“Failure is Not Acceptable”: The Recollections of a Canadian in French Foreign Legion

I remember the day very well, a cold Tuesday in January 1989, and Pearson International Airport was bustling with travellers. I was amongst them, an inconspicuous 18-year-old middle-class Canadian boarding the plane as if it was a frequent occurrence. A seven-day vacation in France, that was the plan. I often wonder if I had known then what I do now—would I have boarded that plane? The trip lasted five years and it was no vacation, for within 24 hours of boarding the plane, I had become a member of the infamous French Foreign Legion. Life would never be the same again

Ryegrasses: An Option for an Annual Forage Crop in Alaska

Annuals are often planted for a forage crop in Alaska, often on land that is being renovated or on newly cleared land, thus providing a longer opportunity for worldng the soil before seeding a perennial. Oats (Avena sativa) and barley (Hordeum vulgare) , sometimes seeded with a legume, are the most important annuals used for forage in Alaska. Cereals can provide a high-yield , late-summer forage crop, stored as hay or silage. Ryegrass (Lolium), another annual not now in significant use in Alaska , affords an option that merits consideration in forage programs

Perennial Grass Trials for Forage Purposes In Three Areas of Southcentral Alaska

Forage trials of seeded perennial grasses were conducted at four sites in three areas of southcentral Alaska on soils with pH readings generally below 5.5 (down to 4 .35) . Three trials were at forested locations and one at a subalpine site. Each trial was sustained for three to five harvest years under a two-harvest system. 'Engmo' timothy (Phleum pratense) , the standard forage grass on strongly acidic soils in the region, equaled or, more often , exceeded the other grasses in first-harvest yields, but often was surpassed in second-harvest yields. Grasses often substantially exceeding timothy in second-harvest yields included reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) and entries of tufted hairgrass (Deschampsia caespitosa) and Bering hairgrass (D. beringensis), sometimes providing more total yield than timothy. Some red fescues (Festuca rubra) and 'Nugget' Kentucky bluegrass .(Poa pratensis) also tended to surpass timothy in second growth. Smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis) failed at sites with soil pH below 5.3, but persisted at one site with pH varying from 5.3 to 5.7. 'Garrison' creeping foxtail (Alopecurus arundinaceus) also failed at these sites; its close relative meadow foxtail (A. pratensis), was better adapted to the strongly acidic sites. Indigenous polargrass (Arctagrostis latifolia) about equaled or surpassed timothy in yield at two of the sites, and bluejoint reedgrass (Calamagrostis canadensis) provided comparable but somewhat lower yields. Timothy tended to be higher in digestible dry matter than most grasses, but near to below average in CP, P, K, and Ca concentrations. Some deficiencies occurred in energy values (DDM) and, except for red fescue, in Ca concentrations of first-harvest herbage relative to the requirements of a growing 500-lb steer. Crude protein of second-harvest herbage was deficient for many grasses at two sites, and DDM was marginal to low for some, but especially for bluejoint reedgrass

Labour underutilisation and regional labour force data estimates

Introduction In the recent Federal election campaign the issue of labour underutilisation was implicitly assumed away by the emphasis by both major parties on the (alleged) ongoing strength of the national economy. The declining official unemployment rate is cited as evidence that the economy is robust. It is also increasingly apparent that many regional organisations and press sources are using the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) regional Labour Force Survey (LFS) data, particularly the unemployment rates, to make political statements about how the local economies are profiting from the national growth. This paper addresses the problems that pervade both aspects of LFS use. The reality is that underutilisation of labour remains the largest problem facing policy makers despite the lack of political will to address it. Figure 1 shows that the low point unemployment rate in Australia has ratcheted upwards over successive cycles in Australia since 1975. The Australian economy is now precariously balanced given rising world oil prices and the fragile household balance sheets (due to record personal debt levels)

The Missionary pioneer, or, A brief memoir of the life, labours, and death of John Stewart, (man of colour) founder, under God of the mission among the Wyandotts at Upper Sandusky, Ohio / Published by Joseph Mitchell.

http://www.archive.org/details/missionarypionee00stewric