New town hall for Lambeth
Lambert Smith Hampton (LSH) has advised London Borough of Lambeth on its £50m new town hall complex in Brixton.
London Borough of Lambeth has completed an agreement with Muse Developments to undertake the development of a new town hall complex comprising some 14,000 sq m of new and improved accommodation in the heart of Brixton, which will incorporate the 100 year old town hall with its distinctive clock tower.
LSH to continue advising the council
LSH will continue to advise the Council through the completion of the site assembly process and satisfaction of the conditions precedent.
The £50m development scheme will be funded through the redevelopment and/or sale of seven office properties currently occupied by the Council where the optimum alternative use is likely to be residential development. The Council will also secure substantial revenue savings by the reorganization.
Saving £4.5m a year for Lambeth
Cllr Paul McGlone, Cabinet Member for Finance, said "This is a good deal for Lambeth – it will save at least £4.5 million a year, deliver 275 new [and] affordable homes as well as jobs for local people. It's a smart deal too because by selling off our old and expensive office buildings we can make the development pay for itself."
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Planning for the Future: Overhauling the Planning System News Read our summary of the key proposed changes contained within the long-awaited Planni...
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Green light for new retail and leisure scheme on outskirts of Ely News LSH scores first virtual planning committee win following 12 months of negotiation
Stephen Armitage
Director - Planning Development & Regeneration


Stories from the Geelong Botanic Gardens
Fairies and Dragons
How old is that tree?
Posted on February 7, 2016 by possumgbg
A bunya pine (Araucaria bidwillii) at the Geelong Botanic Gardens
"So tell me, how old is that tree?" must be one of the most commonly asked questions by visitors to the Geelong Botanic Gardens; right after "where are the toilets?" It is also one of the most difficult to answer since, for most trees, the real answer is "I don't know" – but with a bit of work we could find out.
Method 1: Chop down the tree and count the tree rings
Any child could tell you this and I am told that it is a remarkably accurate method. You will almost certainly get an accurate idea of how old he tree was, and an even more accurate date for the day it wasn't.
Sequoiadendron gigantium at the Natural History Museum in London
This is a 1500 year old dead tree showing a slice through a Sequoiadendron gigantium showing significant dates in human history from St Columba founding a mission on Iona to Charles Darwin all lined up to the tree rings.
However, most chopped down trees look more like this
Tree rings on Liquidamber
Counting tree rings on a bit of rough sawn wood is not quite as easy as it sounds. Never the less, in the interests of science, I thought I'd give it a go on a tree removed in January. Tree age = 70 years
Is that reasonable? How do we know?
My guess is that 70 might be a bit old – by perhaps by 5 years (based on the age of the property). But then again, I don't know how old the sapling tree was when it was planted – and it could have been 5 years old by then too. A bit more information would help with verification.
Which brings us to the next method…
Method 2: Check the (formal) records
In a Botanic Garden, you might have thought that this would be a shoe in. It's not. The Geelong Gardens, like many others, have very patchy planting records. We know what our first curator, Daniel Bunce had planted by January 1860, less than 3 years after the Gardens commenced, because he published a catalogue of Plants under Cultivation in the Botanical Gardens Geelong . After that, with the exception of our own Seq
George Jones planting the Wollemi Pine on December 7 2005
uoiadendron gigantium, we really don't have records until the last 20-30 years.
If you're lucky, the tree you are interested in will have a sign noting the date and name of the august personage who planted the tree, after that, you are on your own.
But experienced gardeners and botanists must have some idea of how old the trees are – right?
Method 3: Ask an expert gardener
This sounds great – until you ask more than one expert.
The row of Bunya Bunya pines (Araucaria bidwillii) which line the south-western edge of the original nursery garden are a good example. These trees are listed on the National Trust significant tree register. The current listing no longer gives an age (smart people), but the original listing in 1989 suggests a planting date around 1885 for the stand of bunyas.
On the other hand, fanfare around the Association of Friends of Botanic Gardens conference (2001) (Bunce, Bunyas and Beyond) makes a clear link between the bunyas and the first curator Daniel Bunce (d 1872). The reasons for this link are beyond the scope of this post (but make an interesting story all on their own. One to keep up my sleeve). An article in the Geelong Advertiser Weekend Magazine (36/6/2001) makes it clear that the prevailing opinion at that time was that Bunce planted the bunyas, the ginkgo and the Chilean wine palm.
So who is right – if any of them?
Now if you'd asked me, I'd have said that there is no evidence that these trees were planted in the 19th Century – but how would I know?
Method 4: search for references to your chosen tree in the written record
Unfortunately, there are very few actual written records for the Geelong Botanic Gardens. (There was something about a flood in the council document storage facility?) Anyway, very little exist, except for the Bunce catalogue of 1860. No Bunyas are listed there.
But there are other secondary records such as old newspapers and magazines which might shed some light on the matter.
Searching newspapers has become easier with the advent of computers, the internet and more recently, the Australian National Library's Trove project to digitise (and translate into text) Australia's newspapers.
In the interest of research, I have spent many late nights "troving" in order to answer just that question: how old are these trees?
Fortunately for us, there are a number of excellent descriptions of the Geelong Botanic (or Botanical) Gardens from the very early days of the Gardens through to the 1910s. Many of these list the botanical highlights, though to be honest, these are frequently the massed plantings of brightly coloured garden ornamentals. From these records we know that by 1897, the ginkgo was 30 ft high and that the Chilean wine palm (Jubaea chilensis) was fully 30 years old with the shed (Raddenberry fern house) built over it. The implication from these reports is that both of these trees were indeed planted by Bunce in the 1860s.
There is no mention at all of any bunya bunya pines up to 1926 (the end of the current phase of digitization for the Geelong Advertiser).
But not everything gets mentioned in an article about gardening, so perhaps the writers were less impressed by an Australian native tree than they were about such exotic trees as the ginkgo and the Jubaea.
What, you may ask (and I hope you did) makes me think there is some doubt about the age of the bunyas?
The answer is in…
Method 5: check the old photographs
(Those taking this route should take caution – most of the photos don't have dates, although there are clues which help narrow them down. This too, is outside the scope of the current post)
The Raddenberry fernery c 1890
This is one of the earliest photographs of the Raddenberry fernery which occupied the middle of the original Nursery Garden from 1885.
It is this image which got me started in the first place, because if the bunyas were planted by Bunce, then they should be clearly evident as a line of trees in the foreground of this photo. But the only trees here are clearly young pine trees. (Young bunyas have dome shaped crowns, compared with the classic Christmas tree shape of pine trees).
So let's look at another image, this time from the early 20th Century.
Botanic Gardens Geelong c 1905 looking west
This photograph looks back across the Gardens from near the Sequoiadendron. The Raddenberry fernery is on the left and the entrance to the Nursery Garden on the right. By the estimation of "experts", the bunyas should be between 25 and 40 years old – plenty big enough to dominate the western sky line – but they aren't there. Once again, just pine trees which are probably the grown-up versions of the ones in the previous photograph.
The Nursery Gardens. The arrows indicate the expected position of the bunyas. Image taken from a portion of an Airspy (Pratt bros) photograph c 1930
By 1930, there are the first aerial views of the gardens. This image looks across the gardens to the west with the now rather dilapidated fernery in the centre. The arrows show where the line of bunyas would be (on the western boundary) – but still they aren't there!
Portion of 1947 areial view Eastern Park.
It is not until this aerial photo from 1947, that a line of trees (indicated by arrows) which could actually be the bunyas is visible on the western boundary.
So how old is that tree?
For the stand of bunyas (Araucaria bidwillii) on the western boundary of the old nursery garden – not as old as you might think. Probably around 85 years in 2016.
A case of mistaken identity
Posted on October 21, 2015 by possumgbg
This image was recently (14/10/15) published on the Lost Geelong Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/LostGeelong) where it was identified as "A man by his car inside the main gates at Eastern Park, 1917".
A man by his car inside the main gates at Eastern Park, 1917
The same image (confusingly dated c.1925) is displayed in the Geelong Botanic Gardens meeting room alongside other historic images of the entrance to the Gardens.
The first of these is labelled "Prince's Gate and Lodge at the Malop street entrance 1883".
Prince's gate and lodge at the Malop street entrance to the Geelong Botanic Gardens ,1883
While the other is the new gates (now called the Hansen gates) to the 1960s extension to the Gardens.
Geelong Botanic Garden entrance c 1980
Both sets of gates bare a superficial resemblance to the first image, however anyone who takes time to make a closer inspection will realise that these pictures are of three distinctly different gates.
The Hansen gates still welcome visitors to the Geelong Botanic Gardens, although after the extension of the Gardens in 2002 to incorporate the 21st century Gardens, they are no longer the main entrance to the Gardens.
So which of the first 2 images are the real Prince's Gates at the Malop Street entrance to the Gardens?
The information displayed with the 1883 image of the gates with the associated lodge gives a bit more detail.
The gates were named the "Prince's Gate" following the visit of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh to Geelong in 1867.
The Garden Street lodge was built sometime before 1864, but demolished in 1920 when the road was realigned. The gates however were given to Kardinia Park in 1904 when it was no longer considered necessary to completely fence off Eastern Park.
This image from around 1910 the old Princes' Gates in place on the northwest corner of Kardinia Park near the war memorial.
Old Prince's gates in Kardina Park c 1910
Despite the addition of lights on the tops of the pillars, these are clearly the same gates as in the 1883 photograph.
The image which has recently been promoted as the Malop Street (Prince's) gates appears to have been mis-attributed as these gates do not actually resemble either of the other images of these gates, and the given dates of the image (either 1917 or 1925) are both after the gates had been removed from their original site in Malop street.
So, why the confusion?
The Geelong Heritage Centre has a wide collection of historical images of Geelong which come from a wide range of sources. The image in question is amongst these.
The details supplied with the image are:
A man by his car inside the main entrance gates at Eastern Park, 1917
GRS Number: 2009/00125
Creator/Artist: Unidentified
Image Type: Photogrpah
Format: Black and white photograph, 114mmx 158
It appears that it is simply a case of mistaken identity. I like to think that the photographer, like me, took a while to sorting out his photographs from his tour of Geelong and simply mis-remembered where this particular image was taken.
Posted in Botanic Gardens, History	| Tagged Eastern Park, Geelong Botanic Gardens, Prince's gates	| Leave a comment
The Geelong Botanic Gardens Bronze Cranes
Posted on May 29, 2015 by possumgbg
One of the most commonly asked questions about non-plant things in the Geelong Botanic Gardens is: "What's the significance/story of the bronze cranes?"
There are 2 stories here:
The history of the bronze cranes and how they came to be in the Geelong Botanic Gardens
The meaning of cranes which stand on the back of turtle-dragons
Starting with the second one first:
For a long time all I could find out about the cranes is that they were symbolic of "long life and happiness". Then, by chance I was watching Antiques Roadshow when one of the items brought in was an okimono, a Japanese craved ornament, which depicted a turtle dragging it's long beard behind it. The experts call it a "minogamé" and said that it was a bringer of old age and a symbol of longevity.
Finally, with a word for the curious dragon-like turtle, I was on the track for a bit more information (not quite trusting Antiques Roadshow for all my cultural knowledge).
According to that trusted source, Wikipedia ,a minogamé is a turtle so old that it grows a train of seaweed on its back and is a symbol of longevity and felicity. Turtles more generally in Japanese culture are a haven for immortals and the world mountain (whatever that might be), and symbolise longevity, good luck and support. Unsurprisingly, with this good rap, the tortoise is a favourite motif for both netsuke and okimono.
More information on minogamé (but without the accent on the final e) came from a blog post on "Minogame in Japanese Culture ". In this retelling, the word minogame means "straw raincoat turtle" as the tail of the turtle resembles a farmers straw raincoat. The minogame is a giant turtle and at least a thousand years old – the tail, despite the name, is made of seaweed.
So, is the tail beard, seaweed or straw raincoat?
GBGs own minogame
Looking at our own Geelong Botanic Gardens minogamé, we have a very short beard and a rather feathery tail. And no turtle I've ever seen looked quite so fierce. However, the websites I visited have no information on turtle teeth.
But what of the cranes standing on the turtles back?
Manchurian or red-crowned cranes are also well represented in Japanese folk-lore and art. They are known as tanchōzuru and thy live for a thousand years, and mate for life. So (what a surprise) more long life and happiness then.
But how did Japanese bronze cranes find their way to the Geelong Botanic Gardens and where did they come from?
The first part of the story comes from George Jones (Growing Together, 1984) quoting from an interview with ex-Alderman F.G.H. Richie in 1931.
St Albans Park
The cranes originally graced the driveway of W. R Wilson's St Albans' Park homestead at a cost of £400. Mr Wilson was a race horse breeder and trainer with a taste for the oriental. Each of the larger 2 cranes had an electric light bulb in its mouth which were said to be able to illuminate the whole driveway.
The cranes remained at St Albans' Park when the establishment became the property of a Mr A. W. Jones (no relation to George), but when he sold the stud, he kept the cranes and transferred them to his town residence in Garden Street, Geelong.
This would have been sometime between the First and Second World Wars. At the time, Geelong Council's improvement projects included the Eastern Beach Improvement Scheme which eventually generated the swimming enclosure, fountains and play ground which we enjoy today.
It seems that Alderman Ritchie had his eye on the birds, as he soon approached Mr Jones for a donation of the birds to add to the Improvements. Unsurprisingly, as Jones had taken the trouble to bring the cranes with him, Ritchie was refused. However, he was later persuaded to accept a nominal price of £25 for them, and they were installed in the fountain on the steps leading down to the beach.
Unfortunately, the statues were vulnerable to damage by vandals, and their position in the middle of a fountain made them hard to repair, so at some stage (certainly before the 1980s) they were copied in some more durable materials and the originals moved to the ponds in the Botanic Gardens.
The ponds themselves were removed in the early 21st Century when the Gardens had quite a facelift. Around 2005, the cranes became the focus, along with the magnificent Ginkgo, of the remodeled Temperate Garden.
By this time, the number of cranes had increased to 5 with an additional small crane. Bronze cranes do not to my knowledge reproduce, even if the birds they are modeled on do mate for life. It seems that some ten or more years earlier, one of the small cranes had been stolen and a replacement had been made to cover the loss. Shortly before the Temperate Garden was opened, it "reappeared", some say having been found dumped in a rear lane way in Geelong. (The details seem to be sketchy). The 5th crane was then incorporated into the remodeled garden.
So really, it seems totally appropriate that the Temperate Garden, with the spreading Ginkgo and tanchōzuru standing on minogame are now a favourite sport for gardens weddings.
May you all experience long life and happiness.
The Temperate Garden
Posted in Uncategorized	| Tagged Botanic Gardens, Geelong Botanic Gardens	| Leave a comment
Whose idea was it to plant the Eastern Park as a Pinetum?
Posted on March 23, 2015 by possumgbg
(Some new information from Troving The Geelong Advertiser)
Pinetum noun, plural pineta [pahy-nee-tuh] An arboretum of pines and coniferous trees. (dictionary.com)
The widely accepted story of Geelong's Eastern Park is that Daniel Bunce (Curator 1857-1872) laid out the Botanic Gardens in what we now call Eastern Park, with "labyrinthine paths" and beds as seen in the 1864 photograph and map on display in the Gardens' meeting room.
Eastern Kark 1864
He was also well known to have planted "blue gums" (probably Eucalyptus gobulus), as a fast growing shelter bed. By the time of Bunce's death in 1872, when John Raddenberry took over the management of the Gardens, the blue gums were starting to look tatty and were removed, the complex beds of the wider Park simplified and eventually abandoned and the focus of the Gardens narrowed down to the Nursery garden, which remained the "Botanical Gardens" until the expansions in the early 1960s.
Most of the trees in Eastern Park today do not date back to the very early days of the Gardens. We are currently in a period of replanting, and this is the second and perhaps, for some areas of the Park, third or even fourth time this has happened in the history of the Botanic Gardens (but that is another story).
But who first planted the grounds as a pinetum (an arboretum focusing on conifers)?
This honour is generally given to John Raddenberry as part of the remodeling of the large and unmanageable Botanical Garden into a Park with associated Nursery (botanical) garden.
Recent evidence has come to light to suggest that it was in fact Daniel Bunce who was responsible for the pinetum style of planting, and that it has continued under successive curators with more or less vigor to the present day.
On May 28, 1863, the Geelong Advertiser reported:
… The Curator of the Botanical Gardens has just received a case containing Conifera and other trees indigenous to Queensland, from Mr Walter Hill, the Manager of the botanical Gardens at Brisbane. The donation is most opportune, and will materially assist in the large Pinetum now being formed in the grounds. It is the third present of the same kind which Mr Bunce has received from the Brisbane Gardens during the last three years. Mr McNaughton kindly took charge of the case from Brisbane to Geelong.
So it seems that establishing a pinetum was in fact part of Bunce's early plans for the Gardens.
Even before this, Bunce had already started planting in pines:
Around the hill on which Mr. Bunce's house stands some three hundred pines, numbering nearly a hundred varieties, have been planted, which, when grown up, will add a charming feature to the grounds. It is also intended to plant a large number of the conifer family along the principal carriage drives within the gardens…
… In the forcing-house and conservatory there is a number of young plants of the various pine tribes indigenous to the colonies-some from Mount Zero, others from the Victoria River, Lake Torrens, Lake Hindmarsh, Cooper's Creek, &c., and they are seen to be growing vigorously. (Geelong Advertiser 3/7/1862)
Cook Islands pine, Araucaria columnaris near the old curator's cottage, Eastern Park
Not just any pines either but a range of "interesting specimens". The area around the curators cottage still has some more unusual conifers.
By November 7, 1862, The Advertiser reported that some of these new trees were in the ground and growing well:
The pines planted in the early portion of the season are thriving remarkably well, and promise to be a great ornamentation to the grounds.
Raddenberry continued with the theme of planting conifers in the Park.
In 1880, The Australasian reported:
Amongst the grass at pretty regular intervals young pines – chiefly P. insignia – have been planted, as if the object were to convert the area into forest.
Unfortunately, none of the trees in the Eastern Park pinetum can be attributed to either Bunce nor Raddenberry. The oldest trees planted for which a date can be attributed were the "Royal oaks" and a Sequoiadendron gigantium, all planted near the Garden street entrance, and all long gone.
It is generally known that many pines from the park were harvested for timber between the wars, and new pines were planted. Many of the pines planted at that time are now being replaced by new plantings to continue the tradition of the Parkland of Eastern Park being maintained as a "pinetum"
Eastern Park pinetum
A version of this article was circulated to the Friends of Geelong Botanic Gardens Guides on 12/2/2015
Posted in Botanic Gardens	| Tagged Eastern Park, Geelong Botanic Gardens	| Leave a comment
The story of the Common Brown Butterfly
Posted on January 16, 2015 by possumgbg
Male common brown Butterfly
The most common butterfly in the Geelong Botanic Gardens during the early part of summer – apart from the ubiquitous cabbage white butterfly – is the Common Brown Butterfly (Heteronumpha merope).
I first noticed this butterfly in large numbers a couple of years ago when the grass-trees (Xanthorrhoea) in the 21st Century Gardens were in flower. Dozens of male butterflies were feeding together on the floral spikes, making it look as if they were covered in dead leaves. Despite looking at every grass-tree flower spike ever since, I've never seen this phenomena again.
A spike of butterflies
Xanthorrhoea flowers produce a lot of nectar, so I imagine that that was what attracted the butterflies. With their modified, tubular mouth parts, butterflies can only sip at nectar to feed. Given that common brown butterflies can live for up to eight months, they must be feeding on something!
The common brown butterfly was first collected by Joseph Banks in 1770 from Botany Bay. I wonder if he picked that the male and female are rather different – or did he think they were 2 separate species like I did when I first encountered the females?
Male common brown butterflies are a mottled orange-brown with a fairly indistinct eyespot on each wing. When they rest in the grass they almost disappear as they fold their wings vertically and look for all the world like a dead leaf.
Female common brown butterflies are significantly larger (the forewing is 38 mm across compared with 34mm for males), they are also much more colourful with a completely different wing patination and a much more floppy flight.
Added to these differences, the male butterflies seem to appear much earlier in the season and in larger numbers – at least in the Geelong Botanic Gardens. It is only later that the females start to appear, and now in early January that pairs of butterflies can be seen in their nuptial flight which confirms that, despite their apparent differences, they are in fact the same species.
Not only was the common brown butterfly one of the first Australian butterflies to be collected, but it of was also one of the first to be the subject of modern ecological study (by E.D. Edwards from the CSIRO back in 1973). Female butterflies mate as soon as they emerge, so all those mating dances I have been seeing confirm my feeling that the girls don't show up in the Gardens until after the boys.
The caterpillars of common browns feed on "rough grass" including species of Poa and Themeda. In southern Australia, these grasses tend to dry out or die back over the hot, dry summer and only provide lush leaves after the first autumn rains. There is not much for a caterpillar to eat over the hottest part of summer in our (normally) hot, dry later summers. Coupled with that, butterflies don't enjoy the hottest weather of summer – numbers drop off in the Gardens after the first heatwaves of January. So what happens between the peak butterfly season in early summer and peak caterpillar season in the cooler, damper part of the year?
I suspect that the male butterflies actually die once the mating season is over. The females, which can live up to 8 months, aestivate over the hottest part of summer. (Aestivation is the hot weather equivalent of hibernation). The butterflies hide away, lower their metabolic rate and wait out the season until conditions improve and they can lay their eggs on the leaves of their host grasses when the caterpillars have most chance of success.
The larvae of common browns are very variable in colour and pattern and I don't think I've ever really noticed them – but I'm sure the local magpies would know them well as they feed largely on grubs and beetles in the grass. Perhaps to avoid being dinner, the caterpillars feed at night. The pupa forms amongst the leaf litter at the base of the plant which strikes me as lucky as that is also out of the way of our lawn mowers. It's good to know that the Council mowing practices in Eastern Park are unlikely to be reducing the numbers of this particular butterfly.
So what eats a butterfly? Clearly something as my little collection of butterfly wings attests. This collection includes an entire male common brown which does not seem to have been eaten, and 2 pairs of female forewings which were both found lying close together. Pairs of wings seem to indicate that something is eating them and leaving the non-tasty bit behind. This was probably a bird, but butterflies are also dinner for dragonflies and lizards.
Of course, spiders also feed on butterflies when they get the chance.
Reference: The Butterflies of Australia by Albert Orr and Rodger Kitching (2010)
Posted in Botanic Gardens, Natural History	| Tagged Common Brown Butterfly, Eastern Park, Geelong Botanic Gardens	| Leave a comment
Music in the Gardens – 1869 style
Posted on November 25, 2014 by possumgbg
Music in the Gardens has been a popular summer event in the Geelong Botanic Gardens over the last decade or more. Sadly, the Friends of Geelong Botanic Gardens have decided that it is beyond their capacity to continue to run this event. However, music and our Gardens have always been a popular combination.
The Band Played the Corio March
In the 1860's and 1870's the Geelong "Botanical" Gardens hosted a very different style of "Music in the Gardens". These popular concerts were "promenade" concerts, held in the cultivated area of Eastern Park, possibly in the vicinity of the parterre gardens in front of the curator's cottage, more or less where the PlaySpace is today. The band of the Geelong Volunteer Rifle Brigade provided a range of popular music including selections from opera, dance music and original compositions, always finishing with "God Save the Queen".
The ladies and gentlemen of Geelong came to listen from their horse and carriage, while others enjoyed the music while promenading along curator Bunce's walks and and through the parterres. Sometimes a little dancing occurred on the grass – not so very different from the more recent Music in the Gardens concerts.
Providing the money to pay the band to perform at the concerts was a continual challenge. Initially, subscriptions (what we'd call donations today) were collected from the public at each concert, but this did not provide a sufficiently secure income. Concerts in the Gardens ceased for a while due to lack of funds, but restarted when subscriptions were sort in advance of the season, payable at local banks or directly to curator Bunce.
By the summer of 1868/9, the Geelong Volunteer Artillery band, under the leadership of bandmaster Walker was playing weekly concerts in the Botanical Gardens on Saturday afternoons.
The Geelong Advertiser (25/1/1869) reported:
The music played by the band in the Botanical Gardens on Saturday afternoon is increasing in popularity, and the spot chosen is now the great place of resort every week. On Saturday there was a large attendance, carriages filled with pleasure-seekers, equestrians and pedestrians being present in large numbers. The programme which was as well selected as any that has been played this season, included, by special request, the grand march "Corio," composed by the Rev. H. B. Power, and played for the first time on Saturday week.
The timing of this concert unfortunately clashed with the regular cricket matches played on Corio Oval (now the site of the Eastern Park conference centre). The Advertiser went on to say:
There was a good attendance of players on the Corio cricket ground on Saturday, but was not so good as the beautiful weather would have led us to anticipate. Visitors, there were few or none, the attractions offered by the performance of the band in the gardens adjoining being irresistible; several of the players themselves —gay butterflies of fashion—leaving the reserve directly they heard the band commence to bask in the eyes of beauty; this to a great extent tended to spoil what would otherwise have been an interesting game.
Posted in Botanic Gardens, History	| Tagged Bunce Bollards, Eastern Park, Geelong Botanic Gardens, Music in the Gardens	| Leave a comment
Jubaea's story
I'm getting old now. I'm not as upright as I used to be; my crown is inclining to the
Jubaea chilensis (2011)
southeast and my fronds as not as luxuriant as in the past. All the gardeners take special care of me, my old fronds are pruned and the arborists meticulously inspect and photograph my crown. Still, I know my time must be limited: they planted my replacement a few metres away last winter. All living things have their allotted time on this earth, and I know that mine is nearly up.
I don't remember how I got here, but who of us can truthfully say that they remember much of their earliest years? My kind starts life as a pretty sizable seed, though small for a coconut. The seeds would be easy to transport around the globe to take root in a new country. No need for a cumbersome Wardian case (the humidi-crib of the plant world) to bring me and my sisters, already green and growing to a new land.
Sisters? Yes, I am not entirely alone, though we are well scattered. There are fine specimens of similar age and stature in Botanic Gardens around the country. We are not a fast growing kind but are all now tall enough to look down on the garden beds that surround us.
Where was I? Ah yes, I believe that I first came to this country as a seed and was allowed to germinate and grow, perhaps with my scattered sisters, until I was big enough and strong enough to be planted into the ground, here in the Geelong Botanic Gardens. I don't precisely remember who directed my planting or who chose this place for me, perhaps it was Mr Daniel Bunce, the renowned plant collector and explorer who finished his days here collecting plants from around the world to trial here in Geelong; maybe it was Mr John Raddenberry who came after, the darling of the horticultural community and a collector of ferns.
My first clear memory is from 1885 with Mr Raddenberry building his impressive fernery. I had firsthand experience of this as I was in the box seat to witness the whole construction. Although the fernery took up a substantial part of the middle of the Nursery Gardens as they were called, I was already well established in my plot of ground. I might be slow growing, but I was already an impressive and valuable plant. Rather than move me, the fernery was built around me. The frame and slatted roof and walls were constructed over my section of the nursery first and the ponds and rockeries with the impressive Jupiter Pluvius fountain, the remains of which survive to this day, built next to me under a dome which stood 60 foot high.
Around 1984 with her fellow palm survivors from the Raddenberry fernery
Mr Raddenberry planted the whole interior with a mixture of ferns and palms and encouraged creepers to ramble through the wooden slats to further block out the sun. Although designed as a fernery, it was we palms that dominated the planting. I was joined by Kenita palms as well as fan, Cocos and cabbage palms, a few of which have also managed to survive the changing fortunes of the Gardens and keep watch with me from the rocky beds to my east.
The people of Geelong never quite appreciated Mr Raddenberry's fernery as they should have. Don't misunderstand me – the cultured people were quite attentive, making regular visits, usually when passing through the fernery on their way to the see the colourful displays in the conservatory at the eastern end of the nursery or to admire the ribbon work planting in the southern beds. Such gaudy displays are over in a season, and yet attract a certain class of people to gush their admiration in the local press.
The highlight of my time enclosed in the fernery was the grand inauguration garden party held by Mayor Anderson in 1912. He was quite a fan of my Garden and of curator, James Day who worked tirelessly to give satisfaction to the council's Gardens Committee on an increasingly reduced budget. It was quite an afternoon. Over 1500 people were invited and food and drink for the guests was provided in abundance. The Mayor and Lady Mayoress greeted their guests near the gates and the fine ladies and gentlemen wandered amongst the plants, seeing and being seen. Unfortunately, the weather was not what the organisers had hoped, but I've never complained about at little rain.
Those days of my youth are now long gone. A tree may live for a hundred years or more (and I come into the "or more" class), but a wooden slat fernery, covered in creepers and sprayed by fountains does well to last for 50 years. The dome of the fernery was the first to go, collapsing in the 1920s. They tried to patch things up, but by the middle of the 20th Century, the wooden structure had become unsafe and my section of the fernery was pulled down (the grottos at the back lasted a little longer finally being demolished in the late 1950s).
Jubaea at the Geelong Botanic Gardens in the mid-20th Century
At last I was back in the sun. One mustn't complain too much, but over 50 years of deep shade was not the life I was intended to lead. As you can see in this photograph, I emerged looking pretty good. My trunk is slim at the base and you can just make out my gently curving trunk. My luxuriant fronts were my growing glory. Clearly the photographer thought so too as he clearly composed this picture to show me off to advantage. The lady looks a little dumpy in comparison.
I have enjoyed my middle and later years, presiding over the many and various changes in the nursery garden. With more sunlight, I grew tall and strong, producing an annual crop of little ones – some at least of which have made it to the nursery pots, and one of which now keeps me company.
The gardens around me have changed over the years; sometimes being planted with roses and at other times being choked with bamboo which blocked my view. All the while, I've been accompanied by my near contemporaries, the ginkgo with its butter yellow winter foliage, the copper beech with its showy spring leaves and the redwood inexorably growing to dominate the hillside under the curator's cottage. Other trees haven't fared so well as my old friend the bunya sadly died after being struck by lightning. The avocado and the alder too have now gone and that young Johnny-come-lately, the kauri by the old nursery gate cannot continue for much longer. Soon it will be my turn too.
It's not that I don't feel appreciated. During my time in the fernery, I supported many of the climbers which helped to shut out the light– you can still make out the scars on my trunk where nails were driven in to help support them. The birds have also appreciated my bounty – especially the galahs and corellas who have recently found their way to the gardens. These birds enjoy the fleshy coating to my seeds and can even crack open the nuts to get at the flesh. Unfortunately, this means far fewer little ones, but enough survive. The canny galahs have also discovered that my sap is sweet and have been pecking at my trunk to get at the sugary exudations. I do feel this is a little undignified and my trunk has become quite pock-marked as a result.
Original Friends Logo
My greatest honour of recent years was when the Friends of Geelong Botanic Gardens chose me to be a symbol of their association. Robert Ingpen even drew my portrait. Looking back on it now, I do see that I have aged since then, but it is wonderful to see me standing tall and showing off my wonderfully curvaceous trunk. These days my new growth is thin, and I am beginning to show rather too much "chicken neck" to be dignified.
Now I preside over the ever changing central (flag) bed. The current display is for Tea Total – the plants that make non-alcoholic beverages. I tell you, they are missing out. In my native Chile, my sap (if you cut me down) is fermented to make a very tasty alcoholic beverage. I'm not called a Chilean wine palm for nothing. Now wouldn't that be a way to go?
Posted in Botanic Gardens, History	| Tagged Geelong Botanic Gardens, Raddenberry fernery	| Leave a comment
AN EASTERN PARK MYSTERY SOLVED
Posted on September 28, 2014 by possumgbg
Not all the stories of the Geelong Botanic Gardens and Eastern Park are about Gardens, trees and the way the Botanic Gardens were managed. Some, like this one that I came across during my research are about the people who visited the Park or Gardens and what they did next.
February, 1912: EASTERN PARK MYSTERY SOLVED.
This looks interesting; I wonder what the "mystery" is? My mind runs through unexplained holes appearing in the hillside, crop circles, strange lights… time to read on…
Some days ago a motor party
1912 – early enough in the development of the motor car to be worth noting their mode of transport. These people must have been well-to-do too.
– going the round of the Eastern Park saw a coat hanging to a tree near the gateway to Limeburners Point. There was no sign of the owner.
My first thought was that someone had left it behind after a picnic and that the next walker through the area had picked it up and put it in a more prominent position. But wait there's more…
To the back was attached what appeared to be a piece of paper, and from the proximity of the spot to the bay the probability of a suicide was suggested. Really – not just a lost coat?
Eastern Park has been the site of occasional sudden and unexpected deaths as well as a couple of rather nasty accidents. Is this article going to be another item for my (imagined) chapter on the darker side of the Park and Gardens?
Mind you – given that the water depth in this area is pretty shallow, suicide by drowning could be a bit tricky. Time to read on
The city police were apprised, but could not find the garment.
The mystery deepens…perhaps the next passer by helped themselves to the coat?
It has since been ascertained by the East Geelong police that the coat belonged to an invalid who is under-going open-air treatment in that locality.
So not a suicide. I bet the people in the car were quite disappointed.
What was mistaken for a piece of paper was a pocket handkerchief hanging from the pocket.
So just an invalid who got a bit warm in his coat – this was February after all – and who left his handkerchief behind while he went for a stroll.
I bet the local constabulary hope that next time the sticky-beakers in that motor vehicle either stick their noses in a bit deeper (and thus discover that what appears to be a suicide note is nothing of the kind), or pull their noses out all together.
From the pages of the Geelong Advertiser (1912) where even a "no news" story was worth the telling.
Posted in History	| Tagged Eastern Park	| Leave a comment
In the beginning …
In the beginning was a bare hillside to the east of the town…
The story of the origins of the Geelong Botanical Gardens (as it was then known) was first told by George Jones in his book "Growing Together, a gardening history of Geelong – extending to Colac and Camperdown." (1984), and continued in 2 supplements in 1988 and 1996.The original book and at least one of the supplements are available from the Friends of Geelong Botanic Gardens (www.friendsgbg.org.au).
George was a careful chronicler of history, and the story of the Gardens is woven throughout the book(s).
It is this story cobbled together from George's writing and his subsequent investigations which the volunteer guides tell to visitors to the Geelong Gardens.
The Geelong Botanic Gardens and what we now call Eastern Park had their beginnings in a series of meetings in 1848/9 by "gentlemen desirous of procuring the establishment of a botanical garden". By December of 1849, they had successfully obtained agreement from the colonial Administrator, Charles LaTrobe, for government money to be provided to fence and layout an appropriate site.
There was a fair bit of discussion amongst the gentlemen of the town as to the best site for their gardens. The Western gully, incorporating what is now Johnstone Park and extending towards the waterfront, was one such site, however, by the time the reserve was proclaimed in 1851, the town corporation had fixed on Eastern Park. This site was also not without controversy as it was seen on the one hand as blocking the eastwards expansion of town and on the other as being a barren wasteland.
It seems that not a lot happened during the first six years of the Gardens. The site was fenced and a curator's cottage was built (1854) and occupied by the keeper of the nearby powder magazine, and the carriage drives (Eastern Park Circuit) were laid out.
It was not until 1857 that Daniel Bunce was appointed the Gardens' first curator that anything remotely "botanical" happen on the site. The traditional story is that he arrived to find a barren hillside with no accessible freshwater. To make a start, he established a nursery garden in a sheltered part of the site which is today's 19th Century Garden. Daniel Bunce laid out the paths which still make up the general plan of this part of the Gardens today.
Daniel Bunce also laid out much of Eastern Park with labyrinthine paths and borders which can be seen in this photograph and in an 1864 map.
Panorama of Geelong Botanic Gardens c 1864
Eastern Park 1864
Daniel Bunce died in 1982 and was succeeded by John Raddenberry who consolidated the horticultural part of the Gardens in the nursery area, simplified the paths in Eastern Park and removed the unpopular and messy blue-gums planted by Bunce.
In 1884, Raddenberry commenced building a huge fernery in the centre of the nursery
Raddenberry's stone pillar
gardens. The fernery dominated the Gardens for the next 50 years and the last relict – the stone fountain – can still be seen in the Gardens today . He also commenced replanting Eastern Park with conifers, leading to the pinetumn (an arboretum for conifers) which distinguishes the botanical collection in Eastern Park today.
Subsequent curators, James Day, Alexander Brown and William Walley presided over the gradual decline in the Gardens, planting colourful bedding plants while Raddenberry's fernery gradually decayed until it was finally removed completely by Curator George Vafiopulous in the late 1950s.
Since the arrival of Mr Vafiopulous, the Gardens have seen a considerable renaissance, being expanded to include the 20th Century gardens, including the teahouse lawn, rose gardens and Walter conservatory in the 1960s; adding the new fernery and southern annex under Ian Rogers in the 1980s and extending forward towards the Bay with John Arnott for the 21st Century.
It's a nice story. But is it true? What of the people who worked there and how old are the trees? Were the early 21th century curators really so lacking in influence?
Through this blog I hope to uncover and retell some of the stories of the gardens – like that of Edward Jones who drowned in a nightsoil pit in Eastern Park (Follow Your Nose Sept 2014), or the "lady" depicted in the Bollards that great visitors as they enter the 20th Century Gardens.
Mr Bunce and a very naughty girl
Posted in Botanic Gardens, History	| Tagged Bunce Bollards, Daniel Bunce, Geelong Botanic Gardens, Raddenberry fernery	| 1 Comment
Follow your nose – to the Geelong Botanical Gardens
What's that smell?
Today it is definitely Spring (although that may not be the case tomorrow). The sun is shining, the birds are active and plants are starting to put on a bit of spring growth, even if it is not their flowering season.
On a walk through the Geelong Botanic Gardens, my senses are stimulated by a wonderful array of smells. However, to call these perfumes might be overstepping the mark. My favourite is the wonderful aroma of the freshly spread "euchy mulch" in the restored fern glade. There is also the perfume of the Michelia flowers along the camellia walk, and soon there will be the scent of cut grass and the heady aroma of roses from the heritage rose bed.
The prevailing aromas in the Gardens and wider park were not always quite so enticing. Geelong, like other urban areas in the 19th Century had a problem with … let's call it poo. Horses contributed largely to the "street sweepings" which were much prized for giving a boost to the municipal garden beds, but the odour of horse dung pales into insignificance compared to the "nuisance" of nightsoil (aka poo). The problem was, what to do with it?
By 1850, Corio Bay was considerably less pristine than prior to European settlement, as the bulk of the domestic waste from the northern part of town simply flowed, via the open drains, into the Bay (south of the ridge waste flowed into the Barwon River). The resulting smell was considered a "nuisance". This pre-dated any scientific awareness of just how dangerous human waste was in the spread of disease – hence referring to the disagreeable odours as a "nuisance" rather than as a dangerous health hazard!
As the town of Geelong grew, so a system of collecting and disposing of the euphemistically named "nightsoil" developed with carters coming by night to change the tins in the dunny and cart the waste away for disposal.
The eastern edge of the town of Geelong, on the Bay side, then as now, was the Eastern Park or Botanical Gardens. The shortest route out of town was along the Portarlington road, past the Gardens towards Moolap. The general practice was to take the nightsoil away from town and to deposit it below the high tide mark, outside the town limits, and for the sea to do the rest. In 1856 a directive was given that rubbish, including nightsoil was to be deposited in the Bay to the east of Limeburner's Point. It seems that the favoured site to tip your buckets was in Stingaree Bay behind the rifle butts – once situated on the site where CSIRO's Australian Animal Health Laboratories are now. Unfortunately, not all the nightmen wanted to travel that far and there were complains of nightsoil being deposited along the road-side with its consequent "nuisance" in terms of smell and health.
In 1876, the Council decided that they needed to have a proper "Manure Depot" to deal with the nightsoil problem, just like Melbourne, and the Mayor of Melbourne was brought down to advise on the best possible site. This turned out the be the Botanical Gardens (now Eastern Park) "bounded by the south carriage drive on the north, and the park fence on the west, south, and east sides" – in other words, hard up against the Friendly Society Oval (now the soccer pitch on Howard Glover Reserve) and adjacent to the Corio Oval – home to both the local football and cricket teams. As you can imagine, local opinion was not favourable!
"Citizen" (Geelong Advertiser 1/3/1876) wrote,—Why make a manure depot of the Botanical Gardens, when the Market-square is so much a better place. How handy for market gardeners; after depositing their produce, they could at once load up with manure. It is a wonder that this simple idea did not strike the heads (?) of some of the enlightened members we have in our Town Council.
But, "where there's muck there's money" – and well treated nightsoil was a potentially valuable commodity. The councillors settled on a scheme whereby trenches would be dug and the nightsoil deposited and covered over to prevent too much nuisance from the smell, which would be further abated (!) by the planting of a belt of trees. The Garden's curator, John Raddenberry was strongly in favour of the scheme, claiming that the ground would be made valuable and productive by the addition of the manure and that there was sufficient land for 30-40 years of treatment in this way.
Despite the protests, a Manure Depot was developed within the Eastern Park – but only as a temporary solution, although temporary turned out to well over 10 years and the depot was reopened again around 1900 – much to the annoyance of visitors to the Corio Oval who complained bitterly of the smell. It was not until 1916 that Geelong got a sewerage system and the nightmen became a thing of the past.
In the meantime, the Council charged 2 shillings per load of nightsoil deposited and sold "deodorised" nightsoil to farmers for use as manure at the princely sum of 2/6 per yard. From time to time, private contractors found these rates attractive and ran their own manure depots, but these frequently failed the "nuisance" test.
The dangers of untreated human waste were not confined to the "nuisance" of the smell or the potential spread of disease. The manure trenches must have been a thoroughly unpleasant place to work, being both damp and smelly. To add to this, most of the work was done at night as the nightmen were prevented from collecting when the rest of the townspeople were going about their business (hence the name). In April 1880, Mr Edward Jones, an employee of the Corporation (a forerunner of Geelong City Council), met his death by suffocation through falling into a nearly full trench while working alone on a damp night at the Manure Depot in the Botanical Gardens. The coroner's inquest suggested that his untimely demise might have been averted if he had not been alone at the time.
When I next have cause to visit one of the more "agricultural" toilet facilities in the Gardens, I will spare a thought for Mr Jones and his untimely death and be thankful that at least most of Geelong, though sadly not most of the Botanic Gardens' toilets, are connected to the Black Rock sewerage treatment works and that open nightsoil pits are a thing of the past.
Also – the smell in the Gardens today is distinctly more fragrant.
Thank God for Thomas Crapper
Posted in Botanic Gardens, History	| Tagged Eastern Park, Geelong Botanic Gardens	| 1 Comment


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0n 2nd November 2017 our Year 5/6 girls' football team played in the annual Predator Football Tournament at Littledown. The girls rose to the challenge of playing against four tough opponents.
Their first game against St Warburgas was unfortunately lost 1-0. However, the next two matches against Moordown and Kings Park were each won 2-0 and 1-0 respectively, with Megan Horsfield scoring all three goals (one being a penalty!). Our last game against St Katharine's was bravely fought, but unfortunately was lost 0-2, with Kharma Martin, our superstar goalkeeper, saving us from a possible 0-10 defeat! (St Katharine's had previously been beating the other teams with at least 5 goals in each match!)
They all played really well, in fact better as the tournament progressed.
The girls who played were: Megan Horsfield, Kharma Martin, Ella Carr, Bebe Taylor, Amelia Price, Morgan Oxton, Chloe Richardson and Azra Tuzul.


Stranger Things Star Gets Honest About Character's Sexuality
Diana Novich/holepsi/Twitter
By AJ Caulfield/July 12, 2019 10:58 am EST
Contains spoilers for Stranger Things season 3
All took was eight words said in a moment of frustration for Stranger Things fans to begin speculating about Will Byers' sexuality. But for actor Noah Schnapp, his character's sexual orientation should be the least strange thing about Stranger Things.
Throughout the third season of Stranger Things, Mike (Finn Wolfhard) and Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) were dealing with their fair share of girl troubles, wondering why their boyish behavior often upset their girlfriends Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) and Max (Sadie Sink). Things grew worse when Eleven and Max dumped the boys, leaving them to moan and complain in Mike's basement. Will tries desperately to pull his pals out of their funk, declaring a day free from girls and filled with Dungeons & Dragons, but it's no use. Mike and Lucas are too caught up in the pain of their breakups and purposely cut their D&D campaign short, which causes Will to storm off and ride his bike home in the rain. Trying to apologize but only getting halfway there, Mike ends up snapping at Will, saying, "It's not my fault you don't like girls."
Many took this line, plus the other harsh words the boys exchanged with one another, as indication that Will could be gay.
Schnapp opened up to TheWrap about the scene and got honest about his character's sexuality.
He explained that it's "really up to interpretation" whether Will is gay, or if the tension between him and his best buds is down to his fear of growing up and the trauma he experienced while stuck in the Upside Down during past seasons.
"While all the characters were out developing and growing up, Will was in the Upside Down and he was alone there, not interacting with or connected to his friends or the rest of the world. And when he got back, he expected everything to just go back to how it was before, how it was when he was normal and when he was a kid and he wanted to go back to the basement and play D&D," said Schnapp. "All his friends have girlfriends and they're out dating, and he just wants to have fun with his friends. You see in episode 3, he just wants to play D&D in the basement, and now all of his friends have girlfriends and they are dating. And it's kind of, when you hear Mike say that line, it's really up to the audience to interpret it."
From Schnapp's perspective, he feels that Will just isn't focused on romance and relationships of any kind right now, and that's why Mike said what he said.
"I kind of just interpret it like he's not ready to grow up and he doesn't really want to move on to dating and relationships yet. He still wants to be a kid and play in the basement like he did in old times," the actor shared.
Regardless of whether that scene out in the pouring rain was a hint at Will's sexuality or simply a moment between two best friends who had drifted apart, it was an important one in Will's season 3 arc. Will wound up racing off to Castle Byers — the makeshift fort in the woods that he, Lucas, Mike, and Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) would play in when they were younger — and destroying it after his heated conversation with Mike. Schnapp said the experience was "very emotional" and left him "crying a lot" the night of filming.
Will and Mike (and Lucas, too) eventually set aside their differences and forgave one another, as they had bigger fish to fry later on in the season when the grotesque new version of the Mind Flayer (made from the melted-down bodies of hundreds of Hawkins residents) crashed through Starcourt Mall and threatened to kill everyone in sight. The mission to defeat the Mind Flayer was successful, the gate got closed, the Russians' machine beneath the Mall was destroyed, and the door was left open for a fourth season of Stranger Things to happen.
Though Schnapp told TheWrap that he doesn't know anything about a potential season 4 and isn't sure what to expect, series creators Matt and Ross Duffer have mentioned that it would "feel very different" to season 3. Whether the possible upcoming season will address Will's sexuality, much like season 3 revealed that Maya Hawke's character Robin didn't fancy Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) but was after the girls who were crushing on him, remains a mystery. If nothing else, hopefully the potential fourth season of Stranger Things will see Will the Wise finally complete his Dungeons & Dragons campaign without any interruptions.


'Freedom of other' absent in US leadership's mindsets: Iran Foreign Ministry
Saturday, 20 June 2020 2:25 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 20 June 2020 2:26 PM ]
Protesters march across the Brooklyn Bridge over the death of George Floyd by Minneapolis Police, during a Juneteenth rally in New York on June 19, 2020. (Photo by AFP)
Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the longstanding habit of "looting and coercion" in the United States has made the American leaders refrain from recognizing the right of freedom for others.
"Yrs of looting & coercion prove FREEDOM OF OTHER lacked in the US successive leadership's mindsets," the ministry said in a post on its official Twitter account on Saturday.
It added that the administration of US President Donald Trump has made "horrible reactions to peaceful protests" across the country, adding that the reactions remind the world of "the very scandalous history."
The ministry emphasized that the Juneteenth "is a high time to decry the US 'humans new slavery' at home & beyond."
On Friday, thousands marched through US cities in Juneteenth observances marking the abolition of slavery more than a century and a half ago, an occasion freighted with special resonance this year amid America's reckoning with its legacy of racism.
US protestors mark end of slavery, say civil rights goals unmet
Thousands marched through US cities on Friday in Juneteenth observances marking the abolition of slavery more than a century and a half ago.
Capping nearly four weeks of protests and national soul-searching aroused by the death of a Black man, George Floyd, under the knee of a white police officer, demonstrators took to the streets from Atlanta to Oakland, California, blending the Juneteenth holiday with calls for racial justice.
Juneteenth, a portmanteau of June and 19th, commemorates the US abolition of slavery under President Abraham Lincoln's 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, belatedly announced by a Union army in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, after the Civil War ended.
In a tweet also on Friday, Trump warned of a crackdown on "any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes" who show up at his Tulsa, Oklahoma, rally on Saturday, suggesting any demonstrators would be dealt with harshly.
Trump warns 'protesters, anarchists, agitators, lowlifes'
US President Donald Trump has warned of a crackdown on "any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes" who show up at his Tulsa, Oklahoma, rally on Saturday.
"Any protesters, anarchists, agitators, looters or lowlifes who are going to Oklahoma please understand, you will not be treated like you have been in New York, Seattle, or Minneapolis," Trump tweeted. "It will be a much different scene!"
Trump's threat comes as he continues to attack people who have been protesting against police brutality and racism in the United States since the police killing of George Floyd, who died after a Minneapolis white police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes on May 25.
US racial tensions due to 'horrendous human rights violations' against blacks: Analyst
Trump decries remote voting as 'biggest risk' to his reelection
Black US State Dept official quits over Trump's response to 'racial injustice'
Iran US Foreign Ministry
'Inhumane' US sanctions adding insult to Syrian people's injury: Iran
EU calls for close cooperation with Biden admin. on Iran deal
Iran denounces US arrest of independent political scientist, author
VIDEO | Anti-govt. protesters storm Democrats' office in Oregon after Biden inauguration 4min
'He left alone. This is our triumph!' Maduro hails Trump's departure 19min
VIDEO | Iranian vaccine makes headways despite US sanctions 5hr


Jackett: A Different Challenge
Boss looks ahead to Gillingham test
by Neil Weld
@Neil_Weld
Victories on the road at Rochdale and Coventry ensured that Pompey spirits are still soaring.
But Kenny Jackett knows that a different challenge is in store when Gillingham visit Fratton Park this weekend.
It means the side currently topping the League One table are hosting one in the drop zone, albeit with a game in hand.
Jackett is aware that does not mean an easy encounter, however, and has warned his troops that they will have to adapt.
The Blues boss said: "We're trying to highlight to the players what they're doing right – which at the moment is plenty.
"But we're also looking at how we can improve because each game provides its own unique test and there are some very good sides in this league.
"Going away to Coventry on Tuesday night will be completely different to playing Gillingham at home on Saturday.
"We're also looking at how we can improve because each game provides its own unique test."
Kenny Jackett
"We have to make sure we continuously realise that and know what is required to overcome our next opponent.
"I've got a lot of time for their manager Steve Lovell. They'll throw a lot of men forward and get people in the box – it's a strong feature of what they do.
"We'll have to adapt very quickly and will have to be ready for them because this is a big home game for us in the middle of quite a few away fixtures.
"I think we need to start better at Fratton Park than we have done in recent weeks. We have a great crowd and want to bring that into play as soon as possible.
"We want to put on a good show in front of our own fans and we need to make sure we overcome this test."
Ronan Curtis is likely to start against the Gills having made a flying start to the season, but will miss the following two games after being called up to the Republic of Ireland squad.
Jackett said: "I'm pleased for Ronan and it justifies his move here. He's very proud to represent his country and we've assembled a squad that can see us through any individual not being available.
"The only person we have missing at the moment is Andre Green, while we expect Dion Donohue to play some part against Crawley next Tuesday."
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Kenny Jackett pre-Gillingham
The gaffer chats ahead of Pompey's game against Gillingham at Fratton Park, as the Blues look to maintain their place at the top of the Sky Bet League One table.
Portsmouth vs Gillingham on 06 Oct 18


1) Sword of Jade: Parallel Dreams reviewed by JSH357
2) Vikings Of Midgard reviewed by MirceaKitsune
3) Bug on the Wall reviewed by JSH357
4) Tightfloss Maiden reviewed by yhposolihP
5) A Blank Mind reviewed by Dorumagesu
Dragon Warrior 1: PC-Version vs. Onlyoneinall
Dragon Warrior 1: PC-Version
Download: 112 KB
Onlyoneinall
Play Time: no hours and whenever minutes
Review # 4 for Onlyoneinall The pretty title screen... and the rest of the game has good aesthetics until....
Anyone who is familiar with Dragon Warrior will immediately recognize this as a remake of the first game of the series. It shows promise, until you realize it's cut short.
The graphics are pretty good. Think of it as Dragon Warrior I for the SNES. Everything captures the original style of the original game itself and improves it.
However, if you see one of the few battles, you will notice that the battle backgrounds are terrible. Clearly, Ysoft's strength is not in backgrounds, as it is only a paint picture with some airbrush slapped on. It might be more interesting if he does the graphics the way Dragon Warrior I did (on the gameboy, the backgrounds to the sides fade away in the middle).
It's the standard story. Dracolord is taking over the world and Lora was kidnapped. You, the hero (who you can name up to four characters) is chosen to do the job, and are compensated with some crappy materials. You'd think a king would give you something better to ensure you get the job done. Stingy ass fools expect you to beat dragons with a stick.
Almost no gameplay. You can wander the world map or the towns and castle, but the town is completely empty. It's more like just getting the chance to see that the game is going to be a true remake more than anything else.
There is only battles with some Slimes, which usually go down in one hit. The battle is made to look like the original Dragon Warrior, and it's done that job pretty well so far. However, there is not enough to fully assess the battle system. Hopefully it holds true to the Dragon Warrior level-up system.
Map Design
The map design is just like the original Dragon Warrior, which is good. Most of the tiles seem to be fully accurate with the actual game, so all in all, nothing can be said about the map design, except it's been done well.
Once battles are implemented, the balance can be evaluated. If it pertains to the original game's balance, then it would be more or less perfect, considering it is a remake of the original.
No music.
It was pleasing to see Dragon Warrior I being adapted to the OHR, but other than a visual show and the beginning, there is not much else to enjoy.
I think Ysoft should've waited a while before releasing a demo. There is still much to be done and those battle backgrounds really need to be fixed. They ruin the mood of the game and music must be added as well as battles. With the way it is going however, it should be good if he ever finishes it.
..a slime draws near! And oh my god, the background is ugly! Is it smiling because it caused this terror?!
Final Scores
Graphics: 8/10.0
The graphics are like an improved version of the game itself while retaining its original feeling - but the battle backgrounds need work.
Storyline: 5/10.0
It's Dragon Warrior I - what can you expect from the story? At least this adaptation is so far, spelling error free.
Gameplay: 3/10.0
Not enough to really be commented on.
Music: 1/10.0
Enjoyment: 3/10.0
Not enough to enjoy.
Overall Grade: C-
Dragon Warrior VIII is so linear... what a shame your heroes are like walking meat sticks without a brain... Oh, well at least this isn't the same game.
All games, songs, and images © their respective owners.
©2008 Castle Paradox


Government and Nation
Institutions of Government
Governors and governors-general
Story: Governors and governors-general
Governing Britain's empire
Changing characteristics
Constitutional duties
Ceremonial duties
Community duties
Vice-regal support
Letters patent
This decorative document is the 'letters patent' appointing William Hobson as lieutenant-governor of New Zealand in 1839. George Gipps, governor of New South Wales, was the first governor of New Zealand. He delegated his powers to Hobson.
The document reads:
Victoria R
Victoria by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Queen, Defender of the Faith – To Our Trusty and Wellbeloved Willm Hobson Esquire, Captain of the Royal Navy Greeting. Whereas We did by certain Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Our United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland bearing date at Westminster the 5th day of October 1837 in the First year of Our Reign constitute and appoint Our Trusty and Wellbeloved Sir George Gipps, Knight, to be Our Captain General and Governor in Chief in and over Our Territory of New South Wales, comprised within the limits therein mentioned. And Whereas We did by certain other Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Our said United Kingdom, bearing date at Westminster the 15th day of June 1839 in the Third Year of Our Reign revoke so much of the said first recited Letters Patent as describes the limits of Our said Territory of New South Wales, and did further extend the limits of Our said Territory of New South Wales (subject to such exception as is therein particularly made of certain Territories now forming the Province of South Australia) from the Northern Cape or extremity of the Coast called Cape York in the latitude of 10 Degrees 37 Minutes South to the Southern extremity of the said Territory of New South Wales or Wilson's promontory in the latitude of 39 Degrees 12 Minutes South and of all of the Country inland to the Westward as far as the 129th Degree of East longitude reckoning for the Meridian of Greenwich including all the Islands adjacent in the Pacific Ocean within the latitude aforesaid of 10 Degrees 37 Minutes South and 39 Degrees 12 Minutes South, and also including Norfolk Island lying in or about the latitude of 29 Degrees 3 Minutes South and 168 Degrees of East Longitude from the said Meridian of Greenwich, and also including any Territory which is or maybe acquired in Sovereignty by Us Our Heirs or Successors within that group of Islands in the Pacific Ocean commonly called New Zealand, and lying in or about the latitude of 34 Degrees Minutes and 47 Degrees 10 Minutes South, and 166 Degrees 5 Minutes and 179 Degrees East longitude from the said Meridian of Greenwich. Now Know you that We reposing especial Trust and Confidence in the Prudence Courage and Loyalty of you the said Willm Hobson do by these Present constitute and appoint you to be Our Lieutenant Governor in and over that part of Our Territory so described as foresaid in Our said last recited Letters Patent which is or maybe acquired in Sovereignty by Us Our Heirs or Successors within that group of Islands in the Pacific Ocean commonly called New Zealand, lying in or about the latitude of 34 Degrees Minutes and 47 Degrees 10 Minutes South, and 166 Degrees 5 Minutes and 179 Degrees East longitude reckoning from the Meridian of Greenwich. To have hold exercise and enjoy the said Office of Lieutenant Governor during Our Pleasure: And We do hereby command that in the execution of such your Office you do obey all such lawful Instructions as may be from time to time addressed to you by Our Trusty and Wellbeloved Sir George Gipps, Our Captain General and Governor in Chief in and over Our Territory of New South Wales and its Dependencies or in the event of his death or absence from the limits of his Government and command by the Officer for the time being administering the Government of Our said Territory and its Dependencies. And Whereas it is necessary that provision be made for the execution of the Office of Our Lieutenant Governor of Our said Territories in New Zealand in the event of your Death or absence therefrom, We do therefore by these Presents authorise and empower the said Sir George Gipps or the Officer Administering the Government of Our said Territory of New South Wales and its Dependencies for the time being to nominate and appoint by an Instrument under the Public Seal of Our said Territory of New South Wales, such person as he may think fit to act provisionally as Our Lieutenant Governor of Our said Territories in New Zealand in the contingency of such your Death or absence therefrom, or until other or further provision shall be made by Us in that behalf. And We do hereby give and grant to the Officer so to be provisionally appointed as aforesaid, during the continuance of such his authority full power to hold exercise and enjoy the said Office of Our Lieutenant Governor of Our said Territories in New Zealand as fully and in every respect as effectually as the same as is hereby vested in you, or may be by virtue hereof be held, exercised or enjoyed by you – Given at Our Court at Buckingham Palace the 30th day of July 1839, in the Third Year of Our Reign
By Her Majesty's Command
Normanby
Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga
Reference: IA9/3
This item is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 New Zealand Licence
Sir Arthur Porritt knighting Philip Proctor
Gavin McLean, 'Governors and governors-general - Governing Britain's empire', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/zoomify/33636/letters-patent (accessed 19 January 2022)
Story by Gavin McLean, published 20 Jun 2012, reviewed & revised 28 Sep 2016


Harness the power of pastel colors
by	Alex Bigman
Spring is in the air. Lamb is on the table. The eggs are colored pastel hues. That is to say, everything is as it should be. Yet graphic designers may want to pause and give the season's designated color scheme a second look.
Pastels are definitely "in" again. We at 99designs, for one, just lightened up our own brand, and we weren't the only ones to get the memo. Pastel palettes are popping up everywhere—they're not just for confectioners and greeting card companies anymore.
Just what is the power of pastel? What emotional connotations does it carry, and what is its history in the world of art and design? These questions might help you think through your next project. To find the answers, let's first figure out exactly what pastels are and how they got linked up with this particular time of year.
Pastel basics
A pastel color is defined as any hue with a high value (lightness) and low to medium saturation (the purity or intensity of the color). That is in fact a pretty wide breadth, meaning more colors are technically pastels than you might have thought. In practice, however, when people say "pastel" they usually refer to a more limited palette including mint green, mauve, coral and robin's egg blue.
But why? Is the designation completely arbitrary?
"Dancer Onstage with a Bouquet" by Edgar Degas
It is, in fact, somewhat arbitrary, but not completely so. Remember that before "pastel" referred to colors, it referred to an artistic medium, as in a pastel sketch. Sharing the same root as the word "paste," pastels consisted of raw pigment—any color, including dark ones—suspended in a mixture of water and a binder, usually gum arabic, that was dried and formed into a stick. They were invented in the 15th century, became popular for portraiture in the 18th, and reached new expressive heights at the end of the 19th in the hands of Impressionist masters like Edgar Degas.
Pastels could be very concentrated and rich, but more often than not, they had a lower saturation of pigment than, say, oil paints. This is likely why the term made the leap from describing a medium to describing an array of light, faded-looking colors.
The spring connection
Colorful Easter eggs (via 7 themes)
Many of the images associated with Easter seem pretty random. Bunny rabbits, for one; eggs and chicks, for another. There is no single answer about the reasons for this holiday iconography, but there are histories and theories.
The easter bunny, for one, was likely imported to the United States by 18th century Prussian settlers. Rabbits, known to be prodigious procreators, were a symbol of fertility. Hence they were associated with the renewal of spring and by extension the major Christian spring holiday, Easter. The same logic applies to eggs and chicks. Some people argue that pastel colors partake of this reasoning, too: their high values and low saturations suggest colors just starting to "come back to life" after winter dormancy, before the fully saturated intensity of summer.
One explanation is that back then eggs were often a forbidden food during Lent, and coloring them was a way of marking the end of this period in a celebratory fashion. As anyone who has tried to dye an egg knows, it is hard to get them very dark. This is another potential reason that we associate Easter with low-saturation pastels.
Whatever the origins of this seasonal color association, it is here to stay, and nowhere is this clearer than in the candy industry that has arisen to capitalize on the holiday. Pastel-hued jelly beans have been an Easter staple since the 1930s, and canary yellow Peeps—for better or for worse, now one of the quintessential Easter foods—came long in the 1950s.
What designers need to know is that all of this fixes pastels to a particular swath of the emotional spectrum, covering optimism, innocence, festivity and delight.
Style Cycles: Why pastels are back
via HouseBeautiful
Like anything in fashion, colors go in and out of style. In fact, fashion follows an amazingly reliable sine wave in which styles come back every thirty years, almost on the dot. (People have traced this pattern with skirt lengths back to the early 19th century). This certainly seems to hold true with pastels.
In the 1950s pastels were all the rage in America. People not only wore pastel-colored clothing but decked out their entire houses, from bathroom tiles to kitchen appliances, with it. It handily symbolizes the superficial innocence and optimism of the era.
Miami Vice (via NBC)
In the 1980s, another period of exuberance and economic boom, pastels came roaring back. The return was motivated in part by the rise of preppy style, with its powdery polos and sweaters (The Official Preppy Handbook, published in 1980, spelled out the codes of this WASP-y aesthetic). Another instigator was the popular TV show Miami Vice (1984 – 1990), in which the star character, undercover detective James Crockett, literally wore something pastel-colored in almost every scene, often framed against the similarly hued Art Deco architecture of the show's Miami setting.
Sure enough, here we are in the 2010s and pastels are back again, this time perhaps most pronouncedly in the world of digital design. Pastels are particularly well suited to any website or app that has large empty spaces to fill, because they are easy on the eyes and, as we discussed above, loaded with positive associations.
Moreover, digital displays give designers a lot more finely-tuned color options than analog technologies did, meaning that the world of pastel can be expanded beyond its traditional Easter-y, retro or preppy parameters. Just take a look at these web pages:
Phoenix creative studio
Izumi Japanese Massage
greetabl by B/C
What do you think, are pastels here to stay this time? Tell us in the comments!
Alex Bigman
Alex contributes from New York City on topics ranging from branding and typography to the history of design.
The Pantone Colors of the Year 2021: Ultimate Gray & Illuminating


Lyman Universal Trimmer
SKU: 250205171 Categories: Case Preparation, Reloading Equipment
Lyman Universal Trimmer Power Pack with Case Trimmer Kit, Power Adapter and 9 Pilots
Metallic cases stretch as a result of both the firing process and the subsequent resizing process. When your cases reach a certain dimension, the original case length must be restored through trimming. The Lyman Universal Case Trimmer features the patented Lyman Universal Chuckhead which allows the reloader to quickly lock and unlock a cartridge case and handles any case from .17 caliber to the 458 Winchester Magnum without the need for costly collets. Other features of the Lyman Universal Trimmer include an adjustment ring that allows you to dial in the approximate trimmer setting for ease of repeatability, fine and course length adjustments.
Features: Fine and course case length adjustments, power adapter included.
Collets Used: None
Collets Included: N/A
Pilots Used: Lyman
Pilots Included: 22, 24, 27, 28, 30, 9mm, 35, 44, 45A
Pilots Included:
#22 for .22 Hornet, .22/250, .220 Swift, .222 Remington, .222 Remington Magnum, .223 Remington, 5.6x50R Magnum.
#24 for .243 Winchester, .244, 6mm Remington.
#27 for .270 Winchester.
#28 for 7mm/08 Remington, 7-30 Waters, 7mm Remington Magnum, 7mm Weatherby Magnum, &mm STW, 7×57 Mauser, 7×64 Brenneke, .280 Remington (7mm Express), 7mm TCU.
#30 for .30 Luger, .30 Mauser, 30M1 Carbine, .30-30, .300 Savage, .307 Winchester, .308 Winchester, .30-06, .300 Winchester Magnum, .300 Remington Ultra Magnum, .300 Weatherby Magnum, 7.62×39.
#9MM for .38 Super Auto, 9mm Luger, 9x23mm, .380 Auto.
#35 for .38 S&W, .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .357 Remington Maximum, .35 Remington, .356 Winchester, .358 Winchester, .35 Whelen.
#44 for .44 Magnum, .44 Special, .44 Russian, .444 Marlin.
#45A for .45 ACP, .45 Winchester Magnum, .45 Schofield, .45 Colt, .454 Casull.
Features: Uses the Lyman Universal Chuckhead to hold cases so no collets are required.
Manufacturer: Lyman
Manufacturer Item Number: 7862000, LY7862000
Hornady LNL Modified Case 338 Win Mag
Hornady Ramrod End -54 Cal GP
Lee Pro 4-20 Lead Melter 110 Volt 20lb Cap.
Hornady LNL CASE PREP CENTER 110 VOLT
RCBS PILOT NECK REAMER .30CALIBER


India-Pak would have remained united if Jinnah was made PM instead of Nehru: Dalai Lama
By KalingaTV Bureau Last updated Aug 8, 2018 0
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama (File Pic)
Goa: "India and Pakistan would have remained united if Muhammad Ali Jinnah were the Prime Minister of India," said Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama here on Wednesday.
The 14th Dalai Lama, while addressing an event at the Goa Institute of Management, said that Mahatma Gandhi was 'very much willing' to make Jinnah the Prime Minister of the country but Jawaharlal Nehru's self-centred attitude resulted in the mistake.
Nehru wanted that he should be the PM, he added.
Apart from saying this, the Dalai Lama also appealed to Muslims in India to make efforts to reduce Shia-Sunni conflicts that are prevalent in some other countries and asserted that Islam is a religion of peace.
Besides, he lamented the bloodshed over denominational differences, which he said should be avoided as Islam teaches compassion and harmony.
Dalai LamaIndiaJawaharlal NehruPakistan
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Four Excellent Ideas for the Game of Thrones Spinoff Shows
Give Pod his own series!
By Matt Miller
It should come as absolutely no surprise that HBO wants more Game of Thrones. As such, HBO is planning four Game of Thrones spinoffs. As Entertainment Weekly reports, "We're told a variety of different combinations and options are on the table depending on how the scripts look upon completion. But the end goal is to find at least one title that can successfully carry the flame of the GoT franchise."
Well, what would they be?! As we already know, George R.R. Martin wants it to be his prequel anthology, Tales of Dunk and Egg. "There are eight million stories in Westeros...and even more in Essos and the lands beyond," Martin once said. "A whole world full of stories, waiting to be told…if indeed HBO is interested. The most natural follow-up would be an adaptation of my Dunk and Egg stories."
We, on the other hand, have some better ideas.
Hodor 2 Hodor
This 30 minute sitcom filmed in front of a live studio audience follows beloved Hodor during his years as a door-to-door salesmen selling fine pelts to the cold people of North Westeros. You wont believe the Odd Couple-style hilarity that goes down between Hodor and his roommate Old Nan.
Arya: Alive or Dead!
On Westeros' hottest game show, host Arya Stark brings up four guests—three alive, one dead. Through a series of yes or no questions—asked by you, the audience—the contestant must decide which of the guests is lying. "Have you ever been beheaded?" "Did you ever not make it out of a wedding party?" "If you did die, were you resurrected by a witch who wears a red dress and has a necklace that hides the fact that she's actually an old hag?" You never know what's going to happen on Arya: Alive or Dead!
Keeping Up With the Karstarks
While they're not the main focus of Game of Thrones, the Karstarks have some of the most drama in Westeros. With lands northeast of Winterfell, the Karstarks briefly held loyalty to Robb Stark before Catelyn Stark released Jaime Lannister, whose family was responsible for killing Rickard Karstark's sons. A pissed off Rickard then kills Wartyn and Willem Lannister without Robb's permission. In response, the Karstarks abandon Robb before the Red Wedding. So much drama!
The Pod Show
I honestly don't even care what this show is about, but the world needs more Pod. Dear, sweet, beautiful Pod—he's the only good one in this whole goddamn world.
Matt Miller Culture Editor Matt is the Culture Editor at Esquire where he covers music, movies, books, and TV—with an emphasis on all things Star Wars, Marvel, and Game of Thrones.
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Exploring the brain's role in stress-induced anxiety
By Jim Dryden July 23, 2015 January 25, 2016
http://mpaweb1.wustl.edu/~medschool/embargo/JM-Neuron%20story.mp3
Neurons in the mouse brain appear green as they produce a substance that makes them sensitive to light. The red marks the presence of norepinephrine, which surges under stress.
Calming a neural circuit in the brain can alleviate stress in mice, according to new research that could lay the foundation for understanding stress and anxiety in people.
Using cutting-edge techniques, the researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis also showed they could shine a light into the brain to activate the stress response in mice that had not been exposed to stressful situations.
The study is published online July 23 in the journal Neuron.
"We now have a much better idea of the neural circuit involved in producing anxiety following stress," said first author Jordan G. McCall, PhD, a former graduate student in the laboratory of principal investigator Michael R. Bruchas, PhD, associate professor of anesthesiology and neurobiology. "You can imagine that this same response also may be important to longer-term stress-related problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or anxiety disorder."
The work may lead to the development of new treatments for such disorders, as well as for depression and alcohol and drug abuse.
Neuroscientists already knew that a small structure in the brain called the locus coeruleus (LC) plays a key role in stress and anxiety. Neurons in that region secrete the hormone norepinephrine, which surges when a person is under stress. But using techniques called optogenetics and chemogenetics, the researchers showed they could selectively control the firing of LC neurons, lower norepinephrine levels and prevent the anxiety that normally follows stressful events.
In these techniques, researchers genetically engineer mice with brain cells that have special receptors. Those receptors can be activated by light (optogenetics) or synthetic chemicals (chemogenetics). Those light or chemical signals either trigger or block neuronal activity, giving researchers a way to control the brain circuits in an animal and, thus, the behavior.
As part of the research, the scientists observed mice moving through mazes and roaming freely in an open box.
"Mice usually move toward the wall and try to stay out of the open area, just like a mouse in your house," Bruchas explained. "Anxious mice rarely venture into the center of the box, whereas mice that feel less anxious roam into the middle more often."
Mice that experienced stressful events were more likely to stay near the edges of the box. But when mice were treated with stress-lowering drugs — either beta blockers or alpha 1 blockers, which are used to treat high blood pressure and stress in people — the animals were more likely to venture into the middle of the box, even if they had experienced stressful events.
The researchers also found that activating LC neurons with light made mice in the mazes behave as if they were stressed, even when they had not been exposed to a stressful event.
"With this study, we now understand how a bunch of puzzle pieces fit together in a network that we've demonstrated is critical to stress-induced anxiety," Bruchas said.
Funding for this research comes from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), grant numbers R21 DA035144, R01 DA035821, F31 MH101956 and K99 DA038725; the McDonnell Center for Systems Neuroscience; and the Washington University Division of Biology and Biological Sciences.
McCall JG, Al-Hasani R, Suida ER, Hong DY, Norris AJ, Ford CP, Bruchas MR. CRH engagement of the locus coeruleus noradrenergic system mediates stress-induced anxiety. Neuron, published online July 23, 2015.
School of MedicineanesthesiologyanxietyBruchasJordan McCallneuroscienceoptogeneticsstress


Sorry Students: US Department of Education Officially REJECTS Transgender Complaints On Restrooms
February 12, 2018 L. Wayne Ashley	Leave a comment
Oh, how much has changed over the last 13 months.
After historic progress for the LGBT community under the Obama Administration, it seems that our nation's 45th President, and our Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, are determined to put America's students and their real educational concerns on the back burner.
UGH. Here's the scoop, from Dominic Holden of BuzzFeed News…
The Education Department has told BuzzFeed News it won't investigate or take action on any complaints filed by transgender students who are banned from restrooms that match their gender identity, charting new ground in the Trump administration's year-long broadside against LGBT rights.
It's the first time officials have asserted this position publicly as an interpretation of law. No formal announcement has been made.
For nearly a year, the Trump administration took a less clear stance, with officials saying they were studying the issue. When the Education Department and Justice Department withdrew Obama-era guidance on transgender restroom access in February 2017, Trump's officials said in a memo and court filings that they would "consider the legal issues involved." Then last June, the Education Department issued another memo saying it was "permissible" for its civil rights division to dismiss a trans student's restroom case. However, in those statements, officials never cemented their intent to reject all restroom complaints issued by trans students.
For the past three weeks, BuzzFeed News called and emailed Education Department officials attempting to pinpoint the agency's position.
Finally on Thursday, Liz Hill, a spokesperson for the agency, responded "yes, that's what the law says" when asked again if the Education Department holds a current position that restroom complaints from transgender students are not covered by a 1972 federal civil rights law called Title IX.
Asked for further explanation on the department's position, Hill said Friday, "Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, not gender identity."
This represents a complete and total about face from policies of the Obama Administration, which sought to protect the rights and safety of all students, including the Transgender community. Here's an excerpt of a joint memo from the Departments of Justice and Education, dated May 16th, 2016…
Under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, schools receiving federal money may not discriminate based on a student's sex, including a student's transgender status. The guidance makes clear that both federal agencies treat a student's gender identity as the student's sex for purposes of enforcing Title IX.
"There is no room in our schools for discrimination of any kind, including discrimination against transgender students on the basis of their sex," said Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch. "This guidance gives administrators, teachers and parents the tools they need to protect transgender students from peer harassment and to identify and address unjust school policies. I look forward to continuing our work with the Department of Education – and with schools across the country – to create classroom environments that are safe, nurturing, and inclusive for all of our young people."
"No student should ever have to go through the experience of feeling unwelcome at school or on a college campus," said U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. "This guidance further clarifies what we've said repeatedly – that gender identity is protected under Title IX. Educators want to do the right thing for students, and many have reached out to us for guidance on how to follow the law. We must ensure that our young people know that whoever they are or wherever they come from, they have the opportunity to get a great education in an environment free from discrimination, harassment and violence."
"Every child deserves to attend school in a safe, supportive environment that allows them to thrive and grow. And we know that teachers and administrators care deeply about all of their students and want them to succeed in school and life," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. "Our guidance sends a clear message to transgender students across the country: here in America, you are safe, you are protected and you belong – just as you are. We look forward to working with school officials to make the promise of equal opportunity a reality for all of our children."
"Our federal civil rights law guarantees all students, including transgender students, the opportunity to participate equally in school programs and activities without sex discrimination as a core civil right," said Department of Education Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon. "This guidance answers questions schools have been asking, with a goal to ensure that all students are treated equally consistent with their gender identity. We look forward to continuing to work with schools and school communities to satisfy Congress' promise of equality for all."
Yet more confirmation that the Trump Administration is not only out of step with America's school system, but that they seem to only care about the needs of certain American students. Of course, given how much of our tax money is being given out the door to the 1 percent via the massive Tax Cut and Jobs Act, I guess sweeping Transgender Americans under the rug isn't much of a surprise.
Elections have consequences folks. And in this case, they are quite shameful.
So PLEASE don't forget to VOTE in the upcoming March 6th Primary Election, and the November 6th General Election. The only way to protect our students is to send lawmakers to Washington that care about them, which doesn't seem to be getting done with the Republican majority. Texans have a say on decisions like this one in November, as one of the Senators that not only supported Trump, but voted to confirm Betsy Devos, Ted Cruz, is up for reelection.
The first step in reversing tragedies like this one is to LOOSE CRUZ THIS NOVEMBER.
Betsy DeVosBuzzfeedDepartment of Justice Department of Education Joint MemoDominic Holden BuzzFeedLOOSE CRUZSenators the voted to confirm Betsy DeVosTed Cruz Election 2018Transgender StudentsTrump Administration Transgender
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