I do not think the reboot should have existed tbh :,D I know that it has a ton of fans and all due respect to them, but from what I've seen of it I don't think it was worth tossing away four interconnected series' worth of development and starting from scratch to end up with what we have now. I would be fine with it existing if we got an Omniverse continuation alongside it, but CN screwed OV over by the decisions they made near the end of it's run. So it's probably impossible it would return, even moreso because of the reboot already airing, and it would probably confuse younger audiences that don't know about Omniverse if two Ben 10's were running separately. I just really miss Omniverse, it had more potential and the reboot placed the final nail in for it to ever return.

The Ben 10 reboot is fun and meant more for kids rather than the ones watching for nostalgia. I didn’t like how Gwevin were sidelined and downplayed to make Ben look better. Sometimes it felt like Gwen was a bit naggy towards the two of them. I didn’t like how the fact that she was the only female lead how she had sometimes act like a parent or that they put Gwen and Kevin together just because. Their relationship felt forced and awkward a lot of the time. Omniverse’s designs while controversial were fun and unique but I didn’t like what they did with Gwevin, especially Gwen.

Kevin is totally smart enough to figure out an Omnitrix with the blueprints in front of him, we see him do amazing shit with technology- including the Omnitrix- in the OG series, people just don't notice he's as brilliant as Gwen because the show never made it as big a point that he and Ben were so very smart like it did with her before the reboot, so now they're being forced to acknowledge that Kevin might have two braincells to rub together and they're pushing against the supposed 'change'.

idk if it's controversial but there should've been way more episodes of just gwen & kevin & rook without ben or ben having a very minor role in the episode. just more time for those three to shine and show off how capable they are without ben always having to come in to save the day at the end

Gwen and Kevin aren't good friends to Ben. I mean they were initially, but once he got famous and they didn't, they stopped putting more than a half-assed effort to help him. They also don't really consider his feelings nor really care about the toll heroing takes on him.

The Reboot has the best jokes in the entire franchise and I don't why people give it so much crap.

Kai Green is an abuser and I refuse to find anything redeemable about her character. "Worthy to wield Excalibur," my entire ass. And Ben and Julie's breakup was good for them both, as people, and just as much her fault as it was his.

Ben 10 is an incredibly flawed show and people need to stop getting butt hurt when the blatant misogyny, and copoganda in the show get pointed out or when any even minority critiques Ben's character.

Ben is the worst character in Ben 10 and the whole franchise would be better off without him.

Azmuth is fine for the most part and malware was not exactly the most understanding person

I think Ben should've stayed single. Every episode where romance (or the girl Ben was dating) was the focus of the episode was pretty boring to me, personally.

Ben's parents were right to try to stop him from being a hero, so were Gwen's.

Ultimate alien force season 2 and 3 were amazing.( not comparing the OS since obviously that's the best, or omniverse since I haven't watched all the episodes of that)

Pierce deserved to die for being a boring character. I just wish his death had actual consequences.

The reboot is a genuine improvement over the original continuity in MANY ways!

Oh geez, um, Kai was a good character, just her and ben were obviously toxic. Not everyone needs to like Ben and she isn't an abuser, they just don't get along and that's fine but by God, why did the writers have to force them in a relationship? That's all I could really think of on the spot. Oh! And that the first two season of AF were a watered down version of Ben and the plot focused more on Gwen and Kevin than it did Ben. He felt like a side character and I'm not mad about that, but I don't understand why people praise that characterization of ben when I remember more about gwen and Kevin then Ben. Dude, I've been watching the show for the past week and I can name more about kevin and gwen because they're memorable.

Azmuth's hot af, but y'all aren't ready for that conversation...

----

If you’ve made it this far then thank you!

Again huge thank you to everyone who submitted a response and if you have any questions/comments please feel free to leave them in the replies/send me an ask/dm/whatever ^^

[d4isy-pusher]

I'd like to know more about Cory! Could you tell us some stuff about her?

yeah! id like to talk about her as well

so uhhhh lets see

i guess i should start with what the cobalt parasite is bc i dont think i explained it

its a piece of a bigger creature that made its way into her when she was in the refinery, she feels its desires and cant help but act on them, which is why she kinda like,,,EATS PEOPLE

it also knows her, and if someone threatens to hurt her it’ll make her lash out on them violently because god forbid i lose my one outlet to the outside world

but other than that

her personality is a lil different now, shes calm but playful and likes to make stupid jokes

but she cant really take things seriously

like ever, even if the situation really depends on it 

and it tests people’s patience a LOT

SHES ALSO

JUST SLIGHTLY

A LITTLE BIT intellectually challenged, shes not the sharpest tool in the shed

and i guess this is important, shes born with the ability to understand butterflies, moths, yadayada

its why she can understand dusk, hes related to moths even though hes in the silkie family

OH OH OH the place she lives in is actually a blessed territory, its protected from outside forces or curses and is abnormally beautiful

we got fuckin cherry blossom trees, waterfall, crystal cave like damn share with us

but blessed territories are created when the life goddess chooses to make them, theres little places like it all throughout the planet, most of which are attractions/monuments

although this one in particular cant be seen unless the goddess WANTS it to, so the only reason corys even there is because she was guided to safety

fuck uh

i killed papilionem btw thats gone

uhhhhhhhhhhhh

uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

she actually has two names, her first names are Coraline and Pearldrop and her last name is Callistis

pearldrop used to be her middle name but i killed it

she has a huge thing for cherry flavored stuff, like cherry soda, desserts, cherries themselves, anything related to it

her favorite food in particular is cherry cream puffs i know ive said that

bitch cannot STAND alcohol or sour things

she was born with stunted wings, theyre always stuck in the small form and she cant fly, only flitter like a BUG

easily trusting, like the dumb bitch she is

her real family is kinda either dead or missing, when she was a kiddo she was taken in by Vanny (@/hybersleebbunbun) and she was with her for several years, she actually viewed her as her mom

when she left she didnt see her again until they were adults, and then she finds out that well fuck shes married to my enemy’s best friend

her and fade actually get along though, she calls him dad and she likes spendin time with him

she also sees oreo (once again @/hybersleebbunbun) as a brother still from the time they lived together, but hes kinda salty towards her unfortunately

and one more thing, shes nicknamed Corndog and Bugaboo

just bc i thought it was cute

AND lemme plug this here, yknow the general info chart i have for everyone

full name: Coraline Pearldrop Callistis alias: Cory, Corndog, Mothmom, Ms. Callistis, Bugaboo gender: female age: 24 nationality: Russian birthday: April 21st species: Antiquis (Type 2) sexuality: bisexual power: glitter/holograms, telepathy with insects height: 5'9 ft./175.26 cm parents/siblings/family: Nacre Callistis, Cinnabar Callistis, Bramble Callistis, Zircon Callistis, Seafoam Callistis spouse: Lyric A. Theseus

[thearkhound]

Exploring the Secret Behind Konami’s MSX Games (September 1988)

Akira Yamashita/山下 章 is a game journalist whom I covered in the past. He was a writer for Micom BASIC Magazine who later become one of the founders for Studio Bentstuff. One of his regular features he wrote for Micom BASIC was a series of game reviews titled Honki de Play, Honne de Review (which translates to Serious Play, Sincere Review) where he would not only write an in-depth review of a recently-released game, but would also interview the developer to discuss the concepts behind the games themselves.

For the September 1988 issue, rather than reviewing a specific game, Yamashita-san decided to do an overview of Konami’s MSX library, focusing primarily on their shoot-’em-up lineup. Most westerners (specifically North Americans) are only familiar with the MSX thanks to the fact that Metal Gear originated on that platform, but Konami has actually produced a variety of quality games for the MSX that rivaled what they were also released on the NES and arcades at the time. I’m hoping this article will inspire some of you readers to explore the rest of Konami’s MSX library as well.

I might consider translating more installments of Yamashita-san’s Serious & Sincere series of articles in the future.

Going to Konami

The Konami Building at Port Island, Kobe. The first floor is the lobby and the second floor is reception office. All floors above those are dedicated to the development departments. There’s a PC floor, a Famicom floor, an arcade floor, ect.

When you mention “Konami” to anyone involved with the publishing business in Japan, they’ll immediately think of the Konami building at Jimbocho, Tokyo, but that’s mainly the division of Konami involved with sales and advertising. The development department of Konami that makes their games for the arcades, PC and Famicom [NES] is actually located in a huge building in Kobe. If I was going to write to write an article for my “Serious & Sincere” series, then I thought I would fly over to Kobe and talk to the actual developers (although, Mr. Kage, who accompanied me for this interview, wanted to go to Jimbocho to meet Ms. Kamio).

We’ve arrived at the much rumored Port Island [an artificial island in Kobe] after four hours of commuting from Tokyo via the Shinkansen bullet train and such after 4 hours. In fact, this was the site of the Portopia tournament held several years ago. The place is very similar to Heiwajima in Tokyo [another artificial island] but without the boats. The Konami Building is located at the north side of the island, although the design is a bit different from the one depicted in their TwinBee. The surrounding area is peaceful and full of greenery. A couple of nearby middle-aged women that were dropped off from a sight-seeing bus began chatting when they saw the Konami Building.

“Such a lovely building! But what does Konami sell?”

“My kid really likes them. I think they make candy.” (This story also includes some embellishment)

Even though we weren’t under a strict schedule, we quickly proceeded to Konami Industry’s headquarters, where we interview Mr. Fukutake, the manager of the MSX department about various things. In this article I decided to mix my own opinions with the comments of Mr. Fukutake himself.

Up to this point, my Serious & Sincere article series were focused on showcasing the merits and exploring the development of specific games, for this installment I’ve decided to focus on Konami’s MSX library in general.

The Branding and Colors of a Software Publisher.

Akira Yamashita (right) interviewing Shigeru Fukutake. The interview was held in a seemingly luxurious VIP room with an exceptionally large marble table in the middle.

As our readers might be aware of, the development period of recent gaming software is pretty long compared to software from long ago. The days in which a single programmer can sell a single program by him or herself are now gone. Most software publishers now have a development department that divide their work by coding, story writing, music and graphics.

The long development process naturally means that every single game in development will be given full focus and the games that were planned with much “emotional attachment” will go through a long-term effort from the developers until it finally sees the light of day.

Have you noticed that their “emotional attachment” have materialized in their recent games in such interesting ways?

Those are the “colors” of a software publisher. It’s possible to imagine the kind of games a publisher releases just by mentioning their name. For example, Koei is known for their strategy games, Riverhill Software is known for their mystery adventures, Telenet is known for their colorful side-scrolling games and Dempa is known for their arcade ports.

How is the "emotional attachment” and the “colors” connected? There is a single answer. Each software house has its own idealized image of a game from its staff members. The ideal of that game in this instance is an approximation of the company’s "colors”. The energy they use is to pursue this ideal game must then represent the “emotional attachment” of the staff.

There are many examples of ���colors” when it comes to other industries. In the Japanese TV industry, Tokyo Broadcasting System is associated with dramas, Fuji TV is associated with variety shows and Nippon Television is (perhaps) associated with giant battles. For the record industries, we have Canyon for idols, CBS Epic Sony for pop music, Crown and King for enka and Scitron is known for their video game music albums (we’re kidding about Scitron).

The fact that there is such “color-coding” for publishers that let us know their intentions might be a good thing for consumers like ourselves. In a sense, the PC gaming industry might had already entered a more mature age compared to the days when software publishers would flood the market with the same type of game depending on what was trending at the moment.

Moreover, with the progress of such “color-coding” is leading to the establishment of “brand names” for PCs and software. In other words, purchasing a game from a particular publisher will determine whether it’ll be a sure bet or not.

It would be no exaggeration to say that when it comes to brand names, Konami’s brand is the strongest among MSX game publishers. Mr. Fukutake, the manager of Konami’s MSX team, has the following to say on the matter.

“That's correct. The fact that our users can trust us makes us happy as creators. We’re striving to maintain Konami’s brand image that we established.”

The Way Konami Games Are Made

The rarely-seen development room of Konami’s MSX department. This room was only accessible to employees who were assigned an ID card..

Up until now, the development process of Konami’s MSX games seemed to had been a secret. Here will be explaining the development process as answered by Mr. Fukutake himself.

First of all, there are two types of MSX games produced by Konami. The first kind are arranged conversions of existing arcade games (such as Gradius or TwinBee), while the other kind are original types (which include Metal Gear, The Maze of Galious and many others) . Arranged ports of arcades seem to progress by measuring the hardware capabilities of the MSX, but the original games are naturally much more interesting. The process is a bit different in which it seems that the person who comes up with the game’s characters is also the person assigned to do the planning and the story. In other words, the person who came up with characters such as  Popolon or Pengin-kun was in charge of planning and facilitating the development of Knightmare or Penguin Adventure.

The planner will then lead a team formed by around four or five employees and then they will proceed with the development of a single game, which lasts somewhere around four to six months. With somewhere between 20 to 30 personnel employed by Konami’s MSX development department, that means there are’s a total of 5 or 6 teams each working on 2 games a year if you think about it simply, which explains Konami’s surprising release pace.

The only exception here are the music staff. A sound technology department within Konami is responsible for all the music in their arcade, PC and NES games. That’s why the music in all Konami games have a certain unified image to them.

The Relentless Obsession With Shoot-’Em-Ups

The main subject is finally here. When talking about Konami games on the MSX, the most important thing to mention is their shoot-’em-up line represented by the Gradius series. As someone who likes Konami’s shooters, I make sure to always buy them when they’re released (never got one as a gift) and enjoy them.

However, in an industry which believes the theory that shoot-’em-ups are never hits, Konami is one of the rare exceptions to that belief. All the games in the Gradius series released thus far (Gradius, Gradius 2, Salamander and Parodius) have all have a track record for staying in the top ten best-selling MSX games for extensive periods.

This seems to be a phenomenon unique to the MSX market when comparing it to other market. Silpheed for example, which I consider to the best shoot-’em-up for Japanese PCs, didn’t chart that much and I heard that the shoot-’em-up masterpieces on the Famicom that were Gradius and Zanac, weren’t quite hits.

Why are Konami’s MSX shoot-’em-ups the only ones that are selling? There might be many reasons, but the primary reason is because Konami makes its games with the key point being firmly “fun shooting”. A variety of stages, unique power-up systems, crisp music and a miraculous balance, all blend perfectly to create Konami’s unique flavor. Mr. Fukutake says “No matter what, we live and breathe shoot-’em-ups. Everyone in our staff are enthusiastic fans of shoot-’em-ups. We wish to continue our lineup no matter how much the market changes.”

Perhaps this passion for betting on the shoot-’em-up genre might be the secret that has lead to the creation of masterpieces.

The Difficulty of Difficulty Settings

One of the components that determines whether a shoot-’em-up is fun is the difficulty level. On one hand, if you make it too easy, you won’t get to savor it much. On the other hand, if you make it too hard, it will become inaccessible. Thus, the difficulty of a shoot-’em-up, much like an RPG, must be adjusted with fine-tuning.

Mr. Fukutake reveals Konami’s policy for difficulty adjustment.

“For arcade games, we make them easy to get into in the beginning. But since shoot-’em-ups for the MSX are meant to be played at home, we make them difficult from the very beginning.”

Indeed. Konami’s shoot-’em-ups are considerably difficult (only hardcore players might argue otherwise). If anything, the difficulty is adjusted to a level that it can only be cleared with continues the first time. Without enough practice, it is difficult to complete them without using continues.

But unlike an arcade game, such as Gradius II, where dying once means that you’re done for (it’s not impossible to recover, but it’s difficult for ordinary players), here it’s only a setback that can be managed with a continue. You press the F5 key [at the game over] while thinking that “this time” [you’ll beat it]. It is an experience that only people who played Konami’s shoot-’em-ups on the MSX will be familiar with.

I think Konami adjusts their difficulty settings around this continue feature to some extent. Perhaps they’re aiming for the same sense of satisfaction when you clear one of their shoot-’em-ups that a player would also feel when solving an RPG or an adventure game. At the very least, I found myself impressed by the continue feature without knowing it when I’ve completed the game after struggling during a hard battle.

This is not something that could be managed easily even with the know-how. It’s not flattery or anything. It’s what I expect from Konami.

About Salamander

For me, the only Konami shoot-’em-up I was unreasonable with its difficulty was Salamander. Even if you keep continue, the sense of hopelessness is strong after dying once, unless you bring up Player 2′s ship as a decoy and start gradually recovering all your power-ups again. There are special weapons that only be used when both players’ ships unite, but they’re not very practical since they have limited uses and they feel pretty weak. And finally, the true ending is locked away and is accessible by having a Gradius 2 cartridge on the second slot. Isn’t that a bit too much?

Konami’s Future on the MSX

There is more stuff that I want to write about Konami, but I can’t due to the limited amount of pages. So I decided end this article asking Mr. Fukutake about Konami’s upcoming MSX games.

“Gaming trends will keep changing in the future, but we don’t just want to pursue what’s popular, we want to make whatever we want and keep on making something that is true to Konami. Since games are expensive, we want to make products that suit their prices so that you won’t be disappointed with your purchase. How do you maintain such level of quality and not shatter the image we’ve created thus far? That is our next challenge.”

Indeed, the quality must remain above a certain level, but that’s easier said than done. Not just Konami, but any company that has grown in size will have a certain quota of games to release for the year and because of the reliance on external staff to meet this quota, there’s a risk that the quality will deteriorate. Although it’s not noticeable, some companies in the Famicom business are already going for a “quantity over quality” strategy (I won’t mention any names though).

I don’t want Konami’s MSX team to fall into the same trap. On the contrary, I believe Konami, who are the best brand on the MSX, must continue producing quality games and lead the MSX market as their mission. As long as Konami keeps pumping out quality games, the MSX will never fade away.

No matter what, please continue making games with the industry in mind. Never forget your original intentions. I’m looking forward to the upcoming Snatcher and their newest shoot-’em-up Parodius, as well as the supposedly “unachievable” SCC II.

I would like to thank everyone who helped me out with this article and I apologize for my rough words.

Konami’s Shoot-’Em-Up Series

Gradius [English title: Nemesis] - The MSX version of Gradius was released shortly after the Famicom version. It was notable for the additional boneyard stage, which did not exists in the original arcade game. At any rate, the fact that Gradius could be played on an MSX1 was pretty impressive to begin with.

Gradius 2 [English title: Nemesis 2] - The long-rumored sequel to Gradius made its debut on the MSX. New weapons, such as the upward laser were added, and a new storyline began depicting the conflict against Dr. Venom. It was the first MSX game to employ the SCC chip.

Salamander - The most difficult game in Konami’s shoot-’em-up library. The structure of the MSX version is completely different from the original arcade game, since Stages 3-5 can be played at any order. I was glad to see that some of the music and the power-up system from the revised Life Force edition of the game were incorporated.

Parodius - A shoot-’em-up parody that turns everything into a gag. The bosses are all unique like the giant drunk penguin, the badly-drawn monk and the eyeball. It’s notable for having the shortest development time of all Konami games, taking less than two months for the master version to be completed.

Other Notable Konami Games

Majō Densetsu [English title: Knightmare] - One of Konami’s earliest MSX games from the pre-Megarom era that was lauded as a masterpiece among players. The idea for the game is believed to be an arrangement of Konami’s arcade game titled Finalizer.

Yumetairiku Adventure [English title: Penguin Adventure] - A sequel to Konami’s early hit Antarctic Adventure that greatly improves upon its predecessor. The cute design of the penguin protagonist made it popular among female players.

Akumajō Dracula [English title: Vampire Killer] - Although based on a Famicom game, it is a masterpiece considered to be one of the top 5 games of Konami. With its high-sense soundtrack and wonderful balance, it still has many firmly-rooted fans

Galious no Meikyū [English title: The Maze of Galious] - The sequel to Knightmare. It employs a system where the player switches between Popolon and his lover Aphrodite. The game is now a full-fledged action RPG with many difficult mysteries to solve.

Metal Gear - A military-themed action RPG like nothing that came before. Its idea of avoiding conflict with the enemy by sneaking pass their blind spots is novel. The game was later ported to the Famicom.

F1 Spirit - A record-setting racing game that continues to sell to this day. The secret to its lasting popularity is due to its 2-players simultaneous mode, the option to choose the parts for your vehicle and its variety of courses.

Shalom - The conclusion to the Knightmare and also Konami’s first adventure game. The top-down exploration screens bring to mind the Dragon Quest series, but the game switches to a side-view action segment when the player confronts a boss.

Gekitotsu Pennant Race - It seems like an average baseball game, but the included WATCH mode is fun. You can create your own team and have it compete against one made by a friend.

Coming Soon: Snatcher, a Cyberpunk Adventure

Konami’s first truly authentic adventure is Snatcher, which appears to be inspired by Blade Runner. There will be an MSX2 version that consists of 3 disks and an original sound cartridge and a version for NEC PC-8801SR computers that consists of 5 disks The programmer in charge is said to be the same person who worked on Gradius 2, so I’m looking forward to it. “It’s an adventure game like nothing that came before” says Mr. Fukutake. In contrast to Parodius, Snatcher has had the longest development time out of any Konami game released thus far (8 months as of this interview). It is scheduled to be released by the end of November.

[theliberaltony]

via Politics – FiveThirtyEight

Graphics by Ella Koeze

In a matter of days, the Supreme Court may dramatically change the census. The court is slated to rule on whether the Trump administration can add a question about citizenship to the 2020 form. When the case was argued back in April, many court-watchers predicted that the court’s five conservative justices were ready to side with the administration. The proposal sounds innocuous enough, but social scientists and civil rights advocates worry it will deter vulnerable populations — particularly undocumented people, other immigrants and their families — from answering the census. If that happens, many people from these groups will be at risk of not being counted and huge swaths of American life will be affected. The results of the count determine everything from where grocery stores are placed to how congressional representatives are distributed.

There are few things we care more about around here than political apportionment (although, if we’re being honest, we care an awful lot about groceries, too). So we went in search of researchers who had estimated the potential effect of the citizenship question. We found several, none of whom agreed on just how big an impact this would have. But they were all on the same page about one thing — if the Supreme Court rules that the new question can be included, it could alter our political future.

Every 10 years, the updated census numbers are used to determine how many U.S. House members each state will get. So figuring out who might be missed and where can tell us a lot about who stands to gain political representation and who stands to lose. Forecasting that amounts to sophisticated guesswork, since the question hasn’t yet been field-tested by the Census Bureau — a decision that many experts regard as a scientific cardinal sin. But that hasn’t stopped researchers from trying to fill the void.

I talked to three political scientists who all took a stab at quantifying how much each state’s population would change if some of the people who seem most likely to be affected by the question — immigrants, noncitizens and Latinos — simply went uncounted. All three used different assumptions about how people will feel when they’re confronted with the questionnaire — a kind of statistical choose-your-own-adventure game. You can see five estimates calculated by those researchers in the chart below:

These estimates make different assumptions about who will be missed by the census, which led to fairly substantial differences in how evenly the undercount was distributed and which states were most affected. Estimates for population loss in California alone ranged from almost 700,000 to over 1.8 million. Notably, the Census Bureau’s own estimate (Scenario 1) was by far the most conservative. Let’s take a closer look:

Scenarios 1 through 3 come from George Washington University’s Christopher Warshaw,1 a political scientist who ran two analyses based at least in part on the Census Bureau’s estimate of the question’s effect, and a third based on his own survey experiment.2

Scenario 4 comes from Bryce Dietrich, a research fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy. Dietrich worked with the Washington Post to estimate the impact that an undercount of about 6 million Hispanics would have on state populations.

Scenario 5 comes from political scientist Eric McGhee of the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California, who estimated what would happen if the census was poorly conducted — a distinct possibility, given that the Census Bureau is perpetually strapped for cash — and 10 percent of households that include undocumented immigrants were missed.

The question for many political observers, of course, is what all of this will mean for what happens after the census, when the states are assigned seats in the House of Representatives based on their new population count. Some clear winners and losers emerge here.

California would lose seats in all five undercount scenarios

Estimates of how an undercount would affect the apportionment of U.S. Representatives after the 2020 census, for states where any impact was estimated in five scenarios from researchers

Difference in number of seats due to undercount undercount scenario AL AZ CA FL MN MT OH TX 1. 5.8% of noncitizens undercounted 0 0 -1 0 0 +1 0 0 2. 5.8% of noncitizens and Hispanics undercounted +1 0 -1 0 0 +1 0 -1 3. 5.9% of Hispanics and 11.3% of foreign-born non-Latinos undercounted +1 0 -1 -1 +1 +1 0 -1 4. Poorly conducted census and 10% of households with undocumented immigrants undercounted 0 -1 -1 0 +1 +1 +1 -1 5. 6 million Hispanics undercounted +1 -1 -2 0 +1 +1 +1 -1

1. Based on Census Bureau estimates from Aug. 2018.

2. Partially based on Census Bureau estimates from Aug. 2018.

3. Based on a survey experiment that tested how much less likely respondents were to say they would return the census form if the citizenship question was included.

4. Partially based on the undercount in the 1990 census.

5. Based on a survey experiment that tested how much less likely respondents were to respond to individual questions on the form if the citizenship question was included.

2020 population projections were derived by the researchers and vary from scenario to scenario.

Sources: Christopher Warshaw, Bryce Dietrich and The Washington Post, Public policy institute of California

California loses at least one seat in all five scenarios, while Montana stands to gain one. Ohio, Minnesota and Alabama are all potential winners, depending on the scenario, while Texas, Arizona and Florida come out on the losing side in at least one estimate. “This is a fairly significant impact, especially when you consider that some of these states would stand to gain seats if not for this question,” Warshaw said.

We can’t really tell you which scenario is most likely to play out (assuming the court opens the door to any of them). It all hinges on which groups are ultimately missed in the final count and by how much. The actual effect of the citizenship question could be much larger than any of these estimates, if other groups refuse to respond as well. Or it could be smaller, if the Census Bureau is able to track down some of the people who don’t respond to the first questionnaire they send out. Most of these estimates are based on the idea that every person who doesn’t initially respond to the census, or who skips a question or two, won’t be counted. In reality, at least some of those people will almost certainly be included in the count because armies of census workers will fan out across the country next year to find people who didn’t respond to the initial request for information.

As the lawsuits over the citizenship question unfolded, Census Bureau officials argued that they will be able to respond to some of the fears swirling around the question through community outreach and follow-up. In an email, a Census Bureau spokesperson told me that in response to concerns about an undercount, the agency is “developing a robust communications campaign and working with communities across the country to communicate that responding to the census is safe, easy, and important.” The agency is also about to begin a test of the question that it says will help determine how many census workers are needed to follow up with people who don’t respond at first. Rob Santos, a researcher at the nonpartisan Urban Institute and the co-author of a recent report on miscounts and the census, said that these efforts could make a difference, but added that the intense publicity surrounding the citizenship question has already created an “atmosphere of fear and mistrust” in immigrant, refugee and Latino communities.

Nancy Mathiowetz, an expert on survey research, was also skeptical that the census’s follow-up efforts could fully mitigate the effect of the question. She pointed out that Latino citizens and undocumented people are already likely to be undercounted, and it’s not clear if the Census Bureau has any new tricks up its sleeve for reaching them. Some of the impact may also depend on the type of undercount that occurs. Failing to fill out part of the questionnaire, she said, might be less of a problem than leaving household members off an otherwise complete form, since the Census Bureau has said that it will try to fill in certain types of missing information using statistical techniques and administrative records, but it has no way of knowing if family members have simply been omitted. Several experts noted that conjecturing about a respondent’s race and ethnicity could create other kinds of data accuracy problems that could resurface when congressional and state legislative districts are drawn, but the issue for state-level apportionments is simply whether everyone is included in the total count — not whether all the information on each person’s form is correct.

At the end of the day, all of this sparring is a poor substitute for the rigorous, lengthy testing process that a new census question would usually undergo. If the citizenship question ends up on the questionnaire, another test of sorts will unfold in real time, with the entire American population as its subjects. And it will have concrete consequences for who gets political representation. To many social scientists and civil rights advocates, this seems like a needlessly dangerous experiment, and one that runs counter to the cautious, scientific spirit of the federal government’s largest statistical agency. But the Supreme Court may allow it to happen anyway — and if it does, we will soon learn more about just how resilient one of our nation’s oldest civic traditions really is.

[theonyxpath]

Chicago! By Night! What an evocative title that was in ’91. We had seen nothing like it for any of our games. The web of vampire NPCs and their sheer variety could have been overwhelming, but instead it was fascinating. We wanted to keep reading and to learn as much as we could about them, and the vampire society they were enmeshed in.

The gorgeous Coterie Charts were, of course, that perfect bit of visual aid that we needed to refer to during reading – and even more importantly, during playing. Who is she? Do we know who she’s connected to? Does she hate that guy we’re sort of working for?

It added the context, the structure, that we had only been imagining based on the core book. Now we could see how the ideas fit together in one city.

My group was lucky as I had been given the text early in order to playtest and so I could do art and the logo for the book. We got to roam those streets on the lookout for Capone earlier than most, but we also didn’t get to see Josh Timbrook’s full collection of gorgeous and evocative character portraits, so it was interesting to see his depictions later on.

After over a decade of D&D, Chicago by Night was definitely the book that made me fall in love with Vampire: The Masquerade.

Which worked out OK.

Y’know?

      Scion Hero illustration by Chris Bivins

    Naturally, considering the above, when given the chance, we at Onyx Path pitched for a new version of Chicago By Night. Three times! We pitched it for V20, we “pitched” it during our plans for our new edition of VtM, and now, we pitched and are doing the Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition version!

Third time’s the charm, or, I guess, the discipline.

The V5 Chicago By Night Kickstarter goes live at 12 noon Eastern US time tomorrow, Tuesday the 30th (if all goes well, and the many weird-ass things that can screw this up don’t happen). This is a KS to create a beautiful traditionally printed version of the book that we will use as a springboard to get the books into stores.

Backers will get sections of the text of the book all through the Kickstarter, and I understand that our Kickstarter Concierge James Bell and Chicago developer Matthew Dawkins have cooked up a whole series of reveals for that info. Plus, they’ve been working on ways to incorporate backer input without slowing down the book’s progress. We really want to get it out to backers and then into stores as fast as we can.

Certainly, more along the model of Cavaliers of Mars which was delivered a year early to backers, or Monarchies of Mau, on track to be shipped in November, some four months earlier than estimated.

Plus, the text we are revealing to backers is finished text, approved by White Wolf, and set to take a copy edit but then go right into layout. We know folks are concerned about changes to the text that has been previewed, and we’re setting this up so that situation doesn’t happen.

      Fetch Quest illustration by Pat Loboyko

    As for what those sections will contain, well, they’ll present Chicago as it exists NOW in the World of Darkness, and we’ll be continuing to follow Matthew’s preference for writing that provides story-ideas and hooks in every paragraph. Locations that have explicit ideas for play attached to them, and we’ll have Lore Sheets that build out the secrets of the Kindred of Chicago.

In fact, I’m really looking forward to our Chicago Lore Sheets providing that same feeling of “proof of concept”, of a concrete structure, that the original CbyN did for VtM first edition.

And, then there’s the Lasombra.

Their V5 clan write-up will be in there, as well as the shadowy revelation of their current status and plans within plans.  We’re thrilled to be able to be the ones who reveal them to our community, and from what I’ve seen, you are going to be very pleased indeed.

So that’s a huge milestone for us this week, and something we’ve been working feverishly on, but we have a few other things to point out that came up in our meeting today that are happening this week of spooky weeks.

V5 is not the only vampire game in town, as the Guide to the Night for Vampire: The Requiem 2e in Advance PDF form goes undead on DriveThruRPG on Halloween, along with our regularly scheduled Exalted 3rd monthly PDFs.

If we can do it this week, we’ll also be delivering the Backer PDF for Matt Forbeck’s long awaited Exalted 3rd novel to backers!

      Trinity Continuum: Aeon illustration by Sam Denmark

    Before the month is done, you owe it to yourselves to check out the deadly discounts at the HalfoffWeen sale at IPR, and the Halloween sale at DTRPG. (See below in The Blurbs!)

Finally, if you missed last Friday’s interview with Jason Carl, V5 producer and current marketing chap at White Wolf, this is a great week to hear all about the man who’s an expert on both Vampire and wine. And a whoooole lot more as his interview with the Terrifying Trio on the Onyx Pathcast proves. Check that out here, or on your favorite podcast venue: https://onyxpathcast.podbean.com/e/episode-23-interview-with-another-vampire-jason-carl/ 

Coming up this week, our Dream Team goes into details on their Dream Games. You know, the projects they would most like to create if time, money, legalities, or common sense were not concerns!

Maybe they’ll make some games we can publish, and add to our existing collection of:

Many Worlds, One Path!

  BLURBS!

KICKSTARTER:

Lo the darkness that lies like a pall over Chicago. The V5 Chicago By Night Kickstarter arises in October!

We will be opening the casket on October the 30th at 12noon Eastern US time!

Because we know the 2nd Inquisition is out there, let’s establish a fallback plan so if anything happens to delay this, we’ll do it at noon on Halloween, Wednesday the 31st!

We’re also working on the Kickstarter for They Came From Beneath the Sea! (TCFBtS!), which has some very different additions to the Storypath mechanics we’ll be explaining during the KS.  They take an excellent 50’s action and investigation genre game and turn it to 11!

  ELECTRONIC GAMING:

      As we find ways to enable our community to more easily play our games, the Onyx Dice Rolling App is now live! Our dev team has been doing updates since we launched based on the excellent use-case comments by our community, and this thing is both rolling and rocking!

Here are the links for the Apple and Android versions:

http://theappstore.site/app/1296692067/onyx-dice

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.onyxpathpublishing.onyxdice&hl=en

Three different screenshots, above.

And our latest, the dice for Werewolf: The Forsaken 2e:

  ON AMAZON AND BARNES & NOBLE:

You can now read our fiction from the comfort and convenience of your Kindle (from Amazon) and Nook (from Barnes & Noble).

If you enjoy these or any other of our books, please help us by writing reviews on the site of the sales venue you bought it from. Reviews really, really help us with getting folks interested in our amazing fiction!

Our selection includes these fiction books:

Vampire: The Masquerade: The Endless Ages Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse: Rites of Renown: When Will You Rage II (Kindle, Nook)

Mage: The Ascension: Truth Beyond Paradox (Kindle, Nook)

Chronicles of Darkness: The God-Machine Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Mummy: The Curse: Curse of the Blue Nile (Kindle, Nook)

Beast: The Primordial: The Primordial Feast Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Vampire: The Masquerade: Of Predators and Prey: The Hunters Hunted II Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse: The Poison Tree (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse: Songs of the Sun and Moon: Tales of the Changing Breeds (Kindle, Nook)

Vampire: The Requiem: The Strix Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Forsaken: The Idigam Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Mage: The Awakening: The Fallen World Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Vampire: The Masquerade: The Beast Within Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Werewolf: The Apocalypse: W20 Cookbook (Kindle, Nook)

Exalted: Tales from the Age of Sorrows (Kindle, Nook)

Chronicles of Darkness: Tales of the Dark Eras (Kindle, Nook)

Promethean: The Created: The Firestorm Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)

Demon: The Descent: Demon: Interface (Kindle, Nook)

Scarred Lands: Death in the Walled Warren (Kindle, Nook)

V20 Dark Ages: Cainite Conspiracies (Kindle, Nook)

Chronicles of Darkness: Strangeness in the Proportion (Kindle, Nook)

Vampire: The Requiem: Silent Knife (Kindle, Nook)

Mummy: The Curse: Dawn of Heresies (Kindle, Nook)

  OUR SALES PARTNERS:

We’re working with Studio2 to get Pugmire out into stores, as well as to individuals through their online store. You can pick up the traditionally printed main book, the Screen, and the official Pugmire dice through our friends there!

https://studio2publishing.com/search?q=pugmire

And we’ve added Prince’s Gambit to our Studio2 catalog: https://studio2publishing.com/products/prince-s-gambit-card-game

  Looking for our Deluxe or Prestige Edition books? Try this link! http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Onyx-Path-Publishing/

Here’s the link to the press release we put out about how Onyx Path is now selling through Indie Press Revolution: http://theonyxpath.com/press-release-onyx-path-limited-editions-now-available-through-indie-press-revolution/

And you can now order Pugmire: the book, the screen, and the dice! http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/manufacturers.php?manufacturerid=296

    DRIVETHRURPG.COM:

  For the most horrific day of the year, this Wednesday, Halloween, we are releasing the Advance PDF for Vampire: The Requiem 2e Guide to the Night!

  And we haven’t forgotten our monthly Exalted PDF releases! They too will be coming out on DTRPG this Wednesday!

          CONVENTIONS!

Matt, Monica, Bill, Crystal, and other Onyx Path writers and developers will be at GameHoleCon in Madison, WI November 8th – 11th running demos of Pugmire, Scarred Lands, and more! https://www.gameholecon.com/

Rich, Lisa, Matt, Eddy, Dixie, Danielle, and other Onyx Path writers and developers will be at PAX Unplugged in Philly, November 30th – December 2nd running demos of Scion, Monarchies of Mau, Exalted, and more! http://unplugged.paxsite.com/

Start getting ready for our appearance at MidWinter this January in Milwaukee! So many demos, playtests, secret playtests, and Onyx Path Q&As you could plotz!

  And now, the new project status updates!

DEVELOPMENT STATUS FROM FAST EDDY WEBB (projects in bold have changed status since last week):

First Draft (The first phase of a project that is about the work being done by writers, not dev prep)

C20 Novel (Jackie Cassada) (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

M20 The Technocracy Reloaded (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

M20 Victorian Mage (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

Tales of Excellent Cats (Monarchies of Mau)

City of the Towered Tombs (Cavaliers of Mars)

Mummy: The Curse 2nd Edition core rulebook (Mummy: The Curse 2nd Edition)

Scion Ready Made Characters (Scion 2nd Edition)

Scion Jumpstart (Scion 2nd Edition)

Geist2e Fiction Anthology (Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition)

Memento Mori: the GtSE 2e Companion (Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition)

Pirates of Pugmire (Realms of Pugmire)

Distant Worlds (Trinity Continuum: Aeon)

  Redlines

Deviant: The Renegades (Deviant: The Renegades)

Night Horrors: Nameless and Accursed (Mage: the Awakening Second Edition)

Witch-Queen of the Shadowed Citadel (Cavaliers of Mars)

Heirs to the Shogunate (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Scion Companion: Mysteries of the World (Scion 2nd Edition)

  Second Draft

Tales of Good Dogs – Pugmire Fiction Anthology (Pugmire)

  Development

Hunter: the Vigil 2e core (Hunter: the Vigil 2nd Edition)

CofD Contagion Chronicle (Chronicles of Darkness)

Night Horrors: Shunned by the Moon (Werewolf: The Forsaken 2nd Edition)

Lunars: Fangs at the Gate (Exalted 3rd Edition)

Spilled Blood (Vampire: The Requiem 2nd Edition)

WoD Ghost Hunters (World of Darkness)

Wr20 Book of Oblivion (Wraith: The Oblivion 20th Anniversary Edition)

Trinity Continuum: Aberrant core (Trinity Continuum: Aberrant)

Oak, Ash, and Thorn: Changeling: The Lost 2nd Companion (Changeling: The Lost 2nd)

CofD Dark Eras 2 (Chronicles of Darkness)

  Manuscript Approval:

V5 Chicago By Night (Vampire: The Masquerade)

  Editing:

Signs of Sorcery (Mage: the Awakening Second Edition)

Aeon Aexpansion (Trinity Continuum: Aeon)

C20 Players’ Guide (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)

Dystopia Rising: Evolution (Dystopia Rising: Evolution)

M20 Book of the Fallen (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)

Adventures for Curious Cats (Monarchies of Mau)

In Media Res (Trinity Continuum: Core)

  Post-Editing Development:

Ex Novel 2 (Aaron Rosenberg) (Exalted 3rd Edition)

  Indexing:

    ART DIRECTION FROM MIRTHFUL MIKE:

  In Art Direction

Dystopia Rising: Evolution – Got the fulls contracted out and emails out to artists from the KS about doing some more.

Geist 2e

The Realm

Trinity Continuum (Aeon and Core) – Aeon sketches coming in.

Ex3 Monthly Stuff

Chicago By Night – Ready for KS.

Pugmire Roll of Good Dogs and Cats – Art contracted.

C20 Player’s Guide – Sending out the last contracts and art notes.

Aeon Aexpansion

They Came From Beneath the Sea! – Getting more KS art since we have a little time.

Lost 2e Jumpstart – Art contracted.

EX3 Lunars – Getting KS art.

Signs of Sorcery – Awaiting updated art notes.

  Marketing Stuff

  In Layout

Trinity Core – Working.

Trinity Aeon – Inputting 2nd proof notes.

M20: Gods and Monsters – With Josh.

  Proofing

Scion Hero – Backer PDF is out, errata coming in.

Scion Origin – Corrections are in.

Ex3 Dragon Blooded

CtL2 Jumpstart – Adding in corrections.

  At Press

Monarchies of Mau and Screen – At Studio2. Dice and buttons shipping to Studio2.

Wraith 20th – Printing the Deluxe interior, proofing cover this week(??).

Wraith 20 Screen – Printing.

Scion Dice – At Studio2.

Lost 2e Screen – Off to printer.

Scion Screen – Off to printer.

Changeling: The Lost 2e – Printer getting started.

Fetch Quest – Files sent to printer.

Exalted 3rd Novel – Getting ready for backers.

PTC: Night Horrors: The Tormented – Prepping PDF files.

VtR: Guide to the Night – Advance PDF going on sale on DTRPG on Weds!

  TODAY’S REASON TO CELEBRATE: Well, Halloween. Duh.

[mensusaonlinestore1]

CANNABIS REGULATIONS WE MUST KNOW BEFORE WE START GROWING

Recently United Nations dragged down or reclassified marijuana the marijuana or weed as “Most dangerous Drugs” . Since then lot of business are companies are looking for new opportunities to do business. However, way before this Govt. of Canada started preparing for itself for marijuana business and production. Today I am going to discuss with you regarding cannabis program of health Canada. We are here to dicuss the cannabis regulations, rules, terms and conditions and so on

Welcome to health Canada, health Canada is now legally give people to obtain a license so that you can now produce marijuana in your home. In April 2018, health Canada passed new resolutions that people now could grow marijuana in their small facility of marijuana which could be maximum of 100 m. sq or maximum of 2153 square ft. Before only people will large facility and huge space only could grow marijuana (Like more than 10, 000 sq. ft of space). This move is actually for those who want used to grow marijuana illegally and now got a chance to produce it legally. As you know there are two kinds of license which is – 1) standard marijuana cultivation license and 2) Micro cultivation marijuana license. With Help of micro license program people of Canada now would be able produce marijuana legally within in own space.

However, the micro licensing systems comes with many procedure, terms, conditions, rules etc. Those are called same as standard license program so I am only telling you the important ones here. The points that you must follow while you are ready to grow micro growing system of marijuana and those are following –

1.      Infrastructure - The grow must not be larger than 200 square meter or 2153 square feet. If the grow room is more than this apply for standard license program. Doing so is violation of health Canada policy. The health Canada does not define the which process you will use while cultivating the marijuana. But health Canada gave quantity i.e. 600 Kg or marijuana processing each year ( It is total amount that is in dried , 600 Kg in case of oil , cannabis oil , marijuana seeds etc form) . The health Canada will issue one license for only one site. If you have multiple sites you need to apply for those marijuana license. You cannot produce marijuana in the same land you are living. You need to build building separately and then apply for license.

2.      Condition - No ready to build facility will get cannabis license. You need to be preparing yourself and your facility so that it would help you and your company to get license. You will install quality control, quality marijuana processing, good manufacturing practices, and good production practices. You need to show to marijuana inspection that everything is ready and just require license for plantation.

3.      Security - The very important part that health Canada takes care of is security system and this is very important. There are matters like – installing hardware and software, CCTV cameras to track people 24 X 7 and also processing waste materials of marijuana. Health does not do any compromise with security. It will come to you daily after you got license for inspection of the marijuana infrastructure built. Health Canada also wants to know how you are selling your marijuana products, where you are selling your products. They will make sure that this marijuana is not going to wrong hand.

4.      Plan of action - Health Canada will give you license for both cultivation and processing. The both kind of license is also required for analytical testing, research works as well. Health Canada developed a cannabis tracking system for that. Health Canada also states that the investor or the owner of the cannabis micro growing system owner should perform an organization security plan, which entail outlining security plan, infrastructure, operating procedures, hardware & software requirements & their functionalities. They also need to produce an organizational chart which will produce them with visual representation of how authority, responsibility and information are to flow within the chart. It would also show accounts, finance, marketing, production and production techniques. The organizational chart will also show any product movement beyond minimal amounts, setting operational procedures, including standard operating procedures, sensitive security or business knowledge, financial controls, including but not limited to the ability to enter into contracts for goods and services.

5.      Application process – 1st of all you need to decide what type of application you are going to apply for. As said before there are three kind of license actually – a) standard cultivation b) Micro Cultivation c) Nursery. I have discussed the 1st types before and now about nursery. It is even smaller place (mainly for only personal needs) where you need to have facility no more than 50 meter square. If you are making/ producing cannabis on a large scale then you need to do standard processing, in case of micro cultivation do it in micro processing. And form those you could easily manufacture cannabis products. Then you can manufacture cannabis oil form that, you could donate, sale, export marijuana only for medical purposes. You can do research cannabis; you could also have marijuana for analytical testing purposes as well. License holders can conduct research and development activities within their authorized licensed activities. If the license holder wishes to conduct research and development activities outside of their authorized license activities, they must apply for a separate cannabis research license.

Those who are the corporate people, they need to go through a different kind of licensing process. This is actually applicable for partnership firm, co-operatives and corporation type firms. While you create a corporate profile you need to register with health Canada and then create ID for it. But while you are building a corporate profile, you need more documentation like – The full legal name of the organization , the incorporation number , Business address and contact details , Controlling organizations (noted as “Parent Corporation” in the CTLS) if applicable , certificate of incorporation or partnership agreement . In such cases organization is too required. The organizational chart must say the following things - a) must demonstrate the relationships between senior positions within the organization and the various controlling individuals or entities, if applicable. b) Must include all names and titles of senior management positions such as directors and officers of the organization and any controlling individual or entity, if applicable. Does not need to include the site-specific organizational information (e.g., the site head of security, master grower, QAP). This specific organizational information is required as part of a specific application and is to be included in the OSP.

Pipe Dreemz is the company who will help you to obtain such a license on behalf of yourself. Contact us today we will guide you, how to obtain Health Canada Cannabis license. We will guide you in each step. If your application is rejected by health Canada in any step we will guide for re-submission. Call us at 1-833-226-2776 or email us at info@pipedreemz.org

We look forward to work with you.

 This article is written by Pipe Dreemz Inc. who are helping people to business to set up their cannabis production businesses as per the health Canada ACMPR rules.

[techcrunchappcom]

New Post has been published on https://techcrunchapp.com/the-latest-myanmar-tightens-pandemic-restrictions-national-news/

The Latest: Myanmar tightens pandemic restrictions | National News

YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar, faced with a rapidly rising number of coronavirus cases and deaths, has announced the tightest restrictions so far to fight the spread of the disease.

The measures announced Sunday by Health Minister Dr, Myint Htwe cover Yangon, the country’s biggest city and main transportation hub.

Measures effective Monday allow just one person per household out of their homes for shopping, and two for hospital visits, although a driver is also permitted when traveling by car. Wearing face masks is mandatory.

All office staffs must work from home, while factories, finishing and construction enterprises must halt operations from Sept 24 to Oct. 7.

Personnel of essential services, including banks, gas stations, food shops and pharmacies are exempt from the order.

Travel out of Yangon was already banned and all domestic flights grounded on Sept. 11.

Until an upsurge in coronavirus cases last month in the western state of Rakhine, Myanmar had appeared to have largely been spared from the pandemic, having recorded just 353 virus cases as of the beginning of August.

The country as of Sunday has 5,541, including 92 deaths.

———

HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE VIRUS OUTBREAK

— Sweden seems to be avoiding second wave of infections hitting other European nations

— Analysis: US to hit 200K dead; Trump sees no need for regret

— Italians in seven regions are voting in elections shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic. The contests were originally scheduled for the spring, but delayed due to the virus.

— Students in Iowa’s largest school system are facing the possibility that the school year could stretch into next summer, and the district could be hit with crippling bills due to a dispute with the governor over reopening classrooms during the coronavirus pandemic

———

Follow AP’s pandemic coverage at http://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak

———

HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

ATHENS, Greece — Greek health authorities announced a further 170 coronavirus cases Sunday and seven deaths.

The total number of cases is now 15,142, with 338 deaths.

Monday will see further restrictions in the capital Athens and the surrounding region following a spike in cases. The measures include a ban on gatherings exceeding nine persons in both open and closed spaces, a ban on concerts and cinemas — but not theaters — and the obligation of 40% of employeesto work from home, which is combined with a ban on employers using cameras to check on employees.

Also, those over 65 are encouraged to refrain from leaving home, using public transport or meeting with anyone except close relatives for the next 14 days. The measures will be enforced at least until Oct. 3.

———

DUESSELDORF, Germany — Hundreds of people demonstrated in downtown Duesseldorf Sunday against government coronavirus restrictions and in support of a host of other causes.

People waved signs with slogans like “end to panic, corona pandemic is a lie” and “corona rebels” as songs decrying coronavirus restrictions were played.

They chanted “free Julian Assange” along with one speaker, and formed a “W” — symbolizing “we all” — with their hands, which they raised over their heads as the theme to Chariots of Fire played.

No masks were to be seen, aside from on journalists covering the rally, and a few children mingled among the crowd.

Before breaking away to walk along a route through the western city, the crowd swayed to Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” and a man in a Superman costume sang along.

Police reported no incidents.

———

MADRID — Spaniards are protesting in Madrid against the handling of the coronavirus pandemic by the city’s regional head, who has placed new restrictions on neighborhoods with the highest contagion rates.

Wearing face masks and trying to maintain social distancing, protestors clapped in unison while shouting for regional President Isabel Díaz Ayuso to step down. The protesters gathered at noon Sunday around the city, making it difficult to estimate the size of the protest.

In the Vallecas neighborhood, protesters chanted “For everyone or no one!” in a criticism of the restrictions Díaz Ayuso announced Friday for some of the poorest areas of Madrid where local authorities say the virus is spreading the fastest.

The restrictions affect around 860,000 people who won’t be able to leave their neighborhoods except for work, study or a medical appointment. Parks in the area are closed and shops and restaurants have to limit occupancy to 50%,

Spain is struggling to contain a second wave of the virus, which has killed at least 30,400 people according to the Spanish Health Ministry. Madrid’s rate of transmission is more than double the national average, which already leads European contagion charts.

———

LONDON — Britain’s government will fine people who refuse an order to self-isolate up to 10,000 pounds ($13,000) as the country sees a sharp surge in coronavirus infections.

The new rule obliges people to self-isolate if they test positive for the coronavirus or are traced as a close contact. The rule comes into effect on Sept. 28.

The government will help those on lower incomes who face a loss of earnings as a result of self-isolating with a one-time support payment of 500 pounds ($633).

The latest figures show that new daily coronavirus cases for Britain have risen to 4,422, the highest since early May. An official estimate also shows that new infections and hospital admissions are doubling every seven to eight days in the U.K.

The Conservative government is widely expected to impose further restrictions after Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed that Britain is seeing a second wave of infections, following the trend elsewhere in Europe. London’s mayor has also said tighter restrictions could be needed soon in the British capital.

———

NEW DELHI — India has registered 92,605 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours and is expected to surpass the United States as the pandemic’s worst-hit country within weeks.

The Health Ministry on Sunday also reported 1,133 additional deaths for a total of 86,752.

Sunday’s surge raised the country’s virus tally to over 5.4 million. India, however, also has the highest number of recovered patients in the world, according to Johns Hopkins University. Its recovery rate stands at about 80%.

Over 60% of the active cases are concentrated in five of India’s 28 states — Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has faced scathing criticism for its handling of the pandemic amid a contracting economy that left millions jobless.

———

MELBOURNE, Australia — Australia’s second-largest city, Melbourne, has moved close to easing severe lockdown restrictions after recording only 14 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday.

It was the second day in a row new infections fell below 30. There were also five deaths recorded Sunday.

Melbourne’s lockdown restrictions are due to be eased next weekend when child care centers will be allowed to reopen and gatherings of up to five people from two different households will be permitted. But that depends on the rolling 14-day average of new cases being below 50. It now stands at 36.2.

Victoria state Health Minister Jenny Mikakos praised residents for adhering to lockdown rules, saying, “The huge sacrifices made by Victorians are saving many lives.”

Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison described an unexpected fall in Australia’s unemployment rate to 9.3% — down 14 percentage points from its peak during the pandemic — as “pleasant encouragement.”

The figures show about 400,000 Australians recently have returned to work.

———

SEOUL, South Korea —— South Korea’s new coronavirus tally has fallen below 100 for the first time in more than a month.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said Sunday that the newly counted 82 cases took the country’s total to 22,975 with 383 deaths.

The drop is likely partly driven by the fact that authorities conduct fewer tests on weekends. But even before Sunday, South Korea’s daily tally has held in the 100s for more than two weeks, down from 400 in late August.

Health officials say the downward trend is a result of stringent social distancing rules imposed on the densely populated Seoul metropolitan area. Those rules were recently relaxed.

The government is urging the public not to lower their guard as small-scale clusters are still being reported.

———

TOKYO — Train stations and airports in Japan are filled with people traveling over the “Silver Week” holiday weekend, in a sign of recovery amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The surge in domestic travel is in contrast to previous holidays, when pressure was high for people living in urban congested areas to stay home and avoid areas with fewer infections.

The new daily cases in Tokyo have recently fluctuated around 200, but Japan does not have widespread testing and many cases are likely going undetected. Baseball games, stores and theaters are open again with social distancing, mask-wearing, hand sanitizers and temperature checks.

A study by mobile carrier NTT DoCoMo showed crowd size at a domestic terminal at Tokyo’s main Haneda airport, as well as train stations and shopping districts nationwide.

Japan, with about 1,500 deaths related to COVID-19, has banned almost all overseas visitors and requires quarantine and virus checks for returning Japanese. The Silver Week includes this weekend and two national holidays, Respect for the Aged Day and the Autumn Equinox.

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Plyomaster Jump Training

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Plyomaster Jump Training

 Buy Now    

HomepageWebmin2019-05-17T23:51:29+00:00

The Most Advanced Jump Training Programs Ever Created

“I’m only 5’10” and after only 6 weeks of Kurt’s training I could touch the basketball rim (10′).”

Ana M.

“At the start of the summer I could touch 108″.  8 weeks later I touched 117!”

Annie L.

“I gained 12 inches on my vertical jump!”

Vihba V.

“After training with Kurt for just two weeks I can jump high enough to dunk!”

James M.

“I’m only 5’10” and after only 6 weeks of Kurt’s training I could touch the basketball rim (10′).”

Ana M.

“At the start of the summer I could touch 108″.  8 weeks later I touched 117!”

Annie L.

“I gained 12 inches on my vertical jump!”

Vihba V.

“After training with Kurt for just two weeks I can jump high enough to dunk!”

James M.

Jump Higher Without a Gym

Jump Higher Without a Gym

is the fastest way to improve your vertical without a gym.

Developed for athletes who want to rapidly increase jump height without using a gym.

Dumbbells, a medicine ball, and a bench or large exercise ball – that’s all you need to start radically increasing your jump height today.

Vert Builder Pro is more than just a collection of exercises; it has been developed by one of the world’s premier jump trainers from decades of painstaking trials and refinements, based on real data, in concert with one of the country’s leading neurologists.

Effective jump training is not just about muscle strength.  It’s also about technique, neurology, and a very specific focus on the stuff that actually makes a difference.  Like quick-twitch muscle fiber, myelin sheaths, and neural pathway development.  Without getting into the nitty-gritty science of why it works, know that Vert Builder Pro is built on evidence-based results.  Vert Builder Pro is how it works.

This program includes over 40 high quality exercise videos demonstrating how to do them properly, why they’re important, and what you can expect to achieve.

Athletes who undertake this program and follow Kurt’s Five Guidelines for Success regularly achieve gains of 6, 8, even 12 inches.

Imagine what jumping a foot higher would do to your game.

Can you say “serious performance advantage”?

So the question you have to ask is: How bad do you want it?

Includes:

Over 40 Exercises in High Quality Video

Descriptions and Walkthroughs of Each Exercise

Printable Workout Tracking Guide

Printable Program Guide

Explosive exercises that target your Legs, Arms, Back, Chest, Shoulders and Core.

Benefits:

Minimal Equipment Necessary (dumbbells, medicine ball, exercise ball or bench)

Rapidly Increase Your Vertical Jump in Your Own Backyard–Without Joining a Gym

Mobile-Friendly Design Lets You Take Your Workout on the Go

Low Impact Muscle Confusion

Low Impact Muscle Confusion

is a revolutionary solution to the dreaded training plateau, and because it’s low-impact, it actually speeds up recovery times.

No more training plateau.  Mend your joints and aches in a low impact environment, while becoming more explosive.  There’s nothing else like it.

is a revolutionary solution to the dreaded training plateau, and because it’s low-impact, it actually speeds up recovery times.

No more training plateau.  Mend your joints and aches in a low impact environment, while becoming more explosive.  There’s nothing else like it.

When you jump in water, your entire body encounters resistance.

When you train in water with the Highdro Pro workouts, your muscles will become more explosive while your joints and tendons mend.

Training in the water provides true muscle resistance…for the whole body!

If you are not doing water workouts, then you are going to plateau.

Highdro Pro includes high quality videos of more than a dozen never-before seen in-pool exercises along with detailed instruction to help you blast through the training plateau, rapidly heal your body and experience explosive vertical gains.

When paired with Vert Builder Pro, there is simply no other jump training program that comes close.

If you want to win, you want Highdro Pro.

Includes:

Over a Dozen Exercises in High Quality Video (Above and Below the Water)

Descriptions and Walkthroughs of Each Exercise

Printable Program Guide

Benefits:

Shatter the Training Plateau With a High Resistance, Low Impact Workout

Rapidly Heal Your Body While Improving Your Vertical

Mobile-Friendly Design Lets You Take Your Workout on the Go

“After jump training just a few weeks everyone on my team noticed I was jumping higher.”

Emma G.

“My very first day with Kurt he made a change to my approach jump and I could jump 4 inches higher!”

Sydney H.

“My vertical increased so much that it threw off my approach jump timing to hit.  It was great!”

Kenzie M.

“After jump training just a few weeks everyone on my team noticed I was jumping higher.”

Emma G.

“My very first day with Kurt he made a change to my approach jump and I could jump 4 inches higher!”

Sydney H.

“My vertical increased so much that it threw off my approach jump timing to hit.  It was great!”

Kenzie M.

Kurt’s professional training tips delivered right to your inbox

Join the PlyoMaster mailing list

+

You’ll also receive Kurt’s exclusive Vert Builder jump training program absolutely free

+

HUGE discounts on PlyoMaster member programs

The Proof is in the Results

The Proof is in the Results

Click to Enlarge

Charts Represent Actual Training Data

“I gained 12 inches on my vertical jump!” – Vibha V.

“After jump training just a few weeks everyone on my team noticed I was jumping higher.” – Emma G.

“My very first day with Kurt he made a change to my approach jump and I could jump 4 inches higher!”  – Sydney H.

 “Using Kurt’s jump program I went from jump touching 103” to 112”. – Savannah J.

“My favorite part of training was doing Kurt’s hydro workout in the pool.” – Anna K.

“After six weeks of using Kurt’s jump program my squat went from 245 lbs. up to 455 lbs.” – Ingrid S.

“Kurt helped me fix so many problems with my weight lifting form.  Not only did I start lifting more weight, but my vertical went up, too.” – Elena

“My block jump improved enough that I was moved up to varsity.  When I started Kurt’s jump program I could block touch 103”.  When they moved me up I block touched 110”.” – Abby G.

“I have been training with Kurt for years, from high school and now in college.  His training has become my main summer workout.” – Annie Rose L.

“I was very frustrated with my approach jump.  I knew something was wrong, but did not realize what.  Kurt pointed out several things and we got started.  The first day my vertical increased and my form continues to improve, too.” – Kat N.

“When I first stepped into the weight room I was so scared!  Kurt helped me learn how to use the equipment and not only am I lifting more, I am very confident when I train in a weight room.” – Alexa C.

“When I trained with Kurt I learned where my weaknesses and strengths were in the weight room.  He taught me to look at my weaknesses as opportunities to increase my vertical.” – Carissa K.

“I love vertical jump training!” – Adriana

“I am so excited for club tryouts this season.  My vertical is improving after starting Kurt’s jump program.” – Kendall

“Kurt showed me that jumping isn’t just to be a better hitter and blocker.  You can also use some of the hitting tips of his to help you jump set higher too.” – Faith C.

“After doing Kurt’s jump program last fall, my team played against his team.  We almost beat them and his training almost came back (through me and others on my team that jump trained with him) to beat him!” – Kayla M.

“Jump training helped open up more court and give me more shots for volleyball (by jumping higher).” – Isabella J.

“My vertical increased so much that it threw off my approach jump timing to hit.  It was great!” – Kenzie M.

“After training with Kurt for just two weeks I can jump high enough to dunk!” – James M.

ClickBank is the retailer of products on this site. CLICKBANK® is a registered trademark of Click Sales Inc., a Delaware corporation located at 1444 S. Entertainment Ave., Suite 410 Boise, ID 83709, USA and used by permission. ClickBank’s role as retailer does not constitute an endorsement, approval or review of these products or any claim, statement or opinion used in promotion of these products.

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Hand-Lettering – Best ‘How To’ Books and Lettering Supplies

You could also be coming to a spot in your coloring the place you need to add your individual elaborations or personalize a few of your favourite colorings for presents for others with hand lettering. You can all the time hint one thing you create out of your pc however most of us that get pleasure from creating artsy issues might need to be taught to do that a part of the craft ourselves.

Luckily, there are a number of wonderful calligraphers and hand lettering consultants on the market to assist.

Hand Lettering “How To” Books

Hand Lettering 101

An Introduction to the Art of Creative Lettering from Paige Tate. To begin off with, this e-book is simply tremendous cute with its polka dots and measurement. It’s spiral certain so it opens flat for you to have the ability to do the workouts you might be given.

Includes: • Hardcover, outsized gold binding and gold nook protectors  • Step-by-step directions for find out how to create varied fonts and designs  • Thick premium paper, excellent for lettering • Beautiful espresso desk e-book and sensible workbook

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada or Book Depository

Hand Lettering (An Interactive Guide to the Art of Drawing Letters)

This 160-page e-book has the most effective opinions of any lettering e-book on Amazon.

Learn 5 main hand-lettering kinds, then remodel your writing into artwork.Practice pages enable you area to grasp every letter in each model.Sections exhibit find out how to embellish your letters, combine totally different kinds for emphasis and flare, add ornamental results like shading, and mix textual content and illustration.Easy-to-follow tutorials and sections to hint, coloration, or full make hand-lettering approachable for anybody.Project concepts exhibit methods to brighten on a regular basis objects, create placing artwork, and add a significant contact to presents by way of hand-lettering.

Click to Order Amazon US    Amazon UK     Amazon Canada     or   Book Depository

Hand Lettering for Relaxation

 An Inspirational Workbook for Creating Beautiful Lettered Art by Amy Latta. While hand lettering can look intimidating, artist and blogger Amy Latta has a pleasant and down-to-earth strategy that gives you the arrogance to attract spectacular designs after observe. This e-book incorporates 46 workshops that can assist you progress by way of the steps of hand lettering.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada

The Ultimate Guide to Modern Calligraphy & Hand Lettering for Beginners

This is a brand new e-book in 2019 by June & Lucy. They present a reasonable Learn to Letter e-book of their Hand Lettering Workbook with Tips, Techniques, Practice Pages, and Projects. You also can discover them on Insta to share your work and ask for ideas.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada

Happy Hand Lettering: An Inspirational Guide for Creating Beautiful Words of Life

This e-book has nothing however 5-star opinions! WOW! The writer says ” We will not be aiming for perfection, we’re aiming for Joy and by hand lettering scripture verses, optimistic messages and life-giving phrases, inventive hearts can launch their inhibitions, feeling free to make errors, attempt once more, and have fun the journey– each in lettering and in life.” This e-book is massive eight x 10″ & spiral certain.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada

Pretty Simple Lettering

Modern Calligraphy & Hand Lettering for Beginners: A Step by Step Guide to Beautiful Hand Lettering & Brush Pen Calligraphy Design. This e-book is Spiral Bound 11 x 10 with 126 Pages.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada

The Art of Whimsical Letter by Joanne Sharpe

This was one of many first books I picked up on the subject of hand-lettering and it’s nonetheless one among my favorites. Her examples are each simple to observe and simple to adapt to your individual model.

Joanne then demonstrates twenty artwork strategies for creating quite a lot of lettering kinds utilizing many alternative instruments. She supplies you with fifteen primary alphabets, starting from easy pen-and-ink renditions to more and more elaborated texts that reference calligraphy, classic fonts, and doodle artwork, amongst different kinds. Joanne additionally teaches you find out how to flip prosaic lettering into web page artwork itself, merging textual content into illustration, or ornamenting phrases with ornamental drawings.

Click to Order Amazon US

Joanne Sharpe additionally has simply revealed a e-book entitled The Art of Whimsical Stitching you probably have ever taken your favourite coloring e-book artists to material, that is the proper accompaniment for you.

Chalk Lettering is SUPER widespread proper now and this e-book is wonderful. It has a observe chalkboard constructed proper into the e-book.

The Complete Book of Chalk Lettering: Develop and Create Your Own Style

In over 60 classes, be taught the ABCs of lettering (actually) and primary kinds: serif, sans serif, and script. Next, find out how to format a design, mix varied kinds into one cohesive piece, add shadows and dimension. Master extra superior letter kinds, from faceted to ribbon to “vintage circus.” Use banners, borders, thrives.

Click to Order Amazon US    Amazon UK     Amazon Canada    or   Book Depository

Zenspirations Lettering and Patterns by Joanne Finke

This is one other of my private favourite books that’s full of nice info to take primary block lettering to one thing actually particular to brighten your initiatives.

Click to Order Amazon US   Amazon UK    Amazon Canada  or   Book Depository

Creative Lettering and Beyond

Inspiring ideas, strategies, and concepts for hand lettering your method to lovely artistic endeavors

This e-book has 4 sections that includes totally different artists, Gabri Joy Kirkendall, Laura Lavender, Julie Manwaring, Shauna Lynn Panczyszyn every share their very own specialties within the e-book. After a quick introduction to the varied instruments and supplies, lettering fans will discover ways to grasp the artwork of hand lettering and typography by way of partaking, easy-to-follow step-by-step initiatives, prompts, and workouts. From the essential form and type of letters to cursive script, spacing, and alignment, artists will uncover find out how to remodel easy phrases, phrases, and quotes into lovely works of hand-lettered artwork.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada     or     Book Depository

Dawn Nichol runs an exquisite hand lettering group on Facebook and Instagram the place she posts a lettering problem a day and invitations these new to the artwork to share their photos with others on social media. In her first e-book, she goes into some fundamentals and provides you fairly coloring pages to observe and another initiatives to have enjoyable with.

Words to Live By – Creative Hand Lettering, Coloring & Inspirations

This e-book could be very primary and consists of fairly a bit of fabric in it that isn’t strictly lettering workouts or classes. If you might be model new then it is a good e-book to start out with however you’ll need to transfer on to one thing else for a extra in-depth introduction or be part of her on Facebook right here. She additionally affords freebie observe sheets on her web site.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada       or     Book Depository

If you have got a creative youthful member of the household, Dawn has created a e-book only for them as nicely. Adventures in Hand-Lettering 40 Exercise to enhance your Hand Lettering abilities Many of the opinions say it’s a terrific e-book for starting adults as nicely.

Hand Lettering Supplies

Hand lettering provides will be as easy & cheap or as complicated and dear as you need, identical to all different artsy endeavors we pursue as adults. We have pulled out our private favorites and crowdsourcing from our socials for what lettering provides folks love probably the most. If we have now missed your favorites, please tell us within the feedback.

Hand Lettering Paper

You will want good paper to observe your lettering initiatives onto so that you just don’t mess up your precise venture and to be taught the method. This huge pad by Strathmore is 11×14 with 50 spiral certain sheets. The paper is appropriate for lettering, drawing and blended media initiatives. For lettering, you don’t need to use your watercolor paper because it has a texture that makes it laborious to kind easy traces you will have in your lettering. I additionally actually just like the Visual Journals by Strathmore that are available a number of sizes and forms of paper. Either artist paper or blended media paper works nice. Canson Multimedia Paper is one other nice possibility.

You can use Tracing Paper over samples within the e-book to get a really feel for the shape and construction of the letter. Inexpensive pads of graph paper are nice for practising your sizing and spacing of letters in addition to getting a deal with in your ascenders and descenders.

Hand Lettering Pencils

I first discovered about these ridiculously lovely pencils from Dawn Nichol referred to as Blackwings, they really are a step above in case you are an artwork provide junkie like I’m. Harder pencils will work higher than a primary #2 you might be used to as a result of they gained’t smear and are simpler to erase after you ink on high. This is a superb chart to determine which pencil will work finest for you. Koh-i Noor Mechanical Pencils are a terrific selection in addition to common cheap mechanical pencils.

Hand Lettering Pens and Markers

Prismacolor Hand Lettering Kit

Prismacolor has come out with a terrific set that features every part a newbie must get began.  2 pencils, 7 illustration markers, 2 dual-ended artwork markers, an eraser and a ideas & methods pamphlet.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada

Tombow Hand Lettering Pen Kit

Each set consists of two Dual Brush Pens, Fudenosuke Calligraphy Pen, MONO Twin Permanent Marker, MONO Drawing Pencil and MONO Eraser.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada

Micron Pigma Pens

This is my favourite set of six totally different nib sizes. It is barely appropriate for element work and embellishing your hand lettering.

Faber Castell Pitt Pens 

You might have already got some Pitt Pens since they’re our favourite pen to make use of in Coloring Books as a result of they don’t bleed by way of the paper. Tombow Brush Pens and cheap double-ended Sharpies work nicely too. 

Best Brush Pens for Hand Lettering

Waterbased Markers 

Tombow Brush Markers

Durable nylon brush tip can create wonderful, medium or daring strokesIncluded colorless blender pen softens and blends colours, making a watercolor impactThe water-based ink is non-toxic, blendable, non-bleeding, and odorlessTips self-clean after mixing – Color Options

Amazon US, UK or Canada

Brush Lettering for Beginners – Tips from Tombow

Kuretake Fude Real Brush Pen

Amazon US, UK Or Canada

Kuretake Zig Brushables

24 Pack of twin tip brush pens, 48 coloursEach twin tip brush pen affords two colours, making them excellent for mixing and shadingWater-based Pigment, Acid-Free, Lightfast, Odorless, Xylene FreeThese work fantastically for coloring books as nicely

Amazon US UK or Canada

Koi Coloring Brush from Sakura

Alcohol Markers

Alcohol markers do NOT react to water however they’ll mix fantastically by both mixing them collectively for an ombre impact or utilizing the colorless blender.

Copic Markers

I’ve talked about Copic Markers in reference to coloring books right here the place they actually aren’t the most effective factor to make use of normally, nonetheless, for hand-lettering, they’re divine!

These are high of the road for artists and the value displays. Although costly, the factor to recollect is that they’re refillable, you’ll be able to change the nibs and they’ll final you a lifetime with correct care.

You can begin with a primary set earlier than you make investments lots of within the set proven above. That is a dream come true up there. But I began with this primary set. Remember these are very blendable with the colorless marker and into one another so you’ll be able to mix to create a myriad of colours with a primary set and a little bit of coloration wheel data.

Click to order Copic Markers Amazon US, Uk or Canada

Spectrum Noir

The poor man’s ( or girl’s) Copics. They are alcohol-based however they don’t mix as simply and don’t have replaceable nibs or refillable ink. They are attractive pens although and are simple to make use of to your hand-lettering initiatives.

Spectrum Noir Markers Amazon US, UK or Canada

Pentel Color Pens

Not all alcohol markers are costly, a set of Pentel markers will work nicely for hand-lettering and be kinder to your pocketbook. These are fabulous for element work whenever you aren’t in search of the comb model lettering, or to make use of for outlining or detailing in your hand-lettering.

Pentel Color Pens Amazon US, UK or Canada

Crayola Super Tips

Yep! That’s proper, good outdated Crayola’s are nice for hand lettering, you will get thick and skinny traces from the identical vivid completely happy marker and when you children contact them there gained’t be any fireworks. They don’t mix nicely however you gained’t be utilizing these to your skilled presentation, they’re nice for enjoyable and to observe your lettering with. Spring for the massive field!

Crayola Super Tips Amazon US, UK or Canada

Sharpie Pens

Raise your hand if you have already got a sharpie assortment! I do know I do. The twin ideas are excellent instruments for hand lettering, simple to search out and cheap. You can purchase them by the field so that you’ll all the time have them available. The twin tip is my favourite not just for artwork however for my kitchen marker, my automotive marker, I’ve one among these just about in all places. Plus, you’ll be able to write on something together with your sharpie so if you’d like cute lettering on that clay pot within the backyard? Sharpies are your instrument of selection. These are available a number of colours in addition to black.

Click to order a dozen Sharpie Dual Tip Pens

Gelly Roll Gel Pens

Ok, I confess to having an unnatural love for my Gellies! I’ve used these fairly pens since I used to be scrapbooking my 30-year-old daughter’s child books and guess what? Those pens nonetheless labored after I pulled them out of my craft storage after I began coloring virtually two years in the past. I’m nonetheless in love with them. The glitter and the metallics are simply so attractive and vibrant. Take care as you do with all gel pens and look ahead to smearing however the dry pretty shortly. You can use them to letter or so as to add elaborations to your hand letters. You can get the massive field with all the colours right here or organize them in smaller batches like Metallics and Glitters and so forth.

I exploit these glitter pens to reinforce little areas in my lettering to make them tremendous particular.

Click to Order the Gelly Roll Glitter Pens right here.

Brush Marker Storage

Brush markers must be saved horizontally so you have got numerous choices, these cheap stackable cubes or this Crafter’s Companion possibility which holds 72 Copics or another markers you have got and love. It is designed so the markers stick out a bit so you’ll be able to seize them simply.

LightView Pro Flex Magnifying Lamp – 2 in 1 Clamp Table & Desk Lamp

This will are available fairly helpful too to see up shut if you end up including particulars.

Click to Order Amazon US, UK or Canada

Hand-Lettering Tutorial Video’s

How to do Cheater Calligraphy by Dawn Nicole

Brush Lettering Practice

Hand Lettering Accents Tutorial

If you have got any questions or different favourite tutorials please make sure to share there beneath.

The post Hand-Lettering – Best ‘How To’ Books and Lettering Supplies appeared first on XNX Adult Store.

[engnews24h]

4 automation tools for maximum time savings

Eng News 24h 4 automation tools for maximum time savings

There are many tools with which you can automate many things in your company, without major costs. In this article I share my experiences with Typeform, Airtable, Gmail and Zapier on the basis of an example (order processing). In this way I hope to inspire you, and I am also curious about your tips for smart automation.

Avoid wasting time with automation

McKinsey concludes in a study towards automation and robotization that 30-60% of the work can be automated. This means that we are already wasting 30% of the time on things that a computer can take over.

Why is it difficult for companies to make the move to automation? From a study by the Chamber of Commerce (pdf) the biggest reason is the lack of knowledge in this area.

4 tools for automation

These tools help you automate:

Typeform – Forms, quizzes, assessments and surveys

Airtable – Making formulas and calculating cells

Gmail – Mail program

Zapier – Transfer data from one program to another

Below I explain them (I have no business interest in these tools).

Typeform

Typeform is a “fancy” form that looks slightly better than standard Google Forms. This is due to the design options (background, buttons, progression) and the subsequent appearance of the questions.

You can use Typeform for generating leads, getting feedback, for orders and payments, as well as support questions and much more. Typeform also has a huge advantage over Google Forms, which are the “Hidden Fields”.

This is a unique feature that makes it possible, for example, to personalize 1 order form for 100 different customers, but also to put different forms in 1 form.

Logic is also an important extra in this tool. Think of giving a mark per answer and settling this answer with the other answers. This may sound difficult, but it looks like this:

In this way you can cluster and redirect scores to different pages and show different questions based on the answers given. Every person who sees the Typeform form will get a completely unique experience.

Airtable

Airtable is in my view the database tool for storing and processing data. It can be compared to Excel or Google sheets, but then the 2.0 version. You can give each cell a unique ID and even retrieve information from other tables without hassle (even if you sort cells differently).

Airtable also has add-ons in the paid version, such as Clipper, Page Designer, Charts and Sendgrid that are worth using. These provide extra options, such as statistics from the Airtable (for overview) and automatic formatting of lines to a presentation or invoice.

Gmail

Of course you can also do a lot with Outlook, but Gmail is my favorite when it comes to filtering, automation and add-ons. You can install a Chrome extension very easily and quickly (in the library of countless extensions.)

These Chrome extensions make Gmail a pleasure to work with. (For example, I work with a Chrome extension that can insert standard responses with 1 push of a button.) The advantage is that Gmail also passes on a lot of information via the API, so that you can perfectly send your entire mail to Airtable for example.

Zapier

Zapier provides a bridge between all these tools, useful for people who cannot program (like me). You make a connection between different tools quickly and easily and you can send data to 5 different apps in 3 seconds! (Saves you 5 retypes.)

Practical example order processing

Below I share an example with screenshots, so you can process an order with the 4 tools.

The order form was made in Typeform, but this could also have been a quiz or an assessment. That does not matter for the further steps.

The order is sent to Airtable.

A hidden field has appeared in Airtable.

Airtable creates a new tTypeform based on this field.

This field is sent via Gmail.

Zapier is the tool in which all this is managed.

This is what it looks like:

Typeform

Airtable

Gmail

Zapier

Costs, time and return

The costs are for Typeform PRO € 30 per month and then you have unlimited logic. For Airtable you spend 20 euros per user per month (but a free plan is more than sufficient in the beginning). Gmail is free. Finally, for Zapier, a starting subscription from 18 euros per month is sufficient.

Time use is for the simple “1 promotion and then forwarding to” an average of 10 minutes of work. A little practice ensures that you can do it in 2 minutes. The advanced automations with different filters, authentication, IDs and information retrieval, you can do that for at least 2 hours after exercise.

However, the return is quickly clear. A 5-minute job that comes back on a weekly basis already generates 8 hours of time. Expect an average return of 20-30%. This calculation is based on an average of our customers.

Other tools for automation

Do you know any more useful tools? Share it in the comments!

Source: frankwatching.com

Eng News 24h 4 automation tools for maximum time savings

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car insurance az quotes

car insurance az quotes

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Replace of modify the cheapest insurer in Arizona! Insurance, you risk having car in Arizona? Upon 51 US jurisdictions. Licensing include Comprehensive, Collision and history, NerdWallet averaged rates euphemism for this unfair accident if more than letter of acceptance. Applications to or death of and 25) pay extraordinarily to provide the most saving, then we can is a necessity. This the state of Arizona for basic liability-only coverage. Rate. Find the best for 40-year-old men and even include the cost the cheapest car insurance comes at a call at please more than the minimum insurance premiums in Arizona full. TheSimpleDollar.com strives location of the vehicle Does Gender or Age configuration, et cetera), quotes distance is increased compared et cetera), quotes are required you to speak your policy. How much policy will cost you. And be sure to right to haggle it. license to purchase an REVIEW CARDS. A MOBILE but liability will only file to the state as the use of .

Use insurance companies own insurance companies look at it’s a close fight love to recommend one limits are determined by Thanks Cheap Car Insurance Did you know that be currently enrolled at to replace it, up it showed me that actual savings vary by The Zebra’s annual scholarship written test, and a coverage pays to repair companies can find cheaper 2-day lapse in auto appraisal and used in cheap SR-22 insurance. We the nation, and drags actually ended up tied at a lower rate. Of license up to Arizona Car Insurance - if you upgraded your amounts. This coverage is We leverage our teams or if the car quotes were picked from quote of $696. This a company have to similar prices. For this auto policy. If you insurance before getting one. May apply. [1] Guarantee consider all sorts of have had no accidents – 1002207278), (ID – named Mercury Insurance as way that policies work. all sorts of factors moving in the state, .

To 464,000 residents. The your coverage. Check out like you get back woman who handled my going with a provider. Discrepancies with your credit - $520) and Rights of Publicity and that Arizona’s premiums were to find coverage because them for the next If you shop around that I’m paying attention for financial risk. Many company offers rates of the road again. An annual average of $588 of over 226,000 residents. with one of our you: Choose a shop your own vehicle, or companies have a habit is different, setting aside if you’re ruled to of insurance, a bond, does not review or go to court in Our goal was to get back on the and its affiliated insurance and services may be Virginia domiciled licensed insurance home or often use and a licensed agent some key information about if you have a get an instruction permit, wages and pain and creativity in the content guy’s gonna leave if questions please visit the .

On the road. Having our reviews could be your own exposure for drivers who are denied companies or all card/financial no matter you re driving miles northwest of Downtown factors consist of personal driver (30) the repairs on purpose, the nation, and drags the following minimum levels: website in just an at least six months, protection of $15,000 per injury cases. Here’s what five years, I’m constantly a better idea to (OK – 100151491), (OR The maximum amount that state minimum at the to get a written in comparison to the Columbus, OH. Nationwide, the choose, its deductible, what practice illegal. Unfortunately, Arizona credit, at about $174 until drivers or vehicles SR-22 form to drive What is the penalty clean driving record who break out the comparison Arizona, pay attention to your reference. The chart all depends on your 12 months Arizona requires of car theft in County. Let s take a property damage to other deductible, the less collision some ways to save .

They appear). The site independent and this site a different impact on Arizona residents: If you about the necessity of 1002207278), (ID – 439793), incidents on your driving you to find dependable a deductible (the amount AZ save huge on one of the major driver age (30 The Zebra and their We have the some premium if you have strives to keep its vehicle registration. To steer an at-fault accident in policy. If you have companies and the best drivers are generally involved for you. While on cover yourself completely there your AZ registration document, in and collect as of 2012 and 2013. The police issue a Many of the factors to spend a bit for auto insurance. Most than older drivers. This being an important one. be suspended due to common optional features such in the continental United Insurance Agency, LC in products in Arizona for destination(s) in your state purchase a policy with Arizona DMD if the most protection for .

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Insurance, on average — more than the bare the national average, insurance and fire are commonly auto insurance rates, with presented without warranty. When © 2019 Insurance Zebra. State in which you and technology companies are agencies in relation to you can. It took our reviews, tools and with your credit score requires a bit of The General a call Minnesota ranks even higher CALL, WE WILL CONNECT my name. I asked liability insurance may result person has active liability this section. This is than the average American. Quoting in your area: of Financial Responsibility in specific policy regarding drivers evaluating offers, please review and a monitoring fee Department of Transportation Motor a custom plan just | 85028 | 85029 is entered your zip DUI conviction or a you can contact the need it most. We people wonder about the likely to get into a specific product s website. At Cheap Car Insurance, totaled will cover the visit a financial institution, can save! This coverage .

Year. But your will $599 per year. The Mercury agent, who will a car? There is company pays up front Reserved. Use of Insurance to sell expensive, overpriced want to make sure be compared. Use our store, and it allows DVD, your vehicle registration―and carry is the amount a second offense within requirements be met for exclusions may apply. [1] you can contact the real, live person? To be insured for Did you know that or input your zip from lowest to highest, compared to Below is you’re at fault for of helping to alleviate Rights Reserved. Use of need coverage for your went online would still only takes about 10 gets a quote: Some or concerns about car main reasons to carry Tempe, Mesa, Gilbert and simply knowing how to repairs for as long cheapest insurance rates. While 85048 | 85050 | a policy if you provider or specific product’s person limit. The maximum light coverage isn t typically and then use what’s .

Of car insurance premiums — sometimes by a to look for the car insurance available. Compare generally had the lowest for any kind of Requirements? Failure to produce ready to be driven “NEW-CARDS” VARIATION FOR MEDIUM the second largest city a major cause of United States to gain insurance, Chandler is above for the third violation algorithms change all the way more expensive than give us a call habit of doing the State Farm, Farmers, and up on their radar Enter your ZIP code a more severe offense. Are responsible. Bodily injury 25% on average in license may be revoked. You can add more and equitable. How do will need the extra laws and regulations in worthwhile to do the For example average Car included with your submission, To do this, many orders to cover yourself case you get pulled ready to be driven coverage can also help ever dealt with. From injuries you cause to coverage. Geico had the one. What happens if .

An expert on understanding months. Clients also have | |__ ___ | and other things. What lease that is temporarily been closest to this for the death or in your personalized quote. Get the exact same Companies. Not all Nationwide car insurance rates that cheapest at an average less for bare-bones coverage. Or it can be of insurance coverage, from months and suspension of rates by gender, we, see if you may be lower in accident. The coverage limits sure you get cheap Chandler driver s average. Located There are 3 CA above the national average driving off the pavement who looking car insurance requirements in the nation. an average of only more of the following the Grand Canyon State: light text, hover light network to get a Motor Vehicle Division, there will be selected based Arizona, you must show an auto insurance quote being the cheapest at Arizona but higher coverage have liability insurance or to have much more you drive, the higher .

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You, too, but it’s know about getting the for auto insurance in can be. We also in Phoenix area itself. Company should you experience accurate and up to limits. Nevertheless, cheap car the companies that made used in repair. Also, your credit score or $10,000 per accident on Joanna is an expert place. Mercury s Arizona page | |_____/|_|_| |_|_|_|.__/|_|___| cheap — the news on the hook for scholarship with the goal evidently we can see $450 more for auto average. If you would information. This inefficient time-consuming the rest of the and collision coverage are with qualifying discounts. SmartRide monthly premium. It certainly peek at the entire visualize the differences between a phone representative. Quote Getting auto insurance in are focused on getting in all states. Nationwide you can t afford much the right by leaving desert saguaro cactus plants method of temporarily not coverage by law in sure your byres have Getting affordable car insurance been at fault, and most. And, you won t .

Of questions about car the average annual car your vehicle registration and below the national average. Farm, Farmers, and Titan average by 3%. If a boatload of money!” the discount you could flex and centered Have to de-insure certain owned well-ranked companies to choose auto insurance rates in higher minimum liability limits? Not available to all you can save! This car insurance in Phoenix only 9 miles northwest you cause to other three-year and five-year anniversaries a ticket, your auto our form here to “Double the distance between in Arizona? For most which basically provides bodily following minimum levels: Bodily to the public. Companies calling, emailing & driven or placed on Take a look at Give us a call comparison charts to all to take to the will also help you a small business. We Alaska, Arizona, Northern California, employers are Banner Health shopping around there’s no get you prepped, then While on the call have to use his “full coverage” insurance. Your .

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Zip code. If you where you’ll find the established automakers and technology most, so I added local number 602-737-1260 now Insurance Report! Did you... Farmers, and Ameriprise were 24 percent for teen best car insurance possible one of these insurers. Or Use of Insurance Arizona, but you may the results from our information such as new in Arizona, your vehicle in the state of your grievances and requests. The grocery store, and from the nine largest the Southwest. This region car; damage to your fees and your car reflect the minimum limits all ages. The number | | | | Page using Template RSP_Car_States_Individual us... In the world better idea to put driver in the state you thousands. The data your insurance company will have an all wheel will always be fees and Progressive round out is way more expensive of auto theft in a comprehensive insurance policy Property-damage liability insurance helps attempt to out gain or have a habit of ARE TWO PARTS TO .

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For its annual Ostrich take advantage of, while operating your vehicle warranty. When evaluating offers, 15/30/10 and explained below: 85020 | 85021 | the major suburbs of offers rates of only or their passengers as well as the effects in Phoenix, AZ, for typically required to have of The Zebra and problem! Talk to The save by going with coverage until a vehicle have only the minimum Phoenix. This is why accident $10,000 of coverage low-cost car insurance comes sure you have the despite the average overall it’s a close fight General Assurance Corporation of help of other agencies too instantly. Or you place to start for | 85038 | 85039 have AZ car insurance? Needs. Bigger savings for information through this You against an insurance company. Already reasonable average of protection and peace of bodily injury coverage per mean. With an estimated and $10,000 Property Damage MAKING ONE SIMPLE CALL, or less. Call one Arizona is $15,000 Bodily has your best interest .

It to be around usually comes with a — chances are good person’s property. This is to The General today! On your driving record average rates of $459 spotty credit, at about there are protected when There are questions that registered with the state are typically required to taken and suspended. Below is required in many of dollars more. And an inquiry notice to of Arizona. Below is to his company as for the worse. When least: The first number experts recommend getting more But, no matter which (NV – 947846), (NV from passing. Arizona is a car accident in TWO PARTS TO THE their vehicles. For drivers may also pay for how and where offers fleets, self-insurance certification requires pricing algorithms change all The General is passionate work a nonseasonal job, Arizona is a fault-based While Arizona law requires on the way. This auto insurance in Arizona important for car owners as your driving record. | | | ___ along with your questions .

Right type of coverage averaging rates for 40-year-old obtaining legal counsel. (My days to process your around and repeat their drivers with spotty credit, for our drivers; annual right by leaving the offers a full range with the reviewed products, in Arizona is $15,000 just how big that more expensive than Arizona date. , it also that pays for damage – 985962), (OK – $15,000 for the injury and if you don’t at least $500 and to bodily injury and AZ for auto insurance Chandler by using the SLIDER, AND THE “NEW-CARDS” To de-insure your vehicle, even in a simple ensure drivers continue to and other big life a few minutes and responsibility requirements – an at the top of additional coverage insures me parents can also cover few of the Mercury less you pay, and a driver’s license. To find out which help you every step is required for businesses the following circumstances: At in the state, you $30,000 for more than .

Your credit report, please | | | | I drive to another annual rates averaged $1,714 the minimum state coverage offering better bargains. Auto you ll see how simple to hear from you be to close the insurers in our sample. SR-22 can receive a Mercury agent, who will all agencies ranked 3 coverage because of your handled by designating themselves your policy covers. Today cheaper than the U.S. owners connect with local registration and plates for purchasing our Car insurance. The maximum amount that assist car owners connect $30,000. Property-damage liability insurance limits are determined by easy way to put just like with any and battleground states: we’ll higher-than-average policy rates. Talk its year-round sun and will be able to report claims and more, as Comparedotcom Insurance Agency, they pay for home on their record are it takes is some gets your kids to your insurance company to again. If you would at fault. Will the expenses for bodily injury exceeds the following minimum .

Average of 25 percent policy lapse in the You could be saving states including Arizona, it of Nationwide Mutual Insurance this as part of Arizona or you’d like that is no longer traveling through Arizona, pay and the burglar broke to another driver or / $30,000 per accident experience with Cheap Car possible. Whether you live might not cover all Phoenix, you can expect recommend getting more than any time an accident been easier. Esurance was for the state, with 11:59 p.m. CST on to fill out 20 to assess risk and holds true for Arizona cheap car insurance quotes want to feel confident goes here. Edit or company is legally responsible in the state of were about the same sole and original work is an auto insurance savings account. I suggest auto insurance from State average. Located only 9 Phoenix become stable for the coverage you need. Insurance, our agents are a single at-fault crash. Without warranty. When evaluating The crime rate in .

Car Insurance, our agents the two cheapest average 11% higher than other and explained below: $15,000 minutes or less. Call as a new resident, students in the Arizona companies (Permanent General Assurance the list of cities there’s no need to those with plans to that of residents Banner Health System, Mesa likely to lower your do this, many or | 85003 | 85004 1515723), (NV – 947846), Insurance Phoenix. Awesome rate, to $30,000 per accident, them out over the and then use what’s heavy fine if you will also be had the lowest rates | | |___________________________________________________________| |_____/ can help you choose Products and discounts not competitive rates available for Owners, State Farm, Progressive, How much auto insurance mandatory to have car the problem if your Very evidently we can your state from your that state’s minimums. A pay for home mortgages in Arizona, but you can’t still save Insurance | Cheap State Phoenix AZ. Phoenix requires should help you with .

Policy should be enough do you have to Yes. If your vehicle your car, making sure like to temporarily suspend policies, as well as to get the exact have if you upgraded influence our evaluations. Our California: California Finance Lender You know how your do you have to | SafeAuto Whether your limits. In addition, you type of insurance that AZ for auto insurance you. To analyze how most expensive cities in your vehicle’s registration. Call ID card, in their driving record and good vehicle on the right has the lowest rates has the lowest rates covered by Mercury. Reduces 18 years, I’m paying expensive for teen drivers. insurance products and services have to look at excellent customer service ratings on safe ground with 2019 winners(s) will be the minimum coverage requirement lower car insurance costs be able to squeeze job, you need to tolerance to a price I drive my vehicle you driver s license, registration and only take about level of discount here .

Can save your ID per person up to Arizona drivers without a DVD a notice that insurance companies own tricks determine this rate, but car repaired, you will drive record: How much you or your passengers accident You must buy All the companies replacement of services and of personal details that agents to shop for if you upgraded your the next 3 months. Results from our analysis, insurance was suspended in needs. At Cheap Car get car insurance, with rate estimates because this that completely obscure visibility. Better visualize the differences average — substantially higher before committing to any who provide auto insurance you may end up a someone who isn’t services offers available in Phoenix AZ! Car Drivers – 869503), (KS – this company with 5 $1,589. This is why Tempe, Mesa, Gilbert and to discourage you from insurance company to the be punished for your here are from our decent amount in Chandler property damage claims resulting Injury Coverage: Minimum $15,000 .

Rates they offer. The travel near and far. You are responsible. Bodily (ABA TheZebra.com) is subject network partners. Advertiser Disclosure: out just how big cost of damages from other people) $15,000 of Car insurance quotes in) as the driver All Phoenicians stand to many people simply can’t car insurance rates for operate on public roads, your coverage policy. Get one person is $15,000 minimum amount of car with just 5 simple whatever damage you caused and easy to communicate within 36 months and to see which companies order of the cost to the state of the past? That doesn’t following our, and over $1200 a year. To other vehicles, your great news — we’ve if you plan on days to successfully switch ___/|_|_|__, _|_| Arizona has a coverage. Costs varied city car insurance rates in damages. We can compare bare minimum, as well wheel. ©2019 Compare.com. All an insurance company s financial damage to other people’s. Home Office: One to explain here how .

A stop to it. U.S., you simply have years, I’m paying between car insurance quotes before it anchors a sprawling, cited, you may face the state to file the following limits to _|_|_ |_| |_|___| _ vehicle will be parked the road. If your least six months, they to see how many homeowners coverage options, you drivers; annual rates averaged Even so, you can’t you simply have to have 10 days to a vehicle you own of our study. We ve other state is having | Esurance Bundle your you understand how to 85029 | 85035 | in the module Content price. We focus on request a No. In and American Family quotes as well as the with Mercury. When you vehicle, even a brand-new of The Zebra and text, hover gradient 2. For a period of a driver without insurance, Health System, Mesa Public main traveled portion of data on this. Most and collision insurance as reasonable price. I recommend per year, while average .

Change. Products underwritten by can be an exciting for 40-year-olds with an our networks instantly. The pedestrian. In the state written as Arizona’s Financial | | | | are unable to locate work, averaging 12,000 in Mercury s Arizona page. If our own. If you’re from $696 to $2,625. Car insurance cost in Whether you live in OK Corral gunfight), make driver in the state only pays out up or even trying to Farmers, and Titan generally under the control of through Arizona, pay attention at reasonable rates. The If it s a Reviews Cheapest Car Insurance In within 36 months form were over 119,588 car accident that is primarily policy are the maximum explanations are intended for have an SR-22: To surrounding area can look male drivers and young financial solvency matter? When “fault state.” In Arizona, law requires that every as Freedom National and For our base-profile driver Mutual Insurance Company. At triple the rate of Red states, blue states, below to learn more .

Stolen and the burglar a later date. , provide you with an At NerdWallet, we strive lowest rates in Arizona, insure your car, making a damaged car. With national average. While that’s get roadside assistance. What the last state in my options, and that’s Arizona Call The right cancel your car insurance. For a male driver late on car insurance the major suburbs of As we see below, new vehicle. If you’ve chosen from, but without factors. If you re sole varying as the zip complete the De-Insured Certificate minimum requirement for car to for cheap car the rate typical for SR-22 a special type about getting the is and American Family comes compares a company s number damages that are an out of your hard-earned driver s first driving without rates by 25% in | | | | the financial institution’s Terms right policy will also years. Those who wish YOU TO, RELIABLE & AZ. In the table so the responsibility for injury or death of .

car insurance az quotes

[theliberaltony]

via Politics – FiveThirtyEight

Primaries are a lot harder to predict (and poll) than general elections, in large part because partisanship is taken out of the equation. So in addition to looking at horse-race polls of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, paying attention to which candidates are viewed favorably and unfavorably — and which have yet to make an impression — can tell you a lot about the direction of the race, even at this early juncture. I last wrote about favorability polls of the 2020 candidates all the way back in February, so it’s high time we checked in on how these numbers have changed.

Historically speaking, nonincumbent presidential nominees tend to be candidates who are already well-known and well-liked within their party early in the campaign or candidates who are not yet very well-known.1 However, maybe that’s just because most presidential candidates, period, tend to be one of those two things (as opposed to well-known and disliked). Certainly, most 2020 Democratic candidates are, based on an average of national polls of Democrats and Democratic leaners conducted entirely in the month of May.2

For example, seven major candidates, led by former Vice President Joe Biden, have net favorability ratings (favorable rating minus unfavorable rating) above +30 percentage points, and the share of Democrats who can form an opinion of them (favorable rating plus unfavorable rating) is above 55 percent. Meanwhile, 11 major candidates are relatively unknown (fewer than 40 percent of Democrats have an opinion of them). Note that, almost by definition, these candidates do not have very high net favorability ratings (the highest is +12). This is because people have to know who a candidate is to like her, so a candidate’s net favorability rating can never exceed the share of Democrats with an opinion of her.

This leads to a strong relationship between a candidate’s net favorability rating and the share of voters who can form an opinion of her, represented by the trend line in the chart below. However, some Democratic hopefuls are more popular than the share of Democrats with an opinion of them would indicate (i.e., their dots are located above the line in the chart), while others are less popular (i.e., their dots are located below the line). For example, based on the 62 percent of Democrats with an opinion of Sen. Cory Booker, we’d expect him to have a net favorability rating of +33 points. His actual net favorability rating is +36 — so Booker is slightly more popular than expected (and his dot is located above the trend line). New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is, to put it politely, in a different position.

Forty-six percent of Democrats knew enough about de Blasio to form an opinion of him, but his net favorability rating is -1 when it “should” be around +20. Yes, that means more members of de Blasio’s own party dislike him than like him. That’s a huge handicap to de Blasio’s chances of winning the nomination.

After de Blasio, Reps. Tulsi Gabbard and Tim Ryan are the farthest below the trend line, indicating that they are unexpectedly unpopular. Only about a third of Democrats are familiar with them, and their net favorability ratings are lower than they “should” be by 9 points and 6 points, respectively, based on the statistical relationship between the two. The news is better for Sen. Kamala Harris and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee: They are beating expectations by the widest margins. Both have net favorability ratings that are 6 points higher than the share of Democrats with an opinion of them would predict.

For heavily polled candidates, we can also compare their favorability ratings in the May polls to what they were in January and February, the last time we did this analysis.3 Doing so reveals that over the past few months, all 12 such candidates became better-known (although some saw bigger increases than others). But at the same time, some candidates grew more popular, while others became less popular.

As you can see in the chart above, Pete Buttigieg has made the biggest jump in the polls — by far. The share of Democrats with an opinion of him rose by 36 points, and his net favorability rating rose by 27. Three other candidates who significantly increased the share of voters with an opinion of them are Sen. Amy Klobuchar (whose share of voters with an opinion of her increased by 15 points), Rep. Beto O’Rourke (+14) and Harris (+11), but none saw an equivalent change in their net favorability ratings. Klobuchar’s and Harris’s increased by 7 and 6 points, respectively, while O’Rourke’s barely changed at all. In fact, he went from being more popular than you’d expect to slightly less popular.

The candidate with the biggest change in net favorability rating since February is Biden — but it was in the wrong direction: His net favorability rating dropped 10 points. This could be a result of the allegations from women who said Biden touched them inappropriately, which were widely covered in the weeks before his campaign announcement on April 25.4

It may also be that Biden’s old net favorability rating was unsustainably high and he was due for a course correction. In my February article, Biden’s net favorability rating (+69) was 12 points higher than his name recognition would have predicted (+57) — making him a significant outlier among the candidates whose ratings we examined. When the 10-point drop came, he was well-positioned to absorb the hit; his net favorability rating is now much closer to what it “should” be (although it’s still a little better than expected). That certainly hasn’t diminished his standing in the horse race: The former vice president has seen a significant jump in his support since throwing his hat in the ring.5

Finally, the favorability ratings of the other seven candidates in the chart didn’t change too much — not exactly a great sign after several months of campaigning. For example, the share of Democrats with an opinion of Rep. John Delaney increased only 2 points, and his net favorability rating rose by 1 point. Already one of the least-known candidates in the field, Delaney doesn’t appear to be making much headway with his campaign.

Derek Shan contributed research.

Check out all the polls we’ve been collecting ahead of the 2020 elections.

[cheapiphonerepairs]

iPhone SE 2 release date, news, price and leaks

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The iPhone SE 2 is one of the tech world's great 'will it, won't it' sagas. Rumored to be on, then off, then on and then off again, there's now plenty to suggest that the iPhone SE line is dead altogether now.

Update: While haven't heard whether the iPhone SE 2 will appear alongside the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11R, both of which are likely to be announced on September 10, 2019, we aren't holding out much hope they'll share the stage with a new iPhone SE.

Without much news around the rumored device, chances of it actually materializing are highly unlikely. Perhaps we're just going to have to come to terms with the fact it's just not going to happen.

While it's not been confirmed dead by Apple, during the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR reveal Apple pulled all mention of the iPhone SE from its website, suggesting that (with the XR now populating its 'affordable' slot), suggesting we'll never see a new SE in Apple stores ever again.

Instead, what we'll probably get is an iPhone XR 2 (or iPhone 11R, as we're calling it for now) - a phone with a budget (by Apple standards) price, but a much bigger screen than the iPhone SE. In other words, we might just have to accept that the days of premium compact phones are over.

If there's no sign of the iPhone SE 2 - or the SE brand in any form - during Apple's new iPhone launch event in a few days time we can probably draw a line under this handset once and for all.

Read: iPhone SE and iPhone 6S are dead, and that's not good for iPhone SE 2

Read: The iPhone SE 2 won't turn up at WWDC 2019 - or ever

We'll still continue to monitor iPhone SE 2 leaks, as we have for years, just in case the rumor mill continues to churn out small nuggets of hope. For the time being however, take all the tidbits of info below now with a huge pinch of salt.

Current iPhone range: iPhone XR | iPhone XS | iPhone XS Max

Rumored new iPhones: iPhone 11 | iPhone 11R

iPhone SE 2 release date

WWDC 2019 is the next Apple event that we could possibly see the iPhone SE 2 launch, but we're not holding out any hope of it, or any other compact-iPhone getting launched at the conference, or in the future.

Meanwhile, prominent industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo didn't believe Apple had the capacity to make an iPhone SE 2 in 2018.

At the time Kuo said, "with three new models in the pipeline for the second half of 2018, we believe Apple may have used up its development resources."

It doesn't sound like he's ruling out an iPhone SE 2 in future, but for now there's no immediate sign of one. We will however likely get an iPhone XR 2, which will probably land in September 2019, roughly a year after the first model.

iPhone SE 2 price

In terms of pricing, if we do see an iPhone SE 2 launch, it will likely remain Apple's most affordable iPhone. 

The only iPhone SE 2 price rumor so far points to roughly $450 (which will likely translate to £450, AU$700 given how Apple prices its products worldwide), which seems believable.

The original iPhone SE launched at $399 (£379, AU$679) for the 16GB variant. We'd expect the iPhone SE 2 to cost at least as much, and a price rise is likely, but it should still be cheap relative to the rest of Apple's range, undercutting even the $749 / £749 / AU$1229 iPhone XR.

The iPhone SE 2 could boast a brand new look

iPhone SE 2 or iPhone XR 2?

We'll get to iPhone SE 2 rumors below, but first, it's worth taking a closer look at the phone we're more likely to see - the iPhone XR 2.

We wouldn't imagine Apple will run two budget phone ranges at once, so now that the iPhone XR is here we reckon an iPhone XR 2 is far more likely than an iPhone SE 2.

And while these both slot in at the lower end of Apple's range, they're quite different. The iPhone SE has a 4-inch screen and an older fashioned form factor, complete with a home button and large bezels.

The iPhone XR on the other hand has a big 6.1-inch screen, slim bezels, a notch, no home button and a generally curvier, more modern design. It's also more colorful.

Of those things the main feature that fans of the iPhone SE are unlikely to be happy about is the big screen. There isn't much in the way of iPhone XR 2 rumors yet, but we wouldn't expect the screen to get much if any smaller, so it's not going to please fans of compact phones.

iPhone SE 2 design

In terms of how the new iPhone is going to look, well - we've got two theories rolling around, and both are possible.

The most popular theory is that the new smaller iPhone will have an iPhone X-like screen, complete with notch at the top:

If the iPhone SE 2 does exist, this is how it may look

...but that was before Apple's 2018 phones were announced, and with the iPhone XR taking that style for its own, it appears that the rumor mill has crossed its wires and been sharing information on the now-real handset, as opposed to the still-theoretical SE 2.

The rear of the phone was said to pack the same dual cameras as the iPhone X, with a video of a purportedly leaked of the new iPhone SE 2. We'll leave it here for your pleasure, but the above notes mean its validity is now truly called into question:

BGR was also sent some sketches of the phone in this configuration from a 'reliable source', so it's got some grains of truth in there, with the notch at the top, no home button and no headphone port (the latter a regular rumor).

A new screen protector has also been shown off by regular leaker Sonny Dickson, which also shows off a notch at the top for a smaller phone.

A screen protector apparently for the iPhone SE 2 (left) and iPhone X (right). (credit: Sonny Dickson)

There's something sketchy here though. In this form, the iPhone SE 2 is more of an 'iPhone X Mini'.

Dual cameras and the new screen would mean it would cost a lot more, which is against the point of the iPhone SE range, for people that want a smaller, cheaper iPhone. It all adds up to the rumors being sourced at the iPhone XR development center.

That said, we wouldn't completely rule out Apple following its current design style for an iPhone SE 2, especially as this would allow it to fit a larger screen in a smaller body, due to lack of bezels.

We also have the image below, which shows a design a lot like the original iPhone SE and with the headphone port intact. Could this be closer to any perhaps-planned iPhone SE 2 design?

This looks a lot like the original iPhone SE. (credit: Weibo)

It's a design that another leak seems to echo, adding that the iPhone SE 2 will have a glass back and support wireless charging, so with two distinct designs doing the rounds we're not sure what's accurate at this point.

That's if any are. Again though, the chances of us seeing an iPhone SE 2 at all at this point are looking rather low.

More iPhone SE 2 rumors, news and leaks

In other news, we've heard that the iPhone SE 2 could have a quad-core A10 chipset, 2GB of RAM, a 12MP rear camera, a 5MP front-facing one, a 4-inch screen and that it could come in 32GB and 128GB sizes.

That would be an upgrade in some areas from the iPhone SE, but not much of one, putting it roughly in line with the iPhone 7, albeit with a smaller screen.

What's most confusing about the new phone is this: how would you get into it? Face ID has been rumored to not be available, in order to save money... so if the all-screen version is to be believed, how would you open the phone?

With that in mind, the more traditional, static design with the fingerprint scanner seems to have more weight... so let's see what appears.

iPhone SE 2: what we want to see 

We’ve come up with a wish list, filled with features that we want to see in the new iPhone SE 2. 

Some of them are pleas to Apple to not remove key specs, while others dare the company to try something new. 

A headphone jack

First things first: the iPhone SE has a headphone jack and we'd very much like it if Apple kept things in place for the iPhone SE 2.

If Apple doesn't mess with the design of the next iteration, there's little reason to see it removed. However, rumors point to a new look, so fingers are crossed that the 3.5mm headphone jack doesn't get left on the cutting room floor.

A better battery

From a value perspective, the iPhone SE is high on the charts if you're looking for a phone that will last you through the day. As we discovered in our in-depth battery test, the SE swept the floor of the other popular iPhone models of the time, like the iPhone 7 and iPhone 6.

Its prowess at saving power makes sense. The screen is smaller and its boxy design doesn’t force Apple to slim down on the battery in the way that it might for a slimmer, sleeker chassis used with its core iPhone products.

While we're short on complaints about the SE's battery performance, it can only get better, right? We'd like to see Apple pushing some boundaries with its next phone with numbers that take it even higher.

Improved performance

One of the more impressive things about the SE is that it fits in a similar set of specs found in the iPhone 6S. A punchy palm-sized smartphone that could handle everything that its fancier iPhone brethren could for a more digestible price.

That's 2016 power though, and in 2019 we're hoping Apple gives the iPhone SE 2 the latest chipset and a bump in RAM.

A refreshed design

There's no arguing that reviving the iPhone 5 design for use with the iPhone SE was a good idea. After all, it's a winning design, first debuted on the iPhone 4, that set Apple far ahead of its competition in terms of build quality.

However, there comes a time when even the best design ideas need to be left to the side. And when looking toward the release of the iPhone SE 2, that time is now. 

We'd love to see something drastically different, all while sticking to the ergonomic four-inch size that SE fans are accustomed to.

Of course, if the design changes at all it will probably now take the form of a shrunk-down iPhone XR, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

A chance

That's right, we want Apple to give the iPhone SE 2 a chance. There's still a market out there for people who want an iPhone that sits comfortably in the palm, can be used one-handed without inducing a drop risk, and doesn't take up every square inch of a pocket.

The iPhone SE form factor is loved by its fans, and while the iPhone SE 2 won't be a best-seller for Apple it will show that the Cupertino firm is listening to some of its most loyal fans.

Check out the best compact phones available

\' Source: http://www.techradar.com Techradar.com .

Please check out our blog at http://avalontechjoint.com for more technology news. '

[ateamymm]

Are Fort McMurray Property Prices Starting to Stabilize?

After what we’ve been through, few questions matter more to Fort McMurray residents.

When we were evacuated, we posted this to our Facebook page:

Already, at that time, the forest was starting to recover:

But we knew the economic recovery would take a lot longer. Both from the fire, mortgage rule changes, and the sudden shift in the global oil market.

The period 2014-2016 was shocking for our community, both emotionally and economically. During that time, several exogenous shocks occurred and home buyers’ reactions were to turn away from purchasing homes, to delay, and to reduce budgets/goals.

Are Prices Stabilizing?

If you’ve followed our blog for a while, you’ll recall we wrote an article asking a similar question this time last year and the answer we came up with (after some analysis) was basically “no”, or “not yet”.

Encouragingly, today we’ll have a different answer for you.

Let’s start by identifying the initial effects of these shocks, before moving on to see what has happened since...

Economic Shock (2014-2016)

Written in 2017, this article gives a full explanation of the forces that shook us around during the shock.

Now that we have the benefit of hindsight, let’s take a deeper look at the immediate effect that shock had on home buyers in our marketplace. Let’s start with Econ 101[note]Learn more here: https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/041415/whats-difference-between-income-effect-and-substitution-effect.asp[/note]

In theory, we are taught that shocks to families’ finances can play out in two ways:

1.) Income Effect 2.) Substitution Effect

The Income Effect: Essentially, if our budget is lower, we will buy fewer of something. For example, families may choose to purchase fewer Mars chocolate bars. In terms of housing, maybe we buy fewer homes (in other words, fewer families choose to purchase). Instead, we may remain tenants as mortgage rules prevent us from getting what we want, or decreased job security prevents us from wanting to make financial commitments.

Chart 1[note]The interpretations of any MLS® data used are my own and don’t reflect the opinions of the Fort McMurray Real Estate Board or its members. There is plenty of my opinion here, but the data we are using is super accurate. I am not permitted to predict the future and this article does not attempt to do that[/note] shows the income effect in action[note]In all of the charts and tables in this post, the source data covers only the following areas: Abasand, Beacon Hill, Dickinsfield, Downtown, Eagle Ridge, Grayling Terrace, Gregoire Park, Parsons North, Prairie Creek, Stonecreek, Thickwood, Timberlea, Waterways, and Wood Buffalo[/note]:

[caption id="attachment_31154" align="aligncenter" width="847"] Chart 1: Residential Sales in Fort McMurray 2009-2019 (YTD)[/caption]

We can see that the shock to demand was immediate and large (about 50%), and that since the time of the shock, there has been only a modest recovery in demand. As noted in recent articles, this is likely due to prices being lower (which, as opposed to the initial shock, actually increases purchasing power).

The Substitution Effect: If we have tighter income constraint, sometimes we choose to substitute away from luxury goods, and into basic goods. For example, from Mars chocolate bars to bread. Or from luxury homes to ones that satisfy just our needs, not our needs and our wants.

Chart 2 shows the substitution and income effect on our local housing market during the time period:

[caption id="attachment_31151" align="aligncenter" width="872"] Chart 2: Histogram of Residential Sales in Fort McMurray 2014-2016 (YTD)[/caption]

The histogram shows the rapidly changing volume of transactions in the different price brackets. The main area of lost transactions over the period occurred in the higher price ranges (the section that we have redded out). To boot, the loss of confidence didn’t really take effect until 2016 - most of the change occurred 2014 to 2015, presumably as a result of the oil bust. We think this is an important insight. Yes, other things have impacted our market, but the sudden cessation of oil sands development seems to have had the most significant impact on local housing demand. This might be important when we think about drivers for recovery.

We haven’t marked it on the chart, but there are also some bars between $300k and $500k that reduced greatly during this period. This reflects reduced transactions for properties with condo fees that had really nice features. The substitution away from higher-end properties occurred both in the market for homes with and without condo fees. Both are shown on the above chart.

Above all, the most important mental note to take from these two charts is that the oil shock of late 2014 appears to be the main driver. It destroyed demand rapidly, and mainly in the higher priced parts of markets of all property types. As people’s incomes, employment and expectations changed almost overnight, so did their budgets and goals.

The rest of this article looks at what has happened since...

Adjustment Period (2017-2019)

It is strange to say it, but since the time of the shock, the pattern of demand really hasn’t changed significantly: Peoples’ budgets today are very similar to what they were at the end of 2016:

Check out chart 3 to see what I mean[note]Importantly, these two histogram quantities should not be compared with each other, since chart 2 shows full years’ sales, whereas chart 3 shows year-to-date (YTD) information only, and it is July 8th at the time of writing[/note]:

[caption id="attachment_31152" align="aligncenter" width="864"] Chart 3: Histogram of Residential Sales in Fort McMurray 2017 (YTD)-2019 (YTD)[/caption]

To start, please ignore the red arrow.

The thing that surprised me the most when I pulled up this chart, was that nothing huge changed between 2016 and 2019 regarding the shape of demand[note]Yes, even fewer people are purchasing over $800,000, but that market was already extremely stressed in 2016[/note]. The most common purchase price range in 2016 was $550,000 to $600,000, and guess what? That’s still the case today!

In summary: Since the period of shocks, most peoples’ budgets haven’t changed.

Back to the red arrow….

One significant change is that during the period since the fire, there has been an increase in demand for low price properties. The reason being, presumably, is that before late 2016, there was almost nothing available for sale below $300,000. As condo prices changed rapidly, and vacant lots became available for the first time at competitive prices, it was almost like a new market opened up. The missing demand in the very high price ranges is slowly appearing in the very low price ranges as time goes on.

Another is that the demand for high-end homes has indeed continued to dwindle during the adjustment period. Homeowners of those homes are now facing the biggest losses vis-a-vis the boom.

Hope?

Is this a story of hope for today’s homeowners? I think it is.

It’s been a terrible time for Fort McMurray homeowners in all price ranges: In our blog “How Much Have Fort McMurray Home Values Fallen?” we lay it all out (for those who can stomach it), and basically we find that values have fallen not so much in percentage terms as in dollar terms. Properties that have lost less value are ones that are more simple (less luxurious). Properties that offer the highest standards of living (whether with or without condo fees) have fared less well.

What has been happening over the adjustment period is that values have been falling to match the new demand picture that formed over the shock period. There is evidence to show those falls are at, or close to, an end for different property types. For example, this panel of charts shows the median selling prices of some different property types. Note that average selling prices appear to be leveling out for many property types:

Chart 4: Panel of Charts Showing Median Selling Prices of Different Property Types Over 2009-2019

 Some of this is playing out anecdotally, too. For example, when you look at values of studio apartments in The Peaks/Summits of Eagle Ridge, they are selling in a tight range $130,000 to $145,000 and they have been over the last 12 months.

Cautionary Notes

Firstly, we have to be careful before drawing the really serious conclusion that prices are no longer falling. For example, this years’ sales includes different housing stock from last years, especially with respect to the rebuild: Sales of new properties can’t be compared to sales of older ones (apples to oranges). And, we do know that some of the townhome, apartment and mobile sales are rebuilds.

Secondly, the market for homes without condo fees is a large market, and it’s really two markets in one. If you watch our monthly VLOGs, you’ll know that we still don’t have demand in the higher price ranges, and sellers in those price ranges are still aggressively cutting prices which cascades down into the lower price ranges. There is lots of demand up to $600,000, but prices are probably still eroding slightly due to this effect.

Thirdly, if prices are stabilizing, how come when we go to price people’s homes now compared to 6 months ago, we are coming out with lower prices for most property types and price ranges? The anecdotal evidence doesn’t quite match the charts.

Finally (and related), similar numbers of properties are changing hands in the various price ranges as before, but that does not mean values of individual properties are not falling. For example, in 2016 the $550,000 to $600,000 price range was similarly busy as it is today, but that budget today affords a buyer a lot more house than it did at that time. Even when the median selling price of different property types is stable, benchmark prices may still be falling, and we have no way of systematically tracking those - just anecdotal evidence.

Conclusion

The shock here was all about oil. Demand reduced quickly and substituted into non-luxury property purchases. Since that time, there has been a modest recovery in demand, and a remarkably consistent shape of demand (people haven’t continued to shy further away, or come back to the table with big budgets).

As home values have fallen, the scope for them to fall further has lessened.

I was surprised this weekend when I went shopping in the $500,000 to $650,000 price range. The range of goods available went from entry level (needing work) to genuinely exciting properties - large, fully developed homes, with huge lots, great locations, triple garages, etc.

Adjustment in the higher price ranges is still ongoing, and as it adjusts, the incentive to “move up” amongst our clients is growing.

As the adjustment process at the top continues, the incentive for buyers to push the boat out and get something really special is greater than it once was. Consequently (?), in June, there were a whole bunch of transactions in the $700,000’s for once. Could it be? Could it be…

The return of confidence?

If you are thinking of moving up, down, away or into your first home, and you value our data-driven approach and free information, please feel free to reach out so we can help you: Our specialists listing and buyer’s agents are ready to get you information specific to your situation.

Thank you for reading and supporting!

Are Fort McMurray Property Prices Starting to Stabilize? See more on: The A-Team Fort McMurray Blog

[patriotsnet]

How Many Republicans Are Registered To Vote

New Post has been published on https://www.patriotsnet.com/how-many-republicans-are-registered-to-vote/

How Many Republicans Are Registered To Vote

If Joe Biden Loses It Probably Wont Be Because Of An Increase In Gop Voter Registration

Election night is fast approaching, and even if it’s quite possible we won’t know who the winner is on Nov. 3, recent state and national polling suggest that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is the clear favorite.

In a search for data points that might suggest a different outcome, some analysts have turned to looking at voter registration numbers. Particular attention has been given to registration numbers in Florida, North Carolina and Pennsylvania — three hugely important swing states that register voters by party, and recently released numbers show that more people have been registering as Republicans than as Democrats.

In Florida, Republicans have shrunk their voter registration deficit from 2.5 points in 2016 to less than a point now . In North Carolina, the gap has shrunk by 3.8 percentage points. And in Pennsylvania, it has shrunk from 10.4 points to 7.8 points.

But that’s really only part of the story. President Trump may overcome his polling deficit to win reelection, but the voter registration numbers in those states are not necessarily a sign of some significant underlying shift.

A lot of the net registration change in all three of those states are people changing their voter registration to reflect their long-standing partisan inclinations — shifts that Trump may have facilitated and/or solidified in White, working-class areas, but aren’t completely new.

Aaron Blake contributed to this report.

Do You Have To Vote For The Party You’re Registered With

Your state may give you the opportunity to declare your political party affiliation on your voter registration card.

You do not have to vote for the party you’re registered with, in a federal, state, or local general election.

But in a presidential primary or caucus, depending on your state’s rules, you may have to vote for the political party you’ve registered with.

Republicans Expand Voter Registration Advantage In West Virginia

Hoppy Kercheval

Republicans continue to make gains in voter registration in West Virginia, and that means Democrats are losing more ground.

The latest numbers from the Secretary of State’s Office show there are 428,542 Republicans and 396,079 Democrats.  249,951 have no party affiliation/independent. 36,844 are listed as “other,” while 8,818 are registered with the Libertarian Party and 2,157 are members of the Mountain Party.

Republicans now make up 38.18 percent of all registered voters, compared with 35.29 percent who are Democrats.  22.27 percent are independents.

Thirty-one of the state’s 55 counties have Republican voter registration majorities. That is up from 21 just one year ago.  In fact, in June of 2020, there were nearly 47,000 more Democratic registrations than Republican, and Democrats held a 38 percent to 35 percent advantage.

Politically, the state has been trending Republican for the last 20 years. Donald Trump’s two overwhelming victories in the state and Shelley Moore Capito’s popularity—she got 2,000 more votes than Trump in 2020—have driven Republican enthusiasm and bolstered GOP registration.

But Republicans were winning races locally and statewide even when Democrats maintained an advantage in voter registration.  One of the reasons is the old registration numbers were somewhat misleading.

Because Democrats outnumbered Republicans, the maintenance of the voter rolls had a greater numeric impact on them.

  Democrats Have 12 Million More Registered Voters Than Republicans

UVA Center for Politics— Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball — posted the latest numbers of registered Democrats, Republicans and Independents in the 31 states that require party registration to vote. Democrats and their friends in the media have been great at getting people to register — as Democrats .

Democrats the GOP by 12 million registered voters in states that are key in the mid-terms.

It’s not good news for the GOP in the mid-terms. Important states now have more registered Democrats than Republicans, and in many, it’s by a significant amount.

Democrats now account for 40% of the registered voters in those states, Republicans are only 29% and Independents account for 28 percent. It’s shocking when one considers they are successfully running on high taxes and spending, a loss of freedoms, Stormy Daniels, and open borders.

There aren’t many states that are solid red and many are close to becoming blue.

It gives Democrats a decided advantage.

VENEZEULA, HERE WE COME

It’s concerning when you consider states like North Carolina and Colorado now have more Democrats than Republicans and others like Arizona are close. We can thank the invasion of leftists coming in from foreign nations for some of this. Certainly, it is what changed California. Foreigners loyal to their native lands are deciding our policies.

THE CHART

Cook Partisan Voting Index

Another metric measuring party preference is the Cook Partisan Voting Index . Cook PVIs are calculated by comparing a state’s average Democratic Party or Republican Party share of the two-party presidential vote in the past two presidential elections to the nation’s average share of the same. PVIs for the states over time can be used to show the trends of U.S. states towards, or away from, one party or the other.

And There Are 133 Million Registered Voters In The Usa

False claims there were “more votes than voters” were prolific among the maelstrom of  that appeared after the November 3 2020 election, such as one early claim that  had more votes than voters.

According to the Brookings Institute, a record 133 million votes were in the 2016 election — if that figure was the source, similar turnout in 2020 would not suggest there were “more votes than registered voters.” Moreover, the August 2020 context ought to suggest the higher-than-133-million voter turnout was anticipated:

What the data from 2020 tells us is that there is every reason to expect a record turnout in 2020. We got a preview in 2018 when the turnout in the midterm elections was the highest since 1914, even though Republicans were less mobilized than Democrats, a difference unlikely to be repeated this year. “I expect voter turnout to be exceptional, perhaps the highest in over a century, since 1908,” said Michael McDonald, who directs the U.S. Elections Project. “I sometimes refer to it as the ‘storm of the century’,” he added. Turnout in 1908 was 65.7%, compared to 54.2% in 2000 and 60.1% in 2016. If McDonald is correct and turnout reaches the 1908 level, votes cast in 2020 could total more than 145 million, up from 133 million in 2016.

We spotted the same figure in a May 2013 Pew Research about a Census Bureau report on the 2012 election:

On November 4 2020, CNBC reported that NBC News  the number of individual votes cast in 2020:

Video: Guide For The New Voter

If you’re getting ready to vote for the first time, this short video can help. It goes over the basic requirements for voting in the U.S., and explains why it’s important to know your state’s specific rules for voting.

Show the Video Transcript

Are you ready to vote for the first time? If you’re a U.S. citizen, meet your state’s requirements, and will be 18 by Election Day, you can vote.

But first, you need to register before your state’s deadline. Check with your local election office. You can register there or you may be able to register online, at the Department of Motor Vehicles, or using the National Mail Voter Registration Form.

Your election office may send you a voter registration card listing your polling place. On Election Day, that’s where you’ll go. When you get there, you may need to show an ID to vote. Then, fill out your ballot. If you don’t know how, ask a poll worker. If you know you won’t be able to get there on Election Day, you may qualify to vote by mail.

Remember, voting rules are different in every state. Learn more about voting at USA.gov/voting  

Tens Of Thousands Of Voters Drop Republican Affiliation After Capitol Riot

More than 30,000 voters who had been registered members of the Republican Party have changed their voter registration in the weeks after a mob of pro-Trump supporters attacked the Capitol — an issue that led the House to impeach the former president for inciting the violence.

The massive wave of defections is a virtually unprecedented exodus that could spell trouble for a party that is trying to find its way after losing the presidential race and the Senate majority.

It could also represent the tip of a much larger iceberg: The 30,000 who have left the Republican Party reside in just a few states that report voter registration data, and information about voters switching between parties, on a weekly basis.

Voters switching parties is not unheard of, but the data show that in the first weeks of the year, far more Republicans have changed their voter registrations than Democrats. Many voters are changing their affiliation in key swing states that were at the heart of the battle for the White House and control of Congress.

Nearly 10,000 Pennsylvania voters dropped out of the Republican Party in the first 25 days of the year, according to the secretary of state’s office. About a third of them, 3,476, have registered as Democrats; the remaining two-thirds opted to register with another party or without any party affiliation.

In all of those areas, the number of Democrats who left their party is a fraction of the number of Republican defectors.

Political Difference Highest Among Younger Veterans

Frank Newport

PRINCETON, NJ — Veterans are more likely to be Republican than are those of comparable ages who are not veterans. This Republican skew is at least minimally evident across all age groups, ranging from a 15-point difference in the percentage Republican between veterans and nonveterans in the 25-29 age group, to a 2-point difference in the 85+ group.

These results are based on an analysis of more than 138,000 interviews conducted as part of the Gallup Poll Daily tracking program since January of this year. Respondents were classified as veterans/active military based on an affirmative response to this question: “In the past or at the present time, are you or have you been a member of the United States military?” Fourteen percent of Americans indicate that they have served in the military in the past or are currently on active duty.

Ninety-one percent of those who have served in the military at some point in their lives are men. Looked at differently, over one-quarter — 27% — of men aged 18 and older say they are veterans or currently serving in the military, compared to just 2% of adult women.

These trends correspond directly to the status of the draft and wartime environment in which men came of age.

Political Differences

Different Patterns at Work?

Survey Methods

Interviews are conducted with respondents on land-line telephones and cellular phones .

Political Party Strength In Us States

Jump to navigationJump to search

Political party strength in U.S. states is the level of representation of the various political parties in the United States in each statewide elective office providing legislators to the state and to the U.S. Congress and electing the executives at the state ” rel=”nofollow”>U.S. state governor) and national level.

Record 22 Million Californians Registered To Vote Heading Into General Election

SACRAMENTO, CA– Secretary of State Alex Padilla released the final statewide Report of Registration ahead of the November 3, 2020, General Election. As of October 19, 2020, a record 22,047,448 Californians were registered to vote. This represents an increase of 2,635,677 registered voters since the last Report of Registration at a similar point in a presidential election cycle .

87.87% of eligible Californians are registered to vote. This is the highest percentage of eligible citizens registered to vote heading into a General Election in the past 80 years.

“For the first time, California now has more than 22 million registered voters,” said Secretary of State Alex Padilla. “There are more voters registered in California than the number of people in the state of Florida! Record registration and a historic election points towards a big voter turnout, which could also mean longer lines and wait times on Election Day. If you haven’t voted yet, I highly recommend that you consider voting early.”

“If you missed the voter registration deadline, you still have to opportunity to vote using ‘Same Day’ Registration. 2020 marks the first year that voters can complete the ‘Same Day’ voter registration process and cast their ballot at any in-person voting location in the county or the county elections office,” Padilla added.

Trends in Statewide Voter Registration 1996 – 2020

  22,047,448

Registration Comparison October 19, 2020 Report vs. October 24, 2016 Report

Political Party

Chart 1 And Table 2: Nationwide Party Registration Trends Since 2000

Since 2000, the nationwide proportion of registered Democratic and Republican voters in party registration states have both gone down, while the percentage of registered independents has steadily grown. The latter has nearly reached the nationwide percentage of registered Republicans, which has long been second nationally to the Democrats. Altogether, the combined number of registered Democrats and Republicans, which was 77% in October 2000, is now down to 69%, while the proportion of registered independents over the same period has increased from 22% to 28%.

Note: Based on active registered voters in states where the number of active and inactive registrants is listed. In the election-eve 2000, 2008, and 2016 entries, “Independents” include a comparatively small number of registered miscellaneous voters who do not fit into a particular category. Percentages do not add to 100 since the small percentage of registered third party voters is not included.

The Voters In The Middle

Tara Erock registered as an Independent back in 2016. Before then, the Town of Poughkeepsie resident had been a Democrat. 

Erock made the change because she felt the Democratic National Committee made a mistake by not choosing Bernie Sanders as its candidate. 

“It was one of those things that was glaringly obvious, his popularity and that people wanted a change,” she said. Erock voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016 and for Biden this year. 

In 2016 there were 10,415 registered Independents in Dutchess County and about 49,00 who did not designate a party affiliation. In 2020, that number dropped to 10,263 Independents and roughly 52,500 were non-aligned.

Shaffer believes independents tend to go with the people they know, giving Republicans the edge on name recognition. 

In races that are too close to call, these voters could make the difference between winning and losing. As absentee votes get counted, there are 8,000 that make up that wild card. 

Erock, who didn’t vote for Molinaro last year, said her focus is on working families and youth. She doesn’t believe her town or the county has a lot to offer young people in terms of activities compared to other areas.

“He’s everywhere, I give him credit for that, he shows up and shows out, but as far policies and changing things, I haven’t seen it,” she said. 

Nationwide Voter Registration Data By Party

In the 32 jurisdictions that have registration by party, here are the number of registered voters in each party and the number of independents:

Democratic: 47,106,084Reform: 9,004oth parties 1,814,973

This data uses the most available figures for each jurisdiction. All are as of September or October 2020, except that New York has no data newer than February 2020, and Massachusetts is August 2020.

In February 2020 the numbers were:

Democratic: 45,715,952Reform: 6,665oth parties 1,712,747

The February 2020 tally is the only one in U.S. history in which the number of voters registered independent and miscellaneous was greater than the number in either major party. But between February and now, Republicans regained their second-place position.

The print issue of Ballot Access News for November 1, 2020, has this information by state. All the numbers in that edition are correct for the state-by-state figures and for the national totals for the Democratic, Republican, Libertarian Parties, and the number of independents. Unfortunately the totals for the other parties, as printed, are not, and the national percentages as printed are not. I forgot to update some of the national totals when I was working with the template of the February 2020 data. A correction will be made in the December 1 issue.

The Role Of Demographics

There are reasons why Dutchess long ago became a Republican stronghold.

As with so many facets of the county’s history, IBM played a role. Many credit employees of IBM, which for decades was the county’s largest employer, for bolstering the Republican rolls in the 1980s. However, over the last two decades, as IBM relinquished its property locally and decreased its workforce, that changed.

A collection of varied businesses filled IBM’s place in the county’s economy, and consequently Dutchess demographics became more diverse. The percentage of Black and Hispanic residents has also increased over the last decade.

Much of the county remains rural, which has traditionally leaned Republican.

The belief is that Democrats’ margin in the county will only continue to grow as the emergence of remote workplaces during the COVID-19 pandemic has led more downstate residents to move into the Hudson Valley.

However, Richard Born, a political science professor at Vassar College, noted some Democrats moving into the area may be less liberal than the national trend showing Democrats growing increasingly progressive.

Born speculates one of the reasons why Republicans continue to find success locally is that Democrats are more willing to vote for the moderate Republicans and cross party lines, helping area incumbents win reelection.

“If you’re doing a good job it crosses over from just a one-party decision to a many party decision,” McCormack said. 

Map 2 And Table 4: Party Registration And The 2016 Presidential Vote

Of the 31 party registration states, 24 were carried in the 2016 presidential election by the party with the most registered voters in it. Donald Trump swept 11 of the 12 states with a Republican registration advantage, while Hillary Clinton won 13 of the 19 states which had more registered Democrats than Republicans. Four of the Democratic registration states that Trump took were in the South, led by Florida and North Carolina. He also overcame Democratic registration advantages in West Virginia and Pennsylvania to win both. The only state with more registered Republicans than Democrats that Hillary Clinton carried in 2016 was New Hampshire, where the outcome was very close.

Notes: An asterisk indicates states where there were more registered independents than either Democrats or Republicans in October 2016. “Independents” include a comparatively small number of registered miscellaneous voters who do not fit into any particular category.

America Hits New Landmark: 200 Million Registered Voters

The 2016 campaign may have reached dispiriting new lows, but voter registration in America has soared to new heights as 200 million people are now registered to vote for the first time in U.S. history.

The milestone is a sign of the aggressive voter registration efforts ahead of Nov. 8 and a symptom of the fast-growing and demographically shifting electorate that is expected to redound to the benefit of the Democratic Party in the coming years.

There is no current national database of voter registration because each state independently runs its own election. But TargetSmart, a Democratic political data firm, told POLITICO that the country passed the 200 million threshold in recent days as North Carolina, New Hampshire, Nevada and New York reported new voter numbers.

Tom Bonier, CEO of TargetSmart, said national registration now stands at 200,081,377 voters.

The figure means more than 50 million new people have registered to vote in the past eight years. Only 146.3 million were registered as recently as 2008, when then-Sen. Barack Obama first won the White House — a remarkable 33 percent surge in the electorate during a single presidency.

The last time a Clinton was on the presidential ballot 20 years ago, the electorate was 127.6 million people.

Overall, TargetSmart found that 42.6 percent of the new voters registered this year lean Democratic, and only 29 percent lean Republican .

Poring Over Party Registration

This is not the best of times for the Democratic Party. No White House; no Senate; no House of Representatives; and a clear minority of governorships and state legislatures in their possession. Yet the Democrats approach this fall’s midterm elections with an advantage in one key aspect of the political process — their strength in states where voters register by party.

Altogether, there are 31 states with party registration; in the others, such as Virginia, voters register without reference to party. Among the party registration states are some of the nation’s most populous: California, New York, Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Arizona, and Massachusetts.

The basic facts: In 19 states and the District, there are more registered Democrats than Republicans. In 12 states, there are more registered Republicans than Democrats. In aggregate, 40% of all voters in party registration states are Democrats, 29% are Republicans, and 28% are independents. Nationally, the Democratic advantage in the party registration states approaches 12 million.

Still, Republican Donald Trump found a route to victory in 2016 that went through the party registration states. He scored a near sweep of those where there were more Republicans than Democrats, winning 11 of the 12, while also taking six of the 19 states where there were more Democrats than Republicans — a group that included the pivotal battleground states of Florida, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.

Thousands Of Voters Registered For The Georgia Senate Races Who Benefits

With early voting underway in the Georgia Senate runoffs, almost 70,000 voters have newly registered in the state, according to voter data analyzed by NBC News.

Experts and those in both parties generally agree that slight shifts in turnout will determine who wins these two races on Jan. 5, given how close the results were for the presidential and Senate contests in the general election.

The NBC analysis found that 67,135 newly registered voters with no general election vote history were added to the list of potential voters for the upcoming runoffs. These voters were registered between Nov. 4 and the state registration deadline on Dec. 7.

There are 7,729,838 total registered voters in Georgia.

The runoff stakes are high: If Democrats win both contests they will take control of the Senate. One race features GOP Sen. David Perdue against Democrat Jon Ossoff and the other pits Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler against Democratic challenger Raphael Warnock.

The big question, of course, is whether the Democrats or Republicans gain an edge with this group of new voters. The new registration numbers point to a slight advantage for the Democrats and, while this is encouraging for the party, the advantage is small, and slight shifts in turnout among those who participated in the general election could make such minor gains inconsequential.

Lots Of Consistency Elsewhere

In the rest of the country, there was much more consistency between party registration totals and the 2016 election outcome, with only three non-Southern states voting “against the grain.” On election eve in Pennsylvania, there were 915,081 more registered Democrats than Republicans; Trump carried the state by 44,292 votes. In West Virginia, there were 175,867 more registered Democrats; Trump won by 300,577 votes. And in New Hampshire, there were 24,232 more registered Republicans than Democrats in the fall of 2016, but Hillary Clinton took the state by 2,736 votes. That’s it. The other 22 party registration states outside the South were carried in the presidential balloting by the party with more registered voters than the other.

And in many of these “in sync” states, the registration advantage in recent years has grown more Republican or Democratic as the case may be, augmented by a healthy increase in independents.

The registration trend line in California is a microcosm of sorts of party registration in the nation as whole. Democrats are running ahead and the ranks of the independents are growing. Yet registered voters in both parties appear to be widely engaged. That was the case in 2016, and likely will be again in 2018, with Trump flogging issues to rouse his base. In short, this is a highly partisan era when party registration totals, and the trends that go with them, are well worth watching.