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Taqi Yazdi

Muhammad Taqi Misbah Yazdi Giwachi (31 January 1935 – 1 January 2021) was an Iranian Shia scholar, political theorist and philosopher who served as the spiritual leader of the Front of Islamic Revolution Stability.

He was a member of the Assembly of Experts, the body responsible for choosing the Supreme Leader, where he headed a minority faction. He had been called 'the most conservative' and the most 'powerful' clerical oligarch in Iran's leading center of religious learning, the city of Qom. Many of his students have gone on to "occupy sensitive administrative and security posts" in the Islamic Republic, serving as "guardians" of (his version of) Islamic government.

From 1952 to 1960, in the holy city of Qom, he participated in the courses taught by Ruhollah Khomeini and Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i; and, for approximately fifteen years, he was a student of Mohammad-Taqi Bahjat Foumani.

Mesbah Yazdi advocated Islamic philosophy and in particular Mulla Sadra's transcendent school of philosophy (Hikmat-e Muta`aliya). He believed that Iranians were moving away from religion and the values of Islamic revolution; and opposed western-style freedom and democratic governance, promoted by the Iranian reform movement.

Early life and education
Yazdi's actual last name was Giwachi, an occupational surname indicating his ancestors produced a type of traditional footwear called Giwah. After he completed his primary education in the town of Yazd at the age of 13, he entered Khān School, a seminary in his hometown. He also attended the Shāfīʿiya School, another seminary in the city before moving to Najaf's Hindi School in Iraq in 1950. Yazdi's study in Iraq lasted 7 months. He then moved to Qom to study in Qom Seminary, where he continued his education in fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence). He studied works of Avicenna and Mulla Sadra. His teachers included prominent figures such as Ayatollah Seyyed Hossein Borujerdi, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Bahjat Foumani. He was also among the students of Ayatollah Allameh Tabatabaei, the author of Tafsir al-Mizan, the influential Shi'a exegesis of Quran. He graduated in 1960. Before the 1979 Islamic revolution, he assisted the other clerics, i.e., Mohammad Beheshti and Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, in publishing two journals called "Mission of Prophet Muhammad" and "Revenge"; and was responsible for all publishing activities in "Revenge".

1963-1989
Mesbah Yazdi became politically active in 1963, following the 15th of Khordad movement (demonstrations against the arrest of Ayatollah Khomeini). He was involved in community organizing circulating petitions against the Shah's White Revolution reforms. After Khomeini was released from arrest, Mesbah Yazdi was among clerics who celebrated in the Feyziyeh School. He abandoned political activity before Ayatollah Khomeini's exile in 1964 and went back to theological work. He authored works strenuously denying the historical consensus that Ali Shariati's ideas contributed anything at all to the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Mesbah Yazdi is reported to have been "politically isolated" until 1989, when Ruhollah Khomeini died.

1997-2016
In 1997, after the election of President Mohammad Khatami, Mesbah Yazdi encouraged Iran's Revolutionary Guards and Hezbolli to put a stop to the reform agitation by any means, including violence.

He had been named by Akbar Ganji as "having encouraged or issued fatwas, or religious orders" for the 1998 chain murders assassinations of five Iranian dissidents.

After the decline of the reform movement in 2003, his supporters made gains in local and parliamentary elections. In 2005, Mesbah Yazdi supported Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidential bid and subsequently gained "direct influence" in the Iranian government through the appointment of loyal supporters "to high posts" after Ahmadinejad's victory.

2009 presidential election
Mesbah-Yazdi supported Ahmadinejad in 2009 and declared his election a miracle and a gift from the Hidden Imam.

On 22 June, a few days after security forces broke up one of the biggest election protests, Mesbah-Yazdi "addressed a gathering" of Revolutionary Guards and told them: "'Do not be worried about the events and earthquakes that have occurred. Know that God created this world as a test, ... The supreme leader holds a great many of the blessings God has given us and at a time of such uncertainties our eyes must turn to him.'"

By 2011, however, he was sharply critical of Ahmadinejad saying that he was behaving "unnaturally" and needed to be "saved." After Ahmadinejad fired intelligence minister Heydar Moslehi without consulting Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Mesbah Yazdi stated, "That a human being would behave in a way that angers his closest friends and allies and turns them into opponents is not logical for any politician."

Assembly of Experts
According to some sources, Mesbah-Yazdi is rumored to had ambitions to succeed Khamenei as Supreme Leader. Some clerics and some newspapers feared Mesbah-Yazdi was trying to expand his power by "packing" the Assembly of Experts with "loyalists." In October 2006, an acolyte of Mesbah-Yazdi, Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi, was appointed head of the election commission, supervisor of the poll for the Assembly of Experts, and many of the candidates in the 2006 Assembly of Experts elections were Mesbah-Yazdi loyalists (though they ran as independent candidates to avoid revealing their affiliation to him). However, his group failed to achieve a majority in that election, leaving the assembly in the hands of pragmatic conservatives. Mesbah-Yazdi himself won a seat but finished only in sixth-place in Tehran municipality where he ran, and had the minority faction in the assembly. In 2016 he was defeated for reelection to the Assembly.

Career
Mesbah Yazdi believed that the educational system of hawza should be changed and his proposal was approved by Seyyed Hossein Borujerdi, so he and Mohammad Beheshti establish the Haghani School (also Haqqani) in Qom to train the future cadres of Iran. Mesbah-Yazdi had been described as close to Ayatollah Mohammad Beheshti, Khomeini's first designated heir who was assassinated in Hafte Tir bombing in 1981 (despite being considered a moderate), and is (or was) a member of the school's board of directors. The Haghani School is very influential and had been described as "a kind of Ecole Nationale d'Administration for the Islamic Republic" whose alumni "form the backbone of the clerical management class that runs Iran's key political and security institutions."

Mesbah-Yazdi is the author of many books on fiqh, Quran exegesis, divinity and general issues of Islam. His "Amuzesh-e Falsafeh" is used widely in the philosophy classes of Qom's hawza. It broadly covers the same ground as Allameh Tabatabaei's Arabic-language works in philosophy "Bidayat al-Hikmah" and "Nihayat al-Hikma". Mesbah-Yazdi's "Amuzesh-e Falsafeh" has been published in English translation by Gary Legenhausen and Azim Sarvdalir as "Philosophical Instructions".

He published the weekly Parto Sokhan, was the director of the Imam Khomeini Education and Research Institute in Qom, (founded in 1995), and was a member of the Iranian Assembly of Experts from 1991 to 2016.

After the presidential election of June 1997, in the relatively more open political atmosphere in that time, Mesbah Yazdi's students played an important role as the critics of the former president Mohammad Khatami. As a result, Mesbah Yazdi's name appeared more often in the media and became more well known. He supported Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's successful presidential bid, though he later criticized him.

Views
Mesbah Yazdi had been described as "a theoretician of the radicals" in Iran, and "is opposed to western culture", lamenting that "nowadays ... if someone says something critical" of freedom and democracy, "he or she will face serious peril." He considered "the Zionists" to be the fundamental source of evil on earth.

In an article by the Associated Press, quoting from a 2005 book written by Yazdi, the AP asserted that Yazdi made a "rare public call for the producing the 'special weapons' that are monopoly of a few nations -- a veiled reference to nuclear arms."

In a lecture posted on his website, Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi warns of Muslim "thugs of falsehood and the followers of the damned Satan" who have formed a "coalition of the forces of infidelity and hypocrisy, the servants of dollars and euros/gold and silver, and influential oppressors and traitors to uproot Islam, to fight Muslims, to dominate their countries, wealth, and resources, to deny their glories and excellence, to destroy their relics and teachings, to wipe out their culture, to alter their identity, to put them in miserable conditions, and to force them into wretchedness in this world and God’s punishment in the hereafter."

Mesbah-Yazdi supported a return to what he saw as the values of the 1979 Iranian revolution. He believed that an "Islamic republic" is a contradiction in terms, on the grounds that a truly Islamic government would only hold "elections" as a way for the people to express their allegiance to the supreme faqih. Elections as an opportunity for voters to make choices between representatives and policies were unIslamic. The "republican component" of the Islamic Republic of Iran was established as a concession to secular forces and should be "stripped" away to leave the true essence of the "Islamic system." He had been quoted as saying, "It doesn't matter what the people think. The people are ignorant sheep."

Mesbah-Yazdi was also a firm opponent of the Reformist movement in Iran which he believed an Islamic government must "combat ... because injecting misleading ideas [of reform in Islam] is like injecting the Aids virus!". He also claimed that young Iranians who questioned the regime after studying abroad did so only because they had been trained in 'psychological warfare' by foreign universities. President Khatami once called him the theoretician of violence.

In 2005, he issued a fatwa urging Iranians to vote for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a former student and "protege", whom he is "considered a ideological and spiritual mentor" of, and with whom he reportedly met with weekly.

On the issue of slavery Mesbah Yazdi said: "Today, too, if there’s a war between us and the infidels, we’ll take slaves. The ruling on slavery hasn’t expired and is eternal. We’ll take slaves and we’ll bring them to the world of Islam and have them stay with Muslims. We’ll guide them, make them Muslims and then return them to their countries."

Like many prominent Shia clerics, he supported literal interpretations of various verses of the Qur'an and narrations (hadith) attributed to the Prophet and his followers. Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi opposed bida'a or innovations in religion which he believed includes new interpretations of the Sunna and Qur'an. He had been quoted as saying: "If someone tells you he has a new interpretation of Islam, sock him in the mouth."

In August 2009, he warned Iranian opposition groups against undermining supreme leader Ali Khamenei, stating, "'When the president is endorsed by the leader, obeying him is similar to obedience to God.'"

Controversy
Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi had been described as "affiliated" with the Hojjatieh group. Mesbah denied this and denounced the rumor, saying that if anyone finds a connection between him and Hojjatieh, he will renounce everything he stands for. Ayatollah Khomeini actually frowned on the Hojjatieh and the group was nominally dissolved in 1983.

Public image
According to a poll conducted in March 2016 by Information and Public Opinion Solutions LLC (iPOS) among Iranian citizens, Mesbah had 18% approval and 20% disapproval ratings and thus a –2% net popularity; while 52% of responders didn't recognize the name.

Personal life
He married his wife, who is from Ayatollah Hossein Noori Hamedani's family, in the 1950s. The couple had three children, two sons and a daughter. Both their sons are said to be clerics and one of them has studied in McGill University of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The daughter is married to Hujjat al-Islam Mohammadi Araghi, who headed the "Islamic Culture and Communication Organization", a subdivision of Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance.

title: Taqi Yazdi


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John H. Logie

John Hoult Logie (August 11, 1939 – August 4, 2021) was an American attorney and politician who served as mayor of Grand Rapids, Michigan from 1992 to 2003, one of the longest-serving in the city's history.

Early life and education
Logie was born on August 11, 1939, in Ann Arbor, Michigan and raised in East Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he attended East Grand Rapids High School. He began college at Williams College before earning a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan. He then attended the Officer Candidate School and served in the United States Navy. After five years active duty, he returned to Ann Arbor, Michigan to earn his Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School. He also earned a Master of Arts degree from George Washington University.

Career
Logie joined the Grand Rapids law firm of Warner Norcross & Judd in 1969, where he became a partner until retiring in 2011. During this time he wrote an analysis for Congressman Hal Sawyer validating the legality of president Gerald Ford's pardon of former president Richard Nixon.

He was involved in creating the Heritage Hill Historic District in the area just east of downtown Grand Rapids, where he and his family lived.

Logie ran for mayor in 1991, defeating Robert Vanderson and Sharon Worst. One of his focuses was revitalizing the downtown area, with a new museum and Van Andel Arena among the public-private ventures undertaken. He was involved in state legislation to rewrite and fund environmental cleanups and create reduced-tax "Renaissance Zones" to encourage investment in targeted urban areas. He established an Urban Core Mayors group in Michigan. In 1994 he played a leading role enacting an ordinance protecting the civil rights of LGBT people. In 1997 he began an initiative to address drug use and addiction as public health problems, which included the Mayor's Drug Task Force on Drug Policy Reform and a needle exchange program. He was a supporter of decriminalizing marijuana.

Logie was re-elected twice. During his third term, he backed a city charter amendment that would increase the power of the mayorship, and promised not to run for a fourth term, to avoid the appearance of self-interest. The amendment was not successful, but he stepped down nonetheless. The office was later limited to three terms.

He chaired the board of the Clarke Historical Library at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant. He served as president of the Michigan Society of Hospital Attorneys, and the Historical Society of Michigan. He served on the boards of Goodwill Industries, the Grand Rapids PTA Council and the American Cancer Society.

He received the Slykhouse Lifetime Achievement Award from the Economic Club of Grand Rapids, Distinguished Community Trustee Award from Leadership Grand Rapids, the Neighborhood Business Champion Award from the Grand Rapids Neighborhood Alliance, and the Frank J. Kelley Public Service Award from the State Bar of Michigan. He was awarded honorary degrees from Central Michigan University and Ferris State University.

The John Logie Fellows Program is an internship facilitated by Grand Valley State University that allows students to work within the Grand Rapids city government.

Personal life
Logie met his wife, Susan Duerr, in San Diego, California, when he was stationed there by the Navy and she was in a teaching program. They have three children, including an adopted daughter from Korea.

In June 2016, he announced that he had Alzheimer's disease. He died from complications of the condition on August 4, 2021, at the age of 81.

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

title: John H. Logie


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Lesotho at the 1972 Summer Olympics

Lesotho sent a delegation to compete in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany from 26 August to 11 September 1972. This was the African country's first time participating at the Olympic Games. Lesotho's delegation consisted of a single sprinter, Motsapi Moorosi. He competed in two events, being eliminated in the first round of the 100 meters, and advancing to the quarter-finals of the 200 meters.

Background
The Lesotho National Olympic Committee was recognized by the International Olympic Committee on 1 January 1972. These Munich Olympics were their first appearance in Olympic competition, they have gone on to participate in every Summer Olympic Games since except the 1976 Montreal Games. The nation has yet to make its debut at the Winter Olympic Games, and they have never won an Olympic medal. The 1972 Summer Olympics were held from 26 August to 11 September 1972; a total of 7,134 athletes representing 121 National Olympic Committees took part in the Games. Track and field athlete Motsapi Moorosi was the only competitor Lesotho sent to Munich, and he was chosen as the flag-bearer for the opening ceremony.

Athletics
Motsapi Moorosi was 27 years old at the time of the Munich Olympics, and was making his only Olympic appearance. On 31 August, he participated in the first round of the men's 100 meters, and was drawn into heat six. He finished the race with a time of 10.74 seconds, sixth out of seven in his heat, and he was unable to advance further in the competition. The gold medal was eventually won in 10.14 seconds by Valeriy Borzov of the Soviet Union, the silver medal was earned by Robert Taylor of the United States, and the bronze was taken by Lennox Miller of Jamaica.

The men's 200 meters was held over 3–4 September. In the first round, Moorosi was drawn into heat three, which he finished with a time of 21.15 seconds, fourth out of seven competitors in that heat, which was sufficient to advance him to the quarter-finals. For the quarter-finals, he was drawn into heat four, and finished with a time of 20.90 seconds. This put him fifth out of seven competitors in the heat, and he was eliminated as only the top three from each heat, and the fastest fourth-place finisher overall could advance. Borzov eventually won the gold medal in a time of 20 seconds flat, the United States' Larry Black won the silver medal, and the bronze medal was earned by Pietro Mennea of Italy.

title: Lesotho at the 1972 Summer Olympics


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Talk:Long block

Definition
So what is the difference between a long and short block? dimensions alone? --Hooperbloob 03:02, 25 August 2005 (UTC)
 * According to experts, it has nothing to do with dimensions. It's a craft term implying an assembled engine that's either operational or nearly so.
 * -- Unicorn Tapestry  {say}  09:42, 18 December 2013 (UTC)

title: Talk:Long block


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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Seth Morales

 This page is an archive of the proposed deletion of the article below. Further comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or on a Votes for Undeletion nomination). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result of the debate was COPYVIO, without the offer of a rewrite. -Splash 00:22, 31 August 2005 (UTC)

Seth Morales
non-notable, just barely missles qualificatosn for speedy delete. Delete. DES (talk) 03:03, 25 August 2005 (UTC)
 * I dunno...looks pretty good now. The original entry was pretty sketchy, though.  Keep and clean up. - Lucky 6.9 03:39, 25 August 2005 (UTC)
 * Copyvio. Found at . Andrew pmk 04:10, 25 August 2005 (UTC)
 * Close VfD: Not one of the established options, I know, but just close this vote and let this article get handled through copyvio.  Wikibofh 23:28, August 25, 2005 (UTC)
 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in an undeletion request). No further edits should be made to this page.


text: User talk:141.149.225.130

title: User talk:141.149.225.130


text: Category:Chinese tea by province

title: Category:Chinese tea by province


text: User talk:70.179.102.234

title: User talk:70.179.102.234


text: User talk:203.221.51.82

title: User talk:203.221.51.82


text:
Talk:John H. Logie

Untitled
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title: Talk:John H. Logie


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Afonso of Portugal, Lord of Portalegre

Infante Afonso of Portugal (8 February 1263, in Lisbon – 2 November 1312, in Lisbon; ; Alphonzo or Alphonse) was a Portuguese infante (prince), the second son of King Afonso III of Portugal and his second wife Beatrice of Castile. He was titled Lord of Portalegre, Castelo de Vide, Arronches, Marvão and Lourinhã.

Afonso was born on 8 February 1263 and in 1287 married Violante Manuel, daughter of Castilian Infante Manuel of Castile.

Afonso died on 2 November 1312 in Lisbon.

Issue
By his wife Violante Manuel he had five children:
 * Afonso of Portugal, Lord of Leiria;
 * Maria of Portugal, Lady of Meneses and Orduña;
 * Isabel of Portugal, Lady of Penela, married Juan de Castilla y Haro, with issue;
 * Constança of Portugal, Lady of Portalegre, married Nuño González de Lara, without issue;
 * Beatriz of Portugal, Lady of Lemos, married, as his first wife, Pedro Fernández de Castro, without issue.

title: Afonso of Portugal, Lord of Portalegre


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Talk:Howl (Black Rebel Motorcycle Club album)

<^>v!!This album is connected!!v<^>

 * All song titles serve as redirects to this album or have been placed at the appropriate disambiguation pages.--Hraefen Talk 23:38, 11 July 2006 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:Brmc howl.jpg
Image:Brmc howl.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in Wikipedia articles constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images uploaded after 4 May, 2006, and lacking such an explanation will be deleted one week after they have been uploaded, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.BetacommandBot 16:32, 1 June 2007 (UTC)


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User talk:KingMob

Detroit-style pizza
A proposed deletion template has been added to the article Detroit-style pizza, suggesting that it be deleted according to the proposed deletion process. All contributions are appreciated, but this article may not satisfy Wikipedia's criteria for inclusion, and the deletion notice should explain why (see also "What Wikipedia is not" and Wikipedia's deletion policy). You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the  notice, but please explain why you disagree with the proposed deletion in your edit summary or on its talk page. Also, please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Even though removing the deletion notice will prevent deletion through the proposed deletion process, the article may still be deleted if it matches any of the speedy deletion criteria or it can be sent to Articles for Deletion, where it may be deleted if consensus to delete is reached. If you agree with the deletion of the article, and you are the only person who has made substantial edits to the page, please add  to the top of Detroit-style pizza. CJMylentz (talk) 19:07, 22 December 2007 (UTC)

Nomination of Shooto for deletion
A discussion is taking place as to whether the article Shooto 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/Shooto 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. Caffeyw (talk) 12:36, 29 August 2013 (UTC)

Speedy deletion nomination of Shooto

A tag has been placed on Shooto requesting that it be speedily deleted from Wikipedia. This has been done under section G12 of the criteria for speedy deletion, because the article or image appears to be a clear copyright infringement. This article or image appears to be a direct copy from www.wrestlingreleases.com/shooto-collection-mega-pack. For legal reasons, we cannot accept copyrighted text or images borrowed from other web sites or printed material, and as a consequence, your addition will most likely be deleted. You may use external websites as a source of information, but not as a source of sentences. This part is crucial: say it in your own words. Wikipedia takes copyright violations very seriously and persistent violators will be blocked from editing.

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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 "Click here to 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. Caffeyw (talk) 12:38, 29 August 2013 (UTC)

title: User talk:KingMob


text: Category:Chinese tea grown in Yunnan

title: Category:Chinese tea grown in Yunnan


text:
Bid rigging

Bid rigging is a fraudulent scheme in a procurement action which enables companies to submit non-competitive bids. It can be performed by corrupt officials, by firms in an orchestrated act of collusion, or by officials and firms acting together. This form of collusion is illegal in most countries. It is a form of price fixing and market allocation, often practiced where contracts are determined by a call for bids, for example in the case of government construction contracts. The typical objective of bid rigging is to enable the "winning" party to obtain contracts at uncompetitive prices (i.e., at higher prices if they are sellers, or lower prices if they are buyers). The other parties are compensated in various ways, for example, by cash payments, or by being designated to be the "winning" bidder on other contracts, or by an arrangement where some parts of the successful bidder's contract will be subcontracted to them. In this way, they "share the spoils" among themselves. Bid rigging almost always results in economic harm to the agency which is seeking the bids, and to the public, who ultimately bear the costs as taxpayers or consumers.

As acts of corruption

 * Change order abuse occurs when a contractor colludes with project officials, wins a low bid, and asks to change the contract afterwards. That is approved by officials, resulting in a much higher bid being retroactively approved.
 * Bidder exclusion allows project officials to essentially choose their bid. There are multiple methods to achieve that like the following:
 * Instituting unreasonable qualification parameters, excluding non-preferred firms, or effectuating the same by shortening the time of acceptance periods for new bids following a request.
 * Advertising projects to select bidders or bidding markets, thereby reducing publicity of bid procurement.
 * Bundling of contracts to exclude bidders.
 * Coercion and intimidation can also be used, as well as the simple rejection of individual bids over trivial matters.
 * Purchase splitting to reduce the minimum bid amount. That functions as contracts are split up to reduce the actual procurement amount and keep it under a threshold value. That reduces competitive bidding and enables less oversight at the project level as bid prices drop and kickbacks can be allotted.
 * Leaking of bid information, which requires a relationship of some degree between the project and a bidder as the bidder is handed information to gain an unfair advantage.
 * Bid manipulation is another method for officials to choose the bidder of their choice but occurs after receipt of bids. The methods for this would include either changing bid parameters, evaluation processes, or other activity to effectively select the bidder of choice.
 * Rigged Specifications allow more bidder exclusion by officials by either tailoring requests to individual bidders or creating a vague criterion to reasonably choose a preferred bidder.
 * Unbalanced bidding involves high bid prices for commencing phases of development and low prices for later stages. That effectively increases the flow of funds for the bidding firm. This occurs when bidders cite high prices for items, intending to raise the number of units and purchase them at a competitive rate while simultaneously skimming profits from the artificially high bid price. Additionally, bidders may give low quotes for non-necessary items (knowledge gained through collusion or experience) to disadvantage other firms as their bid amount is more competitive. This also serves to increase the cost of entry for new firms.
 * Unjustified sole source awards are bids chosen on criteria unrelated to their competitiveness. That can be performed blatantly, by falsifying bids, or by price splitting.

Within a cartel

 * Bid suppression collusion occurs when some of the conspirators agree not to submit bids to allow another conspirator to win the contract.
 * Complementary bidding, also known as cover bidding or courtesy bidding, occurs when some of the bidders agree to submit bids that are intended to be unsuccessful so that another conspirator can win the contract. For example, the cover bids might contain prices that are uncompetitive in relation to the prices submitted by the conspirator, who is designated to win the contract, or the cover bids might contain conditions that the conspirators know to be unacceptable to the agency calling for the bids.
 * Bid rotation occurs when bidders take turns being the designated successful bidder. For example, each conspirator is designated to be the successful bidder on a certain contract, with conspirators designated to win other contracts. That is a form of market allocation in which the conspirators allocate or apportion markets, products, customers or geographic territories among themselves. This is then divided up such that each will get a "fair share" of the total business, without truly having to compete with the others for that business.
 * Bid delegation can be a factor fostering the presence of bid rigging; for instance, it is the case of marketing agencies that bid for the same ad space on behalf of different and competing agents. ).

As a seller, auctioneer or official

 * Phantom bids or shill bids are false bids to trick a legitimate bidder into bidding more than would have otherwise been the case. The seller or auctioneer hires confederates to call out the phantom bids. If the phantom bid is the winner, the lot is hidden and comes back around for a second auction, or the second-highest legitimate bidder is informed that the first bidder was unable to make payment. In online auctions, the latter ruse is pulled via a (secretly illegitimate) "second-chance offer." Sniping is a legitimate bidder's best chance to foil a shill bidder who aims to drive up the price artificially.
 * Buy-back is the strategy in which the auctioneer or seller bids on a lot and buys it back to protect it from being sold to the highest bidder for an insufficient price. That is fraud if the auction is advertised as an absolute auction, meaning that there are no reserve bids.
 * Phantom auctions, in the real estate industry, may occur when the bank "tentatively" auctions a foreclosed home and gives bidders an option to give "preliminary bids" for homes that are not yet authorized for auction. If the reserve bids are not met, the home is updated as "never was available for auction" even though bids were received. Some houses are auctioned at fire-sale prices, and the auctions are closed before the auction was formally announced. Investors rush to get in their preliminary bids before the house is technically up for auction. Bidders fear losing options so it results in more bids, and naturally, higher prices. If bidders fail to reach the target bids, the item was never available for auction. Banks do that because if they unloaded all of their toxic assets at once, the housing market would collapse, which causes foreclosed homes to be dribbled out with phantom auctions.

Those forms of bid rigging can occur together, and two or more of the practices could occur at the same time. For example, if one member of the bidding ring is designated to win a particular contract, that bidder's conspirators could avoid winning by not bidding ("bid suppression") or by submitting a high bid ("cover bidding").

Economic costs
Many of the issues presented by bid rigging are the result of cartel involvement. Inefficient firms are not pushed out, as they would have been in a competitive market, and firms experience more profit, despite an inefficient allocation of resources. Cartels behave more like monopolies and so their behaviors, such as bid rigging, create market inefficiencies as contracts are fulfilled at elevated values. Furthermore, bid prices increase with more repeated collusion. Ultimately, the cost is typically borne by the taxpayer as government-sponsored contracts are artificially above market value. Additionally, it can be thought of as raising prices for the taxpayer (or consumer) as firms rent seek. One study found that bid rigging significantly raised prices over market value in the seafood industry in Philadelphia in a bidding scheme involving Defense Personnel Support Center, a purchaser for the Department of Defense. The high price of entry and fewer entrants in many industries results in lessened incentives for firms to behave competitively.

Detection
In the UK, the Competition and Markets Authority published an open letter in 2016 aiming to promote good practice among procurement and supply staff, and detailing indications they should watch out for.

Remediation
Bid rigging is an illegal practice under the criminal or competition laws of most developed countries. Depending on the jurisdiction, it is punishable by fines, imprisonment or both.

At a very basic level, there would likely be more competitive bidding if there were more firms present in a market, outside of a cartel, as evidence shows that bids lessen in value as the number of firms rises. Furthermore, collusion becomes less frequent with better market competitiveness, a result of reduced ability to compromise.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in its work on bid-rigging and cartels in public procurement, makes the following suggestions for better tenders:
 * Developing expertise and awareness of the market for which a tender is being designed.
 * Maximizing the number of bids and potential contractors for enhanced competition among proposals.
 * Striving for clarity in requirements and details.
 * Reducing potential for communication between bidders and procurement officials and adhering to a strict criterion and process of evaluation.

Suggestions for ameliorating procurement auctions have also been put forth. Lengstein and Wolfstetter suggest that when a particular bidder is preferred, disregarding cost, possible reforms include a sealed Vickrey auction, or if there is reason to believe that officials and bidders are in contact, an open auction is preferred to sidestep potential bribery. When officials are engaged in more competitive procurement processes with regard to price but are suspected of kickbacks, a potential solution is the open auction to prevent clandestine arrangements such as change order abuse. If a closed or sealed auction process is preferred, the use of electronic bidding and investment in tamper-resistant systems is suggested.

Brazil
Brazil's Operation Car Wash is an ongoing investigation into the Brazilian semi-public multinational Petrobras. Petrobras is suspected of having overcharged bids as much as 3% of the total cost on contracts with an alleged $2.1 billion being misappropriated in kickbacks. Operation Car Wash is part of a larger investigation into Brazil's government as well and has contributed to the conviction and imprisonment of former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In early January 2018, Petrobras settled a United States class action case for $2.95 billion, though JP Morgan and BTG Pactual had expected a settlement between $5 and $10 billion.

The Petrobras scandal extends beyond bid rigging in the oil sector as the investigation has also implicated Brazilian construction firms as bid rigging was discovered to be rampant in the preparations for the 2016 Summer Olympics. This would not be the first instance of bid rigging by construction firms in recent Brazilian history as Andrade Gutierrez Engenharia SA, the nation's second largest construction firm, admitted to bid rigging during contract procurement for stadiums to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup. This revelation implicates an additional five domestic construction firms and was revealed by the Conselho Administrativo de Defesa Econômica(CADE).

Colombia
From 2002 until 2013, the Colombian government opened 121 investigations into bid rigging, which lead to sixty-nine entities paying fines amounting to nearly $23.5 million, with an additional nine entities receiving sanctions. Colombia was found to generally comply with the OECD's recommendations regarding competitive procurement.

United States
In the United States, bid rigging is a federal felony criminal offense under Section 1 of the Sherman Act. Even so, bid rigging is still rampant in the construction industry, auto sale auctions, and foreclosed home auctions.

Canada
In Canada, bid rigging is an indictable criminal offence under Section 47 of the Competition Act.

Europe
Bid rigging is illegal in the European Union (EU) under Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The annual cost to the EU in economic waste as a direct result of bid rigging among cartels was estimated to be between €13 billion and €37 billion in 2008. Bid rigging seems to be on the rise across Europe, raising concerns particularly over excessive expenditures and single-bid tenders. These single-bid tenders represented 17% of tenders in 2006, but 30% nine years later. RAND estimated that the overall annual cost posed to the EU by bid cost increases was $5 billion.

Slovakia
Bid rigging is illegal in Slovakia under the Act on the Protection of Competition and by EU membership, also Article 101 of TFEU. The first charges to be brought to court in Slovakia in 2006 by the Antimonopoly Office involved six construction companies who submitted bids with suspiciously consistent unit quotes. The fines from this bid rigging scheme amounted to €45 million following an initial court decision, an over-ruling, and a reinstatement of the initial verdict. In 2007, a Slovakian government ministry participated in bidder exclusion by posting a request for proposals regarding consulting on a bulletin board in an official building, though not open to the public. This resulted in a consulting firm winning a €120 million contract. The word for receiving kickbacks after participating in bid rigging is known as "tunelovanie" in Slovak.

Switzerland
Bid rigging occurs frequently in the construction industry in Switzerland. In 2007, seventeen different firms were involved in a bid rigging scheme but there was no prosecution as the ring had disbanded before colluding. In 2009, a ring of seven electricity firms from Bern were charged with bid rigging and fined two million Swiss francs. In Aargau, in 2011, a bid rigging scheme was discovered wherein seventeen firms were fined eight million Swiss francs though the appeals are ongoing. Multiple other cases are still ongoing.

United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, individuals can be prosecuted criminally under the Enterprise Act 2002.

In 2011, fines were levied by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) on 103 construction companies found to have engaged in illegal bid-rigging schemes. The OFT commented that cover pricing, the form of bid rigging involved in these cases, was widespread in the UK construction industry.""Indeed, the OFT uncovered evidence of cover pricing in over 4000 tenders involving over 1000 companies but had to focus its investigation on a limited number of companies and instances where the available evidence was strongest, in order to make best use of its resources and conclude its investigation within a reasonable timeframe. The OFT could not, therefore, pursue every firm suspected of involvement in cover pricing."" Cover pricing involves high price bidding, intended "to give the appearance of genuine competition", by businesses who, "in reality, ... are not competing".

Many of the businesses involved cooperated fully with the OFT investigation and it was acknowledged that they had changed their bidding practices and provided staff training on competition law once the OFT had raised the issue.

The fines were subsequently deemed to be "excessive" and the Competition Appeal Tribunal revised the values of the fines. The tribunal decided that the OFT had used turnover figures for the wrong year when calculating fines, and treated the bid-rigging as more serious than it should have done, although in some other respects the OFT's ruling was upheld.

Japan
Although both a violation of Japanese criminal law and the Japan Anti-Monopoly Law, bid rigging is still a habitual practice of the Japanese construction industry. It has been shown by a number of academic studies both in Japan and in the US to be a system which considerably inflates the cost of construction projects, and in the Japanese public sector, considerably wasteful of annual tax money amounting to billions of Japanese yen.

Dango refers to collusion in Japanese, or more precisely, "conference", and is an extremely prevalent system in Japan. Dango can be understood as a mutually beneficial system of bureaucracy and government and the private construction industry wherein bid rigging is incredibly common, benefiting colluding firms and officials alike in the form of kickbacks. The system of dango is often supported though as allowing small firms to continue to compete, though detractors are quick to point to the economic inefficiencies presented by a non-competitive market. The US Government, specifically the United States Trade Representative Office and Department of Commerce, made fierce efforts in the late 1980s and early 1990s to urge the Japanese government to reform dango as a de facto non-tariff barrier to foreign firms in the Japanese construction market. Despite years of negotiations, including promises by the Japanese government in the Structural Impediment Initiative (SII) trade talks, the practice was never fully stamped out and continued to flourish.

In 2006, Tadahiro Ando, the then governor of Miyazaki Prefecture, resigned over a series of bid rigging allegations and was subsequently sentenced to over three years in jail.

As of 2008, thirteen lawsuits were still pending over 1990s' bid rigging for local government contracts to supply incinerator plants.

Korea
In a three-and-a-half-year period from 1995 to 1998 there was an estimated $4.13 billion surcharge attributed to bid rigging in Korea's construction industry, representing 15.5% of the total spent. It was also found that firms already present in an area enjoyed a significant degree of incumbency, meaning that they were more likely to continue to win additional contracts in areas they were already developing. This was discovered to be a result of complementary bidding. Some legal action has been undertaken against these bid rigging schemes with nine contracting companies and several officials being charged and fined $5 billion in 1999.

title: Bid rigging


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Chris Magruder

Christopher James Magruder (born April 26, 1977) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played for the Texas Rangers, Cleveland Indians, and Milwaukee Brewers.

Magruder was drafted out of the University of Washington, where he played college baseball for the Huskies from 1996–1998, by the San Francisco Giants. He made his Major League debut in as a member of the Texas Rangers. Magruder elected free agency following the season, in lieu of an outright assignment to the Brewer's top minor league baseball affiliate, the Triple-A Nashville Sounds. He had served in a backup role as a reserve for the starting outfielders Carlos Lee, Geoff Jenkins, and Brady Clark.

Perhaps the single most significant moment of his career was his debut with the Indians. His first at bat as a member of the Tribe was a double off the wall in the 8th inning to break up a no-hit bid.

Former National Football League quarterback Jon Kitna is Magruder's first cousin.

title: Chris Magruder