Hi, everyone Look at that. We did it 29 another eminence break. It's our fifth one in the books No fillers or anything just picked up straight up 2019 2020 panini eminence basketball random hit number five coming at you folks We're gonna open the case. I'm gonna show you all the hits. We're gonna pause video type in the hits randomize the names randomize the hits match you up on this spreadsheet and And see what happens look at this Chris With with half the case and we've got Cameron Jameson Kevin Gary and Kenneth Good luck to all of you. Thank you very much for getting in scared money. Don't make money So hopefully we can get some nice hits for you in this Appreciate you at least giving it a shot All right, let's go Fair warning there is styrofoam in here for those of you who who have a Have problems with with styrofoam. I would Mute it for a second. All right. This is a pretty nice case where you got got the eminence seal and everything right here I don't know if Chris is here Cameron's here There's the NBA logo sealed right here the sticker right over the flap You can see another angle on the top camera above my head Cameron's ain't Cameron's in this right. He's ain't Chris's next level if he uh If he buys half the case and He's not watching live, you know, maybe maybe that's the strategy to not watch live. I'd be too too scared All right, so there's the case right here really nicely designed case He got the eminence seal right here and if you look at the top camera you can kind of see the The shadowing underneath with the court. It's got the three-point line at the key Jaspies will be will be keeping the empty boxes I think we'll be using it for like giveaways and some in-store events or something like that All right, here we go Little Ed carton right here The there's a nice panini logo up. You can see it up top right there right there as well So here's I'm gonna there's three cards here and two cards up here. I'm just gonna go bottom to top Left to right. How do we get our hands on this puffin's asking? We asked our distributors nicely All right, here's the first one. Look how look how thick the cards are right here. It's pretty nice It's nice five out of five diamond Steph Curry and These diamonds there'll be a little card in here that says these diamonds are naturally mine not lab-grown So and there if you if you notice if you compare these to like the flawless diamonds Or a lot these are the eminence ones are a lot bigger All right, so there's the first one the middle one here is One out of ten Eric Pascal Gilded graphs Steph's teammate and oh and here's the card that says they're they're naturally mine not lab-grown Here's the next one here. It's four out of five caramel loan Peerless three-color patch and on card autograph Nice thing. I like the the eminence logo to that sticker is pretty cool There's a three on the bottom and now the two on the top you can see on the top camera left to right on the left top left is One out of three Tyler hero rookie autograph. It's pretty good and up here is Some fine silver MVP LeBron James That is nice. That is six out of ten His Miami. He Jersey number that actually does make a does make a difference The silver is nice the eminence logo right there That's awesome Yeah, and in case you're wondering if this stuff is worth it Danny's reminding us that that out of five Tyler hero one of them just sold on eBay for $4,250 What about a thousand more than the cost of the spot? That's not a bad return All right, but wait, there's more. So here's the tray Right here, and then we've got five more right here. So we'll go bottom left to right in the top left to right I'm trying not to I'm trying not to look at the hits. I want to be just as surprised as you are All right, here we have ooh nice Charles Barkley one out of five got some nice low numbers out of here I don't think we've seen a Barkley autograph yet And frankly I usually see Barkley as a redemption. So it's kind of cool to see a live hit the middle one here is nine out of ten Timberwolves edition of KG MVP Some fine fine silver and on card autograph nine out of ten Nice KG love how ferocious he was as a player. I Did not like it when he was on the Celtics though as a Lakers man All right, we've got Brandon Clark. I thought that was gonna be the John Moran There's Brandon please doing fine to nine out of ten Brandon Clark on card autograph He's low-key doing pretty well in the absence of John Moran who's working his way back from an ankle an ankle injury All right two more to go. It's oh look what time it is Ten out of ten three color patch an autograph dame time. That's pretty nice You don't see a lot of Damon Lillard autographs either and the last one. Oh there it is John Moran five out of five John Moran Oh Peerless two color patch and auto John Moran five out of five That this is our first. This is our first John Moran Wow, that's awesome All right, so as you can you can see on the top camera. We pulled out all the hits. There's actually another tray right here No hits here I don't in previous years they've they've like goofed around with like surprises so now I've got a check every time and nothing Nothing underneath here. All right. Thank you very much everybody. We really appreciate everyone. This is not This is not a cheap break to put it mildly. So I appreciate everybody, you know Risking Taking a risk on on a product like this. I really appreciate it. Okay. I'm gonna pause the video when we come back I'm gonna have all these hits typed in and we'll run the randomizer and we'll see who gets what stick around And I'll be right back All right, welcome back folks I've got the hits typed in right here. Let's see one two three four five six seven eight nine ten Okay, I didn't miss any of them. All right, Chris Cameron James and Kevin Gary Kenneth. Good luck. Let's roll it Let's randomize it names and teams are gonna be randomized lucky seven times three and a four Your names first one two three four five six and seventh and final time Kevin down to Chris Cameron you're in the five spot. He's watching live and He says his stomachs and knots mine would mind my stomachs and knots. I can't imagine what your stomach feels like Cameron you're in the five spot three and a four seven times for the hits one two three four five six and Once more seventh and final time Seventh and final time. We got Steph down to Charles And here's how it shakes out Cameron You got the four out of five patch auto Carl Malone not not one not one he wanted but still a train whistle of a legend All aboard the big hit Express Kevin you got the Steph Curry five out of five diamond auto all aboard Jameson with a Damian Lillard dame time ten out of ten a patch autograph Chris Gerard with the one out of three Tyler hero autograph all aboard Nice rookie auto Kenneth the Eric Pascal one out of ten autograph Chris Gerard Kevin Garnett KG nine out of ten fine silver autograph Gary with the John Morant Five out of five two-color patch and autograph all aboard Wow Chris with the rest the LeBron James fine fine silver six out of ten Miami Heat Jersey number You also have the Brandon Clark nine out of ten autograph and the Charles Barkley sixers edition One out of five auto all aboard the big hit Express And there you have it boys and girls look at this we got the Steph Curry Diamond auto the Charles Barkley to five the Eric Pascal the nine out of ten KG The out of five Carl Malone some nice colors in that patch the Brandon Clark to ten the Tyler hero out of three And it's dame time Damian Lillard. It's pretty great. We got the LeBron James six out of ten fine silver and the John Morant Wow What again, this is probably one of the best cases that I've seen I think so there you have it ladies gentlemen That was 2019 2020 panini eminence basketball one box random hit break number five from jaspy's case breaks calm It's always a surprise when I see these loaded up on the site and I that's what I like I tell Nick don't don't tell me if we're getting any more eminence.  Hopefully it's at the same price go and get it I'm Joe jaspy's case breaks calm I'll see you next time for the next one. Bye You


Death. The end of one's life. A common plot device used across all fictional media, and one which has particular significance and purpose in One Piece. Hello my Nakamitachi, this is Joygirl and today we're going to be discussing Death in the World of One Piece, which is a pretty heavy topic in itself, but is a particularly layered and deeply meaningful phenomenon which Oda uses in his story. And if you would like to discuss various other topics present within the series, whether it be as heavy as this one or as light as Usopp's 5-ton hammer, please do subscribe. I should also mention to anime-only fans that this video is relatively spoiler-free or I will at least warn you before discussing any manga-only material. But back to today's video. Death is an interesting element used with a very particular meaning and intention in the story. And there are a few main elements to this topic, all of which are interesting and can even be controversial points of discussion, such as what death means and how it is used throughout the series, as well as the unavoidable question regarding the lack of deaths in One Piece, including the much-heated topic of Oda's use of fake-out deaths, and the mangaka's own thoughts and feelings about using death in the series. Starting with the first question, how is death used in One Piece? Unless you are very new to the series, you will have likely noticed that death is seemingly not a commonly featured plot development. And I say seemingly because although it is true that we rarely witness the death of a character on screen and in the present timeline, there are plenty of deaths that have occurred and have been relayed to us through the use of flashbacks. Which seems to illuminate Oda's intentions when it comes to the decision of killing off a character. Death is not simply a plot device used by the mangaka to shock his readers and grab their attention as it is used in other pieces of fiction. Death is specifically used for practically a single purpose, a catalyst for further developments. And this is true in regards to plot developments as it is to characters. One Piece as a series literally opened with death. As we witness the execution of Goldie Roger. The Pirate King's death spurred the entire story with his final words, inviting the world out to look for the treasure he left at sea and in turn sparking the great age of pirates. Roger's death continues to have an effect today as inspired by his words, pirates all around the world including our main character, journey and battle to find the One Piece and claim the title of Pirate King. Also as one of the very few deaths of the current timeline, Whitebeard's death was a groundbreaking moment in the series. Similarly to Roger, Whitebeard in his final moments confirmed the treasure's existence, thus paving the way for the new age of piracy. In a period where the age of pirates and pirate's dreams had begun to decline with some pirates even mocking the idea of the One Piece, Whitebeard's final words reinvigorated the spirits of pirates and enticed the many to venture out to the new world. In addition to this, the death of the strongest man in the world had a monumental impact on the plotline of the series. With the world having relied upon the balance of powers between the world government and the Shichibukai against the Yonko, Whitebeard's death resulted in a major upset to this balance, having huge repercussions all over the world and thus sparking further plotlines and developments. A perfect example of this is the ongoing feud between Luffy and Big Mom, which could be considered as an indirect but still related consequence of Whitebeard's death. This bitter enmity between the two started after Luffy challenged the Yonko's rule over Fishman Island. This arguably only occurred as a result of islands and nations formally under Whitebeard's protection left vulnerable in the wake of his death, which forced Fishman Island to become affiliated with Big Mom. And despite us witnessing Whitebeard's death over a decade ago, the aftermath has continued still today in the Wano arc. Speaking of which, the events of Wano, and arguably, much of the post-timescape era, insofar as it concerns Kinemon and Momonosuke, whom we met in Punk Hazard, is fuelled by the death of Odin, whom his scabbards have vowed to avenge by defeating Kaido and fulfill Odin's dreams of opening up Wano's borders, which leads us to the discussion of character development. Arguably, the best example of how death is used for this purpose is seen through our main protagonist, Luffy. The death of his brother, Ace, is perhaps the most illuminating use of death to further develop a character, especially as it is one of the very few on-screen deaths which occurred in the present timeline. The impact of Ace's death was huge, not just on a shockingly emotional level for us, but for Luffy as it served as the final straw for what he had started to realize after the Saabori arc when he failed to save his friends from Kuma. For Ace to die whilst protecting his brother, who had come to Marineford to save him, it became excruciatingly clear that Luffy was simply not strong enough. Ace's death, paired with whitebeards, served the purpose of further developing Luffy's character, resulting in his entry to the New World as a much stronger pirate. But Oda, being the brilliant mangaka that he is, adds another layer. At the beginning of the Wano arc, it was revealed that Ace had also visited Wano and promised Tama that he would make Wano a country where she could eat until she was full every day. The same promise Luffy made to the aspiring Kunoichi, revealing a theme that is heavily present throughout the series and one which becomes even more poignant through death. Inherited Will Whilst throughout the series we have been viewing Luffy as having inherited Roger's will, it was revealed at Wano that Luffy now also carries on Ace's will. Having failed to save Ace at Marineford, he must now save the memory of his brother by fulfilling their promise to the citizens of Wano. Over the course of the series, almost every prominent character's motives and actions are inspired by the passing of those important to them. All the Straw Hat crew members have dealt with the loss of a loved one, which was used to advance their stories by shaping their personalities and goals. Witnessing the tragic backstories of our crew through their respective flashbacks help us in understanding the characters and the motivations behind their actions and dreams. The focus on this concept in the series then leads us to the next question. What does death mean? And I don't mean the rules or guidelines set by the fan base like if we see the deceased body of the character then that likely confirms death, which admittedly only came about because of the number of miraculously missed deaths in the series, but more on that later. What I mean by this is that as a result of the notion of inherited will, death can take on a fundamentally different meaning when viewed in one piece terms. When does a man die? Is it when he's shot in the heart with a pistol? No. When he's stricken with a deadly disease? No. When he eats soup made from a deadly mushroom? No. It's when he's forgotten. As explained beautifully by Dr. Hero look, one's physical death is of little consequence in the series. Death takes on such a more poignant and layered meaning. In a series where individuals take their lives to live out their dreams, death has more to do about one's spirit and will than physiology. We have seen this different meaning of death sprinkled throughout the series such as Roger's parting words to Rayleigh. The former pirate king is indeed the perfect embodiment of Hero look's words. Through the legacy he created, Roger lives on and his presence is felt throughout the series. One of my favourite examples of this is the past on will of Mary's, whom yes, I do consider a living character in her own right. Not only did the death of the Going Mary spark various plot and character developments, Oda softened the heartbreak of the ship's death by introducing us to the Thousand Sunny, who carries on the soul of Going Mary. And now, for this next example, anime-only fans will have to skip ahead to the time shown on the screen as we're going to discuss something which hasn't yet been animated. For everyone else, let's discuss that epic death of Kazuki Oden. Oden said something in a similar vein moments before his death, when to Kaido he claimed that his spirit will live on as a story to accompany people's drinks, as a legend. And Kaido experienced Oden's lingering presence firsthand when he was flooded with images of Oden during the Scabbard's attack, showcasing their inheritance of Oden's will. This deeper meaning behind death establishes the notion that one never actually dies so long as they remain in the memory of others. Whilst this is indeed beautiful and meaningful, there is however another layer to this idea that no one dies in one piece, bringing us to one of the most contested aspects of the series, the fakeouts. For a series that does so well by its fans, to say that Oda's decision to bring back seemingly deceased characters hasn't been so well received is a great understatement. The first controversial use of this plot device was when Pell somehow miraculously survived the bomb explosion in the Alibasta arc, which the mangaka had previously done for Igaram's character in the same arc. Since then, Oda has also used this for other various characters. Whilst in the post timeskip era, Oda has included more deaths such as Yasui's heartfelt sacrifice, this trope of characters surviving deaths throughout the series has even led to the joke of Will of P to refer to the long line of characters whose name starts with P who have survived their seeming deaths. And whilst the majority of this has concerns side characters, when the mangaka just seems unable to part with, fakeouts have even become part of the main storyline such as the reveal of Sabo still being alive. And understandably, this plot device angers a substantial portion of the fan community. It is argued to take away from the tension and the gravitas that the seeming death established in the first place and make readers suspicious of any future deaths. I mean, I'm still holding out to see whether Pedro actually died or whether he'll continue the Will of P and come back to witness the new dawn for himself. But personally, I don't think that this lingering doubt of whether Pedro is actually dead is necessarily something that detracts from my enjoyment of the series nor do I think it takes away from the sacrifice that he made because it was still an epic and heartfelt decision to which he dedicated his life regardless of the outcome. Also, after we experienced the shock of the death of Ace and Whitebeard, proving that Oda does have the capacity to kill his characters when necessary, ever since Marineford, the mystery of whether characters are dead or alive has created a new sort of tension that I actually enjoy, but in saying that I do understand that not everyone feels the same way and why some may have felt cheated from the emotional depth associated with character deaths as a result of these fake outs. And so whilst it may be hard to understand why Oda would choose to use this controversial plot device, it does seem like he has his reasons, which he has either directly commented on or alluded to throughout the years. Indeed, Oda explained this in the fourth volume of SBS. When asked why Luffy doesn't kill his opponents, the mangaka answered that in an era where everyone uses their lives for their dreams, their failure in achieving such is as painful as death. A widely touted but in reality a myth that exists in the community is that Pel was written to die, but considering the context in our real world where Pel's death was released very close to the 9-11 attacks in America, Oda and his editors thought that having Pel die from a bombing would be insensitive and thus wrote his survival back into the series. Whilst this theory is certainly plausible when we consider the dates between the chapter and the real life attacks, it does remain a theory. In saying that, let's examine Oda's actual response to the 9-11 attacks. In the 44th issue of Shonen Jump, Oda commented that there are adults who kill others in the name of holy war or justice, and this is something that kids witness growing up. One piece is a series which will continue for quite some time, all the while praying for world peace. What this seems to imply is that for the mangaka, killing in the name of justice is not something he wants kids to grow up believing. So as for his own story, it's not an element which he will be endorsing, which does seem to contradict the existence of characters such as Akainu, though this could explain why Akainu is portrayed as a villain and thus not a celebrated character to be looked up to. Aside from this, Oda has also revealed his belief that death or killing shouldn't be taken lightly. In SBS Volume 57, Oda commented that his grandma once told him that using the word kill is not a good thing to say, which is partly why he chooses to limit the use of this word in his series. It seems that Oda is reluctant to feature death so frequently or to use this word due to the risk of such a word being treated flippantly. Although it is evident that this has now changed, back in 1999, Oda also once admitted in the Asahi Evening newspaper that he doesn't kill any characters because he wishes for his readers to leave the arc satisfied. And this could be understood in conjunction with another illuminating comment made in 2012 during an interview featured in the Shonen Jump Alpha blog. Oda said that when writing One Piece, he only has one reader in mind, himself as a 15 year old. And as such, he makes his decisions based on how he believes his 15 year old self would react to an event. And whilst the reality of the fact that One Piece as a series which has been running for over 20 years means most fans are older than 15, the fact remains that One Piece is ultimately a Shonen series. Whilst Oda wasn't actually answering a question about death specifically, his view of his readership does somewhat explain his reluctance in killing characters which may feel too dark or heavy for his perceived young fan base. From all of this, it seems that Oda only kills his characters when there's an absolute need to, where the story would not make sense otherwise. For example, whereas Ace's sacrifice and resulting death was necessary to catapult Luffy's development and growth, Pearl's decision and actions of sacrifice were sufficient. There is no need for Pearl to have remained dead in the same way for Ace, as the arc, nor the future of One Piece, depends on Vivi's character development. Which also seems to relate to another comment Oda has made, this time specifically regarding death. In 2007, in a Shuisha Playboy magazine, Oda revealed that resurrecting a dead character wasn't his style and a plot device he has never enjoyed even as a young reader. As such, he is careful not to actually kill off any of his characters who may still have a future story to tell. Which may seem odd because resurrecting a dead character or miraculously saving a presumably dead character without much explanation may seem more or less the same. But nevertheless, it seems the two are distinguishable, at least in the eyes of our beloved mangaka. And that brings us to the end of today's discussion. Please let me know your thoughts on this heavy but meaningful topic by leaving a comment below, please also like and share if you enjoyed today's video, and please also don't forget to subscribe to join us for more One Piece discussions. This is Joygirl and I'll see you again soon.


Ukrainian army lost 31 armored vehicles for a village. Recently, Ukraine declared the liberation of the 11th settlement since the counter-offensive began more than 10 weeks ago. But the regained freedom comes at a high price. According to Build Media Outlet, in the battles for one settlement, the armed forces of Ukraine lost 31 pieces of equipment including 23 NATO armored personnel carriers. New Russian drone footage shows Ukraine lost at least 31 armored vehicles including 23 NATO-sponsored mine-protecting personnel carriers during the Battle of Styro-Miosk. The wrecks of these vehicles still remain on the battlefield in addition to other damaged armored vehicles that have since been recovered. This represents a success for Russia. Although Ukraine's current superiority allows it to advance village by village, Moscow's strategy is to destroy as many Western armored vehicles and liberators armored vehicles as possible. Build writes, If Ukraine loses 10-30 armored personnel carriers per population centre and no new ones arrive in the armed forces, the offensive will stop before reaching large cities. It is noted that the Russian army knows that Ukraine is struggling to replace and repair the vehicles, much more so than Russia. For example, according to Build Information, the Ukrainian army has lost 9 of the 18 Leopard 2A6 high-tech tanks delivered from Germany since the counter-offensive began, although many of the damaged tanks are repairable. This is proving difficult as the repair locations are around 1000 kilometers to the west and some damaged German tanks are still stuck under enemy fire in the Zaporizia region. In addition, despite the pledge of about 100 modern Western main battle tanks, Leopard 2, Challenger and Abrams in January 2023, neither Germany nor Great Britain nor the USA have followed up on their tank deliveries. In contrast, the Russian army brings between 20 and 50 new or upgraded main battle tanks to Ukraine every month. The logic behind this is simple. If Ukraine loses between 10 and 30 Western armored vehicles per village, while hardly any new ones are being delivered, its offensive will stall before it reaches strategically important cities such as Tokmak, Polohy, Melitopol, Volnovakha or Mariupol.


Hey guys it's Julia and welcome back to my channel and for today's video I'm going to be showing you guys an overview of my bookshelves. Oh if you've noticed by the background I did the rainbow plus the bookshelf that's in the corner over there. So I did them by color this time and I posted it on Twitter and it blew up a little. I was kind of scared. I've never had a tweet get that many likes or retweets ever and for like six days I was getting notifications non-stop. It was really weird but yeah so that was fun. But I'm going to be just showing you guys an overview. I'm not going to be taking every single book out just because I personally don't like watching those bookshelf tours as much anymore like I personally just don't like watching them and like I know for a lot of people like they'd rather not watch that for like an hour and a half but it's obviously personal preference but like if you're here for one of those it's not it. But I'm going to be talking about some of the books in my shelf like actually talking about them talking about with all my shelves how I organized them things like that. This right here is my first shelf which is just a ladder shelf. I got this one from Costco I think. They don't sell them anymore they're discontinued but literally type in ladder shelf and you'll find one they're pretty inexpensive and they hold quite a bit of books. So this is one of the ladder shelves. Basically I have my all my like white books here. My white books my cream cream whites stuff like that. I have them all arranged in different heights so no two books besides they're the same height just because I thought that like when when you're doing colored bookshelves I think that looks cooler when they're like different heights. So that's what I have here and I have some little goodies on my shelf so I have this little guy this little snowman. He I actually painted him as well as the little fox that's here. So I painted these guys so they're just chilling here. I have this little thing that says ask me about my cats because if you don't know I have a cat love him. I also have some little bookish goodies so I have a little candle this one is elrin it's a black witch candle I think htc frenzy gave it to me and a baggy thing.  Also just have some funko's down here so this is difficult. This is so basically I have BB-8 over here I have my chemical romance Gerald Way Funko Pop. I have just some goodies down here I'll probably show more close-ups but I have like a little baseball that my boyfriend got me a little succulent with snow on it some stranger things popped some harry potter I have one from Danny from The Shining down there as well so this is just my all like white books I have one book on display on the shelf which is Warcross because it looks so pretty and I love it so here we have like my actual two big shelves that you guys see in the background of my videos pretty often at the top which you can't even see I have like my black and kind of like miscellaneous books that I couldn't fit and it was so hard to do these shelves guys so basically if we move over here I have like my reds up here so some little accessories that I have is like I have a Rubik's Cube over here a Beats Pell some more Funko Pops and things like that then I have my orange shelf which is all my orange books I have like my greenish bluish thing happening here and then more blues down here move over like just pan just when we pan to the left I have all my yellows over here and then some more blues I have one book display on the shelf which is the Wicked Deep just because I love this cover the book was pretty good too but I just love the aesthetic of this cover I love like the pentagram and everything so that's why that's there and I'll show you like a quick little pin of them so like the bottom shelf way down there I had to do like a double stack so I have to put books in front of the other ones because I have so many and they don't all fit so I have all those there if you're wondering what that little box thingy is it's for the lights that are on the shelf so I actually need to change the batteries on those but these are all like miscellaneous books that I couldn't fit and same with this side which mostly has just like black books and things like that going up I have purple books a lot of you guys pointed out my little pokemon character I have here my friend gave that to me I have a little like Iceman kills postcard here and some more Funkos then I have like my pinks some pinks here some blues and greens going along these shelves more blues and greens blues things like that I have green and then yellow red and my reds at the very top and that's kind of how this shelf looks so I have like some little things like some of my favorites are these little like poutine pops I have a little candle in the corner I have a lot of like random candles on this shelf I don't even burn them they're just kind of on display so over here is a corner of my room that you'd never really see so I have like some I'd go and post up on the wall it lights up and everything and I have my black shelf these books are falling over because I just filmed something else or I had to grab them so that's why I'd like that but this shelf is just all of the books that I own that have like black spines so this includes manga hardcovers paperbacks all of that stuff on this shelf I have all my stranger things funko pops including like dart billy jonathan nancy all of them are on here as well as a clock little vintage clock and a big jar of bookmarks so just for a quick overview these are an overview of my shelves two main ones and then a little black one in the corner personally I love them the other this huge one here it's from Ikea um that's about it but I got a lot of questions about how I'm gonna find books honestly I don't really do rainbow like ever like you I don't think you guys have ever seen me do it because I like having my books in some type of series order or like by genre or by height so this is really weird for me but I think it looks really aesthetically pleasing and yeah and like the books that I'm looking for like when I make videos and stuff the more I like talk about certain books like the more I written know what spine they have and the more you know like it is organized by color so as long as I know the color of the spine I can find it um I know series are split up which does bother me a little bit too but I don't know this is temporary it's not going to be like this forever but I just really like the look of these shelves so let me know your guys's thoughts on rainbow shelves how you like them in general how you like these shelves um let me know down below if you saw any books that caught your eye let me know if you saw one of your favorite books let me know I would love to hear about it I concludes my little bookshelf tour overview kind of thing um if you have any questions let me know down in the comments and just thought I'd do a video because if you guys see these in the background there's gonna be a lot of questions like why did you change your shelves and all that kind of stuff so that is the reorganization of my shelves if you feel like it retweet that tweet about about these shelves because 16,000 other people did so anyways thank you guys so so much for watching I hope you enjoyed this video let me know your thoughts in the comments down below and I'll see you all super super soon with a new video bye


Thank you very much. That concludes general questions. We turn now to First Minister's Questions, question 1 from Jackson Carlaw. The power to assert our position as an independent coastal state with full unfettered access across our waters or plan to go back into the common fisheries policy with no controls atal? Wel, ythodd y First Minister yw'r best plan ar gyfer ffishermen? First Minister? What I think, Presiding Officer, is that the Tories raising fishing today is something of an early Christmas present in a political sense. Now, Jason Kahlaw's attack on me on fishing appears to be because I continue to support membership of the European Union. The strange thing about that attack is that, so does Jason Kahlaw, and so does Ruth Davidson. Here is Ruth Davidson on 1 October 2018, just a few short weeks ago. Well, like I say, I voted to remain. I fought for remain. If there was another vote tomorrow, I would still vote remain. So on that issue there is no difference it would appear between myself and the Scottish Conservatives. Where there is a difference is that SNP MPs, on 11 December, will vote against the Tory deal that sells out Scottish fishermen. We know that Tory pledges on fishing are not worth the paper that they are written on. Let's have a look at them. The Tories said that there would be annual negotiations rather than an overall agreement. The political declaration commits to an overall agreement. The Tories said that there is no link between access to waters and access to markets. The political declaration makes clear that there will be such a link. Far from leaving the common fisheries policy behind, the EU statement makes clear that the new agreement will build on the common fisheries policy. The Tories say that they will ignore all that. We will get what we want at the end of the day, but the Tories have handed all of the leverage to the European Union. Unless the UK agrees to their rules in fishing, they will block a trade deal and it takes just one country to do that. The truth of the matter is that I am delighted that Jackson Carlaw has given me the opportunity to highlight this. The Tories, just as they did on the UK's way into the European Union, are selling out Scottish fishermen on the way out. Jackson Carlaw. What I gave the First Minister the opportunity to do was answer a question, but, as has so often the case, it is clear that the First Minister reads out the answer to the question that she would prefer was asked rather than the question that is actually asked. The Scottish Fishermen's Federation has been absolutely clear. It says that, under the Prime Minister's Brexit deal, the UK will be out of the CFP and that the UK will become an independent coastal state. More than that, it confirmed just yesterday in an email to every member of this chamber that they are backing for the Prime Minister's withdrawal agreement and the political declaration. That is their position. Is the First Minister seriously trying to tell us that she knows more about fish than the Scottish Fishermen's Federation? The First Minister. Well, Jackson Carlaw wants to trade quotes. I am happy to indulge him. Here is the Scottish Creel Fishermen's Federation. I can only talk personally, having had these years behind me, and I really would not trust the Tories as far as I could throw them. Whenever it comes to fishing, it has always been a sacrificial lamb. Jackson Carlaw is saying that he knows more about fishing than the Scottish Creel Fishermen's Federation. The fact of the matter is that I know that the Tories are desperate to spare their own blushes on this, but they are rewriting history. See, the commitment was never just— they do not like this, but they are going to hear it—the commitment was never just about being an independent coastal state. That is the bare minimum. The Tories' promise was annual negotiations. Now we know that there will be an overall agreement. They promise no link between access to waters and access to markets. The political declaration makes clear that there will be that link. Of course, the statement issued by the European Union makes it clear that they are going to demand an arrangement that builds upon the common fisheries policy. I say to Jackson Carlaw again that no amount of bluff and bluster from him today will take away from this fact. The Scottish Tories yet again have sold out Scottish fishermen. Shame on them. Jackson Carlaw, shame on you, concludes the First Minister. If shame was a currency, the First Minister's pockets would be bursting. In fact, if shame was a currency, she might have been able to fill the black hole in her independence financial plans as well. What the First Minister is saying is that she does no better than the Scottish Fishermen's Federation. The reason the First Minister will not back the Scottish Fishermen's Federation positions is because she cannot. She is trapped by her own policy in Europe. The plain fact is that, for all their posturing and pompous outrage, the SNP's policy is to rejoin the EU. Therefore, because there is no way around this to rejoin the common fisheries policy, here is what it says. Article 38.1 of the treaty on the functioning of the European Union says that being a member of the European Union, as she wishes an independent Scotland to be, means that you have to sign up to the common fisheries policy. There are no reviews, there is no reform, that is not a question of liking it, it is a question of lumping it. Is it simply deceiving people, First Minister, to pretend that this is anything other than a fact? First Minister. I am sorry, Jackson Carlaw really has to explain this a bit more simply to people, because he says that all of that flows from the fact that I want Scotland and indeed the UK to remain in the European Union. Again, I would say to him, so does he, or so he says. When Ruth Davidson says that if there was another vote tomorrow, I would still vote remain, it seems to me that she wants Scotland still to be a member of the European Union. Therefore, if all of what Jackson Carlaw says flows from that, then it applies to Ruth Davidson as much as it applies to anybody else. Jackson Carlaw also talks about the Scottish Fishermen's Federation pledge and attacks me for somehow not signing it. The Prime Minister yesterday refused to sign the Scottish Fishermen's Federation pledge, but we do not need to sign a pledge, because we will do what matters. On 11 December, in that vote, on that deal that sells out Scottish Fishermen, SNP MPs will vote against it. The question for Jackson Carlaw and all those MPs who are going to sign that pledge, will they vote against that deal or not? Yes or no? Jackson Carlaw. The First Minister's advisers have given her a thick folder of answers to questions. I have not asked. I did not mention any pledge to her, but since she asked, the Prime Minister did the deal that is going to deliver the pledge. Let us just sum up the SNP's position. They accused Theresa May of selling out and fishing, but it is them who would drag us straight back into the CFP. They demand a renegotiation with whom? The Chancellor of Germany, the Chancellor of Austria, the Prime Minister of France, the President of the EU, the President of the European Council, the EU's lead negotiator, the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland, and even Gever Hofstadt, together with every other European leader, says that this is it, this is the only deal on the table. They say and I say, back a deal that delivers an orderly exit, protects jobs and delivers more control of our waters than we have had for half a century. She says, vote down the deal, meaning more chaos, more upheaval and all in the hope that it will deliver her obsession with a second independence referendum. That is not in Scotland's interests. That is not standing up for Scotland. The First Minister is starting to become very clear at First Minister's questions, that is, the redder Jackson Carlaw's face gets, the more he points wildly across the chamber at the more trouble he is in. He asked me to support a deal that is bad for Scotland and bad for the UK, but the Prime Minister right now can't even persuade her own party to back that deal. That is the reality. The SNP will continue to do what the SNP always does. We will stand up for Scotland. That deal will take Scotland out of the European Union against our will. It will take us out of the single market against our economic interests. It will put us at a potential competitive disadvantage with Northern Ireland and into the bargain. It will sell out Scottish fishermen. I have to say to Jackson Carlaw who talks about the SNP using Brexit to advance the case for independence. Let me say to him that Brexit does that all by itself. It doesn't need any help from the SNP. Of course, that threadbare line is just a device for the Tories, because the opposite is true. They are exploiting independence to avoid hard questions on Brexit. I will not wash. People see right through it. Increasingly, they are seeing right through Jackson Carlaw and all of his Tory cronies as well. This time last week, the First Minister stood up in this chamber and claimed that she had given a very fair settlement to local government. Today, the Accounts Commission reports that funding for councils was cut in real terms by £220 million in the last year. They also say that funding from the Scottish Government to local government decreased at a faster rate, 6.92 per cent, than the Scottish Government revenue budget at 1.65 per cent. That is taking Tory austerity and quadrupling it. What is fair about that? The Accounts Commission report that was published this morning, as I am sure Richard Leonard knows, is for financial year 2017-18. We are currently in financial year 2018-19. In this financial year, the finance minister in the budget earlier this year delivered a real-terms increase in local authority revenue budgets. That is ensuring that local government can protect front-line services. Of course, he managed that against a backdrop of massive cuts to the Scottish Government budget imposed by the Tories at Westminster. Richard Leonard would have more credibility on those issues if he did not continue to back a situation that allows Tory Governments at Westminster to cut the budget of this Parliament. Let me go back to last week. Last week, at the same time as the First Minister was telling the chamber that councils get a fair deal, letters were being dispatched to parents across Falkirk from head teachers, warning them of unprecedented cuts, including cuts to support staff. Catherine Sneddon of Bones received one such letter. Her son Lewis is 10 years old. He has a learning disability and epilepsy. Yesterday, Catherine told me that, year in, year out, we brace ourselves for cuts to his support network. Take that away from him and other children who need the ACN support packages and our children decline, decline in physical and mental health alongside their medical issues. First Minister, are you seriously saying to the Sneddon family that this is fair? Well, as Richard Leonard will be aware or should be aware, the leader of Falkirk Council has since issued a statement apologising for the misleading impression given by those letters and given assurances about education services in Falkirk. I would hope that Richard Leonard would accept that and also indeed welcome that. In terms of education funding overall, he wanted to quote the Accounts Commission report at me earlier on. What he will read in that report, page 17 of it, and again this is 2017-18, education expenditure increased by 3.2 per cent, 1.5 per cent in real terms. That was last year. In this year, local authorities have set education budgets that are 3.8 per cent higher than the budgets that they set in the previous year. That's a 2.3 per cent real terms increase. Since the SNP came to office, total revenue spending on schools has risen by almost £500 million, which is over 10 per cent. However, just to go back to Falkirk briefly, and Richard Leonard might want to reflect on this point, one of the issues that Falkirk Council faces is the cost of labour schools PFI schemes. Richard Leonard will not like to hear this, but I think that it is good that he does. In 1998, Labour signed a PFI deal for schools that had a capital value of £65 million, but the total cost to the taxpayer is going to be £314 million. That amounts to a cost to the taxpayer of £13.3 million a year. Labour should be apologising for that. The Audit and Commission report says that Scottish Government revenue funding to councils reduced by 2.3 per cent in real terms in 2017-18. The financial outlook is for reductions in Scottish Government revenue funding to councils. Let's be clear about this. Falkirk is an SNP-run council. Those council cuts are made by an SNP Government in Edinburgh. It has reached the point where head teachers in schools across Falkirk are writing to parents to tell them that the so-called fair settlement means swinging cuts. The result is that vulnerable children like Lewis and families like the Sneddens face the stress of cuts to the services and the support that they need. Where is the fairness in that? Isn't Lewis entitled to realise his potential? Don't children like him deserve to receive the education that they need? When will you stop imposing austerity on Scotland's children and start investing instead on Scotland's local services? Falkirk Council, in this financial year, set an education budget of £158 million. For Richard Leonard's information, that represented an increase of £8 million on the previous year. As I said earlier on, the Accounts Commission that he likes to quote at me when it suits him, on education expenditure said in 2017-18 that the expenditure had increased by 1.5 per cent in real terms. We know that in this year's spending on schools has increased, and we know that under the SNP overall, spending on schools in revenue terms has increased by 10.3 per cent. All of that, in spite of the swinging cuts being imposed on the Scottish Government's budget by Westminster. Again, I would say what I said earlier on that Richard Leonard would have more credibility on those issues if he did not continue to support a situation in which Tory Governments at Westminster were allowed to impose cuts on the budget of this Parliament. When he changes his tune on that, people might be more prepared to listen to him on other matters. The number of constituency supplementary is the first from Shona Robison. Can I ask the First Minister whether she can update Parliament on progress being made in securing a future for Michelin and Dundee in the light of the recent meeting between Derek Mackay and the Michelin executives? I thank Shona Robison for raising this important question. The Scottish Government remains focused on securing the best positive outcome for the Michelin Dundee site and its workers. The economy secretary had a very productive meeting with Michelin senior executives last Friday, where we presented propositions relating to the future of the site and its workforce in Dundee. The finance secretary will convene the third meeting of the Michelin Dundee action group tomorrow morning, in which he will update them on Michelin's response to the proposition and the next steps. Once the action group, including representatives of the workforce, has been informed of the outcome of those discussions, the cabinet secretary will, of course, update local members. We are working with trade unions, disease city council, the UK Government and right across political parties, including with local MSPs, to achieve the best possible outcome for the Michelin site and all of its workers. Annie Wells, to be followed by Anas Sarwar. Thank you. The closure of Kailiwyr's day contamination unit in Springburn has led to the cancellation of over 700 operations across hospitals in Glasgow, some of which have been major. In the papers this week, a whistleblower stated that had this closure occurred simultaneously with a large-scale incident, hospitals would not have been able to cope. The unit has reopened on a phase basis only, but can the First Minister assure me that patients will receive alternative arrangements as soon as possible and outline what action will be taken to prevent this situation from happening again? Yes, I can give that assurance. Glasgow and Clyde health board are already working hard to ensure that patients whose operations were cancelled as a result of this closure get alternative arrangements as quickly as possible. This was a very regrettable situation, but steps were taken as quickly as possible to rectify it. As the member said, Kailiwyr's day contamination unit is now open again on Tuesday, and all appropriate steps will be taken to ensure that a situation like this is never allowed to recur. A time when hate is on the rise, we got some hope. This week saw the Muslim and Jewish community come together to sign a landmark joint community to call out and challenge Islamophobia and anti-semitism in Scotland. Muslim and Jewish women born in Scotland together are telling how they have been called traitors, have been spat at, told to go home and how they are scared of travelling on Scotland's public transport system. In the same week that we saw the horrific video of the young Syrian boy being racially abused and assaulted at his school in Huddersfield, silence is no longer an option in the face of such hate. Does the First Minister agree that we cannot leave the fight against Islamophobia to the Muslim community, that we cannot leave the fight against anti-semitism to the Jewish community and that we cannot leave the fight against all forms of prejudice and hate to any individual community and that it must be a fight for all of us? Yes, I absolutely agree. I congratulate the Muslim and Jewish communities for the actions that they have taken this week. I would say that the actions of our Muslim and Jewish communities in doing what they have done this week are a better representation of Scotland than those who indulge in hate crime. I absolutely agree that there is no place for silence. None of us should be bystanders when it comes to tackling and calling out hate crime. There is an obligation on all of us. I say very clearly but very strongly that an attack on any Muslim, any Jew or any member of any minority community should be seen as an attack on all of us. We should have solidarity and stand shoulder to shoulder at all time. I say that as First Minister and I hope that I am joined in that sentiment by every single member of the chamber. Question 3, Willie Rennie. I am concerned by the First Minister's plan to compromise with Theresa May. Kathy Newman from channel 4 tweeted last night that the First Minister told her that she would back the Norway option if the Prime Minister put it on the table. However, the Norway option takes us out of Europe. It gives us no say in Europe and will damage our economy. Can I plead with the First Minister not to wobble, to stand strong and oppose all and every kind of Brexit? Sometimes Willie Rennie must have been asleep over the last two years when the rest of us have been battling on this issue. Let me set out for him again and I will try to do it in very simple terms what my position is and what the position of the SNP and the Scottish Government is. Our preference, our strong overriding preference, is to stay members of the European Union. That is why, as I have said in this chamber to Willie Rennie previously, we will back a second vote to allow people to choose to stay in the European Union. We very much hope that that proposition can command a majority in the House of Commons and SNP MPs will be part of putting that majority together. However, if it can command a majority—and I hope that it can—as we have said for the last two years, we would favour a compromise option of staying in the single market and customs union, because that is better than coming out of the single market and customs union and would be the least damaging option for our economy. It is not our first preference, but as a compromise it is better than the alternatives that are on the table. I hope that that is crystal clear for Willie Rennie. I would simply say to Willie Rennie that, instead of constantly trying to attack the SNP on this issue, he might one day just think about lifting a finger to try to persuade Labour to back a second vote, because if he can do that, then we will be able to put that majority together and we can give people across the UK the opportunity to stay in the EU and, of course, the people of Scotland the opportunity to express that preference for a second time. Willie Rennie. The First Minister's question is opposed to Brexit, but it is prepared to back it too. Just yesterday, the Treasury told us that every kind of Brexit would damage the economy, so when jobs and businesses are at stake, I do not understand why the First Minister is prepared to accept us. The UK Government is on the ropes. Previous loyalists are opposing the Prime Minister. We finally have a chance of stopping Brexit. This is not the time to accept any new kind of Brexit. I was pleased that she told 700,000 people on the streets of London that she was committed to stopping Brexit dead in its tracks. How could she look those people in the eye if she ends up backing any form of Brexit? The First Minister. I will be corrected if I am wrong here, but I do not think so. I am sure that I read in the newspapers the other day that there is a Liberal Democrat MP in the House of Commons who is going to vote for Theresa May's deal. There are not any SNP MPs who are going to do that. I fear that Willie Rennie is starting to make himself a look just a little bit silly on this question. The SNP opposes Brexit. We want Scotland and the UK to remain in the EU. We will back a second vote to give people across the UK the opportunity to choose to stay in the EU. However, if Willie Rennie cannot persuade Labour to come behind that and that simply cannot command a majority—I hope that it can—but if it cannot, not for the want of trying on the part of the SNP or even on the part of Willie Rennie, it would be irresponsible not to look at the next best compromise that protected jobs and the economy. That is the position of the Scottish Government and the position of the SNP. The other thing that Willie Rennie never manages to explain is how he can justify seeing Scotland taken out of the European Union against our will. If there is a second vote and we get the same result all over again—which, of course, we hope, would not happen—the fact of the matter is that Scotland would be no better off. The real question is, will Willie Rennie stand up in that second vote if Scotland votes again to remain? Will Willie Rennie back all options, including independence, to make sure that Scotland can remain in the EU? We have got some interest in asking some further supplementaries. I encourage members to be succinct and answers similarly. John Mason to be followed by Rachel Hamilton. The First Minister may be aware that yesterday was red Wednesday when many churches were thinking of Christians who are suffering for their faith around the world. Is the First Minister able to raise with the UK or Pakistani Governments the case of Asya Bibi and the Christian minority in Pakistan who are not afforded equal rights in that country? I am absolutely appalled by Asya Bibi's case and the continued reticence of the international community in offering her asylum now that she has been released from prison. The Scottish Government strongly condemns the persecution of minorities, including the targeting of innocent people based on their beliefs. I share John Mason's concerns about religious intolerance and misuse of the blasphemy laws and urge the Government of Pakistan to protect and guarantee the fundamental rights of all its citizens. The Scottish Government has repeatedly raised concerns over those issues directly with the UK Government and the Government of Pakistan, and we will continue to do so. We also strongly support international processes, such as the UN scrutiny of the record of individual member states. First Minister, on Saturday, many small independent shops up and down our high streets across Scotland will take part in small business Saturday, such as Swan's shoe shop and the Tony Huggins head gallery in Kelso. However, we hear today that the number of Scottish retailers going bust is on the rise, according to research by French Duncan. Among other cross-pressures, rise in business rates are being blamed. When will the First Minister realise that her Government's high tax agenda is punishing our high streets and taking urgent action to support Scotland's retailers? The First Minister Well, can I firstly say that I fully support small business Saturday to celebrate that? I'll be visiting a small business in my own constituency, a small business called Category is Books, an LGBTI, a bookshop that's recently opened in my constituency. I hope that members will take the opportunity to support small businesses across the country. I have to say, though, that it's a bit rich to have the member stand up here and talk about business rates. It's this Government that introduced the small business bonus, which benefits many small businesses across the country. It's this Government that continues to support the small business bonus. Of course, in Scotland, including the small business bonus but with many other releases, we have the best package of business rates relief of any country in the UK. I think that Rachel Hamilton actually should support and welcome that. Neil Findlay This week, Panorama exposed very serious failings in the regulation and testing of medical devices and implants. This is a global issue, but dozens and dozens of countries are affected. It's very clear that the system in the UK, the EU and across the world is not fit for purpose. As a positive step, will the Scottish Government now introduce a register of all implants? The First Minister We are happy to give consideration to anything that lies within our power. Of course, as the member is aware, the regulation of these devices is a reserved matter. Responsibility lies with the medical and healthcare registry authority. We have written to them on more than one occasion asking for them to take action, but, as we have done with mesh implants, we will continue to look at what we can do within our own powers. I will ask the health secretary to look into the specific suggestion and write to the member in due course. Sandra White Thank you very much, Presiding Officer. First Minister was reported this week that the Ministry of Defence is paying over £200 million staff in Scotland, less than the real living wage. Will the First Minister join me and many others in calling for a real living wage and for the powers to be implemented to be devolved to this Parliament? The First Minister Yes, I echo that call. I think that the MOD and all government agencies should pay the real living wage. The Scottish Government is a real living wage employer. Of course Scotland has a higher proportion of workers paid the real living wage than any other UK nation, but we recognise that there is still work to do. I look forward to the day and I hope that we can persuade others across the chamber to support that employment legislation is devolved to this Parliament so that we can take the action that we consider necessary to ensure that fair work is something that all workers get. Christine Grahame Thank you, Presiding Officer, to ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will ban the use of dog shop callers. First Minister As the Cabinet Secretary for the Environment announced in January of this year, we have introduced guidance that was widely accepted and reported at the time as being an effective ban on the use of electric dog callers as training aids. This is not a legislative ban on the use of such callers and was never intended to be, but it is intended to avoid the misuse of these callers and ultimately prevent unnecessary suffering by dogs. I appreciate that some members think that we should go further equally. I understand that some people think that we have already gone too far, but the cabinet secretary committed to issuing the guidance. That is what we have done. She also committed, however, to review the effectiveness of the guidance after 12 months and to consider whether any further action is required. That is exactly what we will do. Christine Grahame Thank you First Minister for her answer. Unfortunately, what the Cabinet Secretary said in January and I quote, I have decided to take steps to effectively and promptly ban their use in Scotland. Of course, that is not what happened as the First Minister said guidance was issued. However, many animal welfare organisations now such as the Dogs Trust, Kennel Club, SSPC and people like myself want a straightforward ban, as there is in Wales. With no ban, can the First Minister tell me how effective is that guidance and can the First Minister advise if there has been any reduction in usage? Christine Grahame For her question, during the Parliament's debate on this matter back in January and indeed during discussions with stakeholders on the wording, it was clearly recognised that the guidance would be advisory. The Kennel Club said at the time, and I am quoting, that it welcomes the Scottish Government's effective ban and shock training devices and that, quote, strict guidance has been published, which provides advice on training methods and training aids for dogs. The guidance was only recently published on 15 October, so it is too soon to comment meaningfully on the effect of it. As I said earlier, we have committed to reviewing its impact after 12 months. We will do that in light of the practical experience of Scottish enforcement bodies and any new legislation in other administrations, and we will then consider whether any improvements need to be made to the approach that we have taken. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's position is on reforming the rules regarding the temporary release and parole of prisoners. As we committed to initiating this year's programme for government, we will consult in measures to improve the openness and transparency of the parole system and how we can strengthen the voice of victims and their families in this process. The consultation will be published before the end of this year and we will take action informed by the responses that we receive. We also committed to ensuring that victims and their families receive better information and greater support ahead of prison release arrangements, and those issues will be considered by the new victims task force, which will hold its first meeting on 12 December. I thank the First Minister for that answer. I welcome the First Minister's partial commitments on parole reform, though whether the consultation translates into real action for victims and families is another matter. Michelle's law is also about strengthening victim and family rights before temporary release from prisoners granted. It was the temporary release of Michelle Stewart's killer that kick-started the campaign. The SNP must deliver on Michelle's law, so will the First Minister commit today to expanding this consultation to cover temporary release? First Minister. Firstly, can I pay tribute again to the family of Michelle Stewart in their campaign, which I think has having a real impact on those issues? As the member I know understands, parole and temporary release are two entirely separate processes. We absolutely recognise the importance of strengthening the voice of victims and their families in both parole and temporary release. That is why we committed to action to improve both in the programme for government. That included a commitment to consult on measures to improve the openness of parole processes. That consultation will seek views on how we can strengthen the voice and role of victims and their families, and it will cover the issues raised in the Michelle's law proposal as they relate to parole. As I said, the consultation will be published before the end of this year. Temporary release from prison is not controlled by the parole board, so that will not be part of that consultation. However, we are committed to improving the support and information that is available in relation to temporary prison release arrangements, and that is why that issue will be considered by the new victims task force. As I said a moment ago, that will meet for the first time on 12 December and will be co-chaired by the Justice Secretary and the Lord Advocate. I hope that that assures the member that both of those issues and those very different processes will be properly and fully considered. Daniel Johnson Automatic release was introduced in 1993 by the Conservative Government. While early release is an important part of rehabilitation, it can lead to confusion about the time that will be spent by someone at the point of sentencing. Does the First Minister agree with me on the importance of transparency and sentencing in particular, but also with me that the scope and resource that is available to the sentencing council must be reviewed, given that it has taken three years to publish two pages of guidance? The First Minister I thank Daniel Johnson for raising that question. As I know, he also knows that early release is not the same as temporary release, but all of those issues will be looked at fully by the victims task force. It is because all of those issues will be included that the Lord Advocate is co-chairing that group. I know that there are a number of concerns around how those processes operate at the moment. They are all in place for good reasons, many of them to do with the rehabilitation of prisoners back into society, but it is also vital that there is appropriate and proper protection for the public and that the voice of victims and of victims families is heard. Both on the consultation on parole arrangements, but also on the wider consideration of those issues by the victims task force, the issue being raised by Daniel Johnson will receive proper consideration. Colin Smyth To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to reports that ScotRail has failed to fully deliver 29 franchise obligations. Colin Smyth refers to committed obligations. What he does not mention is that of the 272 obligations in total, ScotRail has already delivered 128 with a further 115 on track for delivery by their due date. Of the remaining obligations, 14 are overdue, and we expect most of those to be achieved in 2019. 15 are categorised as having a challenging delivery date. Transport Scotland is working closely with ScotRail to ensure delivery of all committed obligations that will deliver passenger benefits across the network. With a programme of this scale, it is normal for some delivery outcomes to change, but the focus when managing such changes is always the best interest of the passenger. Colin Smyth Let's disappoint when the First Minister seems so dismissive of the fact that ScotRail is not delivering important obligations. Clearly, it improved journey times, integrated ticket and station investment are clearly not important to the First Minister, but it's not just on those 29 franchise obligations that ScotRail are failing. Punctuality has plummeted to a new low with almost one in five trains running late. Passengers are sick and tired and deserve better. So far, the First Minister's response has been to give ScotRail a free pass to breach its PPM benchmarks and to team up with the Tories to block Labour's plan to end its failing franchise. Can the First Minister tell us how bad does it have to get before she takes meaningful action? If the First Minister will not end its failing franchise, can she answer this straightforward question? Does the First Minister honestly believe that ScotRail will hit its 92.5 per cent PPM target? Yes or no? And if it's yes, when? Can I say to the member—I wasn't dismissive—that I gave him the full facts on the question that he was asking. I think that probably some of those facts were inconvenient for the question that he wanted to follow up with, but that's not really my worry. On the 29 obligations, as I said, 14 listed is overdue—we expect most of those to be achieved in 2019—of the 15 obligations where the delivery date is considered challenging, most have the potential to be achieved in the first part of 2019. Wider issues with delays that he talks about, of course, we deeply regret any inconvenience to passengers. Around half, sometimes more than half, of all delays on the ScotRail network of course are the responsibility of Network Rail. As I've said many times in the past, Network Rail is not the responsibility of this Parliament. I look forward to getting the support of Labour members to make it the responsibility of this Parliament. On that issue, I'm sure that Colin Smyth is aware that just this morning, the Office of Road and Rail took formal action against Network Rail to deliver improved performance. It also confirmed that ScotRail's performance in 2018-19 has been impacted by severe weather. That lies behind many of the delays that we've seen. We are working with ScotRail to improve performance so that the PPM target is met. Lastly, on the issue of the franchise, of course, it is this Government that, for the first time, having won the powers, powers that, when Labour was in government at Westminster, they refused to give this Parliament. It was this Government that took action to ensure that there can be a public sector bid for the next franchise. However, if Colin Smyth wants us to go further, I invite Labour to join with us and to support a call for the full devolution of powers over rail, so that full nationalisation could actually be an option, because right now it's not, because Labour continues to block those powers coming to the Scottish Parliament. Jamie Greene The First Minister thinks that Network Rail is the fault of the majority of delays. What does the First Minister say to passengers that were on the Waverly to Helensburg service on Monday that were left stuck at Ophol station when their train decoupled, leaving three carriages behind stranded at the station? Does the First Minister know why that incident happened? Can she assure the travelling public that nobody in Scotland will be left behind on Scotland's railways? The particular incident that the member raises, as I understand it, is currently being investigated by the ORR, and that is the appropriate action to take. It's not me claiming that half of the delays are down to Network Rail, it's a fact that half of the delays are down to Network Rail. If all of the members and all the parties across the chamber could come together and demand the devolution of Network Rail, we could have full and integrated responsibility and be able to do even more to improve performance on our railways. I would be delighted to have the support of the Tories and of Labour to make that move. Ross Greer Thank you. The latest ScotRail performance statistics show that, on the Mogailine, three in four trains are late or cancelled. Does the First Minister believe that ScotRail are fulfilling their obligations to passengers on a line where they can't get three or three out of every four trains reliably? The Donovan review, which I'm sure the member is aware of, is looking at particular specific actions to deal with issues on that line. Of course, I don't think that that's acceptable for passengers. That performance level is not acceptable, which is why we are working with ScotRail and it's why we set stringent expectations of ScotRail to take the action that improves performance and improves the passenger experience. The First Minister's Questions Last Thursday, in First Minister's Questions, an SNP member in this chamber calls on unnecessary concern over nuclear safety events in Faslain in respect to our UK submarine fleet by using political spin on the actual facts that are producing an inaccurate picture. The First Minister's Questions This causes alarm for our armed forces servicemen and women serving in the UK submarine fleet and keeping the UK safe as the fleet moves in total to Faslain. We hope that their families will join them to live in Scotland and we must support our UK submarine fleet crews and families and not make inaccurate statements in this chamber. The point that Mr Corry makes is very similar to the one that Ms Bailey made last week, which is that it's a political point responding to another political opinion, which all members are allowed to express, but it's not a point of order. We're going to move to members' business in the name of Tom Arthur on St Andrew's Day 2018, and we'll just have a short suspension while the gallery clears and the members and ministers change seats. A short suspension.


Jimmy K here, Metal Voice. Look at us. The Metal Voice shirts are now on sale. Just go to the video description to find out on how you can purchase one. Metal! Welcome to the Metal Voice today on the show. Yes, iconic guitarist, Michael Shanker, who's got a new album out, Immortal, which is going to be released January 29, 2021 on Nuclear Blast. Michael, how you doing? Considering the circumstances, okay. It's been a lot. This last year has been very difficult for all of us. Yeah. All right. Well, the exciting news is you have this new album with a whole bunch of new guests. You have Ronnie Romero, you have Michael Voss. Of course, he's been with you for a while. Ralph Sheepers, Joel Interner, and the list goes on and on. Why did you decide to change artist from before to now? Like you have a whole new set of people.  And so I live in the moment. And, you know, my original idea was to have guest musicians, friends and fans to celebrate the 50s anniversary. And that would have been in 2020 to be released. But somehow my original idea was, you know, to have actually what I ended up with. But in between, there was a, you know, that getting musicians lined up and together, it is very, very complicated if you plan it. And I planned it and it was dragging on. And it came to the point when I realized, wait a minute, you know, the first note I put on Non-Somkro Scorpions was when I was 15 in 1970. And so this album cannot be released until 21. My agent told me, but your album, the Scorpions Non-Somkro was actually released in 72.  And the timing is going to be fine. And so that's the experience of getting all, you know, by dragging and dragging and getting guest musicians, etc.  And who, you know, I discovered when he was singing on a Michael Schenker text album, and he has the ability to sing like anybody. It's amazing. I mean, I was wondering why Richie Blackmore was choosing him. You know, I understand today why, you know, because Richie and I, we have lots of parallels. I mean, anybody who leaves Rainbow or, you know, even with Deep Purple, they asked me in 93 to join them. So my first producer was Richard Claver from Deep Purple.  And, you know, so, so, and then, and then you have all got Vinnie Moore from the same agent, from the same management as Deep Purple got to replace Richard Blackmore. So there is an endless, endless amount of similarities between Richie and myself. So, you know, I was wondering why he picked Ronnie Romero because I don't listen to music. And I don't know what's out there for the last 50 years. And, and, but I understand what he was up to.  And so I, I, I kind of told, you know, that because I'm in such a similar situation with so many different singers, and it, it, it would be great to have Ronnie as the main singer and, and to continue life and have a compact band, Barry Sparks, you know, he kept emailing me, I want to be your bass player. And I said, he got it. And, you know, and so I kept Steve Mann bottle shopped, you know, and so we, we, the idea was to, to just make it easier and do a 50th anniversary. But the virus showed up.  Nothing sweet about it, to be honest. But it kind of directed me back to my original idea, but without me planning it, but just by circumstances, I got all of these incredible musicians on this album. I honestly, I'll tell you, step by step, how it all happened is, it's just a miracle. It's unbelievable. Yeah. Let me ask you this, are you planning on taking from these new musicians on your album, not new musicians, but we'll say to this project, who are you planning to bring live? Okay, Ronnie Romero, you mentioned, is there anyone else you want to bring live with you?  And so, yes, I made up a, you know, a, a, a, a more, you know, because of the Michael Shankler test coming from Bangkok and from all over the world, it's still there, actually. It will still perform if people can afford it. It's such an expensive undertaking, but yeah, eventually, you know, throughout the whole period of the virus developing and so on, and with the borders being locked and people not being able to, you know, it just became also complicated. And then, but in the end, I ended up with what I originally planned, but much better than I could have ever done it, you know, contemplating it. But universally speaking, it was all pro to me. And that is the beautiful thing. All right. So the sound, I've heard it. And congratulations. It sounds great. A lot of variety. And what I love the most about it, being a big Scorpions fan is in search of peace of mind, you know, Lonesome Crow, the first album. Can you tell me about the feeling of redoing that song? You know, it's probably one of the best songs on Lonesome Crow. Just what was the feeling like revisiting that song for, you know, 50 years, right? Yeah, yeah, it is the best song. And it was, and this is the fantastic thing is it was the very first ever piece of music I wrote. And I was 15 years old. I believe in my mother's kitchen, there was nobody there. The Michael Frost corpages actually sent me the original credits of Lonesome Crow. And it says Michael Schenker lyrics and Ruro Schenker lyrics. We have zero knowledge of English. How could we have been doing the lyrics misinformation completely? You know, but I was 15, they were 21. And, you know, that composition is search of the peace of mind. I mean, Rudolph can't even play that. It's actually pretty complex if you get into the details of the original version. But it was such an incredible start for myself, you know, to put the first note on a record with a song like this. And, you know, it's, it's titled in search of the peace of mind, you know, looking for contentment. That's the theme of my life. And so ironic, it all fits so well together. And then it ends up in the end on the album as an epic ending to the end.  Shall I not? You know, all the temptations that we have within ourselves and the conversations about it to make a decision, you know, everything was a choice. And so the, so the end solo ended up like a conversation actually describing my whole 50 years. And basically, there's so many different elements on that out for solo with the wah wah and with a howler and, and all this different, I don't know, approach and all the different, it sounds like question and answer, you know, within yourself. And, and I, I couldn't have wished for a better result than that. I agree with you. I'm a huge fan of Lonesome Crow. Did you ever think of redoing maybe the song Lonesome Crow or something else off that album? It's a great album. Your playing is, that's one of your, I don't know, I just find your playing is excellent on that album for such a young age. What do you remember from that time? Well, the thing, the thing is that for some reason, for some very strange reason, the solo, the middle solo of the original version was so perfect, I would never ever change a note. Like Leslie West Mountain theme of the imaginary restaurant or stairway to heaven or whatever. Sometimes something like that happens. It's so magical. But I did not understand where it was coming from because I was developing as a guitarist. I was only 50 years old, you know, and you can hear the progress of myself like going from phenomenon to force it and so on. And the funny thing also is that Kurt Hammett, he is a Michael Schenker fan, and when I hear his vibrato, it sounds like Lonesome Crow. But you know, I must say that the rest of Lonesome Crow of my lead guitar playing was, you can hear that he's a nervous vibrato, I'm developing, I'm, you know, getting better over the years. But Lonesome Crow itself, the middle solo, was so perfect. I have no clue where it came from. And I'll ask you my last question on Lonesome Crow. What was the environment like, when the album was finished, what was your reaction? What was your feeling about this album? I'm absolutely excited, you know. I was listening to Led Zeppelin just a year before, you know, in my bedroom when I was a 14 or so. And it was one song, one of my favorite songs of all time, the immigrant song, you know. And that Lonesome Crow, one year later, was coming through the same radio. It was a great feeling.  Did your brother contribute much musically to that album? Or is it more you? Nothing at all. Nothing. He can't even play it. The thing is that I wrote most of Lonesome Crow, but because I was 15, they were 21. They took advantage of me and they wanted the piece of the pie. And they wanted to be involved in the first experience of an album that was recorded for the first time for everybody. And, but I think there was also a kind of, you know, being inexperienced, making the first record that they didn't quite understand, or maybe they did. I have no clue. But, you know, Rudolf always puts music written by Rudolf Schenker and lyrics written by Sohn. So they should have done that on that, on Lonesome Crow. Yes, they should have said Michael Schenker, you know, the music written by Michael Schenker, the lyrics written by whoever. And I guess there was a couple of moments where maybe, I don't remember, but where maybe Rudolf or somebody had an influence in writing. But I was the musician. I was the artist. I was always focusing on music. Okay. All right. All right, let's get back to your new album. What was it like working with Ralph Sheepers? I mean, an incredible vocalist, right? The first time you're recording with him, what was it like? You did two songs, Devil's Daughter and Drill to Kill, I believe, right? Yeah, I just, you know, it just came out of nowhere. Because I had to, I had to, you know, my original idea of making a 50th anniversary with guests, musicians, fans and friends, dragged on. And I missed the timing of a release of 2020. Then my agent told me, but the album was released in 72. And I said, I have two hours, I mean, two years to actually, I can actually go back to carrying because I actually gave up on making this album, because I thought I missed the timing. And so now I had two years. And then that's when I decided to have a compact band because it was so complicated with guest musicians. And then it ended up the way I originally wanted it. But without my input, it just came out of nowhere.  After the rain, Michael Voss sings on it, I believe. An incredible, probably one of the best tracks on the album. I mean, you're handing over the vocals to Mike, and I believe he sings on the Queen of Thorns, Thorns and Roses too, correct? Yeah. And, you know, it's, I never planned for that. But, you know, Michael Foster always writes a B plan for vocals while I'm putting down my backing tracks. And he comes up, you know, with, you know, like, for instance, Warrior of Redirection, I came back from the hotel, he said, like, Michael, this is what I did to the music he put down last night. And it was Warrior, I said, Michael, that is unbelievable, but actually became one of the best songs ever, you know, and so the same after the rain. I came back from the hotel and he exactly did the same thing. Listen, Michael, I wrote this as a B plan, and I said, Michael, this is so beautiful. Only you can sing this. This is coming from your heart. This is incredible. And everything, I mean, the melody and I never, and it was a power ballad. I never have done a power ballad as far as I remember in my whole life. And so that was shocking in a way because I never expected anything like that, you know, showing up on the album. And so, you know, Michael Foster became the singer for that song, because I couldn't imagine anybody else singing it better than him. And then there was this other unusual song, which I must say unusual, because, you know, it's kind of different, but what he did to it was so amazing and so personal from the lyrics point of view as well, that I could not imagine anybody else singing it.  Yeah, you know, it's a very well rounded album with a lot of different, I really enjoyed it. You know, I think it's a nice shift from what you're doing. So now you have MSG, which originally, of course, what you started with, but you've moved away from the Michael Schenkerfest name. Do you want to comment on that? Yeah, Michael Schenkerfest is still available. Everything is still available. Even Michael Schenkerfest Temple of Rock. Anything is still available. People want it and can afford it, especially the Michael Schenkerfest. Very expensive people coming from all over the world, top singers, and it is there when people can afford it. But the Michael Schenker group, in fact, from the 80s onwards, everything is Michael Schenker called with subtitles like Michael Schenker's Temple of Rock, Michael Schenkerfest, and which is a good thing because it helps everybody to kind of relate to what Michael Schenker group are we talking about. You know, the first one was Michael Schenker group, then the second one was MSG. And then, you know, that the first one was Simon Phillips, the more poster from Jeff Beck, and the second one was Colise Powell, and Paul Raymond, UFO, and Chris Ganon, and so on. And then we even had an MSG with Robert McCauley. I gave him the M. I didn't care about if I had the first M or not, but I wanted to keep the MSG. And so you have, but it's still a Michael Schenker group. It's not at all Michael Schenker, even though it's very different. And I let other people, you know, write, but it all everything always starts with Michael Schenker group. And, you know, because I it just in the end of the day, there's so many different lineups that people start getting confused. And I recognize that in interviews, and that's why I make it clear, you know, that to categorize and giving Michael Schenker group with so many different lineups, subtitles, like Michael Schenker's Temple of Work, Michael Schenker Fest, it helps everybody to know when it happened, who was in it, why did it happen, and so on, you know, I mean, Michael Schenker Fest was all original singers for the competition from the 80s with the songs I wrote. And the Michael Schenker's Temple of Work is the one with Harman Rebel and found the smooth oil from the scorpions. And so people always can refer, you know, to the time when it was done, and which Michael Schenker group it is. All right. And just some offbeat questions. You talked about Deep Purple when Richie Blackmore left, you were invited, right, to join Deep Purple or Audition? Was that? Yeah, in 1993, I got a phone call. I was the first person to be chosen, you know, you have to remember Richie Blackmore and I have so much power, everything that comes, everything that leaves Richie Blackmore joins Michael Schenker Group. It's the funniest thing.   I never looked for competition or fame or anything. I just like to put three notes together to create goosebumps and pure self-expression is what I love.  I always declined because I don't copy. I don't want to copy. I want to do pure self-expression. But the funny thing is that I love Ozzy Osborne.  That's it, you know, for me when I was 14, 15 years old.  That's why I left, you know, mainly the year of all, which would have become one of the biggest bands in the world. They were peaking, starting to peak. Scorpions left right, you know, they asked me to help them out. And because Matthias was unable to open the doors for America for them, I wrote the first hit for UFO Lights Out in 21 in 76. And, you know, it was the ticket for Rudolph and Klaus, you know, to make it into the States. And but unfortunately, I had a different vision. I cannot follow a bunch of people looking for something that I have already finished with and don't actually, I'm not even interested in.  And that's why my middle years became very experimental. And I'm very happy I did it because it really fulfilled me. Yeah. And the last question would be an Eddie Van Halen question.  You know, just any comments about Eddie Van Halen and his guitar playing or his influence on you or maybe others, you know, any comments on Eddie Van Halen? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, the weirdest thing is that actually Van Halen was supporting UFO at the Starwood. I was 19 years old, I guess. And I didn't nobody knew it was what would deal with that that would have been 74, 75, you know, and and I never paid. I heard that some people were saying that a phenomenal guitarist there. But it was five years before they brought out the Van Halen one, which, you know, even though I'm not listening to any music for the last 50 years, sometimes you cannot over here, things coming out of speakers everywhere. And when I, when I heard Eddie, I went like, wow, this is amazing. But I didn't know that he actually was doing the tapping technique because I was always wondering how on earth does he get such a smooth guitar sound, you know, and then even without the tapping, everybody was doing tapping later and trust Eddie, you know, just like they did with me. They copied my style in people copied my style 80% of all the tires in the 80s and trust my style, too. But I go to the inner infinite spring and always come up with something fresh. So I'm always a step ahead anyway. But with with a tapping that was so extreme and everybody and it was actually in the end, it appeared to be easy to do for overnight success. So there was like thousands of guitarists going to guitar school learning tapping to be to be a star in one or two years. And, well, that that shows that tapping is not all and not really actually doesn't create much emotion. But the thing with Eddie Van Halen, he had rhythm style.    So it's in a family gene that his sense of rhythm, his sense of melody, his sense of sound tone quality, the way he actually entertains was so complete. He's the best. Yeah. And on that note, the new album, Immortal, we're going to be released on January 23, 29, 2021 via Nuclear Blast. I've heard it sounds amazing. Thank you so much for joining me on the show today, Michael. Always a pleasure. And I wish you all the best and all the success. And hopefully this cold thing will be over soon and you could go on tour. Thank you so much. Thanks for the interview and see you soon. Keep on rockin'.


The study assesses the impact of climate change on hop yield, alpha content, and cone development in European hops between 1970 and 2050 CE, predicting a decline in hop yield and alpha content of up to 4 to 18% and 20 to 31%, respectively, which requires immediate adaptation measures. This article was authored by Martin Mosny, Miyslav Trinka, Vodjak Vlach, and others.


Africa is very rich in so many ways, right? Starting with its demographic, you know, we have such a young demographic and in my mind, youth is richness. Also the quality of our people. We have amazing people as well. So yes, it is true. Everywhere you look, it feels rich. It's because it is rich. Yet a lot of folks in Africa have not been able to accomplish a form of prosperity like we could see in other parts of the world, despite, you know, offering so much to the world. So to me, it has been a puzzle for a very, very long time. How do countries prosper?