text:
Hematocele

A hematocele is a collections of blood in a body cavity or potential space. The term most commonly refers to the collection of blood in the tunica vaginalis around the testes, known as a scrotal hematocele. Hematoceles can also occur in the abdominal cavity and other body cavities. Hematoceles are rare, making them harder to diagnose and treat. They are very common especially as slowly growing masses in the scrotum usually in men older than 50 years.

A scrotal mass is a lump or bulge that can be felt in the scrotum. The scrotum is the sac that contains the testicles. A scrotal mass can be noncancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant). Benign scrotal masses will include hematocele which is a blood collection in the scrotum.

A scrotal hematocele is also called a hemoscrotum (or haemoscrotum in British English). Scrotal masses are abnormalities in the bag of skin hanging behind the penis (scrotum). The scrotum contains the testicles and related structures that produce, store and transport sperm and male sex hormones.

Hemoscrotum can follow trauma (such as a straddle injury) or can be a complication of surgery. It is often accompanied by testicular pain. It has been reported in patients with hemophilia and following catheterization of the femoral artery. If the diagnosis is not clinically evident, transillumination (with a penlight against the scrotum) will show a non-translucent fluid inside the scrotum. Ultrasound imaging may also be useful in confirming the diagnosis. In severe or non-resolving cases, surgical incision and drainage may be required. To prevent recurrence following surgical drainage, a drain may be left at the surgical site.

Signs and Symptoms
Variation in signs and symptoms will depend on the abnormality present and medical history. Variation exists in hematoceles due to the location of the lesion and onset of the hematocele. It is important to seek emergency medical care if developing sudden pain in the scrotum to avoid damage to the testicle that can be permanent. The signs and symptoms listed below are relating to hematoceles and associated conditions that can be due to other causes such as testicular cancer or testicular torsion:

 * Unusual lump
 * Sudden pain
 * Dull aching pain or feeling heavy in the scrotum
 * Pain radiating throughout the groin, abdomen, or lower back
 * Tender, swollen, or hardened testicle
 * Tender, swollen, or hardened epididymis, the soft, comma-shaped tube above and behind the testicle that stores and transports sperm
 * Swelling in the scrotum
 * Redness of the skin of the scrotum
 * Nausea or vomiting

If the cause of the scrotal mass is due to infection then signs and symptoms may be the following:

 * Pus
 * Pus or blood in the urine
 * Fever

Cause
Scrotal masses might be an accumulation of fluids, the growth of abnormal tissue, or normal contents of the scrotum that have become swollen, inflamed or hardened. Scrotal masses could be cancerous or caused by another condition that affects testicular function and health. A hematocele is one of the most common sequelae of testicular trauma. A traumatic hematocele usually results from testicular rupture (80% of cases) or a tear in the pampiniform plexus veins. Testicular rupture and testicular torsion are also common causes of scrotal hematocele. It can also be caused by kidney injury, pancreatitis, hematological dysfunction, or vasculitis.

There are different disorders that can result as a consequence or a hematocele which include:

 * Testicular cancer
 * Spermatocele
 * Epididymitis
 * Orchitis
 * Hydrocele
 * Variocele
 * Inguinal hernia
 * Testicular torsion

Pathophysiology
Chronic hematocele is rare. The direct cause of hematoceles is still unknown. Hematoceles can be classified into idiopathic and secondary ones. Idiopathic or spontaneous hematoceles give no history of testicular cancer or past trauma to testis, no pain in the organ, and seems to be more common the older population. Secondary hematoceles are usually associated with trauma, surgery, or neoplasm, but can also be caused by hematological alterations, or vasculitis.

Presumably minor trauma results in rupture of dilated microvessels beneath the fibrous capsule.

Hematoceles present as slowly progressing. The duration of swellings of hematoceles can last months to decades. Usually there is no pain, but discomfort and heavyness is most common in the scrotum. In hematocele of recent occurrence the tunica sac contains coagulated fresh blood. A hematocele that begins bleeding into itself, becoming a hemorrhagic cyst, can easily rupture and cause a number of problems. If the hematocele is older, the tunica sac appears filled with spongy material several times larger than the testicular volume. Most of this material is fibrin and cholesterol granulomas. In chronic hematocele the blood clot is totally or partially consisting of connective tissue that contains numerous newly formed blood vessels and hemosiderin-laden macrophages. Connective tissue facing the tunica cavity is lined by fibrin remnants. In its final stages the lesion consists of a thickened, fibrosed, and calcified tunica sac which may also show osseous metaplasia.

Diagnosis
Hematoceles can be a challenge to diagnose since they can mimic cysts or neoplasms. There can different exams used in combination to make a final diagnosis:

 * Physical exam
 * Ultrasound
 * Urine test
 * Blood test
 * CT scan
 * MRI scan

Differential diagnosis of hematocele includes testicular tumor, testicular torsion, and epididymitis. In a blood test or urine test, serum levels of tumor markers such as (alpha-fetoprotein, carcinoembryonic antigen, β-human chorionic gonadotropin) can help to reveal if testicular cancer is present which can help with the differential diagnosis. When there is no certain cause, a diagnosis of idiopathic scrotal hematocele will be made. In the case of chronic idiopathic scrotal hematocele, a history of trauma to the perineum is usually denied, which is a key evidence for the diagnosis of scrotal hematocele that is idiopathic. If no evidence of hematological alterations or vasculitis is present, that can indicate for another possible cause of scrotal hematocele.

Treatment
Most hematoceles will require minor or more serious medical procedures depending on the severity. The repair of a hematocele rupture may be difficult, especially if it is circumferential. This is because in such cases a large portion of parenchyma is herniated and may already be necrotic.

If the hematocele is relatively small and does not cause a lot of pain, conservative treatment such as foot elevation and bed rest may be sufficient. In more severe cases, surgical intervention may become necessary. Surgery may be performed to drain the accumulated blood from the scrotum. If a testicular tumor is found to be the cause of the bleeding, the entire testicle is generally removed to prevent cancer from spreading to other parts of the body. If surgery becomes necessary to treat the hematocele, it may take several weeks for the patient to recover fully from the procedure. This is due to the fact that the scrotum tends to swell after the surgery. This swelling can cause discomfort or pain that does not easily go away. Prescription medications are often given to help the patient recover from the surgery.

Regular medical checkups can help a doctor to look out for any type of hematocele. Early detection is the key in treating most medical conditions. With different types of hematoceles, complications can develop very quickly so it is particularly important to receive an early diagnosis. In order to prevent hematoceles, it is important to have testicular self-exams to help find abnormalities sooner. Doing this can help to understand what is normal in the body and be able to detect abnormalities in the body. This can include examining testicles once a month, especially if the person has had previous testicular cancer or a history of testicular cancer.

Prognosis
The life expectancy of all individuals with hematoceles will depend on the severity and the underlying causes that could have led to hematoceles. Not all hematoceles will result in long term complications. However they can affect the health or function of the testicle that can lead to:

The hematocele severity will depend on whether it is symptomatic or asymptomatic. If surgically removed, the recovery can take weeks, causing such a procedure to be performed only in extreme cases.
 * Delayed or poor development if at a young age
 * Infertility

Epidemiology
Hematoceles should be cleared quickly to avoid pressure of the atrophy of the parenchyma. Rare complication can results such as infection, suppupation, and scrotal gangrene.

Research Directions
Hematoceles are rare, making them harder to diagnose and treat.

Another case study presents an 18 male that presented with huge painless right sided scrotal mass which was gradually increasing in size and associated with dragging sensation. The case study presents the patient with no history of any trauma or previous surgery, and general physical condition being normal. On examination, right testis was enlarged, hard and non tender with loss of testicular sensation. The pathological diagnosis was consistent with chronic hematocele.

Current research is ongoing for proper diagnosis and helping to differentiate among other conditions. Doppler ultrasound in a retrospective study was shown to be helpful for differential diagnosis of patients with acute scrotum. Accuracy of imaging studies is higher for the differential diagnosis of testicular torsion and epididmo-orchitis, which there can still be the possibility of misdiagnosis for hematoceles due to testicular torsion. Further research in this area shows importance for surgical decision making in hematoceles.

Scrotal masses are a common presentation in primary care, and a painful scrotum accounts for 1% of emergency department visits. As of 2017, there has only been 35 cases reported so far in the known world literature, few scattered case reports published in medical journals of different languages.

title: Hematocele


text:
User talk:Dalkaen

 User Page | Talk | Contributions | Music | Profile | Editcount

'''I'm probably going to end up replying to any queries or whatever here on my talk page, because that way makes a lot more sense to me. Just a heads up.'''

Frances the Mute
The Mars Volta are known to spell words incorrectly for the purpose of further interpretation. The word "Geminni", as it is printed everywhere on the album, has two "n"s to signify duality.

Really, check the Frances the Mute lyrics, the De-Loused storybook...tons of typos left in there on purpose.

The website has very little to do with the band themselves. It is maintained by one known as "Theory" of www.thecomatorium.net.

System of a Down
Mr. Dalkaen, you are in the wrong! System of a Down is really nu metal not alternative metal, as I told you at the talk page.
 * Right. Explain to me your point and maybe I'll start taking you seriously. --Dalkaen 02:51, August 16, 2005 (UTC)
 * That ipuser is such a troll. He's been annoying me as well. -- ZeWrestler   Talk 14:00, 31 August 2005 (UTC)

Final Fantasy VI FAC
It has been almost 2 months since we had the featured article drive. Since then Final Fantasy VI has received a lot of work to get its status raised to FA. As of today, I have closed the peer review for the article and nominated the game for FAC, Featured article candidates/Final Fantasy VI. Please read the article over and vote appropriately. -- ZeWrestler  Talk 13:40, 31 August 2005 (UTC)
 * Will do. --Dalkaen 22:15, August 31, 2005 (UTC)
 * Take another look at the article, some changes have been made since you've commented. I am curious to know the changes made address your concerns?-- ZeWrestler  Talk 15:40, 2 September 2005 (UTC)
 * Still rather ambivalent. The present tense used in the plot section sounds weird to me. --Dalkaen 21:53, September 2, 2005 (UTC)

Talk:B.Y.O.B. (Bring Your Own Bombs)
Sorry for misquoting you at Talk:B.Y.O.B. (Bring Your Own Bombs). I guess I just read the edit history wrong. Cheers, bdesham 03:42, 4 September 2005 (UTC)
 * No problem. --Dalkaen 03:50, September 4, 2005 (UTC)

Final Fantasy VI
Hi, I noticed your neutal comment in the Final Fantasy VI Featured Article discussion. I wanted to let you know that some of the concerns you voiced have been fixed. It may or may not be enough for you to change your vote, but I wanted to let you know all the same. Thanks for your time. --JiFish(Talk/Contrib) 17:12, September 6, 2005 (UTC)
 * I don't think it's worthy yet, but instead of being lazy like I always am, I'm going to attempt to clean up the writing and add more information where I'm able. --Dalkaen 00:30, September 7, 2005 (UTC)

Hey, stop it!
Please stop changing nu metal to alternative metal it is a fact that System of a Down is really nu metal, Dalkaen (or should I say Mr. Fucking Wanker?) and you have the wrong information! Get a life.
 * As a Wikipedian, it is my job to revert vandalism wherever I see it. You are a vandal, so I will revert your childish edits. --Dalkaen 04:05, 19 September 2005 (UTC)

Yeah - I've been doing it today too. I think we are going to need to take this to at least RfC soon. Ryan Norton T 23:51, 19 September 2005 (UTC)

ARE YOU INSANE?! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR FUCKING MIND?! What part of "it is a fact that System of a Down is really nu metal" don't you understand?! That's where I'm right and you're not! So when I change it to nu metal for one last time, do not revert it and you will be blocked by any moderator that gets involved with this! So leave it as is (or else)!
 * I'm not insane nor have I lost my mind. I just revert vandalism. -- D a l k a e n T / C 23:41, 28 September 2005 (UTC)

Don't make me get all POV on you
It is a known fact that anyone who's visited the Avariel forums is clearly insane. Luna Santin 12:06, 14 June 2006 (UTC)

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ArbCom elections are now open!
MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 12:57, 23 November 2015 (UTC)

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

title: User talk:Dalkaen


text:
Talk:United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce

Untitled
This is not a copyright violation because it comes from a federal government page and is therefore in the public domain. MicahMN | Talk 03:41, 13 Apr 2005 (UTC)

POV
Can't we do a little better than merely a copy and paste job from the committee's website for this article? Sure, the history stuff is useful, but the fluff job that is the "achievements" section currently is laughably bad POV. Does anyone know of a source where we can find out what the committee has actually accomplished? How it has screwed up? - Jersyko · talk  22:14, 20 February 2006 (UTC)

 * nope..we can't. ahahaha (user unknown)
 * I agree with you that we need to re-do the point of view section and therefore I am moving that part of the article to this discussion. Here is the text. We should discuss how we can improve this and still maintain a favorable yet NOV section. I also made some changes in the text and posted the new section on the main page.Edward Lalone 00:07, 3 November 2006 (UTC)

Achievements and Goals (Original Text)
The wide-ranging work of the Committee on Energy and Commerce today builds upon a long record of achievement, which has tracked the dynamic growth of the nation from the early days of the Republic. The Committee’s initial achievements overseeing the Federal health service for sick and disabled seaman developed, eventually, into its oversight now of the Public Health Service and National Institutes of Health. Its historic jurisdiction over health, safety, and commerce generally also can be traced in the evolution of and continued oversight through such landmark legislation as the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and the Clean Air Act, as well as the Federal Trade Commission Act, and the U.S. Code’s Motor Vehicle Safety provisions. Today, when the public reads about the auto safety goals of the TREAD Act or about national energy policy, it can trace these measures back to the seminal legislation produced by the Committee over the years.

From a broader perspective, the Committee’s place in Congress can be can observed in how it has kept pace overseeing the changing avenues of commerce in the nation -- and the world – over the past two centuries. The Committee’s role in assuring a vibrant economy has evolved with changing times – underscored recently by its groundbreaking work on legislation that provides for innovation in and expanded access to high speed Internet services.

Proposed Text
The work of the Committee on Energy and Commerce today builds upon a long record of service, which has tracked the dynamic growth of the nation from the early days of the country. The Committee’s initial functions overseeing the Federal health service for sick and disabled seaman developed, eventually, into its oversight now of the Public Health Service and National Institutes of Health. Its historic jurisdiction over health, safety, and commerce generally also can be traced in the evolution of and continued oversight through such landmark legislation as the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and the Clean Air Act, as well as the Federal Trade Commission Act, and the U.S. Code’s Motor Vehicle Safety provisions. Today, when the public reads about the auto safety goals of the TREAD Act or about national energy policy, it can trace these measures back to the seminal legislation produced by the Committee over the years. The Committee’s role in assuring a vibrant economy has evolved with changing times – underscored recently by its work on legislation that provides for innovation in and expanded access to high speed Internet services. Edward Lalone 00:14, 3 November 2006 (UTC)

Resource for member articles
You can copy and paste from the list below when adding subcommittees to Representatives' biographies. -Pete (talk) 21:38, 4 July 2008 (UTC)

 * Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection
 * Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality
 * Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials
 * Subcommittee on Health
 * Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
 * Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet

'Achievements and Goals' inherently NPOV: deleted
As the neutrality of the 'Achievements and Goals' entry had stood in dispute for at least four years when I stumbled across it, with no parties arguing for the suitability of the text, and a clear suggestion on the talk page that the text originally came from a webpage published by the United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce itself, I have decided to delete it from this wikipedia entry.

My reasoning was that:

 * 1) an assessment of the 'Achievements and Goals' of a committee did not quite make sense, as the committee was not an independent nor continuous entity
 * 2) the language did not seem particularly encyclopedic or scholarly, and the section did not appear to contain a serious evaluation of the comittee's acomplishments over 200 years
 * 3) the second appeared to be based on text written on behalf of the committee itself
 * 4) there were no citations
 * 5) no information would be lost that would not be better placed in the preceding 'History of the Committee' section
 * 6) no-one had spoken in favour of retaining the current text, and the dispute had stood for over four years.

Please feel free to revert and discuss this with me if you feel the NPOV should still be regarded as 'disputed' rather than 'resolved against'. 0x69494411 02:08, 17 April 2011 (UTC)

exclusive
Could we add that this is one of the 'exclusive committees', that is, a member usually can't sit on another? 74.69.11.229 (talk) 21:46, 1 February 2013 (UTC)

Proposed merge with United States House Select Investigative Panel on Planned Parenthood
It probably doesn't make sense to have a separate article every time a couple of politicians decide to have another temporary "panel" or "committee". WhatamIdoing (talk) 05:49, 24 October 2015 (UTC)
 * No offense, but it's a crazy idea. I vote staunchly against such a merger. MaynardClark (talk) 05:51, 24 October 2015 (UTC)
 * Oppose These congressional committees, say what you will about their true intent, are independently notable of the "scandals" they investigate. See Watergate scandal and United States Senate Watergate Committee. – Muboshgu (talk) 17:13, 24 October 2015 (UTC)
 * I don't think we should merge the articles, per Muboshgu. The select committee is drawing plenty of media coverage in its own right already. APerson (talk!) 01:33, 25 October 2015 (UTC)
 * Oppose per Muboshgu, though it should certainly be mentioned somewhere on this page. Also, question, regarding any mention: it's called a select committee on its page, but does it have a similar standing to the Benghazi Committee, which has no jurisdictional oversight by a standing committee? Or is it functionally more of a select subcommittee of Energy and Commerce? Also, is there any information as to why this is called a "panel" or "investigative panel" in its title instead of "committee"? Therequiembellishere (talk) 06:08, 4 November 2015 (UTC)


text:
Western Horseman

Western Horseman, a monthly magazine published by the magazine division of Morris Communications, was first published in January 1936. It features articles on Western riding, the breeding and care of horses, horse training and tack, and ranching. It is the category leader in equine publishing and is known as "The World's Leading Horse Magazine Since 1936," and as "America's Favorite Horse Magazine Since 1936."

History and profile
Western Horseman was first published in Lafayette, California in January 1936. The founder was Paul Albert. The magazine was acquired by John Ben Snow in 1943. It was relocated to Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 1948. The magazine was acquired by the Morris Communications in 2001. In February 2010 the headquarters of the magazine moved from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Fort Worth, Texas, after 62 years.

Western Horseman features articles on Western riding, the breeding and care of horses, horse training and tack, and ranching.

In May 2011, Randy Witte published a book about Western Horseman, entitled History of Western Horseman.

title: Western Horseman


text:
National Police Agency (Taiwan)

The National Police Agency, Ministry of the Interior (NPA; ) is an agency under the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The agency oversees all police forces on a national level, and is headquartered in Taipei.

Hierarchy
Most actual law enforcement and day-to-day policing duties are delegated to local police departments on a city and county level which answer to the NPA but are considered agencies of their local government. However the NPA has direct control over several specialized units which may be deployed to assist local forces, as well as the national highway patrol.

Unlike the police system in the United States, the central government appoints the head positions of city and county Police Departments in the ROC and thus forms a solid chain of command for all police personnel. By calling a personnel review board, the Director-General of NPA has the full control of personnel rotation and transfer, as well as administrative commendations and reprimands over all high ranking police officers, including chiefs of local police departments.

One exception is the President of the Central Police University, who is directly subordinate to the Minister of the Interior, and is not subject to the NPA personnel review board.

 * Executive Yuan
 * Ministry of the Interior
 * National Police Agency
 * NPA Units/City and County Police Departments (縣市警察局)
 * Precinct/Division/Squad
 * Station
 * Beat

NPA Units

In addition to its own internal administrative offices, the NPA has direct control over the following units and agencies:

Criminal Investigation Bureau

The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) is responsible for the investigation of high-profile crimes, forensics, and computer-related crimes. Under its command, are the following field and staff sections:
 * Crime Prevention and Detection Command Center: Code-named Telephone Extension Number 8 .
 * Crime Prevention Section
 * Crime Investigation Section
 * Anti-Hoodlum Section
 * Laws & Regulations Research Section
 * Criminal Records Section
 * International Criminal Affairs Section
 * INTERPOL Radio Center
 * Research & Development Office
 * Public Relations Office
 * Logistics Section
 * Secretariat
 * Internal Affairs Office
 * Public Security Office
 * Personnel Office
 * Accounting Office

There are also nine active field police squads
 * 1st brigade: Homicide and unregistered weapons.
 * 2nd brigade: Robbery and sex-related crimes.
 * 3rd brigade: Controlled substances and organized crime.
 * 4th brigade: Burglary, kidnapping and blackmail.
 * 5th brigade: Bombs Disposal and Investigation.
 * 6th and 8th brigades: Rapid reaction units in central and southern Taiwan.
 * 7th brigade: Financial crimes.
 * 9th brigade: Cybercrimes.

Two task-force-grouped centers include:
 * Forensic Science Center:
 * Forensic Section(Criminalistics Office): The Emeritus consultant is Henry Chang-Yu Lee, Ph.D., in Connecticut, United States.
 * Forensic Biology Office(Medical Examiner Office): The Emeritus consultant is Yang Zi-song(zh:楊日松), M.D., retired.
 * Fingerprint Office
 * High-Technology Crime Prevention Center: It formed on April 6th, 2006.
 * 9th brigade
 * Electronic surveillance and monitoring center (on cellular telephone networks in private corporations, such as FET)
 * Information management office

Special Operations Group (SOG)
There are 7 individual Special Operations Groups, literally "Special Police Crops"(保安警察隊). These are mobile, rapid deployment police forces. They also execute various sentry duties and serve as a pool of reserve formations for police manpower. Three task-force-grouped SWAT units (referred to as Peace Enforcing Special Service Forces or "Wei-An" Forces(zh:維安特勤隊) comprise the 1st, 4th and 5th Special Operations Groups. The mission of the SOG include counter-terrorism, counter-hijacking, high-profile hostage rescue, and presidential protection. In recent years they have also been involved in the arrest of heavily armed fugitives. The uniforms and equipment of the SOG units are similar to local SWAT units, which are referred to as Thunder Squads. The Thunder Squads are subordinate to local police departments. However, the SOG Forces are the only police units equipped with V-150S armor vehicles and M998 Humvee, which were transferred from ROC Army after the 2004 shoot out with Chang Hsi-ming.

The First Corps
A training base for courses of on-the-job training and mobile task force. Riot control, Special Weapons and Tactics, counter-terrorism in northern Taiwan. It commands six special police brigades and one "Wei-an" Forces(zh:維安特勤隊). Three brigades of conscripts, 2nd, 5th and 6th, served like combat police in Korea, are usually deployed for Riot control.
 * Corps Headquarters, 2nd, 3rd, 4th brigades, and one "Wei-An" Forces, are stationed in Si-pai, Taipei City.
 * "Wei-an" Forces: Formed in June 1992. Its mission specialties are counter-terrorism, high-profile hostage rescues, and presidential protection. These forces are composed of SWAT units divided into two companies, which are supported by the 3rd brigade.
 * 1st and 5th brigades are stationed in Sanxia District, New Taipei City.
 * The 6th brigade is stationed in Bade District, Taoyuan City.

The Second Corps
There are 4 brigades commended by the Ministry of Economic Affairs. It is for security duty of all governmental business units and Taiwan Power Company under the Ministry of Economic Affairs and all Science Parks of National Science Council.
 * The first brigade is especially tasked for the copyright protection and the enforcement of counterfeit and infringement in related to intellectual property. It is usually code-named as Intellectual Property Protection Brigade.
 * The 2nd is to guard three nuclear power plants (Nuclear No.1, No.2, and No.4) of Taiwan Power Company in New Taipei City.
 * The 3rd is in northern Taiwan for the security duty of two Science Parks in Hsinchu and Taichung under National Science Council, and the other industrial parks, import-export districts, and certain government installations of the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
 * The 4th is in southern Taiwan for the security duty of all governmental business installations under the National Science Council and the Ministry of Economic Affairs, which includes one nuclear power plant: "Nuclear No.3."

The Third Corps
It is a part of border police and provides supportive and supplemental duty of Customs Services of Ministry of Finance.

The Fourth Corps
Riot control, Special Weapons and Tactics, counter-terrorism in central Taiwan.
 * "Wei-an" Forces: In March 2003, two more task force-sized SWAT groups of "Wei-an" Forces were formed. One of them is attached to the 4th Special Police Corps in Taichung, which is located in central Taiwan.

The Fifth Corps
Riot control, Special Weapons and Tactics, counter-terrorism in southern Taiwan.
 * "Wei-an" Forces: In March 2003, two task-force SWAT groups were formed. One is attached to the 5th Special Police Corps in southern Taiwan.

The Sixth Corps
Responsible for the physical security of central government buildings, high-ranking civilian officials, foreign embassies, and liaison institutes.

The Seventh Corps
The Seventh Special Police Corps, 7SPC, was established on January 1, 2014, aiming to solve the growing problems of nature reservation, environment protection and forest and National Parks guarding. The design of 7SPC is close to National Parks rangers in USA, who are officials employed by government to provide law and order (often against poaching). Their duties are originally confined to seeing that the Forest Law, National Parks Law and Environment Protection Law and so on.

Taiwan Special Police Corps
There are 6 Special Police Brigades inherited from the late Taiwan Provincial Police Administration.
 * The first 3 brigades are for the security duty of 3 governmental financial banks: Taiwan Land Bank, Taiwan Cooperative Bank, and Bank of Taiwan.
 * The 4th is to guard the government installations related to the late Taiwan Province.
 * The 5th and 6th are attached to Water Resources Agency (水利署), Ministry of Economic Affairs to protect the water supply and water-and-land-related environmental cases.

Civil Defense Force
The Civil Defense Force (民防防情指揮管制所) is administered by the NPA.

Other NPA Units

The Immigration Bureau (入出境管理局) was removed from NPA and reorganized as the National Immigration Agency on 2 January 2007.
 * National Highway Police Bureau (國道公路警察局): Jurisdiction over national highways.
 * Harbor Police Offices (港務警察局): Part of border police in Taiwan. There are 4 separate offices with jurisdictions over the ports of Keelung, Taichung, Kaohsiung and Hualien.
 * Railway Police Bureau (鐵路警察局): Jurisdiction over stations and facilities of Taiwan Railway Administration since 1949 and Taiwan High Speed Rail since 26 December 2006.
 * The 1st section: facilities of TRA, north of Taichung in western Taiwan
 * The 2nd section: facilities of TRA, south of Taichung in western Taiwan
 * The 3rd section: facilities of TRA in eastern Taiwan
 * The THSR section: facilities of THSR

 * Aviation Police Bureau (航空警察局): The Airport police is a part of border police and responsible for safeguarding, traffic administration, crime investigation, documents inspection, security examination etc. at local civil airports in the ROC. Its headquarters is at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
 * National Park Police Corps (國家公園警察大隊): Jurisdiction over the national parks, specialization in search and rescue operations.
 * Taiwan Police College
 * Police Armory (警察機械修理廠)
 * Police Telecommunications Office (警察電訊所)
 * Police Radio Station (警察廣播電臺): A government public radio station run by civilians. It broadcasts regular radio show programs, news, and real-time traffic situations.

Task-Force Formations under NPA
By separate decrees of The Executive Yuan, three task-force formations, each consisted of roughly a couple of hundreds police officers with different specialty, are formed under the National Police Agency but attached to two cabinet-level institutions or other units.
 * Telecommunication Police Corps (電信警察隊): In January 1998, a task force called the "Telecommunication Police Corps" was formed and attached to the Ministry of Transportation and Communications. Since 2 February 2006, the Telecommunication Police Corps are re-attached to the National Communication Commission. Its job is to enforce laws concerning the radio spectrum and telecommunications.
 * Environmental Protection Police Corps (環保警察隊): It was formed in 1999 and is attached to the Environmental Protection Administration. There are currently 192 policemen serving as Environmental Protection Police and assigned to three brigades at Taipei City, Taichung City and Fongshan City in Northern, Central and Southern Taiwan, respectively.
 * Forest & Nature Conservation Police Unit (森林暨自然保育警察隊): This was formed with 178 policemen on 1 July 2004 by the decree of the Executive Yuan on 6 August 2003, after ten forest arson cases in the mountain area of Taichung County (now part of Taichung City) within six years. It is attached to the Forest Bureau of the Council of Agriculture. Besides its headquarters in Taipei City, there are 8 squadrons in Taiwan mountain area. Its main task is to support the forest patrolmen to preserve and protect the ecology system and all historic monuments in all the forests in Taiwan.

Ranks
Rank insignias are worn over the right breast pocket when in uniform. The rank system of the National Police Agency is as follows:

Before 1999, the lowest-grade street policemen held the rank of Police Officer II, denoted by an insignia of two stars on one horizontal bar, sometimes referred to colloquially as "一毛二" or "one dime and two cents." On 3 March 1999, an adjustment of "the table of police positions and corresponding ranks" or "各級警察機關學校警察官職務配階表", from the Ministry of Interior resulted in regular policemen or women on street holding the rank of Senior Police Officer, denoted by "three stars on one horizontal bar", nicknamed "一毛三" or "one dime and three cents."

To emphasize the independence of the ranks and the professions, the rank of ROC police may not perfectly match their positions in a station. In 2007, a highest rank above Police Supervisor Rank 1 is created for the highest position, Police General, who is in charge of and oversees the public safety of the entire nation.

History
The current police service in Taiwan traces its roots back to police forces established in Taiwan during Japanese colonial rule, as well as police services established in mainland China during the early 20th century.

The ROC's law enforcement system built upon the foundations laid down during the Qing dynasty with the establishment of the Peking Public Inspection Headquarters in 1902. Following the overthrow of the Qing dynasty and the establishment of the Republic in 1912, a National Police Department was established under the auspices of the Ministry of the Interior. This early centralized system consisted of a national headquarters in the capital, provincial police administrations for each province, police departments and bureaus at the municipal and county level respectively. This system was extended to Taiwan following its transfer to ROC control in 1947, two years after the close of hostilities in World War II, though the basic system from the Japanese era was retained.

In 1972, to streamline organizational costs, the National Police Department was merged with the Taiwan Police Administration to form the new National Police Agency (NPA).

The first 4 Directors-General of NPA, between 1972 and 1990, were active general officers transferred from Army or Marine Corps: The latter three even served as two-star Marine Corps Commandants.
 * Chou Ju-cun (周菊村), between 1972 and 1976;
 * Kong Ling-Cheng (zh:孔令晟), between 1976 and June 1980;
 * Ho En-ting (何恩廷), between June 1980 and 1 August 1984;
 * Luo Chang (羅張), between 1 August 1984 and 4 August 1990.

Secret police organizations
Historically speaking, in Taiwan, unlike Special Higher Police (Tokko) and the Japanese Military police (Kempeitai) during the Japanese Colonial era, the secret police activity was not the major task of Taiwan police system during the Martial-Law era.

The Taiwan police system at that time only played as a supportive role, like performing frequent surveillance, for example. Nevertheless, the governmental body of Taiwan police system back then was and still is subjective to the supervision and coordination of National Security Bureau of the ROC National Security Council. The main secret-police work were held up by other security units listed below. Several units in the past like National Security Bureau or National Bureau of Investigation were much more fearful or despicable to the people of Taiwan. However, by the end of the Martial-Law era, these so-called "secret police" units were legalized, transformed into intelligence-oriented or law-enforcement units, or even disbanded.

The typical secret-police example of the involvement from several security units is Peng Ming-min, the famous Taiwanese political prisoner since the 1960s. Tipped off by several civilians, Peng was at first arrested by a police detail from local police station in Taipei City. Immediately, he was sent to Taiwan Garrison Command for interrogation, which was led by its Division of Political Warfare. Sequentially, Peng was courted-martial by a military tribunal organized by "Division of Judge Advocate General" of Taiwan Garrison Command. Peng was pardoned in 1965 but put under house arrest. In 1966, Peng's case was then discussed by National Security Council and transferred from Taiwan Garrison Command to Bureau of Investigation. Until his escape in January, 1970, Peng was under the regular visits from local policemen and constant surveillance from agents of Bureau of Investigation.

Post-Martial Law era reforms
In 1990, Chuang Heng-dai (莊亨岱), by then the Commissioner of Railway Police Bureau, became the first career police officer with the background of a criminal investigator to take over the chief of NPA. Since then, all the successive directors-general of NPA are promoted from career police officers in active duty within the Taiwan police system.

The Taiwan Provincial Police Administration was again separated from the NPA in 1995 with the implementation of local autonomy statutes in the ROC Constitution. Fire-fighting units also ceased to be part of the NPA from that year and were reorganized into a separate fire department. National Fire Agency of Ministry of Interior was established on 1 March 1995 to be responsible for fire prevention, disaster rescue and emergency medical service.

In 1999, with the downsizing of the provincial level of government, the Taiwan Provincial Police Administration was dissolved and its personnel and responsibilities were once again transferred to the National Police Agency.

An increase in crime and liberalization of the mass media in the 1990s led to many questions concerning the effectiveness of the police force in investigating and fighting crime, as opposed to its prior concentration on crowd and riot control, a carryover from the martial law era.

Recent years
With increased media coverage in recent years and the proliferation of tabloid newspapers and 24-hour cable news channels throughout Taiwan, the police force has been faced with new challenges involving high-profile crimes, and increased media involvement. Past concerns of police corruption have largely been replaced by concerns of police ineffectiveness, particularly in light of several high-profile cases in recent years. Gun related crime has also increased, though the overall crime rate in Taiwan remains lower than that of most western and Asian nations.

On 22 July 2000, four workers carrying out riverbed construction work in the Pachang River of Chiayi County, were surrounded by the quickly rising torrent on Saturday afternoon. The four stood in the center of the river for three hours, waiting for a helicopter that never came, and were finally washed away at around 7:08pm in sight of family members, helpless would-be rescuers, and the lens of news cameras on the riverbank. The delay was attributed to bureaucratic red tape and three top government officials resigned, including Yu Shyi-kun, the vice Premier of Executive Yuan and two Director-Generals from National Police Agency and National Fire Agency. This Pachang-Creek incident (zh:八掌溪事件) caused a field day for the news media in Taiwan and triggered a reform of the airborne emergency management system. On 10 March 2004, the newly formed National Airborne Service Corps (NASC) of the Ministry of Interior absorbed four civil airborne squadrons
 * The Airborne Squadron of National Police Agency,
 * The Preparatory Office of the Airborne Fire Fighting Squadron of National Fire Agency,
 * The Aviation Team of Civil Aeronautics Administration of Ministry of Transportation and Communications,
 * The Air Patrol Squadron of the Coast Guard Administration.

NASC takes over the responsibilities of five major airborne tasks:Search and Rescue, Disaster Relief, Emergency Medical Services, Reconnaissance and Patrol, and Transportation.

On 26 July 2004, members of the Criminal Investigation Bureau engaged in what was arguably the largest gun battle in the history of modern Taiwan with members of a kidnapping gang in Kaohsiung County (now part of Kaohsiung City). Though they held a numerical advantage, the officers found themselves outgunned by the suspects who possessed bulletproof vests and M16's. In the ensuing gunfight four police officers were injured, and two suspects were shot and arrested. However the ringleader of the gang managed to escape along with a cohort after holding a passing civilian hostage and escaping in a hijacked car on live TV. The ensuing manhunt was widely covered, the ringleader Chang Hsi-ming) was finally arrested following another gun battle with police on 13 July 2005.

On 28 February 2006, Hou You-yi, the Criminal Investigation Bureau Commissioner, assumed command as the director-general of the National Police Agency. He, a career criminal investigator, is the youngest-ever to hold that post. Wang Cho-chiun, Chief of Taipei City Police Department, was named as the new director-general effective June 2008.

On 2 Jan 2007, according to "the Organic Law of the National Immigration Agency" enacted on 30 Nov 2005, the NPA's former Immigration Office was expanded to become the National Immigration Agency under the direct control of the Ministry of the Interior, and Wu Cheng-chi (吳振吉) was named the first director general of NIA.

Other duties
In addition to normal law enforcement duties, police in the ROC are charged with other slightly more unusual duties such as taking census data, as well as immigration and visa related issues. Most jurisdictions also have a Foreign Affairs squad staffed by English speaking officers tasked with visa enforcement and issues relating to foreigners or the foreign community in Taiwan.

Bureau of Investigation

Regarding drugs, corruptions, espionage, and economic crimes, the Investigative Bureau of Ministry of Justice (MJIB) has developed stronger capability to cover cases in those categories for decades. The investigation of these cases, police corruption included, are usually transferred to or led by the Bureau of Investigation.

MJIB officers are equipped with a strong laboratory-testing capacity regarding controlled substances. This gives a necessary advantage and training for the investigators of MJIB. However, the police forces in the ROC still maintain several active drug enforcement squads at the local police departments and the Criminal Investigation Bureau of NPA.

Historically, counter-intelligence affairs are under the turf of MJIB. Different from "special branch" in the police system in United Kingdom, the security divisions at all levels of Taiwan police system are mainly staff units, not fielded police details. Under the supervision of National Security Bureau, all non-mililary cases of espionage would soon be moved to the Bureau of Investigation.

A few years ago, high-ranking police officials tried to develop the strength of investigating white-collar crimes in the ROC police system but gained unnoticed progress. The MJIB is still in the lead position of cracking economic crimes or money-laundry. However, the Criminal Investigation Bureau of NPA has built fair reputation on copyright protection and the safety of computers and networks. Also, regarding the copyright issue, the 1st brigade of the 2nd special police corps is especially tasked for the enforcement related to intellectual property.

Military Police

According to the "Law of the dispatching of Judicial Police Personnel," military police can deal with civilian affairs under the supervision of the public prosecutor(s) from all court prosecutors' offices at all levels under the Ministry of Justice. Sometimes public prosecutors will direct military police to handle large-scale searches or arrests when investigating cases of police-related crimes, prostitution, or fugitive recovery.

Regarding counter-terrorism, there are three company-size troops of special forces under the operational control of the Ministry of National Defense: These three are tasked to handle combat situations involving international terrorists, mercenary or para-military criminals. Bound by laws, currently only the Military Police Special Service Company can react to non-military cases, like airplane hijacking.
 * Northern Taiwan: Military Police Special Service Company (MPSSC, Code Name: Night Hawk), Military Police Command.
 * Central Taiwan: Special Warfare Special Service Company, Aviation, Airborne and Special Warfare Command of the Republic of China Army.
 * Southern Taiwan: Marine Special Service Company, Marine Corps Command of the Republic of China Navy.

Fire Brigades

Taiwan Firemen were a part of the Taiwan Police before 1995. At that time, the Fire Policemen were not the most favorite people in the eyes of certain police chiefs. The most extreme case was in Taipei County (now New Taipei City) Police Department: the Taipei County Police Commissioner Yao Kao-Chiao (姚高橋) assigned all his fire policemen to kitchen duty because he felt his fire policemen were doing nothing except waiting for a fire to happen.

It is worth to point out that Yao Kao-Chiao was the Directors-General of Central Police University from May 1995 to June 1996, of National Police Agency from June 1996 to 1997, and of Coast Guard Administration from 28 January 2000 until 21 May 2000.

Also, in Taiwan, another contradiction was the radio call signs for the fire trucks or rescue vehicles. For reasons to avoid unwanted attentions and to remain secrecy, all radio call signs for all police vehicles were uncorrelated with the missions of the subject vehicles, unnecessarily including fire trucks, rescue vehicles, and ambulances of fire brigades. When fire police teams were responding to an emergency situation, these confusing call signs inevitably led to chaos and time delay. A successful fire chief, Chao Kang (趙鋼), convinced the police high command to rearrange the radio call sign assignment for all fire vehicles. Chao Kang then was appointed as the Commissioner of Taiwan Provincial Fire Administration, and the Director-General of National Fire Agency from 10 September 2000 to September 2002.

Auxiliary Police
The Auxiliary Police (Traditional Chinese:義勇警察) is an auxiliary organization that civil voluntarily join to support the police and perform civil defense tasks. Although the auxiliary police do not have a standard rank insignia, the Taipei City auxiliary Police has adopted a non-standard rank insignias with modified colors based on the current police rank insignias.

title: National Police Agency (Taiwan)


text:
Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Samsara VJ's

 This page is an archive of the discussion about the proposed deletion of the article below. This page is no longer live. Further comments should be made on the article's talk page rather than here so that this page is preserved as an historic record. The result of the debate was delete. – ABCD 01:48, 19 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Samsara VJ's
Presence appears limited to their own webpage. Probably promotional - the video jockey page was changed to included their link. Should the video jockey list, itself, also be moved? Lotsofissues 03:43, 13 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * Delete, not notable, promo. Megan1967 08:21, 13 Apr 2005 (UTC)

 * This page is now preserved as an archive of the debate and, like some other VfD subpages, is no longer 'live'. Subsequent comments on the issue, the deletion, or the decision-making process should be placed on the relevant 'live' pages. Please do not edit this page.


text:
Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Gabriella valsecchi

 This page is an archive of the discussion about the proposed deletion of the article below. This page is no longer live. Further comments should be made on the article's talk page rather than here so that this page is preserved as an historic record. The result of the debate was delete. – ABCD 21:09, 19 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Gabriella valsecchi
Delete I'm new, but this looks like a vanity page to me. Chyel 03:44, Apr 13, 2005 (UTC)
 * Oh, yes...and not a very good one at that. Delete.  Speedy if possible.  It's barely literate. - Lucky 6.9 05:49, 13 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * A better bio. There could be something encyclopedic if, say, she's pioneered some of the alternative training methods for horses that she uses in her practice and writes about in her Ride! magazine column. This information is not on the visible web. If the creator of the article is reading this, please describe significant contributions Gabriella Valsecchi has made to the world. Wikipedia is not a free website to list just anybody. Samaritan 06:34, 13 Apr 2005 (UTC)

 * This page is now preserved as an archive of the debate and, like some other VfD subpages, is no longer 'live'. Subsequent comments on the issue, the deletion, or the decision-making process should be placed on the relevant 'live' pages. Please do not edit this page.


text: User talk:67.126.116.70

title: User talk:67.126.116.70


text:
User talk:Windchaser

Government Public Domain
Hello and welcome to Wikipedia. It is good to see you taking an interest in pointing out possible copyright violations, but I'm afraid I must correct you on the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce flagging of a possible violation. Because it comes from the U.S. House page it was created by the federal government and is therefore in the public domain, which means we are free to use it. For example, all of the census data that we use for pages about cities and towns in America are in the public domain since the US gov't created it. Feel free to ask me any questions if you have them.

Thanks MicahMN | Talk 03:45, 13 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Ahmad Dawood
I don't understand why you removed the 'gcheck' and 'wikify' templates from this article, when no work has been done to it. Mel Etitis ( Μελ Ετητης ) 08:43, 20 Apr 2005 (UTC)

My Inbox
Please note: If you have a general comment, or wish to comment on a reversion that I have made, please leave a note below this notice, so that I will see it quicker.

Wite ink ρεβῼ ( Talk )/( Stalk )
Thank you for your help and helping me see what i did wrong. Wite ink ρεβῼ ( Talk )/( Stalk ) 02:36, 5 February 2010 (UTC)

Thanks
Hello Windchaser, and thanks for reverting vandalism on my user page. Best wishes, Paul Erik  (talk) (contribs) 19:21, 5 February 2010 (UTC)

A barnstar for you!
WOW!!! As soon as I reloaded the page after giving you the barnstar, I see a cookie as well. That was not there before I started writing the message on the barnstar. Two bits of wikilove, a minute apart from each other ... I've never seen that before. Well done! Metricopolus (talk) 03:30, 14 October 2011 (UTC)

Nomination of Parents Action League for deletion
A discussion is taking place as to whether the article Parents Action League is suitable for inclusion in Wikipedia according to Wikipedia's policies and guidelines or whether it should be deleted.

The article will be discussed at Articles for deletion/Parents Action League until a consensus is reached, and anyone is welcome to contribute to the discussion. The nomination will explain the policies and guidelines which are of concern. The discussion focuses on high-quality evidence and our policies and guidelines.

Users may edit the article during the discussion, including to improve the article to address concerns raised in the discussion. However, do not remove the article-for-deletion template from the top of the article.  Belch fire - TALK 03:12, 9 September 2012 (UTC)

Your contributed article, Mission: America

Hello, I noticed that you recently created a new page, Mission: America. First, thank you for your contribution; Wikipedia relies solely on the efforts of volunteers such as you. Unfortunately, the page you created covers a topic on which we already have a page – Mission America (Columbus, Ohio). Because of the duplication, your article has been tagged for speedy deletion. Please note that this is not a comment on you personally and we hope you will continue helping to improve Wikipedia. If the topic of the article you created is one that interests you, then perhaps you would like to help out at Mission America (Columbus, Ohio) – you might like to discuss new information at the article's talk page.

If you think that the article you created should remain separate, contest the nomination by clicking on the button labelled "Click here to contest this speedy deletion" in the speedy deletion tag. Doing so will take you to the talk page where you can explain why you believe the page should not be deleted. You can also visit the page's talk page directly to give your reasons, but be aware that once a page is tagged for speedy deletion, it may be removed without delay. Please do not remove the speedy deletion tag yourself, but do not hesitate to add information that is consistent with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. If the page is deleted, you can contact one of these administrators to request that the administrator userfy the page or email a copy to you. Additionally if you would like to have someone review articles you create before they go live so they are not nominated for deletion shortly after you post them, allow me to suggest the article creation process and using our search feature to find related information we already have in the encyclopedia. Try not to be discouraged. Wikipedia looks forward to your future contributions. – MrX 14:41, 16 September 2012 (UTC)

ArbCom elections are now open!
MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 12:59, 23 November 2015 (UTC)

Speedy deletion nomination of Public Advocate of the United States

A tag has been placed on Public Advocate of the United States requesting that it be speedily deleted from Wikipedia. This has been done under section A7 of the criteria for speedy deletion, because the article appears to be about an organization or company, but it does not credibly indicate how or why the subject is important or significant: that is, why an article about that subject should be included in an encyclopedia. Under the criteria for speedy deletion, such articles may be deleted at any time. Please read more about what is generally accepted as notable.

If you think this page should not be deleted for this reason, you may contest the nomination by visiting the page and clicking the button labelled "Contest this speedy deletion". This will give you the opportunity to explain why you believe the page should not be deleted. However, be aware that once a page is tagged for speedy deletion, it may be removed without delay. Please do not remove the speedy deletion tag from the page yourself, but do not hesitate to add information in line with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. If the page is deleted, and you wish to retrieve the deleted material for future reference or improvement, then please contact the. – S. Rich (talk) 04:14, 5 April 2017 (UTC)

Nomination of DIS – Study Abroad in Scandinavia for deletion
A discussion is taking place as to whether the article DIS – Study Abroad in Scandinavia is suitable for inclusion in Wikipedia according to Wikipedia's policies and guidelines or whether it should be deleted.

The article will be discussed at Articles for deletion/DIS – Study Abroad in Scandinavia until a consensus is reached, and anyone is welcome to contribute to the discussion. The nomination will explain the policies and guidelines which are of concern. The discussion focuses on high-quality evidence and our policies and guidelines.

Users may edit the article during the discussion, including to improve the article to address concerns raised in the discussion. However, do not remove the article-for-deletion notice from the top of the article. Störm  (talk)  14:15, 2 February 2018 (UTC)

Speedy deletion nomination of DIS – Study Abroad in Scandinavia

A tag has been placed on DIS – Study Abroad in Scandinavia requesting that it be speedily deleted from Wikipedia. This has been done under section A7 of the criteria for speedy deletion, because the article appears to be about a company, corporation or organization, but it does not credibly indicate how or why the subject is important or significant: that is, why an article about that subject should be included in an encyclopedia. Under the criteria for speedy deletion, such articles may be deleted at any time. Please read more about what is generally accepted as notable.

If you think this page should not be deleted for this reason, you may contest the nomination by visiting the page and clicking the button labelled "Contest this speedy deletion". This will give you the opportunity to explain why you believe the page should not be deleted. However, be aware that once a page is tagged for speedy deletion, it may be deleted without delay. Please do not remove the speedy deletion tag from the page yourself, but do not hesitate to add information in line with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. If the page is deleted, and you wish to retrieve the deleted material for future reference or improvement, then please contact the. Störm  (talk)  14:21, 4 February 2018 (UTC)

title: User talk:Windchaser


text:
Betsileo people

The Betsileo are a highland ethnic group of Madagascar, the third largest in terms of population. They chose their name, meaning "The Many Invincible Ones", after a failed invasion by King Ramitraho of the Menabe kingdom in the early 19th century.

Territory
The Betsileo occupy the south of the Madagascar plateau. Their traditional territory extends from the north of the Mania River in the north to the foot of the Andringitra Massif in the south; to the west by the Bongolava chain and the east by the Eastern Forest, occupied by the Tanala tribe. Most of the Betsileo region lies within the boundaries of the Malagasy province of Fianarantsoa, where their capital city of the same name can be found.

Traditionally their territory and their people are divided into three major parts. The Northern Betsileo (or Fisakana) is defined by the Ivato and Manandona rivers in the north and the Sahanivotry and Mania rivers to the south. The Central Betsileo (or Manandriana) is found between the Ivato and the Matsiatra rivers. The Southern Betsileo is all the Betsileo territory to the south of the Matsiatra river (the Isandra, Lalangina, Iarindrano and Andringitra).

History
The different Betsileo kingdoms (Fandriana, Fisakana, Manandriana, Isandra, etc.) existed independently of each other with oral traditions dating back to the 17th century. They were all eventually conquered and reorganized by Radama I. A large portion of the Betsileo people were made into slaves and traded domestically or sold to European slave traders. Radama I made Fianarantsoa the administrative capital of the central and southern Betsileo people. The north was attached to Antsirabe. Thus the Betsileo as a group began in the 19th century as an administrative subdivision by the Malagasy government.

Society
The Betsileo identity is closely associated with the Merina culture, since they are both highland-dwelling groups. The Betsileo social structure is determined by a very complex system of kinship. There is a close connection between family members permeating society to the level of administrative roles and jobs, as most Betsileo are obligated to join their relatives in the family occupation. There is also considerable emphasis on the role of elders as community leaders. Community elders often hold more authority than those in formal government positions.

Class affiliation
Betsileo society is influenced by a long history of slavery before its abolition during the French colonization. The Betsileo have a complex system of social organization determined through a number of stratifications. The status structure of the Betsileo is principally determined by the ancestry of an individual’s family. Status was historically split between andriana (nobles), hova (free commoners) and andevo (slaves), the latter being a highly stigmatized term for the lowest social class in contemporary Betsileo society.

Religious affiliation
Since the arrival of European missionaries in the nineteenth century, much of the Malagasy population has since been converted to Christianity. About 94% of Betsileo are Christians. Most Betsileo are either Protestant or Catholic, but much of their ancestral traditions and religious tenets are still observed, often alongside or in concert with Christian practices. Pre-Christian Betsileo beliefs recognized a supernatural realm of ancestral spirits, ghosts, and nature spirits similar to animism practiced in other parts of the world. A creator deity named Zanahary was also recognized, and is still invoked for ceremonial purposes. The competing influences of European monotheism and native religion in Madagascar resulted in a unique system of religious customs in which Christian practices and traditional tenets were combined in ceremonies and belief.

One of the most significant Betsileo ceremonies that still takes place is the famadihana, or “turning of the bones,” during which the remains of Bestileo ancestors are taken out of their tombs and wrapped in new linens and celebrated. Similar religious ceremonials can also be found in Toraja, South Sulawesi and Dayaks in Kalimantan and also in various other places in Indonesia.

Culture
The Betsileo are, like the majority of Madagascar's population, largely a mix of Bantu African and Austronesian descent, although some sources claim that the Betsileo are primarily of Austronesian descent. However, their appearance resembles closer to Bantu populations than Austronesian. Traditionally they claim a common heritage with the Antemoro from the east coast and the Bara from further south. They traditionally lived in huts made of vegetable fiber, reserving wooden huts for the nobles, per Malagasy architectural norms. Both were often adorned with decorative motifs or even the horns of zebu. Nowadays mud and brick houses are more common.

The Betsileo region of Fianarantsoa is characterized by hills and valleys with rice paddies carved into the sides of them in elaborate terracing systems, in a style reminiscent of those in Southeast Asia. The Betsileo diet almost invariably consists of rice accompanied with livestock such as beef, chicken, or duck and secondary crops like cassava, beans and other farm vegetables. Cattle raising is also important, though not as significant as in neighboring groups like the Bara. The people are excellent woodcarvers and are known for their large wooden sculptures.

Despite the prevalence of Christianity, the role of diviners, astrologists and witch doctors in Betsileo society is also still significant. Witch doctors are believed to be able to manipulate magic as well as converse with ancestors, and can be consulted for reasons ranging from health issues to poisoning. Astrologists and diviners are consulted to set dates for ceremonies or read people’s futures.

Language
The Betsileo speak a dialect of the Malagasy language, which is a branch of the Malayo-Polynesian language group derived from the Barito languages, spoken in southern Borneo.

Economy
The Betsileo are known for their agricultural background and prowess as farmers. Their economic mainstay is rice cultivation, which is a staple food in Madagascar. The size and yield of a family’s rice plot often demarcates the wealth of that family.

title: Betsileo people


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Catch Me If You Can (disambiguation)

Catch Me If You Can is a 2002 film directed by Steven Spielberg.

Catch Me If You Can may also refer to:

 * Catch Me If You Can (book), by Frank Abagnale, the basis of the 2002 film

Film and stage

 * Catch Me If You Can (musical), a musical adaptation of the 2002 film
 * Catch Me If You Can, a 1959 film directed by Don Weis
 * Catch Me If You Can (play), a 1965 stage play by Willie Gilbert and Jack Weinstock
 * Catch Me If You Can (1989 film), written and directed by Stephen Sommers

Music

 * Catch Me If You Can (Bashy album), the debut album of UK rapper Bashy
 * Catch Me If You Can (soundtrack), the original soundtrack of the 2002 film
 * Catch Me If You Can, the soundtrack of the 1989 film; see the Tangerine Dream discography
 * Catch Me If You Can (EP), the debut extended play by Canadian singer Jess Moskaluke; or its title track
 * "Catch Me If You Can" (Ana Johnsson song)
 * "Catch Me If You Can" (M. Pokora song)
 * "Catch Me If You Can," a song by Angela Via on the soundtrack album Pokémon: The First Movie
 * "Catch Me If You Can" (Girls' Generation song), Girls' Generation's ninth Japanese single
 * "Catch Me If You Can", a song by Gym Class Heroes on the album The Quilt
 * "Catch Me If You Can", a song by Burnham
 * "Catch Me If You Can", a song by Jacqueline Emerson
 * "Catch Me If You Can", a song by Babymetal on the album Babymetal
 * "Catch Me If You Can", a song from Sonic Riders and Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity
 * "Catch Me If You Can", a song by Eden as a bonus track on the album End Credits
 * "Catch Me If You Can", a song written by Brendan Shine
 * “Catch Me If You Can”, a song by Millionaires (group) featuring Jeffree Star

Other uses

 * "Catch Me If You Can", a television episode in the list of Good Luck Charlie episodes
 * "Catch Me If You Can" (The Vampire Diaries), a 2013 episode of the television series The Vampire Diaries
 * "Catch Me If You Can" is a song from the second season of Soy Luna.
 * Catch Me If You Can, an American radio quiz program later retitled Hit the Jackpot
 * Catch Me If You Can (game show), a Russian television program; unofficial adaptation of I Can See Your Voice

title: Catch Me If You Can (disambiguation)


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Ultima Underworld II: Labyrinth of Worlds

Ultima Underworld II: Labyrinth of Worlds is a 1993 first-person role-playing video game developed by LookingGlass Technologies and published by Origin Systems. As the sequel to Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss, the game is set in the Ultima fantasy universe. Players assume the role of the Avatar—the protagonist of the Ultima series—and adventure through multiple dimensions while seeking to prevent the evil Guardian from achieving world domination. Progression is largely nonlinear and the game allows for emergent gameplay.

Ultima Underworld II began production in April 1992, shortly after the completion of Ultima Underworld; and it was developed in nine months. The team sought to improve upon the foundation laid by the game's predecessor, particularly by increasing the size and interactivity of the game world. The team reused and improved the first game's engine. Development was impeded by insufficient staffing and extensive playtesting, and the rapid production cycle led to burnout on the team.

Most critics gave Ultima Underworld II positive reviews and lauded its graphics, design and nonlinearity. Complaints focused on its high system requirements and unrefined pacing. It has been placed on numerous hall of fame lists since its release. In reaction to the game's difficult development, Looking Glass altered its design approach: they streamlined ideas from the Ultima Underworld series to create System Shock. The team pitched a sequel to Ultima Underworld II multiple times, but Origin Systems rejected the idea. Arkane Studios' Arx Fatalis (2002) is a spiritual successor to the franchise originally pitched as a sequel. OtherSide Entertainment's Underworld Ascendant is the first officially licensed entry in the series in over 23 years.

Gameplay
Ultima Underworld II is a role-playing video game that takes place from a character's eye view in a three-dimensional (3D) graphical environment. The player's goal is to adventure through dungeon-like indoor environments across eight parallel dimensions, while completing quests to help the inhabitants of each world. The player uses a freely movable mouse cursor to interact with the game's world and to manipulate the heads-up display (HUD) interface. Icons on the HUD allow the player to examine objects closely, to converse with non-player characters (NPCs) and to ready the player character's weapon, among other things. During the game, the player collects items and stores them in an inventory on the HUD. Because it uses the same engine as its predecessor, Ultima Underworld II shares many of that game's features. For example, it allows the player character to jump and swim, and it contains an automap.

The player begins by creating a character, for whom traits such as gender, character class and skills may be selected. Skills range from diplomacy and lockpicking to blacksmithing. The game starts in the castle of Lord British, through which the player accesses other dimensions. The player character gains experience points by fighting, completing quests and exploring. During combat, the player attacks by clicking the screen: more damage is dealt when the player presses and holds the attack button. Depending on where the player clicks, different types of attacks—such as thrusts and slashes—occur. The player may cast spells by using an appropriate combination of "runestones", which are collected throughout the game. When enough experience points have been accumulated, the player character levels up and gains hit points. Experience points also grant "skill points", which allow the character to increase skill proficiency. Unlike in Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss, skills are not improved at shrines; rather, they are increased by training with NPCs at the castle or in other dimensions.

As with its predecessor, Ultima Underworld II was designed to generate emergent gameplay through the interplay of simulated systems. The developers attempted to combine role-playing elements with "a sophisticated three-dimensional simulation of a sensible and believable world". For example, torches burn out, items wear over time and the player character must eat. Many items in the game are useless but were included for the sake of realism. The game is nonlinear, in that players must "visit and revisit" areas as the character gains abilities and becomes stronger, instead of "clearing each square foot as they go". Many situations and puzzles in the game have multiple solutions.

Setting and characters
Ultima Underworld II is set in the fantasy world of the Ultima franchise. It takes place across multiple parallel dimensions, the first being Britannia, the traditional setting of Ultima games. The protagonist is the Avatar, the main character of the series. Chronologically, the events of the game occur directly after those of Ultima VII: The Black Gate, rather than those of the original Ultima Underworld. As with Ultima VII, the villain of Ultima Underworld II is the Guardian, an evil being who seeks to conquer Britannia. The game features recurring characters from previous Ultima games, such as Lord British, Nystul, Dupre, Iolo and Mayor Patterson. Also present are Lady Tory and Miranda, the latter of whom appeared in Ultima VII.

Story
One year after the events of Ultima VII: The Black Gate, the Avatar and many other recurring characters from the Ultima series attend a celebration at the castle of Lord British. However, they are trapped when a large dome of impenetrable "blackrock" covers the castle. The Guardian plans to attack Britannia while the characters are trapped, and he explains that those who do not surrender will be left to die in the dome. Searching the sewers beneath the castle, the Avatar locates a smaller blackrock crystal that leads to alternate dimensions. The magic used by the Guardian to seal the castle caused interdimensional portals to open between eight parallel worlds, each of which is a "center" for the Guardian's power across dimensions. The denizens of these dimensions are ruled by the Guardian, and the player must free each world to weaken the Guardian's power over Lord British's castle and elsewhere. The Guardian mocks the efforts of the Avatar in their dreams throughout the game. As the Avatar explores other worlds, a contemporaneous plotline, which PC Zone's David McCandless called a "soap opera", unfolds at the castle. One of those trapped in the castle is a traitor, and the Avatar must discover their identity.

The first dimension visited by the Avatar is a prison tower in "Fyrna", which has been conquered by goblins led by the Guardian. There, the player rescues a human resistance leader named Bishop, who then returns to lead a rebellion against the Guardian. Back at the castle, the player gives a small blackrock gem obtained in the prison tower to Nystul, who enchants it to disrupt the portal in the sewers. Next, the player visits Killorn Keep, a floating fortress in a different dimension. Altara, a sorceress in Killorn Keep who is allied with Bishop, warns the Avatar that the Guardian has hidden a magical spy beneath the castle in Britannia. She provides a special dagger with which to kill it. After removing the spy, the Avatar visits a dimension of ice caves: the remnants of a civilization destroyed by the Guardian, now ruled by a ghost named Beatrice. The Avatar returns to the castle and finds that Lady Tory has been murdered by the traitor. The next dimension is Talorus, a world inhabited by energy beings called "Talorids" that each serve a single purpose, such as knowing only the past or producing runestones. Talorids are created to serve the Guardian, but the Avatar destroys and replaces the sole reproductive Talorid to free the race.

The Avatar completes a series of tests at Scintillus Academy, a mage school whose staff was killed by the Guardian. Afterwards, the player travels to the Pits of Carnage, a subterranean prison on a world where the Guardian trains soldiers to attack other dimensions; and to the Tomb of Praecor Loth, where a king killed in a war with the Guardian is buried. Finally, the Avatar visits the Ethereal Void, a strange world with floating, glowing pathways and no map. Eventually, the Avatar discovers that Mayor Patterson is the traitor and destroys the blackrock dome.

Development
Looking Glass Technologies began to develop Ultima Underworld II in April 1992. The team's goal was to build upon the foundation laid by the game's predecessor, Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss. They attempted to write a better, more complex plot and to include superior simulation elements and "play value". According to project leader Doug Church, the team's "biggest advantage" was the presence of four dedicated designers; by contrast, each member of the original game's team had assumed multiple roles. The Tomb of Praecor Loth was largely created by lead writer Austin Grossman, who took inspiration from the Dungeons & Dragons module Tomb of Horrors. The additional designers allowed Looking Glass to more carefully revise levels in Ultima Underworld II, so that players would have "interesting stuff" to see and do each time they explored an area. The team attempted to fine-tune the role-playing mechanics of Ultima Underworld, such as by making certain skills more powerful in the sequel. More puzzles and interactivity were added, and the game world was made several times larger than that of Ultima Underworld, according to Church. He later believed that the team was overambitious, and that the game was insufficiently focused and polished as a result.

Like its predecessor, Ultima Underworld II was produced by Warren Spector, who was Looking Glass' main link to publisher Origin Systems. Church later praised Spector's handling of the project: his weekly phone conversations and monthly meetings with Looking Glass helped Church and the team to refocus creatively during development. When the team failed to produce enough art for the game, Spector supplemented the art team with contractors from Origin, which Church believed was "critical" to the game's being released on schedule. As a result of the art team's distance from Looking Glass, Church had to phone "nine different area codes every couple days to check up on things". He recalled the challenge of describing the enemy designs by phone. Dan Schmidt and the recently hired Seamus Blackley composed the game's score in Blackley's apartment over one week. They attempted to give each world a unique sound, while hiding variations of the main theme in each track. The music system from the original Ultima Underworld was retained with only minor alterations, but the team included digitized sound effects instead of the synthesized audio used in the first game.

Ultima Underworld II was developed in nine months. It was originally slated for a February 1993 release, but the date was later moved up to December 1992. The game underwent two and a half months of playtesting by Origin and Looking Glass employees, and by remote testing firms. According to Church, the testing phase took more time than expected because of complaints from playtesters and the presence of numerous bugs. Church went to Origin's headquarters in Texas during the final stages of development. The team "tried desperately to make Christmas", and the game was completed around December 18. Church compiled the final version on his laptop in Spector's office. However, the game was held back for further playtesting even though it could have shipped on schedule. Church later commented, "[T]here was one bug we couldn't reproduce, and everyone really wanted to go home for Christmas. We ended up taking a few days off, checking it a few more days and using that version anyway." The delay caused the game to miss the holiday season. It was shipped in January 1993.

Technology
Ultima Underworld II was built with an improved version of the game engine used for its predecessor. The team enhanced its visual capabilities: they broadened the first-person view by 30%, expanded the color palette, added more 3D objects, increased the size and animation of character sprites and wrote a new texture mapping algorithm. Director Paul Neurath commented that Ultima Underworld's texture mapping had failed to "look quite as good as we had hoped", and that the new system realized their vision. The game's code is roughly 30% larger than that of Ultima Underworld—bloat that Church attributed to "second project syndrome".

Reception
According to Paul Neurath, Ultima Underworld II and its predecessor together sold half a million units. Paul Presley of PC Review called the game "huge" and praised its atmosphere, increased variety and higher graphical detail. However, he found that the game, unlike its predecessor, does not feature "anything that takes it to a higher plateau to wait for the others to catch up". He summarized Ultima Underworld II as "magnificent", and he wrote, "If someone were to hand me £40 and say buy either Underworld I or II, I'd take the sequel any time." PC Zone's David McCandless wrote, "Nothing can completely prepare you for the freedom the game gives you ... It's about as close to Virtual Reality as you are ever likely to get from your mouse driver." He praised the game's atmospheric sound and called its graphics "stunning": on a high-end computer, he found that "dungeons can move like a film". Partly because of the game's large size, he felt that Ultima Underworld II was looser and less involving than its predecessor, but he concluded that players would still "sit there, dribble slightly, and say 'blimey' every eight to ten minutes."

The Toronto Star's William Burrill called it "the best fantasy ... role-playing game in this (or any parallel) world." He praised its automap and noted its increased graphical fidelity. However, he found that the control system took time to learn, and he stated, "This is not a game you can master quickly or play in a night. It has its frustrations and its flaws, despite its brilliance of design". He summarized that "those who are patient will be richly rewarded with a game like no other." Computer Gaming World's Doug Sencat enjoyed the game's graphics and praised the plot, conversations and 3D world for giving a sense of "being there". However, he noted that the game's movement controls were "a pain" and that navigating the environment was initially "frustrating". Sencat was unfavorable toward the linearity of the plot and dialogue trees, and toward NPCs' inability to take actions independent of the player. He described the game as "a long and grueling quest" that often "seems more frustrating than enjoyable". Although Semcat called it "a relatively high-quality game", he finished, "By the time I finally saw daylight again, emerging from the Labyrinth, I must admit that it wasn't exultation I felt, but sheer relief." The magazine's Scorpia was more positive, calling the game "a good follow-up to the previous entry".

Legacy
According to Church, Looking Glass found Ultima Underworld II's long playtesting phase extremely stressful. Neurath commented that the game's rushed production led to burnout on the team. Near the end of development, the company decided that it "had done too many dungeon games", and it began to consider a project with a similar design philosophy but without a fantasy setting. After brainstorming sessions by Church, Spector, Grossman and Neurath, Looking Glass began development of System Shock. Grossman later stated that his work on the Tomb of Praecor Loth was in some ways a "mini-prototype" for ideas he fleshed out in System Shock. Looking Glass pitched a sequel to Ultima Underworld II several times, but Origin Systems rejected the idea. Years later, Arkane Studios pitched Ultima Underworld III to Electronic Arts and received a similar response, which inspired the studio to create the spiritual successor Arx Fatalis. In 2014, Neurath and his company OtherSide Entertainment announced Underworld Ascension, another spiritual successor to the Ultima Underworld series. In 2015 the game was renamed to Underworld Ascendant and a Kickstarter campaign was launched and successfully funded.


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Carlos Varela (singer-songwriter)

Carlos Victoriano Varela Cerezo (born 11 April 1963) is a Cuban singer-songwriter of Nueva Trova, a political and poetic musical genre. Nueva Trova began as a reaction to the unjust conditions that led to the Cuban Revolution in 1959. Varela joined the Nueva Trova musical movement in the 1980s while in his 20s. He has earned the nickname ("cariño" in Spanish) of "Nomo" (Gnome), due to the way he dresses.

Career
Silvio Rodríguez, one of the most well-known founders of Nueva Trova, discovered Varela and took him on tour in Spain. His first CD, "Jalisco Park", was published there in 1989.

Today Varela's music is known for its open criticism of the status quo in post-revolutionary Cuba, but is still considered part of the Nueva Trova movement and genre.

Singer-songwriter Jackson Browne translated Carlos Varela's song "Walls and Doors" into English for Browne's 2014 Standing In The Breach recording and tour.

Varela's song "Una palabra" ("One Word") was used in the soundtrack of the film Powder Keg (2001) directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu starring Clive Owen, and again in the film Man on Fire in 2004 starring Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning. It was also used in Episode 3 of Netflix's true crime documentary series, Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer. He has integrated his music into the soundtracks of several Cuban films as well, such as Las profecías de Amanda ("The Prophesies of Amanda") and Video de familia ("Family Video"), among others.

title: Carlos Varela (singer-songwriter)