Category Archives: Golden Rule

Stephen Curry has passed Ray Allen to become the NBA's all-time leader in three-pointers.Will anyone ever break Curry's record? Where does the Warriors star stand among the greatest players of all time? And what has been Curry's most memorable three-point shot? The Crossover staff answers three questions on the three-point king.

Howard Beck: Er, probably not, but maybe? It took Curry 12-plus seasons, converting 3.8 threes per game, with an accuracy of 43%, to claim the record. But Currys rate accelerated along the wayfrom attempting four-plus threes per game in his early years to 10-plus in recent seasons, as part of the NBAs broader three-point explosion. Now everyone takes a ton of threes, which means a shooter just entering the NBA will have an advantage in chasing the record, based on volume alone. So while we might never see another shooter as accurate as Curry, his mark might one day fall, anyway.

Jarrel Harris: Nah! Stephen Curry is only 33!! Ray Allen played in 1,300 games and Steph is about to break the record in under 800 games. The game has changed, of course, but just imagine the number Steph will be at if/when he hits Allen's games played mark. For someone who doesn't rely on that much athleticism compared to a player like Russell Westbrook, there's a chance we could see him hit threes for 10 more years if he remains healthy or really wants to.

Chris Herring: Ever? Yes. In our lifetimes? No. And I dont think itll be particularly close to happening by then, either.

Chris Mannix: Reggie Miller gave way to Ray Allen who gave way to Steph Curryso, yes, someone will come along who will make more. Curry has spawned a whole generation of three-point bombers (see Young, Trae) so it's hard to believe one of them won't eventually eclipse Curry's accomplishments.

Ashley Moss: Look, I don't have a crystal ball, but unless Steph's son, Canon, follows in his dad's footsteps and inherits that shooting DNA ... no.

Rohan Nadkarni: Yes. The game just moves forward too much, and Steph has inspired a whole new generation of shooters to pull up from the logo and bomb away. Eventually there will be a shooter nearly as talented as Curry and, because of the evolution of the sport, that player will be given even more chances to shoot from outside. But I hope it doesnt happen.

Michael Pina: Written with no confidence whatsoever: Yes. Curry is not an outlier. Hes a trailblazing icon who forever changed everything thats valued and feared on a basketball court. Currys legacy is tangible in the sense that hes inspired generations of youngsters to play like he does. Eventually, at some point in the next 50 years, at least one will rise as a worthy heir.

Pina: The Mike Breen Double Bang against the Thunder back in February 2016. It came on a Saturday night in a nationally televised showdown between two star-studded championship contenders. There will never be another 37-footer launched with a second left in a tied overtime game that feels that inevitable. If you saw it live, youll never forget where you were.

Moss: The shot against the Clippers in 2015. First of all, Steve Kerr was speechless, and to leave your coach without words is a flex. Steph came across the lane, behind the back, stepback, at the top of the key and it was at this moment I knew he was different from a lot of other guys in the league. Yeah, you have a lot of dudes who can shoot, but with Steph he's just better at it ... than everybody.

Beck: This one, without question. Steph pulling upcasually, without a hint of hesitationfrom 37 feet, in the final second of a tie game, on the road, against his teams biggest rival, on national television and just draining it as if it were the most natural thing in the world? I would argue this was the moment the deep three became normalized as a go-to weapon (as opposed to a desperation heave).

Herring: The game-winner against Oklahoma City will always stand out. The way he silenced the crowd. The way Enes Kanter Freedom shrugged along the bench before the shot even went down, seemingly knowing his team was screwed. The way Mike Breen went nuts.

Harris: Most will say the three against the Thunder, which was outrageous. But my favorite three from Steph was the one during his 54-point explosion against the Knicks at MSG in 2013. He shook Raymond Felton off the dribble and just launched it to give him 46 points in the game. It was the moment that made Steph a superstar, and he has been on the longest heat check ever since.

Mannix: I'm partial to the absolute bomb Curry hit against Oklahoma City, in 2016. Time winding down, meaningful regular-season game against a conference rival, Curry pulls up from close to 40 feet to drill a game-winner. Remarkable shot.

Nadkarni: The OKC shot is obviously the coolest shot Steph has ever hit and it is my favorite, but I will throw one more in the mix: Game 6 of the 2015 West semis against the Grizzlies. Curry hit a shot from inside the three-point line on the opposite side of the court to end the third quarter and its absolutely ridiculous. The Grizzlies have just missed their own three when Steph gathers the ball after a block, nonchalantly takes one and a half steps, and swishes a three from three-quarters court. That shot was one of the many early examples about how you cannot rest against Steph for even a half second no matter where he is on the court.

Stan Szeto/USA TODAY Sports

Herring: Steph is already in the top 15, in my opinion. We talk a lot about how Kevin Durants joining the Warriors hindered his legacy, as it potentially made the pursuit of titles too easy. But more than anything, it robbed us of the ability to see what Steph couldve done with the original Golden State core. So winning another title now would eradicate whatever questions remain.

Moss: No question he's the greatest shooter of all time and will be for a very long time. Greatest player of all time? Steph is top 15 at No. 15. For me, I still put Kevin Durant and Kevin Garnett slightly above him. Believe this though, another ring and Steph cracks the top 10.

Mannix: He's arguably the greatest shooter of all timeI only use the qualifier because I would really have loved to have seen Reggie Miller and Ray Allen play in this era, when firing up double-digit threes per night is the rule, not the exceptionand a third MVP award will put Curry at least in the conversation for greatest point guard of all time. Plus: The way he is playing now, at 34, he has a lot of good years left.

Pina: If Curry stopped playing tomorrow hed without question qualify as one of the 20 greatest players ever. By the time he actually retireshes still playing at such a high level and might easily add at least one more MVP or championship ring to his treasure chesttheres a decent chance he cracks the top 10.

Beck: Asking where Steph ranks all-time underscores why this exercise is so inherently fraught. Theres never been an NBA superstar built like Curry. He is unquestionably the greatest shooter of all time, the greatest scoring point guard of all time and one of the greatest leaders weve seen. But his profilephysically and stylisticallyis completely unique, and trying to compare him to LeBron or MJ or Kobe or Wilt or Kareem or Magic or Bird or Russell or Duncan or Shaq is, well, just sorta ludicrous.

Nadkarni: Stephen Curry is one of the 10 most impactful players in the history of the NBA.

Harris: He is in the top 10 for me. I take pride in being a Steph Curry believer since his sophomore year at Davidson. It has been rewarding to watch his journey from March Madness standout to one of the best to ever play the game. He turned something that seemed so simple like a three-pointer into an exciting play. He's a once-in-a-lifetime player, and there are only a handful of players that can truly say they changed the game.

Mannix: A generational talent.

Herring: Splash Brother Extraordinaire.

Pina: Transcendent. Mythological. Electric.

Beck: Audacious. Electrifying. Joyful.

Moss: Generational. Elusive. Automatic.

Harris:Spellbinding. Rare. Showman.

Nadkarni: Best. Shooter. Ever.

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Steph Curry Is the Three-Point King. Where Does He Rank Among the NBA's Greats? - Sports Illustrated

MamamiasFive Golden Rulesseries takes a pervy look into the lives of Australian families. From parents of toddlers to parents of teenagers, the series asks parents to share their golden parenting rules, including the rules for their kids, and rules to just get through each day.

This week, we hear from Yumi Stynes, a radio presenter, author of multiple books such as Welcome To Consent and Welcome To Your Period,and host of the popular podcast, Ladies We Need To Talk. Yumi is also mum to four kids.

As a recent guest on Mamamia's This Glorious Messpodcast, Yumi shared her Five Golden Rules for parenting with hosts Holly Wainwright and Andrew Daddo.

"This is a really profound rule that sometimes as parents we forget," Yumi shared.

"We say to our kids, 'Come here I need to put sunscreen on your face', and we pin them down and literally go against their wishes and override their consent to smear sunscreen on them.

Watch: There are two types of parents when it comes to shopping for school. Post continues below.

"While it's kind of normal as a parent to do this, you also have to understand that consent is about being the CEO of your body. People will try to invade, but you will continue to be the boss and that's the message I want to convey to my kids.

"This is something I have learnt more about over time as my kids have got older and that when I give my kids agency, to dress how they choose for example, they generallyrespect it and operate within the realm of common sense.

"It's hard not to wipe their mouths after eating when there's food all over their chin, but there are ways as the parent to say, 'I know you don't want me to do this, but you really need to wipe your face'.

"Give them justification or warning before acting on a parenting impulse but if they cannot bear it, then back down.

"If they don't wear the sunscreen, perhaps they might get sunburnt and then re-think it next time!"

"We all love screens and TV in our house and there are a lot of shows we love to watch as a family, but mealtimes are a great opportunity to switch off and talk and so this is a rule I have stood by for the last 19 years.

Original post:

'Kids are the bosses of their bodies.' Yumi Stynes shares her Five Golden Rules for parenting. - Mamamia

This is a pivotal moment for social-emotional learning in K-12 schools.

On the one hand, interest in building or expanding SEL programs is surging among educators and parents, supported by an unprecedented infusion of billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief aid.

On the other hand, school and district leaders are facing emotionally charged conversations with the public as states consider bills to limit teaching about divisive subjects such as racism and sexuality. In some cases, right wing political groups that oppose critical race theoryan academic framework that says racism isnt just the product of individual bias but is embedded in legal systems and policieshave flagged common educational terms like social-emotional learning and equity as linked to the concept, though schools insist they are not.

While district and school leaders are eager to nurture the social-emotional skills they see as vital to overcoming the disruptions and trauma caused by the pandemic, no one wants to get caught in a political firestorm.

So, how should educators navigate these difficult political waters and do what is best for kids?

In this environment, anything can be politicized, said John Bridgeland, the CEO of Civic Enterprises, a public policy firm, who has worked extensively on building bipartisan support for SEL programs in schools.

Through social-emotional learning, schools teach students skills like creative problem-solving, persistence, and showing empathy. Teachers incorporate those skills into traditional classroom instruction through exercises like group projects and guided conversations, and schools adopt practices, like morning meetings, to boost students sense of belonging and trust.

And interest in social-emotional learning is growing. Between the 2019-20 and 2020-21 academic years, district spending on SEL programming grew about 45 percent, from $530 million to $765 million, according to a report by the consulting firm Tyton Partners and published with the Collaborative for Social, Emotional, and Academic Learning, or CASEL.

Molly Spearman, South Carolina Superintendent of Education

Now schools have access to funds through the American Rescue Plan and the CARES Act that can help them train teachers, buy new materials, and implement programs.

Surveys of parents and educators alike show support for making SEL part of schools pandemic recovery efforts. In a nation poll of parents conducted in June by the National Parents Union, 45 percent of respondents said their child was very or somewhat likely to need services to support their mental health and emotional well-being in school. In a November survey by the same organization, 67 percent of respondents said they were extremely or very concerned about how schools are preparing students for the future. Of those parents, 34 percent said schools are not teaching enough interpersonal skills and 43 percent said they arent teaching enough critical thinking skills.

Many statesunder control of governors and state schools chiefs from both major political partiesincluded social-emotional learning strategies in their plans for spending billions of American Rescue Plan dollars. Theyve done so alongside calls to hire more school-based mental health professionals and to train teachers to identify and address student trauma, according to an analysis by Future Ed, a think tank at Georgetown University.

Texas, for example, plans to offer schools guidance on assessing students emotional and mental health needs. Virginia awarded funds to schools to develop universal SEL surveys. Wyoming provided funds for schools to enact new SEL programs. Tennessee plans to create a centralized website to offer SEL resources and training to schools. Montana included the adoption of two SEL programs in its American Rescue Plan application.

Now more than ever, we need to focus on this area, said Molly Spearman, the state superintendent of education in South Carolina. Im not so sure its not the most important thing we need to work on.

But as interest in social-emotional learning rises among educators and policymakers, its also increasingly the target of ire from some conservative groups.

Local news reports show parents in several statesincluding Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, and Utah have confronted their local school boards over social-emotional learning plans, often conflating it with critical race theory and saying some of the subjects addressed in their districts SEL curriculasuch as gender identity and implicit biashave no place in schools.

While educators responding to a November survey by the EdWeek Research Center said they saw increased support for SEL, 34 percent said that, in the past year, their school had received feedback from parents concerned that social-emotional learning is teaching their children values they dont approve of.

A September controversy in Virginia that included both state and national politics may foreshadow conversations that will only grow louder as states approach the 2022 midterms.

In the Fairfax County schools, some parents and a group called Parents Defending Education, which has objected to equity efforts in schools around the country, criticized the districts decision to survey students about SEL and school climate. Some activists from national groups outside of the district called SEL a Trojan horse for critical race theory.

The districts student survey, administered through a contract with a Boston company called Panorama Education, includes questions such as: Do you have a teacher or other adult from school who you can count on to help you, no matter what? and How confident are you that students at your school can have honest conversations with each other about race?

Panorama helps schools around the country field similar surveys to ensure students feel supported and safe at school. Educators also use the companys analysis tools to examine trends such as attendance patterns alongside students grades to determine the most effective way to intervene if they struggle. While the district allowed parents to opt their children out of taking the survey, some parents expressed concerns about how the data would be used and how children would respond to the questions.

The situation boiled over after U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a memo in October calling for his agency to respond to a disturbing spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence against school administrators, board members, teachers, and staff across the country by meeting with local schools and law enforcement to discuss strategies for addressing those threats.

Republican lawmakers immediately pushed back, arguing that Garland was trying to chill dissent of parents whod spoken out against their schools virus precautions and teaching about race. And they insisted Garland had a conflict of interest because his son-in-law helped found Panorama Education. Garland denied any conflict of interest, and the company said his son-in-law, Xan Tanner, is no longer an employee.

Meanwhile, some SEL programs have also faced criticism for not doing enough to recognize the full extent of the challenges students facebe it racism, poverty, or homophobia.

Dena Simmons, assistant director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, resigned last spring after clashing with the centers director and founder, Marc Brackett, over the extent to which issues of social justice and racism should be addressed in the centers popular SEL curriculum, RULER. In emails obtained by The 74, Brackett expressed concerns that using contemporary political examples would alienate people and lead to the RULER curriculum being banned in some school districts.

Social-emotional learning is a somewhat nebulous term. That leaves school administrators and teachers with the task of sorting out parents legitimate concerns about things like whether programs are effective and how schools will measure success apart from broader misunderstandings and mischaracterizations of SEL.

John Bridgeland, CEO of Civic Enterprises

SEL aims to teach students life skills such as empathy, managing their emotions, developing relationships, and understanding other points of view and backgrounds. But, by extension, it can also encompass topics such as mental health, bias, and identity.

Tia Kim, the vice president of education research and impact at the Committee for Children, a nonprofit that promotes SEL and is also the developer of the popular Second Step curriculum, said she has seen a general shift among school districts goals for their social-emotional learning programs. A few years ago, they focused on improving academics or reducing disciplinary referrals, she said. Now, the focus is around mental health and building positive school climates.

If [students] are coming in with depression and anxiety, its going to impact their learning, Kim said. To build good conditions for learning, kids have to feel like they belong and that they have good relationships, both with their peers and educators, and SEL is one way to support that sense of community and belonging.

An increasing number of districts also see social-emotional learning as a means to bolster their diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, according to the report by Tyton Partners.

While parents are largely in favor of many of the skills taught through social-emotional learning, such as setting goals, managing emotions, and being informed citizens, the term itself is unpopular, according to a poll by YouGov and commissioned by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute.

Among those parents, 89 percent of Democrats and 75 percent of Republicans agreed that students must have their social-emotional needs met in order to achieve their full academic potentialthey just prefer the term life skills. (Republican parents in particular disliked the name social-emotional learning.)

Educators and policymakers would do well to use less jargon when talking about social-emotional learning, the report warned.

Supporters of SEL have long recognized that their efforts needed to be bipartisan, said Bridgeland, the CEO of Civic Enterprises and the former director of the White House domestic policy council for President George W. Bush. Bridgeland was a member of the Aspen Institutes Commission on Social Emotional and Academic Development, which made recommendations in 2019 for educators, researchers, and policymakers about how to better incorporate an awareness of students relational and emotional development into education.

The commissions members knew that affiliation with one political party or ideology might jeopardize their efforts, so they were very deliberate in engaging people across the political spectrum, Bridgeland said. Events featured discussions from members of the Kansas state board of education in addition to leaders of national teachers unions. Commissioners included Brian Sandoval and John Engler, the Republican former governors of Nevada and Michigan. And materials emphasized skills employers wanted to see in new graduates alongside discussions of empathy and inclusion.

Bridgeland remembers meeting with conservative organizations to discuss the commissions work.

The first question they had was, What the hell are you talking about? he said. I get math. I get reading. What the hell is social-emotional learning?

When commissioners explained they wanted schools to nurture qualities such as discipline, self-management, and relationship skills, theyd say, Oh yeah, were for that, Bridgeland said.

Its essential that schools actively engage families in talking about and creating social-emotional initiatives, their districts goals, and the research that supports those efforts, researchers and district leaders said.

The key to engaging families is demystifying the jargon around SEL and explaining to parents that the schools are trying to reinforce a lot of the life skills parents are already teaching their kids at home, said Sandra Martinez, the social-emotional learning family engagement coordinator for the Dallas Independent School District.

We wanted to create consistency in the practices and the terminology, she said, so that families understood what was going on in the classroom so they can support that learning at home because we know that parents are kids first teachers, and they are the utmost experts on their children.

Martinezs position is a new one in the district, and a lot of her outreach to families has been virtual. She writes newsletters for parents in English and Spanish, each exploring a different SEL theme that includes definitions of terms, videos of experts, and exercises to try at home.

We basically provide the terminology so when their kid comes home and says we did a mood meter or a check in, they are familiar, Martinez said. We say, You already do this at home when you ask your child how they feel, we just call it a mood meter.

She also surveys parents on the social-emotional skills families consider most important for their children to learn and works with schools to provide a virtual SEL discussion series for parents. She plans to launch a book club for parents where they will read about social-emotional learning topics.

Spearman, South Carolinas state superintendent, acknowledges that shes heard suspicions about SEL from some parents.

I say I dont know whats going on in other states, but in South Carolina, heres what we are focused on: Its about building confidence in our young people that we care about them, that they matter, and that they learn the golden rule, she said. Thats what it means to me. I have not found a single person who disagrees with that.

Spearman, the president of the Council of Chief State School Officers, said her peers around the country have faced similar communications challenges. To overcome them, South Carolinas SEL website, for example, includes a video which explains the concept and a section for parents about ways they can support their childrens emotional development.

South Carolinas SEL plan relies on regional coaches to support teachers in helping students cope with emotional challenges, build empathy for their peers, and build trusting relationships with adults so they know how to ask for help.

That connectivity, especially right now, is how we remain a community that has open and honest conversations and remains a community through these difficult times, said Sarah Gams, the states 2021 teacher of the year, who is leading its SEL work.

SEL has faced political headwinds in some places before current debates over how schools discuss issues like racism and sexuality.

In 2016, for example, Tennessee withdrew from a multi-state working group assembled by CASEL less than a month after joining. The move came after some lawmakers equated the groups focusto create developmentally appropriate standards for SEL skills that schools could adopt voluntarilyto previous controversies over the common core, Chalkbeat Tennessee reported.

When Idaho state education leaders pitched a social-emotional learning proposal to lawmakers in 2020, citing concerns about teen suicide rates, one member of a legislative committee compared the plan to the dystopian behavior control in the novel Brave New World. Others said responsibility for helping children develop their character should be in the hands of parents, not schools.

Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction Sherri Ybarra, an elected Republican, later told Education Week she didnt understand the response.

We want to make sure we are connecting parents and students and teachers with the right tools and the right resources to get them the help that they need, Ybarra said. I dont think there is any other way to talk about this. It is not a blue issue. It is not a red issue.

Despite recent opposition to social-emotional learning from some conservatives, the idea, and overlapping concepts like character education, have hadat least not too long agosupport from prominent politicians across the political spectrum.

After the 2018 school shootings in Parkland, Fla., and Santa Fe, Texas, for example, a federal school safety commission assembled by Republican President Donald Trump included social-emotional learning in its recommendations for schools.

Youth who learn these core skills are able to manage their emotions and interactions in ways that benefit themselves and others, said the final report of the commission, which was led by then-U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. Most importantly, recent research suggests that the development of social and emotional skills can lead to improved outcomes for educational attainment, employment, and earnings.

Bridgeland, who calls SEL a rocket booster for schools work to improve student skills and academic outcomes, said educators must work to build on that past agreement.

When you go through it with parents, its overwhelming how much they support it, he said. It carries away the political arguments that, frankly, people are tired of.

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Schools Face Fears of 'Critical Race Theory' as They Scale Up Social-Emotional Learning - Education Week

Like Life Insurance, Health Insurance is a valuable asset when it comes to safeguarding you and your family. Having proper health coverage will protect you from financial hardships that could arise if you or a family member are ever sick or injured and cant work. For businesses, having the right health benefit package is often the key to keeping your employees happy and productive, while providing the assurance that theyre protected.

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When it comes to your health you can never be too careful, and with the rising cost of medical care, Health Insurance has become a top priority. In order to have your health expenses covered at a reasonable price, having the right insurance is a necessity. Although plans vary according to your needs, they can cover anything from medical and hospital expenses to prescription drugs.

While finding the right Health Insurance is not always an easy choice, Golden Rule Insurance Agency's representatives are committed to providing the knowledge and support you need to help you make the right decision for you, your family, or your business.

Golden Rule Insurance Agency provides quality Life Insurance solutions for clients near Osage Beach,Lake Ozark,Eldon,Camdenton,Sunrise Beach,Lebanon, MO.

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Health Insurance | Golden Rule Insurance

Its not explicitly spelled out, but the obligation to pay whats owed would surely fall under the Golden Rules mandate to do to others what you would have them do to you.

Just as surely, the city of New Orleans has long failed to live up to this basic standard when it comes to honoring legal claims. A recent accounting shows that the city has 568 outstanding legal judgments and settlements in state and federal courts totaling nearly $40 million.

Among them are a $375,000 settlement to the family of 18-year-old Mariah Woods, an innocent bystander killed during a reckless 2011 police chase, and a seven-figure judgment in favor of former city consultant George White that dates back to former Mayor Marc Morials administration.

For years, leaders of the perennially cash-strapped city have admitted that they have no principle to stand on, and occasionally attempted to whittle down the total. City Council member Joe Giarrusso has said New Orleans has a moral obligation to settle old scores, but his proposal to borrow against the existing judgment fund to do it was tabled when the pandemic struck. Last month Mayor LaToya Cantrell said the city will put an additional $5.9 million toward the cause, and the City Council approved $4 million to pay old judgments.

But they do have ill-advised law on their side, in the form of a state constitutional provision that allows governments not to pay judgments when funds arent appropriated for that purpose.

That should change, because New Orleans is hardly the only offender. Even if the constitution doesnt change, the city needs to come up with a plan to pay up. Jurisdictions across the country manage to do things right.

Politicians can say all right things about meeting their obligations. But until they do it, their words of sympathy are worth about as much as a city IOU.

Originally posted here:

Our Views: New Orleans should follow the Golden Rule and pay what the city owes - The Advocate

Shann Varner knows a thing or two about karate and wants to help raise awareness for women by teaching a self-defense class with those skills.

The event will be a collaborative effort by Five Runs Farm and Golden Rule BBQ on Thursday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m. Five Runs will serve as host of the class for ages 12 and up.

Varner, a 25-year third-degree black belt veteran in Yoshukai Karate, realized there was a need for the self-defense class while working part-time at Golden Rule.

I noticed that as we were leaving late, most of the girls went out the front door of the restaurant. Usually, the doors lock behind them, and its between 9:30 and 10:30 at night. As someone who has taken karate for several years, the lack of self-awareness bothered me. They were looking at their phones with their heads held down. They should be aware of their surroundings and understand we live in a world that is not as easygoing as it was 20 years ago. I told Christy I would like to hold a self-defense class for the ladies and young women of Golden Rule to offer protection if they need it, and she thought it would be a great idea. Guys are also welcome to come and learn about self-defense, he said.

Golden Rule Owner Christy Turner added the event would be open to the public with limited space and be conducted on a first-come basis. This self-defense class will not only be very important for our restaurant staff but also the general public. There is no charge to attend, but donations will be accepted. We appreciate Tabitha Sasser and Abigail Powell for allowing us to use their facility.

The class will help make women aware of their surroundings, especially during the late evening hours. The sex trafficking is bad in bigger areas such as Dothan and Montgomery. These kids are looking down texting and not paying attention. They need to understand that somebody can come out of the shadows just as easily and snatch them up. Nine times out of 10, theyre looking down. Although screaming will help call attention to what is going on, it will not resolve the situation. People say it cant happen to them in a little town like Andalusia, but anything can happen to anybody, Varner said.

Non-perishable items may be brought to the class as donations. Im sure there are food drives taking place during the holidays. If someone wants to bring a can of soup or other canned goods, we will give back to the community and help those who are less fortunate than us.

Varner works full-time with Carolina Millwork and Truss and teaches classes at the Adult Activity Center behind Andalusia Ballet from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays. He is married to his wife of 22 years, Amanda, with two children: Kaitlynn and Kole. I teach traditional martial arts for ages five and up. Our style is called yoshukai, and the name of my school is Andalusia Yoshukai Karate.

Five Runs Farm is located at 17922 County Road 34 outside of Andalusia. For more information visit Andalusia-Yoshukai Karate on Facebook or call Shann Varner at 334-475-1825.

Ill be going around helping each person individually and hope even some guys who are smaller in stature show up wanting to learn self-defense, Varner said.

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Varner teaches self defense through martial arts class - The Andalusia Star-News - Andalusia Star-News

We analyzed the top 300 cryptos by market cap and were shocked by the results.

Cryptocurrency has dominated the headlines this year, whether it's because of the scams, the astronomical returns, or the fears of what impact it might have on the financial system. More and more Americans now own crypto, and every week brings another story of increased adoption.

We used CoinMarketCap data to analyze the performance of the top 300 cryptocurrencies by market cap. Some of the results were astonishing.

Out of the top 300 cryptos, 67 launched this year, so we don't yet have full data for them. A further 11 are stablecoins which are pegged to other commodities such as gold or the U.S. dollar.

Even after the recent crypto price crash, a whopping 188 of those 222 remaining cryptos have doubled in value. That's 85%. And many have produced even bigger gains:

What seems even more astonishing at first glance is that only six of those 222 cryptos lost value.

Looking at the figures above, it's easy to get the impression that cryptocurrencies are an easy way to make money. Unfortunately, investing is never quite that simple.

When we look at the top 300 coins by market capitalization, by definition, we're looking at the winners. The coins that didn't produce such good results will have fallen out of the top 300 -- or never made it onto the list. To illustrate this, we checked how many of the top 300 cryptos by market cap at the start of the year are still on the list today.

A total of 136 cryptocurrencies that ranked in the top 300 at the start of the year have fallen off of the list. Or, to put it another way, only 164 cryptos managed to keep their top 300 position.

In addition, because this is a volatile and speculative market, timing is also important. If you'd bought during this year's peaks of April and early November, there's no guarantee those cryptos will ever recover in value.

There's no such thing as a totally risk-free investment, especially in cryptocurrency.

Cryptocurrencystyle="text-decoration: underline"> investment went from strength to strength in 2021, but that does not necessarily mean we'll see similar growth in 2022. Some analysts believe this is only the beginning, while others warn the crypto bubble could burst at any time.

This is a relatively new and unregulated market with a lot of unknowns. We don't know what impact increased regulation might have, nor do we know which individual cryptos might fall victim to hacks or suffer technical glitches.

If 2022 follows the same pattern as 2021, we can guess that almost half the cryptocurrencies in today's top 300 chart could fall behind. This can be challenging for buy-and-hold investors who are looking for cryptos with strong long-term potential.

If you're hoping to invest in a coin that will double in value next year, it is important to weigh the risks and rewards. To use crypto jargon, some cryptocurrencies could go to the moon. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of cryptocurrency scams or poorly thought through projects that have very little chance of success.

The more you understand about the industry and each coin, the better. With 15,000 coins out there, it still takes patience, research, and a bit of luck to pick the winners. Look into the coin's management team, read its whitepaper, and investigate what sets it apart from its competitors.

The golden rule of crypto investing is to never invest money you may need -- whether to meet your other financial goals or cover your day to day living costs. It's tempting to go all in on crypto in the hope of more than doubling your investment, but you could also lose everything.

One way to minimize the risk is to use a reputable cryptocurrency exchange. Another is to research and then research some more. And another is to only invest money you can afford to lose. That way, if you do buy into a coin that fails, it will be disappointing, but it won't be financially devastating.

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You'll Never Guess How Many Altcoins Have More Than Doubled in Value This Year - The Motley Fool

Atfour o'clock in the morning in a quiet, pitch-black jungle, a patrol of young Thai soldiers looked through night vision goggles and heat detection cameras for any sign of movement.

Their beat:a mountainous section of the Thailand-Myanmar border in Asia's notorious drug trafficking heartland, the Golden Triangle.

Their targets: armed smugglers hiking from Myanmar.

Soon, the soldiers spotted a group of people with large backpacks hiding in the dense scrub.

"The patrol ordered them to stop to check, but the group opened fire at the officers," Royal Thai Army Colonel Sudkhet Srinilthin told the ABC.

"The soldiers fired back and there was a firefight for around 30 minutes."

Once the sun came up, the soldiers found six bodies alongside nine large, straw backpacks full of methamphetamine pills.

It was a tragic result for the smugglers, but the patrol's biggest drug bust for the year.

"The total drugs we seized were 1.8 million pills," Captain Kittidech Gunkloy said as he showed the ABC the backpacksat a Thai defence base later that day.

"If all this could get inside Thailand it would [be valued] about 100 baht ($4) a pill, so in total around 180 million baht ($7.5 million) and then who knows how much, double or triple, if it could reach a third country."

The Golden Triangle is the region where the borders of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos meet at the junction of the Mekong and Ruak Rivers, includingthe surrounding mountains in all three countries.

It is a stunning part of South-East Asia, but its beauty belies a dark underbelly.

Traditionally well-known for its opium and heroin trade, the Golden Triangle still produces large amounts of opiates, but it is now one of the biggest synthetic drug production and distribution points in the world.

The drugs are primarily made in the hills of Shan state in northern Myanmar, where clandestine laboratories are pumping out crystal and tablet methamphetamines by the tonne for militia groups and organised crime syndicates.

The cooks and crooks are rarely caught, but smugglers from poor backgrounds enter a daily game of cat and mouse with Thai border guards.

It is always dangerous, and sometimes deadly.

Around 1,500 officers from Thai Taskforce Pha Muang are responsible for keeping watch over 342 kilometres of porous land borders alongside Myanmar to the west and Laos to the east.

"We need to patrol 24 hours, day and night, and when we can't cover that [in person] we use special tools to help, like CCTV or motion sensors to check along the border," Colonel Sudkhet said.

On a daytime border walk the ABC was invited to join with another patrol, it was clear to see why the jungle has become an attractive route for drug smugglers.

The bush is thick, the terrain is rugged, there are plenty of places to hide, and some of the barbed-wire border fences are flimsy or cut away.

Smugglers also take their chances across the long, winding rivers separating the countries, which are patrolled by heavily armed Thai navy officers out on the water.

Captain Jirat Pookthong from the Mekong Riverine Unit sees his team's role as policing Thailand's front door while soldiers in the jungle guard the back door.

"We devote our strength and our heart to stop the drugs the best we can," he told the ABC.

"Definitely, if there was no riverine unit to keep watch, the illegal operations around the Golden Triangle especially drugs would be able to get inside Thailand.

While the global pandemic disrupted industries far and wide, the drug trade out of the Golden Triangle has not just survived, but thrived.

Jeremy Douglas from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has spent more than a decade in the region.

He told the ABC that despite the large drug busts, supply has barely been dented.

"COVID never slowed the drug business down, it's really, really resilient," Mr Douglas said.

"Frankly, the guys that are in this business, the big organised crime figures and their militia partners in Myanmar, don't play by the rules we do, so while borders closed to us they were freely crossing them."

After being manufactured in Myanmar, the drugs are trafficked through Laos and Thailand, then sent by sea cargo, air cargo, and, increasingly during COVID, by parcel post to other countries, including Australia.

Mr Douglas said drug busts in Laos were up 600 per cent for the year, including "by far the largest seizure in the history of East and South-East Asia" 55 million methamphetamine tablets and 1.5 tonnes of crystal meth.

A Thai-led operation involving the Mekong countries and southern China smashed records in 2021, too.

They confiscated more thanhalf a billion methamphetamine pills, 30 tonnes of ice, six tonnes of heroin, three tonnes of ketamine, and 257 tonnes of chemicals used to make illegal drugs.

"We saw an increase in drugs being seized which to us indicates an increase in production, and at the same time prices on the street were down, so supply was very, very high," Mr Douglas said.

He added that the turmoil in Myanmar following February's military coup had fuelled the rise in synthetic drug production.

"Clearly people are using the post-coup chaos and environment as an opportunity and traffickers, of course, need those kind of conditions," he said.

"They don't want the Myanmar police to be working against them.

"Right now, the police are fighting an insurgency or dealing with ethnic armed unrest, so they have other issues on their mind, and that is a free space for others [drug smugglers] to do their business."

As the drug trade traverses the mountains and rivers of the Golden Triangle, some of the communities in the region are desperate for their "beautiful part of the world" to earn a new reputationas a tourist destination.

Phakakan Rungpracharat, 42, grew up in the northern Thai village of Ban Pa Mee, just a few kilometres from the Myanmar border.

She set up a mountainside cafe five years ago, and since then other locals have opened guest houses, restaurants, and stalls selling handicrafts from the local Akha hill tribe.

"Nowadays, we have proved that our community has so many great things, and we are more than what the world has thought of us before," Ms Phakakan told the ABC.

"We have become a tourism village, we have created work for the youth and our community, we have a lot of young people who left or lived abroad and have come back to develop their village."

Thailand reopened to fully vaccinated international visitors last month and some have started to trickle up to the villages, temples, and lookouts in the Golden Triangle.

Ms Phakakan said the recent news of the six drug smugglers' deaths was upsetting, but she also felt comforted that soldiers were patrolling the border to keep local villages safe.

"I want to tell people around the world to please come and visit us, please don't worry about the drugs, we can guarantee your safety," she said.

"We have such beautiful scenery, a good way of life, nice weather, it's peaceful, and we have great food and coffee this is who we are."

The Golden Triangle's drug trade is established and lucrative, despite the authorities' attempts to stop the flow and some locals' desire to reinvent the region.

For every group of drug smugglers caught, many are successfully running the gauntlet and making it from Myanmar into Thailand and Laos every day.

Beyond this part of South-East Asia, the organised crime syndicates these smugglers work for have tentacles that stretch all over the world.

The steep rise of the Golden Triangle's drug supply is a big concern for the Australian Federal Police (AFP) in particular.

Simon Lalic, the AFP's senior officer in Thailand, said Australia was a key target market for Golden Triangle drugs.

"Our statistics suggest that anywhere between 60 to 80 per cent of the methamphetamine that is consumed in Australia comes from this very region," Mr Lalic told the ABC at a checkpoint on the Thailand-Myanmar border.

The AFP's Thailand officers work closely with local authorities in a dedicated team called Taskforce Storm, to share intelligence, information and forensic technology.

During the pandemic, the task force's biggest Australia-bound hauls have been found in sea cargo, including methamphetamines concealed in motorbike parts, coconut milk cansand barbecue grills, and heroin hidden in tins of acrylic paint.

Last month AFP officers made a breakthrough, with the arrest of one of the kingpins behind the heroin-in-paint shipmentin Sydney.

Two men, including a38-year-old considered to be one of Australia's most significant organised crime threats, were charged with allegedly conspiring to import the drugs an offence with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

"We see our work as really important here in Thailand, because every kilogram that we seize and every dollar that we confiscate has an effect on the criminal entities that are working in this," Mr Lalic said.

"It's a difficult fight because the numbers are big and the statistics show that this issue is getting bigger and bigger, but we can't stop the fight."

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Asia's infamous Golden Triangle and the soldiers tracking down the drug smugglers who rule its narcotics trade - ABC News

Image courtesy FFRF

SHORTLY before Darwin Day 2021 (February 12) the Freedom From Religion Foundation and its Chicago chapter unveiled the striking billboard above in Chicago.

At the time FFRF Co-President Dan Barker said that that science works and must be trusted during pandemics such as Covid. He added:

It was a natural selection given the continuing pushback by the Christian Right against masking and social distancing mandates.

Tom Cara, FFRFs Executive Director for the Metropolitan Chicago Chapter, coordinated the billboard project. He said:

This new billboard is timely in two ways. First, to encourage everyone to help keep us all safe by trusting in science, not superstition, and to mask up! Second, to give science the respect it deserves by honouring the birthday of Charles Darwin.

During this critical time in our history, it is very important we recognize the outstanding contributions of those in the science and medical fields.

The billboard was just one of a host efforts to get Americans vaccinated and produced positive results but only among those untainted by religion or Republicanism.

Natalie Jackson, in this August op-ed, concluded:

Most white evangelical Republicans, and Republicans in general, disagreed with our question about the Golden Rule, that because getting vaccinated against COVID-19 helps protect everyone, it is a way to live out the religious principle of loving my neighbors (57 percent and 58 percent, respectively).

This may be because for some white evangelicals and Republicans, politics and religion are inseparable and Gods will, or their interpretation of it, controls everything.

At the beginning of this month, The Jerusalem Post confirmed that white evangelicals dont give a toss about the welfare of others.

It quoted from a recent Pew Research Center survey that found that only 57 percent of white evangelical Protestants had received at least one shot of the vaccine, compared to 86 percent of Hispanic Catholics, 79 percent of white Catholics, 73 percent of white non-evangelicals and 70 percent of black evangelicals.

Curiously, the JP neglected to point out that the study showed that atheists top the list of those who have received jabs. That was left to the FFRF which said the study showed that fully 90 percent of atheists are vaccinated.

Barker said:

Atheists believe in this life, not an afterlife, and we dont need a god to threaten us with hell to do the right thing. Were good for goodness sake.

The FFRF emphasised the underlying issues behind the disparate vaccination rates. Its Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor added:

This is one of the great moral issues of today and religion is simply failing. Religious folks are often suspicious of a tiny little shot to prevent the spread of a lethal contagion that has killed 1 in every 500 Americans and has completely overwhelmed and overworked our heroes on the health care frontlines.

It takes religion to make the immoral seem moral.

The numbers, said organisation, show some interesting trends. Agnostics lag slightly behind atheists, while nothing in particular Nones are about average. Catholics score above average, and Hispanic Catholics even better than agnostics.

It seems like a rare instance of American Catholics listening to their Pope and the Pope having the correct message. Now, if he would only apply himself to the scourge of rape and abuse within his church.

Id love a cup of coffee

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Survey shows that US atheists are overwhelmingly pro-vax - Patheos

Madeleine Egle secured her second World Cup victory of the luge season, while doubles pair Thomas Steu and Lorenz Koller also topped the timesheets on a golden day for Austria. Egle's time of 1:45.208 secured the women's singles title and she finished 0.293s faster than Germany's Julia Taubitz.It marks the 23-year-old's first win since the season-opener in Yanqing, while Germany's Anna Berreiter completed the podium in third and Natalie Geisenberger who will defend her Olympic title in February was fourth. In the men's doubles, Steu and Koller completed an action-packed weekend with a remarkable gold - the ninth of their World Cup career. The pair were in Nations Cup action on Friday and 24 hours later they won by the slenderest of margins, beating Toni Eggert and Sascha Benecken by three thousandths of a second. Latvia's Martins Bots and Roberts Plume finished third, 0.213s back and only six thousandths clear of Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt. Sportsbeat 2021

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Excerpt from:

Austria rule the roost on golden Saturday - Eurosport COM