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Anastas Mikoyan

Anastas Ivanovich Mikoyan (Анастас Иванович Микоян; Անաստաս Հովհաննեսի Միկոյան; 25 November 1895 – 21 October 1978) was a Soviet politician and Bolshevik revolutionary who served as the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, the head of state of the Soviet Union. A member of the Communist Party's Central Committee from 1923, he was the only Soviet figure who managed to remain at the highest levels of power from the days of Lenin, through the eras of Stalin and Khrushchev, and to his retirement under Brezhnev.

An ethnic Armenian, Mikoyan joined the Bolsheviks in 1915, and following the October Revolution of 1917 participated in the Baku Commune. In the 1920s, he was the party's boss in the North Caucasus. Mikoyan was elected to the Politburo in 1935, served as foreign trade minister from 1926 to 1930 and again from 1938, and during World War II became a member of the State Defense Committee. After the war, Mikoyan began to lose favour, losing his position as minister in 1949 and being criticized by Stalin at the 19th Party Congress in 1952. Following Stalin's death in 1953, Mikoyan sided with Khrushchev in the power struggle, supported him against a failed coup in 1957, and took a leading role in crafting his de-Stalinization policy.

Under Khrushchev, Mikoyan played an important role in Soviet foreign policy, making several key trips to the United States and communist Cuba. He acquired an important stature on the international diplomatic scene, especially with his skill in exercising soft power to further Soviet interests. In 1964, Khrushchev was forced to step down in a coup that brought Brezhnev to power. Mikoyan briefly served as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, the nominal head of state, from 1964 until his forced retirement in 1965.

Early life and career
Mikoyan was born to Armenian parents in the village of Sanahin, then part of the Tiflis Governorate of the Russian Empire (today part of Alaverdi in Armenia's Lori Province) in 1895. His father, Hovhannes, was a carpenter and his mother, a rug weaver. He had one younger brother, Artem Mikoyan, who would be the co-founder of the MiG aviation design bureau, which became one of the primary design bureaus of fast jets in Soviet military aviation.

Mikoyan received his education at the Nersisian School in Tiflis and the Gevorgian Seminary in Vagharshapat (Echmiadzin), both affiliated with the Armenian Apostolic Church. Religion, however, played an increasingly insignificant role in his life. He would later remark that his continued studies in theology drew him closer to atheism: "I had a very clear feeling that I didn't believe in God and that I had in fact received a certificate in materialist uncertainty; the more I studied religious subjects, the less I believed in God." Before becoming active in politics Mikoyan had already dabbled in the study of liberalism and socialism.

At the age of twenty, he formed a workers' soviet in Echmiadzin. In 1915 Mikoyan formally joined the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (later known as the Bolshevik Party) and became a leader of the revolutionary movement in the Caucasus. His interactions with Soviet revolutionaries led him to Baku, where he became the co-editor for the Armenian-language newspaper Sotsyal-Demokrat and later for the Russian-language paper Izvestia Bakinskogo Soveta. During this time, he is said to have robbed a bank in Tiflis with TNT and had his nose broken in street fighting.

Baku Commune
After the February 1917 revolution that toppled the Tsarist government, Mikoyan and other Bolsheviks fought against anti-Bolshevik elements in the Caucasus. Mikoyan became a commissar in the newly formed Red Army and continued to fight in Baku against anti-Bolshevik forces. He was wounded in the fighting and was noted for saving the life of fellow Party-member Sergo Ordzhonikidze. Afterwards, he continued his Party work, becoming one of the co-founders of the Baku Commune under the leadership of Stepan Shaumian. In Baku, he worked as the editor of the commune's official Armenian newspaper Teghekatu, and as the political commissar supervising its armed Armenian militia. He directed the seizure of the banks in April 1918, and the defence of Baku against the advancing Turkish army in July 1918.

After the fall of Baku, Shaumian and other Bolshevik leaders were arrested by the Centrocaspian Dictatorship. A commando unit, led by Mikoyan, organized their escape from prison, and they fled across the Caspian Sea to Krasnovodsk (today Türkmenbaşy in present-day Turkmenistan). However, at Krasnovodsk they were arrested by the Transcaspian Government, which was controlled by the British-allied Socialist Revolutionaries. The SR authorities executed the 26 Baku commissars, including Shaumian, on 20 September 1918 in the Turkmen desert. It was only by accident that Mikoyan avoided their fate. As American journalist Harrison Salisbury wrote:

After his release in February 1919, Mikoyan returned to Baku and resumed his activities there, helping to establish the Baku Bureau of the Caucasus Regional Committee (kraikom). In the middle of the Russian Civil War, the Central Committee assigned Mikoyan to the party organization in Nizhny Novgorod in 1920. In 1922-26, he became Secretary of the South East Bureau of the Communist Party and its successor, the North Caucasus kraikom. It was in that position that Mikoyan advocated granting Chechnya autonomous status. In 1923, he was elected to the Central Committee and remained a member of that body for more than 50 years.

Politburo member
Mikoyan supported Stalin, whom he had first met in 1919, in the power struggle that followed Lenin's death in 1924; During the 11th Congress of the CPSU, in 1922, before the power struggle between Stalin and Leon Trotsky had broken out into the open, Mikoyan characterised Trotsky as "a man of the state but not of the party". By saying that -according to Trotsky's biographer, Isaac Deutscher, "he summed up what many members of the Old Guard thought but did not yet utter in public."

As People's Commissar for External and Internal Trade from 1926, he imported ideas from the West, such as the manufacture of canned goods. In 1935 he was elected to the Politburo and was one of the first Soviet leaders to pay goodwill trips to the United States in order to boost economic cooperation. Mikoyan spent three months in the United States, where he not only learned more about its food industry but also met and spoke with Henry Ford and inspected Macy's in New York. When he returned, Mikoyan introduced a number of popular American consumer products to the Soviet Union, including American hamburgers, ice cream, corn flakes, popcorn, tomato juice, grapefruit and corn on the cob.

Mikoyan spearheaded a project to produce a home cookbook, which would encourage a return to the domestic kitchen. The result, The Book of Tasty and Healthy Food (Книга о вкусной и здоровой пище, Kniga o vkusnoi i zdorovoi pishche), was published in 1939, and the 1952 edition sold 2.5 million copies. Mikoyan helped initiate the production of ice cream in the USSR and kept the quality of ice cream under his own personal control until he was dismissed. Stalin made a joke about this, stating, "You, Anastas, care more about ice cream, than about communism." Mikoyan also contributed to the development of meat production in the USSR (particularly, the so-called Mikoyan cutlet), and one of the Soviet-era sausage factories was named after him.

The Great Purge
In the late 1930s Stalin embarked upon the Great Purge, a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated against members of the Communist Party, as well as the peasantry and unaffiliated persons. In assessing Mikoyan's role in the purges, historian Simon Sebag-Montefiore states that he "enjoyed the reputation of one of the more decent leaders: he certainly helped the victims later and worked hard to undo Stalin's rule after the Leader's death." Mikoyan tried to save some close-knit companions from being executed. However, in 1936 he enthusiastically supported the execution of Grigory Zinoviev and Lev Kamenev, claiming it to be a "just verdict." As with other leading officials in 1937, Mikoyan signed death-lists given to him by the NKVD. The purges were often accomplished by officials close to Stalin, giving them the assignment largely as a way to test their loyalty to the regime.

In September 1937, Stalin dispatched Georgy Malenkov and Mikhail Litvin (1892-1938) of the NKVD to Yerevan, the capital of Soviet Armenia, in response to the death of Sahak Ter-Gabrielyan. Their mission was to oversee the purge of the Armenian Communist Party and its leaders First Secretary Amatuni Amatuni and NKVD chief Khachik Mughdusi, both Beria loyalists. Stalin later dispatched Mikoyan too, in order to test his loyalty and send a signal to Soviet Armenian leaders. Stalin did not trust Mikoyan due to his leniency towards the persecuted. In several instances, Mikoyan had intervened on behalf of his friends and colleagues to save them. During his trip to Armenia, he tried, but failed, to save one individual (Daniel "Danush" Shahverdyan) from being executed. However, on Stalin's orders, he led the attack during a stormy session of the Central Committee of the Armenian Communist Party in September 1937, during which Amatuni angrily called him a "liar." More than a thousand people were arrested and seven of nine members of the Armenian Politburo were sacked from office.

World War II
In September 1939, under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union each carved out their own spheres of influence in Poland and Eastern Europe. The Soviets arrested 26,000 Polish officers in the eastern portion of Poland and in March 1940, after some deliberation, Stalin and five other members of the Politburo, Mikoyan included, signed an order for their execution as "nationalists and counterrevolutionaries". When Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, Mikoyan was placed in charge of organizing the transportation of food and supplies. His son Vladimir, a pilot in the Red Air Force, died in combat when his plane was shot down over Stalingrad. Mikoyan's main assignment throughout the war was supplying the Red Army with materiel, food and other necessities.

Mikoyan is also credited for his significant role in the 1941 relocation of Soviet industry from the threatened western cities, such as Moscow and Leningrad, eastward to the Urals, Western Siberia, the Volga region, and other safer zones.

In February 1942, by order of Stalin, Mikoyan became a Special Representative of the State Defense Committee. He had not been a member until that point because Beria believed he would be of more use in government administration. Mikoyan was decorated with a Hero of Socialist Labor in 1943 for his efforts. In 1946, he became the Vice-Premier of the Council of Ministers. As Minister of Foreign Trade, he was responsible for the dismantlement of industry and infrastructure in Soviet-occupied Eastern Germany for collection as reparations.

Thaw and de-Stalinization
Shortly before his death in 1953, Stalin considered launching a new purge against Mikoyan, Vyacheslav Molotov, and several other Party leaders. Mikoyan and others gradually began to fall out of favor and, in one instance, were accused of plotting against Stalin. Stalin's plans never came to fruition, however, as he died before he could put them into motion. Mikoyan originally argued against punishing Stalin's right-hand man, Beria, but later gave in to popular support among Party members for his arrest. Mikoyan remained in the government after Stalin's death, in the post of Minister of Trade under Malenkov. He supported Nikita Khrushchev in the power struggle to succeed Stalin and became First Deputy Premier in recognition of his services.

In 1956, Mikoyan helped Khrushchev organize the "Secret Speech", delivered by Khrushchev at the 20th Party Congress, which denounced Stalin's personality cult. It was he, and not Khrushchev, who made the first anti-Stalinist speech at the 20th Congress. Along with Khrushchev, he helped roll back some of the stifling restrictions on national cultures imposed during Stalin's time. In 1954, he visited his native Armenia and gave a speech in Yerevan, where he encouraged Armenians to republish the works of Raffi and the purged writer Yeghishe Charents. Behind the scenes, he assisted Soviet Armenian leaders in the rehabilitation of former "enemies" in the republic, and worked with Lev Shahumyan (son of Stepan) and Gulag returnees Alexei Snegov and Olga Shatunovskaya on the process of de-Stalinization.

In 1957, Mikoyan refused to back an attempt by Malenkov and Molotov to remove Khrushchev from power, and thus secured his position as one of Khrushchev's closest allies during the Thaw. He backed Khrushchev because of his strong support for de-Stalinization, and his belief that a triumph by the plotters might have given way to purges similar to those in the 1930s. In recognition of his support and his economic talents, Khrushchev appointed Mikoyan First Deputy Premier.

In 1962, Khrushchev sent Mikoyan and Frol Kozlov to Novocherkassk to deal with growing unrest in the southern city. Although Mikoyan opposed force and sought dialogue with the demonstrators, Kozlov pushed for a harsh response, resulting in the Novocherkassk massacre.

China
Mikoyan was the first Politburo member to make direct contact with the Chinese Communist Party chairman, Mao Zedong. He arrived at Mao's headquarters on 30 January 1949, one day before the Nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek was forced to abandon Nanjing, which was then China's capital, and move to Guangzhou. Mikoyan reported that Mao was proclaiming Stalin to be the supreme leader of world communism and 'teacher of the Chinese people', but in his report he added that Mao did not genuinely believe what he was saying. It was at Stalin's behest that Mikoyan asked that the Chinese communists arrest the US journalist Sidney Rittenberg.

Czechoslovakia
On 11 November 1951, Mikoyan made a sudden visit to Prague to deliver a message from Stalin to President Klement Gottwald insisting that Rudolf Slánský, former Secretary-General of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, should be arrested. When Gottwald demurred, Mikoyan broke off the interview to ring Stalin, before repeating the demand, after which Gottwald capitulated. This was the biggest single step towards the preparation of the Slánský Trial. Mikoyan's role in the repression in Czechoslovakia was kept secret until the Prague Spring of 1968.

Hungary
In July 1956, Mikoyan visited the People's Republic of Hungary to oversee the removal of the dictator Mátyás Rákosi. He returned in October to gather information on the developing crisis caused by the revolution against the Hungarian Working People's Party government there. Together with Mikhail Suslov, Mikoyan traveled to Budapest in an armored personnel carrier, in view of the shooting in the streets. He sent a telegram to Moscow reporting his impressions of the situation. "We had the impression that Ernő Gerő especially, but the other comrades as well, are exaggerating the strength of the opponent and underestimating their own strength," he and Suslov wrote. Mikoyan strongly opposed the decision by Khrushchev and the Politburo to use Soviet troops, believing it would destroy the Soviet Union's international reputation, instead arguing for the application of "military intimidation" and economic pressure. The crushing of the revolution by Soviet forces nearly led to Mikoyan's resignation.

United States
Khrushchev's liberalization of hardline policies led to an improvement in relations between the Soviet Union and the United States during the late 1950s. As Khrushchev's primary emissary, Mikoyan visited the United States several times. Despite the volatility of the Cold War between the two superpowers, many Americans received Mikoyan amiably, including Minnesota Democrat Hubert Humphrey, who characterized him as someone who showed a "flexibility of attitude" and New York governor Averell Harriman, who described him as a "less rigid" Soviet politician.

During November 1958 Khrushchev made an unsuccessful attempt to turn all of Berlin into an independent, demilitarized "free city", giving the United States, Great Britain, and France a six-month ultimatum to withdraw their troops from the sectors they still occupied in West Berlin, or he would transfer control of Western access rights to the East Germans. Mikoyan disapproved of Khrushchev's actions, claiming they violated "Party principle." Khrushchev had proposed the ultimatum to the West before discussing it with the Central Committee. Ruud van Djik, a historian, believed Mikoyan was angry because Khrushchev did not consult him about the proposal. When asked by Khrushchev to ease tension with the United States, Mikoyan responded, "You started it, so you go!"

However, Mikoyan eventually left for Washington DC, which was the first time a senior governing member of the USSR's Council of Ministers visited the United States on a diplomatic mission to its leadership. Furthermore, Mikoyan approached the mission with unprecedented informality, beginning with phrasing his visa request to US Embassy as "a fortnight's holiday" to visit his friend, Mikhail Menshikov, the then Soviet Ambassador to the United States. While the White House was taken off guard by this seemingly impromptu diplomatic mission, Mikoyan was invited to speak to numerous elite American organizations such as the Council on Foreign Relations and the Detroit Club in which he professed his hopes for the USSR to have a more peaceful relationship with the US. While in Cleveland, Mikoyan gifted a troika to industrialist Cyrus Eaton and admired the city's Terminal Tower, which reminded him of the tower at Moscow State University.

In addition to such well received engagements, Mikoyan indulged in more informal opportunities to meet the public such as having breakfast at a Howard Johnson's restaurant on the New Jersey Turnpike, visiting Macy's Department Store in New York City and meeting celebrities in Hollywood like Jerry Lewis and Sophia Loren before having an audience with President Dwight Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles. Although Mikoyan failed to alter the US's Berlin policy, he was hailed in the US for easing international tensions with an innovative emphasis on soft diplomacy that largely went over well with the American public.

Mikoyan disapproved of Khrushchev's walkout from the 1960 Paris Summit over the U-2 Crisis of 1960, which he believed kept tension in the Cold War high for another fifteen years. However, throughout this time, he remained Khrushchev's closest ally in the upper echelons of the Soviet leadership. As Mikoyan later noted, Khrushchev "engaged [in] inexcusable hysterics".

In November 1963 Mikoyan was asked by Khrushchev to represent the USSR at President John F. Kennedy's funeral. At the funeral ceremony, Mikoyan appeared visibly shaken by the president's death and was approached by Jacqueline Kennedy, who took his hand and conveyed to him the following message: "Please tell Mr. Chairman [Khrushchev] that I know he and my husband worked together for a peaceful world, and now he and you must carry on my husband's work."

Cuba and the Missile Crisis
The Soviet government welcomed the overthrow of Cuban President Fulgencio Batista by Fidel Castro's pro-socialist rebels in the Cuban Revolution of 1959. Khrushchev realized the potential of a Soviet ally in the Caribbean and dispatched Mikoyan as one of the top diplomats in Latin America. He was the first Soviet official to visit Cuba after the revolution, except for Soviet intelligence officers, and he secured important trade agreements with the new government. He left Cuba with a very positive impression, saying that the atmosphere there made him feel "as though I had returned to my childhood."

Khrushchev told Mikoyan of his idea of shipping Soviet missiles to Cuba. Mikoyan was opposed to the idea, and was even more opposed to giving the Cubans control over the Soviet missiles. In early November 1962, after the United States and the Soviet Union agreed to a framework to remove Soviet nuclear missiles from Cuba, Khrushchev dispatched Mikoyan to Havana to help persuade Castro to cooperate in the withdrawal. Just prior to beginning negotiations with Castro, Mikoyan was informed about the death of his wife, Ashkhen, in Moscow; rather than return there for the funeral, Mikoyan opted to stay and sent his son Sergo there instead.

Castro was adamant that the missiles remain but Mikoyan, seeking to avoid a full-fledged confrontation with the United States, attempted to convince him otherwise. He told Castro, "You know that not only in these letters but today also, we hold to the position that you will keep all the weapons and all the military specialists with the exception of the 'offensive' weapons and associated service personnel, which were promised to be withdrawn in Khrushchev's letter [of October 27]." Castro balked at the idea of further concessions, namely the removal of the Il-28 bombers and tactical nuclear weapons still left in Cuba. But after several tense and grueling weeks of negotiations, he finally relented, and the missiles and the bombers were removed in December of that year.

Head of state and retirement
On 15 July 1964, Mikoyan was appointed as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, replacing Leonid Brezhnev, who received a promotion within the Party. Mikoyan's new position was largely ceremonial; it was noted that his declining health and old age were being considered.

Some historians are convinced that by 1964 Mikoyan believed that Khrushchev had turned into a liability to the Party, and that he was involved in the October 1964 coup that brought Brezhnev and Alexei Kosygin to power. However, William Taubman disputes this, as Mikoyan was the only member of the Presidium (the name for the Politburo at this time) to defend Khrushchev. Mikoyan, however, did vote to force Khrushchev's retirement (so as, in traditional Soviet style, to make the vote unanimous). Alone among Khrushchev's colleagues, Mikoyan wished the former leader well in his retirement, and he, alone, visited Khrushchev at his dacha a few years later. Mikoyan laid a wreath and sent a letter of condolence at Khrushchev's funeral in 1971.

Due to his partial defense of Khrushchev during his ouster, Mikoyan lost his high standing with the new Soviet leadership. The Politburo forced Mikoyan to retire from his seat in the Politburo due to old age. Mikoyan quickly also lost his post as head of state and was succeeded in this post by Nikolai Podgorny on 9 December 1965. In retirement, Mikoyan, like Khrushchev, wrote frank but selective memoirs from his political career, including his revolutionary activity in Baku. He died on 21 October 1978, at the age of 82, from natural causes and was buried at Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow. He received six commendations of the Order of Lenin.

Personality and legacy
Simon Sebag-Montefiore referred to Mikoyan as "slim, circumspect, wily and industrious". An intelligent man, he had the command of several languages. In addition to Armenian and Russian, he understood English and learned German on his own by translating the German version of Karl Marx's Das Kapital into Russian. Unlike many others, Mikoyan was not afraid to get into heated arguments with Stalin. "One was never bored with Mikoyan", Artyom Sergeev notes, while Khrushchev called him a true cavalier. However, Khrushchev warned of trusting "that shrewd fox from the east." In a close conversation with Vyacheslav Molotov and Nikolai Bukharin, Stalin referred to Mikoyan as a "duckling in politics"; he noted, however, that if Mikoyan ever took a serious shot he would improve. Mikoyan had five boys (Stepan, Vladimir, Aleksei, Vano, and Sergo), and adopted the two sons of the late Bolshevik leader Stepan Shahumyan. He had so many children under his care that he and his wife faced financial problems. His wife Ashkhen would borrow money from Politburo wives who had fewer children. If Mikoyan had discovered this, he would, according to his children, have become furious.

Mikoyan was defiantly proud of his Armenian identity, and in a 1959 meeting with U.S. Vice President Richard Nixon in Washington, he even raised the issue of the treatment of the Armenians in Turkey. He greatly enjoyed meeting fellow Armenians abroad, including former U.S. ambassador Edward Djerejian. However, in post-Soviet Armenia, Mikoyan's legacy is contentious. His critics point to his participation in the 1930s purges in Armenia on the orders of Stalin. His supporters argue that he was a major figure on the global political stage and usually point to his role in defusing the Cuban missile crisis. Others emphasize Mikoyan's important role in de-Stalinization in Armenia, including his March 1954 speech in Yerevan and his significant involvement in rehabilitations. Mikoyan's contributions to the development of the Soviet Armenian state included support for major economic projects, such as the Arpa–Sevan canal. As a Supreme Soviet Deputy for Yerevan, he maintained close ties with Soviet Armenian leaders like Yakov Zarobyan and Anton Kochinyan and regularly consulted with them on Armenian affairs. Although limited in his ability to assist Armenian leaders on Nagorno-Karabakh, he was sympathetic to Armenian concerns, and his son Sergo was later a prominent advocate for the Karabakh movement. Despite his break with the Armenian Church, Mikoyan maintained good relations with Catholicos Vazgen I. He was also a supporter of composer Aram Khachaturian, and counted Marshal Ivan Bagramyan among his personal friends.

Dubbed the Vicar of Bray of politics and known as the "Survivor" during his time, Mikoyan was one of the few Old Bolsheviks who was spared from Stalin's purges and was able to retire comfortably from political life. This was highlighted in a number of popular sayings in Russian, including "From Ilyich [Lenin] to Ilyich [Brezhnev] ... without heart attack or stroke!"(Ot Ilyicha do Ilyicha bez infarkta i paralicha). One veteran Soviet official described his political career in the following manner: "The rascal was able to walk through Red Square on a rainy day without an umbrella [and] without getting wet. He could dodge the raindrops."

Portrayals
Paul Whitehouse played Mikoyan in the 2017 satirical film The Death of Stalin.

Decorations and awards

 * Hero of Socialist Labour
 * Order of Lenin, six times
 * Order of the October Revolution
 * Order of the Red Banner

title: Anastas Mikoyan


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Bernie Williams

Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. (born September 13, 1968) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player and current musician. He played his entire 16-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the New York Yankees from 1991 through 2006.

A center fielder, Williams was a member of four World Series championship teams with the Yankees. He ended his career with a .297 batting average, 287 home runs, 1,257 runs batted in (RBI), 1,366 runs scored, 449 doubles, and a .990 fielding percentage. He was a five-time All-Star and won four Gold Glove Awards, a Silver Slugger Award, the American League (AL) batting title in 1998, and the 1996 AL Championship Series Most Valuable Player Award. Known for his consistency and postseason heroics, Williams is one of the most beloved Yankees. The team honored him by retiring his uniform number 51 and dedicating a plaque to him in Monument Park in May 2015. Williams is widely regarded as one of the greatest switch-hitting center fielders in history.

Williams is also a classically trained guitarist. Following his retirement from baseball, he has released two jazz albums. He was nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2009.

Early life
Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. was born on September 13, 1968, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Bernabé Williams Sr., a merchant marine and dispatcher, and Rufina Figueroa, a retired principal and college professor. The Williams family lived in the Bronx until Bernie was one year old, when they moved to Puerto Rico.

Growing up, Williams played classical guitar as well as baseball. He was also active in track and field, winning medals at an international meet at the age of 15. At the 1984 Central American and Caribbean Junior Championships in Athletics in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Williams won gold in the 200 metres (m), 400 m, 4 × 100 m relay, and 4 × 400 m relay events for competitors under the age of 17, and the silver medal for the 4 × 100 m relay among competitors younger than 20.

Minor leagues
In 1985, Roberto Rivera, a scout for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB), discovered Williams and Williams' friend, Juan González. Though Rivera was not interested in González, who he perceived as not taking the game seriously, he wanted to sign Williams. However, Williams was a few months shy of his 17th birthday, when he would become eligible to sign with an MLB team. The Yankees put Williams in a training camp in Connecticut, near the home of scouting director Doug Melvin, who later had Juan Gonzalez on his Texas Rangers teams. After playing a few games in the Greater Hartford Twilight Baseball League on the Katz Sports Shop team, Williams was officially signed by the Yankees on his 17th birthday.

While playing in Minor League Baseball, Williams took a course on biology at the University of Puerto Rico, and considered undertaking a pre-medical track as an undergraduate student. Deciding that he could not excel at baseball and medicine at the same time, Williams decided to focus on baseball. Playing for Double-A Albany-Colonie Yankees, he continued to develop his athletic skills – particularly as a switch hitter. Although viewed as a great prospect by Yankee management, his rise to the majors was delayed by the solid outfield — Roberto Kelly, Danny Tartabull, and Jesse Barfield — that the team had developed in the early 1990s.

New York Yankees (1991–2006)
Williams managed to break into the majors in 1991 to replace the injured Roberto Kelly for the second half of that season. He batted .238 in 320 at bats. He was demoted to the minors until Danny Tartabull was injured, and Williams earned his stay at center by putting up solid numbers.

Williams had become the regular Yankees center fielder by 1993. However, Williams got off to a slow start that season, and Yankees' owner George Steinbrenner, impatient with Williams, insisted that Gene Michael, the team's general manager, trade him. Michael discussed trading Williams for Larry Walker with the Montreal Expos, but did not make the trade. In his first full season with the Yankees, Williams had a .268 batting average.

Throughout the early 1990s, Williams hit in the middle of the order as management tried to figure out where his best fit was.

1995–1998
Manager Buck Showalter helped keep Williams with the Yankees through 1995, when Steinbrenner became frustrated by the team's difficulty in placing Williams in any of the traditional baseball player molds. He had good speed, but rarely stole bases. In center, he was highly capable at tracking down fly balls and line drives, but had a weak throwing arm. He was a consistent hitter but only had mild home run power.

In 1995, Steinbrenner again considered trading Williams, this time to the San Francisco Giants for Darren Lewis. The Yankees kept Williams, who went on to have a breakout season. He hit 18 home runs and led the team in runs, hits, total bases and stolen bases. Williams continued his hot hitting into the postseason, leading the Yankees with a .429 batting average in the 1995 American League Division Series (ALDS) against the Seattle Mariners.

After continuing to improve in 1996, Williams again showcased his skills to the baseball world in the postseason. He batted .467 in the ALDS against Texas and played a sparkling center field. He picked up where he left off in the ALCS against Baltimore, belting an 11th-inning walk-off homer in Game 1. Ending the ALCS with a .474 batting average and two homers, he was named the ALCS MVP. While Williams collected just four hits in the 1996 World Series, his clutch homer in the eighth inning of Game 3 helped spark the team’s comeback from a 2-0 series deficit to capture the team's first championship since 1978.

Despite his success, following the 1997 season, Williams again was the subject of trade rumors, this time involving the Detroit Tigers. According to The New York Times sportswriter Murray Chass, Williams was nearly dealt to the Tigers for a package of young pitchers including Roberto Durán and first round draft pick Mike Drumright. Tigers general manager Randy Smith believed a deal had been reached and an official announcement was close, but Yankees general manager Bob Watson denied that was the case, and Williams remained a Yankee. Watson also discussed Williams with the Chicago Cubs in a potential trade involving Lance Johnson.

During the 1998 season, in which the Yankees went 114–48 to set a then-American League regular-season record, Williams finished with a .339 average, becoming the first player to win a batting title, Gold Glove award, and World Series ring in the same year.

1999–2004
After the 1998 season, Williams signed a seven-year, $87.5-million contract with the Yankees, one of the largest in baseball at the time. The Boston Red Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks also bid for Williams on the free agent market. For the length of the contract, the Yankees made the playoffs every single year, and as a result Williams continued to add to his postseason statistics. He currently places in the top 5 of career postseason categories such as hits, runs scored, doubles, home runs, walks, and runs batted in, where he ranks first.

In 1999, Williams recorded 200+ hits for the first time in his career and won his third straight Gold Glove Award. He also finished third in the American League in batting average (.342), third in hits (202), fourth in on-base percentage (.435), fifth in bases on balls (100), and seventh in runs scored (116). The following year, he once again won a Gold Glove Award and set career highs with 30 home runs and 121 runs batted in.

In 2002, Williams won the only Silver Slugger Award of his career, as he hit .333 and recorded a career-high 204 base hits.

2005
The last year covered by Williams’ contract, 2005, proved to be a difficult one. He started just 99 games in center field and 22 games as designated hitter, and his already weak arm was more noticeable as his fielding and batting abilities deteriorated. He had a career-worst .321 OBP and batting average on balls in play (.274). As expected, the Yankees announced on August 2, 2005, that they would not pick up the $15 million option on Williams' contract for the 2006 season, opting to pay a $3.5 million buyout instead. In December, Williams was offered arbitration by team general manager Brian Cashman to allow an additional month for negotiation. On December 22, the Yankees re-signed Williams to a 1-year, $1.5 million contract.

2006

In 2006, Williams saw a good amount of playing time in the corner outfield spots with both Hideki Matsui and Gary Sheffield out with wrist injuries, and did spot duty in center field on days when starting center fielder Johnny Damon was given time off to rest, playing more than was expected when he signed his one-year extension with the Yankees in 2006.

Williams played for Puerto Rico in the 2006 MLB World Baseball Classic, joining Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltrán, Mike Lowell, Javier Vázquez, and José Vidro amongst others representing the island possession in a team managed by St. Louis Cardinals third base coach Jose Oquendo. Williams hit two home runs in the 2006 WBC.

On July 26, 2006, Williams got his 2,300th career hit, becoming the 11th active player in the Majors with 2,300 or more career hits. Williams continued to climb the Yankees record books by hitting his 443rd career double on August 16, 2006, surpassing then-bench coach Don Mattingly for second-most as a Yankee. For the year, he walked only 7.3% of the time, a career-worst.

Out of contract
Williams' contract expired at the end of the 2006 season. He had hoped to return to the Yankees in 2007 and was willing to accept a role as a back-up outfielder and pinch hitter. The Yankees offered Williams an invitation to spring training as a non-roster invitee, giving him a chance to compete for a job. Williams, however, wanted a guaranteed roster spot and declined the invitation.

On September 21, 2008, Williams made his first return to Yankee Stadium since 2006 for the ceremonies preceding the final game at the stadium. He was the last former player to be introduced and received a standing ovation that lasted a minute and 42 seconds.

2009 World Baseball Classic
After two years of inactivity, Williams returned to action in 2008, playing for the Gigantes de Carolina in the Puerto Rico Baseball League. He was interested in gauging his condition prior to possibly participating in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. MLB.com reported on December 30, 2008, that Williams had injured his quad while playing for Carolina and may not be able to play in the World Baseball Classic for Puerto Rico.

On February 19, 2009, Williams worked out with the Yankees at the team's spring training complex. Williams hinted that if he performed well in the World Baseball Classic he might consider returning to the Yankees.

In March 2009 he played for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic, going 0-for-5 with two walks; after the series concluded, he expressed interest in playing in the Major Leagues again.

Retirement
Though he did not appear in a Major League Baseball game after 2006, Williams did not officially retire until 2015. At the February 2011 retirement press conference for Andy Pettitte, Williams acknowledged that his career was over and stated that he would officially announce his retirement soon thereafter. Williams officially retired on April 24, 2015, with the Yankees.

MLB statistics
Williams' major league stats:

Career perspective

As of 2021, he holds the career postseason record for runs batted in (80). He is also third all-time in postseason home runs (22) and games played (121) while being second in doubles (29), total hits (128), walks (71), total bases (223), and runs scored (83). Standing on Yankee all-time lists as of the beginning of the 2021 season:
 * 3rd all-time in doubles
 * 5th all-time in walks
 * 5th all-time in hits
 * 6th all-time in extra-base hits
 * 7th all-time in home runs
 * 7th all-time in RBIs

Williams appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time in 2012. He received 55 votes for 9.6%. The next year, Williams received 19 votes (3.3%). Since he received votes on fewer than 5% of ballots, Williams was not eligible to appear on future ballots.

The Yankees announced in May 2014 that they would honor Williams with a plaque in Monument Park during the 2015 season. On February 16, 2015, the Yankees also announced that they would be retiring Williams' number 51. On May 24, the Yankees unveiled Williams's plaque and retired his number in a ceremony at Yankee Stadium.

Music career
A classically trained guitarist, Williams plays and composes music with influences that include jazz, classical, pop, Brazilian, and Latin sounds.

Williams signed with Paul McCartney's publishing company, MPL Communications, and his major label debut, The Journey Within, was released on June 22, 2003. In addition to playing lead and rhythm guitar, Williams composed seven songs for the album. Tracks like "La Salsa En Mi" and "Desvelado" mix his love of jazz with Latin rhythms. The first single was a remix of his "Just Because," featuring David Benoit. Other highlights include Williams' heartfelt tribute to his father, "Para Don Berna;" a reworking of the Baden Powell song, "Samba Novo;" and "La Salsa En Mi," featuring background vocals from 2003 Grammy Award winner Rubén Blades and salsa legend Gilberto Santa Rosa. Also joining Williams was an all-star ensemble of musicians including multiple Grammy-winning banjo player Béla Fleck, keyboardist David Sancious, percussionist Luis Conte, bassist Leland Sklar, guitarist Tim Pierce, and drummers Kenny Aronoff and Shawn Pelton, among others.

Following his career with the New York Yankees, Williams studied guitar and composition for a year at the State University of New York at Purchase in preparation for his album, Moving Forward, which was released on April 14, 2009, under the Reform Records label. The album features fourteen tracks and includes some collaborative tracks with other artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Patti Scialfa, Jon Secada, and Dave Koz. Williams was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award for Moving Forward.

In 2010, Williams participated in the World Rhythms Tour with Basia. On July 18, 2010, he performed at the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games opening ceremony.

In July 2011, the book Rhythms of the Game: The Link Between Musical and Athletic Performance, co-authored by Williams, Dave Gluck, and Bob Thompson, with a foreword by Paul Simon, was published by Hal Leonard Publishing.

Williams was featured on the November/December 2011 cover of Making Music to discuss his life and career in music.

Williams received his Bachelor of Music from the Manhattan School of Music on May 13, 2016.

Philanthropy
Williams' love of music shines through in his philanthropy efforts with Little Kids Rock, a national nonprofit organization that works to restore and revitalize music education in disadvantaged U.S. public schools. Little Kids Rock honored the Yankees icon with the 2010 "Big Man of the Year" award at the annual Right to Rock celebration. Williams performed onstage with students and signed some guitars to be auctioned. With the money he helped raise, Williams delivered instruments to a school in the Bronx and gave the students a lesson in music and life.

In August 2015 Williams and sports marketer Brandon Steiner made a surprise visit to Camp Adventure, where they helped revive the music program of KiDS NEED MORE, a charitable organization dedicated to creating camping experiences for children, families, and young adults coping with cancer and life-threatening illnesses. The surprise visit aired on September 15, 2015, on the YES Network on The Hook-Up: Camp Adventure.

In July 2018, Williams went to Puerto Rico to take part in a special episode of Bar Rescue on the Paramount Network to help people affected by Hurricane Maria, rebuilding a bar and baseball field.

Personal life
Williams married Waleska on February 23, 1990 and had three children: Bernie Jr., Beatriz, and Bianca. A song on Williams' 2009 release, Moving Forward, is named after Beatriz: "Lullaby for Beatriz." This song is performed by Williams with his brother, Hiram Williams, playing the cello. This song was recorded in Puerto Rico at the Alpha Recording Studios.

On June 14, 2018, Williams stated he was divorced during an interview on ESPN's Highly Questionable.

Williams appeared on an episode of the sitcom Seinfeld as himself.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Bernie Williams


text:
Amfreville, Calvados

Amfreville is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region of north-western France.

Geography
Amfreville is located some 25 km north-west of Caen and 1 km south-east of Ouistreham mostly on the right bank of the Orne with a small portion on the left bank. It can be accessed by the D514 from Sallenelles in the north passing through the west of the commune then continuing south then west to Bénouville. Access to the village is by the D37B from Breville-les-Monts in the south-east and continuing through the village north to Sallenelles. There is also the D236 going east from the village to Bavent. There are several hamlets apart from the village: Hameau Oger and Hameau La Rue form a continuous urban area with the main village and the hamlets of La Basse Ecarde and La Haute Ecarde are to the west. The rest of the commune and the entire left bank of the Orne portion are farmland.

The Orne river separates the two parts of the commune with no direct access across the river - the nearest crossing is on the D514 to the south of the commune. A stream forms the northern border of the commune flowing into the Orne.

History
Amfreville is located close to Sword Beach on the Normandy coast, which is one of the beaches where the Allies executed their Normandy landings. It is also close to the important medieval city of Caen, which figured in the Allied landings. Amfreville is considered to have been officially "liberated" from the German occupation of World War II on 6 June 1944.

Amfreville is understood to be the ancestral home of the Umfraville family of Anglo-Norman nobles who occupied England under William the Conqueror and his successors, and went on to become British nobility under the titles the Barons of Prudhoe and the Lords of Redesdale, and later also gained Scottish lands and the title Earl of Angus.

Images of these historical associations with the Norman Conquest of 1066 and the Normandy Landings of 1944 are incorporated in the town's heraldry.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

Twinning
Amfreville has twinning associations with:
 * 🇩🇪 Hillerse (Germany) since 1999.
 * 🇧🇪 Brunehaut (Belgium) since 2005.
 * 🇬🇧 Dolton (United Kingdom) since 1981.

Population
The inhabitants of the commune are known as Amfrevillais or Amfrevillaises in French.

Sites and monuments

 * Le Plain is a place with a tree plantation, a church, and horses. It is registered as a site of ecological interest for flora and fauna.

title: Amfreville, Calvados


text:
Anctoville

Anctoville is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region of north-western France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Aurseulles.

Geography
Anctoville is located some 30 km south-west of Caen and 5 km north-west of Villers-Bocage in the Bessin area in the Seulles valley. It can be accessed by the D67 road from Saint-Germain-d'Ectot in the north passing through the village and continuing south-east to Villers-Bocage. The D92 road also passes through the length of the commune and the village from south-west to north-east. In the north-east of the commune the D33 road from Longraye in the north passes through and continues south-east to Villers-Bocage. Finally in the north-east is also the D173A road connecting the D92 and the D67. The commune consists entirely of farmland except for two small areas of forest in the north.

The Ruisseau des Landes forms a part of the northern border. Le Candon stream passes through the commune flowing towards the north-east and forming part of the northern border of the commune. Le Seulles stream forms part of the southern border before flowing just south of the village then continuing north-east to form most of the eastern border joining Le Candon at the northern tip of the commune. The Ruisseau David forms the south-eastern border and flows north to join Le Seulles. Le Gallichon stream also forms part of the southern border before joining Le Seulles in the south.

History
The name Anctoville comes from Asketillville' meaning "Anquetil farm" (Anquetoville then later Anctoville''). Cf. Ancretteville-sur-Mer.

The former name of Anctoville was Coisnières or Cornières until 1616. Olivier Foulognes, the King's butler, bought the Lordship of Cornières and obtained a change of name. This fief became part of the Bailiwick of Briquessart. The oldest document showing what was the Parish of Coisnières dates from the 12th century. It was a charter of confirmation of goods given by Henry, King of England and Duke of Normandy, at Lessay.

In June 1944, during the Battle of Villers-Bocage, Orbois castle housed the headquarters of the German armoured division Panzer Lehr commanded by Fritz Bayerlein. Anctoville was liberated on 1 August 1944 by the British 61st reconnaissance battalion. These events inspired a scenario in the video game Call of Duty 2 on the Xbox 360.

In 1973, Anctoville (population 394 in 1968) merged with Feuguerolles-sur-Seulles (with 70 inhabitants to the east of the territory), Orbois (120 inhabitants in the north), and Sermentot (182 inhabitants in the north-east). The communes retained the status of Associated communes of France.

Administration
List of Successive Mayors

The council was composed of fifteen members:
 * seven representing Anctoville,
 * two representing the associated commune of Feuguerolles-sur-Seulles and one delegated mayor
 * two representatives of Orbois and one delegated mayor
 * four representatives of Sermentot and one delegated mayor

The mayor was assisted by two deputies.

Demography
The inhabitants of the commune are known as Anctovillais or Anctovillaises in French. Anctoville itself had 1,210 inhabitants in 1806. The four communes that merged in 1973 had a total of 2,608 inhabitants in 1836 (1,173 in Anctoville, 299 in Feuguerolles-sur-Seulles, 233 in Orbois, and 903 in Sermentot).

Economy
The commune has an essentially agriculture oriented economy. At the communal inventory of 1998 it had 46 farms, 28 of which were of a professional standard classified by INSEE, for an area of 1,848 hectares used. There were 68 farms in 1988. The main production is the raising of cattle for milk and meat. Arable land is used for forage and grain crops.

Civil heritage

 * The Orphanage Pierre Rayer was founded in 1883. This establishment occupied a castle from the 18th century with buildings from the 19th century. It has become a children's home of a social nature

Religious heritage

 * The Church of Saint Peter (12th-17th century) at Feuguerolles
 * The Church of Saint-Aubin (12th-17th century) at Sermentot
 * The Church of Saint Peter (Roman era and 14th century) at Orbois houses a Statue: Madonna and Child (15th century) which is classified as an historical object
 * The Church of Saint Nicolas (1956) at Anctoville is registered as an historical monument

Notable people linked to the commune

 * Marie Rayer, daughter of Dr. Pierre François Olive Rayer and wife of Marquis Stanislas d'Escayrac de Lauture, bequeathed her estate to the commune to create an orphanage
 * Jean-Claude Hallais (born 1948), horse driver, winner of the Prix d'Amerique in 1992, based his team in Anctoville

title: Anctoville


text:
Brady Campaign

Brady: United Against Gun Violence (formerly “Handgun Control, Inc”., the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence) is an American nonprofit organization that advocates for gun control and against gun violence. It is named after former White House Press Secretary James "Jim" Brady, who was permanently disabled and later died in 2014 as a result of the Ronald Reagan assassination attempt of 1981, and his wife Sarah Brady, who was a chairwoman of the organization from 1989 until her death in 2015.

Brady was founded in 1974 as the National Council to Control Handguns (NCCH). From 1980 through 2000, it operated under the name Handgun Control, Inc. (HCI). In 2001, it was renamed the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, and its sister project, the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence, was renamed the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. The nonprofits rebranded as Brady in February 2019, on the 25th anniversary of the implementation of the Brady Bill.

History
In 1974, the National Council to Control Handguns (NCCH) was founded by armed-robbery victim Mark Borinsky, a graduate of Johns Hopkins University. In 1975, Republican marketing manager Pete Shields, whose 23-year-old son had been murdered, joined NCCH as Chairman. In 1980, the organization became Handgun Control, Inc. (HCI) and partnered with the National Coalition to Ban Handguns (NCBH). The partnership did not last long; the NCBH, renamed in 1990 as the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV), generally advocates for stricter gun laws than does the Brady Campaign.

HCI had few resources until 1980, after the murder of musician John Lennon increased the public's interest in shootings. By 1981, HCI's membership exceeded 100,000. In 1983, the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence (CPHV) was founded as an educational outreach organization and sister project. In 1989, CPHV established the Legal Action Project to press its agenda in the courts.

In 2001, Handgun Control, Inc. was renamed the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, and the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence was renamed the Brady Center to Prevent Handgun Violence, in honor of both Jim and Sarah Brady. The same year, the Million Mom March (MMM) was incorporated into the Brady Campaign.

Current
In September 2017, Kris Brown and Avery W. Gardiner assumed the roles of co-president, replacing Dan Gross. Brown was named the organization's sole president in November 2018. Liz Dunning, whose mother was randomly murdered by a serial killer in 2003, is the Vice President for Development.

Former
Mark Borinsky founded the National Council to Control Handguns in 1974. He served as Chair until 1976. Charlie Orasin was a key player in the founding and growth of Handgun Control (HCI). He worked at HCI from 1975 until 1992.

Nelson "Pete" Shields became the organization's chairman in 1978 and retired in 1989. In July 1976, Shields estimated that it would take seven to ten years for NCCH to reach the goal of "total control of handguns in the United States." He said: "The first problem is to slow down the increasing number of handguns being produced and sold in this country. The second is to get handguns registered. And the final problem is to make the possession of all handguns and all handgun ammunition – except for the military, policemen, licensed security guards, licensed sporting clubs, and licensed gun collectors – totally illegal." In 1987 Shields said that he believed "in the right of law-abiding citizens to possess handguns... for legitimate purposes.".

Richard Aborn served as president from 1992 until 1996 and went on to form the Citizens Crime Commission of New York City.

Jim and Sarah Brady were both influential in the movement since at least the mid-1980s. Mrs. Brady became chair in 1989, and the Bradys became the namesakes of the organization in 2000.

Former Maryland Congressman Michael D. Barnes was the president of the Brady Campaign from 2000 to May 2006.

Former Fort Wayne, Indiana, mayor Paul Helmke served from July 2006 to July 2011. In November 2008, Brady president Helmke, a former Republican mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana, endorsed the American Hunters and Shooters Association saying, "I see our issues as complementary to theirs." He said, "The Brady Campaign is not just East Coast liberal Democrats."

Dan Gross was president from February 2012 to September 2017. He is one of the founders of the Center to Prevent Youth Violence (formerly PAX).

Political advocacy

 * Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence 2009 Brady Campaign State Scorecard

Undetectable Firearms Act
In 1988, HCI supported Congress in passing the Undetectable Firearms Act, which banned the manufacture, possession and transfer of firearms with less than 3.7 oz of metal, after the emergence of "plastic" handguns like Glock pistols.

Critics said that so-called "plastic" handguns contain many metal components (such as the slide, barrel and ammunition) and can be detected by conventional screening technologies. Their response was to say the type of polymer used in the firearms is opaque to X-ray scanners, which would've hidden the metal components.

Brady Law
HCI was the chief supporter of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, commonly known as the Brady Law, enacted in 1993 after a seven-year debate. It successfully lobbied for passage of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, banning the manufacture and importation of so-called military-style assault weapons.

Castle and stand-your-ground laws
In May 2005, Florida passed a stand-your-ground law that authorized persons attacked in any place they were lawfully present to use lethal force in self-defense without a duty to retreat. Brady Campaign workers passed out fliers at Miami International Airport offering tips like "Do not argue unnecessarily with local people." The group also published ads in The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, and The Detroit Free Press saying: "Thinking about a Florida vacation? Please ensure your family is safe." In 2006, when similar laws were enacted or proposed in other states, the Brady Campaign and other critics warned they could result in vigilantism.

Heller and McDonald cases
After the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2010 in McDonald v. Chicago, Brady president Paul Helmke said he was "pleased that the Court reaffirmed its language in District of Columbia v. Heller that the Second Amendment individual right to possess guns in the home for self-defense does not prevent our elected representatives from enacting 'common-sense' gun laws to protect our communities from gun violence."

Lawsuits
On March 19, 2009, a federal judge ordered a temporary injunction blocking the implementation of the rule allowing concealed carry permit holders to carry firearms concealed within National Park Service lands within states where their permits are valid, based upon environmental concerns, in response to efforts by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, the National Parks Conservation Association, and the Coalition of National Park Service Retirees. On May 20, 2009, the injunction was overturned by the passing of an amendment to the Credit CARD Act of 2009, added by Senator Tom Coburn (R, OK) over the objections of the Brady Campaign.

Sandy Hook school shooting aftermath
In the month after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, the Brady Campaign raised about $5 million and renewed public interest in passing legislation to reduce gun violence. The Brady Campaign has continued to promote federal reform legislation, including an expansion of the national background check program. Its leadership met with President Obama and Vice President Biden to craft a package of bills aimed at reducing gun violence.

Aurora, Colorado theater shooting
In 2014, the parent and step-parent of one of the 2012 Aurora, Colorado shooting victims, represented by Brady Center lawyers, filed suit against the companies from whom James Holmes purchased the ammunition, magazines, and body armor he used in the shooting. In 2015, the judge in the case dismissed the suit on the grounds that such a lawsuit is in violation of both Colorado law and the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act because the guns and ammunition obtained from the online companies, including Lucky Gunner and The Sportsman's Guide, worked as claimed. He also ordered the plaintiffs to pay the legal costs of the defendants, which came to $280,000. As the Brady Center lawyers would be expected to know applicable case law in such a lawsuit, it is not clear whether the Brady Center or the plaintiffs themselves are responsible for paying the judgment.

Assault weapons
The Brady Campaign contends that self-loading and select-fire weapons are virtually identical since a semi-automatic rifle may be fired rapidly.

title: Brady Campaign


text:
Wikipedia:Conflicts between users/Irismeister

( a highly congested page :-) Besides, I do not regard this as a conflict, since issues come before persons and I will never enter personal conflicts for matters of principle. Happy editing - irismeister 18:58, 2004 Feb 21 (UTC)
 * I second this: "I will never enter personal conflicts for matters of principle." - Plautus satire 00:35, 23 Feb 2004 (UTC)
 * I OTOH do regard it as conflict. This issue is still very much active. theresa knott 19:15, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)
 * This is a non-issue forl me and I can only congratulate my fellow editor for her de facto  admission of tort in the disinfectant talk page. Wikilove, and remember issues are more important than persons as per Wiki generous principles. Happy editing - irismeister 19:51, 2004 Feb 21 (UTC)

 * This is the kind of thing I have to put up with. Irismeister cut info I put on disinfectant was proved wrong in the talk page and then says that I admitted that I was wrong because I didn't cut extra info he put into the article. theresa knott 20:25, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * Nope - thinking that H2O2 is used first for disinfection of food stuff and packages is wrong, and potentially disastrous, as explained. Also bully is both inaccurate and ad hominem. However, I will not answer to allegations here any more, in order to save space and cool persons all the way down to issues. Happy editing and Wikilove! Sincerely, irismeister 20:53, 2004 Feb 21 (UTC) ;-)

 * Your argument would be a lot better If I said it was used for disinfecting foodstuffs. Unfortunately for you I only said it was used for disinfecting food containers theresa knott 23:32, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)

I do, however have a case study to bring forward, for the honorable Wiki community - which I hope will not be moved to oblivion on my RFC page like the previous issue. The following is serious though:
 * However, in absolutely no way should he (or anybody) be allowed to completely remove contents of any talk page, be it their own or not

 * I could not agree more, even under the strike above :-)... Especially since one of my most intense critics did just that. My respected colleague Jwrosenzweig did that, despite my collegial request not to do it, as per our community rules. It is, I admit, always embarrassing to delete information from one's own talk page, even if this was done for alleged inconvenient threats he only quote-perceived-unquote. Just one more fact - this was done after subjecting me to a campaign of relentless and unsubstantiated allegations which, incidentally, I answered in detail here. All I ask for, in front of the honorable Wiki community, is for my colleague Jwrosenzweig to attempt a bona fide  :

I can only hope this helps for the current case on this page. Thank you all, please pardon my intrusion, and happy editing - irismeister 16:26, 2004 Feb 21 (UTC)
 * reversion of his own talk page, to the version where my material is addressed to him directly. In those passages, I took my time to painfully and thoroughly address every single piece of what I consider slander and libel, as well as malevolent misrepresentations of my name, fame, profession, academic track record and more. Last, but certainly not the least, I would welcome his admission of attempts to intimidate, obtain convoluted admissions and using tactics more fit for police than for the quality of a respected Wiki editor as I think he is;
 * opening - kindly not refuse to talk to me. Indeed, after he contributed nothing to the iridology page, he asked Raul for protection of that page in the absence of edit wars, for obscure reasons. Moreover, in doing so, my colleague bypassed the four canonical steps as per Wiki policies, and effectively prevented me from communicating with him by inserting a warning in my talk page. Also I would like no arbitration, only a sentence from him in which my honorable colleague Jwrosenzweig would explain to the community what are the reasons for his actions, and after that, kindly to comment if he thinks this is a good example he offers as a sysop and/or administrator;
 * confessio delicti - let him suggest if he should be subject to a symbolic 24-hour ban, especially considering that he did nothing to prevent, let alone revert insults I was greeted with, once I started to provide information in the Iridology talk page. Isn't something as wrong as a sustained smearing campaign, observed repeteadly (and not reported, but increased, not corrected, and indeed intensified, a case for tort from an editor, comparable to perpetrating that wrong her/himself ?

 * Irismeister kept trying to add a link to a web page that sells his stuff to iridology I pointed out that he couldn't put adverts to pages with which he is asscioted with into wikipedia articles. He said he wasn't associated with the website. Jwrosenzweig pointed out that either- he was as they sold his papers there, or he was lying about his real name. Irismeister responded with threats that he would bring in his laywers. Jwrosenzweig said in that case he would no longer discuss anything with irismeister. That's why he cut the comments from his talk page. theresa knott 20:25, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * Negative! I keep the link because:

In conclusion, for purposes of consensus with the colleagues named above, I might consider dropping the iris-ward link or including it in the pro or advocacy parts. Although I feel this as being incorrect, inaccurate and misrepresenting reality, I think this consensus-seeking workaround is not misleading or malevolent, because I hereby explain my intention. Perhaps we should wait for a less-then-negative response from Jwrosenzweig and theresa knott in front of the Wiki community before escalating this further. Hope this helps. Happy editing and Wikilove! Sincerely, irismeister 20:53, 2004 Feb 21 (UTC) ;-)
 * this is the world's most respected place for iridology-to-ophthalmology bridge builders;
 * this is one in less than five world-class iridial studies sites employing MDs only (with which BTW I am not associated, although I am A MD myself);
 * this is the site which Google lists FIRST under the relevant category;
 * this site offered me five stars in a peer-review exam and with my declaration of bias I feel morally obliged to the FREE 3,000+ pages online there - the place where I learned about iridology on top of my ophthalmologic competence;
 * this site contains information in the Romanian language, which is also my first language;
 * this site is relevant to the point made in Iridology that this part of Alternative Medicine is also scientific and accepted - in fact this is the single most important argument in favor of this point.
 * the 39 reversions in three months, attempting to suppress it were spuriously explained in the talk page (like here above) or not explained at all;
 * that site contains the list of my published material in treatises of ophthalmology, which are continuously deleted (and then - perhaps ironically -immediately requested in the talk page to help prove I am a quack because I can produce no such credentials)
 * I never cut anything from talk pages, but If you are going to threated and theresa knott did, exactly because all of the above was explained there.

Adressing you points in order:
 * A google search for "iris ward"  -site:iris-ward.com  site:edu yields 2 relavent hits.
 * NEGATIVE: site:iris-ward.com search on Google yields 261 hits, all iris-ward (no wonder to this editor - given 3,000 + pages of hard research data i found there for FREE! Happy editing; - irismeister 19:59, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

 * If it's one in less than five then what are the other 4? Perhaps we can link to one of those instead. (As long as they dont sell "research" papers by you to the public I'm unlikely to object)
 * Iridology+, CNRI.edu, iridologyworld and one who gives error 404. Happy editing; - irismeister 19:59, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

 * A search for "iridology" on google yeilds the quackwatch artice first. The wikipedia article is on page 5. I couldn't find iris ward anywhere in the first 10 pages.
 * Perhaps this happens because the site is really on top in my search :-) http://directory.google.com/Top/Health/Alternative/Iridology/

 * If the site demonstrates that iridology is scientific then just cut and paste the relavent bit or bits from iris ward to the iridology talk page. It's ok to do this under fair use.
 * OK. Then please choose between those dreaded 3,000 pages something more relevant than iris-ward.com - so we can all guarantee it's an objective choice. For me it's competition. And although I once WAS contributing there, even as an information officer, Dr Waniek felt that I will steal his business, compete with him or something. For me, it's fair enough to quote iris-ward because they are really good. Colton went offline last month. Jon Miles does not answer mail anymore. In this world of ours I must still side with my archenemy and competitor Dr Waniek who gave me the stars.  In order to make AM acceptable for the US Senate committes that is. You thought me stupid, didn't you?  A clever editor such as yourself had never gone that far as to see that if drug company big sharks no longer compete between the big fives but make cartels, so must AM sites if they want to live. As our own peace treaty shows right here, cooperation is perhaps much more productive for archenemies and competitors. See the pint, at last ? Anyway, I will offer peace as long as you want it :-) Happy editing; - irismeister 19:59, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

 * Iris ward sells your papers. That is why various people keep cutting the link.
 * Did you look at the number of site visitors? I would be rich then :-) Please find a single paper signed by me on that site (I just searched myself) and I will buy it for you - plus fedex overnight with my dedication. HINT: If you don't find, then perhaps it's because they are not, so please try a search in the Romanian language, using Romanian characters (UTF-8) or read the Treatise of Ophthalmology (seven volumes) edited by Professor Olteanu in 1987 - the first edition. I wrote the iridology evaluation section there, with Professor Popescu. Only Axenfeld, Vida and Deck did the same revolutionary thing before us. It's kind of obvious though - if iridology really works, then why couldn't ophthalmologists, who look at the iris with biomicroscopes every day - why couldn't they see why ? See ? You thought I was an undercover agent doing stupid ad banners for a site ? How very smart of you! You outsmart us all! You give me an idea to become rich !!!! Look - I'll beg the owner of that site to sell my papers again! And as a thank you gift I'll offer you 0.1% of my earnings (please include VAT number for businesses in the UK :-) Happy editing; - irismeister 19:59, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

 * If you are going to threaten Jwrosenzweig with legal action, then you mustn't be surprised if he refuses to talk to you and cut your comments from his talk page. As far as I know, the only stuff cut from the iridology talk page was outrightly rude stuff written by you. No one has cut any attempt of yours to clear you name so to speak as you imply above. At least as far as i am aware anyway. Perhaps you would like to put in a link as proof?
 * Jwrosenzweig is an adult and perhaps he can speak for himself. But if he refuses to speak to me (perhaps he is just afraid and/or embarrassed for the miserable things he did to me and the iridology page) - then why doesn't he address the Wiki community instead, for what he did last week? Does he fear legal action there too ? I know it's hard for him to be a policeman (keeping him from editing - which he really does better than policing) but I am willing to forgive his provocative and insulting behavior if he excuses in front of the Wiki community instead. In this case, a minimum of items he would have to address might include:

This part, if properly done by your client (if you are his lawyer) AFAIAC immediately stops escalations, symmultaneously clears the insult, the injury and the case - and thus could not be, and is not negotiable. - Happy editing - irismeister 19:59, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)
 * 1. why breaking Wiki rules, why assuming anything but good will;
 * 2. why attacking decency per se in forcing me one way or another to admit only what he thinks I would have to admit so that the iridology page would be castrated;
 * 3. why protecting pages without edit wars only because he has buddies willing and able to do that no questions asked;
 * 4. why not going through canonical Wiki peace keeping steps ? Why instead keeping editors like me on line for his base insinuations, invitations to forced spurious admissions, police investigations and stuff - all longer than I was ever forced when kept in the Stalinist police basements;
 * 5. why so many off-topic insinuations;
 * 6. why calling me a lier and never caring to excuse himself ? ;
 * 7. why not addressing real iridology issues on the iridology talk page;
 * 8. why asking me to produce what he just cut and protected so that I can't add it
 * 9. why not addressing the real issues of the list of insults I had to bear - including from you. I had to live with them over the injury of ban, see ? Etc., etc.

 * As for dropping the link. I would welcome that from you. As I said above, perhaps one of the other 4 leading sites would be more acceptable. I hope you consider this a non negative response. theresa knott 23:32, 21 Feb 2004 (UTC)
 * But then you promise you won't systematically revert without thoroughly discussing and asking votes for the things you want to cut first ? And Jwrosenzweig excuses only on this page and on my talk page ? Then drop I will, OK (gasp) But come now, admit it - if you didn't find the site on Google, it's not because you don't know how to search. It's because iris-ward is not an iridology site, but an ophthalmologic research site. - irismeister

 * Ok then. I put in "ophthalmologic research". Iris ward is not even on the first page. You said it was number one on google. Would you care to back that statement up with evidence. What search terms do you have to put in to get it first? theresa knott 21:01, 22 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * Did you read above ? Perhaps this happens because the site is really on top in my search :-) http://directory.google.com/Top/Health/Alternative/Iridology/. Google, unlike you, has several criteria in the search algorithm. Happy editing - irismeister 21:08, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

Which proves the point you are not willing to make on the iridology page or its own talk page.That's it, and all methinks. Otherwise I'm glad that you are active in medical articles and that we did a better job yesterday together in the three articles. The photo on reflexology is really cute. You know, there is a similar one for Egyptians and iridology - but it's only on the site you censor and off it will go with the link ;-) Keep up the good work! - Happy editing - irismeister 19:59, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)
 * oh you think the photo is good? It's a shame you weren't more polite to the newbies who wrote the article. You downright rude comments on their work is disgraceful. As for medical articles - we are not working together in the way you imply above. The truth is that you are following me around looking for fights all over wikipedia. theresa knott 21:01, 22 Feb 2004 (UTC)

I am following medical articles as a MD not as a quack and a lier and you still did not excuse - grrrr. Happy editing quand même - irismeister 21:08, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

I dont understand what this argument is about. Is irismeister trying to include a link to her/his homepage, and theresa wants it to be deleted from the article? Perl 22:14, 22 Feb 2004 (UTC)

 * The main argument that I, and a number of other users (he calls us "the gang of four") with irismeister is that he feels that he should be able to insert whatever he likes into iridology include a link to an external website www.iris-ward.com with which he is associated. Now he maintains that he is not in fact associated with the site. However the site has a logo on the home page saying "certified by irismeister". Clicking on this logo brings up his user page here on wikipedia! I removed the link because of the corncerns i have over this particluar website. This enraged irismeister and he has been gunning for me ever since. He has twiced been blocked for 24 hours for his appauling behavioir, a fact that he boasts of on his user page. Iridology is protected at the moment so it's all quiet there for the time being, so he is following me around trying to pick arguments wherever I edit. theresa knott 22:42, 22 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Yes, Perl this is the issue. Plus a few insults reverted plus apologies from the gang of four and living happily thereafter. I am a medical doctor who used to work for iris-ward, and use my world class credit to certify a few other irismeisters. My alleged appauling behavioir (sic) is not insulting anybody and not accepting Theresa's greetings aka quack, lier, bully, full of *--- - never reverted. Note for Theresa: If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly and redistributed at will, then do not submit it. Thank you for your question and happy editing :-) - irismeister 22:57, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)
 * You "used to work for iris ward" so you admit that you lied when you said you were not associated with the site ? theresa knott 23:04, 22 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Theresa, your obsessive police attitude does not do you a service. Do you not understand the difference between was (past tense) and is (present)? You keep calling me a lier, which is persistent libel. I asked you to apologize or face legal consequences for libel in less than 24 hours starting now, thank you. Happy editing - irismeister 23:17, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

It was intended as a question not an accusation. Let me rephrase it to make it clearer. Did you lie when you said that you were not associated with the site ? Is that better ? I'd like to ask another question. Do you think that threatening everyone who challanges you with a law suit is the act of a bully ?Are you a bully ? What about this one - Do you think I care if you try to sue me ? theresa knott 23:33, 22 Feb 2004 (UTC)

At this point there is only place for your apologies, not for questions and explanations any more. This will save us all time. Let me put it clear: You excuse yourself right now right here and I forgive you on the spot. You do not excuse, bully too, and we have the court to ask questions, then Wiki (takes more time for Wiki). If you do not care, you will, and this is a statement of fact, not a threat. Threat to decency is to use libel - '''making a false statement of fact that injures someone's reputation. When the communication is in writing, it is termed "libel".''' Period. End of communication. Thank you all and happy editing - Sincerely - irismeister 23:51, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

So, Irismeister is lying about being associated with this site... Is the site useful? I can't tell from looking at the homepage. Perl 23:45, 22 Feb 2004 (UTC)

No, I am not lying about being associated with this site. The site is useful. I just ended communication with Theresa for persistent libel. File closed here. Another one opened. Thank you, Perl and happy editing - Sincerely - irismeister 23:51, 2004 Feb 22 (UTC)

 * Perl his photograph of the iris is on the website owners books, His "irismeister" certificate for that web site liks to wikipedia. The "best website award" logo also links to wikipedia. The site sells papers on iridology. Oh and "he used to work for " them. The fact's speak for themselves. As for the question of the usefullness of the site, IMO it's amatureishly put together. Many of the pages take ages to download on dialup. The "reasearch" has to be paid for. There are plently of other websites that are better.

His photograph is, as I read on the site, Dr Waniek's. Or are you referring to their irismeisterships Matt Karwowski, Bryan Marcia, Jon Miles and the forty-something others - PhDs and MDs, most of them ophthalmologists as I can read in that site myself ? As I keep repeating in front of malevolent police officers, who try to force me into false identities, admissions of financial interst under physical stress, torture, and Stalinist procedures, my name is Dr Armand Jipa, MD, which my lawyers will make quite clear in less than 24 hours now, to all the persons involved in libel in Wiki. Putting my name under the picture as you do, is a blatant lie, and your statement issued as if this lie were a fact is the fallacy named petitio principi. It is perhaps ironical that SOOO MUCH NOISE has been admitted here in order to divert censorship and personal issues to alleged financial interests while proven, USA Today-published real admissions of tort - from more than 50% of arbiters paid by the FDA to neutrally assess drugs, procedures and treatment protocols indeed having a direct financial interest in those drugs, procedures and treatment protocols - raised no Wiki eyebrows whatsoever. Incidentally, Perl, I do not understand why on Earth do you keep addressing to one contendent and not to the other. Wiki has ceased to be a group ? Is Wiki a place where some issues are feigned to be non-issues while secondary, blatant, judicial-prone POVs are made the only issues outstanding? Who decides what is an issue ? By definition, The dictator. If we were all dictators, benevolent or not, would this make Wiki a "democracy" ? Besides, aren't we colleagues from the start or there is a Wiki cabal exchanging mail off-Wiki and regulating democratically? Have you read Wiki before you looked off-Wiki ? HAve you read my declaration of bias ? So you see, the real issue arises now, as if by itself, like truth, and like oil on water ? As I read Dictatorship, precisely here''Dictators can come to power in a variety of different ways. They can be elected (see below), be appointed by the resident ruling party or Communist Party hierarchy'', etc. The issue here is, for me, as well as per Wiki policies, nothing more nor less than peace. This allows us all to go back to useful and happy editing instead of Stalinist trials. Am I wrong in assuming that your POVs as expresed above are not making peace ? For my view, feeling and even theory in this conflict between users is that you entirely miss the "between" word, point and issue. Therefore, I wonder, if the famous Chomsky injunction does not apply to you: As long as the real issues are not allowed to enter into the debate, what's a debate ?. Last, hope this helps: ''The reasonable man adapts to dictatorship as it is. The unreasonable man hopes the dictatorship to adapt to democracy. Therefore the only hope for democracy in a dictatorship is the unreasonable man'' :-) This is all I have to say to you. Happy editing - irismeister 10:56, 2004 Feb 23 (UTC)

I'm glad iriseister has decided to stop speaking to me. it will come as a blessed relief to tell the truth.I shall await his legal papers with interest theresa knott 00:14, 23 Feb 2004 (UTC)

This seems stupid. Why don't you just grow up and stop obsessing about this irismeister? Who cares? Its a stupid site, get over it, and continue writing articles. Thats all I have to say. Perl 03:30, 23 Feb 2004 (UTC)

I would like to make a point: In the process of altering evidence pertinent to my current case, as much as 90% of it was lost, and the rest of the 10% was misinserted on purpose. This is a process of destroying evidence reminiscent of how DNA and some RNA viruses work: They insert their own genome into the host genome, using reverse transcriptase so they become a form of persistent, obligatory parasytes. Viajero allegedly "moved" [] the section of Theresa and Iris "conflict" to /Irismeister as stated here - (where is that ?). The landing page was really "found" to be this one -  "only 90% thinner". I had to manually retrieve the history section, verify it, and reinsert it as such, from the Conflict page history, as it should have been done by Viajero in the first place. With such evident malevolent misinformation and deletion of evidence, perhaps one could hardly overstate that clearly, a trusted third party repository, complete with time stamps MUST assist all legal solutions. Such legal solutions concerning very weird Wiki "editing" habits include the outstanding case: It appears that all those who persistently indulged in libel against me (or only helped the perpetrators of libel) now alter evidence on an emergency basis and perhaps according to a spurious hope that truth will be not known. Please do not remove, misinsert or bit-losing transfer this paragraph. TIA ! Happy editing : O) - irismeister 00:17, 2004 Feb 27 (UTC)

WHAT'S NEW Irismeister has finished gathering evidence for a monstrously big case against the fascist penchant of Wikipedia against alternative medicine. I hereby publicly thank all those candid or only stupid admin/sysop/police/whatever caring to answer my deliberately provocative and elaborate evidence-gathering process. I'we nailed you, fascists :O)

You bet you'll think twice about your career as Wikipedic "editors" after the facts are made public - Look for legal papers with your usual interest, for they are coming to all of you (you know who you are :O) any time now and soon enough for a public show about the nakedness of Wiki Staff, Emperesses and co-workers! I'm happy I could find such incredible numbers of gullible anglo-american would-be fascists! My friends now have all the data from the trusted third parties, to organize a Nuremberg-like HUGE trial based on the very evidence these wiki "editors" so eagerly supplanted. There is ugliness, censorship and deliberate disinformation in Wikipedia. Things are bad enough to warrant that serious legal consideration which I felt was needed the very moment I experienced censorship. The days of censorship and fake "ban you for personal attack" policies used as a figleaf for brutish force are over. Hang on to your mice, fellas - you'll need them sooo badly :O) Nobody hides truth indefinitely, using the pathethically, terminally diseased pharisean culture - You asked for it! You will be served with the very seed you planted, only for justice! And for those of you who wrote for the record that I "threatened" you with trials - you may breathe again! It's started! Only it's now you who will have to explain just that, for a start: Since when is rendering JUSTICE a THREAT ? May I suggest  JUSTICE for dummies  - an excellent reference you'll find amusing and useful in your future wiki editing careers :O) irismeister 12:19, 2004 Oct 5 (UTC)


text:
Gnaw Bone, Indiana

Gnaw Bone is an unincorporated community in Washington Township, Brown County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. Gnaw Bone is situated on State Highway 46, between Nashville and Columbus. The small community contains three flea markets.

Origin of name
The origin of the name Gnaw Bone is obscure. One theory is that the town's name derives from that of the original French settlement in the area, Narbonne, named in turn for the southern French city of that name. To the ears of English settlers at the time, "Narbonne" sounded like and came to be known as "Gnaw Bone."

The name was in common use as early as 1879, as shown by newspaper articles in the Columbus (Indiana) Republic and the Cincinnati (Ohio) Enquirer, as well as numerous other newspapers articles up to the current year.

Gnaw Bone has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.

title: Gnaw Bone, Indiana


text:
Angerville

Angerville is a northern French toponym, originally from a Norse personal name Asgeir plus the designation ville for "farm, village". It may refer to these places in France:

 * Angerville, Calvados, in the Calvados département
 * Angerville, Essonne, in the Essonne département
 * Angerville-Bailleul, in the Seine-Maritime département
 * Angerville-la-Campagne, in the Eure département
 * Angerville-la-Martel, in the Seine-Maritime département
 * Angerville-l'Orcher, in the Seine-Maritime département

title: Angerville


text:
Captain Spaulding

Captain Jeffrey T. Spaulding is a fictional character in the Broadway musical Animal Crackers and the film of the same name. He was originally played by actor Groucho Marx, one of the Marx Brothers, in both productions. Despite his middle name being Edgar, he is known as Jeffrey T. Spaulding; his first name is also spelled as "Geoffrey" in parts of the film.

Spaulding had a theme song entitled "Hooray for Captain Spaulding", composed by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby, which all of the guests sing upon his arrival. This song would go on to be associated with Marx for the rest of his life in public; it was the theme for his television series You Bet Your Life and was often played when he was introduced as a guest on television shows. At Marx's Carnegie Hall concert in the early 1970s, accompanist Marvin Hamlisch played the song as Marx made his entrance onstage.

Role in Animal Crackers
Spaulding is a famous explorer on return from a trek across Africa to be the guest of honour at a high-society party given by the wealthy dowager Mrs. Rittenhouse (Margaret Dumont). She frequently claims that Spaulding is one of the most courageous travellers in the world, yet by his own accounts of his safari, he reveals his cowardice. At the party, which is taking place over a weekend, a valuable painting is stolen, and he, along with the police and his secretary Jamison (Zeppo Marx), try to recover it.

"One morning, I shot an elephant in my pyjamas. How he got in my pyjamas I don't know."

In popular culture
In the 1939 Marx Brothers' film At the Circus, J. Cheever Loophole (also played by Groucho Marx) sings a rendition of "Lydia the Tattooed Lady" and one line references Lydia having a tattoo of Captain Spaulding exploring the Amazon.

The character Capt. Calvin Spaulding from the television show M*A*S*H, played by Loudon Wainwright III, was named after the Marx character.

The horror film character Captain Spaulding, who appears in several works by Rob Zombie (including House of 1000 Corpses, The Devil's Rejects, and 3 From Hell), is named after the Marx character.

A chorus on people disguised as the character appears in Woody Allen's movie Everyone Says I Love You.

title: Captain Spaulding


text:
User talk:Bubbleoflove

Hello and welcome. I noticed you uploaded several pictures of tennis player, but did not give any information on the picture source and copyright status. Please notice that we cannot accept picture which are not Public Domain, or which the creator releases under the GFDL license. So if you take those photos yourself, they are welcome, but if you just collect them from any website they are copyrighted and cannot be used here. andy 17:04, 24 Feb 2004 (UTC)

title: User talk:Bubbleoflove


text:
Angerville, Calvados

Angerville is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region of northwestern France.

Geography
Angerville is located some 30 km east by north-east of Caen and 20 km west of Pont-l'Eveque on the A13 autoroute which passes through the commune south of the village but has no exit in the commune. The nearest exit is Exit to the west of the commune. Access to the commune is by the D675 road which runs parallel to and south of the A13 autoroute from Dozulé to Danestal. The D287 runs north from the D675 through the commune to the D142 which passes through the north-west of the commune running from Dozule to Gonneville-sur-Mer. Access to the village is solely by the dead-end Chemin de l'Eglise which runs west off the D287.

The Ancre river runs from west to east through the south of the commune and is joined by several other streams. The Ruisseau de Caudimuche forms much of the eastern border.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

Population
The inhabitants of the commune are known as Angervillais or Angervillaises in French.

Sites and monuments

 * The Church of Saint-Leger is a small church from the 12th century not far from a trout fishing pond.

title: Angerville, Calvados


text:
User talk:Lolipop123~enwiki

Hello Lolipop123 and welcome to Wikipedia. A few tips for you:

 * Peruse Welcome, newcomers and associated pages
 * Sign talk page entries with ~, which is automatically converted to a name and date
 * Ask questions on Village pump
 * Have fun

And above alll, please do not add to or replace articles with nonsense and vulgarity. It is considered vandalism, and if you continue there's a good chance you'll be blocked from editing Wikipedia. If you'd like to test your editing abilities, please do so in the sandbox. Thanks, -- Hadal 17:06, 24 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Your account will be renamed
Hello,

The developer team at Wikimedia is making some changes to how accounts work, as part of our on-going efforts to provide new and better tools for our users like cross-wiki notifications. These changes will mean you have the same account name everywhere. This will let us give you new features that will help you edit and discuss better, and allow more flexible user permissions for tools. One of the side-effects of this is that user accounts will now have to be unique across all 900 Wikimedia wikis. See the announcement for more information.

Unfortunately, your account clashes with another account also called Lolipop123. To make sure that both of you can use all Wikimedia projects in future, we have reserved the name Lolipop123~enwiki that only you will have. If you like it, you don't have to do anything. If you do not like it, you can pick out a different name. If you think you might own all of the accounts with this name and this message is in error, please visit Special:MergeAccount to check and attach all of your accounts to prevent them from being renamed.

Your account will still work as before, and you will be credited for all your edits made so far, but you will have to use the new account name when you log in.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

Yours, Keegan Peterzell Community Liaison, Wikimedia Foundation 01:24, 20 March 2015 (UTC)

Renamed
 This account has been renamed as part of single-user login finalisation. If you own this account you can |log in using your previous username and password for more information. If you do not like this account's new name, you can choose your own using this form after logging in: . -- Keegan (WMF) (talk) 15:34, 22 April 2015 (UTC)

title: User talk:Lolipop123~enwiki


text:
Angoville, Calvados

Angoville is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region of north-western France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune of Cesny-les-Sources.

Geography
Angoville is located some 30 km south of Caen and 10 km east by south-east of Thury-Harcourt. The D6 road from Thury-Harcourt to Ussy forms the northern border of the commune. Access to the commune is by the D241 road from Tréprel in the south which passes through the length of the commune and the village and continues north to join the D6 on the border. The commune is mostly farmland with an area of forest in the south which is part of the large Bois de Saint-Claire.

Toponymy
Angoville is composed of the old French "ville" (from the Latin "Villae") meaning a rural area or village and a Scandinavian name Asgaut (or Asgautr), gallicized to Asgot, Ansgot, Angot, and Ango - originally the Norman surname Ango and Angot which are widespread in Seine-Maritime.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors of Angoville

Demography
The inhabitants of the commune are known as Angovillais or Angovillaises in French.

Economy
The main activities are dairy farming and cropping.

Civil heritage
The commune has a number of buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments:
 * Houses and Farms (18th-19th century)
 * A Farmhouse (1786)
 * The Saint Anne Fountain (1848)
 * The Town Hall (19th century)
 * The Motte de Rouvrou Fortified Site (11th century)

Religious heritage
The commune has several religious buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments:
 * The Tomb of the Rabâche family (19th century)
 * The Tomb of Jean-François Rabâche (1816)
 * The Tomb of Priest François Bouquet (1813)
 * The Parish Church of Saint-Anne (12th century)

title: Angoville, Calvados


text:
Anguerny

Anguerny is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region of northwestern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Colomby-Anguerny.

Geography
Anguerny is located 10 kilometres north-west of Caen and 3 kilometres south of Douvres-la-Delivrande. The D79 from Caen passes through the west of the commune and continues to Basly. The D7 from Caen to Douvres-la-Delivrande passes just to the east of the commune. Access to the commune is by the D141 which links the D79 to the D7 passing through the village and the commune. Apart from the village the commune is entirely farmland.

History
The commune was called successively Aguerne then Aguerny before taking its current name. The parish was under the authority of the Lords of Creully.

Administration
List of Successive Mayors

Twinning
Anguerny has twinning associations with:
 * East Woodhay (United Kingdom) since 1997.

Demography

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Agernynois or Agernynoises in French.

Sites and monuments

 * The Church of Saint Martin Bell Tower (11th century) is classified as an historical monument. The church contains four items that are registered as historical objects:
 * A Tabernacle and Seating (19th century)
 * A Painting: Calvary (17th century)
 * A Retable (17th century)
 * The main Altar: The Crucifixion (1760)
 * A Tithe barn
 * 2 Festival halls

 * Saint Martin Church Picture Gallery

Activities and events
The Romanes d'Anguerny is held every two years in spring.

title: Anguerny