tagged w/ tucson
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Big Cat Makes A Comeback!
Scotty Johnson (Defenders of Wildlife) | Posted on 22 January 2013
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Jaguars. Mention the word to people who know nothing about endangered wildlife? They imagine a tuxedoed Richard Branson, or James Bond speeding round a precipitous cliff. Tell these people you work on jaguars? They look at your hands, presumably to spot grease under your fingernails. The fun comes in telling them otherwise.
Jaguar
The spotted cat—a magnificent, elusive, elegant, highly endangered creature — once roamed the continental United States as far north as the Grand Canyon, even as recently as a fifty years ago. They return here from Mexico, where Defenders supports a jaguar preserve. They’re the only roaring cat in the Western hemisphere and the largest cat in the Americas — at least they used to be, until humans arrived, with guns. Then jaguars were driven from their ancestral homelands.
The good news? The big cat is back.
Last month, research cameras revealed the presence of a healthy male jaguar less than forty miles south of Tucson, Arizona. Wildlife lovers celebrate his arrival. Developers, however, who are busily eyeing his habitat for the copper beneath, are not so thrilled. Having an endangered species nearby could delay their already controversial project.
They should be concerned, and not just because of jaguars. The proposed mine — dubbed Rosemont — is an industrial-scale ecological nightmare. The brainchild of a Canadian mining company called Augusta the project would be a mile-wide, half-mile-deep open pit mine that will—if approved—dump hundreds of millions of tons of mine waste laced with mercury, lead, arsenic and other toxics on more than 3,000 acres of Arizona National Forest and ecologically important tributaries. It’s opposed by local citizens, county and federal officials, health experts—anyone with common sense.
Yet, sometimes common sense isn’t all that common—and neither are the species that used to roam this area. Eight federally listed endangered species dwell within the proposed mine area. Half of these—the jaguar, ocelot, Chiricahua Leopard Frog and Pima Pineapple cactus—are likely declining in status. This means that even though the Endangered Species Act protects them, they may still be slipping toward extinction.
What is happening south of Tucson is a scenario repeating throughout America: As habitats are fragmented, deforested, drilled, polluted, destroyed, altered by climate change and left uninhabitable, species suffer. Extinction ensues.
Extinction isn’t moral, ecologically smart, or democratic. Americans are overwhelmingly against extinction. A recent poll showed that 84 percent of Americans across demographic and political lines support the Endangered Species Act — the principal law to stop extinction. We have an obligation to preserve for future generations the astonishing diversity of life our generation is privileged to witness. Scientifically, species, their habitats and the interactions between them maintain healthy ecosystems. They are the fabric that all life depends on, including us. And when that fabric is torn, we begin to lose some of our most basic necessities — clean air, water and medicines, to name a few.
South of Tucson, a magnificent jaguar has made his presence known. He is an example of what we stand to lose if we fail to halt the mass extermination of species currently unfolding—an extinction crisis so severe it compares to five previous extinction events found in the geological record—the last one seventy-five million years ago with the dinosaurs. Scientists call it the Sixth Great Extinction.
In Arizona, a fiery and influential coalition of diverse groups, including Defenders, has banded together to stop extinction by informing the public, the media and engaging decision makers, including members of Congress of what we have to lose if they refuse to act. Like that big cat, they stand up, and are making a difference.
This coalition and many like them across the nation serve as inspiration to us all. It’s time we stand up and make a difference for the generations to come. This jaguar’s entrance is symbolic, not just of the many diverse species, lands and waterways he inhabits, but of a spirit rekindled – the spirit of life through conservation, reemerging strong and resilient.
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Big Cat Makes A Comeback!
Scotty Johnson (Defenders of Wildlife) | Posted on... more
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This video contains one of the most blatant displays of right-wing racism that we've seen in a very long time! --The next time you feel a pang of guilt for calling a Republican right-winger moronic, obtuse, vacant, soulless, ridiculous, dense, mindless, senseless, vacuous, or just plain f**king stupid, remember Michael Hicks and remember that you’re probably not too far off the mark.
http://veracitystew.com/?p=33165This video contains one of the most blatant displays of right-wing racism that... more
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The Tucson Police Department descended on Veinte de Agosto Park in Tucson, Arizona Wednesday night, December 21, 2012 and evicted the remaining Occupy Tucson protesters from the encampment they had held for over two months. At 8 PM, protesters were given a 2 1/2 hour time limit to remove their tents and other belongings from the park or risk certain arrest. The protesters responded with a peaceful dissembly of the camp offering little if any resistance; only occasional shouts of "we are the 99%" and "who do you serve, who do you protect?" were heard. The TPD used no riot gear, tear gas or incendiary devices and allowed the protesters to gather on the park property for one final photo and video session. Occupy Tucson leadership immediately called for a special General Assembly Friday, December 23, 2011 at 6 PM at Tucson's Most Holy Trinity Church to plan the next stage in Tucson's Occupation. The meeting is scheduled with the church's blessing. The OT protesters celebrated their two-month victory with hot, donated pizza.The Tucson Police Department descended on Veinte de Agosto Park in Tucson, Arizona... more
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Although there are public charging stations installed under the DOE program at local places like Bookmans and Thoroughbred Nissan, these are the first electric vehicle charging stations in Arizona to connect solar power to electric vehicle charging.
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Read more: http://azstarnet.com/business/local/article_7b268048-b246-56d2-be76-87f98872a5fd.html#ixzz1Zp9XmY00
Gotta love it when people in the sunbelt get some help to use the sun. Back in the 80s, when I moved from Helena, MT where solar panels had been added on many older homes that had been retro fitted with better insulation (thank you, Jimmy Carter) I was astounded that there weren't solar panels all over Tucson. Talked to a few architects who smirked and said: Here, the problem is to stay cool, not collect heat. I almost fainted and went into my routine re how much power went just to heat water in most households, and that I assumed Arizonans used hot water. Solar was slow to show up in 'The Baked Apple' but it started making inroads.
This is a good sign. Fourth Ave is sorta hippy central in Tucson, between the university and the downtown district. Glad to see some clever folks used some of that stimulus money to build a practical example of how solar can really help, if we just think of the possibilities."
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Although there are public charging stations installed under the DOE... more
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"Mayor Bob Walkup announced last week he is imposing new restrictions on what speakers can say at Tucson City Council meetings - restrictions that allow him to shut down criticism of the council and city staff - in the name of civility.
Walkup announced the rules at the start of Tuesday's public call to the audience, and ejected one speaker after he made a reference to interim City Manager Richard Miranda.
Anti-illegal-immigrant activist Roy Warden had, at past meetings, unleashed a number of personal attacks on city officials, particularly Miranda. But on Tuesday he just said Miranda's name when the mayor cut him off. When Warden continued speaking, Walkup ordered police to remove him from the meeting.
Walkup said Warden violated city rules by saying Miranda's name, and he had the right to cut him off before the personal attacks started.
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Read more: http://azstarnet.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_1a8f8265-9dfe-5f3a-93db-19e81c6aa3ae.html#ixzz1YJvM5SCL
OK, Walkup has not been one of the typical AZ pols in most instances. One wonders what the hello he was thinking. Last I heard, you can't remove people BEFORE they say something aggressively offensive or liable suit worthy.
While I would likely be the last person to stand next to a guy like Roy Warden as he spoke or burned another Mexican flag, I damned well know that if he is being civil and being denied the right to speak when called during the public comment portion of a public meeting, none of us have rights. There, I will stand next to the ill mannered bozo when some pol thinks his right to not hear unpleasantries trumps a citizen's right to address his government.
Oh, yes, Walkup is a Republican. Up til now, one of the saner Republicans in AZ. Guess he is about to become another retired Republican."Mayor Bob Walkup announced last week he is imposing new restrictions on what... more
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The New York Times
February 13, 2011
Word and Lyric, Giffords Labors to Speak Again
By MARC LACEY and JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr.
PART ONE...
PHOENIX — Representative Gabrielle Giffords, an eloquent speaker before she was shot in the head last month, is relearning the skill — progressing from mouthing words and lip-syncing songs to talking briefly by telephone to her brother-in-law in space.
With a group of friends and family members acting as a backup chorus, Ms. Giffords has been mouthing the lyrics to “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” and “I Can’t Give You Anything but Love, Baby.” And as a surprise for her husband, who is celebrating his birthday this month, a longtime friend who has been helping her through her rehabilitation videotaped her mouthing the words to “Happy Birthday to You.”
“It’s not like she’s speaking the way she spoke, but she is vocalizing and making progress every day,” Pia Carusone, Ms. Giffords’s chief of staff, said in a telephone interview on Sunday. “She’s working very hard. She’s determined. It’s a tight schedule. A copy of it is hanging on her door.”
Outside specialists say it remains unclear, despite the hopeful early signs, what functions in Ms. Giffords’s mind were affected by the traumatic injuries she suffered when she was shot at point-blank range on Jan. 8 at a constituent event in Tucson.
It is not uncommon for patients with a similar injury to have trouble communicating or undergo personality changes, brain specialists say. Everything from ambition and concentration to short-term memory and social inhibitions can be affected, doctors say.
But relatives and friends who have been at Ms. Giffords’s side as she undergoes rehabilitation at a hospital in Houston said in interviews and e-mail exchanges that though her recovery was slow and exhausting, it was marked by significant progress.
Ms. Carusone said that on Sunday afternoon, Ms. Giffords’s husband, Capt. Mark E. Kelly, put the congresswoman on the phone to talk to his twin brother and fellow astronaut, Scott, who is aboard the International Space Station.
“She said, ‘Hi, I’m good,’ ” Ms. Carusone said.
With the help of therapists at TIRR Memorial Hermann in Houston, the congresswoman known for her active, outdoorsy ways now labors through the halls clutching a shopping cart and does squats and repetitive motions to build her muscles, her mother, Gloria, said in an enthusiastic e-mail she sent about a week ago to friends that recounted her daughter’s progress. Others who have visited Ms. Giffords recently have left similarly upbeat.
Aides conduct bedside briefings for her, telling her about the events unfolding in Egypt, for instance, and the decision by Senator Jon Kyl, Republican of Arizona, not to run for re-election next year.
“We tell her everything that’s going on,” Ms. Carusone said. “Don’t get the idea she’s speaking in paragraphs, but she definitely understands what we’re saying and she’s verbalizing.”
In long days that begin with breakfast at 7, Ms. Giffords, 40, has beaten one of her nurses at tic-tac-toe and transformed herself, her mother wrote, from “kind of a limp noodle” to someone who is “alert, sits up straight with good posture (in fact anyone in the room observing unconsciously sucks it up and throws back their shoulders) and is working very hard.”
Ms. Giffords’s mother says doctors are regularly surprised by her latest achievement. They say, “She did WHAT?” she wrote in her e-mail, adding that “Little Miss Overachiever is healing very fast.”
Reached by telephone on Sunday, the congresswoman’s mother offered a one-word assessment of her daughter’s road to recovery. “As far as Gabby’s progress, you can quote me as saying, ‘Yippee!’ ” she said.
The rehabilitation center referred requests for comment to Ms. Giffords’s staff.
CONTINUED...The New York Times
February 13, 2011
Word and Lyric, Giffords Labors to Speak... more
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Do you recognize the picture? Those are musket balls. They come from the most advanced weapon around in the year 1791, the year the Second Amendment was adopted. Post-Tucscon, I was curious about the "arms" that our Constitution gives us the right to "bear."
I found this article: http://www.scotwars.com/equip_smoothbore_musketry.htm
Here were a few things that caught my attention:
"Reloading took a long time, involving some 48 distinct movements."
"The method of loading the musket introduced inaccuracies in the amount of powder used, causing variations in the performance of the weapon. The firing mechanism, with its crude method of priming, was also by no means reliable and misfires occurred frequently."
"It was said that an individual, aiming at a target the size of a man at a range of 150 yards, had as much chance of hitting the target as he did of hitting the moon. "
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I've never fired a gun, and I don't really want to. But if I wanted to, and if it took 48 steps to simply fire that gun, I probably would have thought a lot about it. And if I thought a lot about it and still fired into a crowd of innocent people, I'd probably only get one shot off before I was stopped. And I'd probably miss. And I certainly wouldn't have killed anyone.
Imagine 48 steps for Loughner, for the shooter of Oscar Grant (whose name I forgot), for the shooter of Virginia Tech (whose name I also forgot).
We have the right to 48 steps. Maybe it's time to consider one or two of them?
http://www.scotwars.com/equip_smoothbore_musketry.htmDo you recognize the picture? Those are musket balls. They come from the most... more
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The below story is a heart wrenching tale of the times we live in.
Ariz. shooting victim arrested, taken to hospital LINK: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110116/ap_on_re_us/us_congresswoman_shot_264
Will there ever be an end to the sadness of January 8th 2011 when a madman bought a gun and went on a shooting rampage in Tucson Arizona? Probably, time heals all, so they say. But not for the victims; whether you believe right-wing hacks are responsible or the left-wing’s inability to put an end to the hateful rhetoric that is BOUGHT AND PAID FOR by Big Corporate- hood of the USA, the sorrow and pain lingers on.
The article tells it all. From the poor man who became a victim just because he wanted to be part of the American political fabric, so he attended a constituent meeting on that Saturday morning. To the little girl who’s innocent, young mind was filled with the enthusiasm of living in a representative democracy in which our leaders act in our interests, so that is why she was there. (She so deserved to live, starting out so young, possessing critical thinking skills that are lacking in too many of our Nation’s adults.)
Everyone sees this tragedy in different ways, some, like myself, are drawn into the complete senselessness of it and struggle to find answers as to why such a horrible event could occur.
Others want to blame something or someone which really isn’t possible. If we could point a finger and claim “THAT’S WHY IT HAPPENED!” it would be so simple. We could then eradicate the cause and it would never happen again.
But like the Wild Kingdom, there are dangers in being alive. There are predators amongst us and someone will eventually come face to face with one of them and fall victim to their psychopathic mindset.
Perhaps, changing some of our gun laws would help or maybe toning down the rhetoric of hate that fills our airwaves. I wish there were easy answers but one thing we should all note is that we as a species are sliding backward into our evolutionary past of reactionary FIGHT OR FLIGHT...
(FIGHT OR FLIGHT –noun Physiology, Psychology -. the response of the sympathetic nervous system to a stressful event, preparing the body to fight or flee, associated with the adrenal secretion of epinephrine and characterized by increased heart rate, increased blood flow *reference.com*)
due to the lack of critical thinking skills.
(Critical thinking consists of mental processes of discernment, analysis and evaluation. It includes possible processes of reflecting upon a tangible or intangible item in order to form a solid judgment that reconciles scientific evidence with common sense. In contemporary usage "critical" has a certain negative connotation that does not apply in the present case. Though the term " analysis thinking" may seem to convey the idea more accurately, critical thinking clearly involves synthesis, evaluate, and reconstruction of thinking, in addition to analysis.Critical thinkers gather information from all senses, verbal and/or written expressions, reflection, observation, experience and reasoning. Critical thinking has its basis in intellectual criteria that go beyond subject-matter divisions and which include: clarity, credibility, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, significance and fairness. *reference.com*)
Maybe there is a solution, maybe if our schools would teach students to think instead of just memorize, we would then start to develop the minds of our young and stop them from emulating the adults in an endless and mindless bickering match.
Just imagine a world where, mental processes of discernment, analysis and evaluation ruled instead of mob mentality. From genius to idiot, critical thinking is possible, if taught and then maybe we could all just kind of get along. thinkingblueThe below story is a heart wrenching tale of the times we live in.
Ariz. shooting... more
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Recnetly Complete News Updates The group accuses the FBI of a witch hunt by the FBI because of what has happened recently. In the aftermath of the Tucson shooting, the father of 9-year-old Christina Green, who was killed in the shooting, ...Recnetly Complete News Updates The group accuses the FBI of a witch hunt by the FBI... more
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Network television may have stopped for President Barack Obama's speech on Wednesday night, but other industries moved right along. Among them were casinos around the US that had thousands of gamblers playing slot machines and table games instead of watching the president's speech. For Full Post, Click the URL below.
http://anewsfuse.blogspot.com/2011/01/thousands-of-casino-gamblers-miss-obama.htmlNetwork television may have stopped for President Barack Obama's speech on... more
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Palin Charge of About The’Blood Libel’ Latest News Updates BLOOD LIBEL If the goal of Sarah Palin’s speechwriters was to get lots of attention, it worked.If Sarah Palin’s seven-minute video blaming the media was meant to tamp down the rhetoric in the aftermath of the assassination attempt against Rep.Palin Charge of About The’Blood Libel’ Latest News Updates BLOOD LIBEL If... more
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Instead of using 'civility' to cover up reality, how about a people's civility intended to reveal it.Instead of using 'civility' to cover up reality, how about a people's... more
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USA Today reports, "An Arizona lawmaker who proposes legislation that would let college faculty members carry firearms assailed...Dupnik for his criticism of the state's lenient gun laws. He blames the sheriff for not ensuring that...Giffords' outdoor rally in Tucson was protected from a mass shooting." GOP State Rep. Jack Harper said in an interview, "If he would have done his job, maybe this doesn't happen. ... Sheriff Dupnik did not provide for the security of a US congresswoman."
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2011-01-11-gunlaws11_ST_N.htmUSA Today reports, "An Arizona lawmaker who proposes legislation that would let... more
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Obamas, WH Staffers, Gather for Moment of Silence But for a moment around 11 am, thousands fell silent.WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama led the nation in a moment of silence Monday morning, gathering with White House staff on the South Lawn to honor the victims of the Saturday shooting rampage in Arizona.Obamas, WH Staffers, Gather for Moment of Silence But for a moment around 11 am,... more
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Latest Complete News updates leading the nation in a moment of silence after the tragedy of Tuscon. President Mr. Barack Obama led the nation in a moment of silence Monday morning, gathering with White House staff on the South Lawn to honor the victims of the Saturday shooting rampage in Arizona.Latest Complete News updates leading the nation in a moment of silence after the... more
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The New York Times
January 9, 2011
9-Year-Old Victim Was a 9/11 Baby, a ‘Face of Hope’
By JOSEPH BERGER
Christina Green was on the student council of her elementary school, so on Saturday her mother’s friend thought she might enjoy seeing government in action — the local congresswoman meeting with constituents outside a supermarket near Christina’s home.
“I allowed her to go, thinking it would be an innocent thing,” said the girl’s mother, Roxanna Green, 45.
It did not turn out that way. A gunman shot Representative Gabrielle Giffords, leaving her unconscious and in critical condition, and his fusillade killed six others, including Christina, a 9-year-old who loved animals and volunteered at a children’s charity.
She was special from birth because she was born on Sept. 11, 2001, and she was proud of it, her mother said, because it lent a grace note of hope to that terrible day.
“It was an emotional time for everyone in the family, but Christina’s birth was a happy event and made the day bittersweet,” her mother said in a telephone interview from their Tucson home.
Indeed, Christina, who was born when the family was living in West Grove, Pennsylvania, was one of the 50 “Faces of Hope” representing babies from 50 states who were born on 9/11. Their images were printed in a book, with some of the proceeds used to raise money for a 9/11 charity.
“From the very beginning, she was an amazing child,” her mother said. “She was very bright, very mature, off the charts. She was the brightest thing that happened that day.”
Her mother, who grew up as Roxanna Segalini in the Bronx and Scarsdale, N.Y., is a registered nurse by training, and has been a stay-at-home mom shepherding Christina and her 11-year-old brother, Dallas. Christina’s father, John Green, is a supervising scout for the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team. Her grandfather, Dallas Green, managed the Philadelphia Phillies to the 1980 World Series championship and also managed the Yankees and Mets.
Christina was an A student and was interested in politics, so her mother accepted the offer by her friend Susan Hileman to take Christina to the congresswoman’s town hall meeting. John Green told the Arizona Star that Christina was such a good speaker, “I could have easily seen her as a politician.”
But Christina also seems to have inherited her family’s baseball genes. She was on the Little League baseball team, its only girl, her mother said.
“She was an athlete, a good dancer, a good gymnast, a good swimmer,” her mother said. “She belonged to Kids Helping Kids charity and tried to help children less fortunate.”
Christina, a slender girl with brownish blonde hair, brown eyes and a gentle smile, also sang in the choir at St. Odilia Roman Catholic Church. At home she took care of pet geckos, but loved frolicking with the dogs and cats of neighbors and friends. In the big-dreams way of children, she told her mother she wanted to be a veterinarian and study at an eastern school like New York University.
“She was cute as a button,” her mother said. “I could never imagine this was going to happen.”
In an interview she gave to Fox News, Mrs. Green said learned that Christina was injured and at the University Medical Center in Tucson in a call from her friend’s husband.
“I just assumed there was a car accident,” Mrs. Green said. “I asked him what had happened, if there was a car accident, and he had no idea. So then, of course, I started getting real upset. I grabbed my son and called my husband — he wasn’t at home — and we all just rushed over there.
“We waited for a while and then the surgeon and people from the ICU unit came in and police officers and other people, and they told us the bad news. She had a bullet hole to the chest, and they tried to save her but she just couldn’t make it. It was really, really bad.”
Mrs. Green said she hoped that Christina’s death would bring not only justice in the jailing of her attacker but also a national awareness of the cost of a venomous political dialogue.
“I think there’s been a lot of hatred going on and it needs to stop,” she said.The New York Times
January 9, 2011
9-Year-Old Victim Was a 9/11 Baby, a... more
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The Tuscon sheriff could easily be referring.Mourners held a candlelight vigil Saturday evening as U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords remained in critical condition after a shooting rampage that left six dead and 12 others wounded.The Tuscon sheriff could easily be referring.Mourners held a candlelight vigil... more
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Dallas Green and daughter of Los Angeles.The Philadelphia Phillies. Christina’s too-short life was bookmarked by tragedy. She was born on September 11, 2001 and died on yet another date that will go down as an impossibly dark one in American history.Dallas Green and daughter of Los Angeles.The Philadelphia Phillies. Christina’s... more
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Latest Complete News Updates strongly believe that We the People need to focus our political dialogue on persuasion and not vitriol. Pima County Sheriff Clarence Mr. W. Dupnik, who is overseeing the investigation of Saturday's mass shooting that critically wounded Rep.Latest Complete News Updates strongly believe that We the People need to focus our... more
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