Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} The Convention by Chris Hambleton People similar to or like Peter Hambleton. Welsh-born New Zealand actor who has acted on stage, television and film over a period of more than four decades. Though born in Wales, he has spent most of his career living and working in New Zealand. Wikipedia. New Zealand film and television actor. Thirteen years old. Wikipedia. New Zealand film, television and advertising director and actor. Of Samoan and Scottish descent, and based in Wellington. Wikipedia. New Zealand film, television and stage actress as well as a musician, director, producer playwright and comedian. Well known as Alice in the New Zealand cult science fiction series The Tribe and as Brenda Blue in the British children's television show Jay Jay the Jet Plane, she also had roles in the first and third parts of The Lord of the Rings (The Fellowship of the Ring and The Return of the King), Outrageous Fortune, Out of the Blue, Woodville, and How to Murder Wife. Wikipedia. The Bus Law of By-Elections. It has been nearly two years since the last by-election to the UK House of Commons – in Brecon & Radfordshire, where Jane Dodds unseated Chris Davies. This is said to be the longest gap since the end of World War Two, though I suspect you could look a lot further back than that and not find one. It is quite remarkable that over the course of 2020 no MPs died despite several testing positive and one having to be put on a ventilator.* Things got moving again on 16th March when Mike Hill, facing an employment tribunal, took the Chiltern Hundreds. A by-election for his constituency of Hartlepool is scheduled to take place on 6th May, alongside the many local elections across the country. Already eleven candidates have been put forward. The list is rather fascinating in that three former Labour MPs will be competing against each other for different parties: Paul Williams (Stockton South 2017-19) is still fighting for the red rose but Hilton Dawson (Lancaster & Wyre 1997-2005) is now secretary of the North East Party which seeks a devolved parliament for the region similar to those in Scotland and Wales and Thelma Walker (Colne Valley, 2017-19) has defected to the Northern Independence Party which seeks to revive the ancient kingdom of Northumbria as a democratic socialist republic. The Conservative candidate Jill Mortimer is a farmer and Hambleton (North Yorkshire) District Councillor. Reform UK (formerly the Brexit Party) is putting forward businessman John Prescott ( not the former Labour MP) and the Liberal Democrats have chosen Andy Hagon, a teacher who also stood there in 2017 and 2019. It has cause some controversy (and mirth) to note that so few of the candidates are actually from Hartlepool. Once the domain of Peter Mandelson, this constituency is part of the so-called “Red Wall” of traditional Labour seats that has swung towards the Conservatives after voting to leave the European Union. You might reasonably think that any seat which stayed red in 2019 couldn’t possibly go blue now, but a recent Survation poll gave the Conservatives a seven-point lead. Obviously it’s too early to call at this stage, but the prospect of the government gaining a seat from the opposition again in just over four years would be seriously humiliating for the latter, although we can hope that on this occasion the prime minister will not be tempted to go for a snap general election as a consequence. On 23rd March Neil Gray took the Manor of Northstead, vacating the constituency of Airdrie & Shotts in order to contest the same seat for the Scottish Parliament in Holyrood**. In this instance the returning officer has decided that it would be safer not to have the two polls on one day, so instead the by-election will take place a week later on 13th May. The candidate list for this election is not yet as long, nor as amusing. Notable here is that there has not been a Commons by-election in Scotland since Inverclyde in 2011 and never at all where the National Party was defending. On 4th April Dame Cheryl Gillan died at the age of 68 following “a long illness“. She had been MP for Chesham & Amersham since 1992 and was the twenty-fourth most senior by continuous service. No candidates have yet been announced for this by-election and neither has the writ been moved when the others were. Partly this is because she died when the Commons had already risen for the Easter recess, and partly it is because of the convention to delay political machinations until after the late member’s funeral. * The other place was less lucky, with Lord Gordon of Strathblane succumbing to COVID on 31st of last March. A few hereditary peers have retired or died of other causes in that time but their by-elections have been repeatedly postponed. **This is required by the party’s rules, rather than those of either legislature. The Convention by Chris Hambleton. The Sons of Liberty Trilogy. Now available on the Kindle! My latest novel is ready for download at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZNTCJPC! The trilogy consist of three books (in order): “The Convention”, “The Green Zone”, and “The Declaration”. The idea for the trilogy was introduced in my third book back in 2010 called “The Cell – Twilight’s Last Gleaming.” The events in the trilogy take place several years before “The Cell” and set the stage for the America portrayed in it. The synopsis for the entire trilogy is: After six years of a failed presidency, the United States of America teeters on the brink of another collapse – not another economic collapse, but a collapse of confidence in leadership. The healthcare system is in ruins, the borders are undefended against terrorists, the national debt is spiraling out of control, and the political system has grown increasingly disconnected from the American people. When the federal government shuts down over another budget conflict, a group called the Sons of Liberty issues an ultimatum to the Capitol to get their act together – or else. If the House, the Senate, and the President cannot resolve their differences and rein in the out-of-control spending and bureaucracy, violent action will be taken. After the first shot is fired between Homeland Security and the Sons of Liberty, the powder-keg brewing at the capital explodes. As the conflict between Washington and the rest of the country begins to spiral out of control, a group of state legislators sets out to hold a Convention of States in hopes of pulling the nation back from a civil war.. FBO Profile: APP Jet Center Fort Pierce. “This place reminds people of the TV show Wings ,” said Genevieve “Gigi” Hazle, speaking about the APP Jet Center at St. Lucie International Airport in Fort Pierce, Fla. Hazle was the assistant manager at the facility when AIN visited the Florida FBO early last month, but has since been promoted to general manager at APP Jet Center in Hayward, Calif. APP, which is short for Airport Property Partners, also owns FBOs in Manassas, Va., and Sarasota, Fla. The comparison of the Fort Pierce facility to the TV series that ran from 1990 to 1997 is quite obvious from the moment one steps inside the lobby, which is occupied mostly by an FBO-owned and -run restaurant–one featured on the front page of the Wall Street Journal –that serves breakfast and lunch daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. It’s the mix of people–pilots, local restaurant patrons, front-desk CSRs, linemen, a maintenance man whose personality strikes the same chord as his TV show equivalent “Lowell”–and a cozy place to hang out that makes it the real-life version of Wings . While the restaurant might be the hub of the FBO, there’s much more to APP Jet Center Fort Pierce, a Shell-branded full-service FBO with 300,000 sq ft of hangar space in 30 hangars. APP bought the facility from Volo Aviation, along with the Manassas and Sarasota FBOs, in 2009. It bought the Hayward location late last year from Atlantic Aviation. Thanks to an on-site U.S. Customs facility (open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily), the St. Lucie Airport is also known as “the gateway to the Bahamas.” It is the northernmost U.S. stopover point to and from the islands that doesn’t require an overflight permit, nor does it have the airline traffic found at the six other U.S. fields that can accept aircraft flying directly to or from the Bahamas. The customs facility is literally a stone’s throw from the APP FBO, and staff at both facilities work hard to ensure 15- to 20-minute quick turns, at most, for transient island traffic. In fact, the working relationship between the FBO and U.S. Customs is so good that APP linemen can fuel aircraft on the customs ramp, as well as help with bags going to and from customs inspection, to speed up the process even more. November to May, as well as holidays outside this period, are the peak times at the airport, and APP Jet Center Fort Pierce general manager Chris Hambleton told AIN that as many as 120 aircraft can come through in one day during the peak. Of these, about 70 to 80 are processed through customs–an impressive average of one aircraft cleared every six minutes. APP Owns the Field. Since buying out its sole competitor, Key Air, earlier this year, APP Jet Center quite literally owns the field–in fact, APP also manages and subleases more than 100 acres of land and some 60 structures at the St. Lucie Airport. This includes the currently vacant 41,500-sq-ft aircraft manufacturing facility that once housed Micco Aircraft and Freedom Aviation. Tenants on the field include several jet and turboprop maintenance providers, namely Aircraft Turbine Works and Aircraft Service Center; air ambulance and air charter firm American Jets; Treasure Coast Avionics; Chip’s Custom Aircraft Painting; and salvage yard Air & Sea Recovery. While the Key Air facility that APP bought in February is more modern, it is on the opposite side of the field, meaning a runway separates it from the U.S. Customs facility–a liability given the fact that about 75 percent of arriving aircraft is transient traffic to or from the Bahamas. This is why APP maintains its presence in the smaller facility adjacent to U.S. Customs, even though the structure was built in the 1960s. Since then the FBO has been renovated four times, Hambleton said, and is about to get a fifth makeover starting this month, with the work expected to be completed before traffic picks up in November. The $250,000 renovation will see the signature, but now tattered, palm roof thatching at both the land and airside entrances replaced with newer, and less flammable, materials. On the airside, the thatched roof over the front overlook will be replaced by a two-story glass enclosure, giving the FBO a much more modern feel. Landside, the thatch awning will be replaced with one that has a canvas covering. Inside, the restaurant will be updated, to include ADA- compliant seating at the bar, new restrooms and other treatments. Other parts of the FBO, including the pilot snooze room, have been renovated more recently, so they won’t be included in the upcoming upgrades. All About the Customers. Even though it is now the sole FBO on the field, APP has not changed its fuel-price margins or its policy to waive ramp fees with any (no minimum) fuel purchase when visiting the facility, Hambleton said. In addition, APP Jet Center does not charge any ramp fees for helping to load or unload aircraft baggage at the customs ramp. As far as fuel prices go, Hambleton said he has to be competitive with those at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport. “Some of the prices at FXE are very low, so we have to be mindful of that,” he said. But even if the FBOs at Fort Lauderdale can marginally undercut him on price, he noted that the Fort Pierce field has the advantage of less traffic. “We don’t have the airline traffic to contend with, so we really can get you in and out in 15 or 20 minutes, tops,” Hambleton said. In fact, AIN saw a PC-12 arriving from the Bahamas taxi in at about noon, clear customs and depart the field about 12 minutes later. The FBO also prides itself on customer service. Although the CSRs do double duty at the front desk, simultaneously serving aircraft customers and cashing out restaurant patrons, they prioritize the former so that they can get on their way. “You learn pretty fast to distinguish restaurant patrons from the aircraft clients,” said Hazle. “We always take care of those with aircraft first.” While some might view this as a distraction that could hamper customer service, Hazle insisted that it doesn’t, with the dual role just part of the CSR’s job at the FBO. On the plus side, this arrangement allows Hambleton to keep a full staff year-round, since the restaurant provides stable funding during the non-peak months. He argues that this increased staffing allows the FBO to provide more attentive service, whether in peak or non-peak periods. Even Hambleton does double duty, managing the restaurant and FBO staff. “The restaurant is not too difficult to run alongside the FBO,” he said. “One of the chefs was here when I started pumping fuel at the FBO when I was 15. I’m now 39,” noting that this kind of consistency in staffing makes the task even easier. The RNC and the Melting Pot. Facing criticism for attempting to capitalize on the devastation of September 11th, 2001, organizers of the 2004 Republican National Convention have begun to frame the four-day event as a celebration of New York’s diversity and cultural history. However, thus far, they have struggled to explain how they intend to experience—and not exploit—the city’s cultural diversity. At an event on Staten Island in mid-February, William Harris, the CEO of the convention, praised the city’s demographics to a crowd of Republican loyalists. “New York exemplifies the United States of America as an immigrant society,” he said. Harris then went on to herald the city’s “American icons,” including Ellis Island, among others. “These are all places that people in the United States know about, even if they’ve never been here,” he said, noting that the Republican Party intends to encourage its convention guests to visit the New York’s famous landmarks when they come to town this summer. In a subsequent interview, Leslie Beyer, the Deputy Director of Communications for the convention, focused on the same issues. “We’re definitely striving to experience New York and its great diversity,” she said. Asked about the Republicans’ efforts to extend the event to the outer boroughs, she replied, “We’re looking at American icons, and some of them are outside Manhattan.” Certainly, the thousands of Republicans from across the country—many of whom will be venturing to New York for the first time—should make every effort to visit the city’s historic sites and “American icons.” But Harris and the convention organizers are missing a critical point: New York has much more than museums and monuments to show for its diversity and culture. Peter Laarman, chairman of the Accountability Campaign, a group working to counter the message of the convention, criticized the Republicans’ efforts to capitalize on the city’s icons. “It’s worrisome that they are trying to capture New York’s symbolism and not engage its people,” he said. Laarman also accused the Republicans of selecting New York as the site of their convention to capitalize politically on Ground Zero and the city’s other historical and cultural icons. Laarman says, the party’s leaders “didn’t pick New York because they like the hotels, they picked it because it represents something they can use as a glorified aircraft carrier for their reelection campaign,” he said, referring to the president’s “Mission Accomplished” speech aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln last year. Indeed, as Laarman suggested, the Republicans have shown little interest in New York beyond the icons they hope to showcase this summer. But if Harris and the convention organizers are at all serious about acknowledging and appreciating the city’s cultural diversity, they clearly have a responsibility to encourage their guests to experience that element of the city in the flesh—not just in the souvenir shops of historic landmarks. Ellis Island, of course, represents a critical chapter of American history. Between 1892 and 1924, its immigration station welcomed thousands of transatlantic voyagers per day, and by 1954 had processed more than 12 million people. Today, the Ellis Island Immigration Museum showcases the experiences of those immigrants, illustrating the formation of the nation’s multicultural composition. But Ellis Island represents more than a piece of history; it represents the melting pot that continues to define New York. Today, the residents of Queens and Brooklyn speak more than 100 languages, and Asian Indian, Colombian, Bangladeshi, Nigerian, Chinese, and Pakistani immigrants, among others, coexist in those boroughs’ vibrant neighborhoods. Convention organizers, however, despite their frequent references to New York’s reflection of America as a nation of immigrants, have made no mention of encouraging their guests to spend time in the diverse neighborhoods of Queens and Brooklyn. Instead, they have repeatedly alluded to the symbolism of Ellis Island’s immigration museum. This disconnection between New York’s icons and its people has not only infuriated community activists; it has also riled up some political leaders. Councilman Charles Barron (D-Brooklyn) called the Republicans’ commitment to diversity “a bunch of nonsense” and harshly criticized the party’s treatment of New York. Contending that “the Republicans are going to ignore New York’s communities of color,” Barron dismissed the convention organizers’ attempt to link the event to the city’s diversity and cultural history as “disgraceful, manipulative, [and] hypocritical.” Interestingly enough, this is not the first time the Republicans have encountered criticism of this kind. During their 2000 convention in Philadelphia, they experienced a similar detachment between the city’s historic monuments and its people. Amidst the fanfare of that event, the party’s leaders frequently posed with icons like the Liberty Bell and spoke of freedom for people of all backgrounds. However, they paid no attention to the neighborhoods that defined Philadelphia’s cultural diversity—specifically the heavily populated African-American and Latino communities of North Philadelphia. The Kensington Welfare Rights Union (KWRU), a national non-profit group based in North Philadelphia, actually arranged a series of “reality tours” during the 2000 convention to highlight the elements of the city that the convention chose not to showcase, including the racial, as well as socioeconomic, diversity of the city. Cheri Honkala, the director of KWRU , pointedly noted that “no one from the convention, officially or unofficially, joined us on any of the tours.” This time around, the Republicans have walked themselves into a similar dilemma. Of course, they are doing nothing wrong by encouraging their guests to visit icons like Ellis Island; those landmarks provide brilliant snapshots of history and often help visitors gain a better understanding of both the city and the nation. But if the Republicans planning this summer’s convention have a sincere desire to showcase the city’s diversity and cultural history, they have a responsibility to grasp the larger picture. Specifically, they need to encourage their guests to look beyond the icons and experience this multicultural city firsthand.