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Fraser MacWilliams provided a very clear and concise response, which I urge everyone to read. However, he asked me to answer as well, so let me add a couple of points.First, Muslim Spain is the example most frequently cited as the shining example of “Islamic tolerance,” harmonious co-existence and “superior” treatment afforded Christians and Jews under Islamic rule in contrast to the Christian treatment of Jews and Muslims. This is a myth, as Professor Dario Fernandez-Morera in his meticulously documented work The Myth of the Andalusian Paradise: Muslims, Christians and Jews under Islamic Rule in Medieval Spain proves beyond a doubt.Fernandez-Morera uses the Arabic sources to create his picture of Islamic Spain, and he applies logic and common sense ruthlessly to expose “political correctness” masquerading as history. This book is important not just to those interested in learning about Medieval Spain, but as a lesson in how ideology can pervert allegedly scholarly writing. I recommend to everyone with an interest in either this topic or history and historiography generally. The link above takes you directly to amazon), but if you are short of time, here are the highlights:Fernandez-Morera strips away the veil created by politically-correct modern historians to look at the real face of Muslim Spain based on contemporary, predominantly Arab sources. Conscious that he is taking on the entrenched academic establishment, Professor Fernadez-Morera documents his book meticulously, quoting numerous sources for each assertion and providing more than 100 pages of notes.What emerges is a hideous image of brutal aggression, consciously humiliating oppression, and intolerance on all sides (Muslim, Christian and Jewish). This book is not a diatribe against Islam. Rather it is a bitter and biting attack on Western historians who in their search for an example to justify their own fantasies about “multicultural harmony” inside Islam have ignored or consciously distorted the facts.For example, Fernandes-Morera quotes the following passage from another contemporary historian: “It is important to understand that medieval Islamic civilization had a different attitude toward slavery than that seen in Western Europe. Slaves were much better treated and their status was quite honorable. Furthermore, there were many career opportunities open to a skillful mamluk [slave soldier], and the higher standards of living available in the Islamic Middle East, meant there was often little resistance to being taken [as a slave] in Central Asia and south-eastern Europe.” Fernandes-Morera replies: “One can certainly imagine the throngs of girls and boys in Greece, Serbia and Central Asia clamoring to be taken away from their families to be circumcised, to become sexual slaves, or to be castrated to guard harems as eunuchs, or, in other cases, to be raised in barracks with the sole purpose of becoming fearless slave-soldiers.”Fernandez-Morera systematically debunks the allegations of a more “relaxed” Islam and multicultural equality. He does so by quoting Arab sources which (among other things) brag about the whole scale destruction of churches and the slaughter of Christian prisoners, praise the crucifixion of apostates, and texts advising Muslims how to collect the tax from non-believers. (Make them stand before Muslims sitting on a raised platform, call them “enemy of Allah” and then push them around for the amusement of any Muslim “who want[s] to enjoy it.”)He also documents the extent to which Islamic Spanish society was dependent on slaves. For example, Abd al-Rahman had 3,750 slaves in his court, 6,300 sexual slaves in his harem, and 13, 750 slave soldiers. Furthermore, he notes that slaves were a major export of the kingdom, particularly eunuchs (castrated Christian males.) He documents the racism that characterized all blacks as fickle, foolish and ignorant and valued “white” slave girls at almost 15 times that of black slave girls.Fernandez-Morera reminds readers that in Islamic Spain sharia law was the law of the land, and he goes into considerable detail on the specific form of sharia law applied, namely the Maliki school of Islamic jurisprudence. He points out that the Maliki school, far from being particularly liberal and tolerant, “is one of the more conservative schools, though not the most conservative — an honor that belongs to the Habali school, predominant in the Arabian Peninsula.” (Fernandes-Morera, p. 96.) Fernandez-Morera points out that Maliki sharia law included many niceties like female genital mutilation (even for adult sexual slaves), counted a woman as half a man, and banned musical instruments and singing altogether (as well as painting and sculpture, of course). The law even went so far as to order a man who bought a non-Muslim sex slave and discovered she was a singer to return her (p. 108).Obviously, as Fernandez-Morera admits, the elites in Muslim Spain (as all over the world) often ignored the law. Non-Muslim slave singers and dancers are tolerated and even coveted. However, he is right to remind his readers that lapses in the application of law do not constitute a positive culture--much less a shining example of “paradise.”Now compare the above regime with the treatment of Muslims in the Crusader States.Professor Bernard Hamilton notes that, “once their rule had been established the Franks proved remarkably tolerant in their treatment of non-Christian subjects.” He stresses that “the Franks allowed complete religious freedom to all their subjects.” (Hamilton, Bernard. The Leper King and His Heirs: Baldwin IV and the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. Cambridge University Press, 2000, p. 49) Far from being forced to convert, the Muslim villagers were run by a council of elders who in turn appointed a “rayse” to represent the community to the Christian lord, while all spiritual and social matters were regulated by the imams in the community in accordance with Sharia law! (Jonathan Riley-Smith, Atlas of the Crusades, Swanston Publishing Ltd, 1191, p. 16 among others.)Indeed, based on Arab accounts, Muslim peasants were treated better by their Christian overlords and landlords than they had been treated by their Turkish overlords. For example, Ibn Jubair, who visited the Kingdom of Jerusalem in 1183 from Grenada, noted that the Muslim peasants he saw in Galilee “seemed more prosperous and content than those living under Islamic rule outside the Kingdom of Jerusalem.” (Jotischky, Andrew. Crusading and the Crusader States. Pearson Longman, 2004, p. 129) For more on Muslims in the crusader states, their minority status and overall living conditions see: Muslims in the Crusader StatesPlease note: the Crusader States were NOT slave economies — with all that implies see: Slavery in the Crusader KingdomsChristians did NOT have harems, which meant no need for massive numbers of female sex slaves and no need for castrated males to guard them. Yes, there were brothels in the crusader states, but NEVER female genital mutilation.For more on life-style and co-existence in the Crusader States see: Crusader Kingdoms - DescriptionThis website includes descriptions of the judiciary and administration of the crusader states and essay on medical care, the economy, architecture and more.

STEP 1: You must PRE-REGISTER your child’s profile and pick your child’s open call location in advance.STEP 2: Attend an OPEN CALL with your child (you must pre-register for your child). Please bring the following with you to the open call you choose:1.Your child’s completed application Page on masterchefjuniorcasting.comwhich must be signed by both parents or guardian(s).Page on 2.an Apron of your child’s choiceIMPORTANT NOTE: IF YOU CANNOT MAKE IT TO AN OPEN CALL, PLEASE FOLLOW THE STEPS BELOW TO SEND IN YOUR CHILD’S MATERIALSSTEP 1: Make a VIDEO. Your child only needs to do this if you CANNOT ATTEND AN OPEN CALL.CLICK HERE to view the video submission instructionsSTEP 2: Completely fill out the online application form for your child and upload your child’s picture HERE. Only parents may complete and submit applications and pictures online. All legal guardians must sign the application formSTEP 3: Please mail your child’s application, picture, and video to:MasterChef Junior Season 5 Casting1741 Ivar AvenueLos Angeles, California 90028Please note that videos and materials submitted by mail will not be returned.lastt date for this year audition is 11 dec 2015

It's certainly a legitimate question as part of due diligence. If you don't have one, take the time to think it through and develop one. It's a good thing for you to consider.(By the way, to put things in perspective, here's a typical diligence checklist that might be requested from a venture fund, super angel or an organized angel investor group):Company OverviewArticulate your company’s “equity story” (i.e. why you are on to something and why your stock will appreciate greatly).Discuss company history as well as key milestones achieved since inception.Provide your internal business planning document(s).Provide and discuss any internally generated reports used to monitor and measure operating and fiscal performance.Identify the 3—5 most important challenges going forward.Management TeamPlease provide résumés and a list of business references (with contact information) for each key member of the management team.Summarize the key responsibilities of each member of the management team.Are there any key management positions open? If so, how will you fill them (headhunter, personal contacts, etc.)?How many total employees do you have now and how do you forecast this to grow over the next five years?Have any members of your management team left in the last 2 years and, if so, why? Please provide contact information for these individuals.List the Board of Directors with board positions held, terms of office and compensation. Please provide contact information and short bios for each board member.Market Size and Other MarketingPlease describe your target market and quantify its current size and projected growth.Please describe the characteristics of companies/individuals in your target market?Provide your market research, if any.Please explain your marketing strategy and describe the assumptions underlying it. Compare your approach to that of your principal competitors.What market share do you anticipate and when will you capture it?How do you see your market evolving over the next 12 – 18 months? What trends are most important?Describe your long-term competitive advantage that competitors cannot easily replicate. How long will this advantage last?What are the major drivers of growth and profitability in your industry? What metrics do you watch to track them?Please describe your pricing strategy and your overall business model. What was your logic in structuring your business model the way you did?SalesPlease provide your top customers (with references), your sales backlog (firm contracts) and pipeline (sales prospects).Describe your direct and indirect sales channels and explain key factors in customer acquisition and customer retention.How do you motivate your sales force?Describe your sales cycle from sourcing a lead to closing a sale. What is your average cost to acquire a customer, average revenue per sale, and potential lifetime revenue per customer (for recurring revenue customers)?What is your value proposition to your customer and how do you communicate it? Please provide a copy of your sales pitch.If you sell to businesses, to whom do you sell in an organization (i.e. what titled position such as CTO, CMO, Sales Manager, etc.)?List your revenue targets for the next two years and describe the milestones or hurdles you will have to achieve to meet these targets.CompetitionPlease analyze your key direct and indirect competitors, including the products and services provided, comparative prices and quality, market share data and perceived competitive advantages.What is your IP position, relative to your competitors?Product DevelopmentProvide a detailed product description.Detail the history of the company’s technology and product development. How much has been spent on development? What has been licensed from third parties?How has market research guided your product development?What mechanisms (both formal and informal) do you have to collect feedback from customers? Provide examples of how customer feedback has influenced product design.Have there been any delays in developing your technologies and, if so, what have the causes of these delays been?Intellectual PropertyPlease provide U.S. and European patents, patent applications and CIPs.Provide U.S. and European trademarks and trademark applications.Have any employees signed NDAs? If so, please list them and provide a complete list of employees/consultants who have not signed non-disclosure agreements while performing work for the company.Has your company ever been accused of infringing on the intellectual property of other companies, or have you ever accused others of infringing on your IP? If so, please provide details.Production / OperationsPlease describe your compensation system, including salary ranges, bonuses, commissions and benefits.What stock option plans or other employee equity participation strategies do you have? What percentage of the company are you reserving for management?Provide summary of the vesting schedules of any stock or options, subject to vesting.Do you employ consultants or contract labor? If so, in what capacity?Describe how you handle post-sales customer support?What systems exist for customer support?What support options are available to customers?How do you handle fulfillment and logistics of distribution?What are your return policies and how you process returns?How do you track and manage inventory? Please describe how your inventory system interfaces with your cash management system.Please detail your data redundency and disaster recovery strategy.What accounting systems/procedures do you employ?How do you handle HR administration? Please provide an overview of your employee benefits package.Have you fully or partially implemented Sarbanes-Oxley compliance?Financing StrategyProvide a full capitalization table showing fully-diluted shares, notes, warrants, option pools (issued and available).List of all investors, contact information, number of shares issued, issuance date and price.Explain the company’s use of funds from this round in detail, including assumptions behind line item estimates.What are your future financing needs (amount and timing) for both debt and equity? When do you become EBITDA and cash flow positive?FinancialsProvide any historical audited financial statements (balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement).Provide a full financial model (balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement) and detailed discussion of the key assumptions therein. Include trailing 12-month results by month, projections for the next 12 months (including gross and net burn rates) and annual projections for the next five years.