Some time ago, I posted the cover art for the ebook editions of The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. For the sake of comparison, here is the art for the US hardback editions. All of these covers were done by Darrell K. Sweet except for the last book, A Memory of Light, which was done by Michael Whelan.

Click each image to see a larger version.

Prequel — New Spring cover art

1. The Eye of the World — outside cover art

The Eye of the World — inside front cover art

2. The Great Hunt cover art

3. The Dragon Reborn cover art

4. The Shadow Rising cover art

5. The Fires of Heaven cover art

6. Lord of Chaos cover art

7. A Crown of Swords cover art

8. Path of Daggers cover art

9. Winter’s Heart cover art

10. Crossroads of Twilight cover art

11. Knife of Dreams cover art

12. The Gathering Storm cover art

13. The Towers of Midnight cover art

14. A Memory of Light — Darrell K. Sweet unfinished concept art

Mr. Sweet passed away before finishing the cover.

A Memory of Light cover art — Michael Whelan

Wheel of Time Cover Art for the US Hardback Editions


Seller Notes:

“ Museum Condition-meaning VGC for something that was USED (though minimally) in real life-NOT showroom or MINT condition! Driven over 1300 miles since November 1, 2018-mainly to test/sort all the issues out. Was stored for about 10 years prior to that. Shake down driving worked! Issues replaced! New: Distributor, Coil, Ignition Control Module, Fuel Pump, Tune-Up, Oil Filter, Air Filter, In-Line Fuel Filters, Valve Cover Gaskets and probably a few other things in that time. Tires have only about 1500 miles on 5 meaty bias plies. Originally from KY, and though not "southwest pristine" has very minimal rust. All known interior auxiliary electrical works, but interior electrical outlets unknown-all wiring intact, but not sure how system works, and not an electrician, so don't want to push my luck. Minor paint chips or pin-stripe imperfections. 4x4 works as of 12/2018. About as good as something 37 years old that WAS driven 32,000 mile can be! Great for Van Life Expedition Van build out ”


Hawaii may have been the fiftieth state to join the U.S., but when the calendar flips over to 2016 after midnight tonight, it will become the first state to raise the legal smoking age to 21.

Back in April, Consumerist reported that Hawaii was poised to become the first state to raise the minimum age for smoking to 21 after a bill changing the age requirements passed the Hawaii Legislature. Governor David Ige then signed the bill, which bars people under the age of 21 from smoking, buying, or possessing both traditional and electronic cigarettes.

Anyone caught in violation of the law would be fined $10 for the first offense, with subsequent incidents prompting a $50 fine or mandatory community service.

Businesses that are caught selling tobacco products to people under the age of 21 will be fined $500 for their first violation and up to $2,000 for subsequent offenses, Buzzfeed News reports.

While Hawaii is the first state to raise the legal smoking age to 21, a number of municipalities, including Hawaii County and New York City, have done so on a local level. Washington state, Utah, and Colorado have also considered boosting the legal minimum age.

Proponents of such laws say raising the legal age to buy cigarettes to 21 would result in fewer smokers. In Hawaii, the state’s Department of Health says 5,600 kids try smoking every year, with 90% of daily smokers starting the habit before they turn 19.

[via BuzzFeed News]


Dutch and Canadian technology could be key to managing UK pigs more effectively, including the use of sound to sense the early signs of disease.

Technology that detects how pigs are feeling will be used on farms within years to help producers find ways to manage them more effectively, according to a leading scientist.

Precision farming tools will measure the mental state of individual animals, allowing farmers to make decisions about rearing pigs, from the way they are housed to the feed they are given.

Daniel Berkmanns, professor in bioengineering at KU Leuven in Belgium, says real-time monitoring of pigs’ actions, movements and interactions could help improve the health, welfare and performance of herds.

See also: Farmer Focus: Pig performance improves just in time for hog roasts

“I am convinced we will see the mental state of animals being monitored on a commercial basis in the next few years,” he says.

“Pigs are intelligent animals and we should use their intelligence. If you put animals in a pen they will behave like stupid animals, but if we recognise that they are individuals with different needs and responses, we can react accordingly.

“It will enable us to make things more interesting for them and us, and potentially result in better outcomes.”

Prof Berkmanns says the technology is almost ready to be introduced into broiler units, and it is only a matter of time before it could be used on pig farms.

“The technology is just at the beginning,” he adds. “Continuous, real-time monitoring through image analysis, sound analysis and sensors could have a huge array of uses such as monitoring health and welfare.”

Prof Berkmanns says researchers at the University of Ghent have devised a system to analyse the sounds pigs make to detect illness.

“Most disease in pigs is respiratory. With some diseases you can detect signs just three hours after infection,” he says.

“The system detects a sick cough and sends an SMS message to the farmer, who can go out and decide if they need to call a vet. This kind of system reduces the use of antibiotics on farm.”

Another system being tested involves monitoring pigs’ drinking behaviour.

“We can create models to estimate water use to within 92% or 200ml over 13 days,” Prof Berkmanns says. If water use drops, farmers are alerted and inspect what is happening on the unit.

“This technology doesn’t mean that farmers will be replaced by the technology,” he adds. “It has to be part of the management system.

“The idea with monitoring is that daily checks are taken over by the technology and the farmer enters to solve the problem, not find it.

“It doesn’t have a value if it is just interesting technology, it has to be able to help the farmer make improvements.”

Tailored diets could cut feed costs

Feeding pigs diets tailored to their individual daily needs can slash feed costs and ensure the sustainability of the UK pig industry, say scientists.

Using precision farming technology to ensure pigs are only provided with the nutrients they need can result in feed costs being cut by as much as 10%, research at the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food in Canada found.

While traditional three-phase feeding aims to maximise growth by ensuring the top-performing animals have the nutrients they require, it does not take into account that every pig’s nutritional needs are different on different days, says the department’s Candido Pomar.

Often pigs are overfed nutrients, which are excreted in faeces and urine, creating a waste of feed and a negative effect on the environment, he says.

Instead, investing in technology that will allow pigs to receive formulations based on their real-time needs will vastly improve efficiency.

“Precision technologies help get the right amount of feed to the right pig at the right time,” says Dr Pomar. “It is a total shift in pig nutrition. Instead of basing their nutritional requirements on estimations collected from data, feeding with technology depends on an individual animal’s health, genetics and nutritional status, as well as external factors such as stress and management systems.”

In experiments run by Dr Pomar and his team, 60 pigs were fed diets with varying amounts of lysine from automatic feeders.

Each pig was tagged and identified by the feeder and given a serving of 15-25g of feed. The pigs could return to the feeder as many times as they liked.

During the experiment, the pigs visited the feeder up to 110 times a day, but the overall amount of feed they consumed was 8-10% lower than traditional three-phase feeding.

Further trials discovered that typical lysine use could be reduced by as much as 27% without having any effect on growth performance, resulting in a 50% reduction in nitrogen excretion, Dr Pomar says.

“Precision farming is an effective approach to improving efficiency, reducing nutrient excretion and reducing costs,” he adds.

Sound sensors could detect some diseases within three hours of infection and alert farmers by text.

More from from the Bpex Pig Innovation Conference 2014


Croatia's independent presidential candidate Bandic talks to his supporters after release of first unofficial results at his campaign headquarters in Zagreb Thomson Reuters ZAGREB (Reuters) - Croatian anti-graft police arrested the mayor of Zagreb, Milan Bandic, and several of his associates on Sunday on suspicion of corruption and abuse of office, Croatian media reported.

The police and the state prosecutor said only that several people from the Zagreb administration had been arrested but did not name them, in line with usual practice.

But all local media and the national televisions named Bandic as one of those arrested. Reports have linked Bandic to a number of corruption probes in the past decade but he has never been interrogated or detained until now.

"After several months of a complex criminal investigation, several persons have been arrested on suspicion of illegal activities in the city of Zagreb and the Zagrebacki Holding (the city's company in charge of communal services)," the state prosecutor's office DORH said in a statement on its website.

It gave no details of possible charges, saying only that "a number of corruption crimes are being investigated".

Bandic, a former Social Democrat who left the party in 2009 to run as an independent candidate in the presidential election that year, has been at the helm of the Croatian capital since 2000.

Zagreb has almost a quarter of the country's 4.4 million people and is the financial and economic capital of the former Yugoslav republic, which joined the EU in July last year.

Croatia launched an extensive anti-corruption drive in 2010 to boost its faltering EU membership bid. It has since tried and convicted several top state officials, including the former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader.

(Reporting by Zoran Radosavljevic; editing by Andrew Roche)


Sabrina Bicknell (1757 – 8 September 1843), better known as Sabrina Sidney, was a British foundling girl taken in when she was 12 by author Thomas Day, who wanted to mould her into his perfect wife. Day had been struggling to find a wife who would share his ideology and had been rejected by several women. Inspired by Jean-Jacques Rousseau's book Emile, or On Education, he decided to educate two girls without any frivolities, using his own concepts.

In 1769, Day and his barrister friend, John Bicknell, chose Sidney and another girl, Lucretia, from orphanages, and falsely declared they would be indentured to Day's friend Richard Lovell Edgeworth. Day took the girls to France to begin Rousseau's methods of education in isolation. After a short time, he returned to Lichfield with only Sidney, having deemed Lucretia inappropriate for his experiment. He used unusual, eccentric, and sometimes cruel, techniques to try to increase her fortitude, such as firing blanks at her skirts, dripping hot wax on her arms, and having her wade into a lake fully dressed to test her resilience to cold water.

When Sidney reached her teenage years, Day was persuaded by Edgeworth that his ideal wife experiment had failed and he should send her away, as it was inappropriate for Day to live with her unchaperoned. He then arranged for Sidney to undergo experimental vocational and residential changes—first attending a boarding school, then becoming an apprentice to a dressmaker family, and eventually being employed as Day's housekeeper. Having seen changes in Sidney, Day proposed marriage, though he soon called this off when she did not follow his strict instructions; he again sent her away, this time to a boarding house, where she later found work as a lady's companion.

In 1783, Bicknell sought out Sidney and proposed marriage, telling her the truth about Day's experiment. Horrified, she confronted Day in a series of letters; he admitted the truth but refused to apologise. Sidney married Bicknell, and the couple had two children before his death in 1787. Sidney went on to work with schoolmaster Charles Burney, managing his schools.

In 1804, Anna Seward published a book about Sidney's upbringing. Edgeworth followed up with his memoirs, in which he claimed Sidney loved Day. Sidney herself, on the other hand, said she was miserable with Day and that he treated her as a slave.

Early life [ edit ]

The now-demolished Foundling Hospital, where Sidney was abandoned

Sidney was born in 1757 in Clerkenwell, London, and was left at the Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Young Children (more commonly known as the Foundling Hospital) in London on 24 May 1757 by an anonymous individual. This person left a note explaining that the baby's baptismal name was Manima Butler and that she had been baptised in St James's Church, Clerkenwell. Her name was likely a misspelling of Monimia but there were no baptismal records for any spelling of the name at the parish.

One of the requirements of the Foundling Hospital was that babies were to be less than six months old at the time of admittance, but the hospital did not keep more accurate records of age. Another requirement was that foundlings were given a new name and a reference number, so Sidney became Girl Ann Kingston no. 4759. She was taken in by a wet nurse, Mary Penfold, who brought her to Wotton, Surrey, where she remained until 1759, when she was two years old. Although it was usual for foundlings to remain with their wet nurse until the age of five or six, the Foundling Hospital had received an influx of new babies and moved many children who no longer required nursing, including Sidney, to the Shrewsbury branch of the Foundling Hospital. The Shrewsbury building was not completed until 1765, so in the meantime Sidney and another foundling were cared for by a nurse, Ann Casewell, at her home.

Day's experiment [ edit ]

Background [ edit ]

Thomas Day in 1770

Thomas Day was a bachelor who had inherited his fortune from his father when he was an infant. Described as having a face pockmarked from smallpox, a brooding personality, and a short temper, Day attended Corpus Christi College, Oxford, to study philosophy. It was there that he decided to dedicate his life to becoming a virtuous man, shunning luxury and focusing on altruism. Around the same time he developed a list of requirements for his future wife, that she should be subservient and pure but also able to discuss philosophy and live without frivolities. These high standards, combined with his generally unlikeable personality, meant that his advances were rejected by several women while he was at university.

Day was introduced to the work of Jean-Jacques Rousseau by his friend Richard Lovell Edgeworth; the pair shared a particular affinity for Rousseau's work on education in the book Emile, or On Education. On leaving Oxford, Edgeworth and Day attempted to teach Edgeworth's first son, Dick, in the style of Emile, a learning-by-doing approach. Accompanying Edgeworth to Ireland as Dick's tutor, Day fell in love and was spurned first by Edgeworth's sister, and then by at least three other women in quick succession.

Day came to the conclusion that he would not be able to find a wife who would meet his high standards and largely blamed women's education for this. Inspired by the character of Sophie in Rousseau's Emile, he resolved to "create" his ideal wife by raising her from adolescence, using the techniques laid out in the book. Day was approaching financial independence, when he would have full access to the money left to him, and conspired with his barrister friend, John Bicknell, to find two girls who could be taken into his care to be groomed as a perfect wife.

Choosing the girls [ edit ]

Shrewsbury Orphan Hospital, which now forms part of Shrewsbury School

Just after Day's 21st birthday in June 1769, he and John Bicknell travelled to the Shrewsbury Orphan Hospital to choose the first girl for his experiment. Sidney was 12 years old at the time, described as "a clear auburn brunette, with darker eyes more glowing bloom and chestnut tresses". She was slender, and had long eyelashes and a pleasant voice. Day was struggling to choose a girl for the experiment, and Bicknell quickly picked her out. The pair did not tell the orphanage secretary, Samuel Magee, about the planned experiment. Instead they told him that she was to be indentured as a servant at Edgeworth's country house in Berkshire, waiving the £4 (equivalent to £545 in 2018) fee they would have received for the apprenticeship. In line with the orphanage's requirements that responsibility be held by a married man, Edgeworth would be legally accountable for Sidney, despite him not being present nor even aware of the arrangement.

The apprenticeship was approved by the governors of the orphanage on 30 June 1769; Day and Bicknell collected Sidney on 17 August. She was brought to lodgings in London, where she met Edgeworth for the first time. Day changed her name to Sabrina Sidney: Sabrina, the Latin name for the River Severn, which her orphanage overlooked; and Sidney after Algernon Sidney, one of Day's heroes. Day became a benefactor, and subsequently governor, of the Foundling Hospital, and on 20 September 1769 he chose another girl for his experiment, renaming her Lucretia after the Roman matron.

Day had Bicknell draw up a contract to define the terms of the girls' indenture. Within one year, he would choose which girl he intended to marry, and the other would be given as an apprentice to a woman in a trade, along with a fee of £100 (equivalent to £13,630 in 2018). He would give a further £400 (equivalent to £54,519 in 2018) upon the girl's marriage or if she were to start her own business. He would marry his intended bride or, if he decided not to, would gift her the sum of £500 (equivalent to £68,149 in 2018). Bicknell acted as guarantor for the contract.

Education in France [ edit ]

Day wished for the girls to be isolated from external influences while he educated them so, at the beginning of November 1769, he decided to move them to France. It is also possible that he did this to protect himself from the legal ramifications of his experiment, as well as societal gossip. The trio travelled over 600 miles to Avignon, renting a house in le quartier des fusteries. The girls could speak no French and Day employed no English-speaking servants, to be sure that he would be the only person to influence them.

Day focussed on the girls' education, in the style of Emile. He expanded on the teaching they had received from the Foundling Hospital in reading and basic arithmetic, and also taught them how to write. He believed that the girls should be able to manage the house, so they were charged with cooking and cleaning as well as other housework. Finally, he wanted to be able to debate complex concepts with them, so he taught them rudimentary theories in physics and geography, tasking them with observing the changing of the seasons, and recording details of sunrises and sunsets. He also imparted to them Rousseau's philosophical contempt for luxury.

During his stay in France, Day regularly corresponded with Edgeworth. He said that both girls were passionate about their studies, Sidney more so. Day also related anecdotes, one concerning a trip on the Rhone where the boat overturned and he rescued both girls single-handedly as neither could swim. He described an incident in which he challenged a French Army officer to a duel, even producing a set of dueling pistols, simply as a manner of engaging or encouraging conversation with his young students; the officer apologised and explained he did not mean any offence, calming the situation.

Accounts by 19th-century historians suggest that Day grew impatient with the girls when they became bored with their lessons and began to squabble, and that he also spent significant time nursing them through a bout of smallpox. These accounts may have been exaggerated as both girls had been inoculated against smallpox, and their strict upbringing meant they would not have rebelled excessively.

Return to England [ edit ]

While in France, Day struggled over which girl to choose to take forward with the experiment. Both were beautiful; Lucretia was more cheerful, Sidney more reserved and studious. The trio returned to England in spring 1770, by which time Day had finally decided that he would carry on with Sidney's training. Edgeworth explained that each of Day's projects with Sabrina had been successful, but he had come to the conclusion that Lucretia was "invincibly stupid". Day apprenticed Lucretia to a milliner in Ludgate Hill, and took Sidney to Stowe House in Lichfield, where her training could continue. The household would have had no more than a couple of servants, leaving Sidney to maintain the four floors of the house. Her tutoring continued at the same time, with one-on-one lessons from Day on a variety of subjects.

Stowe House, Day's Lichfield residence, viewed across Stowe Pool, the lake into which Sidney waded

Day extended his tutoring to fortify Sidney against hardship, again based upon his interpretation of Rousseau's Emile. The book explains the concept of "negative education", protecting a person from vices rather than teaching them virtues. Day interpreted this to mean that submitting Sidney to tests of endurance would help to create a woman with hardened nerves. One example given by Rousseau was helping Emile become accustomed to explosions such as fireworks by firing pistols with small amounts of powder near him, gradually increasing the amount of powder. Day, on the other hand, fired a pistol loaded with powder directly at Sidney's petticoat, not telling her that there was no shot in it.

In an attempt to increase her resistance to pain he would drop hot sealing wax on her back and arms or stick pins in her, commanding her not to cry out. He would test her ability to keep secrets by telling her that his life was in danger and she should tell no one. To increase her resistance to the cold, Day instructed Sidney to wade into Stowe Pool until the water reached her neck, then lie in the nearby meadow until her clothes and hair had dried in the sun. Finally, to test her resistance to luxury, he gave her a big box of handmade silk clothes and had her throw them on a fire. Day had limited success with these techniques. Sidney became able to endure hot wax dripped on her arm without flinching, but she did tell others of his secret techniques, and could not help screaming whenever he fired his gun at her.

During their time at Stowe House, Day introduced Sidney to members of the local intellectual circle, including the priest at Lichfield Cathedral, Thomas Seward. Seward and his wife hoped that Day might be a suitor for their daughter, Anna, and Anna's writings of the time show her interest in Day. Anna was also enchanted by Sidney, who became the link between Day and the Seward family. Anna took a keen interest in Sidney's story, as her father had taken in Honora Sneyd when Sneyd's mother had died.

Moving away from Day [ edit ]

Anna Seward, acquaintance of Day who questioned the propriety of his relationship with Sidney

By 1770, Sidney began to question Day's techniques and to complain about the chores she had to perform. In December, the propriety of Day's arrangement with Sidney was questioned by the local community, especially Anna Seward. Edgeworth joined Day for Christmas at Stowe, and convinced him that his experiment had been unsuccessful. He also persuaded Day that Sidney was too old to live with him without a chaperone. Day appeared to accept Edgeworth's point of view, as he paid for Sidney to attend Sutton Coldfield boarding school in Warwickshire early in 1771. She remained at the boarding school for three years, including weekends and holidays, with infrequent visits from Day. The school normally focused on preparing high society daughters for marriage, with subjects such as needlework and the arts. Day stipulated that she was to be taught academic subjects but should not dance or learn music.

In 1774, Day visited Sidney to inform her that she would be apprenticed to the Parkinsons, a family of dressmakers, as Day believed the profession would not expose her to temptation. She was delivered to the family with the stipulation that she should work hard at chores and be denied luxuries. The Parkinsons, however, treated Sidney well, to the extent that Day later chastised them for not instilling "industry and frugality" in her. Less than a year later the Parkinsons' business went bankrupt, leaving Sidney without an apprenticeship and nowhere to live. Day arranged for her to stay with his friends, the Keir family, and implied that she could take on the role of housekeeper at his own home. Day again considered Sidney, who was now 18, a potential wife, but did not let her know of his intentions, nor that her upbringing was part of his experiment.

Broken engagement [ edit ]

Over the next few months, Day returned to moulding Sidney to meet his requirements for the ideal woman, choosing what she would wear, and pushing his ideas of frugality upon her. Sidney took on all the ideas willingly and Day believed he had finally created a woman who would meet all his requirements. He was so confident that he talked openly of marrying Sidney, though she was unaware of his intentions. Eventually one of Day's friends let her know that he hoped to marry her. Sidney confronted Day about the rumours and he admitted they were true, neglecting to mention that he had hoped to marry her since the day he met her.

Sidney did not refuse the proposal, so Day planned the wedding while she considered it further and eventually agreed. During the preparations, Day left Sidney with friends for a few days, giving her strict instructions on what she should wear. When he returned to find her in an outfit that did not meet his requirements, he flew into a rage and Sidney fled for a few hours, so Day called off the engagement. Sidney was sent to a boarding house in Birmingham and given a stipend of £50 per annum (equivalent to £6,180 in 2018). Day resolved never to see her again.

Marriage [ edit ]

"I never thought I had a right to sacrifice another being to my own good or pleasure; but whatever else ensued you would be placed in circumstances infinitely more favourable to happiness than before" Day's explanation of his behaviour to Sidney

After her engagement to Day ended, Sidney spent eight years at boarding houses around Birmingham. Day met and went on to marry an heiress, Esther Milnes, in 1778. Sidney met an apothecary, Jarvis Wardley, who proposed marriage in an acrostic poem. She contacted Day for advice, and he told her in absolute terms not to marry Wardley, even writing an acrostic poem for her to use in turning him down. In 1783, she had become a lady's companion in Newport, Shropshire. It was there that she was approached by Day's friend, the man who helped choose her at the foundling hospital, John Bicknell. Bicknell was single and had spent the majority of his earnings from his law career in gambling dens. He had not paid much attention to Sidney since selecting her with Day, but proposed marriage immediately.

Sidney again consulted Day on the prospective engagement. Day did not approve, claiming the age difference was too great, although Bicknell was only two years older than Day. Bicknell decided to tell Sidney the truth about the experiment, that she was hand-picked to be Day's wife from childhood, and that all of Day's actions were designed to further his goal of turning her into the ideal bride. Horrified, Sidney wrote to Day to confront him over Bicknell's statements. Day admitted the truth but refused to apologise. After a series of letters, Day gave his consent to the marriage, telling her that the letter would be his final communication with her.

Final residence of Sabrina Bicknell, at 29 Gloucester Circus, Greenwich

Bicknell and Sidney married on 16 April 1784 at St Philip's Cathedral, Birmingham. The same day, Day paid the £500 wedding dowry he had stipulated in the contract he had set up with Bicknell, ending his £50 (equivalent to £6,009 in 2018) per year stipend. The couple bought a house in Shenfield and had two children, John Laurens Bicknell and Henry Edgeworth Bicknell. Bicknell carried on with his gambling habits, squandering the remaining money over the following three years. On 27 March 1787, after three years of marriage, John Bicknell died of a paralytic stroke.

Sidney and her two children were now left without an income. Day sent her a new stipend of £30 per year, (equivalent to £3,708 in 2018) which was matched by Edgeworth. Her husband's barrister friends raised £800 (equivalent to £98,873 in 2018) for the widow and her children. Sidney found a role as housekeeper for Charles Burney, as well as general manager of his schools in Chiswick, Hammersmith, and Greenwich. It was at his Greenwich school that her own children were educated.

Day's widow, Esther, continued paying Sidney's allowance after his death in 1789, and Sidney carried on her work with Burney until she was 68. By this time she was living in a four-storey house in Gloucester Circus, Greenwich, with her own servants. On 8 September 1843, Sidney died at her home of a severe asthma attack. She was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery.

Legacy [ edit ]

Sidney asked her friends not to discuss her past as she believed her humble beginnings, and Day's mistreatment of her, would tarnish her reputation. Anna Seward nevertheless wrote about Sidney's upbringing in her 1804 work Memoirs on the Life of Dr. Darwin. As Seward publicly identified Sidney in the book, it was criticised by the press, and Sidney's son John was very angry to learn of his mother's past. In his 1820 memoirs, Edgeworth stated his belief that Sidney and Day made a good match and that she loved him. Sidney disagreed with these accounts, saying that Day had made her miserable, and that she had effectively been a slave.

Sidney's education has been compared to George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, which may have been inspired by her story. Strong parallels have also been drawn between Sidney's upbringing and two novels of 1871: Henry James's Watch and Ward, and Anthony Trollope's Orley Farm. The story of her life has been told in Wendy Moore's 2013 book How to Create the Perfect Wife and dramatised in the 2015 BBC Radio 4 play The Imperfect Education of Sabrina Sidney.

References [ edit ]


The Alabama-Coushatta tribe plans to hold a job fair soon for their new Class II casino, Naskila Entertainment near Livingston, Texas. On Tuesday April 19 Tribal members are invited for either of two sessions to be held at the Tribal Multi-Purpose Center (Gym). Tribal Members and the general community are welcome to attend on Wednesday, April 20th.

The Multi-Purpose Center is located at 333 State Park Rd 56. Tuesday’s job fair will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 pm and 4:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. with Wednesday’s running from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 pm and 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The Job Fair will be facilitated by Naskila Management along with Tribal departmental staff. The open meetings will allow interested people to get face to face time and learn more about career opportunities. A variety of positions are available from managerial and technical to service and support. A flyer, also posted on the Entertainment Center’s Facebook page offers a phone number for those with questions.

Our phone calls Friday and Saturday went directly to voice mail and a Friday email has not been returned yet. We are monitoring social media and local news outlets for updated information in regard to an opening date, but expect the venue to open on or before May 1st.

The tribe has not offered Class II slot machines since 2002, since being forced by court decisions to close a lucrative operation that generated about $1 million per month for the tribe and ran less than a year. The only other tribal casino to operate in the state is the Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino in Eagle Pass, which has been open since 1996. Texans, not in the “Deep East” also have a casino cruise ship available out of Aransas Pass – otherwise the state’s denizens are forced to travel out of state to “get their spin on” across the border at other tribal casinos like the Chickasaw Nation’s WinStar World Casino and Resort in Oklahoma.

In October 2015 the National Indian Gaming Commission ruled that the tribe, along with the Tigua Tribes (aka Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo) in Texas, had been restored to federal recognition a year before the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed; affirming both tribes’ jurisdiction over their sovereign lands. On November 3, 2015 the tribe announced that they had received federal approval to resume electronic gaming.

The casino is located at 540 State Park Road 56, in Livingston, Texas and will offer 15,000 square feet of entertainment space with about 10,000 of that devoted to gaming on over 350 machines. A restaurant is also planned for the refurbished center.

The state’s Charitable Bingo operators have been losing money for the last several years with some being shut down by the state for not generating positive income. They are staunchly opposed to the state’s tribes self-determination on sovereign land on which the state has no jurisdiction to enforce its draconian gambling laws. The Charitable bingo operators were also heavily influential in getting the Texas Racing Commission to kill regulations allowing so-called Historical Racing machines. Statewide, the only legal gambling outlets are a state lottery, parimutuel wagering, and charity bingo.


Four minutes from the end of Manchester City's remarkably comfortable win over QPR on Sunday, the entire Etihad stadium rose to its feet to applaud an oncoming player. Yun Suk-Young was replaced by former City star Shaun Wright-Phillips and there was a show of respect for the winger, as there had been earlier in the game for Richard Dunne, to mark just how much the fans remember his efforts while playing at Eastlands.

That team also included Joey Barton, although he's since become something of a pantomime villain. That's likely to do with the number of indiscretions to his name at City, including his acrimonious departure after an incident with Ousmane Dabo, and then his attempts to "take some of them with [him]" as he went berserk in that game in 2012.

The thing is, those City fans that applauded Wright-Phillips onto the turf on Sunday were pleased to see him back. He epitomised everything supporters love to see, back when he was one of the club's only shining lights. Throughout the end of the Kevin Keegan era and the start of the Stuart Pearce reign, there wasn't a lot for those in the stands to cheer.

FA Cup exits, relegation battles, European near-misses; all of these came and went and the pitch was filled with mediocrity. Except on the right flank, where an academy product could beat three or four players and smash an effort into the top corner from range. In one moment, he could inject some energy into a dour performance and give the dwindling atmosphere a buzz. He was going to be an England regular, too.

As was the way for City back then, they were a selling club, although they have since benefited from the flip side of that coin. If there was a player performing well who was "too good" for them, then a decent bid from a top side would no doubt result in a transfer.

That's exactly what happened. Pearce's side was desperate for investment, but the club had no money whatsoever and was actually close to going under. So when Chelsea bid £21 million for the England prospect in 2005, the manager's hands were tied and the offer was accepted. Even now, the money the club received for the winger is their highest, although it will soon be surpassed when the sale of Alvaro Negredo to Valencia is triggered at the end of the season.

The fans were devastated to see Wright-Phillips leave, and it only later emerged in an interview with the Blue Moon Podcast that he was just as upset to be on his way.

"I didn't actually have a choice," he said. "Everybody seemed to think it was something that I wanted to do, but I was happy playing for City. I didn't want to leave, but [staying] wasn't an option I had. City were in a bad situation and the money they were offered was hard for them to refuse.

"In the car on the way down I was crying because I didn't want to go."

Shaun Wright-Phillips applauds the Manchester City crowd as he receives an ovation while warming up at the Etihad.

That puts Wright-Phillips' remarks that re-signing for Mark Hughes' Manchester City was like "coming home" into more context, even if throughout his second spell it always felt for the fans like things were never quite the same. The time away had left him unable to be the influence he once was.

That's not to say he was poor when he came back, just that he never hit his previous heights. It was almost as if his move back to the north was what he needed to inject some life back into his career, much the same way he used to do to City's performances in 2003. He scored four times in three seasons at Chelsea, a tally he'd equalled in his sixth game after his return.

As much as Wright-Phillips was a crowd hero, he never really got to experience the good times he probably deserved with City. He played a bit part in the 2011 FA Cup-winning side, but had moved on by the time the title came to the Etihad the next season. By a bizarre quirk of fate, though, he was on the pitch when Roberto Mancini's side snatched the championship, playing for QPR that afternoon.

The applause reserved for those players who were loyal to the club and did their best to brighten up another gloomy day in Manchester will always remain strong. Although for Wright-Phillips, you can't help wondering whether things might have been different if he'd never been shown the door a decade ago.

David Mooney is ESPN FC's Manchester City blogger. Twitter: @DavidMooney


Turner Broadcasting System Inc. will cut its workforce by about 10 percent, or 1,475 workers, in the coming weeks through layoffs, buyouts and other measures, the company announced Monday.

Atlanta-based Turner, which is owned by Time Warner, said 975 of the job reductions will be in metro Atlanta, which is taking the brunt of the cuts. In addition to TNT, Turner’s holdings include CNN, TBS, Cartoon Network, truTV, HLN and other networks and online sites.

The company said fewer than 300 of the job cuts will be at CNN Worldwide.

The company said the cuts are being made to reduce redundancies, focus resources and prioritize investment in programming, monetization and innovation.

“It’s our responsibility as business leaders to focus Turner’s talent pool where individuals and groups will deliver the greatest return for the company, for Time Warner and for our shareholders,” Chief Executive Officer John Martin said in an internal memo to employees, obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed said he expected Turner to preserve as many jobs locally as possible.

“For more than 30 years, Turner Broadcasting System (TBS) has served as the leading news, entertainment, and animation company in our city, state and region,” Reed said in a statement. “Despite Turner’s decision to reduce staff globally, including operations in Atlanta, we are confident that its leadership team will work to preserve as many of the 5,500 full-time positions located in the city where TBS was founded.”

Turner said the cuts from among 14,000 full-time positions worldwide will come at all levels from across the company’s news, entertainment, kids, young adult and sports networks and businesses, as well as corporate functions, in 18 Turner locations around the world.

The cuts are being made through a combination of voluntary buyouts, layoffs and other measures. Employees whose positions are directly impacted will be advised over the next two weeks and will be offered severance pay for transition, the company said.


What is Twitter marketing? It’s what you want it to be. Want to learn more about your customers? Make your brand a little more human? Build buzz about your new product? Make an influencer’s day? Provide lightning-fast customer support? Start mopping up after a PR disaster? Publicly humiliate trolls? Twitter’s got you covered.

Whatever your goals, there’s no question Twitter can be a powerful tool to help you achieve them.

If you’re just starting out with Twitter, this guide will show you how to craft a winning strategy. If you’re already using the platform to grow your business, jump to our section on smart Twitter tips for business.

Bonus: Download the free strategy guide that reveals how Hootsuite grew our Twitter following to over 8 million users and learn how you can put the tactics to work for your business.

How to create a Twitter marketing strategy

A well-crafted strategy is the foundation for success—and it’s what separates the most effective brands on Twitter from the also-rans. Without a clear plan, you will waste time and money tweeting without a clear understanding of how your activities are helping your organization meet its goals. And when it comes time to review your performance, you’ll struggle to prove what you’ve achieved. And that will make it hard to make the case for increasing your team size or budget.

Every hour you spend on research and strategy will pay off tenfold. We promise. Here’s what you need to do:

Define success and set goals

Okay, so you’ve got a good answer ready when your boss asks, “Why are we on Twitter?” Then come the two follow-up punches: “Are we on track to meet our goals? And… what are they again?”

Answering these questions isn’t hard if you do your homework. Start with a list of your organization’s current high-level business objectives, such as:

Generate leads and sales

Increase customer loyalty

Build brand and product awareness

Decrease customer support costs

From these objectives, craft specific and measurable goals. This will make it easy for you to evaluate progress and prove success. For example, if your objective is to provide your sales team with high-quality leads through social, your goal might be “use Twitter to drive 30 email sign-ups per month.”

With objectives and goals in place, remember to take time to benchmark the current state of your team’s performance. This will help you measure your progress toward your goals, proving that your strategy is producing real, measurable results for your business.

Defining and measuring success on social media can be challenging, so taking the time to do this right will really set you apart. Our guide to the ROI of social media breaks down the process for you.

Research the competition

Gathering information about your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses on social is critical. Not sure where to start? Read our quick guide, and then use this competitive analysis template to design a social marketing strategy that will leave your competitors in the dust.

Identify your target audience

Your brand can’t be all things to all people on Twitter—nor should you want it to be. Know who you’re targeting and craft a strategy that focuses on delivering real value to them. This will encourage them to engage with your brand and eventually become customers and advocates. While you’re at it, check out our guide on how to attract and engage more Twitter followers.

Audit and take charge of your Twitter accounts

Depending on the size of your company and your goals, you may want to use a single Twitter account or multiple accounts for different departments or functions. If multiple people in your organization are already using Twitter, auditing and consolidating existing accounts is key.

How important is this? When the Vancouver Canucks hockey team deleted rogue accounts and launched official social media channels as part of their social strategy, they were able to strategically grow their Twitter fan base by 800 percent.

Integrate Twitter with overall social strategy

Teams working in large (or growing) organizations can find themselves working in silos. If you find this happening to your social marketing team, make sure you keep tearing down those silos and stay connected to other teams. Their work can be a rich source of information and assets to share with your followers. And they may be gathering insights that can open up new opportunities for your Twitter strategy.

Keep your Twitter presence unique

While it’s possible—and easy—to post the same content to multiple social networks, cross-posting isn’t an approach we recommend. Each network has its own unique characteristics and user base, so while applying the same strategy to multiple networks might seem like a shortcut, it might cost you more in engagement and authenticity than it saves you in time and effort. Nail your strategy on one network at a time, keeping it unique and fresh.

For a head start charting your strategy, download our social media templates that cover everything from social media strategy and audits to content calendars and bulk message uploading for Hootsuite.

10 useful Twitter marketing tips for business

1. Use Twitter tools to get more done

Twitter’s website and apps are great for sending the occasional tweet or direct message—but to manage your Twitter marketing at scale, you need the right tools for the job.

Our list of 33 Twitter tools you can use in your marketing strategy is broken down by function to help you find the tools you need to market your business more efficiently on Twitter. Here are just a few of the things these tools will help you do faster and better:

Generate leads by learning more about the people engaging with your brand, why they’re sharing your content, and who they’re sharing it with.

by learning more about the people engaging with your brand, why they’re sharing your content, and who they’re sharing it with. Find industry influencers to connect with.

to connect with. Analyze your competition to find detailed information on their tweets, mentions, hashtags, followers, and more.

to find detailed information on their tweets, mentions, hashtags, followers, and more. Find trending topics by content, hashtags, search terms, sources, and more.

by content, hashtags, search terms, sources, and more. Edit and add images to your tweets.

to your tweets. Manage who you follow (and unfollow) to add valuable new information to your Twitter feed—and remove inactive and spammy followers.

(and unfollow) to add valuable new information to your Twitter feed—and remove inactive and spammy followers. Time your posts for maximum impact with tools that analyze both your tweets and your followers’ tweets.

With your Twitter toolbox stocked and ready, it’s time to turn your attention to crafting a world-class profile.

2. Build a great Twitter profile

A complete, strategically crafted Twitter profile does far more than put a pretty face on your organization’s Twitter account—it can build trust with your audience, improve how your business appears in search results, and give your customers a direct, real-time channel to reach out to you with questions and kudos for your company. Here’s how to do it right:

Write a great bio

Twitter lets you use a few less characters in your bio than in your tweets (160, compared to 280), but you’ll still want to get maximum impact from every word (and hashtag). Whether you’re writing writing a new bio from scratch or looking to freshen up an existing one, we’ve got a list of world-class Twitter bio ideas to increase your follower count.

Image via Hootsuite on Twitter.

Complete and optimize your profile

A strategically optimized Twitter profile can do far more than just share your name, handle, and description. With a few quick tweaks, you can boost the visual impact of your profile; target a precise physical location or general area; help customers find other Twitter profiles your company manages; and make it easier for people to interact with your brand and start conversations about your products. For all the details, see our video on optimizing your profile settings on Twitter.

Get verified

When people see that you are verified by Twitter, they know that they can trust your content—and your brand. Learn how to get verified on Twitter and earn that small but highly valuable blue “verified” checkmark next to your account name.

Show it off

Of course, after investing all this work in crafting a great profile, you’ll want to make sure people actually find it. Add your Twitter handle to your website, email signatures, the side of your delivery truck, and wherever else it makes sense to show it off.

3. Listen and learn

If your strategy is focused on using Twitter to broadcast content to your followers, you’re not taking advantage of Twitter’s massive potential as a platform for social listening.

As our CEO Ryan Holmes explains, “For businesses that pursue social listening seriously, the benefits can be significant: real-time intelligence on competitors; instant feedback on how your own brand is being perceived; and actionable data for designing or tweaking marketing campaigns.”

You need to know what your Twitter community is talking about, whether people are directly mentioning your brand or not. What topics are they interested in? What kinds of content do they respond to? Who do they engage with? These are all important factors to consider when participating in social media listening.

Things to listen for include:

Your brand’s name (including misspellings)

Your brand’s product names (including misspellings)

Your competitors (again, including misspellings)

Industry buzzwords

Brand slogans

Your CEO or public representative’s names (and misspellings)

Campaign names or keywords

Another key reason to listen on social is to find influencers and experts in your field. Nearly 40 percent of Twitter users say they’ve made a purchase as a direct result of a tweet from an influencer, and 49 percent say they rely on influencers when looking for product recommendations.

For more information on how to find influencers on Twitter and build valuable relationships with them, take a look at our complete guide to influencer marketing on social media.

Our guide to social media listening lists tools you can use:

Twitter Advanced Search lets you narrow down your searches, search by negative or positive sentiment, explore relevant hashtags, and much more. For more information, see our guide on how to use Twitter’s Advanced Search for lead generation.

Hootsuite makes it easy to set up streams that allow you to not only monitor conversations and keywords, but respond or assign the response to someone else on your team. And with Hootsuite Insights, you can monitor social media networks, news sources, and blogs to stay on top of trends, understand the conversations happening around your brand, and discover which content is resonating with your audience.

Social Mention monitors over 100 sources and “allows you to easily track and mention what people are saying about you, your company, a new product, or any topic across the web’s social media landscape in real-time.”

TweetReach offers basic listening tools, and helps you monitor tweets about your brand, and industry conversations.

Cision Social Edition (formerly ViralHeat) allows you to listen to conversations around your brand across social networks and then “identify trends to drive insights around your social media performance.”

4. Create great content

While it’s true that you’ve only got 280 characters to worry about at a time, you should still strive to write tweets that are on brand, easy to read, and likely to resonate with your audience. If you’re looking for help or inspiration, check out our great list of 8 writing resources for non-writers.

Here are the basics for writing a great tweet:

Help your audience

To create content your audience will actually read and use, it helps to never stop learning about their interests, needs, and fears. In addition to reading their tweets and engaging directly with them, you can also use apps like Trendspottr to find and share trending content.

We're responding to storms & tornadoes that blew across the Midwest. For shelter info, visit https://t.co/IwTsENcx2z or call 1-800-768-8048. — American Red Cross (@RedCross) April 30, 2017

Keep it short

Yes, the limit is 280 characters—but you don’t have to use all those characters every time to create a great tweet. Mix up the length of tweets, and remember to use a URL shortener (like Ow.ly, available in the Hootsuite dashboard) to prevent links from taking up more space than necessary (and make it easier to include UTM parameters without creating clutter).

Incorporate content curation

You curate content when you sort through the massive amount of content online and share the best of it with your followers in an organized, meaningful way. At Hootsuite, we share the best content we find with our followers using the hashtag #ChoiceContent.

For tips on incorporating content curation into your overall strategy, see our guide to using curated content on Twitter.

Use hashtags

Hashtags ensure that your content is being seen by as many followers as possible. Hashtags enable you to classify content so that your tweets are grouped with other relevant Twitter content. This helps other Twitter users find your content easily, just as it can help you find influencers and others in your industry.

The art and science of using hashtags has evolved substantially in the past few years, and if you don’t know what you’re doing, you can wind up using hashtags incorrectly and sounding tone-deaf or worse. Get up to speed with our comprehensive guide on the do’s and don’ts of how to use hashtags.

5. Use multimedia to drive more engagement

The popularity—and effectiveness—of multimedia continues its meteoric rise on social media. A survey of Twitter users found that the majority (82 percent) watch video content on Twitter, and that users want to see more videos from celebrities, other users, and brands. Why not offer your followers more of what they’re asking for?

Video

According to Wyzowl’s State of Video Marketing 2017 report, 79 percent of consumers would rather watch a video to learn about a product than read text on a page—and 84 percent of consumers have been convinced to make a purchase after watching a brand’s video. You might tweet out videos your organization has created, retweet relevant video content your audience would find valuable, or explore ways to share real-time video on Twitter.

Images

Among all the options for sharing images and photos online, don’t forget to share them on Twitter too. Include relevant images to catch the eye of your community and encourage engagement. If you’re sharing photos of people, you can also tag up to 10 people per image, as described in our post on Twitter best practices.

GIFs

Ah, GIFs. With users sharing over 100 million GIFS on Twitter in 2016, they can be a great option for adding some relevant fun to your tweets. If some cheeky animated joy is on-brand for your organization, try out Twitter’s integrated GIF search. And for a wealth of ideas, you can check out our GIF guide for social media marketers.

6. Post at the right time

Tweets don’t last. According to Wiselytics, a tweet has a half-life of just 24 minutes and reaches 75 percent of its potential engagement in less than three hours. That means you need to tweet at the right time to reach the most potential followers and maximize engagement.

Tweet regularly

We recommend tweeting at least once a day to attract and engage Twitter followers. Experiment with posting more than that, and then pay attention to how your followers react to find the frequency that works best for you.

Start with industry best practices

Research has shown that the best posting times are generally 12 p.m., 5 p.m., and 6 p.m. Consider posting at these times in your initial strategy, then flesh out your schedule as you learn more about what times get the best results with your followers.

Use analytics to fine-tune your approach

Use engagement data from Twitter Analytics to adjust your timing once you’ve gathered some data about how followers are engaging with your tweets.

Schedule your tweets

Once you know the best times to tweet for optimal engagement, you can use Hootsuite to schedule your tweets, which will save you time and ensure you’re getting the best bang for your buck with each tweet.

With Hootsuite, you can schedule your Twitter messages manually or in bulk, and you can even set up Hootsuite to automatically post at optimal times. For more information on exactly how to do this, see our post on scheduling posts through Hootsuite. And if you’re looking for templates for bulk uploads, we’ve got those too.

7. Engage with your audience

It’s easy for marketers to get obsessed with the number of followers we collect on Twitter. But without engagement, your follower number is just that—a number. From the start, Twitter has been designed to help people connect and engage on a personal level. Use that strength to your advantage and engage daily with your audience.

Follow your network— Your followers’ tweets can provide a wealth of information about their interests, needs, preferences, and so on. Follow and learn from them.

Your followers’ tweets can provide a wealth of information about their interests, needs, preferences, and so on. Follow and learn from them. Respond quickly— According to one social media research study, 42 percent of consumers expect a 60-minute response time on social media. Respond quickly and naturally to customers, as you would in person or over the phone.

According to one social media research study, 42 percent of consumers expect a 60-minute response time on social media. Respond quickly and naturally to customers, as you would in person or over the phone. Retweet, like, and follow— It feels good when people take a moment to retweet and like your tweets or follow you on Twitter. Return the favor and keep your followers happy.

It feels good when people take a moment to retweet and like your tweets or follow you on Twitter. Return the favor and keep your followers happy. Use @mentions and tag people— When you mention followers, influencers, or other brands in a tweet, including an @mention is a nice way to drive a little traffic their way. You can also tag people in photos when it’s appropriate to do so, as covered in our post on Twitter best practices.

When you mention followers, influencers, or other brands in a tweet, including an @mention is a nice way to drive a little traffic their way. You can also tag people in photos when it’s appropriate to do so, as covered in our post on Twitter best practices. Ask for a little help— It’s okay to occasionally ask followers to retweet, mention, or like your tweets.

It’s okay to occasionally ask followers to retweet, mention, or like your tweets. Get interactive—Tweet a question and see how your followers respond, or run a Twitter Poll for customer service feedback, quick product or service opinions, and direct social listening opportunities.

We're at #CES2016 & letting you choose what we cover. Vote now and watch our Periscope tomorrow! — Amazon.com (@amazon) January 7, 2016

Keep listening for opportunities and pain points. If you’re looking for a little inspiration on how to kick-start engagement with your Twitter followers, try our 5-day plan for increasing your Twitter engagement.

8. Monitor your business and brand

You’ve seen the news about companies mishandling PR disasters on social—but whether you’re monitoring social networks to mitigate major risk or just to keep an eye on overall sentiment about your brand, it’s vital to know what people are saying and sharing on Twitter.

Follow your competitors— This one’s easy. Find your competitors on Twitter and follow them to know what they’re sharing—and what people are saying about them.

This one’s easy. Find your competitors on Twitter and follow them to know what they’re sharing—and what people are saying about them. Get organized to listen more effectively— Twitter lists can be a great way to organize the people you follow on Twitter. If you use Hootsuite, you can easily set up streams to listen to your competitors right from your dashboard.

Twitter lists can be a great way to organize the people you follow on Twitter. If you use Hootsuite, you can easily set up streams to listen to your competitors right from your dashboard. Monitor your brand/company keywords— Twitter Analytics and other tools make it easy to do this. For a more comprehensive approach, you can Hootsuite Insights to monitor social media networks, news sources, and blogs to make sure you stay on top of trending content that matters to you.

Twitter Analytics and other tools make it easy to do this. For a more comprehensive approach, you can Hootsuite Insights to monitor social media networks, news sources, and blogs to make sure you stay on top of trending content that matters to you. Have a crisis communications plan—As our CEO Ryan Holmes pointed out in a LinkedIn post on “tone-deaf” brands, companies that haven’t embraced the concept of social listening risk opening themselves up to full-blown PR disasters on social. Learn from their cautionary tales and put a plan in place for crisis communications—and then hope you never need to use it.

9. Measure results

Measuring your Twitter marketing results allows you to evaluate your success, see what kind of content your community engages with, and shows you opportunities for areas to further refine your Twitter strategy. Here are a few ways to get the data you need:

Use Twitter Analytics

Twitter Analytics gives you an overview of how your tweets are performing, who is engaging and when, influencers in your network, and metrics for individual tweets. You can track your followers’ activity over time, their interests, demographics, and (if you’re running a Twitter Ads campaign) ad performance.

Image via Twitter.

Use analytics tools from Hootsuite

Hootsuite’s analytics tools feature real-time dashboards to help you monitor performance, spot trends, and track engagement across channels. You can tag tweets connected to campaigns or events, then track, analyze, and report on their performance.

Bonus: Download the free strategy guide that reveals how Hootsuite grew our Twitter following to over 8 million users and learn how you can put the tactics to work for your business.

10. Elevate your strategy with advanced tactics

Now that you’ve mastered the basics, why not try a few more advanced tactics?

Advertise on Twitter

As great as your social media strategy may be, there are times when it makes sense to supplement your organic efforts with paid advertising to achieve your objectives on Twitter. Depending on the specific goal you’re working toward, you can promote your individual tweets, your account, or even a trend you’d like to amplify and associate with your business. When you’re ready to get started, check out our complete guide to Twitter Ads.

Host a Twitter chat

Hosting a Twitter chat is a great way to show thought leadership in your field while building advocacy, loyalty, and community. Using a shared hashtag, users meet online to catch up on industry news, discuss issues, and share ideas. To learn more, see our step-by-step guide on how to run a Twitter chat.

Here at Hootsuite, we engage with our community through #HootChat, our weekly Twitter chat. We collaborate with influencers in the industry and encourage questions and discussion with our Twitter community.

Q3. What are some tips to writing engaging captions? #HootChat pic.twitter.com/lA7BfrC1G4 — Hootsuite (@hootsuite) May 18, 2017

Broadcast live video

Brands have been sharing live video on Twitter for some time now, and companies like AirBNB are even experimenting with 360° livestreaming channels. Given the exploding popularity of video on social media, adding live video to your Twitter strategy is definitely a promising area to explore.

Experiment with Twitter Moments

Twitter launched Moments in 2015 as a curated list of the day’s big tweets. In 2016, they opened the tool to everyone on mobile, and marketers have been using it to round up recipes, collaborate with influencers, and even create fan recaps for TV series. From serious to silly, Twitter Moments offer new ways to put Twitter to work for your business.

Offer social customer service

With 67 percent of customers in the U.S. turning to social media for customer service, there’s a very good chance your customers expect to be able to do the same. Whether you use your primary Twitter account or a devoted one for support will depend on the size of your organization and the type of support you offer. You could do worse than to follow the example of our favorite brands leading the way in social customer support.

So sorry, Lia. Mind sending us a DM with your contact info and the ingredients you need? Thank you! — Whole Foods Market (@WholeFoods) May 17, 2017

With rich opportunities for researching your market, engaging with followers, and building your brand, Twitter has come a long way since its 2006 debut as a simple platform for answering the question “What are you doing?” in 140 characters. It’s a powerful platform for building meaningful relationships that will drive the success of your organization—one follower at a time.

Use Hootsuite to execute your Twitter marketing plan alongside all your other social media activity. From a single dashboard you can monitor conversations, grow your followers, schedule tweets, and much more. Try it free today.

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VIRGINIA BEACH — Like most political discourse in recent months, Rep. Scott Taylor and his constituents have embraced the digital sphere to foster conversation. Those who don’t live within a short distance of his two offices can use his Facebook page to stay informed.

On Jan. 30, Taylor held his first Facebook Live town hall from Washington D.C., giving his nearly 55,000 Facebook followers a chance to listen and ask questions in real time.

“It’s a very effective way of communicating with a lot of people at one time, for no cost, essentially,” Taylor said.

But some constituents say they have been blocked from communicating with Taylor via Facebook.

Lulani Mae, of Virginia Beach, said she voted for Taylor in the Nov. 8 election because she thought his military background would lend to his ability to successfully represent Virginia’s 2nd district. At the Feb. 20 Kempsville town hall, Mae, who is affiliated with the local Together We Will group, told Taylor she’s been blocked from posting or participating in conversations on his Facebook page.

“I’m no longer allowed to post on your Facebook page,” Mae told Taylor at the town hall, “and it’s very disappointing.”

After Taylor suggested that Mae had been blocked by staff members for inappropriate behavior, she said her only recent comment was when she expressed disappointment with his representation of the district.

“He told me he was sorry and that he would unblock me, but that hasn’t happened yet,” Mae said in an interview with Southside Daily.

Mae isn’t the only constituent to make such a claim. Three more congressional district 2 residents allege the same treatment by Taylor and his staff.

Mary Meade Holtz, a Hampton resident and president of the Virginia Peninsula National Organization for Women, said that she was also blocked from posting or commenting on Taylor’s Facebook page.

After Taylor posted a photo on his Facebook profile in which he was posing with President Donald Trump, she commented and asked him what he planned to do about attacks on sanctuary cities within his district.

The next time Holtz went back to the social media page, she found herself in the same situation Mae had. She could no longer speak to her congressman via Facebook.

“I called his office in D.C. and asked about it,” Holtz said. “They took my email and name and said they would get back to me but I haven’t heard anything yet.”

Holtz said she tried to make a post from her own page to ask about why she had prevented from speaking on his page. She tagged the congressman in her post, trying to determine if there was an alternative form of communication with him about it.

Her post went unanswered.

Williamsburg resident Sheila Ann Glennon told Taylor at a Yorktown town hall that she is frustrated she cannot participate in legislature-related surveys or queries posted by his staff, especially in light of Taylor’s stance that it’s important for constituents to use social media to share their policy opinions.

Like other constituents, Glennon is unable to comment or post.

Glennon said she was blocked from the page after posting a comment that called the travel ban “religious discrimination.” She said that while she doesn’t believe her first amendment rights have been violated, she thinks that being barred from participating is contradictory behavior.

“He himself said at that town hall that he uses Facebook to gauge his constituents’ reactions to policies,” Glennon said. “If comments are being deleted and people are being prevented from commenting, how is he serving all of his constituents?”

Glennon said, as a backup plan, she bought a stack of postcards. Every time she wants her voice to be heard on an issue, she slips another card in the mail to Taylor’s office.

“I know that at least those will get through,” Glennon said. “I pay my taxes. I do have a right to be represented.”

Anne Tucker founded the political action group Indivisible 757. She lives in Virginia Beach and recently visited Taylor’s local office with a friend who uses a wheelchair.

Tucker said that when the pair arrived at the office, there wasn’t a push button on the door to assist handicapped visitors. Concerned, she asked Taylor’s staff if they would consider adding the feature or asking the building’s owner to do so.

“I wasn’t sure they understood what I was asking so I tried to send Taylor a message on Facebook,” Tucker said, adding that she wasn’t able to because she’d been blocked.

Like Glennon, Tucker said she is frustrated because she also heard Taylor tell town hall attendees that he uses social media to monitor his constituents’ comments.

“If you are censoring the public voice of the people who you are representing, then you’re not able to truly have an informed view,” Tucker said.

But Taylor says he’s not censoring his constituents on Facebook.

Taylor said that members of his staff have the authority to block users from his Facebook page if their behavior is “out of line.” He added that the groups Tucker and Holtz belong to are organized to “disrupt things.”

“There are some people who get on there and all they’re doing is just attacking and all that stuff,” Taylor said. “Whether you do or don’t agree with it, they’re not censored.”

Each of the women said they never used profanity or attacked other commenters. Each said they used the Facebook page to make their stances known to Taylor.

“I never said anything nasty or name-called or anything of that nature,” Holtz said. “I don’t know if a carefully crafted response is just more threatening than name-calling.”

Last month, the Maryland branch of the American Civil Liberties Union responded to similar accusations against Maryland Governor Larry Hogan.

Seeing the action against Hogan, Tucker said she decided to follow suit.

“I contacted the Virginia ACLU and let them know what was going on,” Tucker said. “If you can’t take it when someone disagrees with you, then you should stop using Facebook in an official capacity.”

Poulter can be reached at amy@localvoicemedia.com


Vasko Kohlmayer is at it again. It was not too long ago that he wrote an article in the Washington Post claiming that there is no such thing as an Atheist. Well here we go again, another silly Washington Post article from Mr Kohlmayer.

Apparently he has now decided, in stark contrast to his previous article, that Atheists do actually exist, and are simply illogical. So how does he establish this? Well, he starts out like this …

…let us turn to the Secular Web (formerly Internet Infidels) which is the most widely frequented atheist website on the internet.

He then proceeds to pick one … count them … one single argument from a long list and proceeds to demolish it. Incidentally, it took me some time to actually find what he was attacking, I’ll not bore you with the details, but if truly curious, it comes from Number 7 on this page.

There are two of immediate key points.

1) I personally don’t gave a toss about proofs that God does not exist, and many others hold a similar view. It is not our problem to worry about disproving nonsense. Instead the burden of proof rests with the believers to present some credible objective evidence … so far that has been exactly zero.

2) Mr Kohlmayer is guilty of quote mining. He has plucked the argument away from the surrounding text and then proceeds to demolish it in isolation and so implies the author was being incoherent. What he fails to tell you is that the author expresses some concern regarding this specific argument, but nevertheless includes it for completeness. For example the author writes … “not all nontheists would accept…” … and also explains … “All such arguments, though, would lead into the same sort of difficult and controversial issues as does the Nonphysical-vs.-Personal Argument, and so should not be regarded to be among the most forceful of the various atheological arguments available”

The fact that Mr Kohlmayer is prepared to quote-mine and so craft a strawman is no surprise, it’s the sort of dishonesty and lack of integrity we have come to expect from believers, nope no surprise there at all. But he does not stop with that, he then goes on to claim that this is part of an atheist worldview because it comes from a popular web-site, and of course every breathing atheist considers every word on this website to be the absolute truth, especially when quote-mined and taken out of context … yea right.

OK, lets pause for a moment, what the heck is an atheist worldview? He keeps using that term, but I honestly have no idea what that actually means. Atheism is not a worldview, instead it is a conclusion ..no evidence has been presented to verify the claim that there is a god, so we simply reject the assertions regarding god. In other words, it’s the null hypothesis, that’s it, nothing more. It’s not a belief, it’s not a religion, it says nothing about how you should live, it says nothing about what is right and wrong … it is just the rejection of silly claims about supernatural gods due to zero evidence (So how many times need I repeat it before they get it? … many more I suspect).

In the end what am I to conclude? Well Mr Kohlmayer is well qualified, he has earned degrees in philosophy and literature, and has written for a number of newspapers, so what we learn is that being smart does not in any way prevent you from being either irrational or a complete kook, instead you simply think up really smart ways to justify nonsense.

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“Ultimately our goal is to raise between 25 and 30 million dollars in additional capital, through a mix of debt and equity, over the next number of months,” John Arbuthnot said on Monday.

Delta 9 will issue eight million new shares at $0.65 per share to raise as much as $5.2 million, and is seeking more capital to finance future expansion plans.

Twenty-seven-year-old Arbuthnot, who co-founded Delta 9 Bio-Tech with his father Bill Arbuthnot, will become CEO of the publicly-traded company, which will be renamed Delta 9 Cannabis. Bill Arbuthnot will be president and chairman of the board.

Delta 9 Bio-Tech, one of only two Manitoba firms licensed by the federal government to produce cannabis for medical users, could make its debut on the TSX Venture Exchange as soon as today. The listing has received conditional approval from the exchange, said Delta 9 co-founder John Arbuthnot, who is confident his firm will be listed by the end of the week.

Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 30/10/2017 (483 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 30/10/2017 (483 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Delta 9 Bio-Tech, one of only two Manitoba firms licensed by the federal government to produce cannabis for medical users, could make its debut on the TSX Venture Exchange as soon as today. The listing has received conditional approval from the exchange, said Delta 9 co-founder John Arbuthnot, who is confident his firm will be listed by the end of the week.

Twenty-seven-year-old Arbuthnot, who co-founded Delta 9 Bio-Tech with his father Bill Arbuthnot, will become CEO of the publicly-traded company, which will be renamed Delta 9 Cannabis. Bill Arbuthnot will be president and chairman of the board.

Delta 9 will issue eight million new shares at $0.65 per share to raise as much as $5.2 million, and is seeking more capital to finance future expansion plans.

"Ultimately our goal is to raise between 25 and 30 million dollars in additional capital, through a mix of debt and equity, over the next number of months," John Arbuthnot said on Monday.

"And all of that will be deployed over the next few years in our Winnipeg-based production, distribution, and hopefully ultimately retail operation."

Arbuthnot said he and his father will be the controlling shareholders of the publicly-traded firm, holding between 55 and 60 per cent of the shares. The deal is being underwritten by investment bank Canaccord Genuity.

Currently, 68 companies are licensed by Health Canada to produce cannabis for medical users. Delta 9 was among the first crop of companies to receive a production licence from Health Canada, in 2014.

The company employs about 55 people, primarily at its production facility in Winnipeg.

More than 2,000 clients are registered to purchase mail-order cannabis from Delta 9, Arbuthnot said.

As of June 30, there were 201,398 medical cannabis clients registered with Health Canada, including 3,598 in Manitoba. Some clients are registered to purchase from more than one licensed producer, and registered clients may sign up with any licensed producer in any province.

Registering with Health Canada and signing up to purchase cannabis from licensed producers requires a recipient to get a medical document from a physician.

In cities across Canada, a number of specialized medical clinics have sprouted up to connect potential medical cannabis users with physicians who may be willing to recommend cannabis. Delta 9 has launched its own such clinic in Winnipeg, the Delta 9 Lifestyle Cannabis Clinic at 478 River Ave.

Delta 9’s production licence from Health Canada allows it to devote up to 80,000 square feet of space to growing cannabis, said Arbuthnot. Right now, the company is using roughly 14,000 square feet, leaving plenty of room to grow before additional licensing is required.

Delta 9 cultivates its pungent crop in 28 specially-modified shipping containers inside its Winnipeg facility. The expected influx of capital from the public offering will allow Delta 9 to add between 40 and 60 new shipping container grow rooms, Arbuthnot said.

"What comes with that expansion is more jobs being created in the community here in Manitoba, increased production capacity allowing us to continue to bring on more and more registered patients both here in Manitoba and outside, and hopefully also the first steps in really positioning ourselves towards taking a hard look at the recreational market for next year."

Federal legalization of cannabis for recreational use is expected by July 1, 2018. Under the federal government’s proposed Cannabis Act, which is not yet law, only licensed producers such as Delta 9 will be able to supply cannabis to the legal market.

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By 2020, Arbuthnot said, Delta 9 plans to use its new capital to increase production drastically — from about 1,000 kilograms a year to 17,000 kilos a year.

Like other players in Canada’s legal cannabis industry, Delta 9 is not yet profitable.

"I think most investors who are looking in the space right now are looking past the short-term financial performance towards some other metrics that are very important for the space," Arbuthnot said, citing his company’s as-yet-unused licensed production capacity as a potential selling point.

"We would encourage investors to look forward at things like capacity, as well as to look at some of the other points of our operations, including that we are one of Health Canada’s oldest licensed producers," he said. "And with that comes several years, now, of actual cultivation, processing, distribution, and sale experience."

After being listed on the TSX Venture Exchange, Delta 9 Cannabis will trade under the stock symbol "NINE".

solomon.israel@freepress.mb.ca @sol_israel


Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption David Sillito explores how Lowry was influenced by his surroundings

The works of LS Lowry will continue to divide opinion within the art establishment, predicts the co-curator of a major new Tate exhibition.

"He became a football in a certain kind of culture wars - and I think that will go on being the case," said Professor Tim Clark.

Lowry and the Painting of Modern Life opens at Tate Britain on Wednesday.

The show is the first to be held by a public institution in London since Lowry's death in 1976.

Born in 1887, Lowry is best known for his paintings of the industrial landscapes of the north of England.

Many works depict the factories and terraced houses - and their working class inhabitants - around Salford and Pendlebury where Lowry lived and worked.

"He is not an artist who fits into the Home Counties, Eton and Oxbridge view of England and Englishness," said Professor Clark, speaking at a preview of the Tate show on Monday.

Image caption Two of Lowry's Industrial Landscape paintings from the 1950s on display at Tate Britain

"He is not a subscriber to the cult of the countryside, country manors or the ambiguity or fatality of Empire. His subject is industry and the form of life that it made.

"It puts him outside things - it makes him very hard for the actual cultural elite of England to take seriously."

The exhibition, co-curated by art historians Clark and Anne Wagner of the University of California, features more than 90 works - including loans from public and private lenders.

Highlights include Ancoats Hospital Outpatients Hall (1952), painted in the early years of the NHS, and The Cripples (1949), which shows people disabled by war and illness.

The paintings include the Tate's own Coming Out of School (1927), The Pond (1950), Industrial Landscape (1955) and Hillside in Wales (1962).

LS Lowry 1887-1976 LS Lowry is known for his paintings of the industrial landscapes of the north of England.

Lowry was born in Stretford, Manchester on 1 November, 1887 to middle class parents.

On leaving school in 1904, he began work in Manchester as a clerk with a firm of chartered accountants, studying painting and drawing in the evenings.

In 1910 he became a rent collector and clerk with the Pall Mall Property Company in Manchester; he remained a full-time employee and eventually chief cashier until his retirement in 1952.

He drew inspiration from his surroundings, particularly Pendlebury, near Manchester, where he lived from 1909 to 1948.

From 1948 until his death he lived in the same small, unmodernised house in Cheshire.

Lowry died on 23 February 1976, aged 88, at Woods Hospital, Glossop, following an attack of pneumonia.

In September 1976, the largest exhibition of Lowry's work to date took place at the Royal Academy. Your Paintings - LS Lowry

The Lowry exhibition comes after critics from the art world called on Tate to show its collection of paintings or put them up for sale.

Some had questioned whether the gallery on London's Millbank had purposely not shown the Manchester artist's work because he was "too northern".

Speaking on Monday, Tate Britain director Penelope Curtis said the Lowry exhibition was for "believers and also for cynics".

"What we'd like to think is this show will delight people who love Lowry, but also open the eyes to those who thought that Lowry was not part of mainstream painting," she said.

The exhibition also explores Lowry's connections with French art and shows his work alongside French-themed paintings of Vincent van Gogh and Camille Pissarro.

The French impressionist, Adolphe Valette, taught Lowry in Manchester for many years.

Lowry's works online Watch a slideshow of L.S. Lowry's works, and discover more about this intriguing artist at BBC Your Paintings

"The myth says Lowry's an isolated weirdo completely off on his own," said Professor Clark. "Actually he very early on decided he was more likely to get sympathetic attention in Paris than in London."

He added: "Lowry's a very English artist indeed, but in order to have the confidence to take on the industrial scene he built on his understanding of the French painting of modern life."

Hidden painting

The Tate revealed on Monday that a little-known painting on the back of another work at the exhibition shed new light on the way Lowry would revisit and refine his favourite scenes over the years.

The unnamed painting on the wooden panel behind The Mission Room (1937) is an earlier version of two works featured in the exhibition: Our Town (1941) and A Town Square (1928).

"What this tells us is that Lowry was perfecting and developing his compositions with great care," Professor Wagner told the BBC.

"He is possessed with certain compositions throughout the years - he can't get them out of his mind. It's not that he had a paucity of invention, but that these are the works he wants to depict."

Image caption The Pond (left) is one of Lowry's large urban panoramas on display

The final room of the exhibition brings together, for the first time, seven large-scale panoramas of northern industrial landscapes and the Welsh mining valleys.

"They represent a step up in style and a move forward to a deliberate effort to lay hold of this stage industrial society as it was passing away," said Professor Clark.

"The paintings do have a valedictory, memorialising tone, though I don't think they are relentlessly glum and gloomy," he added.

Lowry and the Painting of Modern Life is at Tate Britain from 26 June - 20 October.


Published: Monday 1 October 2012

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Boroughs agree to fund Freedom Pass for over 60s

FREE travel on London's buses, Tubes and Overground services is to be brought back for the over 60s, despite the government trying to push up the age at which the Freedom Pass kicks in.

The new 60 starting age for the 24-hour pass begins on 1 November and is expected to benefit an extra 10,000 people a month. It costs £10 to join the scheme.

For the last two years, the starting age for the Freedom Pass has been 61, a side-effect of the official plan to raise the retirement age to 68 instead of the 60 for women and 65 for men it is at the moment.

But London's boroughs have now clubbed together and agreed to stump up the £320 million it takes to bring the qualification age down to 60 once again.

"From November, hundreds of thousands of people will be armed with their 60+ London Oyster card, enjoying all our great city can offer," said London Mayor Boris Johnson


Senior citizens may stand to pay a substantial cost in lost services if Gov. Tom Corbett’s effort to privatize the Pennsylvania Lottery’s management goes nowhere.

Already, the costs of the consultants hired to assist the Corbett administration in that endeavor exceed $2.85 million, said Elizabeth Brassell, a spokeswoman for the Department of Revenue, which oversees the lottery.

Unless another funding source is found, that money will come out of the lottery profits that are used to pay for senior programs, she said.

To understand the impact that would have if it came out of the lottery fund, information available from the state indicates that $2.85 million is enough to:

Assist seniors in paying for 137,681 prescriptions through the PACE and PACENET programs,

Pay for 1.1 million free transit rides for seniors,

Provide 6,055 rebates through the state’s property tax and rent rebate programs, or

Cover 576 months of nursing home care, the equivalent of paying the tab for 48 people to stay in a nursing home for a year.

Brassell said the consultants’ tabs could grow even higher as the administration continues to explore ways to salvage the contract with United Kingdom-based Camelot Global Services PA, LLC, that Attorney General Kathleen Kane rejected in February.

Kane said the contract was unconstitutional and ran counter to state laws. But that didn’t deter Corbett.

Instead, he ordered his team to negotiate an extension on Camelot’s bid through June 30 and try to revise the contract to address Kane’s concerns without having to rebid the project.

The administration has touted the lottery management privatization as a way to generate $3 billion more for lottery-funded programs for a growing senior population over the next 20 years than the current public management would raise. By 2030, one in 4 people will be over the age of 65, according to Department of Aging.

If a contract with Camelot were executed, the private lottery manager would pick up the consultants’ fees. Brassell said that possibility should not be ruled out just yet.

But as it stands now, the commonwealth would be stuck paying the tab.

Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa, D-Allegheny, is concerned about the rising costs that will grow the longer the Corbett administration spends trying to address the attorney general’s concerns.

“This is throwing good money after bad at the expense of our seniors,” Costa said. “We’d be better served as a commonwealth by pulling the plug on this and driving those resources back into programs for seniors.”

But Brassell said even if a contract is not executed with Camelot, “the payments to consultants would be justified by the insight the commonwealth gained through the process.”

She said all three of the firms that had expressed interest in the management contract proposed Keno as an opportunity to boost lottery sales and maximize profits.

“That industry unanimity and expertise is what ultimately led the administration to decide to pursue Keno,” Brassell said. “Once it's determined how best to approach Keno, that aspect alone stands to contribute about $200 million to lottery profits annually, once fully implemented.”

She said a number of other lessons have been learned from marketing and product mix to expanding the player base from the money spent on this pursuit that will benefit the lottery whether it moves forward under public or private management.

House Republican spokesman Steve Miskin said the administration’s ultimate goal was to grow lottery profits to support services for an increasing senior population.

“If you keep the status quo as Democrats are advocating, money is going to run out very soon,” Miskin said.

To date, neither legal consultant DLA Piper of Baltimore, Md., nor financial consultant Greenhill & Co. of Chicago have been paid, Brassell said.

But their meters are running.

For work performed through mid-March, she said DLA Piper’s costs are in the neighborhood of $2 million. And the firm continues to advise the commonwealth through the contract revision, Brassell said.

“We won’t know exactly what will be paid to them until their work on the project is complete,” she said. “We can’t say at this point exactly how much they are owed or will be paid.”

As for Greenhill, its contract was built around payments tied to the project achieving certain milestones. At this point, Brassell said it is owed $850,000.

But if a contract were to be executed with Camelot, Greenhill – a firm where former Gov. Ed Rendell serves as a senior adviser – stands to receive a success fee that will be in the millions.

Administration officials have said all consulting fees would be no more than $30 million if a privatization contract is executed.

Not included in the $2.85 million tab are the additional legal fees being paid to the Philadelphia law firm Blank Rome. That is the firm the administration hired to defend it in a pending lawsuit filed by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 13, some Democratic lawmakers and senior citizens over the lottery privatization.

That firm’s contract is for $200,000 and to date, it has been paid $116,504 out of the lottery fund, Brassell said.

That amount is enough to cover 5,628 prescriptions through the PACE/PACENET program, 46,415 free transit rides for seniors, 247 property tax and rent rebates, or nearly a full year of nursing home care for two individuals.

The Pennsylvania Area Agencies on Aging was among the senior citizen organizations that supported the privatization pursuit as a way to boost lottery profits.

But Crystal Lowe, executive director of the Pennsylvania Association of the Area Agencies on Aging, said the $3 million spent on consultants would go a long way to whittling down the 6,200 to 6,400 seniors on a waiting list for Area Agency on Aging services.

Still, Lowe doesn’t fault the administration for hiring outside experts to help it work through the complicated privatization effort.

“I understand the need to get financial and legal expertise in order to do this,” she said. “The lottery is far too precious for it to be at risk. So many people depend on it and we don’t want to do anything that in the long-term compromises that.”